Aurangabad, June 14:
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI, New Delhi) has decided to re-open all its centrally protected monuments, sites, and museums, which were closed due to the prevailing Covid-19 pandemic situation in the country, today.
The Director (Monuments) N K Pathak had issued an order (on June 14) about the re-opening of monuments from June 16, to all the circles. The director has issued a fresh directive underlining that the final decision on re-opening of monuments has to be taken by the head of each circle, in consultation with the respective District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), with appropriate measures and SOPs. The ASI headquarter has alerted all the circles in this regard.
As reported earlier, the heritage sites and monuments in the jurisdiction of Aurangabad district were closed for the tourists and visitors from March 11 to April 30 on the orders of the district administration. Later on, the ASI directorate as a precautionary measure took the decision of closing them till May 15. The monument section extended till May 31 and June 15 in phases after reviewing the severity of the situation.
According to reliable sources, the superintending archaeologist (Aurangabad Circle) Milan Kumar Chauley has corresponded with the district collector regarding the re-opening of monuments. Meanwhile, the ASI officials pursued the matter by visiting the district collectorate today."