As many of you may wonder about this strange rule of the ASI, you may find it useful to take a look at the actual wordings and its enthusiastic implementation. It is found under the ANCIENT MONUMENTS AND ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES AND REMAINS RULES 1959 CHAPTER VIII COPYING AND FILMING OF PROTECTED MONUMENTS “copying”, together with its grammatical variations and cognate expressions, means the preparation of copies by drawing or by photography or by mould or by squeezing and includes the preparation of a cinematographic film [and video film] with the aid of a hand-camera which is capable of taking films of not more than eight millimeters and which does not require the use of a stand or involve any special previous arrangement; Vide GSR 90, dated 30.01.1991 40. Permission required for copying certain monuments.—The Director General may, byorder, direct that no person other than an archaeological officer or an officer authorized by an archaeological officer in this behalf shall copy any specified monument or part thereof except under and in accordance with the terms and conditions of a permission in writing by an archaeological officer. 41. Conditions of copying other monuments.— (1) Any person may copy a protected monument in respect of which no order under rule 40 has been made. (2) Nothing in sub-rule (1) shall be construed as authorizing any person other than an archaeological officer or an officer authorised by him in this behalf, while copying any such monument, to— (a) bring into or use within the precincts of such monument a camera-stand, stool,chair, table, large drawing-board, easel or any such appliance, or (b) erect any scaffolding within such precincts, or (c) use within such precincts any artificial light other than a flash-light synchronised with the exposure of a camera, or (d) apply any extraneous matter, such as water, oil, grease or any moulding material,on such monument or part thereof, or (e) prepare a direct tracing or mould or squeeze of such monument or part thereof, except under and in accordance with the terms and conditions of a permission in writing granted by an archaeological officer. The entire document can be found at ASI's website http://asi.nic.in/pdf_data/7.pdf Please don't forget to share it. urge friends to sign and share. Post it to relevant groups in social media. The most recent comment from one of the supporters is appalling.. "Once my sketch was torn to pieces by an ASI official. I think this is an archaic law in the age of photography and prevents us from enjoying the joys of sketching at such inspiring sites. Please modify. " -- Neelakshi Joshi, India