Lok Sabha Question No. 1297 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-08
Subject: Protection of Temples and Heritage Structures
Ministry: CULTURE
Asked by: Shri Captain Viriato Fernandes

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CULTURE

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1297 ANSWERED ON 08.12.2025

## PROTECTION OF TEMPLES AND HERITAGE STRUCTURES

## 1297. SHRI CAPTAIN VIRIATO FERNANDES:

Will the Minister of CULTURE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Central and State Governments conducted heritage impact assessments before approving road projects near sacred sites in light of the Dev Khapreshwar  temple's  demolition and  century-old  banyan  uprooting-without heritage safeguards, if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (b) whether the Government has mandated event-based waste management protocols, enforceable by local bodies, with penalties for sacrilege-level pollution in view of the plastic  pollution left at Bodgeshwar Temple after religious gatherings;
- (c) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor;
- (d) whether the Government proposes to explore alternate alignments or bypasses for infrastructure projects that risk damaging religious structures and enforce heritage compliance  in  view  of  the  repeated  threats  to  temples  at  village  Bhoma  and temples  like  Sateri  and  Mahadev  due  to  highway  expansion,  if  so,  the  details thereof; and
- (e) whether  the  Government  is  likely  to  fund  geo-mapping,  protect  sacred  groves under Forest Rights Act (FRA)/Forest Conservation Acts and institute communityled  guardianship backed by surveillance and legal safeguards sacred groves like Nagvechi Rai are disappearing due to encroachment and idol theft?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF CULTURE AND TOURISM (SHRI GAJENDRA SINGH SHEKHAWAT)

- (a) The  Dev  Khapreshwar  temple  is  neither  declared  a  Monument  of  National Importance under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR)  Act,  1958,  nor  notified  as  a  State-protected  monument  under  the applicable State legislation. Since the monument does not fall under the protection framework  of  either the Archaeological  Survey  of  India  (ASI) or the State Archaeology Department, the statutory requirement for conducting Heritage Impact Assessments is not attracted.
- (b)& (c) Event-based waste management norms are being enforced through local bodies, including restrictions on single-use plastics. For the BogdeshwarJatra at Mapusa, the Temple Committee, in coordination with the Goa State Pollution Control Board (GSPCB), issued  strict  instructions  prohibiting  single-use  plastics,  displayed  Dos and  Don'ts  on  site,  and  imposed  fines  on  violators.  GSPCB  also  distributed upcycled cloth bags to vendors to reduce plastic use.
- (d)   The  most  suitable  road  alignment  was  approved  after  considering  all  relevant factors,  including  the  safety  of  nearby  religious  structures.  Wherever  feasible, bypass options are also examined and taken up to minimise any impact on temples such  as  those  at  Bhoma,  including  the  Sateri  and  Mahadev  temples  by  Public works Department of Goa Government.
- (e) Currently, there  is  no  such  proposal  under  Forest  Conservation  Act,  1980 regarding protection of sacred grooves.

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