Artefacts from the Government Museum in Coimbatore, located at the Nehru Stadium commercial complex, are set to find a new home at Semmozhi Poonga.
K.A. Murugavel, nodal officer for the relocation, who earlier served as curator of the museum, said the museum is being moved to the newly-built Semmozhi Poonga as it will align with the park’s purpose. The current building has no scope for expansion and has recorded low footfall, with visitor numbers declining over the last five years. A hall measuring about 4,000 sq. ft. in the park’s ticketing complex is allotted for the museum. “Work on interiors, including display cases, pedestals, lighting and descriptive labels, will begin within a week,” he added.
The district museum, established in 1990 by the Department of Museums, has moved locations four times since its inception and is functioning from its current rented premises since May 2009.
“It is the only multi-disciplinary museum in Coimbatore, covering subjects such as geology, botany, history and art. It holds around 1,500 artefacts, of which about 900 are on display, while the remaining are in the reserve collection. Work has begun to clean and prepare both, the displayed and reserve collections for the move,” said K. Devi Priya, curator of the museum.
