The School of Planning and Architecture (SPA), Vijayawada, in support of the IIT-Mumbai’s Design and Innovation Centre is developing the country’s first village museum at Mukkollupadu of Nuzvid mandal in Krishna district.

The villagers, led by Vijayawada Police Commissioner A.B. Venkateswara Rao, on Sunday collected a range of sculptures and other artefacts lying in and around the village to preserve them at the museum. The historically important remains collected for the museum include those belonging to the period between the 2nd century B.C (Pre-Satavahana period) and the 6th Century AD.

“India’s first participatory village museum will be built and opened for public by the end of August. The villagers have started collection of historical important relics and statues on Sunday,” SPA-V Director Professor N. Sridharan told The Hindu .

“Enthusiasm among the locals to realise the dream of developing the museum is inspiring us,” added Mr. Sridharan and his team.

The Mukkollupadu Panchayat authorities have spared a piece of land for the museum, in which locals have assembled several sculptures found at a burial ground belonging to the Palaeolithic period.

Mr. Venkateswara Rao, who adopted the village, monitored the task of assembling of a few red-stone sculptures at the proposed museum site on Sunday.

“We will be geo-tagging the sculptures and maintaining a data and history of the relics as a part of conservation and promotion of the local history,” Mr. Venkateswara Rao told The Hindu .

The SPA-V experts, who are designing the museum, will also welcome the Nuzvid Veena makers to put their works at the museum to revive the art form from its slow death.

India’s first participatory village museum will be built and opened for public by the end of August.

N. Sridharan / SPA-V Director

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by T. Appala Naidu / Mukkollupadu (Krishna) / July 07th, 2015