The Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) in a recent report, has suggested that the number of 'Monuments of National Importance' (MNIs) be rationalised, and their criteria for selection be revamped.

In a report titled ‘Monuments of National Importance — Urgent Need for rationalisation’ authored by Sanjeev Sanyal, the EAC-PM has pointed out that the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI),’s list of MNIs has risen to an ‘unwieldy’ 3,695. 

The report then goes on to point out several flaws with the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act of 1958 which governs MNIs, and the current list of monuments and argues for their rationalisation.

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The report says that the geographical distribution of MNIs is highly skewed, with only five states accounting for 60 per cent of listings, and historically important states like Bihar and Kerala, having lower than a fair share.

The report also points out the woefully small expenditure on MNIs, with the 2019-20 budgetary allocation being a paltry ₹428 crore, or ₹11 lakh per monument.

The report argues for ASI to have substantive criteria and detailed procedures for declaring MNIs, a measure requiring only an executive order. 

It also asks for monuments with local importance to be handed over to states, and standalone antiquities and untraceable monuments to be taken off the list.

It also suggests increasing budgetary allocations and realising alternate revenue streams to be leveraged and the proceeds to be handed over directly to the ASI.

While the rationalisation of the list would increase allocations to each monument, increasing revenue from ticketing, filmmaking, etc. would improve caretaking for lesser-known, but historically significant, monuments. 

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