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| Private museum operators 'siphoning' grants from Centre | | 'Scam' in field of arts too! | | Early Times Report
Jammu, Jan 18: In what can be seen as a 'softly pedalled' scam over the years, a group of so called art lovers handling private museums have been siphoning funds worth lakhs of rupees from the Union Ministry of Culture and Archives every year, thanks to some officials in the J&K's Department of Archives, Archaeology and Museums, who are only 'facilitating' to help them manage more as profitable shops.
Sources said there are a group of private museums , 5-6 in Jammu alone which are running and managing huge amount of funds in shape of grants from the centre, but no body knows where these museums are placed nor has any idea what are the objects worth display in them. These run almost in a hushed up mode, mostly in the name of self defined or created Trusts, which is a requirement for getting the museums registered with the bodies wherefrom they get the funds. Those who are at the helm of these private museums deliberately operate in a quiet manner so that fingers do not point out from any quarter in the field of art and culture with regard to certain inconsistencies and incongruities in a normal museum.
Sources said the discrepancies are not with respect to their hushed up style of working but also in purchases of artefacts and antiques which are the objects that adorn any museum essentially. They buy these artefacts from general public on petty rates and sell it outside the state or country on pretty high rates, instead of displaying them on their own museums for which they get money, sources said. Most brazen aspect of their dealings is that in order to have huge profits to their side, they introduce fake artefacts and antique objects in the museums as they have to show something on display, said the sources. While they keep their identity and addresses under wraps most of the time, all that they do occasionally is holding an odd exhibition in some remote residential corners, just to keep some records for official purposes.
While common people are quite unaware of shady operations of this museum running profitable business, the concerned state department of which the department of Culture and a well defined ministry is in place, is unfortunately blind and oblivious to this, said the sources. In fact there are some officials who are cognizant about every activity of the private museums and are allowing , rather facilitating their functioning in many ways as they have vested interest in it, sources further said adding that it is a nexus that has been softly and silently going on under the very nose and eyes of higher authorities.
While the concerned state department is unmindful of these private 'shops' , it is also shying away from its prime responsibility of taking full care of the government owned museums.
There are two main museums one each at Srinagar and Jammu, both of which are not in appropriate conditions. Dogra Art Museum, earlier known as Dogra Art Gallery at Mubarak Mandi has many precious artefacts and antique objects which need proper curating as also proper display , certain steps which can attract visitors. The oldest SPS established way back in 1898 at Srinagar also cries for attention for many things. Will the Department and Ministry of culture look into this, is the moot question. |
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