What happened
The Ministry of Culture informed the Lok Sabha that the Archaeological Survey of India is carrying out excavations at multiple sites across India. The Union government also stated that the Archaeological Survey of India granted 121 excavation permissions over five years from 2021-22 to 2025.
The reply is useful for UPSC because it links a current parliamentary disclosure to India’s long-running archaeology and heritage-conservation framework.
What the Archaeological Survey of India reported
According to the written reply by Union Minister for Culture and Tourism Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, excavation work has yielded structural remains, burials, pottery, and antiquities such as coins, beads, ornaments, agricultural tools, and bone objects.
The reply also states that samples are sent to various institutions for scientific validation whenever required.
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