India, France sign pact for grand museum in North, South blocks

As part of the agreement, India and France are collaborating on a comprehensive feasibility study, encompassing museum case studies, interpretive planning, and building programming. “France’s expertise in museum development, exemplified by the Grand Louvre, will play a pivotal role in shaping this project,” said Union Culture Minister Gajendra Shekhawat.

Under the Central Vista plan, the North Block — which currently houses the offices of Ministries of Finance and Home Affairs — and the South Block are set to be moved to the Common Central Secretariat (CCS) buildings on Janpath.  The North Block is likely to be vacated by March 2025, while the South Block, which houses the Prime Minister’s Office and Ministry of External Affairs offices, will be vacated and readied in due course, officials said.

Once it is vacated in the next three months, the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) will restore North Block to its original state by removing all the additions that were made over the years and repairing the high-use areas that have been worn down since the British inaugurated New Delhi in 1931. North Block had around 400 rooms to start with, but over the years, partitions were added and the number doubled. The CPWD will float a tender soon for the restoration of North Block.

Speaking on the occasion, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that India and France see each other as important poles in this multipolar world, calling theirs a “very strong relationship”. “When you hear India and France talk about how we see the world in our way, not necessarily in terms of how others might want to define it, it’s our history and heritage that give us the confidence to take those positions. So when we deepen our cultural collaboration, we are also actually adding to a particular kind of relationship which we believe would create a new and more democratic world government,” Jaishankar added.