Govt planning public-pvt ownership to maintain ASI sites

New Delhi, Mar 13 (UNI) The government is trying to have public-private partnership for maintenance of archaeological sites in the country and is considering tax rebate to the private enterprises who contribute to the upkeep of monuments, Tourism and Culture Minister Ambika Soni said today.

Ms Soni said in the Rajya Sabha during Question Hour that the Ministry got only Rs 53 crore from collection of entry tickets to the monuments from domestic as well as foreign tourists.

Even this amount was sent to the Finance Ministry, she said, adding that now, the Ministry planned to ask that this be treated as a non-lapsable fund.

''We get only Rs 53 crore from ticket collection which is not a big amount. Even this amount, we don't have access to. It goes to the Ministry of Finance. That is why we are moving this private-public partnership concept,'' she added.

She, however, regretted that the response from private enterprises was still not adequate.

The Minister was non-committal on whether the government would remove huge disparities in the entry fee of foreign and domestic tourists to heritage monuments in the country.

UNI