New Delhi, Dec 19 (IANS): The central government has removed the cap on number of visitors at monuments protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), giving powers to concerned superintending archaeologists to decide the per day figure in concurrence with respective district magistrate.

Issued on Friday, the new Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) mentions that the sale of physical tickets to these centrally protected monuments and sites may be resumed where there is problem in QR code and network.

As many as 3,691 centrally-protected monuments and archaeological sites maintained by the ASI were shut from March 17 in view of the coronavirus crisis.

The order also gave approval to the sound and light programmes that has been banned since March 17 this year -- days before Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced countrywide lockdown from March 24 to avoid the spread of Covid-19 that has so far infected over 1 crore people in the country.

All ASI protected monuments across the country reopened for the public from July 6 with full security and precaution. The rules of the states and the districts, in which the monuments are located, are being followed since they opened.

The entry since the opening was allowed only through e-tickets and a cap on the number of visitors and mandatory wearing of masks was applied as per Covid guidelines.