Revamped Purana Quila to be opened to public soon

The rejuvenated lake and illumination of Purana Qila was inaugurated by Culture Minister Sharma on Wednesday. It will soon be thrown open for public.

The inaccessible parts of Purana Quila, where excavations were conducted by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to dig out historical evidences related to pre-Mauryan period (3rd century BC), will soon be opened to public.

The Purana Qila lake in New Delhi redeveloped by NBCC will soon be opened for public. (Sanchit Khanna / HT Photo)

This was announced by ASI director general Usha Sharma on Wednesday. She was speaking at the inauguration ceremony of redeveloped Purana Quila lake complex and illumination of the fort. “The work to set up a thematic museum is on the verge of completion. Antiquities collected from foreign countries will be displayed at the facility, which will begin within a month. The ASI will also open excavation sites for people soon,” Sharma said.

Visitors will have to pay ₹20 to enter the complex, which was previously free.

Earlier, the visitors paid only for the boating facility. However, boating in the lake that was stopped in August 2016 will not be available for now. The pond also dried up in April 2017.

Mahesh Sharma, Union minister of state for culture, was the chief guest on the occasion.

The National Building Construction Corporation (NBCC) has redeveloped the lake and its surroundings. During the fresh excavation that took place last year, the ASI had discovered ancient coins, painted grey wares, and antiquities.

Earlier, the ASI had carried out excavations at the fort in 1954-55 and 1969-1973. Artifacts corresponding to Maurya, Shunga, Kushana, Gupta, Rajput, Sultanates and Mughal periods recovered are exhibited at the Archaeological Museum in the fort complex.

The lake redevelopment project spreading over 28 acres included refurbishment of the moat, illumination, landscaping, development of a central antiquity museum, installation of decorative lights, aerating fountains, and construction of other facilities was started in May.

“People could avail the newly inaugurated facilities with an entry ticket of ₹20 only to the moat and enjoy the evening illumination,” Sharma said.

The NBCC adopted the site under the culture ministry’s ‘adopt a monument’ scheme last year. The project cost is ₹30 crore, which shared by NBCC and ASI equally.

Addressing the gathering, the minister said it is our responsibility to protect our rich cultural heritage on the world platform. “After redevelopment of the complex, more people will come to fort and they will get to know more about our prestigious history, culture, and heritage. The goal of the ministry is to make historic monuments public friendly to instil pride in them,” he said.

The programme was also attended by Arun Goel, secretary (culture), and Anoop Kumar Mittal, chairman-cummanaging director, NBCC, and Meenakshi Lekhi, member of Parliament from New Delhi.