Allahabad HC issues notice to Union government, state and ASI on dilapidated condition of various heritage sites in U.P.

Allahabad High Court earlier this week issued notice to the Uttar Pradesh Government, the Union Ministries of Culture, Tourism, and Housing and Urban Affairs, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), the National Monuments Authority, and the State Archaeology Department over the dilapidated condition of various heritage sites and structures across the State.

The notice was issued on March 23 by the Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Arun Bhansali and Justice Kshitij Shailendra while hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by advocate Akash Vashishtha. The concerned authorities have been asked to file their responses within eight weeks.

The petitioner argued that several historically significant structures are laying in utter neglect in cities such as Jhansi, Vrindavan, Agra, Lucknow, and Hastinapur.

Citing data from the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH), the plea stated that Uttar Pradesh has 5,416 identified heritage buildings. Of these, only 421 are currently under protection—212 by the State Archaeology Department, 154 by ASI Agra, and 55 by ASI Lucknow.

The remaining 4,995 structures, the petition claimed, are in a state of neglect and face the risk of disappearing entirely. It emphasised that both State and Central authorities are legally obligated under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act to safeguard such sites.

The plea further contended that even abandoned or encroached monuments must be protected, with encroachments removed where necessary. It also pointed to a large number of unlisted heritage assets—including temples, havelis, ghats, and sarais over a century old—that fall outside the formal protection framework and remain vulnerable.