NEW DELHI: Agra, home to the world’s most famous monument to love, is to be given a facelift to attract tourists to the ancient Indian city’s other two World Heritage sites, the Tourism Ministry said Wednesday.
Most visitors come to the city of Agra, just 210 kilometers from New Delhi, to visit the Taj Mahal, without even knowing of the 17th century Red Fort and nearby Fatehpur Sikri, a ghost town that was the capital of the Mogul empire in the 1500s.
“Agra is the only city in India that has three World Heritage sites, but most people visit the Taj Mahal and leave,” said N.C. Joshi, a Tourism Ministry spokesman.
The white-marbled domed monument was built by the Mogul Emperor Shah Jahan between 1632 and 1654 for his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It houses their graves and a mosque, as well as several other graves of lesser Mogul royalty.
Nearly 2.5 million tourists visited the Taj Mahal last year, according to official estimates.
But most visitors, especially those making the short trip from New Delhi, usually only stay for a day to see the Taj Mahal, ignoring the other sites.
The ministry plans to develop a host of other monuments in and around Agra and add other attractions for tourists, Joshi said.
“We are planning a sound and light show at Fatehpur Sikri, which will bring alive the sights and sounds of the city as it looked in the 16th century,” he said.
Plans are also afoot to clear out some parts of the crowded neighborhood where the Taj Mahal is located and to develop a “green buffer zone” comprising landscaped gardens to give the monument some “breathing space,” he said.
All-night bazaars and food courts serving different Indian cuisines are also in the works, while visitors can apply online for tickets to view the Taj Mahal by moonlight.
The ministry is also pushing to build an international airport at Agra so visitors can fly directly to the city.
While the airport is likely years away, authorities want to soon pave a direct road from the nearest highway to the Taj Mahal, so that visitors can avoid traveling through Agra’s congested streets.—AP
