Coming soon: Hop-on guided tours of Chandigarh

CHANDIGARH: In the days leading up to the 50th death anniversary of Chandigarh's master architect Le Corbusier, residents and tourists who want to take a quick tour of the city and explore its heritage will be able to do by hopping on to a bus. The vehicle will take them to the important sites of the city, with a guide explaining each one briefly.
Chandigarh's department of tourism, in addition to its guided tours of Capitol Complex and Architecture Museum that have already begun, will start the city tour-on-vehicle soon."This would serve those who don't have much time to spend in the city and cannot spend hours at each site. We will give them a brief history and significance of each of the heritage sites associated with Le Corbusier," tourism director Kavita Singh told TOI.
Singh added that more such tours were in the offing and guides were being trained with the technical know-how. "In the long run, we will also introduce pre-recorded audio devices that can be worn and heard while going through the museum and other sites," she added.
As a UNESCO team prepares to visit Chandigarh in September to assess the Capitol Complex's nomination for a heritage tag, Singh said such tours held a higher relevance. "In that context, it is even more important for residents to know and preserve their heritage and show enthusiasm for it. They can give us feedback and suggestions on where we are lacking and how to attract more people to Chandigarh," Singh added.
Giving the example of heritage sites like Taj Mahal, which are opened only for viewing, Singh said, "We need to show people that living heritage can be preserved too" the heritage buildings where people live and work," she added.