Twin tourist facility centres at Aurangabad's Unesco World Heritage Sites, Ajanta and Ellora, were inaugurated by union tourism minister K Chiranjeevi, Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and Chhagan Bhujbal, minister for public works and tourism, government of Maharashtra on Monday.

The Rs 125-crore tourist centres have been built as a part of the Rs 300-crore second phase of the Ajanta Ellora Conservation and Tourism Development Project ( AEDP), funded by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). With replicas of four exquisitely painted caves at Ajanta, the 2nd century BC world heritage site of 300 Buiddhist caves and a replica of the 750AD Kailash temple at Ellora, the world's largest single monolithic excavation, these centres are an attempt to relive the fascinating history of the twin heritage sites.

"Special attention needs to be paid to the safety of women at heritage sites. Cleanliness, sanitation and hygiene are our other major concerns. It is crucial to develop infrastructure for better connectivity to tourism sites," Chiranjeevi said at a press conference called at Aurangabad following the inauguration of the centres.

The union minister stated that the twin heritage sites, Ajanta and Ellora, have been adopted by the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited (ONGC). "Apart from these two, the Taj Mahal, Golkonda, Mahabalipuram, the Red Fort and the Elephanta caves have also been adopted by the ONGC," Chiranjeevi said. "Rs 80 crore has been sanctioned by the tourism ministry for developing 11 projects in 2013. In Maharashtra, the tourism focus will be on Bhandara, Gondia, Amravati, Pune, Mumbai, Panshet, Satara, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and Thane. In 2013, two other tourism mega-circuits will be developed; including rural tourism," the minister said. "In 2013-'14, Rs 13 crore has been sanctioned to develop grapevine tourism and ecotourism," Chiranjeevi added.

"More private companies should come forward to adopt monuments," Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan said, reiterating ONGC's role in preserving heritage sites.

The Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) has spent Rs 73 crore on the visitors' centre at Ajanta, while the Ellora visitors' centre has been built at an expense of Rs 38 crore. Both the centres have been designed on the lines of international interpretation centres, to provide extensive information on these heritage sites through audiovisual media. In addition, the centres have amphitheatres, spaces for exhibitions and events, retail shops, restaurants and other amenities.

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