Artefacts gathering dust

Artefacts collected under social initiative in Nilphamari are now preserved in an old damp building of the district. Currently, they are running the risk of getting ruined due to a lack of proper maintenance.

The district administration demarcated the building as a museum mainly to preserve old government documents, said locals.

Residents of the district, led by one Mozibar Rahman, started collecting scattered archaeological evidence from nooks and corners of the area in 1984 in order to bring the heritage and culture of Nilphamari to light.

At first they kept them in a room of a public library building in the district town for display, even though the building wasn't suitable for it.

At one stage, space constraint became an issue. After this, the artefacts were shifted to the old building which was once used as the then sub-divisional officer's (SDO) office.

At present, it's known as the district administration museum, with a sign hung at the top.

The cultural affairs ministry, at the initiative of the then minister Asaduzzaman Noor in 2017, started constructing a full-fledged museum in the district near the tourist spot Nil Sagar in the Sadar upazila.

Although the construction work is complete, the museum is still inoperative for years, and this delay may ruin the valuable artefacts, said historians.

Historian and vice president of Rangopur Gobeshona Parishad (Rangpur Research Association) Abdul Hafiz and other dignitaries demanded that the museum be operational immediately.

Visiting the district administration museum on Monday, this correspondent found that the valuable artefacts like a British era 15kg iron lock, a centuries-old boat made by excavating the stem of a Shal tree, materials prepared from ivory, a hundred years old table, wooden structures of notable figures, and touchstone (a stone used to identify precious metals) were in display.

As the building is damp, sunlight cannot enter it and the place lacks other necessary conditions for a museum. Many of the artefacts were covered in dust and looked damaged.

Meanwhile, the new museum building, where the artefacts are supposed to be shifted for better preservation lies unused for manpower shortage. PHOTO: STAR

Ratan Kumar Roy, one of the two master roll attendants having no academic knowledge of maintaining a museum, said they keep the museum open for visitors. Though during the time this correspondent was there, he did not see anyone visiting the place.

Custodian of Rangpur museum Md Habibur Rahman, said, "For preserving the archaeological evidence in a scientific way, chemical treatment is crucial. The room should have sufficient sunlight, be completely dust free and well insulated, moisture controlled and so on as per requirement."

However, the district administration museum was certainly missing all of the above criteria.

Contacted, Dr Nahid Sultana, regional director of the archaeological department in Bogura, said, "The new museum is ready for inauguration but we're having a manpower shortage. Our director general will visit the museum within a month and take necessary steps."

Deputy Commissioner of Nilphamari, Pankaj Ghosh, who visited the new building a couple of days ago said, "I'll discuss with the authority so that the museum starts functioning soon."