Hyderabad: Municipal minister K.T. Rama Rao on Tuesday said that the TS government will strive to get World Heritage tag to the Qutb Shahi tombs.
Mr Rao, who visited the famed Qutb Shahi tombs for the first time, was bowled over by their architectural beauty and promised to promote the heritage monuments as a major tourist destination.
On the occasion, he inaugurated renovated “Badi bowli” (Big well) by Aga Khan Trust and TS Archaeology and Museums department in the premises of the Qutb Shahi tombs.
Complimenting the Agha Khan Trust for helping save the ancient heritage icon by spending Rs 300 crore, Mr Rao said that it was unfortunate that he could not visit the place in 40 years. “Focus should be not just international tourists, but also domestic tourists for places like this,” he said.
The Quli Qutb Shah Archaeological Park includes 70 structures encompassing 40 mausoleums, 23 mosques, five step-wells/water structures, a hammam (bath), pavilions, garden structures and enclosure walls built during the reign of Qutb Shahi dynasty in the 16th and 17th Centuries.
A MoU for a 10-year integrated conservation and landscape restoration project at the Quli Qutb Shah Tomb complex in Hyderabad was signed in 2013 by the Department of Archaeology and Museums, Quli Qutb Shah Urban Development Authority and Aga Khan Trust for Culture and Aga Khan Foundation.
