A relic at Gaya museum kept out in the open. Picture by Suman

Gaya Museum-cum-Magadh Cultural Centre, a treasure trove of priceless relics and artwork, continues to be out of visitors’ reach despite the Buddhist town receiving thousands of tourists every year.

The sight of security personnel on its campus and lack of awareness of the facility are the two primary factors behind the poor footfall at the museum.

While the museums in Patna and Bodhgaya everyday receive around 500 and 50 visitors, respectively, only two persons visit the museum in Gaya a day. This despite the fact that Gaya and Bodhgaya are thriving tourist destinations, courtesy the importance attached to the Vishnupad temple, the Mahabodhi Mahavihara and over 45 Buddhist monasteries in the two cities.

Residents said the first image that comes to their mind whenever somebody talks about the museum is that of a “police camp”.

“I have read about the museum in newspaper reports but have never been there. The people of Gaya have never heard about any cultural activity in the museum. Whenever we pass by the museum, we only find security personnel on the campus. The museum has almost been converted into a police camp. The security men are living there illegally,” said Santosh Dubey, a medical representative who lives in the State Road area. “It’s not that people don’t go to other places to have glimpses of ancient artefacts and relics. But not many people visit the museum,” he added.

Ravindra Lal, a resident of Gosainbagh area in Gaya town, said: “Security forces can be at cultural centres like museums for safety. But if a centre becomes a place for the security personnel to stay, it becomes a problem. The sight of so many security men at the museum does not encourage people to visit the museum.”

During her visit to the museum on June 21, art, culture and youth affairs minister Sukhda Pandey had asked the district administration officials to shift the security personnel to some other place. The administration has, however, failed to do that so far. Gaya senior superintendent of police Vinay Kumar said steps were being taken to vacate the campus. The officer, however, could not say by when the museum would be freed of its illegal occupants.

Gaya museum curator Parshuram Pandey had submitted a proposal to the office of the director, museums (Bihar), to set up the cultural centre on the first floor of the building. A copy of the proposal had also been sent to the Magadh divisional commissioner and the Gaya district magistrate. But the cultural centre is yet to be developed.

Pandey told The Telegraph that a gallery has been set up on the ground floor to showcase the paintings. “We are taking measures to put some other relics on display as well,” he added. He has invited principals of various schools and colleges and has urged them to arrange visits of their students to the museum.