To preserve Sikh heritage, the Panjab Digital Library is doing what Sikhs have not done in their 552-year-old Sikh history. On a mission of digitization of rare social, cultural and historical resources of Punjab, especially in Panjab and also at various other centres across the world, the Panjab Digital Library, which started its journey in 2003, with a team dedicated to its mission and with meagre resources has achieved the target of digitising 1.15 million pages by December 2021, with nearly three-fourths of which were rare single-copy records.  It may come as a surprise that since its inception in 2003, the PDL has digitised 38 million pages.

The Panjab Digital Library, the first of its kind centre in the Panjab, which started with digitising 60,000 pages in the first year of its operation, reached new heights in 2021 and the dedicated team under the able leadership of Davinder Pal Singh is motivated to achieve its zenith by digitising 10 million pages in 2022.

In the last two years, even the Covid19 pandemic could not dampen the spirit of the PDL team, which, except for the period of complete lockdown in the early months of 2020, was active to relentlessly carry on their work, managed to overrun their targets during the period. 

PDL is dedicated to:

• Addressing heritage loss due to environment, ignorance and destruction
• Saving invaluable treasures to enrich the present and enlighten the future
• Connecting people globally by providing continued free online access
  

Avowedly, as stated in its mission statement, the Panjab Digital Library (PDL) is focused on locating, digitising, preserving, collect and making accessible the accumulated wisdom of the Panjab region, without distinction as to script, language, religion, nationality, or other physical condition.

When asked about the unique and painstaking work of the Punjab Digital Library, the humble architect of the effort Davinder Pal Singh said, “I think Sikhs have done it many times, media was different. Guru Nanak Sahib taught us to read and preserve the writings of elders. We are just continuing that tradition.”

In 2022, the Panjab Digital Library will embark on the project to digitise nearly 10,000 coins, mostly those minted in the Panjab. 

Sketch of The Sikhs -A Singular Nation who inhabit the Provinces of the Penjab situated between The Rivers of Jamuna and Indus by Lieutenant Colonel Malcolm -a very book, with a rare spelling of “Penjab” and describing the social and political environment of the Punjab is part of the PDL records.

The Sketch of the Sikhs; a singular nation, who inhabit the provinces of the Penjab, situated between the rivers Jumna and Indus, classified as extremely rare, was written by John Malcolm, a British Army officer, published in 1812, who served the British Army in India during the early years of 19th century describes the history, manners and religion of the Sikhs whom he terms as an “extraordinary race” inhabiting the provinces of Panjab stretched, between the rivers Yamuna and Indus. This narration is based on his observation and interaction with the Sikh soldiers and people of Punjab and Sikh Nirmala saints.

Punjab  Digital Library offers rare historic books and publications through social media at regular intervals.  These books generally are in PDF format and part of the cyber records of PDL. WSN shares one such book from the PDL cyberspace.

The millions of pages preserved by PDL are not just archived in the four walls of the Panjab Digital Library at its base in Chandigarh but are in cyberspace as a vast resource for scholars, activists and heritage experts.