Is the Taj leaking? ASI finds seepage in UNESCO World Heritage Site’s main dome

The Taj Mahal, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the international tourist hotspot city of Agra, is leaking at a time when good rainfall has been predicted in the monsoon. A water seepage point has been detected in the dome of the Taj Mahal at a height of 73 metres during thermal scanning conducted by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). The ASI ongoing inspection will take around 15 days, after which experts will start the repair work on the dome.
Sources said that the ASI’s Light Detection and Ranging investigation revealed three key issues in the monument. It found that the mortar between the stones on the main dome had deteriorated, and the door and floor of the dome’s roof had weakened. Lastly, the iron rod that supports the finial has eroded due to rusting, leading to the expansion of the surrounding mortar and causing the water leakage.

Scaffolding has been erected on the main dome of the Taj Mahal, and the ASI team will conduct a physical inspection. After 15 days, technicians and workers will go up and look for cracks, whether stones have come loose or mortar has fallen off.

Water leaked from dome in September 2024 also

Last year, on September 12, water started dripping near the graves of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz in the main mausoleum of the Taj Mahal when Agra received record rainfall.

As per reports, water had leaked in the Taj Mahal for the first time 373 years ago in 1652, when Aurangzeb sent the report to Emperor Shah Jahan about water leakage from the dome, following which repairs were carried out.

In 1872, Executive Engineer J.W. Alexander had carried out repairs when water was leaking from the main dome after the British set up a committee of experts.

Repairs were done again in 1941, and the work continued for three years.

Taj Mahal’s Senior Conservation Assistant, Prince Vajpayee, said that the light detection inspections have nearly been completed. “Now, physical inspection will be done. In view of the height of the main dome and pinnacle mounted on it at 73 metres, it will take around six months to complete the repair work.”