OLD
DELHI - A sight-seeing tour of Old Delhi would entail
visiting the:
Red Fort - The red sandstone walls of
Lal Qila, the Red Fort, extend for two km and vary in
height from 18 metres on the river side to 33 metres on
the city side. Shah Jahan started construction of the
massive fort in 1638 and it was completed in 1648. Before
he could move his capital from Agra to Shahjahanabad in
Delhi,he was deposed and imprisoned in Agra Fort by his
son Aurangzeb. The Lahore gate is the main gate to the
fort, getting its name from the fact that it faces Lahore.
It leads to a vaulted arcade, the Chatta Chowk (Covered
Bazaar). The shops cater to the tourist trade today, but
once they stocked articles for the royal household - silks,
jewellery, gold. This arcade was also known as the Meena
Bazaar, where ladies of the court shopped on Thursdays.
No man was allowed inside the citadel on that day.
Jama Masjid - Jama Masjid The splendid
mosque built by Muhammad Ali Shah in the typical Mughal
style with two minarets and three domes, lies to the west
of the Hussainabad Imambara and is entirely free from
pseudo Italian art then in vogue in Lucknow. Mohammad
Ali Shah started the construction of this splendid mosque
in 1840 but his wife Begum Malika Jahan finally completed
it after his death. It is the country's largest mosque,
built in 1656, where thousands of Muslims offer prayers.
It lies opposite the Red Fort and is surrounded by a large
number of shops, which deal in a variety of goods. The
great mosque of Old Delhi is both the largest in India
and the final architectural extravagance of Shah Jahan
with a courtyard capable of holding 25,000 devotees.
Raj Ghat - the memorial site where Mahatma
Gandhi was cremated.
NEW DELHI - an extensive sight-seeing
tour of New Delhi would include a visit to the:
Humayun's Tomb - Built in the mid 16th
century by Haji Begum, senior wife of Humayun, the second
Mughal emperor, Humayun's Tomb is an early example of
Mughal architecture built in Delhi. A rose petal sandstone
mausoleum built in proper Mughal style is a beautiful
memorial to the poet king. Octagonal in shape, raised
on a plinth, with double domes, high arches, laid in the
centre of a large walled enclosure, the monument is an
imposing structure.
Purana Qila - is the supposed site of
Indraprastha, the original city of Delhi. The Afghan ruler,
Sher Shah, who briefly interrupted the Mughal Empire by
defeating Humayun, completed the fort during his reign
from 1538-45, before Humayun regained control of India.
The fort, located south-east of the India Gate and north
of Humayun's Tomb and the Nizamuddin railway station,
has massive walls and three large gateways. There is a
small octagonal red sandstone tower, the Sher Mandal,
inside the fort near the South gate. It was later used
by Humayun as a library. While descending the stairs of
this tower one day in 1556, he slipped, fell and received
injuries from which he later died. The Qila-i-Kuhran Mosque,
or Mosque of Sher Shah, lies just beyond it and unlike
the fort itself, is in a fairly reasonable condition.
There's a small archaeological museum just inside the
main gate. There are good views of New Delhi from atop
the gate.
Qutub Minar - 13 km to the south of Connaught
Circus at Lalkote of 8th century Tomor Rajputs, the 72.5
m high Victory Pillar stands as a victory stand of a Muslim
King Kutub-ud-din-Aibak in India. At Kila Roy Pithora,
on the dilapidated fort of the last Hindu king Prithwiraj,
this victory stand was made like throne in Gajni. In 1199
Kutub-ud-Din started its construction and it was completed
in 1236 by Iltutmish, the son-in-law of Kutub.
Rajpath, past the imposing India Gate, Parliament House,
the President's Residence and would end with a drive through
the Diplomatic Enclave. |
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