Experts mull ways to keep monuments open at night for tourists at Mahabs

CHENGALPATTU: Owing to repeated requests from tourists, a team of experts from the Department of Archaeology in New Delhi arrived at Mahabalipuram on Saturday and inspected the monuments to see if it is feasible to keep them open for tourists at night surrounded by adequate lights.

Thousands of tourists visit the little town to enjoy the various monuments for a ticket fare of Rs 40 for the locals and Rs 600 for foreign nationals. However, tourists are allowed to visit the attractions only from 6 am to 6 pm. Owing to this rule, several tourists who cannot make it within 6 pm are forced to stand outside the gates of Krishna’s Butter Ball, Arjuna’s Penance, Shore Temple, Five Rathas etc and click pictures without actually experiencing the true essence of the tourist attractions.

To prevent people from such disappointment, the Department of Archeology is contemplating keeping the attractions open beyond 6 pm so many tourists can enjoy them even during the night. Following this, a team of experts from New Delhi visited the monuments and inspected them to see if it is feasible to erect electric lights around the monuments at night for better visibility and they also checked if there would be enough security for the monuments if they are kept open at night.

Similarly, to boost tourist footfall in the town, the Mamallapuram lighthouse was open for tourists for free following ‘World Seafarers Day’ on Saturday. Several people who came to enjoy the view from the lighthouse were allowed in batches of 50 to see the monument and click pictures near it.