BHUBANESWAR: The National Monument Authority (NMA) under the Ministry of Culture plans to fast-track the draft heritage bylaws of Centrally-protected monuments that have been hanging fire for several years now. Speaking on the sidelines of the inauguration of the second G20 Culture Working Group (CWG) meeting here on Sunday, NMA chairman Kishor K Basa said in the last decade, heritage bylaws of just seven to eight monuments have been finalised throughout the country.
The reasons behind the delay are many including vacancies in NMA. “Many full-time positions in NMA have been filled up now which will help us pursue the draft bylaws,” he said. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has 3,757 Centrally-protected monuments under it including 80 in Odisha. Currently, 19 draft heritage bylaws are under NMA’s consideration for finalisation before they are laid before the Parliament for approval.
And bylaws of seven monuments are ready to be laid in the Parliament. From Odisha, draft bylaws of at least 11 monuments and sites have been prepared over the last two years following their station surveys (mapping each and every construction within 100-300 metre regulated zone) by the ASI.
Public opinions on them have also been received but they haven’t been laid in the Parliament yet.“Heritage bylaws are a permanent thing and are meant to be laid before the Parliament. Drafting and finalising each of them is a long and complicated process. We have already started working on them,” Basa informed.