Karnataka proposes mobile museum to bring Western Ghats education to schools
The 'Western Ghats on Wheels' project aims to reach students across 31 districts using a 15-metre multi-axle bus.
The Karnataka State Western Ghats Conservation Task Force has proposed a mobile museum called ‘Western Ghats on Wheels’ to provide rainforest education to school campuses across all 31 districts of the state, according to Urban Acres.
The project involves converting a 15-metre multi-axle bus into an immersive biodiversity museum. The vehicle is being designed to navigate narrow ghat roads and will feature a 5.2 kW solar-panel system to power Internet of Things-based forest camera feeds.
The proposed interior will include climate-controlled living terrariums, waterfalls, and shola vegetation representations. Digital elements such as augmented reality, three-dimensional holographic displays of endangered fauna, and live forest-camera feeds are also planned.
Task force chairperson Tabrez Alam Shariff said the initiative was developed under the guidance of Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, Forest Minister Ramalinga Reddy, and Additional Chief Secretary for Forest, Environment and Ecology Anjum Parvez.
Shariff noted that discussions are currently underway with Volvo Group India to provide the bus. Once a vehicle is secured, the task force expects the transformation of the bus to take approximately six months through a corporate social responsibility partnership.
The proposal intends to make environmental education more inclusive for rural schools, though details regarding the operating calendar, public cost estimates, and long-term maintenance funding have not been provided.