New Delhi: India’s iconic marble monument to love, the Taj Mahal, opened to visitors on Wednesday after being closed for two months as the numbers of Covid-19 infections surged in the country.
India’s top tourist attraction, located in the northern city of Agra, was closed to visitors on April 15 along with more than 3,000 other monuments, museums and heritage sites across the country by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI).
The ASI has decided to reopen these tourist attractions with strict Covid-19 protocols as the numbers of daily infections has dropped sharply.
Health Ministry data shows the number of new infections has dipped from more than 300,000 a day a month ago to a little over 60,000 on June 15.
At 29.6 million, India has the world’s second-highest number of Covid-19 infections after the United States, and 379,573 deaths. Experts say that both numbers are likely much higher.
Only 650 visitors with online bookings would be allowed daily into the Taj Mahal premises and they would have to undergo temperature checks and sanitizing before entering, said ASI official Vasant Kumar Swarnkar.
The wearing of masks at all times is mandatory and visitors would not be allowed to touch any surface. “Our staff will ensure all protocols including proper social distancing are maintained.” The premises would be sanitised thrice a day, the official said.
The Taj Mahal was built in the mid-17th century by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan as a mausoleum for his third and favourite queen, Mumtaz Mahal. Before the pandemic struck India in early 2020, the average daily footfall at the monument on a good day was around 25,000.
The state of Uttar Pradesh, where Agra is located, reported 270 new infections overnight and 56 deaths. It is among India’s hardest-hit states in terms of total Covid-19 cases.
Other federally protected monuments, including New Delhi’s Red Fort and Qutub Minar, were also reopened to tourists on Wednesday, even as alarm bells ring in the world’s second most populous country over a resurgence of crowds in major cities that threatens to fuel another spike in infections. — Agencies
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