Visvesvaraya Museum

The Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technological Museum (VITM), Bangalore, India, a constituent unit of the National Council of Science Museums (NCSM), Ministry of Culture, Government of India, was established in memory of Bharat Ratna Sir M. Visvesvaraya. The building was constructed in Cubbon Park, and was inaugurated by the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, on 14 July 1962. The museum displays industrial products, scientific models and engines.

History

Honoring Bharat Ratna Sir M Visvesvaraya, the All India Manufacturers Organization and Mysore State Board decided to create a science and technology museum in Bangalore. The foundation stone was laid by Shri B. D. Jatti, Chief Minister of Mysore, on 15 September 1958. The Visvesvaraya Industrial Museum Society (VIMS) came to be registered as the nodal agency in order to pool resources from various industrial houses. It was inaugurated by the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, on 14 July 1962.

The first exhibition, '''Electricity','' was opened to the public on 27 July 1965.

In the year 1970, VITM launched the Mobile/Moving Science Exhibition (MSE) with 24 participatory exhibits mounted on a bus. The MSE Bus travels throughout Southern India.

In 1978, many science museums, including VITM, parted from CSIR and were brought under a newly formed society registered on 4 April 1978 as National Council of Science Museums (NCSM). In 1979 an extension was added to the building, increasing the total area of the museum to .

NCSM set up three additional science centers at Gulbarga (Karnataka) in 1984, Tirunelveli (Tamil Nadu) in 1987, Tirupati (Andhra Pradesh)in 1993 and at Kozhikode, Kerala in 1997, which are functioning under the direct administrative control of VITM. Thus, VITM has become the southern zone headquarters of NCSM.

The museum attracts nearly one million visitors a year, and is open on all days (except Deepavali and Ganesha Chathurthi) from 09:30 to 18:00.

Exhibition galleries

* ''Engine Hall'' exhibits engines of various cars, machines used in industry, a jet aircraft engine, and other mechanical devices.
* The ''How Things Work'' gallery is an attempt to explain the fundamentals of machines through interactive exhibits. Exhibits include the pulley system, gears, different ways of transferring motion, reducing effort by levers, inclined planes, and screws. Another section deals with the application of these simple machines in daily life.
* The ''Fun Science gallery'' that displays exhibits on the science of sound, optics, fluids, math and perception.
* The ''Electro Technic Gallery'' contains interactive electrical exhibits which work on the basic principles of electricity, electronics and communication. A renovated version of the Electro Technic gallery was opened to public on 8 April 2010. This gallery exhibits the classical experiments like Oersted's experiment, Barlow's wheel, and Faraday's ring. A demonstration on electrostatics, which includes a Tesla coil and a Van de Graaff generator is on display.
* ''The Space – Emerging Technology in the Service of Mankind'' gallery showcases the achievements of the Indian Space Program. It was inaugurated on 19 June 1999. The Gallery was renovated with guidance of Indian Space Research Organization and reopened as ''Space Technology'' on 28 November 2017 by A. S. Kiran Kumar and Krishnaswamy Kasturirangan. It is the first Science Gallery in India dedicated to Space and Space Technology.
* The ''Biotechnological Revolution'' hall has exhibits on the basics of biotechnology and its applications, including human genome sequencing. It opened on 4 January 2003. This exhibition has been renovated with new interactive exhibits and displays. This new-look exhibition was opened to public as 'Biotechnology' Gallery on 15 February 2021.
* The ''BEL Hall of Electronics'' was inaugurated on 29 June 2004 in collaboration with Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL). This gallery has exhibits on the basic principles of electronics and information technology.
* The 'Science for Kids' gallery was inaugurated on 19 April 2019. There are exhibits on Our Senses, about animals, colours, light, sound etc. apart from interactive toys. There is an exhibit where kids can take photos of themselves with life-size animal models. 'Mirror maze' is another attraction in this gallery.
* The ''Dinosaur Alive'' exhibit has a moving replica of a Spinosaurus. This pneumatically-operated dinosaur can move its head, hands and tail and roll its eyes at the visitors.
* The ''Science on a Sphere'' facility was opened on 28 July 2014, in celebration of the golden jubilee of VITM.
* The ''Wright Brothers'' exhibit, also added in 2014, includes a 1:1 scale model of the Wright Brothers’ Flyer, fabricated in-house, and a flight simulator.
In addition to these exhibits, the museum includes a science show hall, a 3D theatre, a 250-seat auditorium, a telemedicine facility, an 11' Celestron telescope with GPS, and a cafeteria.

VITM has developed travelling exhibitions including ''The World of Astronomical Observatories'', ''The Life and Work of Sir C. V. Raman'', ''Nanotechnology'', and ''The'' ''Life and Work of Sir M Visvesvaraya''. VITM also hosts, on a regular basis, travelling exhibitions that are developed by other units of NCSM such as ''Science of Sports'', ''Giants from the Backyard'', ''Chemistry'', ''Disaster - Preparing for the Worst'', and ''Radiations Around Us''.

Photo gallery

File:Visvesvaraya Museum.JPG, Visvesvaraya Museum entrance
File:Engine Hall.jpg, Engine Hall
File:Steam Locomotive 1.jpg, Steam Locomotive
File:Steam Powered Engine.JPG, Steam-powered engine
File:JJ Thompson Room2.JPG, J. J. Thomson room
File:HAL HF-24 Marut in Bangalore.jpg, HF-24 Marut - Indian built aircraft
File:Electricity Demo Model2.JPG, Electricity model
File:Electromagnet Model.JPG, Electromagnet model
File:Mirrlees Diesel Engine.JPG, Diesel engine
File:EarlyAircraft Engine2.JPG, Early aircraft engine
File:Archimedes Screw.JPG, Archimedes screw
File:Steam engine in Visvesvaraya museum.JPG, Steam engine
File:Dinosaur Corner.jpg, Animated Dinosaur
File:Wright Brother Flyer Simulator.jpg, The Wright Brothers' Flyer Simulator
File:WrightBrothers'Aeroplane1903.jpg, Wright Brothers' Aeroplane

References

External links

Official website

{{Bangalore topics

Science museums in India
Museums in Bangalore
1962 establishments in Mysore State
Museums established in 1962