INTACH

1. Context

2. Background

• In a letter to Union railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, INTACH Odisha said the new building being developed by the railways is on a raised platform and overshadows the existing heritage structure.
• It demanded that the old station should be given a heritage tag and preserved as it is. 
• While the new building is being built on the lines of the older one, it should be noted that the original building has a lot of historical and heritage value.

3. History

• According to official sources, the then Maharaja of Parlakimedi (now Paralakhemundi) had decided to connect his capital with Nuapada (in Andhra Pradesh now) which got rail lines in 1884, with a light railway. After getting the nod from the British authorities in 1898, he built a 39-km line by spending around Rs 7 lakh from his coffer.
• INTACH also urged the railway minister that at least two of the original heritage locomotives of the PLR (Paralakimedi Light Railway) should be brought back and properly plinthed at the railway station.
• About seven of the original locomotives are lying scattered at places that have no connection to Paralakhemundi.
• The 1899-built wooden carriage used by the royals of Paralakhemundi, which is kept at the narrow-gauge railway museum at Nagpur, too should be brought back for display at the station, it demanded. 
• Stating that many other artifacts relating to the PLR are kept at the Nagpur museum, including signaling equipment, electrical equipment, scales, uniforms, insignias, German silver cutlery, and royal embellishments, INTACH said all these should be obtained back.

4. Indian National Trust for Art and Culture Heritage (INTACH)

• The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) was established in New Delhi in 1984 with the goal of raising heritage awareness and conservation in the country.
• With over 190 Chapters around the country, INTACH is now one of the world's largest heritage organizations.
• INTACH has been a leader in the protection and preservation of not just our natural and constructed heritage, but also our intangible heritage for the past 31 years.
• Architectural Heritage, Natural Heritage, Material Heritage, Intangible Cultural Heritage, Heritage Education and Communication Services (HECS), Crafts and Community Cell, Chapters, INTACH Heritage Academy, Heritage Tourism, Listing Cell, and Library, Archives, and Documentation Centre are among the Chapters that operate out at INTACH.
• The INTACH's inaugural governing council included notable figures such as former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, M.G.K. Menon, Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan, Madhavrao Scindia, and others.