NEW DELHI, 4 Nov 2019:
Authorities in India’s Uttar Pradesh state have placed an air purifier at the Taj Mahal to protect the iconic Mughal-era monument in Agra from toxic pollution that has hit northern India.
The air purifier vehicle deployed at the famous tourist attraction by the state’s pollution control department has a capacity to clean 1.5 million cubic metres of air in eight hours within a 300m radius, Indian media reported.
The 17th century white marble monument, located around 220km from New Delhi, was built by the emperor Shah Jahan between 1632 and 1654 for his wife Mumtaz Mahal.
The Taj Mahal for decades has been at the centre of various environmental concerns arising from industrial fumes, dust, and excrement by swarms of insects breeding in the sewage-filled Yamuna river behind it.
Nowadays Agra and Delhi are among many north Indian cities in the grip of a dangerous air pollution, which is many times worse than the threshold level considered harmful for human health.
The Delhi state government on Sunday asked people to avoid outdoor physical activities as air pollution recorded this year’s worst level.
This followed an order on Friday to suspend construction work and shut schools until tomorrow in the national capital region.
Air quality data shows that 15 of the world’s 20 most polluted cities are in India.
– Bernama