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Posted
on 25-Nov-03 10:11 AM
Indian officials red-faced after Clinton's Taj Mahal bus breaks down
Sun Nov 23, 5:47 PM ET Add U.S. National - AFP to My Yahoo!
AGRA, India (AFP) - Embarrassed Indian authorities ordered an inquiry after a special environmentally friendly bus broke down as it brought former US president Bill Clinton (news - web sites) back from the Taj Mahal.
Clinton was returning from the 17th century monument Saturday on a battery-operated bus meant for dignitaries when the steering stalled and the driver slammed on the brakes, officials said.
As the driver failed repeatedly to restart the bus and Indian officials tried to find alternative transportation, Clinton and his Secret Service agents got off and returned to his hotel on foot.
"The police chief has been ordered to conduct the enquiry and submit a report," said Niteshwar Kumar, the administrator of the Taj Mahal city of Agra.
He said it appeared "some bolt might have turned loose" on the bus.
Courts have banned the use of polluting vehicles near the marble Taj Mahal. Clinton himself highlighted the need to control air pollution when he visited the monument to love in March 2000 alongside his wife Hillary and daughter Chelsea during a state visit to India.
The battery-run bus that broke down Saturday had been bought in July 2001 and transported Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf that month when he visited Agra for a failed summit with Indian Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee (news - web sites).
Clinton was on a two-day visit to India dedicated mostly to campaign to bring cheaper AIDS (news - web sites) medicine to the developing world
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