Agra With the union minister for tourism and culture G Kishan Reddy promising to visit the Taj city in the first fortnight of the new year, the tourism sector has communicated to him the issues to be addressed for promotion of tourism in Agra. The demands include opening of Taj Mahal till 10 pm in the night. At present, the monument is closed at sunset.
Union minister of state for law and justice, Prof SP Singh Baghel who is also the member of parliament from Agra, has written a letter to the union minister, outlining the issues set as priority for promotion of tourism in the coming year.
The letter highlights the importance of Agra as an iconic city in the country and a centre point on the tourism map of India on account of the Taj Mahal.
“Any tourist on a visit to India invariably goes to Agra. Figures show that on an average 16 lakh foreign tourists and more than 80 lakh domestic tourists visit Agra in a year. It has been the demand of the entrepreneurs and other stakeholders to further promote tourism in the city, with special attention to the three UNESCO world heritage monuments: the Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and Fatehpur Sikri,” said the letter.
“Union minister for tourism and culture, G Kishan Reddy, during a meeting earlier this week, promised to visit Agra in the first fortnight of 2023. We took the opportunity to highlight that most of the monuments in India were open till late in the evening but Taj Mahal closed at sunset. The night view of Taj Mahal gives an out of the world experience to the tourists and will compel them to stay overnight in Agra, giving an impetus to tourism as well as hospitality industry. Therefore, viewing of Taj Mahal should be allowed till 10:00 PM daily for the tourists,” said KC Jain, secretary of Agra Development Foundation who was part of the delegation from Agra which met the union minister.
{{/usCountry}}“Union minister for tourism and culture, G Kishan Reddy, during a meeting earlier this week, promised to visit Agra in the first fortnight of 2023. We took the opportunity to highlight that most of the monuments in India were open till late in the evening but Taj Mahal closed at sunset. The night view of Taj Mahal gives an out of the world experience to the tourists and will compel them to stay overnight in Agra, giving an impetus to tourism as well as hospitality industry. Therefore, viewing of Taj Mahal should be allowed till 10:00 PM daily for the tourists,” said KC Jain, secretary of Agra Development Foundation who was part of the delegation from Agra which met the union minister.
{{/usCountry}}The delegation also sought lighting of Taj Mahal through soft light sources from a distance. It urged that tourists going for night viewing be allowed five nights a month on and around full moon night and they be given access to the main mausoleum area instead of present restriction of stopping at the red sand stone platform 300 metres before the main mausoleum.
Given the fact that night viewing at Taj for five nights in a month is in accordance with orders by Supreme Court, a suggestion was made to achieve these objectives, if needed, through amendment(s) to the legislation in this regard and after obtaining the judiciary’s concurrence.
Other demands include clearance from ASI for construction of the elevated road in front of Sikandra, the tomb of Akbar on Agra-Delhi highway.
“Lack of a proper civil airport in Agra is adversely affecting tourism and hospitality industries. The present civil enclave in Agra is located in the midst of the Air Force Station, Kheria and due to that various restrictions on the entry and exit from the present civil enclave have been imposed by the Air Force. It is high time that a new civil enclave is constructed on the land which is already made available by the state government,” said the letter to the union minister.
Sound and Light Shows in the three UNESCO world heritage monuments in Agra, identified vending zones around the monuments, development of Yamuna river front, construction of check dam and better parking arrangements at Taj Mahal were also sought.