Taj Mahal ranked third among world’s top landmarks

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NEW YORK: Travellers from across the globe have ranked India’s Taj Mahal among the top three landmarks in the world, a leading travel website has announced.

According to TripAdvisor’s 2013 Travellers Choice Attractions Awards, Taj Mahal was ranked third in the list of Top 25 landmarks.
The top two places were taken by Machu Picchu in Peru and Angkor Wat in Cambodia respectively.

“The winners of Travellers’ Choice Attractions awards were determined based on the quality and quantity of traveller reviews of attractions,” said a company statement.

Taj Mahal, listed among the new Seven Wonders of the World, is renowned the world over for its architecture and aesthetic beauty.
Built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his late wife Mumtaz Mahal, the white marble mausoleum in the northern Indian city of Agra is also a symbol of enduring love.

In 1983, it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Taj Mahal attracts 2-4 million visitors annually, with more than 200,000 from overseas.

It shares the latest honour alongside Petra World Heritage Site in Jordan and Bayon Temple in Cambodia, which are ranked fourth and fifth respectively in the list of 25 top landmarks in the world.

Taj Mahal ranked third among world’s top landmarks

.

NEW YORK: Travellers from across the globe have ranked India’s Taj Mahal among the top three landmarks in the world, a leading travel website has announced.

According to TripAdvisor’s 2013 Travellers Choice Attractions Awards, Taj Mahal was ranked third in the list of Top 25 landmarks.
The top two places were taken by Machu Picchu in Peru and Angkor Wat in Cambodia respectively.

“The winners of Travellers’ Choice Attractions awards were determined based on the quality and quantity of traveller reviews of attractions,” said a company statement.

Taj Mahal, listed among the new Seven Wonders of the World, is renowned the world over for its architecture and aesthetic beauty.
Built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his late wife Mumtaz Mahal, the white marble mausoleum in the northern Indian city of Agra is also a symbol of enduring love.

In 1983, it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Taj Mahal attracts 2-4 million visitors annually, with more than 200,000 from overseas.

It shares the latest honour alongside Petra World Heritage Site in Jordan and Bayon Temple in Cambodia, which are ranked fourth and fifth respectively in the list of 25 top landmarks in the world.

Speaker says 10,000 dead as over 800 rescued from Badrinath

Dehradun/New Delhi: Confusion prevailed over the death toll in the Uttarakhand rain-flood tragedy with the state assembly speaker claiming over 10,000 people had perished as union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said 900 people had died. Indian Air Force choppers evacuated over 800 stranded people from Badrinath as it continued to rain in the state.

Uttarakhand Assembly Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal caused a flutter with his claim of the death toll having crossed 10,000.

Kunjwal told reporters that during his earlier tour of the flood-devastated areas of the state he had put the death toll at 5,000-6,000. 'But after hearing accounts of the people coming down from the mountains and that of people calling me up and seeing the piles of bodies, I feel the toll could be well over 10,000.'

Home Minister Shinde clarified that the toll was 900 according to the information with him. He added that the complete figure on the deaths was not out yet and it would take some days for that.

Shinde said 105,000 people had been evacuated so far from the flood-hit areas.

'We will do combing operations now to see if anyone is left out.. the roads are broken, there is no communication.. it will take some days,' he added.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna has termed Kunjwal's claim as 'inaccurate'.

IAF choppers rescued more people from Badrinath where pilgrims were stranded.

The IAF choppers are also air dropping food supplied to stranded villages in Rudraprayag, Chamoli and Uttarkashi districts, which were cut off after the floods.

A total of 26 IAF aircraft formed part of the operations Saturday, said officials.

The IAF airlifted the last 12 pilgrims from Harsil. 'There is no more evacuation to be done from there. Pilgrims from Harsil have been completely evacuated,' an official told IANS.

The IAF airlifted 842 pilgrims from Badrinath and will continue its operations in the sector for the next two days, he added.

On Friday, Home Minister Shinde had said the rescue efforts would be completed in another fortnight.

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has put the number of villages hit by the tragedy at over 2,000.

The incessant and intense rains that hit Uttarakhand over three days from June 14 triggered flash floods and landslides, leading to hundreds of deaths, while hundreds are missing.

According to reports, a team of experts from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is to visit the Kedarnath temple to assess the damage to the ancient structure due to floods.

In a related development, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi Saturday met the family members of Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel Akhilesh Kumar Singh who was among the 20 people killed in Tuesday's chopper crash in Uttarakhand.

Gandhi attended the cremation of the junior officer and is said to have assured all help to the family. The MI-17 V5 helicopter crashed with 20 personnel on board. Those killed included personnel from the IAF, the ITBP and the National Disaster Response Force.

The Andhra Pradesh government has announced Rs.50 crore for relief works in Uttarakhand and for construction of four pilgrim amenities centres

Speaker says 10,000 dead as over 800 rescued from Badrinath

Dehradun/New Delhi: Confusion prevailed over the death toll in the Uttarakhand rain-flood tragedy with the state assembly speaker claiming over 10,000 people had perished as union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde said 900 people had died. Indian Air Force choppers evacuated over 800 stranded people from Badrinath as it continued to rain in the state.

Uttarakhand Assembly Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal caused a flutter with his claim of the death toll having crossed 10,000.

Kunjwal told reporters that during his earlier tour of the flood-devastated areas of the state he had put the death toll at 5,000-6,000. 'But after hearing accounts of the people coming down from the mountains and that of people calling me up and seeing the piles of bodies, I feel the toll could be well over 10,000.'

Home Minister Shinde clarified that the toll was 900 according to the information with him. He added that the complete figure on the deaths was not out yet and it would take some days for that.

Shinde said 105,000 people had been evacuated so far from the flood-hit areas.

'We will do combing operations now to see if anyone is left out.. the roads are broken, there is no communication.. it will take some days,' he added.

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna has termed Kunjwal's claim as 'inaccurate'.

IAF choppers rescued more people from Badrinath where pilgrims were stranded.

The IAF choppers are also air dropping food supplied to stranded villages in Rudraprayag, Chamoli and Uttarkashi districts, which were cut off after the floods.

A total of 26 IAF aircraft formed part of the operations Saturday, said officials.

The IAF airlifted the last 12 pilgrims from Harsil. 'There is no more evacuation to be done from there. Pilgrims from Harsil have been completely evacuated,' an official told IANS.

The IAF airlifted 842 pilgrims from Badrinath and will continue its operations in the sector for the next two days, he added.

On Friday, Home Minister Shinde had said the rescue efforts would be completed in another fortnight.

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) has put the number of villages hit by the tragedy at over 2,000.

The incessant and intense rains that hit Uttarakhand over three days from June 14 triggered flash floods and landslides, leading to hundreds of deaths, while hundreds are missing.

According to reports, a team of experts from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is to visit the Kedarnath temple to assess the damage to the ancient structure due to floods.

In a related development, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi Saturday met the family members of Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel Akhilesh Kumar Singh who was among the 20 people killed in Tuesday's chopper crash in Uttarakhand.

Gandhi attended the cremation of the junior officer and is said to have assured all help to the family. The MI-17 V5 helicopter crashed with 20 personnel on board. Those killed included personnel from the IAF, the ITBP and the National Disaster Response Force.

The Andhra Pradesh government has announced Rs.50 crore for relief works in Uttarakhand and for construction of four pilgrim amenities centres

Disposal of bodies, relief transportation pose fresh challenge

Dehradun: With the majority of pilgrims evacuated from Badrinath, disposal of bodies lying in affected areas and transportation of relief material to locals in flooded villages today posed a fresh challenge to authorities

in Uttarakhand.

Uncertainty prevailed on the 15th day of the calamity over the number of people killed with conflicting casualty
figures doing the rounds.

200 more pilgrims were evacuated from Badrinath to Joshimath today in five choppers amid government claims of
only 500 remaining there with enough food material, medicines and doctors to take care of them.

Supplying foodgrains to affected villages is proving to be an onerous task for the administration now as trucks loaded
with relief material are stuck at different places in the city in the absence of roads which suffered extensive damage in the
floods, official sources said.

Disposal of bodies in worst-hit Kedarnath Valley is going on but the process is slow due to frequently changing weather,
DIG Sanjay Gunjyal told PTI.

There was no clarity over the number of people killed in the disaster with Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna saying it may
be beyond 1,000 and state Assembly Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal claiming the figure may cross the 10,000 mark.

Authorities said that the casualty figure would be known after removal of tonnes of debris lying in affected areas.

TV footages showed bodies lying in the open in Rambaraarea between Gaurikund and Kedarnath shrine in
Rudraprayag district which bore the brunt of the tragedy. An official estimate said about 550 people are still stranded at different locations across the state. Evacuation from Badrinath is expected to be over by this evening, if the weather remains favourable, an official said.
PTI

Disposal of bodies, relief transportation pose fresh challenge

Dehradun: With the majority of pilgrims evacuated from Badrinath, disposal of bodies lying in affected areas and transportation of relief material to locals in flooded villages today posed a fresh challenge to authorities

in Uttarakhand.

Uncertainty prevailed on the 15th day of the calamity over the number of people killed with conflicting casualty
figures doing the rounds.

200 more pilgrims were evacuated from Badrinath to Joshimath today in five choppers amid government claims of
only 500 remaining there with enough food material, medicines and doctors to take care of them.

Supplying foodgrains to affected villages is proving to be an onerous task for the administration now as trucks loaded
with relief material are stuck at different places in the city in the absence of roads which suffered extensive damage in the
floods, official sources said.

Disposal of bodies in worst-hit Kedarnath Valley is going on but the process is slow due to frequently changing weather,
DIG Sanjay Gunjyal told PTI.

There was no clarity over the number of people killed in the disaster with Chief Minister Vijay Bahuguna saying it may
be beyond 1,000 and state Assembly Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal claiming the figure may cross the 10,000 mark.

Authorities said that the casualty figure would be known after removal of tonnes of debris lying in affected areas.

TV footages showed bodies lying in the open in Rambaraarea between Gaurikund and Kedarnath shrine in
Rudraprayag district which bore the brunt of the tragedy. An official estimate said about 550 people are still stranded at different locations across the state. Evacuation from Badrinath is expected to be over by this evening, if the weather remains favourable, an official said.
PTI

US vice-president asked me to deny Snowden asylum: Ecuadorian president

AROMO (Ecuador): Ecuador's President Rafael Correa said on Saturday he has spoken with US Vice-President Joe Biden about Edward Snowden, and that the American official asked Ecuador to reject the fugitive intelligence leaker's asylum request.

Correa said Ecuador would consult with the United States before making a decision but that ultimately it is up to Quito whether to grant asylum to the young man who has made bombshell revelations about covert US surveillance of phone records and Web traffic.

Correa said the conversation took place Friday, as Biden called and 'passed on a polite request from the United States to reject the request'.

Correa said he told Biden, 'Mr Vice-President, thanks for calling. We hold the United States in high regard. We did not seek to be in this situation. Do not get the idea that we are anti-American, as some ill-spirited media outlets are doing.'

Correa said he explained to Biden that Ecuador cannot process Snowden's asylum request because he is not physically in the South American country.

'When he comes to Ecuadoran soil, if in fact he ever does, and we have to process the request, the first people whose opinion we will seek is that of the United States,' he said.

Correa made his remarks on the Snowden case in a weekly address to the people of Ecuador, this time from the coastal town of Aromo.

Snowden, currently holed up at a Moscow airport transit area after fleeing from Hong Kong, requested asylum in Ecuador last weekend.

Ecuador has granted refuge to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange at its embassy in London for the past year.

Correa said Saturday Ecuador will follow the same procedure as it did then.

'Just as we did in the Assange case with England, we are going to listen to everyone but the decision would be ours as a sovereign nation. But of course, with affection and respect for the United States, we are going to keep very much in mind what that country has to say,' Correa said.

Correa said the conversation with Biden was 'quite courteous, and I would even say cordial.'

He said the Internet and phone surveillance programs that the former National Security Agency subcontractor revealed amount to the biggest espionage case in history.

What the United States needs to do, Correa said, is explain those once secret programs rather than focus on catching Snowden and 'tear apart a president, government or country that dares to say it will process an asylum request if it receives one.':'

Ecuador also said it planned to punish its diplomat who took a decision beyond his rank when he gave Snowden a temporary travel document for someone with plans to request asylum.

Correa said London consul Fidel Narvaez gave the document to Snowden 'exceeding his authority in doing so' and due to the consul's apparently 'desperate' concern that Snowden could be arrested.

US vice-president asked me to deny Snowden asylum: Ecuadorian president

AROMO (Ecuador): Ecuador's President Rafael Correa said on Saturday he has spoken with US Vice-President Joe Biden about Edward Snowden, and that the American official asked Ecuador to reject the fugitive intelligence leaker's asylum request.

Correa said Ecuador would consult with the United States before making a decision but that ultimately it is up to Quito whether to grant asylum to the young man who has made bombshell revelations about covert US surveillance of phone records and Web traffic.

Correa said the conversation took place Friday, as Biden called and 'passed on a polite request from the United States to reject the request'.

Correa said he told Biden, 'Mr Vice-President, thanks for calling. We hold the United States in high regard. We did not seek to be in this situation. Do not get the idea that we are anti-American, as some ill-spirited media outlets are doing.'

Correa said he explained to Biden that Ecuador cannot process Snowden's asylum request because he is not physically in the South American country.

'When he comes to Ecuadoran soil, if in fact he ever does, and we have to process the request, the first people whose opinion we will seek is that of the United States,' he said.

Correa made his remarks on the Snowden case in a weekly address to the people of Ecuador, this time from the coastal town of Aromo.

Snowden, currently holed up at a Moscow airport transit area after fleeing from Hong Kong, requested asylum in Ecuador last weekend.

Ecuador has granted refuge to Wikileaks founder Julian Assange at its embassy in London for the past year.

Correa said Saturday Ecuador will follow the same procedure as it did then.

'Just as we did in the Assange case with England, we are going to listen to everyone but the decision would be ours as a sovereign nation. But of course, with affection and respect for the United States, we are going to keep very much in mind what that country has to say,' Correa said.

Correa said the conversation with Biden was 'quite courteous, and I would even say cordial.'

He said the Internet and phone surveillance programs that the former National Security Agency subcontractor revealed amount to the biggest espionage case in history.

What the United States needs to do, Correa said, is explain those once secret programs rather than focus on catching Snowden and 'tear apart a president, government or country that dares to say it will process an asylum request if it receives one.':'

Ecuador also said it planned to punish its diplomat who took a decision beyond his rank when he gave Snowden a temporary travel document for someone with plans to request asylum.

Correa said London consul Fidel Narvaez gave the document to Snowden 'exceeding his authority in doing so' and due to the consul's apparently 'desperate' concern that Snowden could be arrested.

60 mummies found in 1,000-year-old tomb in Peru

Lima: Polish and Peruvian archaeologists have discovered a royal burial chamber with 60 mummies and some 1,200 gold, silver and ceramic objects from over 1,000 years ago in Peru.

The mummies - including three princesses - and other items date back to a pre-Inca culture called the Wari, who peaked between the seventh and 11th centuries, researchers said.

'This is a unique find,' said archaeologist Giersz Milosz of the University of Warsaw on Friday. 'This is the first Peruvian discovery of a royal tomb from the Wari culture,' of which little is known.

The find, in an area known as El Castillo, about 300 kilometers (185 miles) north of Lima, follows two earlier finds by the Polish and Peruvian team in 2010.

The chamber was discovered two meters (six feet) underground and covered with 33 tonnes of gravel. The tombs of the princesses - apparently wives of Wari chiefs - were at one end of the 17 square meter (190 square foot) chamber.

Most of the mummies were women, buried in an upright position, a sign of rank, according to the researchers.

They were adorned in silver and gold jewelry, and buried with ceramic vessels and baskets filled with more jewelry.

AFP

60 mummies found in 1,000-year-old tomb in Peru

Lima: Polish and Peruvian archaeologists have discovered a royal burial chamber with 60 mummies and some 1,200 gold, silver and ceramic objects from over 1,000 years ago in Peru.

The mummies - including three princesses - and other items date back to a pre-Inca culture called the Wari, who peaked between the seventh and 11th centuries, researchers said.

'This is a unique find,' said archaeologist Giersz Milosz of the University of Warsaw on Friday. 'This is the first Peruvian discovery of a royal tomb from the Wari culture,' of which little is known.

The find, in an area known as El Castillo, about 300 kilometers (185 miles) north of Lima, follows two earlier finds by the Polish and Peruvian team in 2010.

The chamber was discovered two meters (six feet) underground and covered with 33 tonnes of gravel. The tombs of the princesses - apparently wives of Wari chiefs - were at one end of the 17 square meter (190 square foot) chamber.

Most of the mummies were women, buried in an upright position, a sign of rank, according to the researchers.

They were adorned in silver and gold jewelry, and buried with ceramic vessels and baskets filled with more jewelry.

AFP