Rashtrapati Bhavan - राष्ट्रपति भवन
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It was decided in the Delhi Durbar of 1911 that the capital of India would be shifted from Calcutta to Delhi. Thus was born the city of Delhi, designed by the great architect Edwin Lutyens, along with Herbert Baker. It took approximately 20 years and 15 million pounds to build Delhi. Built as the Viceral Lodge, Delhi Rashtrapati Bhawan comprises of four floors and 340 rooms. Now known as the President House of Delhi, it is spread over an area of approximately 200,000-sq-feet. It took 18 years to construct this building and on the on the 18th year of its completion, India became independent.
The Jaipur Column, a gift from the Maharaja of Jaipur, stands at a height of 145 m in the middle of the main court in front of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Another one of the impressive features of the Delhi Rashtrapati Bhawan comprises of the outstandingly beautiful Mughal Gardens. Then, at the base of the building, is a spacious square, known as the Vijay Chowk. The massive neo-Buddhist copper dome of the President House of Delhi is splendid and can be seen even from a distance of a kilometer. Underneath this fabulous dome is the circular Durbar Hall, housing the Viceroy's throne, measuring almost 22.8 m in diameter. Before the National Museum was completed, it served as a museum for a number of years. All the official ceremonies such as the swearing in of the Prime Minister, the Cabinet and the Members of Parliament, etc., take place in this hall only. Also, the Arjuna Awards for Excellence are awarded by the President from here itself. On the ground floor of the Rashtrapati Bhavan are a number of state apartments. Then, there is the State Drawing Room, State Ballroom, State Dining Room and a number of other such rooms inside the building. The Delhi Rashtrapati Bhawan consists of 54 bedrooms, along with additional accommodation for guests.
Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official residence of the President of India, is located at the west end of the 2 1/2km long Rajpath (King's path), a tree-lined avenue flanked by lawns with orderly flowerbeds and clipped hedges, with the India gate at the opposite end. Designed by Sir Edwin L. Lutyens and completed in 1929, this palatial building on the Raisina hill was formerly the Viceregal Lodge (Viceroy's House), during the British rule.
The city of Delhi officially inaugurated in 1931, was conceived and constructed by the British when they moved their capital from Calcutta to Delhi. Among the Government buildings of the city, the Viceroys house was the centre piece with imperial proportions. Built in two shades of sandstone, it covers an area of 18,580 sq meters (200,000 square feet), about 1km around the foundation, bigger than the Louis XIV's place at Versailles. The total cost for the construction was Rs.1.4 million and over 3,500 men worked on 3.5 million cubic feet of marble and 700 million bricks for nearly two decades (17 years) for its construction.
After India became independent the Viceroy's house was re-named Government House and when the country became a republic in 1952 it was re-christened as Rashtrapati Bhavan (President Quarters). A combination of Mughal and classical European architectural styles, it has a huge copper dome surmounting a long colonnade and 340 decorated rooms. There are 31 steps at the entrance to the portico with 20 columns. Across the portico, the Durbar hall (Audience hall), with golden pillars and coloured marble from all parts of India, is 23m in diameter and has an exquisitely carved 2300 year old sculpture of the Ashokan bull at the entrance. It is the venue for all official functions of the President including the National Award ceremonies. There is a 4th century statue of Gautam Buddha behind the Presidents chair. The hall served as a museum for several years until the present venue of the National Museum was constructed.
Then there is the rectangular Ashoka hall formerly the State Ball Room, now used for formal gatherings such as accepting credentials from foreign diplomats, swearing in ceremonies of ministers etc. The hall has a painted ceiling and several chandeliers with a beautiful view of the Mughal gardens through its windows. The guest room has two spacious suites for the visiting dignitaries with teak furniture and beautifully woven Indian carpets. State dining room or the Banquet hall with a seating capacity of 104 people has teak paneled walls with full size portraits of the Presidents of India. The Council room which hosts the formal conferences of the President has murals of sea routes to India done by Indian artists but conceived by the famous art historian Percy Brown. The Art Gallery and the Marble Hall holds various works of art collected by the Viceroys and the Presidents of India including paintings by famous artists, portraits and statues of British monarchs etc.
Rashtrapati Bhavan is a magnificent classical structure showing off British imperialism with massive columns, verandahs, balconies incorporated with typical Indian motifs such as Buddhist railings, chhatris (umbrella like structures adorning roof tops), jalis (perforated stone screens with intricate designs) and chhajjas (stone slabs fixed below the roof ) in between. Besides the extensive use of elephant motifs in the huge cast iron gate, pillars and basement, Indian temple bells are also integrated in its pillars. The most obvious Indian feature is the massive dome. Overall the building has been described as a masterpiece of symmetry, discipline, silhouette and harmony.
To the west of Rashtrapathi Bhavan there is the elegant Mughal Gardens also designed by Lutynes. The garden which occupies an area of 13 acres, is divided into three sections (rectangular, long and circular gardens) and is a blend of the formal Mughal style with the design of a British Garden. The garden with Mughal style canals, fountains and terraces at different levels with flowering shrubs and Western style lawns, hedges and flower beds is a visual treat especially during the blossoming season. The garden grows a variety of trees and flowers like roses, marigold, bougainvillea, sweet william, viscaria etc among many others. To the east lies the Great Court, a vast court with a massive Jaipur Column of red sandstone topped with a bronze lotus and six pointed glass star of India, in the centre. Along with the above, the Presidential estate in all is spread over an area of 354 acres with nine tennis courts, a polo ground, a 14-hole golf course, a cricket field and a grove of trees of different species.
Nearby, on either sides of the Raisina hill are the two Secretariat blocks designed by Herbert Baker. The Parliament House or the Sansad Bhavan lies to the north east of the Rashtrapathi Bhavan. The spacious plaza at the foot of the Rashtrapati Bhawan is known as Vijay Chowk.
Visitors require special permission from Government of India Tourist Office to enter Rastrapathi Bhavan.The Mughal garden is open to the public only in the month of February when the flowers are gloriously in bloom The timings are from 9.30 A.M. to 2.30 P.M. on all days except Mondays. Every Saturday at 10.30 am, mounted and un-mounted troops parade in full uniform, at the front of the gates of the Secretariat and the Rashtrapathi Bhavan which is worth attending.
Taxi and coach transfer is available from both International and Domestic Arrivals. Pre-paid Taxi (a service with journey fare paid at the booking counter), air-conditioned and non- air-conditioned coach counters are located immediately outside the customs Hall in International Terminal and outside Baggage Claim area in Domestic Arrivals.
Airport Coach (non-airconditioned) is operated by Delhi Transport Corporation (via Connaught Place and Railway Stations) to Inter State Bus Terminus (ISBT), Kashmiri Gate and by Ex- Servicemen's Airlink Transport Service to Connaught Place. The coach covers all major hotels enroute.
Shatabdi Express air-conditioned fast tourist train operates to Bhopal (via Agra, Gwalior, Jhansi), Lucknow (via Kanpur) and Chandigarh, provides access to some of the neighboring tourist centres.
Rashtrapati Bhawan (Viceroy Palace)-Best Known Monument of British Empire Rashtrapati BhawanThe Viceroy Palace remains Lutyens most significant achievement. It is befittingly the crowning glory of the British Empire and architecture in India. Today, it is perhaps India’s best known monument after the Taj Mahal and the Qutub Minar. Bigger than the Palace of Versailles, it cost a whopping £12,53,000 and now houses the President of India. It is unquestionably a masterpiece of symmetry, discipline, silhouette, colour and harmony. of course, it has come in for much criticism too but that has mostly been limited to the imperial intent behind it rather than its architecture.
The palace is flanked by the two Secretariats and the three together, open into a huge square called the Viceroy’s Court where the Jaipur Column stands tall. The Viceroys Court, which frames the main entrance to the house, has lateral entrances on the axis of the Jaipur Column. Here the levels were reduced artificially and cascades of steps are flanked by huge sandstone elephants and ranks of imperial lions modelled by the sculptor C.S. Jagger.
The most outstanding feature of the House you can spot it while you are still a kilometre away is the huge neo-Buddhist copper dome that rises over a vast colonnaded frontage. Beneath the dome is the circular Durbar Hall 22.8m in diameter. The coloured marbles used in the hall come from all parts of India. The Viceroy’s throne, ceremonially placed in this chamber, faced the main entrance and commanded a view along the great axial vista of Kingsway (now Rajpath). At present the hall is the venue of all official ceremonies such as the swearing in of the Prime Minister, the Cabinet and the Members of Parliament. It is in this very chamber that the President annually confers the Arjuna Awards for Excellence.
The columns at the front entrance have bells carved into their capitals. Lutyens reasoned that ‘the ringing of bells sound the end of an empire and stone bells never sound’. Despite this, the empire came to an end a brief 16 years later.
Marble staircases flanking the Durbar Hall provide access to the private apartments above. There are 54 bedrooms together with additional accommodation for guests. Lord Irwin, its first occupant, ‘kept losing his way’ but insisted that "in spite of its size, it was essentially a liveable-in-house."
Here’s what Mark-Bence Jones remarked about life at the Viceroy’s House in his book Palaces of the Raj. Do note the then-and-now comparison he makes on a later visit to the palace, long after the British had gone.
"Then there were the banquets held during sessions of the Chamber of Princes, when every other guest at the long table was the ruler of a State. The gold plate glittered in its crimson-lined niche, the lustres glinted, the scarlet and gold khitmagars moved deftly against the teak-panelled walls, and from an adjoining room came the music of the Viceroy’s band." "In India that replaced the Raj, Lutyens’ Palace has managed to keep some of its glory. …As the home of a modern democratic President, it is certainly on the large side, but the Indians have been wise enough to maintain a Presidential establishment worthy of the setting. Scarlet-clad guards still sit on their chargers beneath the stone sentry boxes, khitmagars in white, red and gold line the corridors."
The Jaipur Column, a gift from the Maharaja of Jaipur, stands at a height of 145 m in the middle of the main court in front of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Another one of the impressive features of the Delhi Rashtrapati Bhawan comprises of the outstandingly beautiful Mughal Gardens. Then, at the base of the building, is a spacious square, known as the Vijay Chowk. The massive neo-Buddhist copper dome of the President House of Delhi is splendid and can be seen even from a distance of a kilometer. Underneath this fabulous dome is the circular Durbar Hall, housing the Viceroy's throne, measuring almost 22.8 m in diameter. Before the National Museum was completed, it served as a museum for a number of years. All the official ceremonies such as the swearing in of the Prime Minister, the Cabinet and the Members of Parliament, etc., take place in this hall only. Also, the Arjuna Awards for Excellence are awarded by the President from here itself. On the ground floor of the Rashtrapati Bhavan are a number of state apartments. Then, there is the State Drawing Room, State Ballroom, State Dining Room and a number of other such rooms inside the building. The Delhi Rashtrapati Bhawan consists of 54 bedrooms, along with additional accommodation for guests.
Rashtrapati Bhavan, the official residence of the President of India, is located at the west end of the 2 1/2km long Rajpath (King's path), a tree-lined avenue flanked by lawns with orderly flowerbeds and clipped hedges, with the India gate at the opposite end. Designed by Sir Edwin L. Lutyens and completed in 1929, this palatial building on the Raisina hill was formerly the Viceregal Lodge (Viceroy's House), during the British rule.
The city of Delhi officially inaugurated in 1931, was conceived and constructed by the British when they moved their capital from Calcutta to Delhi. Among the Government buildings of the city, the Viceroys house was the centre piece with imperial proportions. Built in two shades of sandstone, it covers an area of 18,580 sq meters (200,000 square feet), about 1km around the foundation, bigger than the Louis XIV's place at Versailles. The total cost for the construction was Rs.1.4 million and over 3,500 men worked on 3.5 million cubic feet of marble and 700 million bricks for nearly two decades (17 years) for its construction.
After India became independent the Viceroy's house was re-named Government House and when the country became a republic in 1952 it was re-christened as Rashtrapati Bhavan (President Quarters). A combination of Mughal and classical European architectural styles, it has a huge copper dome surmounting a long colonnade and 340 decorated rooms. There are 31 steps at the entrance to the portico with 20 columns. Across the portico, the Durbar hall (Audience hall), with golden pillars and coloured marble from all parts of India, is 23m in diameter and has an exquisitely carved 2300 year old sculpture of the Ashokan bull at the entrance. It is the venue for all official functions of the President including the National Award ceremonies. There is a 4th century statue of Gautam Buddha behind the Presidents chair. The hall served as a museum for several years until the present venue of the National Museum was constructed.
Then there is the rectangular Ashoka hall formerly the State Ball Room, now used for formal gatherings such as accepting credentials from foreign diplomats, swearing in ceremonies of ministers etc. The hall has a painted ceiling and several chandeliers with a beautiful view of the Mughal gardens through its windows. The guest room has two spacious suites for the visiting dignitaries with teak furniture and beautifully woven Indian carpets. State dining room or the Banquet hall with a seating capacity of 104 people has teak paneled walls with full size portraits of the Presidents of India. The Council room which hosts the formal conferences of the President has murals of sea routes to India done by Indian artists but conceived by the famous art historian Percy Brown. The Art Gallery and the Marble Hall holds various works of art collected by the Viceroys and the Presidents of India including paintings by famous artists, portraits and statues of British monarchs etc.
Rashtrapati Bhavan is a magnificent classical structure showing off British imperialism with massive columns, verandahs, balconies incorporated with typical Indian motifs such as Buddhist railings, chhatris (umbrella like structures adorning roof tops), jalis (perforated stone screens with intricate designs) and chhajjas (stone slabs fixed below the roof ) in between. Besides the extensive use of elephant motifs in the huge cast iron gate, pillars and basement, Indian temple bells are also integrated in its pillars. The most obvious Indian feature is the massive dome. Overall the building has been described as a masterpiece of symmetry, discipline, silhouette and harmony.
To the west of Rashtrapathi Bhavan there is the elegant Mughal Gardens also designed by Lutynes. The garden which occupies an area of 13 acres, is divided into three sections (rectangular, long and circular gardens) and is a blend of the formal Mughal style with the design of a British Garden. The garden with Mughal style canals, fountains and terraces at different levels with flowering shrubs and Western style lawns, hedges and flower beds is a visual treat especially during the blossoming season. The garden grows a variety of trees and flowers like roses, marigold, bougainvillea, sweet william, viscaria etc among many others. To the east lies the Great Court, a vast court with a massive Jaipur Column of red sandstone topped with a bronze lotus and six pointed glass star of India, in the centre. Along with the above, the Presidential estate in all is spread over an area of 354 acres with nine tennis courts, a polo ground, a 14-hole golf course, a cricket field and a grove of trees of different species.
Nearby, on either sides of the Raisina hill are the two Secretariat blocks designed by Herbert Baker. The Parliament House or the Sansad Bhavan lies to the north east of the Rashtrapathi Bhavan. The spacious plaza at the foot of the Rashtrapati Bhawan is known as Vijay Chowk.
Visitors require special permission from Government of India Tourist Office to enter Rastrapathi Bhavan.The Mughal garden is open to the public only in the month of February when the flowers are gloriously in bloom The timings are from 9.30 A.M. to 2.30 P.M. on all days except Mondays. Every Saturday at 10.30 am, mounted and un-mounted troops parade in full uniform, at the front of the gates of the Secretariat and the Rashtrapathi Bhavan which is worth attending.
How to get there
Air
Delhi is the main gateway city for northern India with a modern airport. All major international airlines in the world fly through Delhi. Indira Gandhi International Airport is located at 23km southwest of Central Delhi and the domestic terminal at Palam is 5km away from the international terminal.Taxi and coach transfer is available from both International and Domestic Arrivals. Pre-paid Taxi (a service with journey fare paid at the booking counter), air-conditioned and non- air-conditioned coach counters are located immediately outside the customs Hall in International Terminal and outside Baggage Claim area in Domestic Arrivals.
Airport Coach (non-airconditioned) is operated by Delhi Transport Corporation (via Connaught Place and Railway Stations) to Inter State Bus Terminus (ISBT), Kashmiri Gate and by Ex- Servicemen's Airlink Transport Service to Connaught Place. The coach covers all major hotels enroute.
For Air Timings, Click here
Rail : Delhi is the hub of the Indian Railways network with Express trains to all parts of the country. The city has two major railway stations in Delhi and Old Delhi. Delhi station is within walking distance of Connaught Place and Main Delhi station is about 7km from Connaught Place. Delhi offers Express trains to all parts of the country. For the foreigners, tickets are available at the International Tourist Bureau (Ph: 011-3346804), located at Delhi station. The main ticket office is at the IRCA building on Chelmsford Road, Pahar Ganj, between Delhi station and Connaught Place.Shatabdi Express air-conditioned fast tourist train operates to Bhopal (via Agra, Gwalior, Jhansi), Lucknow (via Kanpur) and Chandigarh, provides access to some of the neighboring tourist centres.
For Train Timings, Click here
Bus : Buses from all the major places in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan are available for getting to Delhi. During the summer months, air-conditioned coaches are recommended. Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) operates special services from railway stations to different parts of the city.Rashtrapati Bhawan (Viceroy Palace)-Best Known Monument of British Empire Rashtrapati BhawanThe Viceroy Palace remains Lutyens most significant achievement. It is befittingly the crowning glory of the British Empire and architecture in India. Today, it is perhaps India’s best known monument after the Taj Mahal and the Qutub Minar. Bigger than the Palace of Versailles, it cost a whopping £12,53,000 and now houses the President of India. It is unquestionably a masterpiece of symmetry, discipline, silhouette, colour and harmony. of course, it has come in for much criticism too but that has mostly been limited to the imperial intent behind it rather than its architecture.
Picturesque Location
Better known now as the Rashtrapati Bhawan, the sprawling palace straddles the crown of Raisina Hill and is the focal point of Delhi. The majestic Rajpath (earlier Kings Way) leads up to the palace on Raisina Hill and here comes into view the one fatal flaw in design. Lutyens and Baker had a major showdown about the height of the slope approaching the palace which was at that time caricatured as the ‘War of the Gradient’. Lutyens wanted the palace to come into view as one climbed Raisina Hill. Unfortunately, Baker miscalculated. The palace disappears from sight till only the copper dome is visible. Furious with Baker, Lutyens said he had ‘met his Bakerloo’.The palace is flanked by the two Secretariats and the three together, open into a huge square called the Viceroy’s Court where the Jaipur Column stands tall. The Viceroys Court, which frames the main entrance to the house, has lateral entrances on the axis of the Jaipur Column. Here the levels were reduced artificially and cascades of steps are flanked by huge sandstone elephants and ranks of imperial lions modelled by the sculptor C.S. Jagger.
The Attractions of The Palace
The main entrance is approached by a broad flight of steps which lead to a 12-column portico. Do notice the enormous projecting cornice or chajja, a Mughal device, which blends so effortlessly with the classical style of the monument. Lutyens’ ability to smoothly incorporate light oriental touches is all the more remarkable given his active and profound dislike for Indian architecture.The most outstanding feature of the House you can spot it while you are still a kilometre away is the huge neo-Buddhist copper dome that rises over a vast colonnaded frontage. Beneath the dome is the circular Durbar Hall 22.8m in diameter. The coloured marbles used in the hall come from all parts of India. The Viceroy’s throne, ceremonially placed in this chamber, faced the main entrance and commanded a view along the great axial vista of Kingsway (now Rajpath). At present the hall is the venue of all official ceremonies such as the swearing in of the Prime Minister, the Cabinet and the Members of Parliament. It is in this very chamber that the President annually confers the Arjuna Awards for Excellence.
The columns at the front entrance have bells carved into their capitals. Lutyens reasoned that ‘the ringing of bells sound the end of an empire and stone bells never sound’. Despite this, the empire came to an end a brief 16 years later.
The Great Interiors
The principal floor comprises a magnificent series of state apartments. The State Drawing Room is barrel-vaulted and plainly treated with domestic fireplaces. The State Ballroom is enriched with Old English mirror glass. The State Library is based on the form of Wren’s St Stephen’s, Walbrook. The State Dining Room is lined with teak panelling enriched with the star of India. The concept of Imperial order and hierarchy permeates the entire house.Marble staircases flanking the Durbar Hall provide access to the private apartments above. There are 54 bedrooms together with additional accommodation for guests. Lord Irwin, its first occupant, ‘kept losing his way’ but insisted that "in spite of its size, it was essentially a liveable-in-house."
Mughal Garden
To the west the palace overlooks an enormous Mughal garden designed by Lutyens. Here the principles of hierarchy, order, symmetry and unity are extended from the house into the landscape. A series of ornamental fountains, walls, gazebos and screens combine with scores of trees, flowers and shrubs to create a paradise so delightful that Indians called the garden ‘God’s own Heaven’. The Irwins supervised the planting of the garden which grew in tropical profusion softening the formal pattern of lawns and waterways. Popularly known as the Mughal Garden, it is open to public every spring but be prepared for the tight security check.The Glory of The Palace
After India became independent, the sheer size of the building overwhelmed its new keepers. Mahatma Gandhi suggested it be turned into a hospital. Thankfully, nobody took him seriously. The Durbar Hall served as a museum for several years till the building which now houses the National Museum was completed.Here’s what Mark-Bence Jones remarked about life at the Viceroy’s House in his book Palaces of the Raj. Do note the then-and-now comparison he makes on a later visit to the palace, long after the British had gone.
"Then there were the banquets held during sessions of the Chamber of Princes, when every other guest at the long table was the ruler of a State. The gold plate glittered in its crimson-lined niche, the lustres glinted, the scarlet and gold khitmagars moved deftly against the teak-panelled walls, and from an adjoining room came the music of the Viceroy’s band." "In India that replaced the Raj, Lutyens’ Palace has managed to keep some of its glory. …As the home of a modern democratic President, it is certainly on the large side, but the Indians have been wise enough to maintain a Presidential establishment worthy of the setting. Scarlet-clad guards still sit on their chargers beneath the stone sentry boxes, khitmagars in white, red and gold line the corridors."
 Photo by : Carlton Browne in Flickr |
 Photo by : avinashbhat in Flickr |
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 Photo by : versaooriginal in webshots |
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