Amit Shah lauds Bhuj's Smritivan Museum for being listed among world's seven most beautiful museums

NEW DELHI: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday hailed Smritivan in Kutch for finding a place in the prestigious World Selection for the Prix Versailles Museums 2024.

In a post on X, Amit Shah said "It is a touching moment for all of us as Smritivan in Kutch finds a place in the prestigious World Selection for the Prix Versailles Museums 2024."

"Envisioned by PM Narendra Modi Ji, Smritivan is a museum that preserves the memories of the people we lost in the devastating earthquake in 2001. Its inclusion in the World Selection for the Prix Versailles Museums 2024 will spread the fragrance of their memories worldwide," he added in the post.

Bhuj's Smritivan Earthquake Memorial Museum, located in Kutch district, received the third spot in UNESCO's Prix Versailles Award in the category of the world's seven most beautiful museums, Earlier Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel had called the inclusion of the Smritivan Earthquake Memorial Museum in the World Selection for the Prix Versailles Museums 2024 as a "proud moment."

Taking to his official X handle, Bhupendra Patel wrote, "A proud moment for Gujarat and India! Bhuj's Smritivan Earthquake Memorial Museum has been placed on the list of the seven most beautiful museums in the world under the prestigious Prix Versailles Award in the field of architecture and design announced annually at UNESCO."

He added further, "It is a matter of pride for Gujarat that for the first time, a museum in India has received global recognition for its expression of local culture and nature conservation."

Praising the museum, Patel said, "The design of this museum is amazing, as it is built on the Bhujia hill amidst the greenery of thousands of trees. This museum is a story of bravely facing challenges and reinventing them. This museum is an ethereal realisation of divinity. Heartiest congratulations to the entire team involved in the construction and management of Smritivan."

Bhuj's Smritivan Earthquake Museum has been placed at the third spot after the A4 Art Museum in China's Chengdu and the Grand Egyptian Museum in Egypt's Giza. The other museums on the list include the Simose Art Museum of Japan's Hiroshima, Paleis Het Loo of Netherlands' Apeldoorn, Oman Across Ages Museum of Oman's Manah and Polish History Museum of Poland's Warsaw. Smritivan Earthquake Memorial Museum was inaugurated on August 28, 2022, by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The memorial carries names of the people, who lost their lives during the earthquake in 2001. According to the official website of the Smritivan Earthquake Memorial Museum, the museum is 11,500 square metres and is divided into seven blocks--Rebirth, Rediscover, Restore, Rebuild, Rethink, Relive and Renew each representing a different aspect of what the museum stands for.