The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has decided to delist 18 “centrally protected monuments” because it has assessed that they do not have national importance.
- These 18 monuments are part of an earlier list of monuments that the ASI had said were “untraceable”.
- Among the monuments that face delisting now are; Kos Minar No.13 at Mujessar village in Haryana, Barakhamba Cemetery in Delhi; Gunner Burkill’s tomb in Jhansi district; a cemetery at Gaughat in Lucknow, and the Telia Nala Buddhist ruins in Varanasi.
Key points
- Delisting of a monument effectively means it will no longer be conserved, protected, and maintained by the ASI.
- The ASI (Union Ministry of Culture) is responsible for protecting and maintaining certain specific monuments and archaeological sites that have been declared to be of national importance under the relevant provisions of The Ancient Monuments Preservation Act, 1904 and The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 (AMASR Act).
- Under the AMASR Act, any kind of construction-related activity is not allowed around a protected site.
- ASI currently has 3,693 monuments under its purview.
- Under Section 35 of the AMASR Act, the Central Government can declare that the ancient and historical monument or archaeological site and remains has ceased to be of national importance.
- The AMASR Act protects monuments and sites that are more than 100 years old, including temples, cemeteries, inscriptions, tombs, forts, palaces, step-wells, rock-cut caves, and even objects like cannons and mile pillars (“kos minars”) that may be of historical significance.
