FAISALABAD – The University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF) is repurposing its oldest architectural landmark, the 1906 Bhai Ram Singh Building, to establish Pakistan’s first dedicated Food and Agriculture Museum.
The project transforms the birthplace of formal agricultural education in the Indo-Pak Sub-continent into a large-scale repository of scientific and historical specimens. The initiative aims to preserve the heritage of the former Punjab Agricultural College while integrating modern agricultural technology for public education.
The museum is designed to serve as a bridge between traditional farming practices and future innovations, aligning with the Punjab Growth Strategy and several United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Zero Hunger (SDG 2) and Quality Education (SDG 4). It also dovetails with national higher education policy priorities overseen by the Higher Education Commission and the provincial Punjab Higher Education Commission, which encourage universities such as UAF to build public-facing science infrastructure that connects research with communities.
A Century of Institutional Memory
The drive to establish a formal museum follows a long history of specimen collection at the site. Prof. Dr. Hafiz Abdul Qayyum, a 101-year-old alumnus, noted that a small-scale museum existed during the Punjab Agricultural College era, managed by Puran Nand Aolakha from 1934 to 1946.
Following the institution’s transition to a university in 1961, UAF maintained a Zoological Museum. This collection, originally housed in the Chemistry Department corridors, was later moved to the central hall of the Bhai Ram Singh Building, informally functioning for decades as a teaching and reference space for successive cohorts of students and researchers.
The current collection includes:
- Rare fossils and skeletal structures sourced from local markets.
- Taxidermy-mounted animals and various faunal diversity specimens.
- Invertebrate specimens preserved in sealed glass containers, originally imported from the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States.
Under Section 4(P) of the UAF Act 1973, which empowers the university to establish museums and maintain collections in support of its academic mandate, the institution initiated the plan to repurpose the 120-year-old structure, which had become unsuitable for modern laboratory or classroom use.
Administrative Timeline and Funding
The conceptual framework for the museum was developed by Prof. Dr. Iqrar Ahmad Khan, former Vice Chancellor of UAF and current Chairperson of the Punjab Higher Education Commission (PHEC). As a public-sector university chartered under provincial law, UAF was required to navigate a multi-tier approval process involving its own statutory bodies and the Government of Punjab before construction funding could be released.
The project’s formal trajectory includes several key administrative milestones:
- September 7, 2013: The 293rd meeting of the University Syndicate formally approved the proposal to convert the building into an agriculture museum, establishing the project’s internal governance and academic rationale.
- 2017: The Government of Punjab provided administrative approval for the project, clearing the way for public development funds to be programmed and included in the provincial portfolio.
- 2018: Project progress was halted due to political motives and funding constraints, reflecting wider volatility in public-sector development spending and changing priorities across successive administrations.
Current momentum is supported by the “Establishment of Pak-Korea Nutrition Center (PKNC)” project, approved by the Higher Education Commission in collaboration with the Republic of Korea. Under this initiative, Rs. 243.399 million has been allocated for the restoration and renovation of the historic building. University officials say the blended funding model – pairing an international development partnership with domestic higher education financing – is intended to insulate the museum’s completion from routine annual budgetary pressures.
Architectural and Technical Specifications
The museum will be among the largest of its kind in Pakistan, utilizing the central structure, two flanking wings, and a 10-acre D-shaped grassy ground. Conservation architects have been tasked with preserving the Bhai Ram Singh Building’s colonial-era façade while retrofitting its interior to contemporary safety and accessibility standards for public institutions.
The planned facilities include:
| Feature | Specification |
|---|---|
| Indoor Display Area | 55,000 square feet |
| Outdoor Display Area | 32,000 square feet |
| Exhibition Space | 30+ indoor galleries and a Hall of Fame |
| Specialized Centers | Herbarium, Flora and Fauna Center, and a Discovery Center |
| Technology | VR exhibits, audio guides, and projection systems |
Outdoor exhibits will feature a traditional village setup, life-size animal sculptures in a café area, and demonstration models of modern crop production, providing visiting farmers, school groups, and policymakers with a visual narrative of how research at UAF has translated into on-farm change across Punjab.
International Collaboration and Archival Recovery
The museum’s historical depth was expanded through the work of Prof. Dr. Andreas Burket, a German researcher who retrieved a collection of original photographs from the British Library.
These images document the early architecture of the Punjab Agricultural College and the farming practices used over a century ago. On October 9, 2024, the Provincial Minister for Higher Education, Rana Sikandar Hayat Khan, inaugurated an exhibition of these photographs, marking the formal launching ceremony of the museum project. Provincial officials framed the exhibition as part of a broader effort to professionalize the governance of university museums and archives in Punjab’s public sector.
Strategic and Economic Objectives
The university intends for the museum to reposition agriculture as a science-driven career field for young Pakistanis. By attracting researchers, farmers, and international tourists, the institution aims to generate employment in the hospitality and tourism sectors while strengthening the province’s knowledge-based rural economy.
The project is further positioned as a strategic stop for visitors and stakeholders traveling along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) corridors, offering a curated introduction to Punjab’s agricultural systems for foreign delegations, investors, and development partners.
The university has formally established a Directorate of Food and Agriculture Museum, notified its Rules of Business, and constituted a Board of Governors to oversee operations, collections policy, and public programming in line with its founding statute and the regulatory oversight exercised by the Higher Education Commission. Civil works are currently in the final phase of completion, with content for 20 individual galleries being finalized pending the availability of full remaining funding. University officials say the directorate will eventually operate as a permanent institutional home for the museum within UAF’s governance structure, with a mandate to serve both the academic community and the wider public.
