The foundation stone of the Regional Museum of Natural History was laid in 1994 but the museum was opened to the public in 2004 and functions under the Ministry of Environment and Forests, Government of India. The museum exhibits plants, animals, and geology of Odisha, the eastern and north-eastern India, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India and even Madagascar and parts of Africa. The museum is located near Acharaya Vihar Square on Sachivalaya Marg, Bhubaneswar. The National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) was established as one of the national-level institutions set up during the silver jubilee celebrations of India's Independence, to portray and promote awareness on the natural heritage of the country. The museum showcases the biodiversity of Bhitarakanika, Similipal, Chilika, amongst other places. It also showcases Andaman and Nicobar Islands. It boasts of an impressive exhibit of plants, animals, and insects from around the country. Some prime attractions of this museum are the skeletons of Dolphins, Rhino, Elephants, and the Baleen Whale. The museum also boasts the world’s longest-living flowering plant, the baobab (Adansonia digitata), with a lifespan of 5,100 years at the site.

This museum is open to promote non-formal environmental education among the public, especially the youth. The museum provides an extracurricular activity for schools and promotes environmental awareness. It is devoted to environmental education, derives its strength principally from theme-based exhibition galleries, experiential resource centers such as ‘Discovery Room’, ‘Activity Room’, and educational and out-reach activities, with the intention to depict the country's rich natural heritage and natural history (geology, botany, and zoology). Visually challenged students can feel the exhibits of animals on the premises. Also, the ‘Exhibition on Wheels’ is a mobile exhibition arranged by the museum for those who cannot visit the museum.