TAJ MAHAL: THE CORRODING BEAUTY

摘要

The aging exterior of the Taj wears a greenish brown tint due to rising pollution, burning trash and insect poop. And the nearby banks of the Yamuna face similar degradation due to chemical waste from factories, raw sewage and heaps of garbage that sustain swarms of breeding flies - the source of the dung on the Taj. When Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan built the structure in memory of his wife, Empress Mumtaz Mahal, it was viewed as an act of eternal love. The monument, which took over 15 years and 20,000 workers to construct, holds the tombs of the lovers. Activists are now trying to hold the government accountable to preserve the UNESCO wonder, after India's Supreme Court ordered its restoration, closure or demolition in 2018. Aside from physically scrubbing the Taj clean, efforts include building a new dam to help restore the flow of water to the Yamuna, shutting off some of the 52 discharge pipes pumping waste into the water and improving nearby sewage treatment plants. The number of visitors has also been limited. The future of the Taj Mahal, however, still remains uncertain.