Those hoping to visit the Taj Mahal and enjoy its beauty will have to shell out more money, as the tourism department has increased ticket prices from Rs 40 to Rs 50.
New tickets will be valid for only three hours, Minister of State for Culture and Tourism Mahesh Sharma said.
“We need to preserve Taj Mahal for the generations to come; new ‘barcoded’ tickets would cost Rs 50 from the earlier Rs 40 and it would be valid only for three hours,” said Sharma. “All our monuments and the area around them would be polythene-free,” he added.
The structure is currently covered in scaffolding and the monument is expected to get a mud-pack treatment to brighten the marble exterior. The mud-pack treatment is a first for Taj Mahal
"In all likelihood, the entire dome will be obscured by iron scaffolding and during the actual cleaning process, portions of the white marble facade will be covered in mud and sheets for two to three days at a time. This process will be carried out in sections and the work on the dome is expected to last a year," Grand Rapids, Mich.-based A&S Signature Journeys said.
A protestor is detained by the police during a demonstration against the proposed site of the new Chinese Embassy, outside Royal Mint Court, in London. REUTERS/Carlos Jasso. 
