New Delhi

New Delhi (ⁱ/ˌnjuː ˈdɛli/) is a municipality and district in Delhi which serves as the capital and seat of government of India. In addition, it also serves as the seat of Government of Delhi.

The foundation stone of the city was laid by George V, Emperor of India during the Delhi Durbar of 1911. It was designed by British architects, Sir Edwin Lutyens and Sir Herbert Baker. The new capital was inaugurated on 13 February 1931, by India's Viceroy Lord Irwin.

Although colloquially Delhi and New Delhi as names are used interchangeably to refer to the jurisdiction of NCT of Delhi, these are two distinct entities, and the latter is a small part of the former.

New Delhi has been selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under PM Narendra Modi's flagship Smart Cities Mission.

Establishment

Calcutta (now Kolkata) was the capital of India during the British Raj until December 1911. However, Delhi had served as the political and financial centre of several empires of ancient India and the Delhi Sultanate, most notably of the Mughal Empire from 1649 to 1857. During the early 1900s, a proposal was made to the British administration to shift the capital of the British Indian Empire (as it was officially called) from Calcutta to Delhi. Unlike Calcutta, which was located on the eastern coast of India, Delhi was at the center of northern India and the Government of British India felt that it would be logistically easier to administer India from the latter rather than the former.

Delhi

Delhi (/ˈdɛli/, Hindustani pronunciation: [d̪ɪlliː] Dilli), officially the National Capital Territory of Delhi, is the capital territory of India. Delhi is historically and culturally connected to both the Upper Doab of the Yamuna-Ganges river system and the Punjab region. It is bordered by Haryana on three sides and by Uttar Pradesh to the east. It is the largest city in India in terms of geographical area - about 1,484 square kilometres (573 sq mi). It has a population of about 16.3 million, making it the second most populous city and second most populous urban agglomeration in India and 3^rd largest urban area in the world. Such is the nature of urban expansion in Delhi that its growth has expanded beyond the NCT to incorporate towns in neighbouring states and at its largest extent can count a population of about 25 million residents as of 2014.

Delhi has been continuously inhabited since the 6th century BC. Through most of its history, Delhi has served as a capital of various kingdoms and empires. It has been captured, ransacked and rebuilt several times, particularly during the medieval period, and modern Delhi is a cluster of a number of cities spread across the metropolitan region.

Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation

Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation (DTTDC) is an undertaking of the Government of Delhi, India, that was established in December 1975 for the purpose of promoting tourism and related services in the city of Delhi. It has an authorised share capital of Rs. 10.00 crores and a paid up capital of Rs. 6.28 crores. It is involved in several other activities, some of which do not fall under the core activity of promotion of tourism, such as the selling of liquor. This particular activity, however, provides the corporation with revenue that can be utilised in tourism or other related development activities for the National Capital Region of Delhi. The Corporation has Delhi Based firm M/s Rawla & Co. Chartered Accountants as its Statutory Auditors

Main activities

The main activities of Delhi Tourism can be divided into the following heads.

Publicity literature

The Corporation promotes tourism whether or not the activities provide any short-term benefits in terms of revenue. The gains from the promotion of these activities is reviewed regularly as part of a longer term strategy. The use of published literature for publicity and the promotion of tourism is limited to the publication of the following:

Red Fort

The Red Fort was the residence of the Mughal emperor of India for nearly 200 years, until 1857. It is located in the centre of Delhi and houses a number of museums. In addition to accommodating the emperors and their households, it was the ceremonial and political centre of Mughal government and the setting for events critically impacting the region.

Constructed in 1648 by the fifth Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan as the palace of his fortified capital Shahjahanabad, the Red Fort is named for its massive enclosing walls of red sandstone and is adjacent to the older Salimgarh Fort, built by Islam Shah Suri in 1546. The imperial apartments consist of a row of pavilions, connected by a water channel known as the Stream of Paradise (Nahr-i-Behisht). The fort complex is considered to represent the zenith of Mughal creativity under Shah Jahan and although the palace was planned according to Islamic prototypes, each pavilion contains architectural elements typical of Mughal buildings that reflect a fusion of Timurid and Persian traditions. The Red Fort’s innovative architectural style, including its garden design, influenced later buildings and gardens in Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab, Kashmir, Braj, Rohilkhand and elsewhere. With the Salimgarh Fort, it was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007 as part of the Red Fort Complex.

Raj Ghat and associated memorials

Raj Ghat is a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi. Originally it was the name of a historic ghat of Old Delhi (Shahjahanabad) on the banks of Yamuna river. Close to it, and east of Daryaganj was “Raj Ghat Gate” of the walled city, opening at Raj Ghat on Yamuna River. Later the memorial area was also called Raj ghat. It is a black marble platform that marks the spot of Mahatma Gandhi's cremation, Antyesti (Antim Sanskar) on 31 January 1948, a day after his assassination. It is left open to the sky while an eternal flame burns perpetually at one end. It is located on the banks of the river Yamuna in Delhi in India on Ring Road officially known as Mahatma Gandhi Road. A stone footpath flanked by lawns leads to the walled enclosure that houses the memorial. All guests must remove their footwear before entering the Raj Ghat walls.

Other memorials

Raj Ghat loosely translates to King's Bank (where King alludes to the importance of the place and Bank as in -on the bank of river Yamuna). Several other samādhis or cremation spots of other famous leaders can be found in the vicinity of Raj Ghat on the banks of the Yamuna. The landscaping and planting of these memorials was performed by Alick Percy-Lancaster, the last Englishman to hold the post of Superintendent of Horticultural Operations, Government of India.