Smt. Sonia Gandhi, Chairperson, UPA visited and inaugurated Don Bosco Museum, Mawlai, Shillong on 5 March 2010 in the presence of Shri R. S. Mooshahary, Governor of Meghalaya, Dr D. D. Lapang, Chief Minister of Meghalaya, Shri Luizinho Faleiro, Congress Secretary in-charge of Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram and Sikkim, Shri Vincent Pala, Union Minister of State for Water Resources, and a host of dignitaries at a simple ceremony by cutting the ribbon and unveiling the plaque.

She was warmly welcomed by the 22-piece band of Savio Juniorate, Shillong – a local Salesian residental school - and was led into the museum by 22 maidens duly bedecked in the traditional finery of the different tribes of north-east India.

Smt. Gandhi interacted briefly with a select group of guests - from the political, social, educational and religious sectors of society - who collaborate in diverse ways with Don Bosco Museum. She had warm words of commendation for the wonderful centre that has been set up by the Salesian society, terming it the best museum that she has seen. Despite the rich cultural diversity of north-east India, the incidence of strife and violence in some parts of the region coupled with limited infrastructure and poor connectivity, has prevented it from playing its due role in the national arena. Don Bosco Museum, by showcasing cultural richness and promoting mutual understanding among both students and scholars, can be a wonderful catalyst for building a peaceful society. On her part she pledged to tell many others of this wonderful museum, encouraging them in turn to visit it and be informed and enriched by wonderful north-east India.

Prior to her address, Smt. Gandhi visited the different galleries of the Museum appreciating the rich collection of artefacts which depict the diverse cultures of the different tribes of the north-east. The seven-floor Museum offers the visitors an unforgettable experience of the mosaic of cultures of the north-east through seventeen aesthetically pleasing and informative galleries, twenty two artistically woven alcoves that welcomes the visitors, a newly constructed skywalk to view the beauty of Shillong and a series of multimedia presentations in every gallery on the different aspects of north-eastern cultures. Using state-of-the-art technology, Don Bosco Museum opens the wide doors of knowledge to its visitors. The amazing collection of attire, accoutrements, weapons, ornaments and rare photographs of the region are phenomenal.