Kolkata: The replica of an ancient palm-leaf manuscript, reconstructed with the help of multispectral imaging, AI and 3D printing was showcased at Asiatic Society's 243rd Foundation Day, attended by Union culture minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. The reconstruction was part of Anukriti, an initiative by Asiatic Society, aimed at conserving India's manuscript heritage.
At the foundation day on Thursday, Asiatic Society signed MoUs with IIT Kharagpur, Visva-Bharati University and CDAC-Kolkata, formalising collaboration in heritage science, digitisation, AI and interdisciplinary research.
The manuscript is that of ‘Siddhanta Shiramani (Crown of Treatises)', a foundational Sanskrit work on Indian mathematics and astronomy, authored by Bhaskara II (Bhaskaracharya) in 1150 AD. It details concepts, such as algebra, spherical geometry, planetary motion and heliocentric ideas, divided into four parts. The replica, created by Saumik Bhattacharya and Debasish Sen of the Vision and Intelligence Systems wing of IIT, from a severely degraded original, demonstrates how advanced technology can restore not only the content but also the physical presence of ancient texts.
At the heart of the project are Anukriti and Vidhvanika, being developed by Asiatic Society, IIT and CDAC-Kolkata. While Anukriti focuses on the scientific reconstruction of manuscripts and images, Vidhvanika is a national AI-powered manuscript intelligence platform that enables transcription, transliteration, translation, metadata generation and search. "By turning scanned manuscript images into machine-readable and searchable knowledge, Vidhvanika will expand global access to India's manuscript heritage," said Lt Col Anant Sinha, administrator, Asiatic Society.