Tribal Research Institute Museum

The Tribal Research Institute Museum in Morabadi, Ranchi, is an ethnographic museum dedicated to the tribal heritage of Jharkhand. Established as part of the Tribal Research Institute in 1953, it showcases the life, culture and traditions of the state's 32 Scheduled Tribes. The museum displays dioramas, artifacts, traditional huts, costumes, musical instruments and handicrafts, serving as a key centre for research and visitor education on tribal culture.

Visitors can expect indoor galleries with life-size dioramas, models of traditional tribal huts, costumes, jewellery, hunting and agricultural tools, musical instruments, Dokra crafts and photographs documenting tribal life in Jharkhand. The museum is housed within the Tribal Research Institute campus at Morabadi, with well-organized exhibition halls, explanatory panels and a library. The setting is educational and quiet, suitable for self-guided or guided tours through ethnographic displays representing groups such as Santhal, Munda, Oraon, Ho and Birhor.

The museum is part of the Tribal Research Institute established in 1953 at Ranchi under the Welfare Department of the then Government of Bihar, now Government of Jharkhand. It was created to conduct research, preserve and document the heritage of the tribal communities of the Chota Nagpur region and to support welfare planning. The museum serves as the exhibition wing of the institute.

The museum documents and presents the cultural diversity of Jharkhand's 32 Scheduled Tribes, including Santhal, Munda, Oraon, Ho, Birhor and Asur. It preserves traditional knowledge related to housing, attire, festivals, rituals, music, dance and crafts, and functions as an educational resource for understanding tribal lifestyle, social systems and artistic traditions of the region.