The Union Tourism Ministry has selected the Mamallapuram temple complex, along with nine other heritage sites in the country, under its ‘Clean India’ campaign.
Launched as a pilot project at Qutub Minar during May 2012, the campaign is aimed at increasing tourist arrivals, creating or improving basic infrastructure at these places and providing a hygienic environment. In the first phase, the Ministry has identified 36 monuments.
An official release said the Ministry facilitated the adoption of 10 important Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) monuments by the Institutes of Hotel Management (IHM) and the Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management under Campaign Clean India.
The Quality Council of India (QCI) will carry out an independent and objective evaluation of the state of cleanliness specific to each monument chosen for adoption.
It will classify the improvement over the adoption period either as average, good, very good and excellent. Based on the QCI classification, the Ministry will extend awards with citation to adopters.
Talking to The Hindu , a Tamil Nadu Tourism department official said: “We had suggested several heritage sites in the State, including Brihadeeswara Temple, Srirangam Temple complex, Vellore Fort and Madurai Meenakshi Amman Temple. We are yet to get the notification.”
The official also said to make the campaign a successful one, the department would involve all the stakeholders to keep the place intact.
Besides, it was proposed to hold awareness campaign from Chennai to Kanyakumari by involving students and voluntary organisations about keeping tourist spots clean and hygienic.
