The Rail Museum - Mysore (01)

Mysore, the Heritage City of Karnataka, ruled by the erstwhile Wodeyars is home to many places to visit, which is of interest to many tourists from world over. Not just in Mysore city, but there are many places to visit around as well. One such place in the city is Rail Museum, established by the Union Rail Ministry. 

 

  

Entrance to the museum is from the gate opposite CFTRI. The museum abuts the Mysore Railway Station, but, visitors have to take a round about by taking the KRS road, & a few hundred meters on the KRS road, on the left is CFTRI. Bang opposite CFTRI is the museum entrance. As we enter the museum, on the right is the ticket counter, which works out of a goods bogie.

  

Entrance fee is very minimal & it is free for kids till the age of 5 or 6. Visitors have to pay an extra INR 10 or so for using cameras & another INR 15 per adult for taking ride on the toy train. The layout plan of the museum is on the right as you enter.

 

Displayed on the left is the NWR (North Western Railway) 119E steam engine.

 

As we walk through the NWR 119E, on a small platform are displayed the many models of engines that have ferried millions of passengers across the length & breadth of the country. We can also find photos of some of the old stations, bridges, & commemmorative stamps issued on Indian Railways.

 

 

 

Gandhiji's visit to Bellary on 1st October 1921 is captured on this granite below.

 

Regional Museum of Natural History - Mysore

In general, museums have fascinated me since my younger days. I try not to lose an opportunity to visit a museum. I'm trying to inculcate this virtue in my 5 year old boy, who asks lots of questions. So, few days ago, i took him to the Regional Museum of Natural History (RMNH), near Siddhartha Nagar, Mysore. It is about 6 - 7 Km from the Subarban bus stand, and quite close to Mysore Zoo. It is not easy to locate because it is housed amidst residential area. However, just as we approach from the bus stand, there is a huge green board on the left with direction to the museum, which is on the right. Also, another way to know we're close by is when we come across Mysore Mother Dairy, which also happens to be on the left side of the road. The approach road to the museum is a very narrow one, & i did not at first believe that the road would actually take us to such a important place. In fact, i felt that the museum may have been shifted elsewhere, & the board may not have been removed. This is because, around the museum we'll find many residential homes, & to think that the place could've been housed here is unfathomable. 

This was started in 1995 under the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests. The RMNH is one of the 5 or 6 in the country, & i learned that this is the one for Southern region. Entrance to the museum is free, & it is open between 10 am & 5 pm, Monday to Saturday. Except National holidays and Government holidays, the museum is open to public.

 

 

There are 3 centers here: biological diversity, life through the ages, & discovery center. The bio diversity center has display of some of the species found in Western Ghats and other biological hotspots.

 

 

 

 

Stuffed models of some of the commonly found species can be found in this section of the museum. The Giant Malabar Squirrel, Tiger, Striped Hyena, & the Fox  are below.

 



 

Stuffed models of Sloth Bear, Leopard, Wild Dog (Dhole).

 

 

 

 

Some of the species of fauna from the ocean are illustrated. In some of these illustrations are also indicated, the approximate depth from the surface, at which these species typically exist.

 

 

Few land animals' models on display.

 

 

Pictorial representations of how we could play our part to protect the environment...

 

Some of the birds & butterflies that can be found in a bio-diversity hotspot like the Western Ghats. 

 

Tree as a eco-system...

 



 

In the section - Life through the ages, origin of various species such as dinosaurs, birds, extinction of dinosaurs, evolution of man, etc., are illustrated.

 

Dinosaurs' sub species illustrated below.

Different theories of how dinosaurs became extinct are shown here.

Origin of birds...

Evolution of man, and the various aspects of man's predecessors...their lifestyle, eating habits, dwelling, hunting skills, food gathering practices, etc., are explained here.

Evolution of life on earth...hows, whats, and whens...

 

The discovery center houses a few models of the parts of human body, such as - eyes, ears, brain, heart, reproductive system, digestive system, respiratory system, nervous system, etc.

 



 

The skull and jaw bones, along with leg bones of a elephant.

 

 

 

 

 

On the whole, the museum is mediocre. Nothing world-class about it. Certainly not something breathtaking, which is what i thought it would be, considering that it is a Museum of Natural History. At the least, a museum of this kind should trigger the thought process of children to seek knowledge and understanding of the science behind all this. Unfortunately, it did not inspire me. While i did try to explain to my 5 year old boy the various aspects on display here, it is not something that he may really enjoy coming back to, when he grows up and starts studying all this. The ambience is not lively, on the contrary, it is dull, boring, & lacks the motivation to seek what's next? Perhaps, the responsible personnel in the Government should consider all these and more factors when designing and institutionalizing such a important learning center.

There is also a small movie hall at the entrance, where a short film is played for about 30 min. While i did not watch it, the experience of the museum itself left much to be desired; hence, not certain of the short movie or the quality of it...

On the whole, perhaps one could give the RMNH a visit and spend a couple of hours there. If you're looking at visiting once in a while to experience it, then there is still a very long way to go...