a day ago
IAF Heritage Museum loses altitude as visitor inflow dips
Chandigarh: The initial burst of enthusiasm about the
Indian Air Force
Heritage Museum in the Tricity seems to be waning. The dedicated Air Force heritage centre launched by Union defence minister Rajnath Singh with much fanfare in May, 2023, has suffered a significant dip in footfall since its inception.
Its expansion plan has also remained restricted to paper for over one year.
"Initially, Indian Air Force and Chandigarh administration were in talks to expand the IAF Heritage Museum to start its second phase. Preparation of an MoU was discussed and both parties prepared points for the same. However, there has been no progress for more than one year," sources in the Chandigarh administration revealed.
Despite the tourist centre boasting of modern paraphernalia like virtual and augmented reality, holograms, simulators, and electromechanical enclosures, the flow of visitors has gone down.
Sources in the administration said that visitors from the Tricity thronged the IAF Heritage Museum initially but the inflow started thinning down. Now, most of the visitors are people from outside the Tricity.
As per records of the Chandigarh administration, 58,273 people visited the Air Force Museum in the eight months from its inception on May 8, 2023 to December, 2023. From January, 2024 to December, 2024, the number of visitors at the museum located in the heritage building of the city in Sector 18, fell to 48,712.
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The most drastic reduction was seen in the first six months of 2025, when only 22,586 people visited the centre from January, 2025 to June, 2025.
According to records, Chandigarh administration earned significant revenue from the IAF Heritage Museum. From its launch in May 2023 to the end of July 2025, the authority earned over Rs 1.1 crore, including both entry fee of visitors as well as immersive experiences.
Box: Year and month-wise tourist flow
2023
Month | Tourist numbers
May | 6,678
June | 14,067
July | 5,906
Aug | 6,741
Sep | 4,195
Oct | 10,797
Nov | 4,632
Dec | 5,257
Total | 58,273
2024
Month | Tourist numbers
Jan | 2,800
Feb | 3,029
March | 3,720
April | 2,968
May | 3,135
June | 4,420
July | 3,621
August | 4,090
Sep | 3,388
Oct | 4,555
Nov | 5,404
Dec | 7,582
Total | 48,712
Year: 2025
Month | Tourist numbers
Jan | 3,599
Feb | 3,218
March | 3,565
April | 2,594
May | 3,479
June | 6,131
Total | 22,586
Box: Yearly data of visitors
2023 | May to Dec | 58,273
2024 | Jan to Dec | 48,712
2025: Jan to June | 22,586
Box: Revenue collection (including GST)
Period | Mode | Amount
2023-2024 | Entry fee | Rs 19.34L
2023-2024 | Immersive | Rs 34.37L
2024-2025 | Entry fee | Rs 13.44L
2024-2025 | Immersive | Rs 28.66L
2025-2026 (till July 31) | Entry fee | Rs 4.28L
2025-2026 (till July 31) | Immersive | Rs 11.15L
Total collected from May, 2023 to July, 2025
Entry | Rs 37L
Immersive | 74.18L (Including GST)
MSID:: 123346349 413 |
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