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The Supreme Court on Wednesday, 9 May, slammed the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) for not being able to protect the iconic Taj Mahal, and asked about the steps being taken to prevent the Mughal structre from being destroyed by insects and algae.
A bench of Justice Madan B Lokur and Justice Deepak Gupta was concerned after the ASI told it that the Taj Mahal was getting infected by insects which breed in the stagnant water of the Yamuna river that flows by the monument.
The court has been hearing a plea filed by environmentalist MC Mehta seeking protection of the Taj from the ill-effects of pollution and deforestation.
The ASI, which is in-charge of maintaining and repairing ancient monuments, also told the bench that algae are a "big problem" and all those monuments which are on the river bank faces similar issues.
The ASI also told the court that the Taj Mahal floor at several places was dirty, because all the people walking on it do not use socks.
"We provide socks only to the VIPs, others use their own socks," it told the court. The Taj floor was also getting discoloured.
The bench pulled up the ASI saying the situation would not have been so if it had taken steps to prevent it.
Additional Solicitor General ANS Nadkarni, appearing for the Centre, told the bench that the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) was already considering the top court's suggestion to appoint international experts to look into the issue of protection and preservation of the 17th century mausoleum.
The Uttar Pradesh government said it would place before the court a draft of vision document on protection and preservation of the Taj Mahal that was built by Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal.
The government said it was also trying to take care of the environment around the structure so that the historic monument could be there for another 400 years and not just for a generation.
The Centre said it would consider the top court's suggestion to take the assistance of Indian experts or from abroad to see the extent of damage and whether it could be reversed and the steps that could be taken to check them.
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