Government committed to protecting heritage sites: Gajendra Singh Shekhawat | India News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: New Delhi: The government is committed to protecting the country’s heritage, Union Culture and Tourism Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said on Thursday, and also warned that it is important to address the “powers and mindset ” that seek to hinder India’s progress, identify, expose and investigate.
His comments came in response to a question at a press conference on the measures being taken by the BJP-led NDA government to boost India’s cultural and tourism potential.
On the challenges posed by the call for investigation of historical sites such as the Mughal-era mosque at Sambhal, the Ajmer Sharif Dargah and the world famous Taj Mahal, Shekhawat said: “Certainly, (filing) a PIL is in democratic India a right of a person. How can I stop someone? However, there are forces and a mentality behind these… (they) need to be examined, examined…”
“Some people are afraid of the progress and speed of the country’s growth. By exposing these people, the government is working and making serious efforts to preserve the heritage of the country,” he added.
Meanwhile, in response to a question asked in Lok Sabha on December 2 regarding safety and security of monuments protected by the Archaeological Survey of IndiaShekhawat said regular surveillance and security have been provided. According to the deployment data, there are 3,507 multi-tasking personnel, 2,763 private security personnel and 592 CISF personnel.
On incidents of vandalism reported at protected monuments in the last five years, the government’s written response shows that of the six incidents between 2019 and 2023, two occurred in UP, during which a statuette in Kalinjar Fort was vandalized in 2023 and a statue in Lalitpur district. in 2022. In the same year, vandalism was reported from Char Minar in Hyderabad. In Almora district of Uttarakhand, a Shivling was vandalized at Mrityunjaya temple in 2021.
In Delhi, damage to the ticketing system, entry gate and RR barracks in Red Fort was reported in 2021 and damage to the “jaali” in Zaffar Mahal in Mehrauli came to light in 2023.
In Karnataka, a pillar was vandalized at a Vishnu temple in Kamalapura in 2019 and a copper ‘kalasa’ was removed from the Sadasiva temple in Hassan district in 2020. Two incidents of vandalism were reported from Sisupalgarh Fort in Odisha in 2021 and 2023.