TRICHY: A grand Chola museum will be established in Thanjavur to highlight the victories of Chola kings across the world, finance minister P T R Palanivel Thiaga Rajan said during budget presentation on Monday.
Welcoming the announcement, Mani Maran, a historian and Tamil scholar of Saraswathi Mahal Library, said Thanjavur was a crucial point in the Chola dynasty. Hundreds of Chola-era inscriptions, relics and statues are found scattered all over the district and surrounding areas. However, information and artefacts housed by the government are not enough to cater to the needs of enthusiastic tourists.
“Thanjavur was very popular worldwide like great cities in western countries. Despite the Cholas being one of the longest ruling dynasties in world history, historians and tourists feel that the available relics, inscriptions, documents and other information are insufficient when compared to the information available on the period of Maratha and Nayaks. I hope that shortfall will now be addressed by the museum,” Maran said.
Collector Dinesh Ponraj Oliver told TOI that people wanted to have a big museum in Thanjavur to showcase the complete history of Chola dynasty. The announcement will serve as a bigger one than expected to cater to the needs of tourists and historians, he said.
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