A view of the Museum of Letters at Nattakom, Kottayam.
| Photo Credit: VISHNU PRATHAP
The Museum of Letters and Literature in Kottayam, established under the Department of Cooperation, is gearing up for a major expansion to chronicle the history of Indian languages.
The State government has granted administrative sanction for the second, third, and fourth phases of the facility, located on the premises of the Sahithya Pravarthaka Co-operative Society at Nattakom.
According to the Cooperation Minister V.N. Vasavan, the State Cabinet has approved the completion of the remaining phases at an estimated cost of ₹14.98 crore, to be funded through the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB).
Spread over 25,000 square feet, the upcoming phases will showcase galleries on the evolution of Indian and world languages and scripts, the history of Malayalam poetry and literature, prose literature and scientific writing.
Alongside the exhibition spaces, the museum will house activity corners, a digitisation lab, an audio-video studio, a children’s park, extensive collections of manuscripts and antiquities, a conservation unit, a repository of rare first editions and a library complex.
Plans are also underway to introduce short-term study and training programmes in fields such as epigraphy, museology, archiving, conservation, and printing technology. Interactive classrooms, along with dedicated sections on world languages and the legacy of Malayalam literature, will further enrich the learning experience, the minister added.
The museum’s first phase, inaugurated in November last year, takes visitors on a journey from the origins of human communication through oral traditions, cave paintings, and hieroglyphs, to the modern evolution of Malayalam. Its galleries trace the development of Indian scripts, the history of Malayalam printing and the milestones of the Sahithya Pravarthaka Co-operative Society in shaping Kerala’s literary heritage.
Letter Tourism Circuit
The project also connects a Letter Tourism Circuit, linking Kottayam’s most iconic cultural, historical and literary landmarks. These include the CMS Press, the birthplace of Malayalam printing; Kottayam Valiyapally, known for its holy cross with Pahlavi inscriptions and the Kumaranellur Devi Temple, home to palm-leaf manuscripts and ancient scriptures.
Published – September 06, 2025 05:27 pm IST
