New Delhi
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The city was planned by Edwin Lutyens, a leading 20th century British architect. The city is known for its wide, tree-lined boulevards and houses numerous national institutions and landmarks. The total area of the city is 42.7 km2.
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History
Main article: History of Delhi
Much of New Delhi was planned by Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker, the former of whom was a leading 20th century British architect, and contracted to Sir Sobha Singh. Lutyens first visited Delhi in 1912, and construction really began after World War I and was completed by 1931, when the city later dubbed "Lutyens' Delhi" was inaugurated. Lutyens laid out the central administrative area of the city as a testament to Britain's imperial aspirations.
Though soon Lutyens started considering other places, and finalized on a site atop the Raisina Hill, formerly Raisina Pind a Sikh village, for the Rashtrapati Bhawan, then known as the Viceroy's House. The historic reason being that the hill lay directly opposite to the Dinapanah citadel, which was also considered the site of Indraprastha, the oldest Delhi. Subsequently, the foundation stone was shifted from the site of Delhi Durbar of 1911-1912, where the Coronation Pillar stood as well, and embedded in the walls of the forecourt of the Secretariat. The Rajpath, also known as King's Way, stretched from the India Gate to the Rashtrapati Bhawan. The Secretariat building which houses various ministries of the Government of India, flanked out of the Rashtrapati Bhawan, and the Parliament House, both designed by Herbert Baker, is located at the Sansad Marg, which runs parallel to the Rajpath [1].
Calcutta was the capital of India until December 1911 during the British Raj. However, Delhi had served as the political and financial centre of several empires of ancient and medieval India, most notably of the Mughal Empire from 1799 to 1849. During the early 1900s, a proposal was made to the British administration to shift the capital of the Indian Empire from Calcutta to Delhi. Unlike Calcutta, which was located on the eastern coast of India, Delhi was located in northern India and the Government of British India felt that it would be easier to administer India from Delhi rather than from Calcutta. On December 12, 1911, George V, the then Emperor of India along with Queen Mary, during the Delhi Durbar, made the announcement that the capital of the Raj was to be shifted from Calcutta to Delhi, while laying the foundation stone for Viceroy's residence in the Coronation park[2][3].
After India gained independence in 1947, a limited autonomy was conferred to New Delhi and was administered by a Chief Commissioner appointed by the Government of India. In 1956, Delhi was converted into a union territory and eventually the Chief Commissioner was replaced by a Lieutenant Governor. The Constitution (Sixty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1991 declared the Union Territory of Delhi to be formally known as National Capital Territory of Delhi.[4] A system of diarchy was introduced under which the elected Government was given wide powers, excluding law and order which remained with the Central Government. The actual enforcement of the legislation came in 1993.
Geography and climate
Geography
Climate
See also: Climate of Delhi
The climate of New Delhi is a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Köppen climate classification Cwa) with high variation between summer and winter temperatures and precipitation. The temperature varies from 40 degrees Celsius in summers to around 4 degrees Celsius in winters.[7]. New Delhi's version of a humid subtropical climate is noticeably different from many other cities with this climate classification in that it features long and very hot summers, relatively dry cool winters, and monsoon and dust storms. Summers are long, from early April to October, with the monsoon season in between. Winter starts in November and peaks in January. The annual mean temperature is 25 °C (77 °F); monthly mean temperatures range from 14 °C to 33 °C (58 °F to 92 °F).[8] The average annual rainfall is approximately 714 mm (28.1 inches), most of which is during the monsoons in July and August.[9]| [hide]Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average high °C (°F) | 18 (64) | 23 (73) | 28 (82) | 36 (97) | 39 (102) | 37 (99) | 34 (93) | 33 (91) | 33 (91) | 31 (88) | 27 (81) | 21 (70) | 26 (79) |
| Average low °C (°F) | 7 (45) | 11 (52) | 15 (59) | 22 (72) | 26 (79) | 27 (81) | 27 (81) | 26 (79) | 24 (75) | 19 (66) | 19 (66) | 8 (46) | 15 (59) |
| Source: www.wunderground.com[10] 2008-09-24 | |||||||||||||
Government
New Delhi is governed through a municipal government, known as the New Delhi Municipal Council. Other urban areas of the metropolis of Delhi are administered by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi. However, the entire metropolis of Delhi is commonly known as New Delhi in contrast to Old Delhi.
Urban structure
At the heart of the city is the magnificent Rashtrapati Bhavan (formerly known as Viceroy's House) which sits atop Raisina Hill. The Secretariat, which houses various ministries of the Government of India, flanks out of the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The Parliament House, designed by Herbert Baker, is located at the Sansad Marg, which runs parallel to the Rajpath. The Connaught Place is a large, circular commercial area in New Delhi, modeled after the Royal Crescent in England. Twelve separate roads lead out of the outer ring of Connaught Place, one of them being the Janpath.Transport
Main article: Transport in Delhi
The Delhi Metro, constructed and operated by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), connects the city with the rest of the metropolis of Delhi. Under an agreement with NDMC, DMRC can acquire land for the construction of metro rail and stations in New Delhi without any financial implications.[19] NDMC is also constructing multi-level parking systems in collaboration with DMRC at various Delhi metro stations across New Delhi to increase parking space.[20] The New Delhi Railway Station which is the main railway station in Delhi, is the second busiest and one of the largest stations in India connects Delhi with the rest of the country.
Indira Gandhi International Airport (DEL) is the primary aviation hub of Delhi. In 2006–07, the airport recorded a traffic of more than 23 million passengers,[21][22] making it one of the busiest airports in South Asia. A new US$1.93 billion Terminal 3 is currently under construction and will handle an additional 34 million passengers annually by 2010.[23] Further expansion programs will allow the airport to handle more than 100 million passengers per annum by 2020.[21] Safdarjung Airport is the other airfield in Delhi used for general aviation purpose.[24]
Demographics
Hinduism is the religion of 82% of Delhi's population, of which New Delhi is a part. There are also large communities of Muslims (11.7%), Sikhs (4.0%), Jains (1.1%) and Christians (0.9%) in Delhi.[28] Other minorities include Parsis, Buddhists and Jews.[29] Hindi is the principal spoken language while English is the principal written language of the city. The linguistic groups from all over India are well represented in the city; among them are Punjabi, Haryanvi, Urdu, Bihari, Bengali, Sindhi, Tamil, Rajasthani, Telugu, Garhwali, Kannada, Malayalam, North-East, Marathi and Gujarati roughly in same order.[citation needed]
[edit] Culture
New Delhi is a cosmopolitan city due to the multi-ethnic and multi-cultural presence of the vast Indian bureaucracy and political system. The city's capital status has amplified the importance of national events and holidays. National events such as Republic Day, Independence Day and Gandhi Jayanti (Gandhi's birthday) are celebrated with great enthusiasm in New Delhi and the rest of India. On India's Independence Day (15 August) the Prime Minister of India addresses the nation from the Red Fort. Most Delhiites celebrate the day by flying kites, which are considered a symbol of freedom.[31] The Republic Day Parade is a large cultural and military parade showcasing India's cultural diversity and military might.[32][33]
Religious festivals include Diwali (the festival of light), Guru Nanak Jayanti, Baisakhi, Durga Puja, Holi, Lohri, Maha Shivaratri, Eid ul-Fitr, Eid ul-Adha, Christmas and Mahavir Jayanti.[33] The Qutub Festival is a cultural event during which performances of musicians and dancers from all over India are showcased at night, with the Qutub Minar as the chosen backdrop of the event.[34] Other events such as Kite Flying Festival, International Mango Festival and Vasant Panchami (the Spring Festival) are held every year in Delhi.
P. Chidambaram, the Home Minister, said that the people of Delhi needed an "attitude makeover" so they could "play good hosts" for the Commonwealth Games.[35]
Economy
The Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi does not release any economic figures specifically for New Delhi but publishes an official economic report on the whole of Delhi annually. According to the Economic Survey of Delhi, the metropolis has a net State Domestic Product (SDP) of Rs. 83,085 crores (for the year 2004–05)[36] and a per capita income of Rs. 53,976.[36] The tertiary sector contributes 78.4% of Delhi's gross SDP followed by secondary and primary sectors with 20.2% and 1.4% contribution respectively
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