Steps taken to preserve cultural heritage, says UPA report

Strict provisions have been introduced to ensure that the ever-increasing threats to monuments of national importance are tackled and proper enforcement of the law would ensure that the country's valuable cultural heritage is preserved, the government said on Thursday.

In the 'Report to the People', released by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the government said it has recently amended the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, which prohibits construction, including public projects, within a 100 metre prohibited area. A National Monuments Authority is being set up as the apex body to oversee the implementation of the Act. The report said a conscious policy decision was taken to professionalise cultural institutions and Rs 20 crore has been sanctioned for the upgradation of Sardar Patel's memorials at Ahmedabad and Karamsad.

Preparations are underway to commemorate the 150th birth anniversaries of Rabindranath Tagore and Swami Vivekananda, both nationally andinternationally. "A project to set up a memorial for Shaheed Bhagat Singh, at his native place at Khatkar Kalan, has been sanctioned at a cost of Rs. 16.80 crore," the report said.