Zoom in, zoom out on city's glory

By T. Lalith Singh

HYDERABAD, JULY 26. So what if one is not allowed to climb Charminar for a panoramic view? The Tourism Department has found a way-out. It has decided to install cameras on the historic monument to enable visitors to get a glimpse of the city from all four sides of the minarets.

The remote-controlled cameras would pan in all directions and provide live pictures on the monitors to be set up at the base station below. The cameras are expected to even zoom as far as the Golconda fort which was the seat of administration during the Qutb Shahi rulers. "These cameras will provide an unhindered view," says the Tourism Director, Mr. G. Kishan Rao. The project was conceived after a similar exercise was done at Qutb Minar in Delhi.

The project is estimated to cost Rs. 25 lakhs and is being taken up in association with NIIT, Delhi, which has come forward to provide the technical know-how. A team of NIIT experts would make a presentation to the Tourism Minister, Mr. E. Peddi Reddy, here on Friday.

The Chief Minister, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu, has been briefed about the project and he has evinced keen interest in it. Tourists could also collect pictures of other monuments and historic sites that could be seen from Charminar. "If someone wants a picture of Gulzar Houz, the camera will zoom in and provide the picture," Mr. Kishan Rao explained.

For more than 15 years now, access to the galleries of Charminar has been forbidden after a family of five persons committed suicide by jumping from the galleries. In fact, a large number of visitors to the monument go disappointed having not visited the galleries. The project is expected to be completed by September 27, coinciding with the World Tourism Day.

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Section  : Southern States
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