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2 min readNew DelhiFeb 13, 2026 11:40 AM IST
In a written response to a query in Rajya Sabha, Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said Thursday, "As the design phase is still ongoing, the project's budget and timeline are currently being determined." (file)
As the Prime Minister’s Office moves from South Block to Seva Teerth, the government announced that the upcoming Yuge Yugeen Bharat Museum at North and South Blocks will showcase objects sourced from six Culture Ministry museums, 52 ASI site museums, repatriated artefacts, and items on long-term loan from international institutions, state-level museums, and prominent private collections.
In a written response to a query in Rajya Sabha, Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said Thursday, “As the design phase is still ongoing, the project’s budget and timeline are currently being determined.”
He also added that the Ministry of Culture maintains a “benchmarked conservation laboratory” to ensure the “highest standards of care for antiquities”.
TMC MP Saket Gokhale asked him about the “original and revised deadlines” for completion of the Yuge Yugeen Bharat National Museum, and the reasons for the “delay”.
“Every object will undergo a formal condition assessment prior to any potential movement to Yuge Yugeen Bharat Museum. Depending on the findings, objects will receive either immediate preventive conservation or follow established Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for remedial treatment before being cleared for transport,” Shekhawat said.
Shekhawat was also asked whether a “white paper” would be released on the museum’s curatorial philosophy or ideological narrative and, if so, by when. “The museum’s curatorial framework is currently being refined through extensive consultation with subject-matter experts to ensure a comprehensive historical narrative,” he said.
The Indian Express had earlier reported that the gallery at the upcoming Yuge Yugeen Bharat Museum is slated to open by the end of this year, while the overall concept note for the museum will be ready in the next 36 months.
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On Friday, the PMO, which was earlier housed in South Block along with the ministries of Defence and External Affairs, moves to a new enclave called Sewa Teerth. North Block, which housed the ministries of Finance and Home Affairs, was vacated last year.
Billed as the largest museum in the world, Yuge Yugeen will have eight thematic segments telling the story of India over 5,000 years. It will cover an area of 1.17 lakh square metres with 950 rooms spread over a basement and three storeys.
Divya A reports on travel, tourism, culture and social issues - not necessarily in that order - for The Indian Express. She's been a journalist for over a decade now, working with Khaleej Times and The Times of India, before settling down at Express. Besides writing/ editing news reports, she indulges her pen to write short stories. As Sanskriti Prabha Dutt Fellow for Excellence in Journalism, she is researching on the lives of the children of sex workers in India. ... Read More
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