The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has announced that the entry to all monuments under its purview and museums across the country will be free on the occasion of International Museum Day on Sunday, May 18.

ASI said that this year, it is offering free access to its network of 52 museums and all the ticketed monuments across the country, which house some of India’s most treasured archaeological artefacts — from prehistoric tools and sculptures to mediaeval inscriptions, to encourage wider public participation.

This initiative seeks to deepen public engagement with India’s rich cultural legacy and to provide a meaningful platform for people to reconnect with history and heritage, an ASI statement said.

The premier archaeological body also has a dedicated Museum Wing which deals with the maintenance and management of 52 museums, which include Sarnath (1910) being the earliest in the series of Archaeological Site Museums in the country.

The concept of Archaeological Site Museums came up to preserve and display the excavated and movable artefacts near the site so that the displayed objects don’t lose their context and may be studied by researchers and visitors alike.

Recently, India’s first underground museum at the World Heritage Site of Humayun’s Tomb was inaugurated, along with the Virtual Experiential Museum at Man Mahan Observatory in Varanasi and the Archaeological site of Lalitagiri in Odisha.

The ASI also said that its Site-Museums are being upgraded to facilitate the needs of every section of society and modern interventions like AR-VR are also being incorporated to ensure a holistic experience for visitors.

Having a nationwide reach with 3,698 protected monuments and sites and 52 museums, ASI’s 26 sites are in UNESCO’s World Heritage list.