Agra: At least three people were killed and marble railing of iconic Taj Mahal was damaged due to thunderstorm that swept Agra on Friday night, officials said.
The Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri and Agra fort were among several historical sites in Uttar Pradesh that suffered damage in an unexpected thunderstorm.
According to sources, the incident on Friday night when one of the minarets of the west gate fell off and one of the small white domes was hit too.
"Three people and several animals died. Some houses also suffered damages. We are doing a survey and will compensate for the losses. For kin of deceased, the administration will provide Rs 4 lakh as financial aid," Sub-Divisional Magistrate (Finance) Yogendra Kumar said.
On Saturday morning, ASI Superintendent Vasant Kumar Swankar and the monument staff members reached Taj Mahal and other monuments of the city to assess the damage caused by the thunderstorm.
The 17th century mausoleum attracts about 12,000 visitors a day and is one of the world's most popular tourist attraction.
On March 17, scaffolding was installed by authorities to apply mud packs around the side walls and towers draw the impurities out of the stone but due to Janata curfew the work was halted.
Scaffolding covering the Taj Mahal's main dome were damaged in the thunderstorm due to which the wooden railing installed by ASI to prevent tourists from going towards Yamuna river bank was also broken.
Several electricity poles and trees were also uprooted in the storm which killed four people including one baby girl in two separate incidents in the district that was accompanied by heavy hailstones. Several parts of the district were lashed for nearly 50 minutes, with minimum temperatures dropping to 22 degrees Celsius.
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