The Ministry of Culture has announced 7 new circles of Archaeological Survey of India in Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal and Gujarat.
The information was shared by the Union Minister of State for Culture and Tourism (IC), Prahlad Singh Patel in a video message tweeted by him on Wednesday.
The Minister said that the Ministry has taken this step in accordance with the Prime Minister’s call to facilitate and strengthen the process of preservation and registration of archaeological monuments along with registration of artifacts with self declaration.
The Minister further informed that new circles have been created in Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal and Gujarat. He said that Trichy, Raiganj, Rajkot, Jabalpur, Jhansi & Meerut have been announced as new circles. In Archaeology, the Hampi city in Karnataka is a place of international repute hence Hampi Mini Circle has been converted into a full fledged circle, The Minister added.
The Minister also stated that, in a large state like Tamil Nadu which has thousands of temples and glorious memories of the Chola kings,Trichy has been made a new circle along with the circle of Chennai. Karnataka is an important state in terms of holiness. Hampi city in Karnataka is a place of international importance from the point of view of archaeological heritage therefore the Hampi Sub-Circle now has been made a new full fledged circle. In West Bengal, Raiganj has been made a new circle along with Kolkata, this will eliminate geographical inconvenience in a big state like Bengal. In Gujarat, Rajkot has been announced a new circle along with Vadodara.
Also, Jabalpur has been announced a new circle along with Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh. This will include the monuments from Jabalpur, Rewa, Shahdol and Sagar divisions.The Minister also informed that Jhansi in Bundelkhand and Meerutin western Uttar Pradesh have been announced two new circles along with Lucknow and Agra in Uttar Pradesh.
The Archaeological Survey of India takes care of the monuments which are of cultural or religious significance. Earlier there were 29 ASI circles across the country. Post lock-down, the ASI protected monuments were opened for tourists from the 6th of July, this year.
(Feature image: Stone Chariot of Hampi, Karnataka | Source: Metro Saga)
