LAHORE, Dec 9: The long-awaited renovation of the Lahore Museum building will be carried out soon as the Punjab government has released Rs21 million for the purpose, officials told Dawn.

Officials said the funds for the project did reflect in ADP scheme earlier but could not be made available owing to procedural problems. The culture secretary had vigorously pursued the case and the chief minister recognised the importance of the renovation task, they said.

Officials said the project included rehabilitation of electrification, replacement of roofs of the miniature and general galleries, removal of termite-eaten wooden planks, and improvement of bathrooms and water supply system. The renovation and upgrade, they said, would take six months for completion.

In addition, they said, the City Heritage Museum at Tollinton Market that falls under the Lahore Museum had also become functional. It is open for exhibitions and seminars. Tollinton Market was converted into the City Heritage Museum in 2006.

The revamped Heritage Museum has three galleries. There is a permanent art gallery, a temporary or rotational gallery and a gallery by the name of Hall of Fame. The central gallery or Hall of Fame has been dedicated to those personalities of Lahore, who dedicated their lives to the development of this city.

There is a list of some 90 people in this category and their portraits would remain on display on a rotational basis.

The temporary exhibition gallery will be used for numerous exhibitions by artists and art students from various art institutions. The Permanent Gallery will have miniature collection besides other artworks representing Sikh and British eras.

They said renowned watercolorist Dr Ajaz Anwar would open an exhibition of his artworks in the City Heritage Museum's temporary gallery on Dec 15. More than 30 watercolor paintings will be on display in the exhibition.