The government of Uttar Pradesh has decided to open the ticket window of Taj Mahal 45 minutes before sunrise to help tourists procure tickets well before the gates to the famous monument are thrown open, the parliament was informed on March 5.
“The ticket window would open 45 minutes before sunrise and close 30 minutes before sunset to facilitate the entry of visitors of Taj Mahal,” Mahesh Sharma, the Minister of State for Culture, said, reported PTI.
In the past, the gates of the Taj Mahal as well as the ticket windows were open between sunrise and sunset. The monument is closed for visitors on Friday.
Sharma informed the Lok Sabha that no changes have been made in the opening and closing time of the monument. However, the ticket window will be opened earlier to enable easier movement of visitors inside. The move will help tourists avoid the long queues to visit the UNESCO World Heritage site in Agra.
Visitors to the Taj Mahal will have to pay Rs 200 to enter the main mausoleum and the tombs in the basement from April 1 onwards. Visitors will also have to pay Rs 50 instead of the earlier Rs 40 to enter the monument complex. The move is aimed to help preserve the Taj Mahal, and ensure better crowd management, Sharma had said on Feb. 13. There was no entry fee so far for the main mausoleum. The new ticket price will be valid only for three hours, at the end of which the visitor will have to pay the amount again.
The ASI had earlier decided to restrict the number of tourists visiting the Taj Mahal to 40,000 a day, with a cap of three hours on each ticket holder. However, the Indian Ministry of Culture had a rethink about its proposal to impose a limit on the number of tourists visiting the popular monument per day. As of now there is no cap on the number of people visiting the monument complex at any point of time. During peak tourist seasons, the number of tourists inside the complex reaches 60,000 to 70,000 per day. On an average, Taj Mahal receives about 40,000 to 50,000 tourists daily.