By IANS,
New Delhi: Railway authorities have been pulled up for carrying out construction work near the protected monument of Nila Gumbad in the national capital. The monument is a part of the Humayun’s tomb complex which is a world heritage site.
The ministry of culture sent a show cause notice to Northern Railways after the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (Intach) lodged a complaint with the Archaeological Survery of India (ASI) last week. ASI works under the culture ministry.
Yogen Narayan of Intach said: “Some of our conservationists saw that bulldozers were being used for construction work near the Nila Gumbad by the railways. This is a clear violation of the prohibition of any kind of work within 100 metres of a protected monument, since that can affect the structure.”
“Therefore, we lodged a complaint with the ASI under the culture ministry. The ministry has given a show cause notice to the Northern Railways and has sought a meeting with the railways’ chairman in this regard,” Narayan told IANS.
The construction work near the protected site is a violation of the provisions of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Rules, 1959.
Nila Gumbad is located outside the eastern enclosure wall of Humayun’s tomb. It is believed to contain the grave of Fahim Khan, the attendant of Abdur Rahim Khan, who lived during the reign of Jahangir and died in 1626 AD.
It is known as Nila Gumbad for its blue dome.