17 yrs on, UP okays Taj national park

After dragging its feet for more than 17 years on the construction of the Taj National Park — on land behind Taj Mahal across river Yam...

After dragging its feet for more than 17 years on the construction of the Taj National Park — on land behind Taj Mahal across river Yamuna — the UP government has finally decided to go ahead with it.

Though the government is yet to acquire land, a fresh estimate has been quoted for around Rs 200 crore. Way back in 1985, when it was announced by then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, its estimated cost was Rs 8 crore. The park is to be built on 340 acres of land acquired from four villages with Mehtab Bagh forming its centre.

A blueprint of the project is ready, which includes a 1,000-seat amphitheatre to be built on the land where pianist Yanni had held his concert, Agra DM M.V.S. Ramireddy told The Indian Express.

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Impressed by the success of that concert, the Agra administration has decided to charge royalty on the use of Tajmahal as backdrop in concerts and films, as was done in Yanni’s concert. He said the national park, along with the Heritage Corridor Project underway on the Yamuna, will give tourists a collective reason to stop in Agra for more than two days.

Elaborating on the project, Agra Development Authority Vice Chairman Anil Kumar said the park will include an international tourism trade centre with world-class communication facilities, a 15-acre golf course and a multiplex amusement park.

However, none of the officials commented on the impact of this large-scale construction on the ecology of the region around Tajmahal. The Yamuna flows the deepest behind Taj and this area is host to several endangered aquatic creatures. The Forest Department has already planted a large number of trees in the area but the national park project will surely disturb the ecology of the region.