Centre spent Rs 27,000 lakh on conservation, preservation of cultural sites

The central government has spent Rs 26,957.32 lakh on conservation, preservation and maintenance of monuments and sites of national importance in 2021-22, Parliament was informed on Thursday.

Union Culture Minister G Kishan Reddy, in a written response to a query, also shared data on the revenue generated through entry fee at monuments and sites at 143 locations in the country during the last three years.

There are 3,696 centrally-protected monuments in the country which fall under the purview of the Archaeological Survey of India, including 743 sites in Uttar Pradesh, 506 in Karnataka, and 412 in Tamil Nadu.

Reddy also shared details on the expenditure on conservation, preservation and maintenance of monuments and sites of national importance during last three years.

In 2019-20, the figures stood at Rs 43,538.76 lakh while the corresponding figures for 2020-21 was Rs 26,083.41 lakh, and Rs 26,957.32 lakh for 2021-22, according to the data shared.