Meanwhile, some Roman Catholic Church traditions featured in weddings in the Otog banner because of its links with Western missionaries.

Expressing happiness that old wedding traditions are being revived, Ts Bileg says: "I'm glad to see traditional ballads are now being chanted at local weddings, and other rituals are also being followed again."

Referring to another tradition, he says, in olden times, weapons used to be taken to Mongolian weddings to fight other tribes in case they sought to capture the brides.

So, as a nod to that ancient practice, weddings in Ordos now typically feature archery contests.

But despite the efforts to revive ancient traditions, he admits that some parts are difficult to follow and also unnecessary given how the world has moved on.

Pointing to one aspect, he talks of milk baths.

He says that while these were important for noble families when it came to weddings in the old days, he feels these days this ritual is unnecessary.

"When people can take a bath every day, some things can be skipped."

"However, basic principles cannot be changed," he warns.

While Ts Bileg is making his effort to protect this heritage, the government is supplementing his efforts in its own way.

Ding Guiliang, director of the Ordos' municipal office for the protection of intangible cultural heritage, says: "We launched a program in 2008 to video or audio record all registered intangible cultural heritage."

And the office has recorded four terabytes of data so far.

Speaking about the preservation process, he says: "Some of the rituals are being integrated into souvenirs for tourists, but we are also considering other ways to preserve them."

According to Ding's office, there were six national-level, 75 autonomous region-level, and 135 city-level forms of intangible cultural heritage in Ordos as of June 2016.

And, in August, the city opened the first exhibition gallery in Inner Mongolia focusing on intangible cultural heritage.

The gallery, covering 5,000 square meters, has given Ding confidence about his endeavor.

Speaking about the gallery, he says: "In the summer, the exhibition hall can be a showcase for tourists. And, at other times, it can function as an institution for inheritors of intangible cultural heritage to deliver lectures or train students."

Separately, being the richest city in Inner Mongolia, Ordos has stepped up to provide financial incentives to promote the protection of the cultural heritage.

For instance, as of now, each city-level inheritor of such heritage gets 5,000 yuan ($749) a year from the municipal government, which also ensures that the money is put to good use.

Speaking about the checks and balances in place, Ding says: "We have a monitoring system to make sure they use the money in the work.

"The evaluation criteria is also there. Each inheritor is expected to recruit two students every year, and participate in at least two intangible cultural heritage exhibitions."