Revision as of 10:52, 25 November 2024

Salimgarh prison

As in 2022

Anuja Jaiswal, Dec 28, 2022: The Times of India

New Delhi : Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has started conservation work at Red Fort’s Salimgarh prison, where many freedom fighters from Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s Indian National Army (INA or Azad Hind Fauj), including Major General Shah Nawaz Khan, Col Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon and Col Prem Kumar, were incarcerated by the Britishers.


The jail, which is reminiscent of India’s valiant independence struggle, was used to confine primarily soldiers of INA for their trial at Red Fort. It was lying in a dilapidated state for more than five years, said officials.


Talking to TOI, superintending archaeologist (Delhi circle) Praveen Singh said that plaster of the wall was completely dead and cracks had developed in the voltage arch beam of the prison’s roof. “In order to save the structure from further deterioration, repair and conservation work was started in the first week of December and the project will take at least three months to complete,” he added. 
The conservation work is being done in the west area of Salimgarh Fort in which the British period jail and fortification wall of Mughal period will be conserved. The project will cost Rs 60 lakh, conservation assistant (Red Fort) Ankur Vats told TOI.


Historian and authorSwapna Liddle said that after the British took over Red Fort post suppression of the 1857 rebellion and exiling the last Mughal emperor, they went on to level many structures within Red Fort-Salimgarh jail complex and raise military structures in their places. They built artillery caches, magazines, barracks and prisons within the complex.


“Among the most notable prisoners that the jail housed were some soldiers and officers of the Indian National Army, while their very highprofile trials were held at Red Fort in 1945-46,” she said. 
Salimgarh Fort became a symbol of the Indian freedomstruggle that ultimately resulted in the independence of the nation. Due to its close connection with INA, the fort was turned into a memorial for Indian freedom fighters and renamed “Swatantrata Senani Smarak” in 1995.

Consequently, this monument of oppression became a symbolic structure glorifying India’s freedom struggle.


The uniform worn by Col Prem Kumar, riding boots and coat buttons of Col Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon, and photographs of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose were some of the prized articles displayed here earlier. They were shifted to the Subhash Chandra Bose museum at Red Fort in 2019.

Sangam Vihar

2016: Infested with crime

The Times of India, Dec 06 2016

 Most crimes reported from south Delhi are invariably getting linked to juveniles either from Madangir or Sangam Vihar, police claim. For years, Sangam Vihar has been a home to pickpockets, bag-lifters, robbers and extortionists.

Lack of schools and exposure to the vices push the unemployed youths from this resettlement colony into the world of crime.

According to the police, 90% of the juvenile criminals belong to these two localities.Sangam Vihar was once dominated by six organised gangs. Following the arrest of the leaders, the gangs disintegrated and some splinter groups emerged. Juveniles from this area often resort to violence at the slightest provocation.

A police officer familiar with the place said that some gangs followed a strict hiring norm. “Before they are employed, teenagers are screened by gang leaders. Many of them are on their payrolls. If someone goes to jail, the gang funds his bail, pays the expenses in jail and also supports his family ,“ the officer added.

Juveniles are preferred because they get lesser sentences, revealed a senior inspector who once worked in the southern range. “Most of them are not known to the police. This is because cops can't maintain their database as law does not permit this,“ the officer said. “Several teenagers find this opportunity attractive because they get cash, clout and identity in return.“

The pattern of crime has changed over the years, said another inspector. “The crimes and the criminals in Sangam Vihar and Madangir have transformed over the years. Earlier, these two areas used to be the hub of pickpockets operating on DTC buses,“ he added. Cops blame poverty , lack of education and social awareness for the rising number of juvenile criminals.

Residents and traders want the problem solved at the earliest. “The criminals disappear when police patrol comes here, but they are are back once the cops are gone,“ said a local trader.

Sanjay Van lake

As in 2021

Paras Singh, August 20, 2021: The Times of India

The rafters are equipped with hormonally treated plants that extract excess pollutants from water. Delhi Jal Board is replicating the process to increase dissolved oxygen levels in 10 more lakes
From: Paras Singh, August 20, 2021: The Times of India

The first phase of reviving Sanjay Van lake in south Delhi has been completed. The so-called floating rafters holding hormonally treated plants to extract excess pollutants from the water have done their work. A grid-based aeration system to enable bubble diffusion is now being installed to boost the level of dissolved oxygen in the water levels to catalyse the water purification process.

An official overseeing the project said DJB had settled for a combination of wetland restoration system and aeration. “The waterbody falls under the Delhi Development Authority’s jurisdiction, but we are carrying out its rejuvenation under the City of Lakes project,” the official said. “There are five ponds in Sanjay Van and we selected this particular one because of its relatively high contamination level having received water from an untreated drain. This lake has a holding capacity of 149 million gallons per day of water.”

The official disclosed that such interventions were also being made in the waterbodies at Jaffarpur Kalan, Nangloi, Rajokri and Sonia Vihar, while an aeration system had been installed in the Rani Khera lake. Delhi Jal Board proposes to revive and significantly improve the water quality at 50 sites at least by the yearend.

The floating rafter technology, developed by CSIR-NEERI, employs hormone-treated species such as cyperus and canna to soak up pollutants. Each square rafter is made from PVC pipes and each is lined with geo-netting to support the plants. A blend of different plants is used on each float to increase the nutrient uptake from the water. These small floating islands in the lake are also being used by ducks for nesting.

The official explained that aeration techniques to raise the dissolved oxygen levels have to be used in conjunction with floating rafters to enhance efficiency. “In the absence of such an aeration mechanism, only 10-12% of the desired purification is achieved,” the DJB official explained. “The roots of the plants provide the surface for bacteria to grow. Dissolved oxygen at 1-2 levels will be consumed by the oxidation process alone and constant aeration needs to be done to keep driving the process forward.”

The number of rafters depends on the volume of water and the pollution load. DJB officials stated that the number of floating rafters employed in different waterbodies are 150 in Rani Khera, 294 in Jaffarpur Kalan A, 47 in Jaffarpur Kalan B, 401 in Nangloi, 597 in Sanjay Van and 1,375 in Sonia Vihar.

DJB vice-chairman Raghav Chadha said that the board was working to realise the vision of Delhi becoming the City of Lakes. “We have successfully cleaned Sanjay Van lake and deployed floating rafters to enhance its water quality. This will not only beautify the lake, but also improve groundwater table,” he claimed.

Sapru House

Shinjini Ghosh, Oct 31, 2022: The Times of India

New Delhi : Sapru House was once the landmark for the capital’s cultural and intellectual life. Nestled in the heart of Lutyens’ Delhi on Barakhamba Road, the red and white sandstone building has endured over seven decades as a think tank. World politics and the global geostrategic configurations have changed since its inception in 1955, but the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) continues quietly to initiate conversations on issues related to international affairs and foreign policies.


Spread over nearly two acres with a dominating architecture that incorporates a stupa-style dome with a gateway design recalling Islamic aesthetics and pillars of distinct Hindu origins, the ICWA building, designed by Sydney Percy-Lancaster, the then head of the Central Public Works Department’s horticulture department, continues to inspire the admiration that once led Dr Rajendra Prasad, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, a host of maharajas and industrialists to open their purses and donate to its construction.


In 1955, then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru inaugurated Sapru House as the headquarters of ICWA, which was founded in 1943. Named after lawyer and politician Tej Bahadur Sapru, also the first president of ICWA, the institution found its current address after temporary offices at afew other locations.


“Care was taken to explain that ICWA was not started in a spirit of rivalry with any institution; the only urge behind the move was that there was a need for a thorough and factual study of world problems from the Indian point of view,” says the book Sapru House: A Story of Institution-Building in World Affairs by TCA Raghavan and Vivek Mishra.


The book further notes that “ICWA was seen by its founders as an indigenous impulse and as an institutionthat would foster independent thinking, free both from the older straightjackets and from officialdom to evolve a new position for India in world affairs”.


Nutan Kapoor Mahawar, joint secretary, ICWA, said, “With ICWA located in Sapru House, it became the intellectual hub of the capital. Even today, ICWA is the oldest think tank in the country, that too a statutory body. It is also the only think tank in India where serving foreign service officers are deputed. ”


Mahawar said the institution acted as a platform for conversations on issues related to international affairs and foreign policies. “We organise conferences, lectures and seminars with Indian and foreign practitioners and experts. Conferences on bilateral relations and topic issues are held with counterpart institutions as well,” she said. “A lot of research work is also carried out. Since April last year, ICWA has published 175 research papers on topics as varied as maritime issues, concerns pertaining to the Gulf region or Latin America or our neighborhood. We also have a publication programme and published 25 works in the past year. ”


Mahesh Sharma, the current librarian at Sapru House, recounted how barristers,bureaucrats and diplomats have used the resources of the hoary institution. “The library here has a rich collection of historical and legal gems. Be it diplomacy, freedom struggles or international relations, one can find material on them and other topics. ”


Interestingly, one can trace the history of Jawaharlal Nehru University’s School of International Studies (SIS) to Sapru House. It here that the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS) was housed. Sharma said, “Later, ISIS migrated to JNUto form what is now known as SIS. Buses used to bring students to the Sapru House library every day and take them back in the evening. ”


Apart from the library, another well-used feature of Sapru House was its auditorium, where many plays were performed till around the 1980s. Theatre veteran Keval Arora talked of Sapru House’s decline as a drama hotspot. “As a Delhi University student in the mid-’70s who was beginning to form an interest in theatre, it was mostly at the newly built Shri Ram Centre that we saw interesting, experimental and excellent theatre. Sapru House, meanwhile, began attracting comedies in Punjabi that ended up receiving a lot of flak for their content. ” 
Remembering that film and youth festivals were also held at Sapru House, veteran Gautam Bhattacharya smiled, “The institution became infamous for sexually charged Punjabi plays and serious theatre waned there. At one point, the Indian Council for Cultural Relations was to take over the auditorium, but the plan hit a roadblock. Before that, however, the huge lawn at Sapru House hosted popular carnivals. ”


Librarian Sharma said now only government programmes are organised at the institution. “The plays performed in that different era were privately produced,” Sharma defended. “The government took over the auditorium in 2001 and after that only official events take place here. ”


What stands today is not just a venue for government events, but a think tank and a resource centre for university students and those aspiring to join the civil services. “There aren’t too many restrictions as far as the library is concerned,” revealed Sharma. “There is open access to the stacks of books. We want more people to come here and continue reading and researching instead of relying just on the internet. ”

Sarai Kale Khan: A history

Upasika Singhal, Nov 17, 2204: The Indian Express

A bastion of Gujjar-dominated villages boasting fierce warriors, with land spread out from Purana Qila in the Northwest to Taimoor Nagar in the South of what is now Delhi. Or a place of rest and recuperation for weary travellers? — Sarai Kale Khan is famous for many things but finding a mention of it in official government records is a tough task.

On Friday, the Sarai Kale Khan Chowk was renamed ‘Bhagwan Birsa Munda Chowk’, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah inaugurating the tribal cultural icon’s statue on the occasion of his 150th birth anniversary year.

Zafar Hasan, in his exhaustive work, List of Muhammadan and Hindu Monuments, Volume IV, mentions Sarai Kale Khan being situated in a village named Bahlolpur Bangar. He wrote, “The sarai of Kale Khan which is constructed of rubble masonry was originally surrounded by arched cells, with their outer walls crowned by battlements. Most of these cells have now fallen down, and the rest which stand are used by villagers as residential houses. It is said to have contained a gateway on the north and west, but both of them have disappeared.”

Maulvi Hasan also mentioned a tomb 150 yards from the sarai, constructed of plaster and rubble, which was in a dilapidated condition and contained no grave.

Who is the mysterious Kale Khan though? To unravel this, one must first understand where the sarai system came from.

In the chapter, Caravanserais Along the Grand Trunk Road in Pakistan, Saifur Rahman Dar points out in the book, The Silk Roads: Highways of Culture and Commerce, that no one knows when exactly the Grand Trunk Road was built. Precursor forms of the road existed during the time of Panini and Chandragupta Maurya, and repairs were undertaken under Sher Shah Suri’s rule.

During the arterial road’s reconstruction, Sher Shah Suri would emphasise the need to build rest stops for travellers. In his article, Sarais in Mughal India, history professor Nazer Aziz Anjum writes, “(Sher Shah Suri) initiated building of sarais on a large scale on routes basically for the need of state and partially for the need of wayfarers… it was during the Mughal period that work of building sarais was carried out on an extensive scale.”

Meanwhile, history presents three possibilities for the person behind the name — Mubarak Khan Lohani, whose eternal resting place in South Extension is named Kale Khan Gumbad; Kale Khan, a Sufi saint from the reign of Sher Shah Suri, whose tomb now rests near Delhi Airport’s Terminal 2; and Kale Khan, the spiritual advisor and friend of Mirza Ghalib, whose house Ahata Kale Khan still stands in Ballimaran’s Gali Qasim Jan.

Delhi chronicler and journalist R V Smith seemed to be equally baffled by the three men who shared the same name. However, he agreed that Sarai Kale Khan was likely named after Ghalib’s friend. “Kale Khan who built a sarai in Southeast Delhi was probably born in the early nineteenth century and lived on to see the Mutiny of 1857 and its aftermath,” writes Smith in his book, Delhi: Unknown Tales of a City.

He explains further that Khan was probably born with another name, but received the nickname ‘Kale Khan’ because of his dark complexion.

Smith also mentions that Kale Khan would have probably witnessed the 1857 Mutiny since a snippet of history does emerge from the area just after the violence had died down. Gujjars pastoralists and farmers have long been settled in the area since the land near the Yamuna provided rolling grasslands for their cattle to graze on. However, in the short duration of lawlessness after the Mutiny, many local Gujjars from Sarai Kale Khan formed raiding parties and wreaked havoc on neighbouring villages.

In the present day, the urban village of Sarai Kale Khan is still dominated by Gujjars. But their version of the area’s history differs. According to local Vicky Choudhary, Kale Khan was a peer and a sant, a devout Gaud Brahmin forced to convert to Islam to save his life. “He was the one who made the sarai for travellers… in 1650, the Gujjar community from Khanpur shifted near the sarai… land was good and there were vast fields for the cattle to graze in,” he said.

Another popular folktale from the area goes that the Gujjars of Khanpur saved a royal retinue from being attacked by highwaymen on the way to Nizamuddin dargah from Mehrauli. Impressed by their act of bravery, the king awarded them land near the dargah to protect all those who travelled on the route and ensure the safety of those who spent the night in the sarai.

Savda Ghevra

The Times of India, May 28 2016

Savda Talkies, Delhi; Picture courtesy: The Times of India, May 28 2016

Pushed to margins of city, memories their only refuge

AmbikaPandit

Life at SavdaGhevra begins where the Delhi Metro line ends at Mundka station. In many ways, the gap of a kilometre between the colony and the metro line is metaphoric of the fracture between city life and an existence on the outskirts. It has been a decade now since [around 2006, when] 60,000 people left behind the slums in the city and moved to this resettlement colony to begin life anew, but the gap is still to be fully bridged. That is why these days, people trudge along the dusty lanes from GhevraModh to Savda Talkies, where instead of the weekly social-empowerment movies, they relive their own story .

Highlighting the many shades of Savda, drawn from real-life experiences of slumdwellers from across Delhi, the exhibition mounted at Savda Talkies titled “ZameenGharNahinHoti: Savda Key Das Saal“ narrates the tales of families still trying to find their way , though they now have one-room brick houses on plots assigned to them by the government. The story comes alive through items of ordinary use, an 18-year-old plastic box here, a 26-year-old stove there, even some broken bricks salvaged from the rubble of a slum colony that once existed beside modern habitations in Laxmi Nagar, Kakardooma, NanglaMachi, PragatiMaidan, Khan Market area and other places from where this wretched group travelled.

Seemapuri

`Kabad Se Jugad'

The Times of India, Oct 09 2015

Mayank Manohar

`Kabad Se Jugad' in Seemapuri, in the heart of the waste business, has unique start-up which gets good returns

Scrap dealers trash their trade to recycle, make flowers & toys

all you see before you are things that people have thrown away ¬ plastic bottles, varying lengths of electric wires, aluminium cans, metallic bits and pieces, in fact everything you would expect in a scrap market. Not really surprising because New Seemapuri Colony in east Delhi is indeed a hub of the waste business in the capital. But surrounded by this trash, you watch mesmerised as Ali, 26, takes a plastic bottle, lops off its top and then deftly fashions sepals out of the rest. He glues another similarly cut bottle to form the petals and then spray paints them in fluorescent colours before crowning his effort with a bulbous flower head that he adorns with bindis. And there, right before your eyes, you have got the promised flower. The five people seated in the room chuckle at your incredulity .They are members of the Kabad Se Jugad micro collective. The group comprises mostly women, with Ali as the manager.In the three years since they came together to form the scrap start-up, their focus has changed from selling junk by the kilo to wresting waste material into decoratives and toys that fetch handsome prices in a world enamoured of the idea of recycling. “A New York-based artist who goes by the single name of Ronaldo visited our colony in 2012,“ narrates Ali when you ask him how Kabad Se Jugad came about. “He gave us the idea of using scrap to make fancy items, to utilize waste so that it does not pollute the environment.“ Today, the group sells its flowers, toys, tea light holders and junk jewellery not only in India, but also abroad, where the plastic flowers have even been used by eco-conscious women as bridal bouquets.

Ali says that Kabad Se Jugad gets orders from the US, France, Italy and other European countries. “While the foreign business is handled by Ronaldo, in India we put up stalls at fairs and exhibitions,“ he says. The group is regu larly present, for instance, at the capital's popular crafts high spot, Dilli Haat. Sourcing their needs from the scrap stalls all around them, the recycle artists do get good returns for their labour. For instance, making a flower costs around Rs 65, but it sells for Rs 400-500 in India and upwards of Rs 1,500 abroad. But they are not startup millionaires just yet because regular orders are hard to come by . “We sell most of our flowers between Sep tember and February, a period in which most festivals fall. There is little business the rest of the year,“ says Ali. Aasma chimes in with, “We also utilize our warehouse for five months, but pay an en tire year's rent for it. And although we have our own website (kabadsejugad.org), business is not very hot.“ The team also conducts workshops at schools run by foreign embassies on how to recycle discarded stuff creatively . “People from abroad find our work with e-waste interesting, but our own countrymen are not interested.The response in three years hasn't been enthusiastic,“ rues Ali. However, he and his compatriots hold on to the hope that their small contribution to save the environment will one day meet with commercial success.

Shab-e-Barat

See Shab-e-Barat: Delhi

Shahpur Jat

The Times of India, Aug 22 2015

Dharvi Vaid

A village sets trend with style potpourri

Shahpur Jat, an urban village, has a swagger all its own. This stylish retail hub in south Delhi prides itself on its rural atmosphere that only accentuates the cutting edge fashion that it offers to discerning customers

Colourful and quirky Shah pur Jat is anachronistic --in reverse. Its dirt lanes are boisterous and redo lent of rural India and yet this village in south Delhi has some of the most modern de signer ware on sale. Abutting the ruins of Alauddin Khilji's medieval Siri Fort Shahpur Jat once used to be an affordable production hub for rookie fashion designers. Today, it has transformed into a popular high-fashion retail area that melds the traditional with the modern.

In the heart of the urban village is Jungi House, whose narrow lanes colourfully announce the presence of niche designer labels such as Liz Paul, Rahul and Anushka, Preeti Mohan, Bhumika Grover, Monika and Nidhi, Akshay Wadhwa and Rajat Suri. The wedding season can be a riot here, with lehangas, anarkalis and saris that have newness and flamboyance woven into them. And if it's a foreign look they are contemplating, there are stores like House of Blondie and Les Parisiennes to fulfil their fantasy. Men too can try out the array of fine wedding apparel here, from formals to innovative Indo-Western numbers whose prices can go up to Rs 50,000.

However, it is not only for wedding outfits that the style seekers congregate at this village. Designer Liz Paul says customers come hunting for traditional party wear too. “The best thing about Shahpur Jat is that in a single place you can get everything, and because most of the things on sale are designer pieces, they are unique too,“ she says.

An example of unique is the m e n swe a r at UNIT by Rajat Suri. The de signer has bor rowed the me tallic patterns that have been in vogue in women's fashion for some time and incorporated them rather boldly on solemn blazers and Nehru jackets. “Designers here excel in making boring office wear look stylish,“ quips Suri.

And then there are the jewellery shops. The bling in the showcases blend the old and the new, the tribal and the avant garde. No wonder, the chand balis and jhumkis, the kundan and the polki here are statements in themselves. What is more, if you want any particular piece customized, the stores are more than willing to ensure the glitter is uniquely yours.

“At Preeti Mohan's store you can even get your old watch customized into a beautiful ornament with gems of your liking,“ says Kanika Behl, who regularly shops at Shahpur Jat.“Whether you wear it with a maxi dress or an understated sari, it fits in as an exemplar of style.“ Walk around, and you will also find kitschy de signs incorporated into bedsheets, lampshades, cushion covers and wall hangings.

There is a tangible swagger about the place, perhaps because it is popular among budding designers who are just beginning to experiment with their labels. “Earlier designers only had small fabrication centres here,“ says Gau rav Jagtiani, who has had a produc tion unit in the village for seven years now, “but new designers have set up their retail stores here and are expanding the market.“

The restaurants in the village have joined in the fun with Bohe mian inspiration. “It is a place that is welcoming of all,“ says Sumit Singh, who opened Cafe Red with three other friends, all bankers. “We wanted a place where working people like us could just lounge and relax over a cup of coffee. Shahpur Jat topped our list because it has a very relaxing ambience.“ Like Cafe Red, there are many other theme restaurants that offer cuisines from India and across the world.

“The architecture and the gallies here give you the flavour of rural India,“ points out Jagtiani. “These elements are interpreted by the designers in their work.“ And that is what makes Shahpur Jat a village out of time.

As in 2019

Sidhartha Roy , Oct 20, 2019: The Times of India

The two-day ‘Shahpur Jat Autumn Festival’ of 2019 featured heritage walks, fashion shows, folk dances, storytelling, recycling workshops and live band performances
From: Sidhartha Roy , Oct 20, 2019: The Times of India

A buzzing café next to a silent 14th century tomb. A century-old haveli just a few feet away from a brightly lit boutique with the best in high fashion on offer. And young fashion designers looking for embroidery material in a narrow lane with a buffalo being milked at the other end. These seemingly disparate worlds, separated by centuries, coexist and merge in absolute harmony in south Delhi’s Shahpur Jat, an urban village that is now a fashion hub.

One of the oldest villages of the city, Shahpur Jat is home to potters, painters, designers, boutiques, NGOs, historical tombs, cafes and many more. Abutting the ruins of Alauddin Khilji’s medieval Siri Fort, this urban village has transformed into a popular high-fashion retail area that melds the traditional with the modern.

“I came here more than 50 years ago after my marriage. Back then, the village was surrounded by fields and we grew cauliflowers, which were sold across the city,” says Risalo Devi, in her seventies, sitting outside her twostorey house. It was during the 1982 Asiad when the villagers sold their land that residential areas, sporting facilities and auditoriums came up. “These shops came up in the past two decades, and a village that was once chiefly known for cauliflowers is now known for fashion. This has brought prosperity to the villagers but everyone has become so busy now,” she rues.

While the boutiques and designer stores have transformed this once sleepy village, the village too has lent its quaint charm to the fashion destination. “It is still very much a village. While there are boutiques on the ground floor, you will find people sitting on muddhas on the upper floors,” says Priyanka Pandey, a designer at the ‘I Am Design’ store. “These two very different worlds live in complete harmony,” she says. Kajal Verma, another designer, recalls that she has been frequenting Shahpur Jat for more than decade as she can source all materials according to her budget from one place, which also houses a large number of skilled artisans.

While Shahpur Jat’s evocatively named narrow lanes — Dada Jungi House lane, Fashion Street, Gora Street — are lined with boutiques offering designer and ethnic wear, the village also houses a number of shops selling accessories, jewellery and embroidery items and is home to hundreds of skilled artisans belonging to West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa, Uttar Pradesh etc. In fact, don’t be surprised if you find shops offering mobile phones, affordable food and haircuts with signboards in Bengali. Shahpur Jat is a melting pot in more ways than one. Delhi Tourism, in association with Delhi government, has organised the second edition of ‘Shahpur Jat Autumn Festival’. The two-day festival, which was inaugurated on Saturday, features heritage walks, fashion shows, folk dances, painting, calligraphy, storytelling, recycling workshops and live band performances.

“This year, the festival is showcasing the traditional through folk music, dance performances, poets and stand-up comedians with that tangy Haryanvi flavour and fashion through stalls set up by local designers with professional fashion shows showcasing their exquisite designs. Fashion rounds featuring the moustache twirling taus along with their granddaughters will also be seen at the mega fashion show,” explains Greater Kailash MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj, under whose stewardship the first edition of the festival was held last year.

The festival will highlight works of Shahpur Jat designers at a fashion show, followed by the mega finale – a musical concert by Bollywood singer Monali Thakur. Sunday morning will witness a heritage walk by INTACH and there will be a history and market walk by India City Walks in the evening.

Shamnath Marg

Bungalow no. 33

Manash Gohain, The Times of India Jun 19 2015 DDC gets house where ministers fear to stay

The “unlucky bungalow“--33, Shamnath Marg--which no minister or bureaucrat has ever willfully opted for, was made the headquarters of Delhi Dialogue Commission (DDC).

The building, which had been the residence of the then CM Madan Lal Khurana before the Hawala scam forced him to demit his office, was refused by two other former CMs--Sahib Singh Verma and Sheila Dikshit--apparently due to Vaastu incompatibility .

However, a few like former power secretary Shakti Sinha consider this a great place to stay . He said he “would love to stay there gain“. Rejected by Congress and BJP for many years, AAP government, now finds this a perfect location for holding policy dialogue.

Considered a jinxed location by many , the bungalow was the official residence of the chief minister of Delhi till 19 years ago. Built on a 2,000sq ft plot, the bungalow has been there since the Raj era. The first CM (1952) of Delhi, Chaudhary Brahm Prakash, had lived here for a brief period. However, things didn't “go well“ and he could not complete his term as CM.

Thereafter, the bungalow remained vacant for a long time. In 1993, the building was the residence of former CM Khurana. This was followed by a series of rejections with politicians including Dikshit and many bureaucrats turning it down who considered the house “inauspicious“.

Shiv Vihar

Blue dyes and cancer

Paras Singh, Is blue the colour of death in Delhi's `cancer colony'? , May 17, 2017: The Times of India

The link between Naushad, 22, a dyer at a jeans unit in Shiv Vihar in northeast Delhi, and Alok Rathore, a 16-year-old Class VIII student living in the same neighbourhood, is as yet tenuous. But there are clear hints of a ruinous connect between the young employee of a unit that nonchalantly uses possibly carcinogenic colours to dye jeans for the capital's low-end markets and the student who had to have his right hand severed to prevent a cancer from spreading.

Though no study has been conducted in this Mustafabad locality, locals trace the genesis of the abnormal rate of cancer to toxic chemicals used by the denim dyeing units.

It's impossible to escape the colour blue in Shiv Vihar.Bamboo scaffoldings hold up hundreds of blue jeans to dry as a pungent smell hangs in the air and gutters run inky blue. “Chances are most of the jeans available at Sunday bazars in Delhi have gone via Mustafabad,“ said Naushad with pride. But the means of livelihood for scores of families has a sinister edge for others like Rathore.

Residents depend on borewells and it is quite likely that the acids, dyes and untreated effluents discharged into the drain eventually seep into the groundwater. We know the water is not of good quality but we can't afford to buy bottled water,“ shrugged , resident Raghuwati. Jagadish Pradhan, the area MLA, alleged that the chemicals have led to health problems, which include a significant incidence of cancer. The legislator claimed to have raised the issue in Delhi assembly , but to little avail.

Oncologist P K Julka, former professor at the department of radiotherapy and oncology in AIIMS, revealed that aniline dyes are indeed known to cause cancers. “In Mustafabad, there is no proof yet that seepage into groundwater is behind these problems,“ he said, adding, “The authorities must immediately order a detailed survey and carry out a scientific study of cancer incidence and causes.“

In the two lanes of Shiv Vihar Phase 10 alone, TOI detected two deaths and eight suspected tumour cases. Teenager Rathore is one of them. He no longer goes to school. “It started with a pea-sized lump on his hand 18 months ago. It eventually swelled to the size of a ball,“ said his mother Kamla Devi, a vegetable seller. She spent a hard-earned Rs 2 lakh on his treatment, but his right hand had to be amputated just above the wrist to prevent the cancerous growth from spreading.

The boy is lucky in that two others living in the same lane have died in the past couple of months. One had been diagnosed with blood cancer, the other had cancer of the throat. Anxiety marked Haridevi's face as she held up X-ray plates showing lumps in her breasts. “They are not yet calling it cancer,“ the 50year-old said, but perhaps it was meant to boost her own spirits.

Akash Sharma, whose grandfather also succumbed to cancer, was critical of the government's failure to provide water to the localities in Mustafabad, including Shiv Vihar. “The water tankers do come, but they cannot provide enough water for such a large population,“ he said.

Unlike many residents who resignedly acknowledged “knowing we were drinking slow poison“, Sharma's family uses a reverse osmosis water purifier for the water drawn from the borewell. “The problem is the water is so bad that the filters have to be changed every few weeks,“ revealed Sharma.

Meanwhile, unmindful of the possible health hazard they cause, the dyeing units operate in tin sheds and temporary housings in Shiv Vihar. In the one that TOI visited, there were three gigantic steel drums attached to motors -a handy jugaad that ensures dyeing, washing and softening of the denim at the same place.

“We use `jamuni' the most,“ said Rashid Alam, whose limbs had turned blue through prolonged use of the colour, as he picked up a fistful of powder from a plastic bag with no markings or company branding. “It costs Rs 250 a kilo.“

A typical colouring cycle uses 200g of the dye, mild acids and agents such as sodium hydrosulfite. Jeans tailored in self-help units in Dharampura, Kailash Nagar, Seelampur, Ajeet Nagar and Raghubar Pura are dipped in the metal troughs and once the colour becomes “pakka“, as Alam put it, the jeans are washed with warm water, neutralised by acids and then softened.

While the bright blue jeans are then readied for the bustling market of Gandhi Nagar, the drums pour out the liquids carelessly into the drains.

Sitaram Bazaar

Ram Swarup Halwai

The Times of India, Oct 03 2015

Sitaram Bazar, Delhi; Picture courtesy: The Times of India, Oct 03 2015

Bedmi, Sitaram Bazar, Delhi; Picture courtesy: The Times of India, Oct 03 2015

Sujith Nair

At Sitaram Bazaar, a kingly breakfast awaits you at an old, rustic halwai shop

It's been around for 80 years. And not much has changed in Ram Swarup Halwai, one of Sitaram Bazaar's oldest shops, in all these decades. It still has a rustic air about it. Those lucky enough to stay in its vicinity often turn up for a breakfast of sumptuous bedmi aloo and nagori halwa. For others, it is a two-minute walk from Chawri Bazaar Metro Station. The Mittal brothers who own the shop serve bedmi on dhak tree leaves, which come from Faridabad on vans that transport newspapers.

ith aloo subzi, methi The bedmi comes with aloo subzi, methi chutney , pickled carrot and fresh chilli.This is followed by nagori halwa -mini, crispy suji pooris are punctured and stuffed with ghee-dripping suji halwa; they're ideally eaten the golgappa way .

From 8am to noon, bedmi and suji pooris fly out of the kadhai and are packed along with subzi and halwa as takeaways. Two tables in front of the shop serve customers who have to elbow for space with people brushing past on the street.

The brothers are in their fifties. Anil Kumar, the younger Mittal,is a reluctant talker. Ajit, the elder one, even less so -only gesturing, with a cigarette sticking out of his lips. But with skills that they have inherited from their father, who started as a halwai in Lal Kuan and later set up this shop, it's their dishes that do most of the talking.

Their father Ram Swarup, after whom the shop is named, opened it around the time when Kamala Nehru's family lived in the neighbourhood. Anil says he still remembers a rainy day , in the early '80s, when then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi went past his shop to see her maternal grandparents' house in Dhamani Market.“The road was quite a puddle and you should have seen the scared faces of the nagar nigam officials,“ he says with glee.

Even today, the rains recreate the '80s! Former residents of the area still come from all over the city to buy sweets, specially on Holi and Diwali, Anil says. The brothers have tried their best not to tinker with their fa ther's recipes. The sabzi is still made from unpeeled potatoes. Once, an experiment to use peeled aloos met with howls of protest from regulars and had to be abandoned post haste. However, subzi and nagori are now served in thermocol plates instead of pattal (leaves) to avoid messy leaks.

By noon, work begins on the evening snacks -samosa, kachori and jaleba (larger version of jalebi) -which are served till late in the night. Between them, the brothers manage the shop from morning till night. With their kids moving on to other vocations, Anil seems unsure about who would carry on the legacy of their father.

South extension

Coaching centres

The Times of India, Mar 10 2016

Mayank Manohar

The students come on bikes and instead of attending classes, loiter around harassing women or getting involved in fights, says an exasperated Deepak Mehra.This resident of South Extension in south Delhi says that he and others living in Block H there face security problems because of the presence of so many outsiders. Among many others, South Extension too is a hub of coaching classes in the capital. Around a hundred institutes are crowded along the colony's streets. “Every lane is crammed with paying guest accommodations and eateries that cause massive traffic congestion.On occasion, residents have to spend 30 minutes trying to reach the main road, which is hardly five minutes away ,“ says Harish Malik, president of the South Extension Part I residents' welfare association.“The institutions operate in batches, so finding a parking spot outside our own house is almost impossible. We have complained several times to the South Corporation but nothing happened.“

Indeed, people who visit the place will talk of how difficult it is to drive in the area or find a slot for their vehicles.That is why many hope that things will finally change after the Supreme Court declared on Tuesday that coaching centres in residential areas were a nuisance to women and the elderly and had to shift to commercial premises or institutional areas. But will it be so easy? “We have filed numerous petitions in the Delhi high court, to no avail,“ grumbles Shyam Arora, a resident of the colony. “In fact, in 2012 when we filed our first petition, there were around 55 coaching institutions.This number has grown twofold now.“ According to the provisions of Master Plan of Delhi 2021, the minimum right of way (ROW) required to run a coaching institute in residential area ranges between 9 metres and 18 metres for Aand B-category colonies. However, in South Extension Part I, which is a B-category colony , several lanes with ROW less than 9 metres have been allowed to house coaching institutes, complain residents. Senior officials from South Delhi Municipal Corporation, however, maintain that coaching centres are allowed not only under the ROW provision of the Master Plan, but also in residential colonies that have been developed prior to 1962. “South Extension was developed prior to 1962,“ insists a senior corporation offi cial. “After the court's order we have inspected the area and we didn't find any institute that is running illegally for us initiate any action.“

However, South Extension Part I's pre-1962 history, as claimed by the municipal corporation, is refuted by the colony's inhabitants. “According to the records available in Town Planning Department, the completion plan of South Extension I was approved in 1965,“ says Suneel, an advocate and resident.

“And according to the minutes of the meeting of a committee involving chief town planner of South Corporation, South Extension is not included in the list of pre-1962 colonies. This means the municipal corporation is not taking appropriate action against the coaching institutes.“

Perhaps in due course, proper scrutiny will be done and the facts established. Till then, however, the residents of what was meant to be a residential colony will have to bear with the buzzing commercialism of the times.

Sultanpur

The Times of India, Oct 13 2015

Village chaupal, Sultanpur, Delhi; Picture courtesy: The Times of India, Oct 13 2015

Sultanpur, Delhi; Picture courtesy: The Times of India, Oct 13 2015

Risha Chitlangia

Sultanpur - Hungry for rent, Sultanpur swallowed whole by tenants  Every afternoon, the elders of Sultanpur village in southwest Delhi sit down to play cards in their chaupal.In the evening, children play games in the space around the 1930s-era building. “Our fields are gone; there are no parks or open spaces left in the village,“ rues Dharamvir, an old-timer. Change has come to Sultanpur rather suddenly .The village was late to commercialize, but in the past few years it has single-mindedly chased rent--hemming itself in between showrooms and a residential colony .

One of Delhi's older villages, Sultan pur is advanta geously lo cated on the Me hrauli-Gurgaon Road. It started commercializing around the same time as Ghitorni but remained an also-ran until a few years ago when it became a magnet for high-end home furnishing brands and the production units-cum-studios of designers. Many farmhouses have also been built in the village.

Drawn by its cheaper rents, many home furnishing and designer brands relocated to Sultanpur from Saidul-Ajaib near Saket. “It is cheaper and we got a bigger space,“ said an employee of a furnishing brand. Offices of NGOs and corporates have also moved to Sultanpur.

The colony at the back draws people w h o w o r k in Gur gaon but can't afford to live there. “The rent is cheap and going from Sultanpur to Gurgaon by Metro takes hardly 15-20 minutes,“ said Sameer Singh, who works in Gurgaon.

Surrounded by swank multi-storey buildings, Sultanpur today is a village facing an identity crisis.Villagers like to do things the old community-centric way . Religious functions, wedding celebrations and condolence meetings are held at the chaupal. But with the open spaces gone and the infrastructure crumbling, many old families are selling out. “The front and the back of the village get all the facilities. No one listens to us.Sewers overflow and taps remain dry . We have to use pumps. This wasn't the case till a few years ago,“ said Tejpal, a village elder.

The village's roads are congested as the colony at the back uses the same en try . “If there's a fire, there is no alternative route for fire tenders,“ said Chohal Singh, a retired school teacher.