AGRA, Sept 27: As India prepared to launch celebrations marking the 350th anniversary of the Taj Mahal on Monday, historians say the festivities are up to a decade too late.
India is planning 12 months of festivities to fete the country's most identifiable tourist symbol. "Someone, somewhere goofed up somewhat on the Taj Mahal's birthday dates," said historian Ramesh Chand Sharma, who taught Mughal history for 40 years at Agra's renowned St John's College.
Controversy over the 350th anniversary of the onion-shaped white marble mausoleum has been sparked by contemporary accounts and inscriptions at the site. While there is debate among historians about the exact year when the anniversary fell, most say it was before 2004.
"Shah Jahan's official chronicler Abdul Hamid Lahori writes the Taj Mahal was completed in 12 years at a cost of five million rupees and construction began six months after Empress Mumtaz Mahal's death which was on June 17, 1631," Mr Sharma said.
This would mean the Taj was ready by the end of 1643 or early 1644, so the Taj's 350th anniversary occurred a decade ago around 1994, he said. The mausoleum for Queen Mumtaz was ordered built using 20,000 labourers by Shah Jahan, who was grief-stricken over her death during the birth of their 14th child. He then vowed to build the world's greatest monument to love.
An inscription at the main gate says the majestic monument was finished in 1648 with the assistance of "the Almighty". That would mean the 350th anniversary fell in 1998.
In addition, historians point to a letter written by Prince Aurangzeb to his father, Shah Jahan, saying the monument was leaking and needed repair. He wrote the letter in 1652 and that would mean the monument is at least 352 years old.
"I don't know what system of counting they (the government) subscribe to," said India's former chief archeologist M.C. Joshi. "The Archeological Society of India should have consulted its own publications to see that the Taj is older than 350 years."
Harban Mukhia, one of India's best-known historians, has also waded into the debate, noting that "by 1654, the imperial power of Shah Jahan was on the decline and two years later there was a war for succession".
"The Taj Mahal was built eight or 10 years earlier when he was at the height of power," the New Delhi-based historian said. That would make the Taj up to 360 years old. Historians and local media say the decision to make 2004 the anniversary year may be an attempt by the Uttar Pradesh government to draw more tourists to Agra, 200kms south of New Delhi.
However, the Uttar Pradesh state government insists it has got its dates right about construction of the monument. "There are two books from which the dates have been taken as they contain authentic details," said state tourism minister Kawkab Hameed, declining to give details of the publications.
"There is no dispute that the work on the Taj Mahal began in 1630-31 and all history shows it took 22 years for its completion," Mr Hameed said. He said the date at the entrance was possibly to mark completion of Taj's garden, Shah Jahan's royal bath, a mosque and guesthouse.
Shah Jahan's reign from 1628 to 1659 is widely regarded as the golden era in the three centuries of Mughal rule. In any event, organizers say it is too late now to call off the festivities that will include ballets and concerts. But the celebrations will be held away from the Taj, where large public gatherings are banned for fear of damage to the monument.
The festivities began on Monday with the release of balloons and pigeons followed by kite-flying contests and an evening of classical music in the nearby Agra Fort, a sprawling 16th-century Mughal red sandstone palace.
The Taj last year drew 800,000 foreign and 2.2 million domestic visitors, far more than any other tourist spot in India. The state government now is readying for a greater influx, erecting welcome arches at highways, the airport and railway station in Agra. -AFP