Minister of Art and Culture C Lalsawivunga inaugurated the Mizoram State Museum on Wednesday.
Lalmuanpuia Punte, MLA and Adviser to the Chief Minister, along with other officials, attended the inauguration ceremony.
The Minister expressed his gratitude to the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, for providing funds for the construction of the building, and to SMART CITY under the Urban Development & Poverty Alleviation(UD & PA) Department for providing funds for the interior arrangements. He also thanked everyone who contributed to the successful completion of the project.
The Minister stated that a museum is not merely a place for keeping old objects; it is also an important institution for preserving a community’s way of life, traditions, history, and cultural treasures.
He added that a museum serves as a valuable bridge between the past and the present and plays a significant role in protecting cultural identity and heritage while promoting cultural development.
Lalsawivunga explained that the Mizoram State Museum is called a Multipurpose Museum because it displays a wide variety of objects without being restricted to specific, separate types of galleries. He said that younger generations and students could learn many things from the museum, making it an important resource for understanding Mizo history. He also noted that many museum visitors are people from other communities and tourists, and emphasized that the Mizo people themselves need to develop a greater appreciation of their own museum and invited them to visit museums more often.
The Minister encouraged students and young people to visit the museum frequently and appreciate it as a place where they can gain a clearer understanding of their Mizo identity and see aspects of Mizo history firsthand. He further explained that more than 50% of the objects in the museum had been donated by individuals who voluntarily contributed them. He said that people who possess culturally or historically valuable items could continue to donate them to the museum so that these treasures could be displayed for the benefit of the wider Mizo community.
The Minister stated that the Mizoram State Museum is a reflection of the state and its people, and therefore everyone shares the responsibility of caring for and maintaining it. He emphasized the need to make sustained efforts to ensure that future generations can use the museum as a valuable place of learning. He also expressed his hope that everyone who visits the museum would benefit from the experience.
The programme was chaired by T. C. Lalkhuma, Joint Secretary of the Art & Culture Department. Carol V.L.M.S. Dawngkimi, Director of the Directorate of Art & Culture, presented a brief report, while F. Lalthanmawia, Joint Director of the Directorate of Art and Culture, delivered the vote of thanks, bringing the programme to a close.Those attending the inauguration of the Mizoram State Museum included the Chairman of the Mizoram Public Service Commission (MPSC), secretaries serving under the Government of Mizoram, other officials,students from colleges and schools, along with other invited guests.
The construction of the Mizoram State Museum began on September 18, 2007, and was completed on October 2, 2012. It was formally handed over to the Art and Culture Department on July 25, 2019. The Mizoram State Museum is located at the New Secretariat Complex, MINECO. It has nine galleries and one archaeology section.
