The much-awaited State Handicrafts and Handloom Museum will now be set up at Gandamunda. After the initial plan to set up the museum on 12 acres of land inside Jayadev Vatika near the Khandagiri-Udayagiri caves was scrapped amidst opposition from locals and green activists, the Department of Handloom, Textiles & Handicrafts has zeroed in on a piece of land adjacent to the State Institute for Development of Arts & Crafts (SIDAC) for establishing the museum.
The museum will have an elaborate display of the cultural heritage and different art and textile forms of all districts of the State. Various art forms on wood, horn works, terracotta, folk painting, traditional metal work, and applique craft will be housed in this museum.
An amount of Rs 12 crore will be spent by the Ministry of Culture under its Scheme for Financial Assistance for ~~~Setting Up, Promotion and Strengthening of Regional and Local Museums and the State Government~~~. Idco will be roped in for the construction work. Spreading over 12.68 acre the museum will have a handicraft block, a handloom block, bonsai garden, open air theatre, village craft complex, workshop complex and souvenir shop.
“At the workshop complex, artisans will give live demonstration of preparation of their crafts.
This will help visitors know about what goes into the making of various craft forms and get a first hand experience of the exquisite craftsmanship,” said an official of the SIDAC. At present, major exhibitions, artisan training workshops and meets related to handicrafts and handlooms are organised by the department in the SIDAC complex.
To design the proposed museum, the department will consult Museum Director of The Prince of Wales Museum, Mumbai, Rahul Jain and National Cultural Fund chairperson Savita Punja.
A high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in this regard was held at the secretariat on Monday.
A presentation on the structural and technical aspects of the museum was made and also a brochure on the various craft forms of Odisha was released on the occasion.
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