- According to the Ministry of Culture, as told to Lok Sabha on December 24, 2018, total six monuments were declared protected and of national importance by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in 2018.
- These monuments are:
- 125-year-old Old High Court Building in Nagpur, Maharashtra,
- Two Mughal-era monuments in Agra — Haveli of Agha Khan and Hathi Khana
- The ancient Neemrana Baori in Rajasthan’s Alwar district;
- The Group of Temples at Ranipur Jharail in Odisha’s Bolangir;
- The Vishnu Temple in Kotali, Pithoragarh district, Uttarkhand.
- As per the ministry, in 2016 and 2017, no new monument was included in the list of sites of national importance.
- The last monument to be included in the list, in 2015, was the Vishnu Temple in Nadavayal in Kerala’s Wayanad district.
What is an ancient Monument?
- According to the definition of ‘Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958’, an ancient monument means any structure, erection or monument, or any tumulus or place of interment, or any cave, rock-sculpture, inscription or monolith which is of historical, archaeological or artistic interest and which has been in existence for not less than 100 years.
- There were 3,686 centrally protected monuments/sites under the ASI in the country; the number has now increased to 3,693.
- With 745 monuments/sites, Uttar Pradesh has the highest protected monuments/sites followed by Karnataka (506) and Tamil Nadu (413).
