What is the HRIDAY Scheme?

Introduced on January 21, 2015, HRIDAY is a government initiative under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India. The scheme, officially known as the National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY), aims to conserve designated heritage cities across the nation by integrating urban planning, economic growth, and heritage preservation. With a focus on the comprehensive development of these cities, HRIDAY addresses prevalent issues by revitalizing heritage assets such as monuments and religious sites, alongside enhancing sanitation facilities, citizen services, and transportation infrastructure. This article delves into some of the key aspects of the HRIDAY scheme.

Common problems addressed by HRIDAY

The HRIDAY Scheme is geared towards addressing specific issues linked with heritage areas to enhance their upkeep and conservation. Given the significance of these areas as tourist hotspots, it's imperative to ensure a seamless experience for visitors, thereby bolstering the tourism sector.

Although heritage areas play a crucial role in tourism, they often suffer from overcrowding and inadequate infrastructure. Basic amenities such as water supply, sanitation, and well-maintained toilets are essential in these regions. Furthermore, poor road conditions and inadequate transportation infrastructure are common problems. Additionally, the management and funding of heritage assets have been contentious issues involving private institutions, urban local bodies, and larger government bodies.

With these challenges in mind, the HRIDAY scheme has been formulated to tackle the maintenance and preservation challenges encountered by heritage cities.

Scheme statement and objectives

As per the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, the scheme's objective is to conserve and rejuvenate the essence of heritage cities, showcasing their distinct character through creating visually appealing, accessible, informative, and secure environments. It aims to strategically and systematically develop these cities to enhance overall quality of life, with particular emphasis on sanitation, security, tourism, heritage restoration, and livelihoods, while preserving the city's cultural identity. Below is a simplified breakdown of the scheme's goals:

• Development and implementation of plans surrounding heritage sensitive infrastructure.
• Special attention to the infrastructure of core areas of the historic cities.
• Preservation of heritage in tourist areas that promote the unique character of the city.
• Developing and maintaining a heritage asset inventory of cities including natural and cultural heritage as a basis for urban planning.
• Enhancing availability of basic services including sanitation, public conveniences and street lights along with technology integration.
• Increasing local capacity for an inclusive heritage-based industry.
• Creating efficient linkages between tourism and cultural facilities and conserving natural and built heritage.
• Adaptive rehabilitation and maintenance for heritage buildings and suitable technologies for retrofitting.
• Establishment of public-private partnerships for management for heritage buildings and adaptive urban rehabilitation.
• Development of economic activities to enhance livelihood, including emphasis on skill development.
• Integration of modern technology, including usage of ICT tools and surveillance apparatus like CCTV.
• Increased physical access (better roads and transport infrastructure) and intellectual access (GIS mapping etc.)

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Cities and funding

Following is the list of cities covered by HRIDAY and the funds allotted for the development of each of them:

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