Focus out: Regional Museum being like a Ghost home due to lack of preservation and perpetuation

A building in which objects of historical, scientific, artistic, or cultural interest are stored and exhibited is called museum. Regional museum of Dhankuta is established in Rana period. 16 Districts of eastern part of Nepal has lots of Ethnicity and cultural groups. And I believe this museum’s objectives is preserves all the culture and their traditional things which they adapted by origin.


It was my third visit in museum, I have been back to this museum after an decades “Najik ko tirtha hela” the saying is being true for me now  but the bad thing is that there were nothing changed within a decade it means no any new stuffs added there of course things have been old and dusty enough.



The light system is still as usual, load shedding affect everywhere in Nepal, it’s happening in museum too. When we reached there we got the same saying before: “You guys are here for visit but its load shedding time, we don’t have generator or solar system so…. Tell me what do would you like to do? Will you be in or ….? ”

We have got two options to choose there i) Visit in a dark (without light) or ii) Returned back to home . I was local person and it’s no problem to come again any time but I had a friend from Kathmandu. That was her first time to Dhankuta and only few chances to come back again (visit Dhankuta or museum) so we decided to go with first option (visit without light in a dark).
Got two tickets for enter after paying Rs 10, It’s a rule of the museum.

• Only Two rupees for Student with simple camera
• Only 5 rupees for Nepalese nationality with simple camera
• Only 10 rupees for SAARC nationality with simple camera
• Only 30 rupees for Third countries visitors with simple camera
• Only 50 rupees with movie camera for national visitors
• Only 75 rupees with movie camera for SAARC nationality
• Only 100 rupees with movie camera for other country

I guess it’s for renew and preserve the things but I don’t think those collected money goes to right place. Whatever, it’s a big issue to discuss who have time to spend to thinking like this issue here? All are busy with their own business matter. Anyway, let’s entered to museum first:
The big Hilly Handy craft art was lying down on the floor near the door side. It was being useless and mess on the floor which was first bad impression to visitors. We entered to the room following to “Assistance didi” in a tiny and inflexible neck.





It was too dark to step up and we need to click the camera to see the way in. With the help of flash of camera we hardly seen the things on it  it’s another bad impression for visitors. There were hangings on old black and white pictures on the both site of wall. Didi asked me to click and I was just followed her instruction  Pictures were from different cast and ethnicity; most of them were from Limbu and Dhimal community.






Few minute later we get into another room and finally we get relief getting natural light from transparency roof top. Though, it’s very hard to read the letters and name on the materials. Museum itself historical, scientific, artistic, or cultural interest are stored and exhibited so it should preserved all the cultural things properly. And should provide full service to visitors at least manage the lightning system, but lack of technical support and means making it meaningless so we all have to thinking about it once.



The Regional Museum should have a gallery with many sections dealing with the Diversity, Life style and means they used. Most of people have more aspects from Regional museum and we also had lots of hope to get know about, but reaching there our dreams badly cracked. Because there is only few stuffs showing up such as, few collection of Aathpahariya community, few stuffs from Sherpa community, some of the collection of sword, kitchen stuff of ethnic community and few of the musical instruments from Kirant community like; Dhol, jhyamta, flood etc. There are more than 20 ethnic groups live in eastern part of nepal but we couldn't get introduce with magar, tamang majhi, chepang, raji and many more others groups there.






Nearly 9 staffs are working on the mesuem but most of the time only two staff on duty and rest of them in holiday. New building has competed last year and the staff said “It’s almost ready to open with lots of new stuffs and it should be opened within in 2068” but it’s still not opening on. It’s a national heritage and property. Having seen old one museum we feel sorry for it. It’s nearly dying stage and need good preservation and protection itself. Governance should have to preserve it firs. Nearly 15 people come to visit daily so office should provide good service at least should have to maintain the light system. Though it’s our property, it’s our heritage let’s preserve together.