Taj Mahal to become first Indian monument with breastfeeding room
Taj Mahal which is one of the seven wonders of the world attracts a huge number of visitors daily. From family outings to favorite vacation spot, Taj Mahal enjoys attraction from all around the world. The most famous Indian heritage site was built as a monument to a woman who died in childbirth, Mumtaz Mahal. And now, the Archeological Survey of India in Agra city is all set to make the monument, the first heritage site in India to have a breastfeeding room.
There is no denying that breastfeeding in public is still a taboo in our country. Women are asked to cover up and are often shamed when found breastfeeding their child in public. Vasant Kumar Swarnkar, a top official at the Archeological Survey of India (ASI) in Agra city recently revealed that the baby feeding room would be set up by July to help the “millions of mothers who visit with their babies”. Swarnkar also revealed that he got the idea of building a breastfeeding roon in the monument when he visited the monument last week and found a mother struggling hard to feed her baby while hiding under a staircase.
“I could see it was so difficult for her (to feed her child) which is basic motherhood right. So I thought we have to do something,” he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “My hope is that more and more monuments – not only in India but around the world – replicate this (plan) so that women can feed their babies comfortably,” said Swarnkar.
Not just Taj Mahal, Swarnkar revealed that he has ordered two more monuments in Agra to open up baby feeding rooms. The ASI said this was the first time it was providing such a facility at any of India’s 3,600 plus monuments.
