MINISTER OF TOURISM & CULTURE ( SHRI ANANTH KUMAR )
(a) and (b) : The preparation ofthe National Register of the tangible heritage, including
numismatic collections, in the country has begun. In the first phase, the Register would
include the `AA` and `A` category collections. As far as collections deposited outside
the country is concerned, it may be stated that prior to Independence, a large number of
cultural objects including coins had moved from the Indian Subcontinent to different parts
of the world. These objects are scattered among innumerable museums and private collections.
There is no international covenant for the restitution of such objects. Further, because of
partition of Indian Subcontinent, there would be competing claims about the country of origin
of these objects. In view of this, building a record of such objects is not only time consuming
and problematic but also unlikely to yield practical results so far as restitution is
concerned.
(c) : The Constitution assigns the subject `Treasure Trove` to State List. The Covcmment
do not propose to collect the treasure troves lying with State Treasuries.
