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The ‘Adopt a Heritage’ initiative was launched by the tourism ministry in September 2017. The plan invites corporates to take over maintenance and operations of monuments.
Source: Tourism ministry might not put up Taj Mahal for ‘adoption’ soon: Report
The apex court’s searching questions on why authorities have failed to protect the Taj reflect its anguish over how environment issues have been handled in the country, which marked the ‘World Environment Day’ today.
Source: Changing colour of Taj, other environment concerns keep SC busy
HIGHLIGHTS
What’s the colour of the Taj Mahal? While you may have already guessed the answer, the Union culture and environment ministry is not taking any chances. A month after the Supreme Court expressed concern over the change of colour of the iconic Mughal-era monument, Union culture and environment minister Mahesh Sharma said that a scientific study will be conducted to assess the exact colour of the marble of Taj Mahal and its report will be produced in the apex court.
Read more from source: What’s colour of Taj? Scientific study to find out – Times of India
Going by the panicked headlines of recent few days, one would think India’s entire 5,000-year-old civilization is up for sale.
Liberal intellectuals are apoplectic at the announcement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi government that the Red Fort, a 17th-century palace built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan, is to be “adopted” by Dalmia Bharat, a private company that makes cement and sugar. But this time, India’s liberals have it all wrong.
Admittedly, the Red Fort is not just a symbol of India; it is India. The first war of independence from the British was led from its ramparts in 1857. In the 1940s, soldiers of the Indian National Army (an anti-colonial militia founded by freedom fighter Subhas Chandra Bose) were imprisoned there and put on public trial. The Red Fort is a symbol of India’s nationhood, and serves as the backdrop each year when the prime minister delivers his Independence Day address. Built during the Mughal dynasty, it is also a shining illustration of the diverse histories that framed the foundations of an avowedly pluralistic, modern democracy.
Read more from source: Barkha Dutt – Taj Mahal could be ‘adopted’ by a corporation. India’s liberals need to get over it
Taj Mahal needs experts from different fields to restore it to its pristine beauty rather than a bureaucrat-ridden and ignorant ASI, which was pulled up by the Supreme Court recently
This month, the Supreme Court pulled up the 157-year-old Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) for not doing enough to protect the Taj Mahal, saying it “will have to be thrown out of the picture” if it can’t do what is required.
Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta, who have been hearing a case related to the protection of the Taj filed by the intrepid environmental lawyer, MC Mehta, in 1984, added: “This situation would not have arisen if the ASI would have done its job. We are surprised with the way the ASI is defending itself. You [Centre] please consider if the ASI is needed there or not. You all appear to be helpless. Money should not be the consideration. We might order you to hire experts from within India or abroad. We need to save it.”
Read more from source: Preserving the Taj Mahal: A Herculean Task! – India Legal
THE Instagrammability of a destination is a key factor when booking a vacation, especially among the younger generation.
From Asia’s most Instagrammable beaches to the brunch dishes “breaking Instagram”, many people want to know their vacation snaps will give them bragging rights and at least 100-plus likes.
Scrolls and scrolls of beaches, cocktails, snowy mountain peaks, sunsets, tropical animals and cultural monuments line the Instagram-sphere.
But there are some places in the world where your snap-happy picture-taking addiction can get you in trouble.
Here are a few places in Asia we advise you to put your camera away and use your own peepers.
Taj Mahal
Ever wondered why the only view you see of India’s Taj Mahal is from the outside?
Photography is entirely banned inside the Unesco World Heritage site.
Some tourists to this New Seven Wonders of the World site have said guards check to make sure you’re not sneaking a snap.
Others, however, said the chaos and sheer tourist numbers mean guards can’t check everyone.
Jiangsu National Security Education Museum
Read more from source: Taking pictures here could get you arrested – Travel Wire Asia
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court today came down heavily on the Archeological Survey of India for its failure to take appropriate steps to protect and preserve of the iconic Taj Mahal.
The apex court also expressed concern over the historic monument being infected by insects and asked the authorities, including ASI, what steps they have taken to prevent this.
“This situation would not have arisen if the ASI would have done its job. We are surprised with the way the ASI is defending itself. You (Centre) please consider if the ASI is needed there or not,” a bench of Justices M B Lokur and Deepak Gupta told Additional Solicitor General ANS Nadkarni, who was appearing for the Centre.
Nadkarni told the bench that the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) was considering the apex court’s suggestion to appoint international experts to look into the issue of protection and preservation of Taj Mahal.
The counsel for ASI told the court that the problem of insects was due to stagnation of the water of river Yamuna.
Foreigners, Australians among them, are eyeing up an opportunity to help save the Taj Mahal from pollution after India’s Supreme Court ordered the government to search abroad for experts to stem the damage to the building.
The white marble 17th century icon in Agra is pock-marked with brown and grey patches. Last Tuesday, two Supreme Court judges, on seeing the latest pictures, threw up their hands in despair at government apathy.
“Earlier it was turning yellow and now it is becoming brown and green … it seems you are helpless,” they said.
“You can get help from experts from outside to assess the damage done and restore it. There seems to be lack of will and expertise,” was how the two justices rebuked the authorities.
Completed in 1643, the Taj Mahal, a mausoleum was built by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who is buried there alongside Jahan.
Read more from source: Wanted: someone who can fix the Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal, the ivory-white marble mausoleum on the south bank of the Yamuna river in the Indian city of Agra, built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan between 1632 and 1643, designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 for being “the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world’s heritage,” is changing the color.
It had turned yellow and was now turning brown and green. Pollution, construction and insect dung are incriminated. This fact determined India’s Supreme Court to instruct the government to seek foreign help to fix what it described as a worrying change. “Even if you have the expertise, you are not utilising it. Or perhaps you don’t care,” court justices said. The famous construction is a big tourist attraction drawing as many as 70,000 people every day.
The government has previously shuttered thousands of factories near the Taj Mahal, but activists say its marble is still losing its lustre. Sewage in the Yamuna River, alongside the palace, attracts insects which excrete waste onto the palace’s walls, staining them.
Read more from source: Taj Mahal’s color change worried India’s Supreme Court
The top court has been monitoring developments in the area to protect the historic monument, built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in the memory of his wife Mumtaz Mahal in 1631. The mausoleum is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Supreme Court today expressed concern over the change of colour of the iconic Taj Mahal at Agra and said the monument had become yellowish earlier and was now turning brown and green.
The Supreme Court suggested that the centre take the assistance of experts from India and abroad to first assess the damage and then take steps to restore the historic monument.
“We don’t know whether you have or perhaps don’t have the expertise. Even if you have the expertise, you are not utilising it. Or perhaps you don’t care,” a bench comprising Justices MB Lokur and Deepak Gupta said.
“Perhaps we need some expert organisation from outside India unless there is a decision that the Taj has to go,” the bench said sarcastically, adding, “you can get experts from India as well as from outside.”
Read more from source: Taj Mahal Now Turning Brown And Green, Fix It: Supreme Court To Centre
