Mysore City
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The dynastic capital of Mysore State
History, till c.1908
The dynastic capital of the Mysore State, and residence of the Mahārājā ; also head-quarters of the District and tāluk of the same name. It is situated in 12° 18' N. and 76? 40' E., at the north-west base of the Chāmundi hill, on the Mysore State Railway. The population fell from 74,048 in 1891 to 68,111 in 1901, the decrease being due to plague.
The city covers an area of 7½ square miles, and is divided into seven muhallas : namely, the Fort, Lashkar, Devarāj, Krishnarāj, Mandi, Chāmarāj, and Nazarābād. The original city was built in a valley formed by two ridges running north and south. In recent years it has been completely transformed by extensions to the north and west, and by the erection of many fine public buildings ; but the old parts were very crowded and insanitary.
A special Board of Trustees for improvements was formed in 1903, and Mysore promises to become a very handsome city in course of time. It is administered by a municipality, which in 1903-4 had an income of 2.2 lakhs, of which 1.2 lakhs was derived from taxes and Rs. 65,000 from octroi. The expenditure was 2.2 lakhs, including Rs. 39,000 on public works, Rs. 31,000 on conservancy, and Rs. 10,000 on education and charitable grants. Even in the past important sanitary measures have been carried out.
In 1886 a complete system of drainage was provided for the fort, and the precincts of the palace were opened out and improved. One of the most beneficial undertakings was the filling in of the portentous great drain known as Pūrnaiya's Nullah, originally excavated in the time of that minister with the object of bringing the water of the sacred Cauvery into Mysore.
It did not fulfil this purpose, and simply remained a very deep and large noisome sewer. Its place has now been taken by a fine wide road, called (after the Gaikwār of Baroda) the Sayājī Rao Road, flanked on either side by ranges of two-storeyed shops of picturesque design, called the Lansdowne Bazars. At the same time a pure water-supply was provided by the formation of the Kukarhalli reservoir towards the high ground on the west, from which water was laid on to all parts of the city in iron mains.
This has since been supplemented by a high-level reservoir, the water in which is drawn from the Cauvery river near Anandūr, and forced up with the aid of turbines erected there. The new quarter, called (after the late Mahārājā) Chāmarājapura, more than [S. 261] doubled the area of the city. Conspicuous on the high ground to the west are the public offices, surmounted by a dome, standing in the wooded grounds of Gordon Park. Other prominent buildings in the vicinity are the Victoria Jubilee Institute, the Mahārājā's College, and the Law Courts.
In 1897 the old palace in the fort was partially destroyed by fire ; and this has given occasion for the erection of a new palace on the same spot of more modern design, constructed of durable and less combustible materials. The opportunity has been taken to introduce some of the handsome porphyries and other ornamental stones found in Mysore, and stone-carvings on the lines of the famous ancient sculptured temples of the State are being used.
Altogether, the new palace now approaching completion bids fair to be notable for its architecture and decorative features. The fort, which is the original nucleus of the city, is quadrangular, three of the sides being about 450 yards in length, and the remaining or south side somewhat longer. The palace in the interior was crowded round with houses, principally occupied by retainers. But open spaces have now been formed, and further improvements will follow the completion of the new building,
Mysore itself (properly Mahisūr, 'buffalo town') is no doubt a place of great antiquity, as it gave its name to the country as Mahisamandala in the time of Asoka in the third century B.C., and appears as Māhishmati in the Mahābhārata. Maisūrnād is mentioned in inscriptions of the eleventh and twelfth centuries. The original fort is said to have been built in 1524. But the modern city, even before the extensive rebuilding of recent years, could not boast of any great age. Though Mysore was the ancestral capital of the State, it was superseded by Seringapatam, which was the seat of the court from 1610 till the downfall of Tipū Sultān in 1799. The latter ruler had demolished the fort, and conveyed the stones to a neighbouring site called Nazarābād, where he intended to erect a new fort.
On the restoration of the Hindu Rāj in 1799, the stones were taken back and the fort rebuilt. At the same time the recently destroyed palace was erected, and the court removed to Mysore. Thus few standing remains can claim to be older than about a hundred years. Interesting buildings are the house occupied by Colonel Wellesley (the future Duke of Wellington), and the Residency (now called Government House), erected in 1805 in the time of Sir John Malcolm by Major De Havilland. This has lately been much altered and extended.
Kote Anjaneya Swamy temple
This Mysuru temple is first stop for many candidates, March 27, 2019: The Times of India
The Kote Anjaneya Swamy temple near Mysuru Palace, which is more than 300 years old, is the most sought after by politicians during poll season. Almost all politicians visit the temple before filing their nomination papers. Janardhan, 84, senior priest of the temple, said: “People, irrespective of religion or community, including Christians and Muslims, have been visiting Kote Anjaneya Swamy Temple for the past many decades. It’s the same with our politicians. For many decades, most of the politicians visit the temple on the day of filing nomination papers.” TNN
