NEW DELHI - Tourism

"I ASKED MY SOUL WHAT IS DELHI?
SHE REPLIED: THE WORLD IS THE BODY AND
DELHI ITS SOUL."

Abdullah Khan Ghalib

TOURISM:

BAHAI'S TEMPLE

Made of the marble, cement, dolomite, sand and shaped like a lotus, it is meant for the secular worship of god.

RED FORT

Built by the Emperor Shah Jahan in 1683 AD, This fort is one of the best surviving Mogul monuments today. I t is so called because of the red sandstone with which it was built. It is one of the most magnificent palaces in the world. India's history is linked to this fort. It was here that the British deposed the last Mughal Ruler of Bahadur Shah Zafar, ending three centuries of Mughal rule. It was also from these very ramparts that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru announced to the nation that India was a free nation. Shah Jehan laid the foundation stone in 1618 for the Red Fort after shifting his capital from Agra. The fort has two gates, one is the Lahore Gate and the other is the Delhi Gate. From the Lahore Gate a visitor has access to the CHATTA CHOWK whish was once a royal market and also housed the court jewellers. You can experience a "Sound and Light show" everyday. Inside the Red Fort, the DIWAN-I-AM is the Red Forts hall of public audience.

HUMAYUN'S TOMB

The tomb portrays the Mughal's love for gardens, fountains and water and is the first example of mature Mughal architecture. It was built with red sandstone and marble by Haji Begum, Humayun's widow and it is a synthesis of both the Persian and Indian styles. This was the forerunner for the construction of other Mughal buildings and its culmination was in the construction of the TAJ MAHAL. It was designed by the Persian architect, Mirza Ghyas. Humayun's tomb shows a marked shift from the Persian tradition. IT is located in the midst of a garden screened by high walls. The dome stands 140 feet from the base of the terrace and is topped with a copper pinnacle.

INDIA GATE

Located at the eastern end of the Rajpath, this 42 meter high structure is a memorial to the unknown soldier. Designed by Sir Edward Lutyens, it is a memorial arch in honour of the 70,000 Indian Soldiers who died in the First World War. Their names are engraved on it. It was completed in 1931 and it is located on Rajpath. The gate is 160 feet high and an arch of 138 feet. Built out of sandstone it houses the eternal flame. The eternal flame stands in memory of the Brave Indian Soldiers who had died in the 1971 battle against Pakistan.

JAMA MASJID

Crowned by three Onion domes and minarets of marble and slate, this mosque, the largest in India, was built by Shah Jahan in 1644 with the seating capacity of 20,000 people. The Jama Masjid was founded in the year 1650 by Shah Jehan to complement his palace at the Red Fort. It took six years to complete the work. The Mosque is one of the finest examples of Mughal architecture. It has three gateways of which the eastern gate is the tallest. The main courtyard is 408 square feet and paved with red stone. There is a large marble tank in the center. The main Mosque is crowned by three onion shaped domes made of white marble and inlaid with stripes of black slate. On the northern and southern sides are two minarets rising up to a height of 130 feet. It also houses a hair of the prophet and a piece of the Quran written by him.

JANTAR MANTAR

Built with the objective of standardising almanacs, Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh's (1699-1743) observatory is filled with huge concrete astronomical instruments used to plot the course of the heavenly bodies. A keen astronomer and a noble in the Mughal court was dissatisfied by the errors of brass and metal astronomical instruments. Under the emperor's patronage he set about correcting the existing astronomical tables and updating the almanac with more reliable instruments. Delhi's JANTAR MANTAR is the first of the five observatories that he built with large masonry instruments. The observatory has a sun-dial called the SAMRAT YATRA and the RAM YATRA for reading altitudinal angles and JAI PRAKASH for ascertaining the position of the sun and other celestial bodies. The final building is the MISRA YANTRA which is a combination of four scientific instruments.

LODHI GARDEN

This lush garden sprawled next to the India International Centre reflects the typical features of the Lodhi style of architecture.

MUGHAL GARDEN

Designed by Lutyens, the Mughal Gardens, with its sparkling fountains, terraces, flowerbeds and pathways, is part of the Rashtrapathi Bhavan estate.

PURANA QUILA

Originally the city of Indraprastha, the legendary site of the epic Mahabaratha, this fort located south east of the India Gate was built by Humayun and Sher Shah. The walls of the fort have three gates and are surrounded by a moat fed by the River Yamuna. The walls were built by Humayun and the construction of the buildings are attributed to Sher Shah. The building that have survived time are the SHER MANDEL and the QUILA-I-KHOLINA MOSQUE. The Sher Mandel was Humayun's library. The mosque was built around 1541-42. A variety of materials like marble, red sandstone and black & white marble have been used to construct the small Mosque (168 X 44 feet).

PRAGATI MAIDAN

Apart from national and international trade fairs taking place through the year , the sprawling ground also houses the Nehru Pavillion, Atomic Energy and Defense Pavillions that are of considerable interest. Skills of the Indian artisans are on display at the Crafts Museum and the state Pavillion.

QUTUB MINAR COMPLEX

The origins of the Qutab Minar are shrouded in mystery. Some believe it was erected as a monument of the Muslim invasion of India while others believe it was to call the faithful to pray. Qutab-ud-din Aibak started the construction ot the minaret in 1200 A.D. but finished only the basement. His successor, Iltutmush, added three more storeys, and in 1368 Firoz Shah Tughlak constructed the fifth and last storey. The 238 feet Minar is 47 feet at the base and tapers to nine feet at the apex. It has projecting balconies supported by elaborately decorated brackets. Situated in Mehrauli, this 73 meters high tower shares the complex with Quwwat-ul-Islam Masjid, the famous Iron Pillar, Alai Minar, Alai Darwaza, Imamzamin's Tomb and Ala-ud-din Madrasa.

Even in ruins the QUWWAT-UL-ISLAM (Light of Islam) Mosque is one of the most magnificent in the world. It was constructed by Qutab-ud-din Aibak in 1193 and it was completed in 1197. Iltutmush and Alla-ud-din Khilji added onto Qutab-ud-din Aibak's contribution. The mosque consists of an inner and outer courtyard. But the pillars of the collanade are from the 27 plundered temples. Within the same complex you will find the IRON PILLAR dating back to the 4th century AD. This pillar carries an inscription in honour of the Hindu God Vishnu and also bears the name of Gupta King, Chandragupta II (375-413). The pillar is also a tribute to India's achievement in metallurgy. The pillar is made of 98 % wrought iron and has stood for 1,600 years without rusting and decomposing.

RAJGHAT

Surrounded by wide Lawns and gardens with fountains, this place is the Samadhi of Mahatma Gandhi where his mortal remains was cremated on the western banks of the Yamuna.

RASHTRAPATHI BHAVAN

This Official residence of the President of India was formerly the Viceregal Lodge. It is the highlight and crowning glory of Sir Lutyens. It is located in an area of 130 hectare and the palace has 340 rooms.

SAFDARJUNG'S TOMB

Next to the Safdarjung's Airport is Safdarjung's Tomb, built by the Nawab of Awadh for his father. It is the Last example of a Mughal style garden Tomb. Representing the last phase of the Mughal Style of architecture, Safdarjung's  Tomb stands in the center of an extensive garden. Built in 1753 by the Nawab Shauja-ud-Daula to house the remains of his father, who was a minister in the Mughal court. This Tomb is sometimes referred to as the last flicker of Mughal architecture. It shows the grace and simplicity of the Mughals architecture.