• Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired the 47th annual general meeting of the Prime Ministers Museum and Library (PMML) Society in New Delhi on June 23.

• The PM put forth a concept of creating a ‘museum map of India’ to provide a unified cultural and informational landscape of museums across the country.

• The key decision-making body of the PMML is helmed by PM Modi as its president, and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh as the vice-president.

• Union Ministers Nirmala Sitharaman, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Ashwini Vaishnaw, and Dharmendra Pradhan were also present in the meeting.

Prime Ministers Museum and Library

• The Prime Ministers Museum and Library is housed in the historic Teen Murti campus located south of Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.

• Designed by Robert Tor Russel and built in 1929-30 as part of Edwin Lutyens’ imperial capital, Teen Murti House was the official residence of the Commander-in-Chief in India. 

• In August 1948, after the departure of the last British Commander-in-Chief, Teen Murti House became the official residence of independent India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, who lived there for 16 years until his death on May 27, 1964. 

• Soon thereafter, the government decided that the Teen Murti House should be dedicated to him and house a museum and a library. 

• On Jawaharlal Nehru’s 75th birth anniversary on November 14, 1964 President Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan formally dedicated the Teen Murti House to the nation and inaugurated the Nehru Memorial Museum.

• The Nehru Memorial Museum and Library Society, an autonomous body, was set up on April 1, 1966, to run the memorial housing a museum and a rich library.

• Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya, a museum showcasing the life and legacy of all Prime Ministers of the country was inaugurated on April 14, 2022 at the Teen Murti Bhavan complex.

• In June 2023, the government renamed the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library Society as Prime Ministers Museum and Library Society.

Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya

• ‘Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya’ (Prime Ministers’ Museum) is a tribute to every PM in the country since Independence. 

• The museum tells the story of India after Independence through the lives and contributions of its PMs. 

• The museum is to honour the contribution of all the PMs of India towards nation building, irrespective of their ideology or tenure in office. 

• It is aimed at sensitising and inspiring the younger generation about the leadership, vision and achievements of all our PMs.

• Representing a seamless blend of the old and the new, the Sangrahalaya integrates the erstwhile Teen Murti Bhavan designated as Block I, with the newly constructed building designated as Block II.

• The total area of the two blocks is over 15,600 square metres.

• There are a total of 43 galleries in Sangrahalaya. Starting from displays on freedom struggle and the framing of the Constitution, the Sangrahalaya goes on to tell the story of how our PMs navigated the nation through various challenges and ensured the all-round progress of the country.

• The design of the museum building is inspired by the story of rising India, shaped and moulded by the hands of its leaders. The logo of the Sangrahalaya represents the hands of the people of India holding the Ashokha Chakra symbolising the nation and democracy.

• It has employed cutting-edge technology-based interfaces to encompass heterogeneity in content and frequent rotation of display. Holograms, virtual reality, augmented reality, multimedia, interactive kiosks, computerised kinetic sculptures, smartphone apps, interactive screens, experiential installations, etc enable the exhibition content to become highly interactive and engaging. 

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