By IANS
Agra : Brushing aside questions about the efficacy of using Fuller’s Earth to cleanse the outer surface of the marbled structure, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has begun the mudpack treatment to restore the original shine of the Taj Mahal.
A team of scientists Tuesday began coating the arches on the western side of the mausoleum with mud, which will either fall off on its own after drying or washed off with distilled water and a light brush, ASI chief chemist N.K. Samadhia.
He said the interiors, in particular, are expected to shine dazzlingly once the treatment is completed. The process is likely to continue for the next six months.
Last year, a team of parliamentarians had visited the Taj and raised alarm over the yellowing of the white marble structure. It was then that the ASI decided to do the mudpack treatment, which had been carried earlier in 2000 and 2003.
However, some historians and environmentalists challenged the decision.
Historian and author R. Nath had said Fuller’s Earth harms the original coating on the structure. He had also claimed that the ASI’s own manual on the upkeep of monuments was being flouted.
According to Samadhia, ASI scientists carried out experiments and analysed the results before deciding to go ahead with the treatment.
Union Tourism and Culture Minister Ambika Soni had denied in the Rajya Sabha Nov 27, 2007 that applying mudpack on the marble surface of the monument had proved counter-productive in the past.
She said the mudpack treatment had been found to be effective as it was “non-abrasive, non-corrosive and quite effective to achieve the complete removal of adherent accretionary deposits”.