In the letter "Patronage and priests” (Readers’ Forum, Parsiana, February 21-March 6, 2025) it has been incorrectly stated that I and my team of researchers did not do due diligence with regard to obtaining an S5 research visa as required by the Government of India in preparation for viewing documents held at the K. R. Cama Oriental Institute (KRCOI).
In fact, I expressly wrote to Dr Nawaz Mody of the KRCOI to request a letter for a research visa in an email dated May 3, 2024. I was informed in an email dated July 9 that the Institute does not issue such letters. Mody wrote: "We regret our inability to provide you with the invitation letter as it does not fit in with the requirements and regulations for obtaining the S5 research visa.”
Hence, I contacted Ervad (Dr) Ramiyar Karanjia, principal of the Dadar Athornan Institute, and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences and was immediately issued the necessary letters for our visas.
On arriving in India on November 17, my student Dr Chiara Grassi went to the KRCOI office to show her S5 research visa and was told that the visa has to name the KRCOI as inviting institution without which she could not do any research there.
The above is to set the record straight. This means that it is currently impossible to view any of the KRCOI’s holdings for someone with an S5 research visa.
Already there are very few scholars in the world working on Zoroastrianism and non-cooperation from an institute such as the KRCOI, for whatever reason, cannot bode well for scholarship on Zoroastrianism. Dr ALMUT HINTZE
Zartoshty Brothers Professor of Zoroastrianism
Co-Chair, SOAS Shapoorji Pallonji Institute of Zoroastrian Studies
Department of Religions and Philosophies
School of Oreintal and African Studies
London
ah69@soas.ac.uk