I have personally experienced this crush of people at the Taj Mahal a couple of years ago. Even on normal days the crush of tourists, gawkers and hawkers is huge and they are often unruly. Foreign tourists are charged Rs.750 as entrance fees and we locals pay a meager Rs.15. I think we need to think of ways of reducing the crowd to protect the monument. A visit to the Agra sights can be a harrowing experience. Getting into Fatehpur Sikri with zillions of hawkers; beggars and self styled guides is the worst running of the gauntlet you can ask for. Besides there are few facilities and the few that exist are filthy. Men being men just unzip and shoot on the nearest wall or tree. But women have to bear it with fortitude. The Taj Mahal is still our topmost tourist attraction and leading foreign exchange earner. The tales tourists take back to their foreign lands must already be taking its toll as our tourist arrivals are now flattening off. Tourism is now Chinas major internal economic activity and employer. Narendra Modi needs to focus a bit on this as well.
Posted on: Tue, 28 Oct 2014 04:49:01 +0000
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