Maharashtra govt wants to take over maintenance of Raigad Fort
Devendra Fadnavis
The state government wants the Centre to de-notify the historic Raigad Fort from the list of Centrally-protected monuments and hand it over to the state for maintenance.
The government is preparing to organise a five-day festival to recreate the coronation ceremony of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji, more than three centuries after it actually took place at the wedge-shaped fort. The government has allocated Rs 50 crore in its budget for the event.
“We have had a meeting with officials from the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) and will soon meet officials from the Union culture ministry to formally put forth this request. We plan to organise the festival in January or February 2016 before which we want to work on the maintenance and restoration of the fort to get it in shape. These kinds of events usually draw a large number of tourists from within the country and outside,” a senior state government official said.
As per norms, said the official, historical structures more than a hundred years old fell in the list of Centrally-protected monuments, while those more than 50 years old were state-protected monuments.
Source:: Indian Express