Par panel recommends permitting worship at ASI sites having 'religious significance'
New Delhi, Dec 11: A parliamentary panel has recommended to the Centre to explore the possibility of permitting worship at ASI-protected monuments having "religious significance" if it can be established that this would not have a detrimental effect on their conservation.
The department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture has said this in its 'Three Hundred Sixty Third Report on the Action Taken by the Government on the recommendations/observations of the Committee contained in its Three Hundred Twenty-Fourth Report' on 'Issues relating to Untraceable Monuments and Protection of Monuments in India', which was presented in both Houses on Friday.
"The Committee feels that several historical monuments across the country hold immense religious significance to a large number of people and allowing pujas/worship/ certain religious activities at such monuments can fulfil legitimate aspirations of the people," the panel said in its observations in the report.
"The Committee, therefore, recommends that ASI may explore the possibility of permitting pujas/worship/certain religious activities at historical Centrally Protected Monuments of religious significance, subject to the condition that it can be established that such activities would not have any detrimental effect on the state of conservation and preservation of the monument," it said.
The Ministry of Culture in its response to the observations of the panel has said that it has noted them for "exploring feasibility".
"In this regard, it is to submit that as per the policy decision revival of worship is not allowed where it was not in vogue at the time of protection or abandoned since long," the ministry has told the panel.
A senior official of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) said, according to the AMSAR (Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains) Act, if a site was not a religious one or any religious activity was not being carried out at the time ASI took it into its custody, then worshipping or any other religious activity cannot be allowed there.
However, if that was the norm at the time of its taking over by the ASI, such religious practices are permitted.
An example is the Taj Mahal, where Friday prayers are permitted as it was done when the ASI brought it under its ambit, sources said.
Lingaraja Temple in Odisha is maintained by the ASI and a temple trust, so puja is allowed there, as it has been conducted for a very long time. Worshipping is permitted at a temple in the Khajuraho temple complex also similarly, the sources said.
However, when ASI took over the ruins of the ancient Martand Sun Temple in Jammu and Kashmir, it was already in a state of ruins where worshipping had stopped long ago, and therefore, can't be permitted according to the existing norms, they said.
The department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture in its report has also expressed a "deep concern and disappointment at this apparent lack of seriousness," on the part of the ministry in responding to the panel's recommendations addressing critical issues.
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Nirmala Sitharaman inaugurates Gems and Jewellery Institute campus in Udupi
Udupi (Karnataka) (PTI): Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday inaugurated the premises of the Indian Institute of Gems and Jewellery here, praising the centre for providing professional training and promoting entrepreneurship among youth.
Speaking at the event, Sitharaman said the centre, established in 2016 with support from the Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council and the district administration, has grown steadily despite disruptions during the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We started in a very small place, unsure of the response. Today, advanced facilities including CAD and 3D printing are available, enabling students to gain industry-relevant skills,” she said.
Sitharaman highlighted the centre’s reach across Karnataka and beyond.
“Students have come from Karwar, Chitradurga, Raichur, and Tamil Nadu. Some had no prior experience but are now running successful jewellery businesses,” she said, citing examples of trainees who returned to their hometowns to start enterprises.
Emphasising affordability, she noted, “Training abroad is expensive, but here the Indian Institute of Gems and Jewellery offers professional courses at accessible costs, making skill development widely available.”
The minister also underlined the centre’s contribution to India’s jewellery export sector.
“This region, from Ratnagiri to Kerala, has a rich jewellery tradition serving the Indian diaspora. Skilled manpower from such centres strengthens our exports and creates livelihood opportunities,” she said.
Sitharaman commended the collaboration between the government, GJEPC, and local jewellers, noting that around 600 students were trained last year.
She urged greater awareness to attract more youth to the institute, describing it as a model public-private partnership that fosters entrepreneurship and skill development.
The minister also witnessed the signing of an MoU between the Indian Institute of Gems & Jewellery and IIT Madras under the InCent LGD platform for a specialised, industry-oriented certification programme in lab-grown diamond technologies.
The office of the minister said in a post on X that the programme will help bridge critical skill gaps, create job-ready professionals, boost value-added manufacturing, and strengthen India’s position in the global LGD (lab-grown diamond) value chain, aligned with Make in India, Skill India, and the goal of a self-reliant, globally competitive LGD ecosystem.
It further said that the Rs 242 crore grant announced in the Union Budget 2023–24 for lab-grown diamond research at IIT Madras is helping build a world-class ecosystem.
Under the InCent initiative, India’s first indigenously designed scaled prototype of a High Pressure High Temperature (HPHT) LGD machine has been developed and installed at IIT Madras, while imported commercial HPHT machines have also been installed for benchmarking.
Sitharaman also witnessed a demonstration of the ‘Design to Manufacturing’ process by students at IIGJ Udupi and interacted with trainees of the institute and entrepreneurs from the gems and jewellery industry, the minister’s office said in another post.
