Taj win a worry for govt

The inclusion of the Taj Mahal in the new list of the seven wonders of the world has left the government worried about infrastructure requirements in Agra. The tourism ministry has scheduled a high-level meeting in the next couple of days to take stock.

Compiled by Swiss firm New7wonders Foundation, the Taj Mahal got votes from nearly 2 million Indians. The government did not support the "Vote for Taj" campaign as it was a private initiative.

Nearly half the 5 million foreign tourists visiting India go to Agra to visit the Taj. "We expect up to a 60 per cent increase in the influx of foreign and domestic tourists this year. This will put tremendous pressure on Agra's resources," a tourism ministry official said.

The results were declared at a ceremony in Lisbon, Portugal on Sunday. The 17th century Taj Mahal is the second "youngest" monument in the list, behind the statue of Christ Redeemer in Brazil.

In India, the Vote for Taj campaign was marketed by I Media Corporation Ltd, a Bhaskar group company. I Media's association with the New7wonders Foundation ended with the Taj Mahal's seven wonder status, an I Media executive told Business Standard. The company declined to reveal the actual number of votes cast in favour of the Taj Mahal.

Globally, 100 million votes were cast in the voting exercise undertaken by the Swiss foundation.

The new list, however, has not been endorsed by the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation (Unesco), which maintains a list of 851 world heritage sites.