The first systematic research into the subcontinent's history was conducted by the Asiatic Society, which was founded by the British Indologist Sir William Jones on 15 January 1784.

Based in Calcutta, the society promoted the study of ancient Persian texts and published an annual journal titled Asiatic Researches.

Notable among its early members was Charles Wilkins who published the first English translation of the Bhagavad Gita in 1785 with the patronage of the then Governor-General of Bengal, Warren Hastings.

[2] The Marquis of Wellesley's 1800 nomination of Francis Buchanan to survey Mysore was a wise move on the part of the administration at the time.

Armed with the knowledge of Brahmi, Alexander Cunningham, a protégé of James Prinsep, carried out a detailed survey of the Buddhist monuments of his own type to be constructed in the Nepalese tarai which lasted for over half a century.

Inspired by early amateur archaeologists like the Italian military officer, Jean-Baptiste Ventura, Cunningham excavated stupas along the width, the length and breadth of India.

[4] In effect, this severely threatened the employment of the employees of the ASI, such as Alois Anton Führer, who had just started a family and become a father.

[4] In 1892, Edward Buck announced that the Archaeological Survey of India would be shut down and all ASI staff would be dismissed by 1895, in order to generate savings for the Government's budget.

[7] Georg Bühler, writing in July 1895 in the Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, continued to advocate for the preservation of the Archaeological Survey of India, and expressed that what was needed were "new authentic documents" from the pre-Ashokan period, and they would "only be found underground".

"[10] Under official instructions from the Government of India, Führer was relieved of his positions, his papers seized and his offices inspected by Vincent Arthur Smith on 22 September 1898.

Marshall had experience with archeological excavations in Greece and oversaw reforms within the organization that consolidated funding and oversight over the local branches of the ASI.

He served as the director-general for a quarter of a century and during his long tenure, he replenished and invigorated the survey whose activities were fast dwindling into insignificance.

The National Museum was inaugurated in New Delhi on 15 August 1949 to house the artifacts displayed at the Indian Exhibition in the United Kingdom.

During Lal's tenure, the Antiquities and Art Treasures Act (1972) was passed recommending central protection for monuments considered to be "of national importance".

The tradition was finally brought to an end in 2010 when Gautam Sengupta an archaeologist, replaced K.M Srivastava an IAS officer as director general.

Under the provisions of the AMASR Act of 1958, the ASI administers more than 3650 ancient monuments, archaeological sites and remains of national importance.

The ASI's museums are customarily located right next to the sites that their inventories are associated with "so that they may be studied amid their natural surroundings and not lose focus by being transported".

[21] Mohammed Sanaullah Khan was appointed to the Archaeological Survey of India on 29 June 1917, marking the establishment of the Science Branch.

These included doing in-depth study, treating monuments, analysing material remnants, determining the reasons behind deterioration, and taking corrective action for chemical conservation.

In 2013, a Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report found that at least 92 centrally protected monuments of historical importance across the country had gone missing without a trace.

[24] Author and IIPM Director Arindam Chaudhuri said that since the ASI is unable to protect the country's museums and monuments, they should be professionally maintained by private companies or through the public-private-partnership (PPP) model.

Ajit Prasad,[27] V. N. Prabakhar,[27] K. Krishnan,[27] Vasant Shinde,[27] and R. S. Bisht,[27] "who are all from the Archaeological Survey of India, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda and other institutions, all with expertise in different aspects of the same civilization.