By IANS
Agra : The city of the Taj Mahal was in a joyous mood Sunday with people bursting firecrackers and distributing sweets, as the 17th century heritage monument was included in a new Seven Wonders of the World list.
Agra-ites remained glued to their television sets early Sunday waiting for the "good news" and, after it was announced, riotous scenes of merry-making followed.
Agra Mayor Anjula Singh received the honours from actors Ben Kingsley and Bipasha Basu at the glittering event at the Benfica Stadium in Lisbon.
Motorcyclists took off to the roads, while other people got busy bursting firecrackers and distributing sweets to passers by.
Agra's municipal commissioner Shyam Singh Yadav told IANS: "It is a great psychological boost. I am very happy. Agra will now get wide publicity all over the world and many more people will come to see the Taj Mahal which represents India's cultural unity."
Although UNESCO has categorically denied its involvement with the contest, which many leading historians and citizens' groups have called phoney, for the Agra folks it is a matter of pride.
"Agra-ites voted with full enthusiasm till the last minute," said Amit Agarwal, an IT professional who himself voted 10 times.
The global poll was carried out by a private body called the New7Wonders Foundation.
Tourism industry leaders are upbeat. Arun Dang, former president of the Tourism Guild, said: "It surely gladdens our hearts to be citizens of Agra where the Taj Mahal is. The result will see a boom in tourism and Agra is sure to benefit."
For Shekhar, a student of St Peter's College, it was "as if a great battle had been won". "Taj is Taj. If we had been indifferent to the contest we would have lost the race. But students groups and youngsters were right in the forefront in Agra in voting. We feel confident the new recognition will help the city."
Several celebrations had been planned for Sunday, but were put off following the death of former prime minister Chandra Shekhar.
Sushil Sitapuri, a Lucknow-based writer who recently brought out a special volume on the Taj Mahal, told IANS: "The Taj Mahal is a jewel, like Kohinoor. It is the shaan (pride) of the whole of India. Former US president Bill Clinton said there were two groups of people in the world – one, those who had seen the Taj, and others, those who had not seen the Taj. It is very exciting news indeed."
Mughal historian R. Nath said: "Taj Mahal represented undoubtedly the 5,000 years of excellence of Indian creativity in different forms", adding he was not surprised by the results.
The grand monument in Agra was built in the 17th century by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal.
Laiq Khan, the singing sensation of the city, sang his new ghazals in the afternoon at a programme aptly called 'Jasne Taj', at Goverdhan hotel.
Rakesh Chauhan of the Hotels and Restaurant Association said the results had come at the right time when much was happening in the city and the Commonwealth Games were to be held in three years.