Port Museum

2021

Although Alappuzha is one of the main gateways from which visitors take boat trips to enjoy Kerala's backwaters, few are aware of the town's maritime past. The Alappuzha port flourished in the export of coir and yarn during the twentieth century under Raja Keshava Das, the Diwan of Travancore. The port was opened for trade in 1762 and holds a significant place in Kerala’s history. A site that tells the early tales of the sailors, ships, the people who came in for trading, and how the land flourished because of them; the now dilapidated Port Office Complex of the Alappuzha Port is being restored and conserved as the Port Museum.

The project aims to conserve the heritage and revive the lost glory of the former port town by highlighting the history, inception and evolution of Alleppey as a port. The two-storied museum will contain a ticket booth, a food court, a boundary wall, and a Miyawaki forest (mini forest). They will be built on a ten-acre plot of land adjacent to the Port Office, and the museum galleries will be organised into seven blocks. A new sea bridge is also planned, and after getting prior permissions, the museum will showcase models of boats, ships and equipment.