After 48 yrs, PAU museum gets govt recognition

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, November 6

After a long wait of over 48 years, the Museum of Social History of Rural Punjab at Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), here, has finally got recognition from the state government.

It was on the World Tourism Day this year on September 27 that the museum was marked on the official page of the Punjab Tourism website, said former Chief Architect Surinder Singh Sekhon, who was part of the team that designed and set up the museum way back between 1969 and 1974.

“Large number of farmers and students visit this museum. Now, the Punjab Tourism website will encourage NRIs and people from other states to visit this marvel,” he said.

The museum is a replica of the 18th century farmer’s house. A double-storey building, having eight rooms with a central courtyard, forms a beautiful vista in the soulful campus of College of Home Science at PAU.

Traditional features from ‘havelis’ of old settlements have been reproduced in this new structure. Ornamental wooden doors, windows and false ceilings profusely carved and studded with brass fittings were procured from ‘havelis’ of old settlements to adorn this museum.

A paved footpath, between the water channels, leads to the majestic arched entrance adorned with an elaborately carved door brought from Sunam.

Two platforms for sitting and small niches for light are notable features of the entrance. All display rooms have been unified through arched doorways. Concealed artificial lights have been arranged to give the illusion of daylight.

In the ‘deodhi’ (the main entrance), various objects of art, mainly the coins, ornaments and utensils explored by the Punjab Archaeological Department are on show in a chronological manner.

The central rooms at the back display the dummies of ladies churning milk, spinning yarn and grinding corn. The paintings reflect the social and cultural life.

‘Dhadd’, ‘sarangi’, ‘nagoje’, ‘sitar’, flute and ‘tabla’ represent the folklore instruments. ‘Kuppa’ for oil storage, ‘kothi’ for grains and steel cash boxes for jewellery and coins are the other noteworthy exhibits.

A dummy well in the verandah, half inside and half outside, is fitted with glass and painted blue so as to give the reflection of deep water. ‘Khurpa’, ‘kassi’ and ‘datri’ remind visitors of their traditional agricultural implements. The first floor displays textile and handicrafts.

Rampa Pal, sister of Dr BP Pal, and Iqbal Kaur, wife of Dr MS Randhawa, had donated their rich collections of ‘phulkaries’ and ‘baghs’, the needle work of Punjab, for the museum.

“Since I did a thesis on a “model village” in 1969, Dr MS Randhawa, Vice-Chancellor of PAU, from 1968 to 1976, assigned me the job of designing and setting up of this museum,” shared Sekhon.

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