Upgraded Patna Museum to be magnificent: Bihar CM Nitish Kumar

PATNA: Chief minister (CM) Nitish Kumar on Monday said design for extension of Patna Museum has been prepared and bidding process for the construction work has also begun. He said the alignment for an underpass to connect Patna Museum and Bihar Museum will also be finalised soon.
Talking to reporters at his chamber at the state legislative assembly, Nitish said the upgraded and extended Patna Museum will be “magnificent”.“Three additional layers of galleries are being constructed at the back end of the museum. All artefacts kept in the storage of the museum will be displayed in the new galleries,” the CM said.
Sources in art, culture and youth affairs department said apart from extension work, the galleries at the existing building will also be redesigned to give a new look to the museum. Sources in the building construction department, on the other hand, said the new building will be a U-shaped structure, covering the left, right and back side of the existing main structure of the museum.
The new structure will have office space, digital galleries, exhibit area, conference hall, orientation room and space for K P Jayaswal Research Institute. The extension and redevelopment of the museum is proposed to be done with an expenditure of Rs 138 crore.
The existing building of Patna Museum will be used solely for the purpose of display of artefacts. Sources in Patna Museum said only 5% of total artefacts with the museum are on display in the galleries at the main building, while the artefacts of the period before 1765 have been put up at Bihar Museum. Sources said the artefacts in the existing and the extended area of Patna Museum will be put in chronological order, based on the historical era they belong to.
On the tunnel to be constructed for linking Bihar Museum and Patna Museum, the CM said, “The underground tunnel will give a unique experience to the visitors. Its alignment will be finalised soon.”
Sources said the tunnel connecting the two museums will be 1.5km-long. It is proposed to be made ready in two years.