The Vellore District Museum will soon get more space to display its rare artefacts as the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has decided to lend one of its recently renovated heritage buildings inside the 16th Century fort complex for the purpose.
Officials of the ASI (Vellore Circle) said the Directorate of ASI in New Delhi had given its nod for the museum to occupy one of the colonial-era buildings in the fort on a monthly rental basis as the initiative would help in promoting heritage conservation.
“We are working on finalising the modalities, including the rent amount for the renovated heritage building. Once the work is done, the district museum will be allowed to use the building,” said K. Akalya, Junior Conservation Assistant In-Charge, ASI (Vellore Circle).
At present, the district museum, which comes under the Commissionerate of Museums in Chennai, is housed in a heritage building inside the fort complex, which has 53 colonial-era buildings under the ASI since 1921, when the national heritage body took control of the fort, a protected monument.
After its formation in 1985, the museum was based out of the town hall opposite the fort. In 1999, it was moved to its current building inside the fort after the sub-court was shifted to its own building in Sathuvachari on Chennai-Bengaluru Highway (NH 44).
However, officials said the existing museum had become cramped. With not enough space for visitors and to display its collection of 3,261 pieces, which date back to prehistory, many rare artefacts have been kept on the museum’s veranda. Besides, after the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, the museum has been receiving an average of 500 visitors over the weekends and on holidays.
The renovated heritage building, which will be occupied by the museum in the coming months, was once the office of the Conservator of Forests (Vellore division) before the Forest Department got its own building in Sathuvachari.
After an inspection by Collector P. Kumaravel Pandian, renovation of the dilapidated heritage buildings in the fort was taken up by the ASI in April 2022. With its beautiful arches and Madras roofing, the Indo-Saracenic style buildings were once office quarters of the British officers, who were stationed inside the fort to guard Mysore rulers, Hyder Ali and his warrior son, Tipu Sultan’s large families. These structures were built with traditional lime and mortar methods.
