Find cause of green pigment on Taj Mahal: CM Akhilesh Yadav to officials

Taking serious note of reports of green pigmentation on the white marble of the Taj Mahal, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has directed officers to trace the factors behind the problem and find a solution.

"CM has asked Agra Divisional Commissioner, District Magistrate, Public Works Department (PWD), Archeology and pollution board officials to soon trace the factors behind the problem and find a solution," a Government spokesman said in Lucknow. "The Samajwadi Party government will do whatever is possible to protect and conserve the world famous monument and its beauty," the CM said.

As per media reports, patches of green pigmentation have surfaced on the Taj Mahal's marble engravings marring the beauty of the monument.

The pigmentation might be the result of the excretions of an insect called chironomids which was rapidly breeding in the polluted Yamuna. It is suspected that this insect perches on the Taj Mahal and excretes, causing green pigmentation, they said.

Taj Mahal attracts lakhs of tourists from across the world. Last week, the NGT had issued notices to Ministry of Environment and Forests, Uttar Pradesh government, Uttar Pradesh Pollution Control Board and the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority and sought their responses on the steps being taken to curtail the adverse impact on the UNESCO world heritage site.