Heritage City Development And Augmentation Yojana

India is blessed with numerous, varied, and abundant natural, historical, and cultural treasures. It is a melting pot of multiple cultures, religions, and customs, as well as the birthplace of several artistic and handicraft mediums, genres of music, and architectural designs. However, it has not yet utilised these resources to their best extent. The Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) programme were introduced by the Ministry of Urban Development of the Government of India with a focus on the comprehensive development of heritage cities. 

Features of the Hriday Scheme:

• The project seeks to maintain and revitalise the heritage city’s essence in order to reflect the city’s distinctive personality by promoting an aesthetically pleasing, open, educational, and secure environment.
• The scheme was launched by the Ministry of Urban Development, Government of India in 2015 and ended on 31 March 2019..
• As a central sector programme, the HRIDAY programme received all of its money from the Union government.
• The scheme’s implementation was budgeted to cost 500 crores of rupees in total.
•  With the improvement in the heritage-linked infrastructure, it can help in the growth of the country’s economy as it will attract more tourists to the city.

The Objective of the Hriday Scheme:

The objective of the Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana are:

• Developing, planning, and implementing the heritage-sensitive infrastructure.
• To preserve the heritage, the full range of inherited traditions and culture, 
• Enhancing the service delivery in the core areas of these historic cities.
• Bringing the growth in economic and urban planning. 
• It includes the implementation and enhancement of basic services of sanitation services like public conveniences, toilets, water, and street lights, and improving tourist amenities with the use of the latest technology.
• Also, the conservation of heritage wherein tourists can connect directly with the city’s unique essence of the character.

Cities Under Hriday Scheme:

HRIDAY scheme was implemented in 12 cities, the cities include:

• Ajmer 
• Amaravati
• Amritsar
• Badami
• Dwarka
• Gaya
• Kancheepuram
• Velankanni
• Varanasi
• Puri 
• Badami
• Warangal.

Components of the Hriday Scheme:

The HRIDAY programme concentrated on four key areas: physical infrastructure, economic infrastructure, social infrastructure, and institutional infrastructure with the goal of reviving and revitalising the soul of the designated heritage cities. 

The following list includes the HRIDAY scheme’s indicative components:

• A Heritage Management plan is produced as a result of the heritage documentation and mapping. To achieve this, a specific city’s tangible and intangible heritage assets were listed and mapped using a Geographic Information System.
• Heritage revitalization is related to services provided in cities. This includes creating museums, fairs, festivals, and other types of cultural events, as well as connecting heritage sites to other service offerings at the local and municipal levels.
• Development of knowledge and skills for heritage cities. The creation of websites, city maps, catalogues, brochures, digital display boards, direction pillars, and other materials was included in this. It also covered the training of local tour guides, craftsmen, and craftspeople.

Implementation of the Hriday Scheme:

• The 100% funding to be provided by the Government of India and rs 500 Crores had been allocated to the scheme. The scheme to be implemented in a mission mode. The National Mission Directorate or City Mission Directorate, the State parastatal or Non-Governmental Organisations(NGOs) of repute to develop the Heritage Management Plan.
• Every city has been granted a specific amount of funds on the basis of its population and size. For instance, funding of 40.04 Crores, 22.26 Crores, and 69.31 Crores were provided to the cities of Ajmer(Rajasthan), Amaravati( Andhra Pradesh), and Amritsar(Punjab) respectively. The scheme was completed in four years with the funds provided by the Government of India.

Impact of the Hriday Scheme:

• The programme had helped establish connections between important civic infrastructure projects and key heritage sites. It also had a significant impact on the redevelopment of urban infrastructure in regions close to the cities’ historical, religious, cultural, and tourist attractions.
• In the cities of Varanasi, Amaravati, Ajmer, and Amritsar, 59 roadways leading to historic monuments were finished. Amritsar, Puri, and Ajmer’s public parks and gardens were revitalised.

Related Frequently Asked Questions and Answers:

1Q. What was the main aim of the HRIDAY scheme?

Ans. The scheme aimed to plan, develop and implement several heritage-sensitive infrastructures. It wanted to implement the basic amenities and services and to carry out the adaptive rehabilitation and maintenance of the urban heritage and inculcate the appropriate technologies.

2Q. In how many cities, the scheme had been Implemented?

Ans. The 12 cities were announced for the scheme. These are Ajmer, Amritsar, Amravati, Badami, Dwarka, Gaya, Warangal, Puri, Kanchipuram, Mathura, Varanasi and Velankanni.

3Q. Discuss the Implementation of the Hriday Scheme?

Ans:

• The programme had helped establish connections between important civic infrastructure projects and key heritage sites. It also had a significant impact on the redevelopment of urban infrastructure in regions close to the cities’ historical, religious, cultural, and tourist attractions.
• In the cities of Varanasi, Amaravati, Ajmer, and Amritsar, 59 roadways leading to historic monuments were finished. Amritsar, Puri, and Ajmer’s public parks and gardens were revitalised.