The Office of the Commissioner of Police, Mumbai Police Foundation and Tata Trusts have come together to set up a Police Museum in Mumbai to conserve and archive historic police records.
The Office of the Commissioner of Police, Mumbai, Mumbai Police Foundation and Tata Trusts on Thursday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on a two-pronged project “to conserve and archive historic police records, and to plan for a Police Museum”.
One of the objectives drawn by the newly registered Mumbai Police Foundation is a mandate “to restore artefacts/equipment of historical value to police history” and it is aimed towards enhancing the efficiency of the Mumbai police force and ensuring social, cultural and public welfare.
Conceptualized by Mumbai Police Commissioner Dattatraya Padsalgikar, and his team, the Mumbai Police Foundation and the Office of the Commissioner of Police, Mumbai, the project will seek to generate awareness – internally through the archiving project, and externally through the museum project – about the rich history of the city’s police force that came into being in 1864.
“The archiving project will be an exercise in organization and maintenance that will also train police volunteers in good practices of conservation and archiving. The development of the Police Museum is a project to present to citizens a slice of history from the perspective of the force,” a Mumbai Police Foundation pokesperson said.
Tata Trusts is partnering with the Mumbai Police on this project as “an important step in preserving the city’s history and heritage”. “The Trusts have long been associated with the betterment and development of the city and its public works. The Arts, Crafts & Culture portfolio at the Trusts focuses on promoting conservation of India’s cultural heritage through support of monuments, museums and building archival facilities; supporting performing arts and crafts; promoting art scholarship, art education and research,” the spokesperson said.
The Mumbai Police Foundation is a registered Trust formed with the objectives to promote and secure the welfare of policemen of Mumbai and their families and to promote efficiency, skills, technique and modernization of the Mumbai police department for the welfare of Citizens. Computerization of police stations and digitization of police records, restoration of artefacts and/or equipment of historical value to police history are also the main objectives of the Trust.
Set up in 1892, Tata Trusts has played “a pioneering role in bringing about an enduring difference in the lives of the communities it serves”. Guided by the principles and the vision of proactive philanthropy of its Founder, Jamsetji Tata, the Trusts’ purpose has been to catalyse development in the areas of healthcare and nutrition, water and sanitation, education, energy, rural upliftment, urban poverty alleviation, and arts, craft and culture.