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Kanan Dhru, Founder and Managing Director, Research Foundation for Governance in India, India; Global Shaper at the World Economic Forum on India 2012
Douglas C-54, somewhere in India, 1945
45-505 (c/n 35958/DO352) WFU and stored MASDC, sold Sep 21, 1967, broken up 1973
This we hadn't expected to see in India; a cycle stand full of bicycles parked “orderly” next to one another.
Visit www.PaulJeurissen.nl for more pictures and videos from their multi-year cycling/photography project “Bicycling around the world in search of inspiring cycle images”.
Voters line up to cast their votes as a security guard looks on at Municipal Inter College Taj Ganj, Agra, Uttar Pradesh. [Photo: Prashanth Vishwanathan/UNDP India]
It has been two years since my last visit to India. Such trips were always for business. Yet, I tried to find time to visit the countryside around Bangalore. The Indian state of Karnataka is home to a large collection of Hoysala Dynasty temples.
My favorite temples were built by kings, queens, and a military general. The 12th century temple at Helibidu is my favorite. The stone carvings are so beautiful that if you squint your eyes, you would swear they are alive and breathing.
The large temple of Belur is nice, but too spread out for my tastes. Beautiful things are certainly there, so if you are in the Hassan region of Karnataka, it's worth paying it a visit.
Which leads me to these series of images. They are from the 13th century Hoysala temple of Somanathapura. It is a small temple that is overflowing with incredible stone carvings.
My many and continued thanks to Prakash Murthy for taking me to so many wonderful places in southern India. It was he who introduced me to the temples and sacred places of Karnataka.
Singer Sewing Machines are a common sight all over India. This picture was taken only a few yards from the Clock Tower in the city of Sikar.
Sewing machines did not go into mass production until the 1850's, when Isaac Singer built the first commercially successful machine. Singer built the first sewing machine where the needle moved up and down rather than the side-to-side and the needle was powered by a foot treadle. Previous machines were all hand-cranked.
Issac Merritt Singer was born in the State of New York. He formed the I. M. Singer & Company in 1851. The company was renamed Singer Manufacturing Company in 1853.
Ambling out of Jaisalmer train station in late morning, we were immediately accosted by the throngs of drivers – mostly working for specific hotels – who were trying to pick us up. Since I’d booked a room at the Roop Mahal, this wasn’t an issue. It took a minute to find the guy, but he was there to drive us the whole 1-2 km to the hotel, which was at the base of the fort on the west side.
The biggest reason to come to Jaisalmer, the Golden City (since most places are primarily built of sandstone) is to see the fort, which is on a bit of a hill overlooking an otherwise flat desert. As it’s in the desert, the temperatures in the day, even in late September, were close to 40 degrees Celsius (a little over 100F).
According to Lonely Planet India, the fort was built in 1156 by the Rajput ruler Jaisal and reinforced by subsequent rulers. It “was the focus of a number of battles between the Bhatis, the Mughals of Delhi and the Rathores of Jodhpur.”
Nowadays, it’s a living fort. Jaisalmer Fort has plenty of residents, restaurants, souvenir stands, havelis (old-style housing with ornate architecture: carved stone doorways, lattice screens, balconies, and turrets). The havelis are often hotels now, and almost every hotel here has a rooftop restaurant to enjoy the surrounding view. Our hotel, the Roop Mahal, also had a rooftop restaurant where I ate a few times. The food was…not great, but certainly not bad.
In addition to the havelis, there are also quite a few temples. Specifically, there are seven Jain temples (that you can tour for 150 rupees/15 RMB/$2.50USD). These temples were visually quite attractive inside – some more than others – and also had plenty of worshippers coming in and out. I was impressed by the intricacy of the details and sandstone carving, the intimacy of the art, and the way natural light was used in the temples. I don’t believe tripods were allowed inside the temple, which made a lot of shooting quite difficult, but not impossible. The only other rule is that you have to take your shoes off outside and pay someone (usually about 100 rupee) to “watch” your shoes.
After having a meal in the fort (and, excitedly, finding a spice shop where I bought the first of many Indian spices to bring back to China with me), my travel partner arranged for us to go out to the desert and ride camels. (The hotelier also offered something similar, but was a bit expensive.)
Later in the day, around 5:00, if I recall correctly, a guy came to pick us up at the hotel in a jeep and four of us – me, my travel partner, and two Israeli women – started our drive out to Sam, about 50 km west of Jaisalmer (and less than 100 km – maybe less than 50 – from the Pakistani border to the west).
En route, we had to make a few required stops (per our drivers). The first place was so forgettable that I can’t even recall the name of it or what it was. The second place was just to see a small village (really, two buildings) and a whole lot of kids running up to you begging for money in exchange for pictures.
After that, we finally made it out to the desert, where we rode camels for about half an hour and then stopped at a rather random place where we were eventually given a home-cooked Indian meal, vegetarian, that consisted of dal, naan, and a few curries. It was delicious, and had to be eaten completely in Indian style (no utensils of any kind).
While watching the sunset and the subsequent moonrise, we eventually bade our Israeli friends farewell (as they were spending the night in the desert) and headed back to town. Along the way, I caught a glimpse of a late night cricket match, and it was the only time during this trip I’d see that. When we got back to the hotel, we just needed to wait there for an hour or two before they were kind enough to drive us to the train station around 11:00 p.m. so we could catch our midnight train to Jodhpur…the Blue City.
Canopy, India Gate, New Delhi. Almost no editing. This entire batch has very few images where I actually did processing.
Three generations of women crossing the fields on the way to their village.
The Polo Forest region of Gujarat is a quiet retreat, nestled in the Aravalli hills bordering Gujarat and Rajasthan. The word "Polo" is derived from "Pol" which means "gateway" in Sanskrit. The forest was a gateway between Gujarat and Rajasthan.
The Polo Forest region played host to the ancient kingdom of Vijayanagar. Polo Forest conceals a number of amazing temples built during the 10th to 15th century A.D.
View the Polo Forest Slideshow
Novels that I've been reading lately ... they all have Indian themes.
If you are interested in reading, there are some more India novels which I have read here ...
www.flickr.com/photos/celeste33/82339368/in/set-720575940...
and here ...
www.flickr.com/photos/celeste33/82339369/in/set-720575940...
Women laborers carry loads of rock rubble, then wet concrete, on their heads. Their loads can weigh about 100 lbs, especially for wet concrete. They are working at a Bangalore construction site. Copyright Fort Worth Star-Telegram/Paul Moseley. May not be downloaded or reproduced for any reason. Check a great newspaper out at www.star-telegram.com/
Landscape in Himachal Pradesh on the way back from Ladakh to Delhi(between Darsha and the Rohtang La pass).
Nederlandse bedrijven zien steeds meer kansen in Zuid-India. Daarom investeert Nederland in de opening van een nieuw Consulaat/NBSO in Bangalore om BV Nederland bij te staan bij het realiseren van deze marktkansen. En organiseert van 18 - 23 juni 2017 een economische missie naar Zuid-India (New Delhi, Bangalore en Hyderabad) in aanwezigheid van Marten van den Berg, directeur-generaal Buitenlandse Economische Betrekkingen van het ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken.
India
India biedt met een bevolking van 1,3 miljard mensen en een sterk groeiende goed opgeleide middenklasse een grote potentiële afzetmarkt voor het Nederlandse bedrijfsleven. De Indiase economische groei loopt naar verwachting in 2016-2017 verder op tot 7,8%, de consumentengoederenmarkt groeit met 15% en het investeringsklimaat is aantrekkelijk. Het is dan ook geen wonder dat IMF de Indiase economie aanmerkt als een bright spot.
Tijdens deze missie ligt de focus op de volgende thema’s:
•Smart cities
•High Tech
Deze thema’s zullen naar verwachting interessant zijn voor bedrijven en kennisinstellingen uit de HTSM-sectoren: IT (cyber security, serious gaming, e-health); Medtech (medical devices, hospital infrastructure, e-health); space/aerospace; precision engineering; smart manufacturing/talent of Indian engineers. Ook voor bedrijven en kennisinstellingen uit de sectoren Life Science & Health, fintech, water en logistiek en infrastructuur is deze missie interessant.
Tijdens de missie komen onderwerpen aan de orde als: duurzame stedelijke ontwikkeling, stedelijke mobiliteit, watermanagement, een goede gezondheidszorg, wetenschappelijke samenwerking, robotica.
11 May 2014 - Indian elections workers are learning to use and check electronic voting machines at an Elections Commission facility before moving to a polling station in Varanasi, India.[Photo: Prashanth Vishwanathan/UNDP India]
Inspiration From Lord Ganeshjee
Lord Ganeshjee’s BIG HEAD inspires us to think big and think profitably; the BIG EARS prompt us to listen patiently to new ideas and suggestions; the NARROW EYES point to deep concentration needed to finish tasks in hand well and quickly; the LONG NOSE tells us to poke around inquisitively to learn more and the SMALL MOUTH reminds us to speak less and listen more.
Old Delhi (Hindi: पुरानी दिल्ली; Punjabi: ਪੁਰਾਣੀ ਦਿੱਲੀ; Urdu: پُرانی دِلّی; Purānī Dillī), is a walled city of Delhi, India, was founded as Shahjahanabad (Persian: شاه جهان آباد) by Mughal Emperor Shahjahan in 1639. It remained the capital of the Mughals until the end of the Mughal dynasty. It was once filled with mansions of nobles and members of the royal court, along with elegant mosques and gardens. Today, despite having become extremely crowded and dilapidated, it still serves as the symbolic heart of metropolitan Delhi.
HISTORY
The site of Shahjahanabad is north of earlier settlements of Delhi. Its southern part overlaps some of the area that was settled by the Tughlaqs in the 14th century when it was the seat of Delhi Sultanate. The sultanates ruled from Delhi between 1206 and 1526, when the last was replaced by the Mughal dynasty. The five dynasties were the Mamluk dynasty (1206–90), the Khalji dynasty (1290–1320), the Tughlaq dynasty (1320–1414), the Sayyid dynasty (1414–51), and the Lodi dynasty (1451–1526).
Delhi remained an important place for the Mughals, who built palaces and forts. Most importantly, it was Shah Jahan, who had the walled city built from 1638 to 1649, containing the Lal Qila and the Chandni Chowk. Daryaganj had the original cantonment of Delhi, after 1803, where a native regiment of Delhi garrison was stationed, which was later shifted to Ridge area. East of Daryaganj was Raj ghat Gate of the walled city, opening at Raj Ghat on Yamuna River. First wholesale market of Old Delhi opened as the hardware market in Chawri Bazaar in 1840, the next wholesale market was that of dry fruits, spices and herbs at Khari Baoli, opening in 1850. The Phool Mandi (Flower Market) of Daryaganj was established in 1869, and even today, despite serving a small geographical area, it is of great importance due to dense population.
After the fall of the Mughal Empire post 1857 revolt, the British Raj shifted the capital of India to a less volatile city, Calcutta, where it remained until 1911. After the announcement of the change, the British developed Lutyens' Delhi (in modern New Delhi) just south-west of Shahjahanabad. At this point, the older city started being called Old Delhi, as New Delhi became the seat of national government. It was formally inaugurated as such in 1931. Until the 1930s, few people ventured outside the walled city; thus in the following years, as the walled city got more and more congested, other areas around it were developed.
WALLS AND GATES
It is approximately shaped like a quarter cìrcle, with the Red Fort as the focal point. The old city was surrounded by a wall enclosing about 6.1 km2, with 14 gates:
- Nigambodh Gate: northeast, leading to historic Nigambodh Ghat on the Yamuna River
- Kashmiri Gate: north
- Mori Gate: north
- Kabuli gate: west
- Lahori gate: west close to the Sadar Railway station, Railway Colony, including the tomb of Syed Abdul Rehman Jilani Dehlvi.
- Ajmeri Gate: southeast, leading to Ghaziuddin Khan's Madrassa and Connaught Place, a focal point in New Delhi.
- Turkman Gate: southeast, close to some pre-Shahjahan remains which got enclosed within the walls, including the tomb of Hazrat Shah Turkman Bayabani.
- Delhi Gate: south leading to Feroz Shah Kotla and what was then older habitation of Delhi.
The surrounding walls, 3.7 m wide and 7.9 m tall, originally of mud, were replaced by red stone in 1657. In the Mughal period, the gates were kept locked at night. The walls have now largely disappeared, but most of the gates are still present. The township of old Delhi is still identifiable in a satellite image because of the density of houses.
The famous Khooni Darwaza, south of Delhi Gate and just outside the walled city, was originally constructed by Sher Shah Suri.
Streets and neighbourhoods
The main street, now termed Chandni Chowk, runs from the Red Fort to Fatehpuri Masjid. Originally a canal ran through the middle of the street.
North of the street, there is the mansion of Begum Samru, now called Bhagirath Palace. South is the street is Dariba Kalan, a dense residential area, beyond which is Jama Masjid. Daryaganj is a section that used to border the river at Rajghat and Zeenat-ul-Masajid.
The Urdu language emerged from the Urdu Bazaar section of Old Delhi. The Din Dunia magazine and various other Urdu publications are the reason of this language staying alive.
MAIN ARTERIES
- Netaji Subhash Marg/Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg leading to India Gate (north and south)
- Chandni Chowk/Khari Bawli Road (east and west)
Old Delhi is approximately bounded by these modern roads:
- Gokhle Marg (south)
- Mahatma Gandhi Marg road (east)
- Shraddhananda Rd (west)
- Jawaharlal Nehru Marg (south)
In 1876, Carr Stephen described the city as follows:
Of the two streets described by François Bernier, the longer extended from the Lahore Gate of the city to the Lahore Gate of the citadel, and the other from the Delhi Gate of the city to the Lahore Gate of the fort. Both these streets were divided into several sections, each of which was known by a different name.
The section between the Lahore Gate of the fort and the entrance of the street called the Dariba, known as the Khuni Darwazah, was called the Urdu or the Military Bazaar; owing, very probably, to the circumstances of a portion of the local garrison having been once quartered about the place. Between the Khuni Darwazah and the present Kotwali, or the Head Police Station of the city, the street has the name of Phul ka Mandi or the flower market. The houses in front of the Kotwali were built at a short distance from the line of the rest of the houses in the street, so as to form a square.
Between the Kotwali and the gate known as the Taraiah, was the Jauhari or the Jewellers' Bazaar; between the Taraiah and the neighbourhood known as Asharfi ka Katra, was, par excellence, the Chandni Chauk. There was a tank in the centre of the Chauk the site of which is now occupied by the Municipal Clock Tower, and beyond this to the Fatehpuri Masjid was the Fatehpuri Bazaar. The houses round Chandni Chauk were of the same height, and were ornamented with arched doors and painted verandahs. To the north and south of the square there were two gate-ways, the former leading to the Sarai of Jehan Ara Begum, and the latter to one of the most thickly populated quarters of the city. Round the tank the ground was literally covered with vegetable, fruit, and sweetmeat stalls. In the course of time the whole of this long street came to be known as the Chandni Chauk.
This grand street was laid out by Jahanara Begam, daughter of Shah Jahan. From the Lahore Gate of the fort to the end of the Chandni Chauk the street was about 40 yards wide and 1,520 yards long. Through the centre of this street ran the canal of 'Ali Mardan, shaded on both sides by trees. On the eastern end of the Chandni Chauk stands the Lahore Gate of the Fort, and on the opposite end the handsome mosque of Fatehpuri Begam).
The clock tower no longer exists, although the locationn is still called Ghantaghar. The Sarai of Jehan Ara Begum has been replaced by the city hall. The kotwali is now adjacent to Gurdwara Sis Ganj Sahib.
HISTORICAL SPOTS
Many of the historical attractions are in the Chandni Chowk area and the Red Fort. In addition, Old Delhi also has:
- Ghalib ki Haveli that is in Ballimaran is famous for Mirza Asadullah Khan Ghalib, the renowned Urdu and Persian poet.
- Gali Qasim Jan that is in Ballimaran is famous for Mirza Ghalib's haveli, and that of Hakim Ajmal Khan
- Razia Sultana's (Delhi's only female ruler before Indira Gandhi) tomb near Kalan Masjid}
- Jama Masjid, India's largest mosque
- Fatehpuri Masjid
- Khari Baoli, Asia's biggest spice market
- Zinat-ul Masjid, Daryaganj built in 1710 by one of Aurangzeb's daughters
- Rajghat, Mahatma Gandhi's
- St. James Church (near Kashmiri Gate) built in 1836, Delhi's oldest church, built by Col. James Skinner.
SOME OF THE HISTORICAL MANSIONS
- Begum Samru's Palace of 1806 now called Bhagirath Palace.
- Naughara mansions in Kinari Bazaar, 18th century Jain mansions.
- Khazanchi haveli
- Haveli Sharif Manzil that is in Ballimaran is famous for its Aristocratic Hakims and their Unani practice, and that of Hakim Ajmal Khan
- Haveli of Mirza Ghalib, Gali Qasim Jan that is in Ballimaran
- Chunnamal haveli, Katra Neel
- Haveli of Zeenat Mahal, Lal Kuan Bazar
- Haksar Haveli, Bazar Sitaram, where Jawaharlal Nehru was married in 1916 to Kamla Nehru.
- Haveli Naharwali, Kucha Sadullah Khan, where Pervez Musharraf, former president of Pakistan was born
- Kucha Chelan (Kucha Chehle Ameeran), where the Persian descent inhabited
OLD DELHI CUISINE
Old Delhi is well known for its cuisine. There area in and around Jama Masjid and Lal Kuan are predominantly Muslim. Hence the cuisine here is more meat dominant Mughlai cuisine. The area in and around Chandni Chowk is predominantly Jain and Baniya communities. Hence the food is strictly vegetarian and in a lot of cases made without onion and garlic. The famous Gali Paranthe Wali and Ghantewala halwai are also situated here.
Old Delhi is also famous for its street food. Chandni Chowk and Chawri Bazaar areas have many street joints that sell spicy chaat (tangy and spicy snacks).
WIKIPEDIA
Photos on the way from Sarchu to Keylong (part of the highway between Delhi and Leh, the capital of Ladakh).
Poll officers, security guards and other election duty personnel from various government agencies leave for their designated polling stations from Naveen Galli Mandi Sthal, commonly known as ‘Mandi’ (a market) that was converted into an election distribution center in Agra, Uttar Pradesh. [Photo: Prashanth Vishwanathan/UNDP India]