BENGALURU: Even as Karnataka opened its doors to tourists, popular archaeological sites in the state, including Hampi, remained shut and the government has now decided to open them from Monday. The Tourism and Culture Ministry announced on Saturday that archaeological sites will be open for tourists from July 6 with all precautionary measures. There will be a lot of restrictions in place, including a ban on group photography. The light and sound shows will remain suspended.
The ministry also issued a set of protocols. Only those from non-containment zones will be allowed, food and other eatables will not be allowed inside the premises, only packaged drinking water will be allowed and cash transactions are banned. The Archaeological Society of India (ASI) can restrict access to vulnerable and interior parts of the monuments. There will be designated routes for entry and exit.
The ministry has also announced that there will be strict restrictions on the number of tourists visiting the sites. Tourism Director K N Ramesh said, “A few tourist destinations in Karnataka were opened after Unlock 1.0, but saw very less visitors. Now the ASI team and the district administrations will take all required decisions. There are 600 ASI sites in Karnataka under the central government.”The popular Hampi, Pattadakal, Badami and other sites protected by ASI in Karnataka were shut for visitors for over three months because of the lockdown.