A group of around a dozen artisans have built a Taj Mahal igloo using blocks of solid snow bringing tourists to Sonamarg, Jammu and Kashmir.

Zubair Ahmed Dha, one of the igloo's builders, said: "We are making this together for the first time and this is probably the first of its kind in the world Have worked very hard on this project.

"For the first five or six days we had to hire 10 to 15 labourers to help us set the foundation for this joint project.

"After that, the three of us have worked on it and completed it. It has taken us about 15 days to make it a reality.

"There was an instance that while we were putting up the skeletal frame 3 feet of snow fell and prevented us from coming to the project site. We had to actually walk in chest-high snow even as the snow kept on falling."

The Taj Mahal igloo is around 20 feet high and 34 feet wide.

Three artisans take 15 days to create a uniquely cultural tribute, 10-15 persons can easily fit in an edifice.

Amidst reports surfacing about the Jammu and Kashmir Department of Tourism working with stakeholders to finalise tourism promotion initiatives in Sonamarg, comes news of a unique project at a Taj Mahal-cum-Igloo made of snow Caught up with tourism department officials and artisans involved in the project to better understand the reasons for coming up with this first in-the- world initiative..

Zubair Ahmed Dhar, one of three artisans involved in the project, said, The project is a combination of the Taj Mahal and the famed Igloo. We are making this together for the first time and this is probably the first of its kind in the world Have worked very hard on this project; for the first five or six days we had to hire 10 to 15 labourers to help us set the foundation for this joint project. After that, the three of us have worked on it and completed it. It has taken us about 15 days to make it a reality. There was an instance that while we were putting up the skeletal frame, three feet of snow fell and prevented us from coming to the project site. We had to actually walk in chest-high snow even as the snow kept on falling he said.

However, we managed to carve out a path for ourselves to facilitate movement. I have built a smaller version of the Taj Mahal and had always dreamt of making a bigger version of it. I have made cars, horse carts Zubair added.

He said in Taj Mahal-Igloo, which is a 10x10 edifice, 10 to 15 people can easily fit in. From the ground up it is about 20 feet in height and 34 feet in width.
Another artist said this was a collective initiative between the three of them and other stakeholders, including the Hotelier Association in Sonamarg, the Adventure Association, etc..