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Offcourt...
Driving through Agra or visiting the city of the majestic Taj Mahal isn't a happy experience. But one look at the 400-odd year old monument -a perfect symbol of Shahjehan's love for his wife Mumtaz - soothes frayed nerves.
That this mausoleum on the banks of the polluted Yamuna river has been thrown open to votes through SMS for inclusion in the world heritage site list highlights the continuous delay in bestowing the beauty with its rightful place.
It's a well known fact that a Parliamentary committee recently suggested a facial mud pack to restore the fading sheen of this stunner that was carved out by 12,000 artisans in a whopping 17 years. Though the anxiety to find a place for our beauty in the company of some other pageants is understandable but it can't be forgotten that hardly any preparation had been done in the past for preparing her for the select club.
It was the Supreme Court that intervened to ensure that the toxic gases emitted by a nearby state-owned gas refinery did not affect the majestic piece of art. The apex court also passed many directives to keep the surrounding areas of the
Taj clean. Ill-maintained auto rickshaws, which run on diesel, have been replaced with man-pulled rickshaws and the authorities now claim that Agra is a livable city.
But a visit to the city that is also a hub of many other historically important mausoleums makes it evident that nothing is right with Agra.
The roads are blocked and the sewage system is defunct. A large number of diesel-run generators pollute the environment. Not to mention the noise pollution, thanks to the deafening sound of the generators.
Despite an increase in the number of computer and mobile phone users in the country. India's response to the 'SMS for Taj Mahal' campaign has been lukewarm.
It's high time that people who love the Taj raise a hue and cry against the perpetual and systematic neglect of this heritage site. We don't need a certificate from some other place to know that the Taj is a heritage site. It is a fact that should be clear to us.