As the State government revives a project to establish a museum on the history of Ernakulam district in the 17th century Bastion Bungalow, local leaders and experts on the history of Kochi have risen to demand that the proposed museum should celebrate the place of Kochi in world history.

“We are proud of Kochi’s lineage and it is a passion,” said K.J. Sohan, Town Planning Committee chairman of the Corporation of Cochin and chairman, Kerala chapter, Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage.

Kochi, hosting the Chinese, Arabs and Europeans was once the gateway to India and the memory should be honoured, he said. He pointed out that there was space constraint to box the history of the entire district into the bungalow, built in 1667 at the site of the Stromberg Dutch fort.

The opinions were aired at a workshop on preparations for establishing the museum, organised here on Monday under the aegis of the State Department of Archaeology.

Dominic Presentation, MLA, said that what the State planned was to set up a district-level museum. It may not be possible to confine the museum to the history of Kochi alone though, he said, that the committee appointed to oversee preparations for establishing the museum would take a call considering the opinion of all sections of the people.

Mr. Presentation feels that there is no space constraint as the Bastion Bugalow has enough room to accommodate a museum on the history of the entire district.

N. Ashok Kumar, secretary of Kerala History Association, said that creating a museum only to celebrate Kochi’s colonial past is inappropriate. Kochi has a history going beyond the colonial era that began with the arrival of the Portuguese in the early 16th century, he said.

Chairman of Vysya Guru Math, Mattanchery, Vidya Sagar, appealed for retaining the Kochi in the proposed museum’s name. K.V. Thomas, MP, inaugurated the workshop.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Kerala / by Special Correspondent / September 01st, 2015