This would have come between you and the Taj

The Sunday Express has obtained official blueprints of the proposed Taj corridor project. Thes...

The Sunday Express has obtained official blueprints of the proposed Taj corridor project. These are still on paper thanks to the Court stepping in to order a CBI probe, save the monument

THE HERITAGE CORRIDOR SAGA

» Oh Taj! No one knows who cleared this
It’s a Rs 175-crore project which could change for ever the way India’s most precious monument looks. But no one knows who cleared it. The 2-km stretch of the Yamuna bed between the Agra Fort and the Taj Mahal is already filled up with a 5-ft base of soil.

The stretch, if the UP government has its way, will be made into a Heritage Corridor — with shopping malls, parks, restaurants and entertainment centres. But nobody knows who cleared the plan for construction behind the monument. — June 20, 2003

»Stop work at Taj or we’ll step in: Centre warns UP
Union Minister for Tourism and Culture, Jagmohan, today asked the Uttar Pradesh government to stop the construction work at the Heritage Corridor on the Yamuna bed near the Taj Mahal immediately. The minister said: ‘‘I have directed the state government to stop work immediately and will see to it that this Heritage Corridor does not come up. I will not let this happen.’’ — June 21, 2003

» Wah! Taj’s backdrop stays
It does not get stranger than this. Mayawati, whose government cleared the Heritage Corridor which could change the way the Taj looks, today ordered a probe to find out how the project took off. She called a press conference, ordered an inquiry, and claimed that she had come to know about the construction before the newspapers and Jagmohan raised a stink and had immediately ordered a halt. — June 22, 2003

» SC orders CBI probe into Taj whodunit
Disregarding the Mayawati Government’s protestations of innocence, the Supreme Court today ordered a CBI probe into the recently stalled Rs 175-crore project to build entertainment parks, restaurants and shopping malls behind Taj Mahal. A bench comprising Justice M B Shah and Justice AR. Lakshmanan directed the CBI to identify officials responsible for the construction that began on the Taj Heritage Corridor project without the necessary environment and archaeological clearances. — July 17, 2003

» Maya wants Jagmohan demolished
Just days after she welcomed the Supreme Court’s decision on a CBI probe into the Taj corridor project, UP Chief Minister Mayawati took on Union Tourism and Culture Minister Jagmohan demanding his dismissal. — July 29, 2003

EXCLUSIVE: EC brings in feature to check misuse of identity to seek voter list deletions

Political Pulse3 hr ago

The Election Commission has launched a new 'e-sign' feature on its portal and app to prevent fraud. This comes after allegations of misuse of online voter deletion forms in Karnataka. The feature requires voters to verify their identity using their Aadhaar-linked phone numbers, reducing the possibility of fraud.

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