The Archaeological Survey of India or ASI has recently announced plans to declassify 18 protected monuments across the country. It justified the act by stating that the significance of these monuments has diminished. This move comes after the curious case of missing monuments was brought to attention by the Ministry of Culture. Here are all of the important details that you would need to know about this large-scale move by the ASI.
18 Monuments To Soon Be Declassified From Protected Status
According to an article which was recently published by The Financial Express or FE, this is the first large-scale move by the ASI in decades. A total of 18 monuments will be declassified or removed from centrally protected status.
This means that the central agency will no longer be responsible for its protection. Furthermore, construction in the vicinity of these monuments will also be allowed. This is not allowed around monuments which are protected since construction may damage it.
The monuments to be declassified include the Barakhamba Cemetery in Delhi, the Cemetery at Gaughat in Lucknow, Gunner Burkill’s Tomb in Jhansi, Kos Minar number 13 in Delhi, and the Telia Nala Buddhist ruins in Varanasi.
Also Read: From Gardens To Monuments, Explore Delhi With “City Girls Who Walk Delhi”, A Women-Led Travel Club
All About The Curious Case Of The Missing Monuments
These 18 monuments are from the list of 24 monuments which were declared untraceable by the Union Ministry. In 2023, a total of 92 out of 3,693 protected Indian monuments were reported to be missing. 42 of these were identified but 50 were still unaccounted for.
Of these 50, some were lost to urbanisation while others to submersion in dams or reservoirs. 24 of these were declared untraceable. The 18 monuments which were declassified are from this list of untraceable monuments.
Do you think declassifying these monuments after they went missing is a good move? What do you think of the chronology of these events? Let us know in the comments section below!
Cover Image Credits: Wikimedia Commons
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