Summary:
Agra: At 5.39 am on Monday morning, with the entry of Chinese national Liang Chiacheng, the Taj Mahal got its first visitor since March.
The six-month Covid-enforced break was the longest the 17th Century monument, which is among India’s most visited and photographed, had gone without visitors.
On Monday, the tourists came back, despite the strict protocol in place, but the numbers were nowhere close to the 20,000-40,000 daily visitors in pre-Covid times.
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Agra: At 5.39 am on Monday morning, with the entry of Chinese national Liang Chiacheng, the Taj Mahal got its first visitor since March.
The six-month Covid-enforced break was the longest the 17th Century monument, which is among India’s most visited and photographed, had gone without visitors.
On Monday, the tourists came back, despite the strict protocol in place, but the numbers were nowhere close to the 20,000-40,000 daily visitors in pre-Covid times.
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), which manages the monument, has decided to allow only 5,000 visitors a day, in two batches — sunrise to noon, and 12.30 pm to sunset.
On Monday, the ASI said, 1,235 people visited the Taj, including 20 foreigners. In the faint glow of dawn, the 500-metre walk from the designated car parking to the East Gate of the Taj offers early hints that these are different times.
The road is largely deserted and there are few takers for the battery-operated rickshaws.
The shops on either side of this road, though open, are forlorn — the men behind the counters wear tired looks, along with their masks.