DEHRADUN: Chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat, on Wednesday, inaugurated what has been billed as India's first 'disaster museum' and state-run art gallery. The museum houses paintaings and installations featuring scenes from the 2013 kedarnath disaster, including a helicopter made entirely of safety pins. The project has been executed at a cost of Rs 1.92 crore by the Mussoorie Dehradun Development Agency (MDDA) and is housed in a specially-constructed building, which officials said was made without the use of bricks so that it could withstand high-intensity earthquake. 

"The museum and the art gallery are in memory of the Kedarnath disaster and exhibit various aspects of the calamity. The structure has been divided into two sections -- one for the museum and another to display works of local artists. The artists can exhibit their work at the gallery without any charge and these can be sold too. This is the first of its kind gallery in the country," said P C Dumka, secretary, MDDA. 

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