18 monuments delisted from centrally protected monuments list since 2021: Govt

Bara Khamba Cemetery in Delhi and a banyan grove of "great antiquity" containing traces of ancient buildings are among the 18 sites which have been delisted by the Centre from the list of protected monuments since 2021, according to data shared by the government in Parliament on Thursday.

Union Minister of Culture Gajendra Singh Shekhawat shared the data in his written response to a query in the Rajya Sabha.

He was asked the number of centrally protected monuments de-notified under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, since 2021.

"The central government has delisted 18 monuments from the list of protected monuments since 2021 as they were found to have ceased to be of national importance as per the provisions of Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958," he said.

In response to another query, Shekhawat said there are "3,688 centrally protected monuments/sites under the care and maintenance of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). ASI undertakes the conservation, maintenance and development works on these monuments/sites as per the requirement and availability of resources and it is continuous process."

In response to another query, he said the central government has retrieved 662 artefacts from the US (589), Australia (51), the UK (21), and the Netherlands (1), till June 2026.

In a separate query, Shekhawat was asked whether the government has conducted any audit during the last twelve years to assess compliance by ministries, departments, PSUs, autonomous bodies and statutory institutions with the Public Records Act, 1993.

"No such audit has been conducted during the last twelve years, as the Public Records Act, 1993 does not provide for such audit," the Union minister said.