The first week of the holy month of Ramadan saw more than 2.5 lakh visitors at the iconic Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque at Abu Dhabi. <br/><br/>A task force of more than 550 volunteers from 20 public and private bodies are implementing and supervising the Ramadan programmes and events at the mosque. <br/><br/>The Center has put up 12 fully equipped, air-conditioned tents to receive 27,000 fasting people throughout the holy month , where Iftar meals are served.<br/>'<br/>E-vehicles are being provided to facilitate the movement of elderly people, families and people with special needs from the car parking area surrounding the mosque to the prayer halls. 3,000 special medical chairs for worshippers with special needs have also been arranged at the Grand Mosque.<br/>'<br/>A special canon is fired each evening at the Grand Mosque to indicate that the fast for the day is over and time for Iftar has commenced. The 'Iftar Canon' is part of the cultural heritage of UAE and is prominently fired in all the seven emirates to mark the Iftar time.<br/>'<br/>With more than 80 marble domes on a roofline held aloft by over 1000 pillars and punctuated by four 107m-high minarets, Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque is a masterpiece of modern Islamic architecture and design.<br/><br/>Over 100,000 tons of pure white Greek and Macedonian marble were used in its construction. Delicate floral designs inlaid with semi-precious stones, such as lapis lazuli, red agate, amethyst, abalone, jasper and mother-of-pearl, decorate a variety of marbles and contrast with the more traditional geometric ceramic details. <br/>'<br/>Conceived by the first president of the UAE, Sheikh Zayed, and marking his final resting place, the mosque accommodates 41,000 worshipers and is one of the few in the region open to non-Muslims.