Click to play videoNew Delhi: The Taj Mahal, the 17th Century marble monument, was on Sunday picked as one of the New 7 Wonders of the World in the largest-ever online poll conducted by Swiss non-profit group New 7 Wonders Foundation.
The results of the worldwide online voting were announced at a grand ceremony in the Portuguese capital Lisbon, which aptly coincided with the date 07.07.07.
According to initial reports received here, the Indian monument of love received one of the highest shares of votes in the poll, which was conducted through Internet, SMS and on the phone.
About 100 million people had voted in the campaign through SMS and email. The campaign was begun in 1999 by Bernard Weber.
The official declaration ceremony began at Estadio da Luz in Lisbon minutes after midnight on Sunday. Bollywood actress Bipasha Basu is representing India and its pride Taj Mahal at the New Seven Wonders of the World event at the Benfica Stadium in Lisbon.
The grand ceremony was still under way when reports last came in. A whole lot of fanfare are associated with the ceremony. People from various parts of the world are participating and are being felicitated at the event.
Besides Bipasha Basu, the mayor of Agra is also participating in the event, who was also felicitated at the grand function. Jennifer Lopez is also slated to perform in the function.
Officials of the I Media Corp, the Indian representative of 'New7wonders of the World', confirmed in Delhi that the Mughal marvel has made it to the list.
Asked about the number of votes cast in favour of Taj, 'the monument of love', the I Media Corp officials said they have no information regarding this.
Agra erupted in joy and celebration as bursting of firecrackers greeted the news in the city of Taj. There was euphoria all day long and all through the night on Saturday.
On Wednesday, Agra will host a felicitation where people from the New 7 Wonders Foundation, including its chairperson Bernard Weber, will visit Agra to felicitate the people and celebrate the inclusion of Taj Mahal in the list of New Seven Wonders of the World. A similar felicitation programme will also take place in Delhi on Friday.
"Information like the number of votes polled in favour of Taj and the other selected monuments will be available only after the official declaration," they said.
It is for that the people of India supported a heritage initiative in such a large scale.
"I always felt that Taj is and will always be one of the greatest wonders of the world. It is not only history's gift to India, but to the world. It has a divinity, godly attraction to it," former Joint Secretary Department of Tourism, Amitabh Kant, said in his first reaction to the news.
"It’s a matter of great honour. It symbolises India," he said. "There’s been a huge amount of mass movement. This trust on Taj will lead to the involvement in the other monuments that India has. There’s need to work with the state and Central government. The inclusion in the list will give an impetus," Kant says.
“Bill Clinton once said the world population is divided into two – 50 per cent of those who have seen the Taj and the other 50 per cent who wishes to see the Taj. So it is for the 50 per cent who hasn’t seen the Taj we need to work on,” says Kant.
Akbar Khan, the director of the film Taj Mahal An Eternal Love Story, cheered the news. "My very first visit to Taj Mahal kept me spellbound," he recalls.
Bollywood actor Dilip Kumar said: “Whether people vote or not, Taj will always remain in our hearts.” Amitabh Kant insisted that India now need to create a better experience around the Taj. "Better connectivity to the Taj and audio guides are needed to give it an impetus," he said.
21 FINALISTS:
- Acropolis, Greece
- Alhambra, Spain
- Angkor, Cambodia
- Christ Redeemer Statue, Brazil
- Colosseum, Italy
- Easter Island, Chile
- Eiffel Tower, France
- Great Wall of China
- Hagia Sophia, Turkey
- Kiyomizu Temple, Japan
- Kremlin and St. Basil's Cathedral, Russia
- Machu Picchu, Peru
- Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany
- Petra, Jordan
- Pyramid at Chichen Itza, Mexico
- Pyramids of Giza, Egypt
- Statue of Liberty, New York
- Stonehenge, Britain
- Sydney Opera House, Australia
- Taj Mahal, India
- Timbuktu, Mali
THE CLASSIC LIST:
The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World:
- Pyramids at Giza
- Colossus of Rhodes
- Hanging Gardens of Babylon
- Pharos (Lighthouse) of Alexandria
- Statue of Zeus at Olympia
- Mausoleum at Halicarnassus
- Temple of Artemis at Ephesus
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