The hike in the fee for joggers inside the Gol Gumbaz garden by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has irked people who are calling it completely unreasonable and unacceptable.
The ASI, which comes under Ministry of Culture of the Union government, has issued a notice mentioning the steep hike in the fee.
Earlier, the annual fee to jog in the morning, before the Gol Gumbaz is opened for visitors, was ₹35 per annum.
Now, as per the new order, it has been hiked to ₹3,600 per year, which comes to ₹300 per month.
The Gol Gumbaz has a large garden and many people have been jogging in it in the early morning.
“Joggers do not do anything other than simply use a particular path in the garden. They are not like visitors who come to see Gol Gumbaz. The joggers are not even permitted to enter the monument area and restricted only to the garden area. When the situation is such, I don’t understand the logic behind increasing the fee so much,” said Samiulla Quadri, a regular jogger.
The notification also says that the passes will now be issued only by the Dharwad circle and not the local office here.
The applicants will have to obtain a certificate from the police and send the form to the Dharwad circle for getting a jogger’s pass.
The passes will be issued only for three months and then will have to be renewed.
According to officials, at present, nearly 600 persons have taken an annual pass under the old fees structure. The new rule came into effect on June 1 and no one has applied for a pass.
Meanwhile, the local officials here have expressed helplessness and said that they have no authority other than implementing the new rule because the order has been issued from New Delhi.
The joggers meanwhile are demanding the ASI to rethink over their decision.
