SUDHIR KUMAR / NEW DELHI
The Union Ministry of Culture has created 7 new circles of Archaeological Survey of India, ASI. The new circles have been created in Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal and Gujarat. Mr Patel said, Trichy, Raiganj, Rajkot, Jabalpur, Jhansi and Meerut have been announced as new circles.
In a video message, Culture and Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel said, Ministry of Culture has taken the step in accordance with the Prime Minister’s call to facilitate and strengthen the process of preservation and registration of archaeological monuments.
The Minister said, 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. He said, 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 as a new circle along with Kolkata, which will eliminate geographical inconvenience. In Gujarat, Rajkot has been announced as a new circle along with Vadodara. Mr Patel said, Jabalpur has been announced as 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 Meerut in western UP have been announced as two new circles along with Lucknow and Agra in Uttar Pradesh.The Minister said, earlier there were 29 ASI circles across the country.