Recreation and education: History museum planned at Iqbal Park

‘Visitors could listen to Pakistan Movement stories at a Storyteller’s Bench at the museum’.

LAHORE: A meeting on the Greater Iqbal Park Project on Friday decided that a history museum would be established at the Minar-i-Pakistan complex.

The meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, was told that a gallery at the museum would be set aside for displaying photos and other information about national heroes.

Speaking at the meeting, the chief minister directed officials concerned to set up an audio-video centre at the museum. He said latest technology multimedia should be provided at the centre to let visitors learn about different aspect of the Pakistan movement.

He said the Greater Iqbal Park Project would be a milestone in the government’s efforts to encourage the young generation to learn about the sacrifices rendered during the Pakistan Movement. He asked the steering committee of the project to ensure timely completion of work.

Sharif said guided tours would be arranged at the facility to highlighting the aims and objectives of Pakistan Movement among the general public.

An official privy to the meeting told The Express Tribune that the museum would feature another facility where visitors could listen to stories about the Pakistan Movement using headphones. He said the facility called the Storytellers’ Bench would also be equipped with multimedia projectors. “The idea has been borrowed from museums in the United States and other western countries,” he said. He said the facility would provide visitors with an opportunity to learn about the country’s history.

Another official present at the meeting said that the Greater Iqbal Park would extend to the Lahore Fort as the road between the compound and the Fort would be added to the park. The park would be spread over an area of 127 acres.The project’s cost has been estimated at Rs403.6 million. The park design includes train and horse carriage rides; a play place for children and an open-air gymnasium.

The meeting was attended by the Walled City of Lahore Authority director general, the Lahore Division Commissioner, the Lahore DCO, the Parks and Horticulture Authority director general and some women representatives from the Citizens Archive of Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 20^th, 2016.