Canadian PM Justin Trudeau visits Taj Mahal with family, Cabinet colleagues

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau today visited the world-famous Taj Mahal along with his family and Cabinet colleagues. Trudeau was accompanied by his wife Sophie Gregoire, his three children - Xavier, Ella-Grace, and Hadrien - and several Indian-origin members of his Cabinet who are accompanying him on the 7-day visit to India. 

The Taj Mahal, located along the Yamuna river, was built by Shah Jahan, a 17th-century Mughal ruler for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal, who died while giving birth to their child.

The structure of the monument is built entirely with white marble, studded with semi-precious stones and is inscribed with verses of Quran. It was one of the Seven Wonders of the World and is designated as a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1983.\

The Taj Mahal w @JustinTrudeau pic.twitter.com/9cjmaHUFBX

— Adam Scotti (@AdamScotti) February 18, 2018

The Canadian Prime Minister, who arrived in India on Saturday, is on a week-long state visit to the country. A number of key ministers in Trudeau's Cabinet including the defence minister, foreign minister, sports minister and trade minister are part of his delegation.

During his week-long stay in India, Trudeau will also visit Ahmedabad, Mumbai and Amritsar. Trudeau's visit to Gujarat will be the first by a Canadian prime minister.

He will travel to Ahmedabad tomorrow where he will visit Sabarmati Ashram. He will visit Akshardham temple in Gandhi Nagar and participate at an event at IIM-Ahmedabad.

On February 20, he will visit Mumbai where he will hold meetings with top business leaders and meet representatives of Indian Film industry to explore various opportunities in the field of cinema.

On February 21, the Canadian PM will travel to Amritsar where he will visit the Golden Temple. He will return to Delhi the same day.

Trudeau is scheduled to visit Jama Masjid and a cricket ground here on February 22 besides delivering a lecture at a gathering of Canadian and Indian business leaders.

He will hold wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Modi on February 23.

The next day, he is scheduled to address a conference of young change-makers before wrapping up his visit. 

The ties between India and Canada have been on an upswing. Approximately 1.4 million Canadians are of Indian heritage and India is Canada's second largest source of immigrants.

Canada is also a leading education destination for Indian students, and India is the second largest source of international students, an estimated 124,000 in 2017, as per official figures.

(With agencies)