GUWAHATI, Sept 26 � The State Government has prepared an action plan to get the coveted World Heritage Site tag for Charaideo Moidam in Sivasagar district.
The Charaideo Moidam has found place in the Tentative List among 46 monuments selected by the UNESCO for India in April 2014.
According to an official press release, a meeting convened by Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi at his official conference room here on Thursday with officials of the Sivasagar district administration and Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) decided to meet the timelines and prepare the dossier fulfilling all the criteria set by the UNESCO for according World Heritage Site status to the Charaideo Moidam.
The Chief Minister asked the Sivasagar district administration, ASI and State Archaeology authorities to take immediate steps to form the Charaideo Moidam Complex Area Management Authority for preservation and protection of the Charaideo Moidam. Necessary legislation would be framed to protect the monument in this regard.
Gogoi directed the officials to take steps for conservation and beautification of the complex, besides arranging for smooth connectivity to the moidam, like shuttle services to the monument. He also stressed on regulating major developmental activities that would pose a threat to the monument. A clear demarcation of the area of the monument and the buffer zone with revenue maps would also be carried out. The total estimated cost of the works would entail a cost of around Rs 41.51 crore.
The officials apprised the Chief Minister about the slew of steps being initiated to meet the timelines to complete the documentation on Charaideo Moidam and submission of the draft nomination dossier to the Government of India for onward transmission to the UNESCO by September 2016.
The Charaideo Moidam has been nominated under Criteria-V for �outstanding example of a traditional human settlement, land-use, or sea-use which is representative of a culture (or cultures), or human interaction with the environment, especially when it has become vulnerable under the impact of irreversible change�.
The Chief Minister directed the Principal Secretary of Tourism, VS Bhaskar to prepare a comprehensive action plan for development of tourism in the State within two months.
Gogoi also directed the Deputy Commissioner of Sivasagar, SS Meenakshi Sundaram to initiate steps to start the long-delayed light-and-sound show at Talatalghar through the Assam Tourism Development Corporation and in consultation with the ASI.
It was decided in the meeting that a folk festival would be organised by the Department of Cultural Affairs at Sivasagar during the coming winter. The Department of Tourism would organise a tour operators and media exposure visit to promote tourism in Sivasagar.
The meeting was attended, among others, by Principal Secretary, Planning and Development, KV Eapen, Principal Secretary to CM, MGVK Bhanu, Commissioner and Secretary of Cultural Affairs, Swapnanil Barua, Project Director of DRDA, Sivasagar, Extra Assistant Commissioner, Sivasagar, Circle Officer, Nazira, Superintending Archaeologist of ASI, Guwahati and DIPRO, Sivasagar.
