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Rs 350 crore has been approved by the Centre for developing infrastructure at heritage sites, Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu recently announced, highlighting the importance of such sites in boosting tourism in the country. India is blessed with tangible and intangible heritage assets with 32 World Heritage Sites recognised by UNESCO. And, India ranks 5th in the world and 2nd in Asia in terms of number of such sites. Reportedly, Naidu however, pointed out that the heritage management has often been carried out in isolation with no linkages to urban planning process. There is an importance of heritage sites for tourism, and India attracts millions of tourists every year, generating revenue of Rs 2 lakh crore or 6.6 per cent of the GDP.    Further, as per reports, France has expressed interest in works related to waterfront development, and, two cities –Puri and Varanasi â€� have also identified such projects. HRIDAY (Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana) scheme was launched by the government two years ago for heritage and tourism-oriented urban development. Additionally, the minister has also reportedly highlighted the need for convergence of schemes like Smart City and AMRUT to reinforce the cultural and heritage India.