US envoy Juster explores Purana Qila & Delhi's old treasures, reasons out mask-less photos

As the Union Ministry of Tourism has reopened some of the tourist spots with historical importance after three months, United States Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster on Sunday visited the some of the historical monuments in Delhi and praised the "long and rich history" of the city.

The Ambassador visited Tughluqabad Fort and the adjoining Mausoleum of Ghiyath al-Din Tughluq, along with a visit to Purana Qila, iterating that the place to be likely the same where "the legendary Indraprastha, capital of the Pandavas from the Mahabharata", once stood. The Ambassador in his Twitter post also gave a subtle justification for having the photos without the mask on. He said the mask was held in hand for the photos, seemingly explaining that mask was on at all times except for posing for the photos.

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Tourist places reopen after lockdown

After remaining closed for three months due to COVID-19 induced lockdown, historical monuments and tourist attractions have been opened to the public. This comes as the Ministry of Culture & Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) decided to open all the centrally protected monuments by completely abiding safety protocols, earlier in July. However, monuments that fall in the containment zones or hotspots still remain closed to prevent spiking the COVID-19 cases in the region. The tourism ministry has also issued Standard Operating Procedures for the people while reopening tourism after lockdown.

Union Tourism Minister Prahlad Singh Patel had earlier announced that only those monuments or museums which are in the non-containment zones will be open for visitors with sanitisation social distancing and other safety protocols in place. The entry tickets shall be issued online and no physical tickets will be available on the monument premises, whereas the payment of parking fees will have to be digitally made and not by physical currency whereas Group Photography will not be allowed within the monument premises.

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SOP issued by Tourism Ministry is as follows: