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Karnataka High Court upholds AMASR Act's prohibited and regulated zones

By CAShorts DeskPublished Sources: LiveLaw; Karnataka High Court judgment; National Monuments Authority; PIB (Ministry of Culture); PRS Legislative Research

Karnataka High Court upholds AMASR Act's prohibited and regulated zones
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The Karnataka High Court on 9 October 2026 upheld sections 20A, 20B and 20C of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. They bar new construction within 100 metres of a centrally protected monument and regulate it in a further 200 metres. Restricting land use is not acquisition, the court held, so no compensation is due.

Syllabus: GS1 · Art & Culture; GS2 · Constitution; Prelims · Polity & Governance

Why this matters for UPSC

GS1 heritage conservation and GS2 polity: Prelims can ask about the AMASR Act's prohibited and regulated areas, the National Monuments Authority, Article 49 and Article 300A; Mains, about balancing heritage with development and property rights.

Why it matters

Many old Indian towns grew around forts, temples and tombs, and families still live and trade beside them. For an owner whose plot falls inside the prohibited area, the ruling means no new building at all, even on land already owned, and no compensation for the lost use, though an existing house can still be repaired with permission. Next door, in the regulated area, building is possible but only after an application and an expert review. Because a few metres decide which rule applies, an accurate survey matters as much as the law. The larger question is how a growing country protects its heritage from encroachment without freezing the lives of the people around it.

Prelims pointers

  • Article 49, among the Directive Principles of State Policy: the State must protect every monument or place of artistic or historic interest declared of national importance by Parliament's law.
  • Seventh Schedule: monuments of national importance are Union List entry 67; other monuments, State List entry 12; other archaeological sites, Concurrent List entry 40.
  • Article 300A (Part XII), inserted by the Forty-fourth Amendment Act, 1978: no one is deprived of property save by authority of law; a constitutional, not fundamental, right.
  • Article 51A(f): every citizen's duty to value and preserve the rich heritage of the nation's composite culture; Article 51A(g) covers the natural environment.
  • NMA composition: a whole-time Chairperson appointed by the President, up to five whole-time and five part-time members, and the ASI's Director General ex officio.
  • Under section 20D, the NMA's recommendation on a permission is final; the competent authority grants or refuses as recommended.
  • Section 20E: heritage bye-laws are prepared with INTACH or other notified expert bodies, approved by the NMA and laid before both Houses of Parliament.

Practise a UPSC-style question

With reference to the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, consider the following statements:

1. The regulated area extends 300 metres beyond the limit of the prohibited area of a protected monument.

2. The prohibited area extends 100 metres in all directions from the limit of a protected monument.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. (a) 1 only
  2. (b) 2 only
  3. (c) Both 1 and 2
  4. (d) Neither 1 nor 2
Show the answer

Answer: (b) 2 only

Answer: (b) 2 only. The prohibited area is 100 m; the regulated area is a further 200 m, not 300 m.

Statement 1: incorrect. Section 20B makes the regulated area 200 metres beginning at the limit of the prohibited area, so it ends 300 m from the monument.

Statement 2: correct. Section 20A makes every area within 100 metres in all directions of a protected monument's limit its prohibited area.

Eliminate: Statement 2 is the headline number of the Act, so judge it first. Out: (a), (d).

Eliminate: Statement 1 adds 300 m beyond the prohibited area, but the regulated area is 200 m. Out: (c).

Trap: Near-miss figure. 300 m is where the regulated area ends measured from the monument, so it is offered as the regulated area's own width.

Remember: 100 m prohibited, then 200 m more regulated: 300 m in all from the monument.

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