Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY)

About:

• The National Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) was launched on 21st January 2015 with the aim of bringing together urban planning, economic growth and heritage conservation in an inclusive manner & with the objective of preserving the heritage character of the City. 
• It is a central sector scheme.

Objectives:

• Focus on holistic development of heritage cities and to preserve and revitalize soul of the heritage city to reflect the city’s unique character by encouraging aesthetically appealing, accessible, informative & secured environment.

Salient features:

• The Scheme is being implemented in 12 identified Cities namely, Ajmer, Amaravati, Amritsar, Badami, Dwarka, Gaya, Kanchipuram, Mathura, Puri, Varanasi, Velankanni and Warangal. 
• The scheme is implemented in a mission mode. 
• The scheme will broadly focus on four theme areas i.e. Physical Infrastructure, Institutional Infrastructure, Economic Infrastructure & Social Infrastructure. 
• Identified cities/towns will be required to prepare Heritage Management Plan (HMP) for the city/town and develop and execute Detailed Project Reports (DPRs) for availing assistance under the scheme.
• The Scheme has supported development of core heritage linked civic infrastructure projects which includes revitalization of urban infrastructure for areas around heritage, religious, cultural and tourism assets of the cities. 
• These initiatives include development of water supply, sanitation, drainage, waste management, approach roads, footpaths, street lights, tourist conveniences, electricity wiring, landscaping and such citizen services.
• Adaptive maintenance of urban heritage, including rehabilitation using appropriate technology for retrofitting historic buildings with modern conveniences.
• Establishment of public-private partnership for preserving and maintaining historic buildings is also part of this goal.
• Promotion of economic activities to enhance avenues of employment among people living in and around the heritage sites. This includes skill development among them and making public and cultural spaces accessible.