Many of you may not be following this topic (as I did not until a couple of weeks ago). The first list of seven remarkable man-made constructions of classical antiquity was drawn up 2000+ years ago by a Greek philosopher. Obviously, the Taj Mahal was not part of the original list of seven wonders of the ancient world. In more modern times, it is generally recognized to be one of the seven wonders of the medieval times, although there is no consensus on this. There are several lists of wonders like “seven wonders of modern world” etc. Not all of these lists include the Taj Mahal.
A privately-funded Swiss-based organization proposed a revision of the Seven Wonders of the World. It has put forward a shortlist of 21 monuments to find the new Seven Wonders by a global poll. Anyone and everyone in the world with access to computer or mobile phone can vote for their favorite “wonder”. The voting ends on July 7, 2007 (07-07-07). Brazil's President Lula de Silva used a radio address to urge people to vote for Rio's statue of Christ the Redeemer. The government of Peru is encouraging people to vote for the ancient city of Machu Pichu. But there is very little enthusiasm is generated in India. No wonder! The Taj Mahal is not doing too well in
We went to see the Taj Mahal for the first time four years ago (in 2003). We arrived in Agra by train from Jaipur in the evening and went straight to the Taj View Hotel. The hotel receptionist told us we got the best room. We did not understand why it was the best room. After finishing our dinner, we went to sleep. When we got up in the morning and opened the window curtains, we were amazed by the view of the Taj Mahal. It was like seeing the big summer full moon hanging low in the horizon. We had another view of the splendor of the Taj Mahal from distance when we were in the Red Fort that afternoon. In spite of these previews, we were wonder-struck when we entered the gateway of the Taj complex. The closer we got to the monument, more mystified we were. I have only seen one other monument in the short list. That is the Statue of Liberty in New York. This is a wonderful monument, but it did not create the same awe or wonder in me as did Taj. So it is clear for me that I vote for Taj Mahal.
The Taj Mahal is visited by about 3 million people a year -- a rate of more than 8,000 a day. About half of them are foreigners and many of the foreign tourists are expatriate Indians. Tourism is the third largest contributor to foreign exchange following Information Technology and Textile. The tourism industry employs about 25 million people (six percent of India's total workforce).Yet, India is ranked 44th among the world's top 60 tourist destinations. The ranking must go up and India should enjoy a larger share of world tourist dollars. Leaving the Taj Mahal out of the list of wonders will do exactly the opposite thing.
Mark Twain once remarked the world is divided between two types of people: those who have seen the Taj Mahal and those who have not. The Taj Mahal is one of the most recognizable landmarks in the world and the image most associated with India. It is good for India if the Taj Mahal maintains its prominent place in the “Seven Wonders of the World”.
Please give your vote to Taj Mahal at http://www.new7wonders.com/index.php
posted by Govinda Bhisetti @ 9:57 AM
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