Key facts
- News reports from 17th-century Mughal India are known as akhbarat.
- Akhbarat were used for court intrigue, military campaigns, and governance.
- Historian Munis D Faruqui studied these documents.
- Faruqui spent two decades researching the akhbarat.
- The documents are written in the Persian language.
- The research offers new insights into Emperor Aurangzeb's reign.
- The research sheds light on the functioning of the Mughal Empire.
News reports from 17th-century Mughal India, known as akhbarat, have revealed a sophisticated information network that was integral to the empire's functioning. These Persian-language documents served various purposes, including facilitating court intrigue, coordinating military campaigns, and aiding in governance. Historian Munis D Faruqui dedicated two decades to the study of these akhbarat. His extensive research provides new insights into the reign of Emperor Aurangzeb and the broader operational mechanisms of the Mughal Empire. The findings highlight the advanced nature of information dissemination and management within the empire during this period, challenging previous assumptions about pre-modern communication systems.