Even as the Barisal Divisional Museum gets inaugurated today – June 8, 2015, seven years after the project was supposed to get completed at DC Office Road of the city, some basic necessities are still missing. The museum, which is scheduled to be inaugurated at the hands of Cultural Affairs Minister Asaduzzaman Noor, does not have a proper office set-up, or for that matter, any sanctioned post of staff to ensure its smooth running on day to day basis. Sources said Md Shahin Alam, Curator of the Chakhar Museum, has been sent here to function as the Acting Curator, while six other officers from Chakhar, Bagerhat and Khulna museums have been deputed. In addition, six muster roll workers have been appointed from the city.
An organogram of 38-strong workforce, including Curator, Deputy Director, Assistant Director, office staff, security guards and caretakers, had been sent to higher authority for approval and appointment. But it lies pending since long. Amiruzzaman, Regional Director of Archaeology at Khulna, said work on like lighting, display galleries, boundary walls, sanitation, gardening and security systems has been completed. A large number of antiques have also been collected for display in the six galleries of the museum, according to AKM Saifur Rahman, Assistant Director and head of the three-member team working for preparing display galleries at Barisal Divisional Museum. Of the collected, six were recovered from Barisal. Sources claimed that the antiques recovered from Barisal but now in Dhaka, Khulna, India and even America will be brought back here as soon as possible.
Golam Ferdous, Assistant Director of Archeology and member of the gallery display organising committee of the museum, said for the first time in the country, a specialised gallery on the history and management of disasters would be on display at this museum to generate mass awareness in this natural disaster-prone region.
Shahin Alam, Assistant Director of Archeology and another member of the display gallery organising committee, informed that Bakerganj district, was officially created in 1797 by shifting the district headquarters in 1801, and construction of the Collectorate Building in district town was completed in 1821.
However, the Collectorate Building was declared abandoned after the New District Administration complex was built in the compound in 1984, added Saiful Ahsan Bulbul, a researcher on the regional history of Barisal.
A gazette notification was published on April 1, 2004 declaring the Barisal Collectorate Building a national heritage, and the Directorate of Archaeology took it over.
The then State Minister for Cultural Affairs, Selima Rahman, and Barisal Mayor Majibur Rahman Sarwar, MP, laid the foundation of the Barisal Divisional Museum project on April 8, 2005.
Starting in July 2005, the two-year project for establishing the divisional museum at the Barisal Collectorate Building at an estimated cost of Tk 2.43 core, was originally scheduled to be thrown open to the visitors in June 2008, Saiful added. Dr Mizanur, member secretary, Barisal Nagorik Samaj, had put forth the demand to open the regional office of the Archeology Directorate within the museum.
Museums are an important means of cultural exchange, enrichment of cultures and development of mutual understanding, co-operation and peace among peoples, opined Sirajuddin Ahmed, a Barisal region historian.