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Which museum in India portrays human and cultural evolution, with special focus on India?
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Answer: Option B — Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya
Detailed Solution
The Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya (IGRMS), or National Museum of Mankind, is an anthropological museum that depicts the story of human and cultural evolution, with special focus on India.
About the IGRMS:
- It is located on the Shamla Hills in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, overlooking the Upper Lake (Bhojtal).
- It was established in March 1977 in New Delhi and was moved to Bhopal in 1979.
- It works as an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of Culture.
- It spreads over about 200 acres and is one of the largest open-air museums in Asia.
- It has a regional centre in Mysuru, Karnataka.
Its features:
Open-air exhibitions showing traditional houses and village life of different tribes and communities of India, such as the "Tribal Habitat", "Himalayan Village", "Coastal Village", "Desert Village" and "Traditional Technology Park".
"Rock Art Heritage": the Shamla Hills have prehistoric rock shelters with paintings.
An indoor museum gallery called "Veethi Sankul", with displays on human evolution and diversity.
It promotes the idea of preserving traditional knowledge and community-based ways of life.
It conducts programmes like "Do and Learn" workshops with traditional artisans.
Other important museums in India:
- Salar Jung Museum: Hyderabad.
- Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (formerly the Prince of Wales Museum): Mumbai.
- Indian Museum: Kolkata (1814); the oldest and one of the largest museums in India.
- National Museum: New Delhi (1949).
- National Rail Museum: New Delhi (1977).
- Pradhanmantri Sangrahalaya (Prime Ministers' Museum): New Delhi (2022).
- Anthropological Survey of India (AnSI): set up in 1945, headquarters in Kolkata; studies human populations.
Other places in Bhopal:
- Bharat Bhavan (1982), Van Vihar National Park, the State Museum, and Taj-ul-Masajid, one of the largest mosques in Asia.
- Bhimbetka rock shelters, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, are about 45 km from Bhopal.
Why not the other options?
- ✗The Salar Jung Museum is in Hyderabad and is known for its art collections.
- ✗The Prince of Wales Museum (now CSMVS) is in Mumbai.
- ✗The National Rail Museum is in New Delhi.
Quick tip
Remember: Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya = National Museum of Mankind, Bhopal (Shamla Hills; 1977, moved 1979; open-air tribal habitats); Indian Museum = Kolkata (1814, oldest); AnSI = Kolkata (1945).
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Art & Culture Personalities — Preparation
This question tests your understanding of Art & Culture Personalities, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.
This topic covers the people behind India's art and culture: classical and folk dancers, vocalists and instrumentalists, painters, sculptors, theatre and film personalities, and the gurus who founded or revived art forms. Questions also cover the art form each person is known for and the honours they have received. Exams typically name a person and ask for their art form, or name an art form and ask who popularised it. Recent Padma award winners from the arts appear often, so link each name to the field and state the award was given for. Since award lists change every year, always revise from the latest official list rather than relying on older notes. Practise the art and culture personalities questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.