The Archaeological Survey of India signed an MoU with BookMyShow and Yatra on Wednesday.

The MoU will enable overseas and domestic tourists and visitors to book tickets online for 141 historical monuments, museums and sites that fall under the purview of ASI such as Taj Mahal, Qutub Minar, Ajanta and Ellora caves, Red Fort and Sun Temple, according to a press release.

The move will facilitate digitisation of ASI’s service offerings, thereby providing fast-track access and a world-class e-ticket booking experience to visitors. The partnership with BookMyShow and Yatra (the only OTA to provide this facility) will also be significant in promoting tourism and cultural heritage in India. The online booking services come at no additional cost.

Karan Arora, General Manager- Business Development, BookMyShow, said in the statement, “With BookMyShow’s vast reach, user-friendly platforms, secure payment systems and innovations such as the m-ticket (mobile ticket, which allows users entry straight into the venue premises without waiting in long queues), we are confident that we will be able to increase adoption for e-ticketing through this initiative and bring more people online.”

Dhiresh Sharma, Chief Business Officer, Activities - Yatra, said in addition to providing online booking services, Yatra will be extending its platform for promoting cultural heritage and feature all the information that a visitor needs to plan their sight-seeing such as connectivity and access, opening and closing timings and other facilities like write-ups on the monuments. “We believe that this initiative, in partnership with The Archaeological Survey of India, will drive the convenience of ‘digital’ to all those planning to visit these sites,” he added.