Iconic Charminar suffers damage as portion of stucco falls off

Hyderabad: Charminar, the historic emblem of Hyderabad, has suffered damage as a portion of the stucco decoration work on one of its minarets fell off, officials said Thursday

Officials of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) visited the monument and were inspecting the damage. The ASI had taken up the conservation of the four towering minarets of the over 400-year-old monument a few months ago.

“It was a small piece of the newly-constructed part on the minaret. It fell down Wednesday night within the premises only,” a senior official told PTI.

The official said the ASI officials were doing the inspection and they could give the exact reason.

The Charminar was built in 1591 by Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah, the fifth ruler of the Qutb Shahi dynasty, also the founder of Hyderabad city.

In August 2010, a small portion of one its four minarets fell off from the ancient structure after heavy downpour. Each of the four tall, pointed, gracefully-carved minarets soar to a height of 48.7 metres above the ground, commanding the landscape for miles around.