The Oral History project of the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library was conceived of and began operations in 1966. In the beginning, the emphasis was on the recollections of men and women who came into contact with India’s great leaders or were connected with important political events or movements either as participants or as witnesses. Special efforts have been made to obtain recollections of thos
e who came into contact with Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and other great leaders. The oral history recordings and the transcripts cover wide span of the nationalist movement and thereafter, helping scholars to find historical data on a variety of subjects. The Oral History project has reminiscences of persons who recall their association with Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, C.R. Das, Abul Kalam Azad, Subhas Bose, Tej Bahadur Sapru, Vallabhbhai Patel. Some recordings also have mention of older Indian leaders like Pherozeshah Mehta, Tilak, Gokhale, Annie Besant, Lala Lajpat Rai, Madan Mohan Malaviya. The latest addition of oral history interview was of Dr. Karan Singh. Researchers will find mention of Indian politics going back to the partition of Bengal, and the First World War; the Satyagraha campaigns, the activities of revolutionary and terrorist groups, growth of the Socialist movement, Indo-British relations in the context of Indian and British politics, and the events leading to the partition of India. There is thus a veritable treasure of history waiting to be explored in the transcripts of the oral history project. With passage of time now the project covering the period of post-Independent India about the issues of developments related to reconstruction of post-independent problems, administrative, political, social, economical, cultural and religious aspects in India and foreign relations through the diplomatic core have been taken up along with audio-video recording of the interviews further authenticating it records. Ravinder Kumar; Dr. Hari Dev Sharma; Dr. O.P. Kejariwal; Shri Jayakumar (IAS); and Prof Mridula Mukherjee. Currently Prof. Mahesh Rangarajan.
