The Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS) under the Ministry of Ayush and Central Sanskrit University under the Ministry of Education have jointly inaugurated a 15-day capacity-building workshop in Udupi focused on transliterating Ayurveda manuscripts written in Tigalari and Old Kannada scripts. The workshop, conducted in collaboration with Sri Vadiraja Research Foundation, aims to build expertise among scholars in reading, deciphering, and transcribing rare Ayurveda manuscripts predominantly found in coastal Karnataka regions.
Professor Vaidya Rabinarayan Acharya, Director General of CCRAS, inaugurated the workshop and highlighted various CCRAS initiatives for preserving and disseminating Ayurveda knowledge, emphasizing the Government of India's efforts under the Gyan Bharatam Mission. Dr. Sudhir Raj K., Director of the Indian Knowledge Systems Centre at Nitte University, emphasized the importance of preserving India's manuscript heritage.
The workshop involves young scholars from Ayurveda and Sanskrit backgrounds working with experts to prepare unpublished Ayurveda manuscripts for publication. This marks the third such collaborative workshop, following previous sessions in Puri, Odisha (focusing on Karani/Devanagari scripts) and Guruvayur, Kerala (focusing on Vattezhuthu/Malayalam scripts). Participants include faculty and students from Sri Dharmasthala Manjunatheshwara College of Ayurveda in Udupi and Hassan, along with Sanskrit students from the Gurukula of Sri Puthige Matha.
The transliterated manuscripts developed during this program will be published by CCRAS and Central Sanskrit University, contributing to the preservation and wider dissemination of India's traditional knowledge resources.