The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh has said that adequate efforts should be made to preserve the legacy of our ancient civilization to save irretrievable part of our heritage. He was launching the Jain Manuscripts Catalogue of the collection in British Library, London, here today. Describing the lasting influence of Jainism on Indian civilization Dr. Singh said that Jainism’s “enduring legacy of non-violence has shaped our approach to life and nature. Its principled stand against a hierarchical caste system inspires us to fight for equality of all even today.”
Commending the Institute of Jainology’s initiative in cataloguing the manuscripts Dr. Singh said that such initiatives will inspire others to undertake similar efforts for re-creation of our history. Union Minister for Tourism and Culture, Smt. Ambika Soni presided over the function, British High Commissioner in India, Sir Michel Arthur was also among those present.
Presiding over the function Smt. Ambika Soni, Minister of Tourism and Culture said that it is the endeavour of the government to preserve cultural heritage from all sources. Number of initiatives have been taken which include manuscripts mission and digitization of all historical and cultural documents available. National Culture Fund has also been set up for this purpose. She called upon the Jain society to come forward and contribute actively to the government’s efforts for preservation of religious and cultural heritage which is relevant even today.
The catalogue released today has 1400 entries in Prakrit and Ardh Magadhi. The scriptures included in the catalogue touch upon a vast array of subjects such as Jainism, Cosmology, Astrology and Ayurveda.
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NCJ/CS
(Release ID :18078)