First Maritime Museum of India to be set up at Lothal

Lothal, a Harappan site of one of the oldest ports in India is located on the Saurashtra coast of Gujarat has been chosen for setting up the first maritime museum, the National Maritime Heritage Museum of India.

The Museum will have its own independent research center of underwater archaeology that will work towards an archaeology of boat building, materials traded and reconstruction of maritime history.

Earlier in March 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the project after the Government of India had allocated grants for building the first Maritime Museum of India in Lothal.

The project will be implemented through the Sagarmala program by the Ministry of Shipping with the involvement of the Archaeological Survey of India(ASI), Gujarat state government and other stakeholders.

The Museum will be set up with the technical help of the Maritime Heritage Museum, located in the capital city of Portugal, Lisbon.