Dhaka: Cultural Affairs Minister Nitai Roy Chowdhury announced in Parliament that the government has released a list of 554 gazetted immovable archaeological sites and is preparing to launch a project for a National Digital Cultural Repository.
According to United News of Bangladesh, the list of these archaeological sites has been made publicly available on the official website of the Department of Archaeology. This announcement was made during a question-and-answer session in the House, in response to a query by ruling party lawmaker Fahmida Haq from Women Seat-18. The parliamentary session was chaired by Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad and commenced at around 3:00 pm.
Minister Roy Chowdhury further elaborated that the Department of Archives and Library has proposed a Tk 239 crore project aimed at preserving manuscripts, folk heritage, and cultural artefacts. The project also aims to make these resources accessible on a global scale through digital archives. Presently, the project is pending final approval from the Ministry of Cultural Affairs.
The minister emphasized that with approval, the project would facilitate the swift implementation of a National Digital Cultural Repository. This repository would preserve the nation’s valuable archaeological resources, manuscripts, folk heritage, and cultural artefacts, making them accessible to a worldwide audience.