Agra, July 23 : US Second Lady Jill Biden Tuesday visited the Taj Mahal and a nearby slum cluster on the bank of the Yamuna.

She spent nearly an hour at the Kachchpura slum opposite the Taj along with representatives of a NGO, members of anganwadis, children and office bearers of the Adarsh Mahila Arogya Samiti.

"She interacted with the kids and took keen interest in the work done by us," Manish Kumar of NGO CURE told IANS.

The USAID supports NGO activities relating to urban health, and mother and child care. She gifted a box of books.

Jill Biden was accompanied by her daughter Ashley and son in law Howard David Crein.

Kachchpura village is a cluster of slums close to Mehtab Bagh, a key tourist spot. A number of self-help groups, some supported by authorities in Agra, are working in the area.

Biden later visited the Taj Mahal, 17th century wonder built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his wife Mumtaz.

Shamshuddin, the guide accompanying her, told IANS that she was in "a great hurry" but promised to come back to Agra with her husband.

"She asked several questions about the architecture, inlay work, and the (nearby) black Taj Mahal," he said. (IANS)