Delhi celebrates International Museum Day

Several programmes were dedicated to promoting the institutionalised conservation of traditional arts and culture of the country.

New Delhi: The national capital celebrated the International Museum Day Wednesday with several programmes dedicated to promoting the institutionalised conservation of traditional arts and culture of the country.

The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) hosted a painting competition for children at the Children`s Museum in Siri Fort to raise awareness about the nature of artifacts displayed in the archives. The competition was open to children of Class 8 and 9. Freedom fighter and social activist Ajeet Cour was the chief guest. The ASI has been celebrating the day since 1977. The theme for this year`s International Museum Day was Museum and Memory, a statement released by the ministry of culture said. The National Museum celebrated the day with a gallery walk through the coins gallery, release of documentary on the Khasis of Meghalaya, a lecture on Buddhist art and its impact on central Asia by Tagore scholar Chayya Bhattacharya-Haesner and a screening of a documentary on Indian art. The DVD of the movie, `The Khasis of Meghalaya` was released by museum administrator CV Ananda Bose. IANS