Culture ministry considering if any amendment needed in AMSAR Act: Gajendra Singh Shekhawat

New Delhi: Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Saturday said his ministry is considering if any further amendment is needed in the AMSAR Act as he underlined that "we need to be dynamic" and prioritise preservation of heritage while causing "minimum interference" in people's lives.

The sites under the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) are maintained under the ambit of the AMSAR (Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains) Act. At present, over 3,690 monuments are under the ASI.

In his address at the first-ever foundation ceremony of the National Monuments Authority (NMA) here, Shekhawat said, "In the last 10 years, the compass of vision to look at heritage has turned by 360 degrees" and "now we have to do more" factoring in the challenges in upkeep of monuments.

The NMA was established as per provisions of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains AMASR (Amendment and Validation) Act, 2010 which was enacted in March 2010.

Several functions have been assigned to the NMA for the protection and preservation of monuments and sites through the management of the "prohibited" and "regulated" areas around centrally protected monuments.

One of these responsibilities of the NMA is also to consider granting permissions to applicants for construction-related activity in prohibited and regulated areas.

Fourteen years is not a long period but given the wealth of ancient heritage sites that NMA has to protect, this is a time for "deep introspection" as well, the Union minister said.

"We have to think how to maintain a balance by working scientifically... We have to be dynamic and keep changing our rules and regulations so that we can, while absorbing resistance, prioritise maintenance of our heritage sites," he added.

Any construction that falls within the protected and regulated areas surrounding an ASI site, has to be in sync with the norms and warrants approval of the NMA.

"We need to work regularly and speedily on how we can maintain our heritage using a scientific approach while making minimum interference in people's lives," Shekhawat said in the presence of NMA Chairman K K Basa.

In ease of living, through efforts of the government, in many government departments, "we have achieved success" in bringing ease of living and ease of doing business, Shekhawat said.

But this cannot be a permanent benchmark, and by continuously evolving there is a need to work on "further simplifying procedures".

"We need to rationalise, we are also contemplating that. If any more amendments are needed in the AMSAR Act from that point of view, the ministry is also considering that at various levels," he added.

However, he didn't elaborate on what aspects the ministry is contemplating.

In his address, he lauded the value of India's civilisational past which has stood for centuries symbolised by its ancient monuments and sites.

The minister said in the last 200 years or so, rulers made efforts to undermine India's heritage and "it was made out that Western traditions" in art and architecture were "superior".

And, before that "attacks on our Sanatan civilisation" took place by invaders, but "our historic structures of thousands of years have beckoned to look back at our glorious past", he said.

These monuments have stood as "symbols of our progressive past". And, the way India is rising, the country's cultural prowess gives it that edge in the world and "makes our responsibility also grow manifold", the minister added During the event, the minister also released the Annual Report 2023-24 of the NMA, which provides a comprehensive overview of the Authority's mandated activities for the year.

This marked the first such publication by the NMA.

"The report highlights that, to date, the NMA has laid 55 Heritage Bye-Laws (HBLs) covering 98 centrally-protected monuments, in Parliament. An additional 53 HBLs covering 57 more centrally-protected monuments have also been approved," the culture ministry said in a statement.

Furthermore, the NMA has been a leader in harnessing information technology to streamline the process of issuing permissions for construction activities in prohibited or regulated areas around centrally protected monuments, it said.

"One of the significant advancements in this area is the implementation of the NMA Online Application Processing System (NOAPS) portal. The portal integrates cutting-edge technology from ISRO through its SMARAC mobile app, which utilises colour-coded zonal maps of centrally protected monuments, facilitating efficient management and monitoring of construction activities," it said.