Union Cabinet approves ₹3,230 crore for Yuge Yugeen Bharat National Museum

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved ₹3,230 crore for the development of the Yuge Yugeen Bharat National Museum in New Delhi’s North Block and South Block. March 2031 is the deadline for the project’s completion.

The museum, showcasing India’s civilisational history spanning 10,000 years in the two nearly century-old buildings that served as the seat of the Union government, will involve the adaptive reuse of the heritage structures.

In September, HT reported that the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) had invited bids for a ₹735 crore civil works package to convert the two buildings into a museum across approximately 1.92 million square feet.

The redevelopment plans include visitor pavilions, conservation facilities, intermediate floors and public circulation areas. The designs feature glass-covered courtyards and glass ‘Peacock Pavilions’ at visitor entrances, along with an underground service tunnel connecting the two buildings to facilitate the movement of artworks, equipment and utilities.

The tender specified that interventions in the heritage structures must be sensitive, minimal and reversible, with new additions designed to avoid placing additional loads on the historic masonry.

The project follows the relocation of government offices from the two buildings as part of the Central Vista redevelopment. In February, the new executive enclave, Seva Teerth, began functioning, housing the Prime Minister’s Office, Cabinet Secretariat and National Security Council Secretariat.

HT reported in April 2025 that CPWD floated a ₹338 crore tender for renovating and repurposing North Block. The proposed work involved 76,196 square metres in North Block and 7,200 square metres in the adjoining service block, including structural repairs, waterproofing, restoration, stonework and drainage upgrades.

India signed an agreement with France Museums Développement in December 2024 for technical cooperation in developing the museum. The collaboration included expertise in heritage conservation and the adaptive reuse of the historic buildings.