NEW DELHI, May 15: Air pollution monitoring and curbs on nearby industrial activity have failed to prevent India’s famed monument to love, the Taj Mahal, from turning yellow, a parliamentary committee has found.

In a bid to preserve the Taj, the Supreme Court a decade ago ordered the closure or relocation of thousands of smoke-spewing iron foundries, brick kilns and glass-making units near the massive tomb.

The court also imposed a ban on motor vehicles in the vicinity of the marble monument and ordered regular monitoring of the air quality around the monument.

But the once pristine white marvel, built in the 17th century by the heartbroken emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife, continues to yellow, a Times of India report said on Tuesday.

The committee recommended the application of a natural clay mask treatment to the monument to give it a “facelift” and remove some of the grime, as has been carried out earlier.—AFP