Tourism minister, Subodh Kant Sahai along with senior officials from his ministry as well as various concerned ministries and tourism ministry of Uttar Pradesh recently visited Agra to give a facelift to Agra as a tourist destination. Sahai said more trains will be introduced on the Delhi-Agra route, including a new Shatabdi Express. He also announced that Kheria airport will be upgraded to international level till a new airport is built in Agra. Meanwhile, ILS equipment arrived at Agra airport and will be in place in October to offer smooth landing aircrafts. Till this year, a lot of flights had to be diverted due to unfavourable weather. According to Sahai, the Taj corridor will be street-scaped and properly lighted. “A check dam is also being mulled to raise the level of Yamuna for water,” said one of the members of Agra Tourism Guild. Activities like a light and sound show at Fatehpur Sikri, are also in the pipeline, he added. Considering the demand of Agra tourism industry, the minister agreed to have a separate queue for foreign tourists to buy entry tickets to the Taj Mahal. The industry, however, asked for some relaxation for Indian tourists visiting the Taj Mahal. “We have asked ministers for a 2-day composite ticket which will allow entry to all monuments in Agra. We have also asked themto allow domestic visitors to buy the Rs 750 tickets which is currently only for foreigners,” said another tour operator present in the meeting. Currently, domestic visitors pay Rs 20 and they are forced to wait in queue for hours, he said urging the minister to get rid of system of buying tickets one day in advance. Meanwhile, the minister waived off the Rs 5 entry tickets for the Taj Mahal museum.
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