President inaugurates museum celebrating life & achievements of General Thimayya

A museum celebrating the life offormer Army Chief General Kodandera Subayya Thimayya, housinga variety of antique weaponry and war relics, was inauguratedon Saturday by President Ram Nath Kovind.

''Sunny Side'', the erstwhile ancestral house of GeneralThimayya, who served as the Chief of Army Staff from 1957 to1961, has been renovated and converted into the museum here inKarnataka's Kodagu district.

''General Thimayya is the pride of Kodagu and the memorialmuseum aims to retell the life-story of the General in aninspiring manner'', a local official said.

A statue of the General from Kodagu in uniform greets asone enters the museum, which also showcases a slice of Indianmilitary history.

To guide the visitors, there is a first person narration,explaining the articles and artifacts kept there.

Reflecting on the humility of the great son of the soilof Kodagu, or the erstwhile Coorg, there is a picture showinghim riding a Lambretta scooter.

There is also a mural showing Field Marshal Claude JohnEyre Auchinleck, who was a British Army Commander during thesecond World War, coming down to ''Sunny Side'' to meet GeneralThimayya.

The museum also acknowledges the contribution of GeneralThimayya's siblings, including two of his brothers, who toowere Army officers, and his wife Nina, who was bestowed with'Kaiser-e-Hind' award in recognition of her work in publicservice.

Key attractions on the premises of this war memorialinclude a battle tank, one of those used by the Army duringthe war with Pakistan in 1971.

Decades-old arms and ammunition, Army guns and rifles anda decommissioned MiG-21 fighter jet, besides a collection ofartwork featuring the valour of soldiers on the battlefield,books and articles are among the things on display.

The President also paid his respects at the war memorial.

Chief of Defence Staff, General Bipin Rawat was amongthose present at the inauguration.

Earlier, Kovind visited Talacauvery, the origin of theriver Cauvery, in the district and offered a special 'Pooja'.

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