Condition of State-run Archives and Museums By Abhimanyu Kalsotra
Abhimanyu Kalsotra is a Research Wing Member at Speaking Archaeologically. Who doesn't like to cherish the rich heritage of a place where one was born? The very same quest led me to take up research on Ornaments of Dogras and what's better than Archives Department of state having files dating back to 300 years? But to my surprise I signed up for a fearful, traumatising and unforgettable experience. The Department of Archives, Archaeology & Museums of Jammu and Kashmir handles the Dogra Archives Department at the Mubarak Mandi Palace Complex. Mubarak Mandi Complex happens to be a heritage building but unfortunately, declared unsafe by INTACH. Still, the archive section holds more than 10 lakh files with meagre facilities. Records dating back to 1724 AD, land assessment reports, debates from Praja Sabha, proceedings of royal court, financial records, rare manuscripts in Dogri, Urdu, Persian, English, etc are kept here. Few important documents like Agreement on lease