Govt releases fourth lot of 25 files relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

The government on Friday released the fourth batch of 25 declassified files relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. The files released online on web portal www.netajipapers.gov.in include five files from the prime minister's office (PMO), four files from the ministry of home affairs (MHA), and 16 files from the ministry of external affairs (MEA) pertaining to the period 1968 to 2008.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi released the first lot of 100 files relating to Netaji on the occasion of the 119th birth anniversary of Netaji, on 23 January 2016, and these were placed on the public domain after preliminary conservation treatment and digitization.

The second lot of 50 files and the third lot of 25 files were released by Mahesh Sharma, minister of state for culture and tourism and civil aviation on 29 March 2016 and 29 April 2016, respectively.

The present release of 25 files will further meet the continued public demand to access these files and this will also facilitate scholars to carry out further research on the doyen of the freedom movement. These files have passed the scrutiny of the specially constituted committee having experts from the field of archives which looks into the aspects such as:

• Ascertain the physical conditions of the files and carry out necessary repair and conservation wherever needed, through conservation unit;
• Verify the quality of digitisation for enabling the digitized records to upload in the web portal www.netajipapers.gov.in; and
• Check if there are any duplication in the files are being released on the internet for use by the researchers and general public.

It may be recalled that in 1997 the National Archives of India had received 990 declassified files pertaining to the Indian National Army (Azad Hind Fauj) from the ministry of defence. Further, in 2012, 271 files / items pertaining to the Khosla Commission, and 759 files / items of Justice Mukherjee Commission of Inquiry - a total of 1,030 files / items - were received from the ministry of home affairs.

All these files/ items are already open to the public under the Public Records Rules, 1997.