Taj Mahal reopens on 21st September after nearly 6 long months

Cap of 5, 000 visitors a day to be imposed

Wednesday, 9th September 2020

Over six months the legendary historical monument Taj Mahal had remained closed for the visitors. The Taj was shut down at the wake of the novel coronavirus pandemic. From the 21st of September, Taj Mahal is reopening for the public.

Vasant Swarnkar (Superintending Archaeologist; Archaeological Survey of India, Agra Circle) confirmed the same through a statement made to The Indian Express.

However, he also stated that a cap of just 5,000 visitors per day will be imposed

Even when all the other ASI-protected Agra monuments were opened for visitors from the 1st of September, Taj Mahal as well as Agra Fort still remained shut according to the orders of the district administration, as these monuments were located in vicinity to the containment zones.

On the 21st of this month, when the Taj Mahal reopens the visitors will be allowed in only after they have followed each and every Governmental guideline like sanitization, social distancing etc, said Swarnkar. “Masks are mandatory to enter the monuments and all tickets must be purchased online. Ticket counters won’t open,” he added.

Entry Tickets for the Taj visitors will be available online or via the ASI app. The Taj Mahal will be open for visitors on all days of the week except the Fridays and the Sundays. Agra Fort will remain closed just on the Sundays and will remain open for rest of the week.

As per the ASI stats, Taj Mahal draws nearly 70-80 lakh tourists annually, including a huge number of foreigners who wouldn’t possibly visit until regular traffic on the international route resumes. The Agra Fort draws over 30 lakh tourists annually.

All centrally secured monuments were strategically shut down on the 17th of March prior to the pandemic-triggered nationwide lockdown. This had been the first time that the Taj Mahal was shut down for the visitors post the Indo-Pak wars in the year 1965 and year 1971.

Source: Indian Express