The Krishna District Freedom Fighters’ Association building near Bandar Locks has acquired new frills. A thirty-foot mural of Mahatma Gandhi on the facade of the renovated four-storied ‘Gandhi Vignana Mandiram’ is ready to be unveiled by the Governor Biswa Bhusan Harichandan on August 14 (Sunday), as part of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.
Works are apace to provide a facelift to the building that was in the throes of a prolonged neglect on various counts, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
Inaugurated in 1988 by the then President R. Venkataraman, the structure came into existence with the sole aim of promoting the spirit of nationalism and communal harmony through educative, cultural and scientific programmes. Besides grant of MPLADS funds in the past, several freedom fighters in the region offered their pensions and small savings to help the association raise the building.
Members of Sarvodaya Trust, established by the association in 1995, have been organising activities to propagate Gandhian philosophy and to help the younger generation imbibe the spirit of freedom movement.
Permanent exhibits depicting famous revolutions and movements across the world, including the French Revolution, the American Revolution and the Cuban Revolution, the Indian freedom movement comprising the Quit India Movement and the Dandi March would be established besides construction of a new building on the premises to house a proposed museum with bust size statues of the freedom fighters from Krishna district and other features like a mini theatre to screen documentaries and short films and addition of a digital section in the existing library.
An open air theatre, sound and light show and selfie spots would also come up at the place.
The trust members plan to collaborate with the Sabarmati Ashram Preservation and Memorial Trust in Ahmedabad to replicate some of its models here. “I met the Director of the Sabarmati Ashram Trust Atul Pandya in 2020 to seek his guidance and inputs for development of our project here,” said G. V. Mohan Prasad, Chairman of Sarvodaya Trust.
“This is the only project in the State that serves as a memorial of the freedom heroes and we want to make it a hub of activities that inculcate the spirit of patriotism, especially in the younger generations,” said Mothukuri Venkateswara Rao, trust secretary.
Spreading the message
In the run-up to the grand Independence Day celebrations, the trust members, in collaboration with Dream Young and Children’s Art Academy, organised competitions in essay writing and drawing for schoolchildren on Friday.
More than 500 children drawn from classes 6 to 10, Intermediate and degree colleges participated in the event. The participation certificate and prizes to the winners would be given on August 15, said Mr. Mohan Prasad.
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