advised women

part of an advisory

sensitivity of Indian culture

what they should wear

Don't wear skirts, Mahesh Sharma advises foreign tourists

AGRA: Union culture and tourism minister Mahesh Sharma, who was in the Taj city on Sunday,foreign tourists not to wear skirts and other “skimpy” clothes “for their own safety”.Speaking to reporters here, Sharma said, “For their own safety, women foreign tourists should not wear short dresses and skirts... Indian culture is different from the western (culture).”He said women tourists should also refrain from going out alone at night.The minister added that this would bepamphlet to be given to foreign tourists.He also advised foreigners visiting the temple towns of Mathura and Vrindavan to keep thein mind.The minister, however, later said: “We have not given any specific instructions regardingor not wear. We are asking them to take precaution while going out at night. We are not trying to change anyone’s preference.”Sharma had stoked a controversy last year too by saying night out for girls was against India’s culture. “Girls wanting a night out may be all right elsewhere, but it is not part of Indian culture,” he had said.