Planning A Day Out At Taj Mahal? Get Ready To Pay Fine If You Spend More Than 3 Hours

If Taj Mahal is one of the destinations in your travelling itinerary this summer then make sure you complete seeing the moment in three hours and exit from there to avoid paying fine. We all love to pose and click pictures from different angles with Taj Mahal when we visit this monument in Agra, Uttar Pradesh but now we should speed up and end our entire touring within three hours to avoid paying fine. As per the latest development, tourists spending more than three hours at Taj Mahal will be charged an additional fee. Earlier, people were allowed to tour Taj Mahal, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, from morning to evening.

The step has been taken by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) that protects the cultural heritage of the nation.

To prevent unauthorised entry, turnstile gates have been installed at every entry and exit gates. Entry will be monitored through tokens that are valid for three hours. Exceeding the time limit, visitors will be required to pay additional money to recharge the token and exit.

According to Ranvir Singh Tomar, tourist police in Agra, the decision was taken to prevent unauthorised entry as well as the huge rush at the iconic monument. Earlier, visitors were allowed to spend the entire day at Taj, from 30 minutes before sunrise till closing time which is 30 minutes before sunset.

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"7 turnstile gates have been installed at both the East and West entry point. 5 gates are for the exit. For the entry of foreign tourists, there are separate gates. Entry is only through token which is valid for three hours, exceeding which, a visitor is required to recharge it at the counter at the exit gates," Basant Kumar, superintendent, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.

Regarded by many as one of the best examples of Mughal architecture, with its onion dome, minarets and floral motifs, the Taj attracts millions of visitors from around the world every year. Commissioned in 1632, by the fifth Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan for his favourite wife Mumtaz Mahal, Taj Mahal is located on the south bank of the River Yamuna, in Agra. The monument is considered to be a symbol of love.

Taj Mahal was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 for being "the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world's heritage."

Tourists, however, expressed their displeasure over the decision and said that the move might affect tourism. "A person comes here for relaxation and to spend some time. If the sightseeing is limited to three hours and the charges are so much then anyone will think twice before coming here," Mohammad Mustafa Hussain, a tourist from Hyderabad, told ANI.

Celina, a tourist visiting India from the US, also seemed disappointed with the announcement. "Foreign tourists are required to pay 10 times as compared to Indians. It would be really nice to stay long here but timings are limited," Celina told ANI.

The entry fee to visit the iconic monument is ₹ 200 for domestic tourists while citizens of SAARC and BIMSTEC countries need to pay ₹ 540, while for foreign tourists, the fee is ₹ 1,100. An additional ₹ 200 is charged if a visitor wants to visit the main mausoleum.

The development comes at the heels of the news that Taj Mahal will be setting up a baby feeding room by July to help millions of mums who visit their iconic monument.