MONUMENTS AND PLACES OF INDIA

MONUMENTS AND PLACES OF INDIA

• Adam's Bridge
  The 17 mile long bridge is a line of rocks and sand-banks between India and Sri Lanka.
  

• Aga Khan Palace
  Located in Pune where Mahatma Gandhi and his wife Kasturba Gandhi were interned during Quit India Movement of 1942. Kasturba died in this place in 1944.
  

• Akal Takht
  It is situated in the Golden Temple complex of Amritsar. The foundation of the building was laid by the sixth Sikh Guru, Hargovind.
  

• Amarnath
  Located about 150 km from Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir, is the site of the cave temple.
  

• Anand Bhavan
  Located in Allahabad. It was the residence of the Nehru family. After the death of Jawahar Lal Nehru. It has been dedicated to the Indian National Congress.
  

• Bharat Bhavan
  Designed by Charles Correa, it is a leading centre of India's performing art in Bhopal.
  

• Bijapur
  Located in Karnataka, it is known for the Gol Gumbaz. It was the capital of Adilshahi Sultan of Bizapur.
  

• Charminar
  The four hundred year old historic landmark of Hyderabad, the city of minarets and palaces was closed for public since November 1986.
  

• Chauri Chaura
  Gandhiji suspended the Non-Co-operation Movement in 1922 when a mob set fire to a police station resulting in death of numerous policemen.
  

• Dul Lake
  Located in Srinagar, it is one of the main attractions of tourists in Kashmir.
  

• Eden Gardens
  Located in Kolkata. It is one of the finest cricket pitches in the country, encompassing an area second only to the sprawling Melbourne Cricket Ground.
  

• Ernakulam
  Located in Kerala, it is the first district to attain 100% literacy in the country.
  

• Golconda
  Located 11 km. from Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh is a ruined city.
  

• Hauz Khas
  The historical monument in Delhi built by Alauddin Khilji in 14th century has been developed as a cultural tourism complex.
  

• Jog Falls
  Located in Karnataka are the highest in India and are one of the highest waterfall in the world.
  

• Mahabaleshwar
  It is the principal hill station of Maharashtra State.
  

• Mount Abu
  It is a hill station on the Arvalli range in Rajasthan and is famous for Dilwara Jain temples. The Central Police Training Centre is also located here.
  

• Mughal Gardens
  Located in the president's estate in Delhi. It is the largest and most beautiful garden of Delhi, is opened to the public is February every year.
  

• Rashtrapati Bhavan
  Located in New Delhi. It is the residence of the President of India. It was built by Edwin Lutyens.
  

• Sabarmati
  Situated near Ahmedabad in Gujarat. It is famous for Sabarmati Ashram of Mahatma Gandhi.
  

• Sambhar
  It is a salt water lake in Rajasthan.
  

• Shravanabelagola
  The well- known tourist centre in Karnataka was transformed into a throbbing city in December 1993. It is famous for magnificent 1,012 year old 3-8 feet high granite monolithic statue of Gomateshwara Bahubali.
  

• Somnath Temple
  Located about 210 km. from Rajkot in Gujarat, the magnificent shrine of Vedic time, the temple was subjected to total destruction a number of times by the foreign invaders.
  

• Tirupati
  Located in Andhra Pradesh is famous for Sri Venkateshwara Temple. The hill temple typifies the early Dravidian architecture and one of the finest in the South.
  

• Ajanta (near Aurangabad in Maharashta)
  Originally Buddhist monasteries having unique architecture, sculpture and paintings.
  

• Amber Fort
  The deserted capital near Jaipur, there is a huge fort on a hillock, it contains finest specimens of Rajput architecture.
  

• Akbar's Tomb (Sikandra)
  Famous for its carvings and architecture of Hindu and Mughal Art.
  

• Bibi Ka Maqbara (Aurangabad)
  Mausoleum built by Aurangzeb in 1660 A.D. in memory of his wife Rabia Durrani.
  

• Bodh Gaya (Bihar near Patna)
  The place where Lord Buddha got enlightenment under the Mahabodhi tree; a place of pilgrimage for the Buddhists. There is a 60m high Buddha temple built by Ashoka the Great.
  

• Buland Darwaza (Agra)
  Gateway at Fatehpur Sikri, 176 ft. high, the highest gate in the world built by Akbar, the Great.
  

• Dilwara Temples (Mount Abu, Rajasthan)
  Five Jain temples were constructed here in the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries. These temples are known for their carvings and architectural grandeur.
  

• Elephanta Caves (Maharashtra)
  Situated in an island 25 km from Mumbai, famous for the statues of Shiva and Parvati and of Trimurti, Shiva in three moods as the Creator, the Destroyer and the Preserver.
  

• Ellora (Aurangabad)
  It is famous for its rock-cut Kailash Temple of the Dravidian style of architecture. Ellora cave temples, 34 in number. There are three classes of caves, Hindu, Buddhist and Jain, constructed during the 8th century and onwards.
  

• Gateway of India
  It is in Mumbai harbour, it was erected in 1911, when George V visited India.
  

• Gol Gumbaz (Bijapur, Karnataka)
  The largest dome in the world. It has the world famous whispering gallery.
  

• Golden Temple (Amritsar, Punjab)
  It is a sacred shrine of the Sikhs.
  

• Gomateswara (Karnataka)
  The statue of the Jain sage Gomateswara (1,000 year old), it is carved out of a single stone.
  

• Hampi (Karnataka)
  Contains the ruins of the ancient capital of Vijayanagar kingdom.
  

• Hawa Mahal (Jaipur, Rajasthan)
  It is a multi storeyed pink coloured building.
  

• Hindodla Mahal (Mandu, U. P.)
  Its walls sloping at an angle of over 77'' create an illusion that the entire building sways.
  

• Jalianwala Bagh (Amritsar, Punjab)
  It was the scene of indiscriminate shooting by General Dyer on April 13, 1919 when a public protest meeting was being held. A Martyrs' memorial has been erected to commemorate those killed in the firing.
  

• Jama Masjid (Delhi)
  One of the biggest mosques built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan.
  

• Jagannath Temple (Puri, Orissa)
  Dedicated to lord Jagannath, an incarnation of Vishnu.
  

• Khajuraho (Madhya Pradesh)
  Built between 1150-1250 by the Chandela dynasty; there are a number of Hindu temples, the most magnificient is Mahadeva temple. There are stone carvings on the walls depicting daily chores, sorrows and cares, the intimate ecstasies of love.
  

• Konark (Orissa)
  It is the mythological conception of the Sun God riding a twenty four wheel chariot drawn by seven horses, carved in stone.
  

• Madhavgarh (Mandu, M. P.)
  It is a huge fort on a hill constructed by the Malwas in the 11th century, once the capital of the Ghoris and Khiljis, the pleasure resort of the Muslim rulers including Emperor Jahangir.
  

• Meenakshi Temple (Madurai, Tamil Nadu)
  It is remarkable for its most picturesque 850 ft. high temple of goddess Meenakshi with the hall of thousand pillars in which a group of figures are carved out of a single stone.
  

• Nalanda (Bihar)
  Seat of ancient Buddhist University founded by Kumaragupta in 427 A.D.
  

• Omkar Temple (Madhya Pradesh)
  Shiva temple on an island in the Narmada, also called `Black Pagoda'.
  

• Qutab Minar (New Delhi)
  72.5 m high stone tower, tallert minaret in India built by Qutab-ud-din Aibak as a victory tower.
  

• Raj Ghat (New Delhi)
  The place where Mahatma Gandhi was cremated in 1948 on the bank of Yamuna.
  

• Red Fort (New Delhi)
  It is made of Red Stone, built by Shahjahan.
  

• Rock of Gibraltar (Hyderabad, A.P.)
  Located in the middle of the Hussain Sagar Lake in Hyderabad, it is the place where the world's largest monolithic granite structure, the 350-ton statue of Lord Buddha was raised to the 90-degree position on December 10, 1992. It was on March 10, 1991 that the statue was to be installed at the site under the Buddha Purnima project, but the installation ceremony did not prove to be auspicious. The barge carrying the statue leaked and sank into the murky waters of the lake.
  

• Shakti Sthal (Delhi)
  Located near Rajghat in Delhi, it is the Samadhi of Indira Gandhi which has been developed as a greenwood memorial to the slain Prime Minister.
  

• Shantiniketan (West Bengal)
  About 90 miles from Kolkata; seat of the famous Vishva Bharati University founded by poet Rabindranath Tagore.
  

• Shanti Van (New Delhi)
  The place where Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru was cremated.
  

• Taj Mahal (Agra, U.P.)
  The white marble mausoleum built by Shahjahan in memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal.
  

• Tower of Victory (Chittor, Rajasthan)
  A famous Hindu monument of marble, raised by Rana Kumbha in 1448 to commemorate his victory over the combined armies of Malwa and Gujarat. It consists of 9 storeys and is 122 ft. high.
  

• Victoria Memorial (Kolkata)
  Magnificent building having an art gallery depicting the history of the British rule in India; it was erected by voluntary collections in the memory of Queen Victoria.