Heritage committee to boost tourism in state

Kolkata: State Municipal Affairs minister Firhad Hakim announced the constitution of heritage committee in each of the municipalities with an aim to give a boost to tourism in the state.

"There are heritage structures through out the state. The temples in Bishnupur are part of our heritage , similarly a number of places in Purulia are heritage spots. The heritage committee will ensure that urban and rural heritage are given equal priority. They will suggest measures on how the heritage places can be beautified so that it can attract tourists," Hakim said while tabling the West Bengal Municipal (Amendment ) Bill 2019 at the state Assembly.

The municipalities will have to constitute a committee called Heritage Conservation Committee with the Chairman of a municipality as its chairman and the Executive Officer of the municipality as the convener.

There would be a nominee of the district magistrate of the concerned district, a nominee of the Director of the state Information and Cultural Affairs, an eminent architect, an artist, an environmentalist, a historian having knowledge of the region, and the concerned executive engineer of the Municipal Engineering Directorate along with the Town Planner of the municipality in the committee.

The Bill empowers the state government to extend the term of administrator or Board of Administrators for a period of one year. Earlier the government had extended the term of administrator for six months, hence now the administrator can be at the helm of a municipality for a period of 18 months. Elections will have to be held within this 18 months period. "The government wants to conduct elections of all municipalities at one time. Holding polls of municipalities at different times affect administrative work," Hakim maintained.

The Bill was passed at the House on Tuesday and awaits the nod of the Governor.