History

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History

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1915, July 6 :

Meeting of persons interested in Orientology in Anadashrama, Pune, at which it was decided to found the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute in honour of Prof. Dr. Sir Ramakrishna Gopal Bhandarkar’s outstanding work in the field of Orientology.

1917, July 6 :

Prof. Dr. Sir Ramakrishna Gopal Bhandarkar’s eighty-first birthday.

Foundation of the BORI.

Presentation of Commemoration Volume to Prof. Dr. Sir Ramakrishna Gopal Bhandarkar.

President: Lord Willingdon, H. E. Governor of Bombay.

1917, September :

Bhandarkar presented his valuable library to the Institute.

1918, April 1 :

The Manuscript Collection of the Government of Bombay transferred to the Institute. The Institute also decided to build up its own collection of manuscripts.

The Bombay Sanskrit and Prakrit Series transferred to the Institute for management.

1918, August 11 :

Constitution of the Institute adopted at the meeting of the General Body.

Election of the first Regulating Council.

1918, September 8 :

First Meeting of the Regulating Council.

Election of the first Executive Board.

1918, September 10 :

First Meeting of the Executive Board.

Dr. P. D. Gune was elected the first Honorary Secretary.

Completion of the Curator’s Quarters.

1918, September 13 :

Prof. N. B. Utgikar appointed to act as Curator.

1919, April 1 :

Inauguration of the work of the Critical Edition of the Mahabharata by Prof. Dr. Sir R. G. Bhandarkar who wrote down the usually supposed first stanza on the collation sheet.

1919, April 26 :

Prof. P. K. Gode appointed to act as Curator.

1919, November 5-7 :

The first session of the Indian Oriental Conference (which later came to be called the All India Oriental Conference) organised by the Institute at Poona. President: Prof. Dr. Sir Ramakrishna Gopal Bhandarkar.

Publication of the Institute’s research journal, Annals of the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (ABORI), started.

1922, July 6 :

Completion of the Khetsi-Khaisi Manuscript Hall (South Wing of the Tata Hall) and the Mahabharata Hall (North Wing).

1923, February 11 :

Dr. V. G. Paranjape was elected Honorary Secretary.

The Virataparvan of the Mahabharata: Tentative Edition published.

1924 :

Government Oriental Series inaugurated.

1925, August 1 :

Dr. V. S. Sukthankar appointed General Editor of the Mahabharata.

1925, August 24 :

Rishipanchami: Prof. Dr. Sir R. G. Bhandarkar passed away. (Since then the Institute has been solemnising the Bhandarkar Death-Anniversary on the Rishipanchami every year).

1925, October 18 :

BORI Press started with a composing room.

1927, July 6 :

Dr. S. K. Belvalkar was elected Honorary Secretary.

The first fascicule of the Critical Edition of the Mahabharata published.

1931, August 4 :

Gift of the Siamese Tripitaka from the Government of Siam.

1932, July :

Completion of the Institute’s Guest House (Nizam’s Guest House).

1933, July 6 :

Dr. V. S. Sukthankar elected as Honorary Secretary.

1933, October :

Completion of the Press Building.

1935 :

Publication of the Descriptive Catalogue of Manuscripts was started.

1939, July 6 :

Prof. R. N. Dandekar was elected Honorary Secretary of the Institute.

The Bhandarkar Oriental Series started.

1941, December 3 :

Gift of the Chinese Tripitaka from the Government of China.

1943, January 4-5 :

Silver Jubilee Celebrations.

Special Publications:
(1) Silver Jubilee Volume of ABORI;
(2) Progress of Indic Studies.

1943, January 21 :

Death of Dr. V. S. Sukthankar.

1943, April 1 :

Dr. S. K. Belvalkar appointed as General Editor of the Mahabharata.

1943, December 31 :

The Institute was registered as the Central Office of the All India Oriental Conference; Prof. R. N. Dandekar, Honorary Secretary of the Institute was elected General Secretary of the Conference.

1945, September 7 :

Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel visited the Institute.

1948, May :

The University of Poona started functioning with its office in the Institute’s Guest House.

1949, January 16 :

Dr. S. K. Belvalkar appointed Director of Post-Graduate and Research (PGR) Department of University work.

1949, March :

The Institute obtained recognition as a Constituent Institution of the University of Poona.

1951, March 10 :

Dr. R. D. Karmarkar appointed Director of PGR Department.

1954, November 19 :

Work on the Critical Edition of the Harivamsha formally inaugurated by H. E. President of India Dr. Rajendra Prasad.

1956, August 1 :

Announcement of publication of Shantiparvan 1-3 and Shalyaparvan 1 by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Prime Minister of India.

1956, December 11 :

Visit of H. H. the Dalai Lama.

Publication of the Post-Graduate and Research Department Series started.

1957, July 6 :

Prof. R. N. Dandekar appointed as the Joint General Editor of Mahabharata.

1959, March :

Extension of the Manuscripts Hall (South Wing) completed.

1960, July 6 :

Prof. A. D. Pusalkar appointed as Director of the PGR Department.

1961, April 1 :

Prof. P. L. Vaidya appointed as General Editor of Mahabharata on the retirement of Dr. S. K. Belvalkar.

1961, May 28 :

Death of Prof. P. K. Gode, Curator of the Institute.

1961, June 1 :

Prof. A. D. Pusalkar appointed as Curator.

1962, January 26 :

Padma Bhushan awarded to Prof. R. N. Dandekar by H. E. President of India.

1962, July 6 :

Setting up of printing machine in the BORI Press.

1962, November 17 :

Announcement of publication of the fifth and last Volume of Dr. P. V. Kane’s History of Dharmashastra by H. E. President of India Dr. S. Radhakrishnan.

1962, November :

Building for Library and PGR Department completed.

1964, January 4-10 :

26th International Congress of Orientalists was organised at New Delhi. Prof. R. N. Dandekar was appointed Academic Secretary for the Congress.

1966, September 22 :

Announcement of the completion of the Critical Edition of the Mahabharata by H. E. President of India Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan.

1967, January 8 :

Death of Dr. S. K. Belvalkar.

1967, March 31 :

Grant from the Order of Reiyukai, Japan, for the Institute’s Buddhist Publications.

1967, July 6 :

Fiftieth Foundation Day.

1968, May 17 :

Golden Jubilee Celebrations.

Chief Guest: H. E. President of India Dr. Zakir Husain.

Special Publication: Golden Jubilee Volume of the ABORI.

1971, November :

Completion of the Critical Edition of the Harivamsha

1975, September 9 :

Fiftieth death-anniversary of Publication of the critical Prof. Dr. Sir Ramakrishna Gopal Bhandarkar. Address by Prof. D. C. Sircar.

Special Publication: Ramakrishna Gopal Bhandarkar as an Indologist: A Symposium (1976).

Publication of the Research Unit Started.

1976, September :

Publication of the Critically Constituted Text of the Mahabharata and Harivamsha

1976, October 9 :

The Birth Centenary of Prof. Dharmananda Kosambi solemnised.

Dr. P. V. Bapat presented Burmese Tripitaka to the Institute.

1977, July 6 :

Sixtieth Foundation Day of the Institute.

President: Shri. Sadiq Ali, H. E. Governor of Maharashtra.

Address: Prof. R. N. Dandekar.

1978, February 25 :

Death of Dr. P.L. Vaidya.

1978, June 1-3 :

Diamond Jubilee of the Institute.

President: Shri. Sadiq Ali, H. E. Governor of Maharashtra.

Special Publication: Diamond Jubilee Volume of the ABORI.

Twenty-ninth AIOC.

President: Prof. J. Gonda

1980, December 4 :

Yakushiji Temple, Nara (Japan) presented the Taisho Tripitaka (Second Edition 1962) consisting of 87 volumes.

1981 :

Korean Tripitaka presented to the Institute.

1983, July :

Completion of the Library Building Extension.

1983, August 1 :

Project of the Mahabharata: Cultural Index (as a prelude to the Epilogue of the Critical Edition of the Mahabharata), which had undergone several vicissitudes, was reorganised; Prof. Dr. M. A. Mehendale was appointed as Editor.

1984, December 1 :

Work on the project of a Critical Edition of the Mahabhashyadipika (sponsored by the University Grants Commission) started.

1987, April 1 :

Work on the project of A Comprehensive Dictionary of Prakrit Languages started. Grant of Rs. 5,00,000/- from the Sanmati Tirtha, Poona, for the project.

Editor: Prof. A. M. Ghatge.

1987, July 6 :

150th Birth-Anniversary of Sir Dr. R. G. Bhandarkar.

1987 :

Extension of the Mahabharata Hall (North Wing) of the Institute’s Building completed.

1988, February 23 :

150th Birth-Anniversary celebration of Dr. R. G. Bhandarkar; Formal Inauguration of the Project of A Comprehensive Dictionary of Prakrit Languages.

Publication of other works.

President: H. E. President of India Shri. R. Venkataraman.

1991, August 15 :

Completion of the Critical Edition of the Mahabhashyadipika.

1992, July 6 :

The 75th Foundation of the Institute; the inauguration of the Amritamahotsava.

President: Padma Bhushan Prof. D. B. Devadhar, the oldest living Life Member of the Institute.

1993, May 28 :

Amritamahotsava of the Institute.

Chief Guest: Prof. H. H. Ingalls of Harvard University, U. S. A.

1993, May 28-30 :

36th Session of the AIOC at the Institute. Inaugurated by Prof. Daniel H. H. Ingalls.

General President: Prof. P. N. Kawthekar.

1993, July 6 :

Prof. R. N. Dandekar relinquished the office of Honorary Secretary of the Institute, which he had held for 54 years.

Prof. A. M. Ghatge was elected Honorary Secretary of the Institute.

1999, July 6 :

Prof. M. G. Dhadphale elected as the Hon. Secretary

2000, November 2 :

Visit of Shri. Anant Kumar, Union Minister for Culture

2001, June 26 :

Visit of Shri. Sharad Pawar

Inauguration of the new building of the Institute

2002, July 6 :

Prof. Saroja Bhate elected as the Hon. Secretary

2003, August :

Work of the Manuscripts Resource and Conservation Centre of the National Mission for Manuscripts launched

2004, January 5 :

The Institute faced a vandalistic attack

2005, July 6 :

Prof. M. G. Dhadphale elected as the Hon. Secretary

2006, December 2 :

Visit of Shri. P. Chidambaram, Union Minister of Finance

2007, March :

Visit of H. H. Dalai Lama

2007, June 20 :

The Institute’s collection of 30 manuscripts of the Rigveda incorporated in the “Memory of the World Register” by the UNESCO

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