Facilities for differently abled at heritage sites

The differently abled people have a reason to cheer as the Centre has approved a grant of Rs.5 crore to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to make five of its World Heritage Sites — the Taj Mahal, Agra Fort, Fatehpur Sikri (all in Agra Circle, Uttar Pradesh); Sun Temple at Konark (Bhubaneswar Circle in Orissa) and Jami Masjid Champaner-Pavgadh (Vadodara Circle in Gujarat) — and 25 other ticketed monuments accessible to persons with disabilities.

The ticketed monuments, for which accessibility has been sanctioned, include the Charminar, the Golconda Fort (Hyderabad), Nagarjunakonda (in Guntur), the Sun Temple at Modhera (in Gujarat), Laxman Temple at Sirpur (in Chhattisgarh) and temples in Bhubaneswar.

The funds released by the Social Justice and Empowerment Ministry will be used to make access pathways, ramps, toilets, tactile maps, Braille signage, and modifications in ticket counters.

This Ministry has been, over the years, giving financial assistance to the States, Universities for the same purpose.