The sesquicentennial celebrations of La Martiniere Girls’ College (LMGC), Lucknow, began on Saturday with the inauguration of the Khursheed Manzil museum on the campus by chief guest Dr Suman Sahai, a Padma Shri awardee and founding chairperson of the Gene Campaign -- a grassroots non-profit NGO.
With this, LMGC has become the first school in India to have a museum on its campus.
To recall, the ministry of tourism had approved the conservation of the magnificent Khursheed Manzil or ‘The House of the Sun’ in 2013 and its conversion into a museum. The museum houses various antiques -- some related to the War of 1857 -- as well as hand-written diaries and letters, paintings, old furniture including classroom benches, log books, trophies, and certificates of the school from the late 1800s.
The museum has on display the constitution of the college along with insights on the life of its founder, Major General Claude Martin. It also has miniature replicas of the Khursheed Manzil and the market in front of it back in the old days.
A special wall is dedicated to some of the former women principals of the College, including late MA Gresseux, F Keelor and late Farida Abraham.
{{/usCountry}}A special wall is dedicated to some of the former women principals of the College, including late MA Gresseux, F Keelor and late Farida Abraham.
{{/usCountry}}SPECIAL COVER RELEASED
The inauguration of the museum was followed by the release of a special cover and cancellation to commemorate the sesquicentennial year of the college by chief postmaster general, UP circle, KK Sinha.
The evening also saw the release of albums of the special cover by Sinha, Sahai, Krishna Kumar Yadav (director, postal service, Lucknow region) and LMGC principal Aashrita Dass. One of the students of the 2018 batch, Damini Agarwal, had designed the seal of the cancellation, said Dass.
Sinha congratulated the college on reaching its 150th milestone and for the release of the special cover.
CONCERN ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE
Addressing the students, chief guest Suman Sahai expressed concern regarding climate change and urged the youngsters to strive to become better human beings and contribute towards sustainable development. “I have lived almost all of my life but you people have to live in this planet for a much longer period. Our environment is deteriorating with every passing year, which is a matter of grave concern,” she told the students.