New Delhi, Aug 3 (IANS) The government admitted in parliament Thursday that 35 historical monuments, including 12 in the national capital, have disappeared mainly due to rapid urbanisation.
In a written reply in the Lok Sabha, Minister for Tourism and Culture Ambika Soni said all the untraceable monuments were centrally protected.
Among the disappeared monuments in New Delhi are: the Alipur cemetery, Bara Khamba cemetery, tomb with three domes near Nizamuddin Railway Station, Nicholson statue and its platform.
The others include the guns of Emperor Sher Shah in Assam, Imambara Amin-ud Daula and three tombs in Lucknow and rock carvings of Hindu gods in Jammu and Kashmir.
'The major cause of the disappearance of the historical monuments is rapid urbanisation, construction of multi-storeyed residential and commercial buildings and implementation of development projects,' Soni said.
As a corrective step, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has banned construction and mining activities up to 100 metres from the protected limits of the sites of national importance, the minister added.
An area of another 200 metres beyond this has been declared as a regulated area where the construction activity is allowed with the permission of the ASI.