The museum of the National Police Memorial is primarily accessed from the Northern entry. The Path immediately leads to a ramp going down to the basement under the wall. The Museum is located in the basement (40 X 40 meters) just below the National Police Memorial. The museum will take the visitors on a sacred journey of a policemen from pledge to perpetuity going through the various display related to, from local police to the central paramilitary forces.
The Museum has been designed in five separate parts each of which has a separate theme such as the Constitutional basis of Policing in the country, Law & Order System of India, Role of different Police organisations, stories of Police martyrdom and valour etc.
The Museum also highlights history and evolution of Policing in India besides focusing on the multifarious roles performed by the Police and difficulties faced by the Policemen. The Seventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution delineating the duties of Indian Police Service will be recreated on a surface resembling the cover of our constitution through 3D projection Mapping. There is a provision for exhibition which will give a comprehensive picture of the roles & functions of various departments. Batons, Guns, Bullet Proof Vests and many other arms are shown exactly as used by police in action. The visitors will be able to choose any weapon, see the details of its technology, operation technique, and target impact on the digital screen. The Emblem and Insignia of various Police Departments are showcased and the profile and role of each Police organisation has been explained in detail. Landmark Stories of Police Martyrdom starting from the martyrs sacrifices at Hot Springs in Ladakh in 1959 have been narrated through photographs, digital films and projections mapping.
In the museum uniforms, medals, arms and all their glory through Graphic Panels (Digital illustrations) of Police personnel from each and every department of Indian Police agencies are displayed. There is the provision for touch based Interactive (Projector) as when the visitor touches the emblems of various police departments, the details of their role and functioning appear on the screen. The museum also serves as a display space for a looped audio-visual space showing data on martyred police personnel. This theme-based Museum show cases all the Police organisations including State Police forces, CPOs and CAPFs. The Museum comprises of installations containing murals, graphics, illustrations, life size sculpture, LED screens, multi-layered graphics, images, digital interfaces and 3-D projection mapping on murals, etc. There is a section displaying weapons used by the Indian Police forces at various points of time through multi-layered graphics, images, weapon model and dummies.
The Museum has been designed to provide interactive experience to visitors through installation of LED screen based interactive display, for example; in the section dealing with the weapons, detailed information of weapons displayed in the Museum can be obtained at the LED screen installed in this section. Similarly, detailed Write-ups on various Police organisations can also be accessed through interactive LED screen based display. This Museum also has a projection zone where clips of various movies and documentaries made on Police can be screened for the visitors. A sombre voice-over will give a brief description of their lives and their sacrifices. This will serve as poignant reminder that the numbers and names engraved on the Memorial were real people whose memories live after them.
Layout of the Museum
The visit to the Museum starts with a gently sloping ramp that leads to the basement. On both sides of the ramp, the story of evolution of Indian Police from the ancient ages to the medieval period and then on to the British rule and post-independence India has been depicted through interesting graphics and well researched text.
The first part of the Museum is devoted to introducing various Police ranks to the common citizen of the country through eleven life size statues of Policemen in uniform from the rank of Constable to DGP. Interactive screen based display explains the duties and functions of different ranks while a very interesting wall-mounted mural depicts the journey of a young man from the stage of recruitment to becoming a Police Officer. This section of the Museum also explains to the visitor that Policing in India is based on Rule of Law as enshrined in the Indian Constitution.
This section also displays the Indian Police Act and different Police Rules and Regulations of various states which provide the legal framework for Policing in the country. There is also a section displaying and describing weapons used by the Indian Police Forces at various points of time. The second section of the Museum describes various Central Police Organisations and Central Armed Police Forces to the visitor. There are detailed write-ups, films, life size statues of Policemen on duty which explain the history, role and achievements of each of the Central Armed Police Forces such as BSF, CRPF etc., investigating bodies such as CBI and NIA and agencies dealing with internal security such as IB, SPG NSG etc. Technical support and training organisations such as BPR&D and NCRB, and also various training academies are also included in this section of the Museum.
The third part of the Museum highlights the history, unique traditions and organisational set up of Police forces of various States and Union Territories. The emblem and insignia of various Police departments have been show-cased while the profile and history of each State/UT Police has been explained through interactive touch based screen.
At the same time, by virtue of its very location at the National Police Memorial the Museum has a specific section on Police martyrs including list of Police heroes who have been decorated with India’s highest gallantry awards during peace time such as Ashok Chakra, Shaurya Chakra and Kirti Chakra. This section of the Museum showcases carefully selected legendry stories of Police martyrdom. Several instances from India’s history where the gallant Indian Policemen displayed bravery of the highest order and responded to the call of duty without a thought of their own safety have been highlighted through installations comprising murals, graphics, 3D projection mapping etc. Stories of 26/11 attack in Bombay, Parliament House attack of 2001 and the Hot Springs incident of 1959 are some of the incidents included in this section. There is also a provision for offering a floral e-tribute to the brave martyrs of Indian Police in this section.
The last section of this Museum is devoted to the contributions of Indian Police to UN Peace Keeping and field of sports. A special section is devoted to Police authors and their works. Various books authored by Police officers and various Coffee Table Books brought out by different Police organisations are also displayed in this section. Outstanding operations performed by various Police departments from time to time have also been highlighted in this section.
The idea behind the Museum project
The primary objective behind establishing the National Police Museum was to educate both the general public and the Police personnel about the rich and fascinating story of the evolution of Policing in India since the early days of Indian civilisation to the present day. The Museum also aims at recording and highlighting the contribution of the Police officers to various walks of national life with particular reference to internal security, sports, national unity and literature. Beside show-casing the weaponry, communication systems, uniforms, flags and insignias used by various Police forces of the country, the Museum also aims at educating the visitors about the constitutional and legal basis of Policing in India and the organisational structure of Indian Police.