Chennai: The Central Council for Research in Siddha (CCRS), Chennai, will conduct a five-day capacity-building workshop on manuscriptology (Suvadi Iyal) from November 24 to 28 to strengthen skills in reading and interpreting ancient Siddha palm leaf manuscripts.

Organised under the Ministry of Ayush, the workshop aims to support Siddha professionals involved in research and academics by training them in the preservation, transcription and interpretation of Tamil palm leaf manuscripts that contain valuable traditional medical knowledge.

The programme will offer hands-on sessions on Tamil prosody in Siddha manuscripts, evolution of Tamil scripts, structure and classification of palm leaf manuscripts, conservation techniques, interpretation of historical commentaries, deciphering manuscript symbols and codes, and guidelines for publishing Siddha manuscripts.

The event was inaugurated with a welcome address by Dr R Meena, Research Officer (Siddha). CCRS Director General Prof Dr N J Muthukumar delivered the presidential address, stressing the need to strengthen manuscript research. Dr G John Samuel, Director of the Institute of Asian Studies, delivered the chief guest address on the historical value of Tamil palm leaf manuscripts. A thematic address was given by Dr A Rajendra Kumar, followed by felicitations from Dr A Kanagarajan.

CCRS said the workshop will provide Siddha professionals and researchers with practical exposure to manuscript handling and support efforts to preserve and transmit traditional Siddha knowledge.