It is indeed with a sense of pride, I keep this volume of descriptive catalogues in the hands of our Urdu scholars. The need for having a descriptive catalogue for any manuscripts library is not a topic for discussion, but a matter of natural requirement, or for that matter, a dire necessity of the day.
Since this department has a sizable number of manuscripts in Arabic. Persian and Urdu, I have been deeply contemplating on the issue of getting the descriptive catalogues drafted and published at the earliest. On the advice of the concerned Professors and readers of Osmania University. I have appointed scholars on remuneration basis for preparing the descriptive catalogues in the said languages.
The Government of Andhra Pradesh are very keen in developing the departments of cultural value and are liberally placing funds at their disposal under the five year plan schemes. which are considered a blessing in disguise.
Left to myself, I am of the opinion, that to the extent possible, the departmental staff alone should be entrusted with any original work, concerning the department. But when the department is not in a position to cope with the unwieldy work, the only course of action left to the director is to appoint scholars from outside the department, preferably on the advice of the competent authority of the profession. This year a good number of scholars have been appointed and the drafting of the descriptive catalogues has briskly been done according to the schedule, in addition to that of the regular cataloguing work done by the departmental staff. What is yet to be done is much more than what actually was done.
Hyderabad, the capital of the Qutb Shahi and Asafjahi Dynasties of the Deccan has been the confluence of languages and seat of learning since centuries. From the view-point of national integrity, peace and prosperity it has a history of its own. From the medieval to the modern age many schools, colleges, Universities, academies and Research Institutes are being established here. In dissiminating knowledge and imparting higher education, the role of libraries has been of primary importance. All aristocrats and ministers of the Deccani Kingdoms had magnificent libraries in their residential places. The library of Hazrat Mir Momin, the Peshwa i-Sultanate, was unique. During the Asafjahi reign, the libraries of the three Paigahs Khursheedjah Asmanjah and Vicar ul-Umara and the Book Collection of the Prime Minister Salarjung were treasures of manuscripts and printed works in oriental and occidental languages. The other noted libraries were those of Peshkar Chandual Shadan and his grandson Maharaja Kishan Pershad, Raja Rai Rayan Shamraj, Raja Dharmawant Shiv Raj, Raja Rajeshwar Rao Asghar and Gajapati Anand Raj also had distinguished collection of books in various languages. The then aristocracy has also shown interest in translation and publication of useful books and rare manuscripts.
By the change of time and fall of aristocracy, book collections were donated to institutions or sold out. The Libtary of Maharaja Sir Kishan Pershad was gifted to Arya Samaj. Persian and Urdu collecrion of Raja Sham Raj was donated to the Bharat Gunwardhak Library and Sanskrit, Marathi and other books were donated to Marhatwada University along with the library furniture. Invaluable manuscripts and printed works of Salar Jung are now part and parcel of the World famous Salarjung museum.
The library of Raja Shiv Raj consisted of documents and official records of Diwani, Mal, Mulki and Bakshigiri i. e. State honours and grants like Jagirat, Manasib, Cash grants of various kinds, titles of the nobles and their emblems etc. H.E.H. the Nizam's Government took over charge of these documents and preserved them by establishing a new department called mal, mulki and Diwani. The same is known as the Andhra Pradesh State Archives now.
**Contents and Sample Pages**
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