Technology is aiding in the digital preservation of India's cultural heritage, with mobile apps offering audio tours and virtual space providing panoramic views of various historical sights - all at the click of a button.

The innovations in the world of culture and heritage began a few years ago.

In October 2013, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and Google India ushered in the world of "digital tourism", bringing popular technology like "street view trekker" - which provides a 360 degree view of a particular site - to India by offering visual walkthroughs (taking a walk around a site in the virtual world).

The collaboration has so far seen the successful publication of panoramic imagery of 30 important heritage sites, including Unesco World Heritage Sites like the Taj Mahal, the Qutub Minar and the Red Fort.

All these historical sites can be explored through Google maps and the Google Cultural Institute (GCI).

"Digital technology is increasingly being used for the preservation, representation, enjoyment and promotion of the world's rich cultural heritage," Suren Ruhela, director and product manager, India Google Maps, told IANS.

"Online tools like GCI can be used to preserve heritage and share information about the same with global audience, irrespective of the size of the country. So technology is addressing the access barrier by providing equal opportunity for all," he said.

He added that people can take a virtual walk at rock-cut Jain temples (across India), marvel at the Nagarjunakonda Buddhist stupas (in Andhra Pradesh) or relive Mughal history in Fatehpur Sikri (near Agra in Uttar Pradesh).

But that's not all.

Now, a smart phone can tell one about the history and heritage of 17 of India's historical sites.

This innovative idea came to Gautam Shewakramani's mind when he realized that there are 981 Unesco World Heritage Sites worldwide, of which 30 are in India. But there was not much awareness about them.

"As an avid traveller, what I found was that most of the tour guides available at the heritage sites have no knowledge about its history. And the audio tours at various historical forts are so boring that a person who is not into history will not like it," Shewakramani, the founder of AudioCompass, told IANS.

AudioCompass provides a free mobile application for smart phones that gives audio tours of popular Indian heritage sites or heritage walks. Monuments and their interesting features have been selected for a particular city.

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