India and Oman have decided to cooperate in the field of archives and a draft Executive Programme of Cooperation (EPC) has been agreed upon, the Union Culture Ministry said in a statement on Friday.
A delegation of senior officials from India led by Director General of National Archives of India (NAI) Arun Singhal, explored the areas of bilateral cooperation in the field, the statement said.
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In bilateral discussions with Hamad Mohammed Al-Dhawyani, Chairman of National Records and Archives Authority (NRAA) of Oman, Mr. Singhal dwelt upon the historical ties between India and Oman and informed him about the existence of a large number of records pertaining to Oman in the NAI as well as in other repositories of India.
He also handed over a list of 70 documents pertaining to Oman that are available in the NAI in New Delhi.
Along with the list, 523 pages of copies of records were also handed over to the NRAA Chairman that covered several important subjects.
These documents include the change of Omani flag from red to white in 1868, succession of Sayyid Faisal bin Turki as ruler of Oman after the death of Sultan Sayyid Turki in 1888, and official visit of the Sultan of Muscat and Oman to the Viceroy in India in 1937.
In addition to this, the Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation between the Republic of India and the Sultan of Muscat and Oman signed on March 15, 1953 at Muscat is also part of the document set.
