GBU, India International Centre Sign Five-Year MoU to Advance Manuscript Studies & Digital Archiving

Greater Noida News (12/07/2026): Gautam Buddha University (GBU) has entered into a strategic academic partnership with the India International Centre (IIC), New Delhi, by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at promoting manuscript studies, digital preservation, interdisciplinary research, and academic collaboration. The five-year agreement seeks to strengthen research initiatives while safeguarding India’s rich manuscript legacy through modern technologies and collaborative academic programmes.

The MoU was formally signed by Kanwal Wali, Secretary, India International Centre, representing IIC, and Prof. Chander Kumar Singh, Registrar, Gautam Buddha University, on behalf of GBU.

The signing ceremony witnessed the presence of senior officials and academic leaders from both institutions. Representing the India International Centre were K. N. Shrivastava, Director, IIC; Dr. Sudha Gopalakrishnan, Project Director of SAMHiTA; and Niharika Gupta, Project Manager and Senior Programme Officer. Gautam Buddha University was represented by Prof. Rana Pratap Singh, Vice Chancellor; Prof. S. Dhanalakshmi, Dean of Planning and Research; and Dr. Chintala Venkata Sivasai, Head of the School of Buddhist Studies and Civilization and Director of International Affairs.

Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Rana Pratap Singh described the collaboration as a significant milestone in the University’s journey towards academic excellence and global engagement. He said the partnership aligns with GBU’s vision of promoting research, innovation, and international cooperation while preserving India’s invaluable intellectual traditions and manuscript heritage. He added that the initiative would create new opportunities for interdisciplinary research and provide scholars with wider access to historical knowledge systems.

Officials from both institutions highlighted the growing need to combine traditional scholarship with advanced digital technologies. They emphasized that systematic documentation, preservation, and digitization of manuscripts are essential to ensure that India’s cultural and intellectual heritage remains accessible to researchers, academicians, and students worldwide.

As part of the agreement, the two institutions will jointly undertake a broad range of academic and research activities. These include conducting manuscript surveys across South and Southeast Asia, training students in manuscript metadata creation and annotation, developing digital archives, sharing faculty expertise and academic resources, organizing conferences, workshops, exhibitions, and seminars, publishing joint research, and pursuing collaborative projects supported through national and international research grants.

A major highlight of the collaboration is the University’s participation in the SAMHiTA (South Asian Manuscript Histories and Textual Archive) project. The initiative is dedicated to documenting, preserving, and digitally archiving South Asia’s manuscript collections while making them available on global digital platforms. The project is expected to significantly improve international access to India’s vast repository of historical manuscripts and civilizational knowledge.

The MoU will remain effective for an initial period of five years and is expected to pave the way for sustained academic exchange, institutional capacity building, collaborative research, and knowledge sharing between Gautam Buddha University and the India International Centre.

The partnership is being viewed as a major step towards strengthening manuscript studies, digital humanities, and cultural heritage preservation in India. By combining academic expertise with digital innovation, both institutions aim to contribute meaningfully to the preservation of India’s intellectual legacy while fostering national and international research collaborations for future generations.

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