MITRON, WE JUST ‘SOLD’ THE RED FORT!

ICONIC HISTORICAL MONUMENT HANDED OVER TO DALMIA BHARAT GROUP FOR A PITTANCE. WILL IT BE TAJ MAHAL NEXT?

Is it privatisation of India's heritage? The Congress thinks so. It kicked up a row on Saturday, citing a five-year contract with a renewable clause signed for a pittance of Rs 25 crore with the Dalmia Bharat group of companies to develop tourism facilities in the Red Fort (Lal Quila) built in Delhi in the 17th Century by India's first Mughal emperor Shah Jahan.

"After handing over Red Fort to Dalmia group, which is the next distinguished location that BJP government will lease out to a private entity," the Congress asked in a tweet, seeking votes on whether it will be Parliament, Lok Kalyan Marg (Race Course Road where PM lives), Supreme Court or all of them.

Undeterred by the Congress protest, a top government official said that PM Modi had personally cleared the scheme to bring in corporate control of some monuments and heritage sites for handling maintenance and operations more professionally and as such there is no going back. Just wait for another announcement on the Taj Mahal as a decision is at an advanced stage, he said.

Social media was agog with criticism after Congress took the initiative within days of the Tourism Ministry announcing the Red Fort contract to Dalmia Bharat which beat IndiGo Airlines and GMR group in the contest. Dalmias, in fact, also bagged another contract for Gandikota Fort in Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh.

The Congress attack remained fixed just on Red Fort adoption as revealed by the Tourism Ministry on Wednesday while the ministry has rather awarded Letters of Intent to 24 entities for 76 monuments under "Adopt the Heritage" scheme that includes Taj Mahal in Agra, Chittorgarh Fort in Rajasthan and Mehrauli Archaeological Park and Gol Gumbad in Delhi.

The infrastructure conglomerate GMR Group and consumer products and cigarette company ITC Ltd have already expressed interest to adopt Taj Mahal, though no decision has been taken yet, says a government press note of March 19 that went unnoticed.

The government was quick to assert that Red Fort has not been leased out nor will the company make any financial gains nor will it be allowed to do any correction work on the monument. The company has been roped in only to provide support services for attracting more tourists, it said.