Taj Mahal still original: ASI
Vijay Upadhyay
Agra. Despite the fact that a large number of the "recently" constructed monuments across the world are gathering more votes than the historic Taj Mahal, in a private world-census being held to select the seven wonders of the world, the archaeological experts who have studied the Taj Mahal in detail are not much perturbed.
According to the archaeologists working on the monument's conservation, under the aegis of the Archaeological Survey of India, the Taj Mahal has not yet lost its originality as the entire monument is still being maintained by the ASI in the State in which it was built more than 350 years ago by the Mughals.
They claimed that compared to other sites across the world that went through major structural changes and reconstructions of the destroyed sections, the Taj Mahal as well as most of the other monuments in India, were inherently maintained in the original state by the ASI.
ASI Agra superintending archeologist, Dr D Dayalan, said that it was a fact worth noticing that the ASI tried to keep the historic monuments in the original state as it was discovered and made no new constructions.
Even though the Taj Mahal holds the 20th position in the so-called world-census, the ASI believes that this fact does not negate the archaeological value of the monument, which alone, had earned it the coveted status of a "World Heritage Monument" along with Fatehpur Sikri and Agra Fort.
To create an awareness among the tourists towards the historical heritage of the Agra, the Archaeological Survey of India is observing the World Heritage Week from November 19-25, 2006.
Agra. Despite the fact that a large number of the "recently" constructed monuments across the world are gathering more votes than the historic Taj Mahal, in a private world-census being held to select the seven wonders of the world, the archaeological experts who have studied the Taj Mahal in detail are not much perturbed.
According to the archaeologists working on the monument's conservation, under the aegis of the Archaeological Survey of India, the Taj Mahal has not yet lost its originality as the entire monument is still being maintained by the ASI in the State in which it was built more than 350 years ago by the Mughals.
They claimed that compared to other sites across the world that went through major structural changes and reconstructions of the destroyed sections, the Taj Mahal as well as most of the other monuments in India, were inherently maintained in the original state by the ASI.
ASI Agra superintending archeologist, Dr D Dayalan, said that it was a fact worth noticing that the ASI tried to keep the historic monuments in the original state as it was discovered and made no new constructions.
Even though the Taj Mahal holds the 20th position in the so-called world-census, the ASI believes that this fact does not negate the archaeological value of the monument, which alone, had earned it the coveted status of a "World Heritage Monument" along with Fatehpur Sikri and Agra Fort.
To create an awareness among the tourists towards the historical heritage of the Agra, the Archaeological Survey of India is observing the World Heritage Week from November 19-25, 2006.
Comments