Impact of Archives on History, Culture and Research Activities: Pakistan Perspective

Abstract

Archives as record of the nations are very important to be preserved. They are preserved as history of the nations which help the nations to trace their historical background as to where do we originated from, what was our past like, what battles were fought, what treaties were signed, what negotiations took place, where did we falter, where did our strength lay, all these can be made available to us and our posterity through our historical records preserved in archival sources. Similarly, we can get infinite information on our religious, geographical, and educational history. In fact any historical fact can be retrieved from our national/ provincial and local archives. In addition to these, there are also archives of paramount importance, which includes private papers of eminent scholars and families. Politicians, historians, organizations etc. at various levels. These are of course preserved for the nations to know government activities and actions used for historical, cultural and research purposes too. These records are also significant for future generation to use and consult as guidelines; to avoid mistakes in the light of these guidelines; to use them in decision and policy making; to plan future governmental actions in the backdrop of past government records and to make sound plan and policies etc. Most countries have established their archives at national, provincial or state levels and preserving all evidences of the nations. In Pakistan, there are few archives at national and provincial level. Unfortunately, most of them are still far from their real objective that is why records are still not transferred properly for preservation and deteriorating in their parent departments. In this work, an attempt has been made to create awareness at public and government levels about the significance of archives for present and future generations and their impact on history, culture and research activities.