Delhi
Encyclopedia
Delhi ˈ officially National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT), is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India
, next to Mumbai
. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census. There are nearly 22.2 million residents in the greater National Capital Region
urban area (which also includes the cities Noida
, Greater Noida
, Ghaziabad, Gurgaon
and Faridabad
along with other smaller nearby towns). The name Delhi is often also used to include urban areas near the NCT, as well as to refer to New Delhi
, the capital of India, which lies within the metropolis. Although technically a federally administered union territory
, the political administration of the NCT of Delhi today more closely resembles that of a state of India with its own legislature
, high court
and an executive council of ministers headed by a Chief Minister
. New Delhi
, jointly administered by both the federal Government of India
and the local Government of Delhi
, is also the capital of the NCT of Delhi.
Located on the banks of the River Yamuna, Delhi has been known to be continuously inhabited since at least the 6th century BCE, though human habitation is believed to have existed since the second millennium BCE. Delhi is also widely believed to have been the site of Indraprastha, the legendary capital of the Pandavas during the times of the Mahabharata
. Delhi re-emerged as a major political, cultural and commercial city along the trade route
s between northwest India and the Gangetic plain after the rise of the Delhi sultanate
s. It is the site of many ancient and medieval monuments, archaeological sites and remains. In 1639, Mughal emperor Shahjahan built a new walled city in Delhi which served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1649 to 1857.
After the British East India Company
had gained a foothold in North East India in the late 18th century, Calcutta
became the capital of British held territories under Company rule
(1774–1857) and remained so under the British Raj
(1857–1920). British had captured Delhi by 1857 and George V
announced in 1911 that the capital of British controlled parts of India would move back to Delhi. A new capital city, New Delhi, was built to the south of the old city during the 1920s. When India gained independence from British rule
in 1947, New Delhi was declared its capital and seat of government. As such, New Delhi houses important offices of the federal government, including the Parliament of India
, as well as numerous national museums, monuments, and art galleries.
Owing to the migration of people from across the country(mostly from the Northern and Eastern states of India), Delhi has grown to be a multicultural, cosmopolitan metropolis. Its rapid development and urbanisation, coupled with the relatively high average income of its population, has transformed Delhi into a major cultural, political, and commercial centre of India..
is Dhillu or Dilu, a king of the Mauryan dynasty, who built the city in 50 BC and named it after himself. The Hindi
/Prakrit
word dhili ("loose") was used by the Tomaras to refer to the city because the Iron Pillar built by Raja Dhava had a weak foundation and was replaced. The coins in circulation in the region under the Tomaras were called dehliwal. Some other historians believe that the name is derived from Dilli, a corruption of dehleez or dehali —both terms mean 'threshold' or 'gateway'— and symbolic of the city as a gateway to the Gangetic Plain. Another theory suggests that the city's original name was Dhillika.
Delhi is referenced in various idioms of Northern Indo-Aryan languages
. Examples include –
Human habitation was probably present in and around Delhi during the second millennium BC and before, and continuous inhabitation has been evidenced since at least the 6th century BC. The city is believed to be the site of Indraprastha, legendary capital of the Pandavas in the Indian epic Mahabharata
. Settlements grew from the time of the Mauryan Empire (c. 300 BCE).
Remains of seven major cities have been discovered in Delhi. Anang Pal of the Tomara dynasty founded the city of Lal Kot in AD 736. The Chauhan
s conquered Lal Kot in 1180 and renamed it Qila Rai Pithora. The Chauhan king Prithviraj III
was defeated in 1192 by the invader Muhammad Ghori.
In 1206, Qutb-ud-din Aybak
, the first ruler of the Slave Dynasty
established the Delhi Sultanate
. Qutb-ud-din started the construction the Qutub Minar
and Quwwat-al-Islam (might of Islam), the earliest extant mosque in India. After the fall of the Slave dynasty, a succession of Turkic and Afghan dynasties, the Khilji dynasty
, the Tughluq dynasty, the Sayyid dynasty
and the Lodhi dynasty
held power in the late medieval period, and built a sequence of forts and townships that are part of the seven cities of Delhi.
In 1398, Timur Lenk invaded India on the pretext that the Muslim sultans of Delhi were too lenient towards their Hindu
subjects. Timur entered Delhi and the city was sacked, destroyed, and left in ruins. Near Delhi, Timur massacred 100,000 captives. Delhi was a major centre of Sufism
during the Sultanate period. In 1526, Zahiruddin Babur defeated the last Lodhi sultan in the First Battle of Panipat
and founded the Mughal Empire
that ruled from Delhi, Agra
and Lahore
.
The Mughal Empire ruled Delhi for more than three centuries, with a sixteen-year hiatus during the reign of Sher Shah Suri
, from 1540 to 1556. During 1553–1556, the Hindu king, Hemu Vikramaditya acceded to the throne of Delhi by defeating forces of Mughal Emperor Akbar at Agra and Delhi. However, the Mughals reestablished their rule after Akbar's army defeated Hemu during the Second Battle of Panipat. Shah Jahan
built the seventh city of Delhi that bears his name (Shahjahanabad), and is more commonly known as the "Old City" or "Old Delhi". The old city served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1638. After 1680, the Mughal Empire's influence declined rapidly as the Hindu Marathas rose to prominence.
A weakened Mughal Empire lost the Battle of Karnal
, following which the victorious forces of Nader Shah
invaded and looted Delhi, carrying away many treasures, including the Peacock Throne
. A treaty signed in 1752 made Marathas the protector of the Mughal throne at Delhi. In 1761, after the Marathas lost the third battle of Panipat
, Delhi was raided by Ahmed Shah Abdali. In 1803, the forces of British East India Company
overran
the Maratha forces near Delhi and ended the Mughal rule over the city.
After the Indian Rebellion of 1857
, Delhi came under direct rule of the British crown
and was made a district province of the Punjab
. In 1911, the capital of British India was transferred from Calcutta to Delhi, following which a team of British architects led by Edwin Lutyens
designed a new political and administrative area, known as New Delhi, to house the government buildings. New Delhi, also known as Lutyens' Delhi, was officially declared as the capital of the Union of India after the country gained independence
on 15 August 1947.
During the partition of India
, thousands of Hindu and Sikh refugees from West Punjab and Sindh
fled to Delhi, while many Muslim residents of the city migrated to Pakistan
. Starting on 31 October 1984, approximately three thousand Sikhs were killed during the four-day long anti-Sikh riots
after the Sikh body guards of then-Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi
, assassinated her. Migration to Delhi from the rest of India continues, contributing more to the rise of Delhi's population than the birth rate, which is declining.
The Constitution (Sixty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1991
declared the Union Territory of Delhi to be formally known as National Capital Territory of Delhi. The Act gave Delhi its own legislative assembly, though with limited powers. In December 2001, the Parliament of India building in New Delhi was attacked
by armed militants resulting in the death of six security personnel. India suspected the hand of Pakistan-based militant groups in the attacks resulting in a major diplomatic crisis between the two countries. Delhi again witnessed terrorist attacks in October 2005
and September 2008 resulting in the deaths of 62 and 30 civilians respectively.
The National Capital Territory of Delhi is spread over an area of 1484 km² (573 sq mi), of which 783 km² (302 sq mi) is designated rural, and 700 km² (270 sq mi) urban. Delhi has a maximum length of 51.9 km (32 mi) and the maximum width of 48.48 km (30 mi). There are three local bodies (statutory towns) namely, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (area is 1397.3 km² or 540 sq mi), New Delhi Municipal Committee (42.7 km² or 16 sq mi) and Delhi Cantonment Board (43 km² or 17 sq mi).
Delhi is an expansive area, in its extremity it spans from Narela
in the north to Ghitorni in the south. Najafgarh
is the furthest point west, and Seemapuri is its eastern extremity. The NCR encompasses towns south and east of the said border, namely Ghaziabad, Noida, Faridabad and Gurgaon.
Oddly, the main expanse of Delhi does not follow a specific geographical feature. The main city area of Delhi does not end until Arjangarh in the South, Anand Vihar in the east, Singhu in the north and Nangloi in the west. The terrain of Delhi shows great variation. It changes from plain agricultural fields in the north to dry, arid hills (an offshoot of the Aravalli Hills of Rajasthan
) in the south and west. There used to be large natural lakes in the southern part of the city, but most have now dried up. Most of Delhi, including New Delhi, is situated on the western banks of the river Yamuna
which separates the main city from eastern suburbs (commonly known as trans-Yamuna), although there is a good connectivity between the eastern and western sides, with a number of road and railway bridges as well as the Delhi Metro
.
Delhi is located at 28.61°N 77.23°E, and lies in northern India. It borders the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh
to the east and Haryana
on the north, west and south. During British Raj
it was adjacent to the province of Punjab
and still historically and culturally tied closely to the region of Punjab. Almost entirely within the Gangetic plains, two prominent features of the geography of Delhi are the Yamuna flood plains and the Delhi ridge
. The low-lying Yamuna flood plains provide fertile alluvial soil suitable for agriculture but are prone to recurrent floods. Reaching up to a height of 318 m (1,043 ft), the Delhi ridge forms a dominating feature in this region. It originates from the Aravalli Range
in the south and encircles the west, northeast and northwest parts of the city. Yamuna, a sacred river in Hinduism
, is the only major river flowing through Delhi. Another river called the Hindon River
separates Ghaziabad from the eastern part of Delhi. Delhi falls under seismic zone-IV
, making it vulnerable to major earthquakes, but earthquakes have not been common in recent history. Delhi has the third highest tree-cover among cities in India.
Delhi was one of the world's ten most polluted cities in the 1990s
, with vehicles producing 70% of the polluting emissions. In 1996 the Centre for Science and Environment
started a public interest litigation in the Supreme Court of India
that ordered the conversion of Delhi's fleet of buses and taxis to be run on Compressed Natural Gas
and banned the use of leaded petrol in 1998. In 2003, Delhi won the United States Department of Energy’s
first ‘Clean Cities International Partner of the Year’ award for ‘‘bold efforts to curb air pollution and support alternative fuel initiatives’’.
(Köppen
Cwa). Summers are long and extremely hot, from early April to mid-October, with the monsoon season in between. Early March sees a reversal in the direction of wind, from the north-western direction, to the south-western. These bring the hot waves from Rajasthan, carrying sand and are a characteristic of the Delhi summer. These are called loo
. The months of March to May see a time of hot prickling heat. Monsoon arrives at the end of June, bringing some respite from the heat, but increasing humidity at the same time. The brief, mild winter starts in late November and peaks in January and is notorious for its heavy fog.
Extreme temperatures range from −0.6 °C (30.9 °F) to 46.7 °C (116.1 °F). The annual mean temperature is 25 °C (77 °F); monthly mean temperatures range from 13 °C to 32 °C (56 °F to 90 °F). The average annual rainfall is approximately 714 mm (28.1 inches), most of which is during the monsoons in July and August. The average date of the advent of monsoon winds in Delhi is 29 June.
Famous for its mixture of historic landmarks, monuments, temples and stylish Art Deco style buildings, the city of New Delhi is filled with interest. Amongst the most notable landmarks within New Delhi are the India Gate, the Lotus Temple (Bahai Temple) and also the President House (Rashtrapati Bhavan).
No trip to New Delhi is complete without a photo or two of its famous Red Fort (Lal Qila), which features a stunning red facade and evening light shows. Just across from the Red Fort is the Raj Ghat, an official memorial to India's spiritual leader, Mahatma Gandhi. New Delhi's main monuments and landmarks are described below.
s, 59 census towns, 300 villages and three statutory towns the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD); the New Delhi Municipal Committee (NDMC); and the Delhi Cantonment Board (DCB).
The Delhi metropolitan area lies within the National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). The NCT has three local municipal corporations: Municipal Corporation of Delhi
(MCD), New Delhi Municipal Council
(NDMC) and Delhi Cantonment Board
. MCD is one of the largest municipal corporations in the world providing civic amenities to an estimated 13.78 million people. The capital of India, New Delhi, falls under the administration of NDMC. The chairperson of the NDMC is appointed by the Government of India in consultation with the Chief Minister of Delhi
.
Delhi has four major satellite cities, which lie outside the National Capital Territory of Delhi. These are Gurgaon
and Faridabad
(in Haryana
), and New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (Noida) and Ghaziabad (in Uttar Pradesh
). Delhi is divided into nine districts. Each district (division) is headed by a Deputy Commissioner and has three subdivisions. A Subdivision Magistrate heads each subdivision. All Deputy Commissioners report to the Divisional Commissioner. The District Administration of Delhi is the enforcing department for all kinds of State and Central Government policies and exercises supervisory powers over numerous other functionaries of the Government.
The Delhi High Court
has jurisdiction over Delhi. Delhi also has lower courts: the Small Causes Court
for civil cases; the Magistrate Court and the Sessions Court
for criminal cases. The Delhi Police, headed by the Police Commissioner, is one of the largest metropolitan police forces in the world. Delhi is administratively divided into nine police-zones
, which are further subdivided into 95 local police stations.
Recently, there have been changes in the Police Districts, their jurisdiction etc., although the Administrative Districts of Delhi are nine only, it seems. For instance, an Outer Delhi Police District has been carved out in the Western part of Delhi.
, the National Capital Territory of Delhi has its own Legislative Assembly
, Lieutenant Governor, council of ministers and Chief Minister
. The legislative assembly seats are filled by direct election from territorial constituencies in the NCT. However, the Union Government of India and the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi
jointly administer New Delhi, a city in Delhi, which is the capital and seat of government of both the National Capital Territory of Delhi and of India itself.
Services like transport and others are taken care of by the Delhi government, services such as the police are directly under the control of the Central Government. The legislative assembly was re-established in 1993 for the first time since 1956, with direct federal rule in the span. In addition, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi
(MCD) handles civic administration for the city as part of the Panchayati Raj act. New Delhi, an urban area in Delhi, is the seat of both the State Government of Delhi and the Government of India. The Parliament of India
, the Rashtrapati Bhavan
(Presidential Palace), Cabinet Secretariat
and the Supreme Court of India
are located in New Delhi. There are 70 assembly constituencies and seven Lok Sabha
(Indian parliament's lower house) constituencies in Delhi.
Delhi was a traditional stronghold of the Indian National Congress
, also known as the Congress Party. In the 1990s, the Bharatiya Janata Party
(BJP) under the leadership of Madan Lal Khurana
came into power; however in 1998, Congress regained power under Sheila Dikshit
, the incumbent Chief Minister. The Congress retained power in the Legislative Assembly in the 2003 and 2008 elections.
(FY 2007) of in nominal terms and in PPP
terms, Delhi is the largest commercial center in northern India. In 2007, Delhi had a per capita income
of at current prices, the third highest in India after Chandigarh and Goa
as of 2006–07.
The tertiary sector
contributes 70.95% of Delhi's gross SDP followed by secondary
and primary
sectors, with 25.20% and 3.85% contribution, respectively. Delhi's workforce constitutes 32.82% of the population showing an increase of 52.52% between 1991 and 2001. Delhi's unemployment rate decreased from 12.57% in 1999–2000 to 4.63% in 2003. In December 2004, 636,000 people were registered with various employment exchange programmes in Delhi.
In 2001 the total workforce in all government (union and state) and quasi-government sector was 620,000. In comparison, the organised private sector employed 219,000. Key service industries include information technology, telecommunications, hotels, banking, media and tourism. Delhi's manufacturing industry has also grown considerably as many consumer goods industries have established manufacturing units and headquarters in and around Delhi. Delhi's large consumer market, coupled with the easy availability of skilled labour, has attracted foreign investment in Delhi. In 2001, the manufacturing sector employed 1,440,000 workers while the number of industrial units was 129,000.
Construction, power, telecommunications, health and community services, and real estate form integral parts of Delhi's economy. Delhi has India's largest and one of the fastest growing retail industries. As a result, land prices are booming and Delhi is currently ranked the 7th most expensive office hotspot in the world, with prices at $145.16 per square foot. As in the rest of India, the fast growth of retail is expected to affect the traditional unorganized retail trading system.
The water supply in Delhi is managed by the Delhi Jal Board
(DJB). As of 2006, it supplied 650 MGD (million gallons per day) of water, while the water demand for 2005–06 was estimated to be 963 MGD. The rest of the demand is met by private and public tube wells
and hand pump
s. At 240 MGD, the Bhakra storage is the largest water source for DJB, followed by the Yamuna and the Ganges. With falling groundwater
level and rising population density, Delhi faces severely acute water shortage. Delhi daily produces 8000 tonne
s of solid wastes which is dumped at three landfill
sites by MCD. The daily domestic waste water production is 470 MGD and industrial waste water is 70 MGD. A large portion of the sewerage flows untreated into the river Yamuna.
The city's per capita electricity consumption is about 1,265 kWh but actual demand is much more. In 1997, Delhi Vidyut Board
(DVB) replaced Delhi Electric Supply Undertaking which was managed by the MCD. The DVB itself cannot generate adequate power to meet the city's demand and borrows power from India's Northern Region Grid. As a result, Delhi faces a power shortage resulting in frequent blackouts and brownouts, especially during the summer season when energy demand is at its peak. Several industrial units in Delhi rely on their own electrical generators to meet their electric demand and for back up during Delhi's frequent and disruptive power cuts. A few years ago, the power sector in Delhi was handed over to private companies. The distribution of electricity is carried out by companies run by Tata Power
and Reliance Energy
. The Delhi Fire Service
runs 43 fire stations that attend about 15,000 fire and rescue calls per year.
State-owned Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited
(MTNL) and private enterprises like Vodafone Essar
, Airtel
, Idea cellular
, Reliance Infocomm, and Tata Indicom
provide telephone and cell phone service to the city. In May 2008, Airtel alone had approximately 4 million cellular subscribers in Delhi. Cellular coverage is extensive, and both GSM and CDMA (from Reliance and Tata Indicom) services are available. Affordable broadband penetration is increasing in the city.
Public transport in Delhi is provided by buses, auto rickshaw
s and a metro rail system.
Buses are the most popular means of transport catering to about 60% of the total demand. The state-owned Delhi Transport Corporation
(DTC) is a major bus service provider for the city. The DTC operates the world's largest fleet of environment-friendly CNG buses. Delhi BRTS is Bus rapid transit
serving the city which runs between Ambedkar Nagar and Delhi Gate.
The Delhi Metro
, a mass rapid transit system built and operated by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), serves many parts of Delhi as well as the satellite city of Gurgaon
in the neighbouring Haryana and Noida
in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh. As of October 2010, the metro consists of six operational lines with a total length of 153 km (95.1 mi) and 130 stations while several other lines are under construction. The Phase-I was built at a cost of US$2.3 billion and the Phase-II will cost an additional US$4.3 billion. Phase-II of the network is under construction and will have a total length of 128 km. It is expected to be completed by 2010. Phase-III and IV will be completed by 2015 and 2020 respectively, creating a network spanning 413.8 km, longer than that of the London Underground
.
Auto rickshaws are a popular means of public transportation in Delhi, as they charge a lower fare than taxis. Most run on Compressed Natural Gas
(CNG) and are yellow and green in colour. Taxis are not an integral part of Delhi public transport, though they are easily available. Private operators operate most taxis, and most neighborhoods have a taxi stand from which taxis can be ordered or picked up. In addition, air-conditioned radio taxis, which can be ordered by calling a central number, have become increasingly popular, charging 10 to 20 per kilometre depending upon type of car used in taxi.
Delhi is a major junction in the rail map of India and is the headquarters of the Northern Railway
. The five main railway stations are New Delhi Railway Station
, Old Delhi, Nizamuddin Railway Station
, Anand Vihar Railway Terminal
and Sarai Rohilla
.
Delhi is connected to other cities through many highways and expressways. Delhi currently has three expressways and three are under construction to connect it with its prosperous and commercial suburbs. The Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway
connects Delhi with Gurgaon
and the international airport. The DND Flyway
and Noida-Greater Noida Expressway connect Delhi with two prosperous suburbs of Noida
and Greater Noida
.
Indira Gandhi International Airport
(DEL) is situated in the western corner of Delhi and serves as the main gateway for the city's domestic and international civilian air traffic. In 2006–07, the airport recorded a traffic of more than 23 million passengers, making it one of the busiest airports in South Asia. A new US$1.93 billion Terminal 3 handles an additional 34 million passengers annually in 2010. Further expansion programs will allow the airport to handle more than 100 million passengers per annum by 2020.
Private vehicles account for 30% of the total demand for transport. At 1922.32 km of road length per 100 km², Delhi has one of the highest road densities in India. Delhi is well connected to other parts of India by five National Highways
: NH 1
, 2
, 8, 10
and 24
. Roads in Delhi are maintained by MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi), NDMC, Delhi Cantonment Board, Public Works Department (PWD) and Delhi Development Authority
.
Delhi's high population growth rate, coupled with high economic growth rate has resulted in an ever increasing demand for transport creating excessive pressure on the city's existent transport infrastructure. As of 2008. Also, the number of vehicles in the metropolitan region, i.e., Delhi NCR is 112 lakhs (11.2 million). In 2008, there were 85 cars in Delhi for every 1,000 of its residents. In order to meet the transport demand in Delhi, the State and Union government started the construction of a mass rapid transit system, including the Delhi Metro. In 1998, the Supreme Court of India
ordered all public transport vehicles of Delhi to use compressed natural gas
(CNG) as fuel instead of diesel and other hydro-carbons.
with National Highway 8 at Kherki Dhaula and will pass Pataudi
Road. The NPR stretch has been planned as an alternate link road between Delhi and Gurgaon, and is expected to ease the traffic situation on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway. The road will also provide connectivity to the much-touted Reliance-HSIIDC SEZ besides the Garhi Harsaru dry depot.
Much like Delhi, Gurgaon
too will have a BRT corridor to decongest traffic on the Northern Peripheral Road. In several sections, the NPR will have provisions for the Bus
Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor to ensure smooth flow. The road will be fully developed in March 2012.
Many ethnic groups and cultures are represented in Delhi, making it a cosmopolitan city. Being the political and economic hub of northern India, the city attracts workers – both blue collar
and white collar
– from all parts of India, further enhancing its diverse character. A diplomatic hub, home to the embassies of 160 countries, Delhi has a large expatriate
population as well.
According to the 2011 census of India
, the population of Delhi is 16,753,235. The corresponding population density was 11,297 persons per km², with a sex ratio of 866 women per 1000 men, and a literacy rate of 86.34%. In 2004, the birth rate
, death rate and infant mortality rate (per 1000 population) were 20.03, 5.59 and 13.08, respectively. According a 1999–2000 estimate, the total number of people living below the poverty line
, defined as living on $11 or less per month, in Delhi was 1,149,000 (which was 8.23% of the total population, compared to 27.5% of India as a whole). In 2001, the population of Delhi increased by 285,000 as a result of migration and by an additional 215,000 as a result of natural population growth – this made Delhi one of the fastest growing cities in the world. By 2015, Delhi is expected to be the third-largest agglomeration in the world after Tokyo and Mumbai. Dwarka
, Asia's largest planned residential colony
, is located within the National Capital Territory of Delhi.
Hinduism
is the religion of 80% of Delhi's population. There are also large communities of Muslim
s (10%), Sikh
s (7.9%), Baha'i (0.1%), Jains (1.1%) and Christian
s (0.9%) in the city. Other minorities include Parsis, Anglo-Indians, Buddhists and Jews.
Hindustani language
is the principal spoken language while English is the principal written language of the city. Other languages commonly spoken in the city are dialects of Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu. The linguistic groups from all over India are well represented in the city; among them are Punjabi, Haryanvi, UP, Rajasthani, Bihari, Bengali, Sindhi, Tamil, Oriya, Assamese, Garhwali,Telugu,, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi and Gujarati.
12% of Delhi lives in slums without basic services like water, electricity, sanitation, sewage system, proper housing etc.
In 2005, Delhi accounted for the highest percentage (16.2%) of the crimes reported in the 35 cities in India with populations of one million or more. The city also has the highest rate of crime against women (27.6 compared to national average rate of 14.1 per 100,000) and against children (6.5 compared to national average of 1.4 per 100,000) in the country.
Delhi's culture has been influenced by its lengthy history and historic association as the capital of India. This is exemplified by the many monuments of significance found in the city; the Archaeological Survey of India
recognises 1200 heritage buildings and 175 monuments in Delhi as national heritage sites. The Old City is the site where the Mughals and the Turkic rulers constructed several architectural marvels like the Jama Masjid
(India's largest mosque) and Red Fort. Three World Heritage Site
s—the Red Fort, Qutab Minar and Humayun's Tomb
—are located in Delhi. Other monuments include the India Gate
, the Jantar Mantar
(an 18th-century astronomical observatory) and the Purana Qila (a 16th century fortress). The Laxminarayan Temple
, Akshardham
, the Bahá'í
Lotus Temple
and the ISKCON Temple
are examples of modern architecture. Raj Ghat and associated memorials
houses memorials of Mahatma Gandhi
and other notable personalities. New Delhi houses several government buildings and official residences reminiscent of the British colonial architecture. Important structures include the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the Secretariat, Rajpath
, the Parliament of India and Vijay Chowk. Safdarjung's Tomb
is an example of the Mughal gardens
style.
[File:ISKCON_Temple_in_Delhi.jpg|thumb]
Delhi's association and geographic proximity to the capital, New Delhi, has amplified the importance of national events and holidays. National events like Republic Day
, Independence Day
and Gandhi Jayanti
(Gandhi's birthday) are celebrated with great enthusiasm in Delhi. 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. The Republic Day Parade is a large cultural and military parade showcasing India's cultural diversity and military might. Over the centuries Delhi is known for its composite culture, and a festival that symbolizes it truly is the Phool Walon Ki Sair
, which takes place each year in September, and where flowers and fans embroidered with flowers, pankha are offered to the shrine of 13th century Sufi saint, Khwaja Bakhtiyar Kaki, along with the Yogmaya Temple
also situated in Mehrauli
.
Religious festivals include Diwali
(the festival of lights), Mahavir Jayanti
, Guru Nanak's Birthday
, Durga Puja
, Holi
, Lohri, Chhath
, Krishna Janmastami, Maha Shivaratri
, Eid ul-Fitr
, Moharram
and Buddha Jayanti. 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. Other events such as Kite Flying Festival, International Mango Festival and Vasant Panchami
(the Spring Festival) are held every year in Delhi. The Auto Expo
, Asia's largest auto show, is held in Delhi biennially. The World Book Fair, held biannually at the Pragati Maidan
, is the second largest exhibition of books in the world with as many as 23 nations participating in the event. Delhi is often regarded as the "Book Capital" of India because of high readership.
Punjabi
and Mughlai
delicacies like kababs and biryani
s are popular in Delhi. The street food there is known to be delicious and includes chaat, golgappe and aloo tikki. Due to Delhi's large cosmopolitan and migrant population, cuisines
from every part of India, including Gujarati
Rajasthani
, Maharashtrian
, Bengali
, Hyderabadi cuisine
s, and South Indian food items
like idli, sambar and dosa
are widely available. Local delicacies include Chaat
, Golgappe, Aloo-Tikki and Dahi-Papri. There are several food outlets in Delhi serving international cuisine, including Italian
, Japanese
, Continental, Middle-Eastern, Thai and Chinese
. Within the last decade western fast food has become more popular as well. Delhi is very much popular for its food and old traditional restaurants.The rich Punjabi food, with its high oil content and spices, is a specialty of Delhi. 'Chaat' is the spicy Indian snack and offers variety such as Papri, Bhalle-Papri, Aloo Tikiki, Gol Gappe, etc. These are the most preferred evening snack of the Indians, especially women. Global giants such as KFC, Mc Donalds, Nirulas and Wimpys lure children and youth with fast food and continental cuisines. The five-star hotels of Delhi also host some good restaurants that offer exotic Chinese, Continental, Thai, Mughlai and Indian cuisines.
Historically, Delhi has always remained an important trading centre in northern India. Old Delhi still contains legacies of its rich Mughal
past, which can be found among the old city's tangle of snaking lanes and teeming bazaars. The dingy markets of the Old City have an eclectic product range, from oil-swamped mango, lime and eggplant pickles, candy-colored herbal potions to silver jewelry, bridal attire, uncut material and linen, spices, sweets. Some of old regal havelis (palatial residences) are still there in the Old City. Chandni Chowk
, a three-century-old shopping area, is one of the most popular shopping areas in Delhi for jewellery and Zari sari
s. Notable among Delhi's arts and crafts are the Zardozi (an embroidery done with gold thread) and Meenakari (the art of enameling). Dilli Haat
, Hauz Khas
, Pragati Maidan
offer a variety of Indian handicrafts and handlooms. Over time Delhi has absorbed a multitude of humanity from across the country and has morphed into an amorphous pool of cultural styles.
Schools and higher educational institutions
in Delhi are administered either by the Directorate of Education
, the NCT government, or private organizations. In 2004–05, there were 2,515 primary, 635 middle, 504 secondary and 1,208 senior secondary schools in Delhi. That year, the higher education institutions in the city included 165 colleges, among them five medical colleges and eight engineering colleges, seven major universities (Delhi University, Jawaharlal Nehru University
, Jamia Millia Islamia
, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University
(GGSIPU), National Law University
(NLU Delhi), Indira Gandhi National Open University
(IGNOU) and Jamia Hamdard
), and nine deemed universities
. Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University and National Law University are the only state universities; IGNOU is for open/distance learning; the rest are all central universities. Delhi boasts of being home to 3 of top 10 engineering colleges in India – IIT Delhi, NSIT (Formerly DIT) and DTU (Formerly DCE).
Private schools in Delhi—which employ either English or Hindi as the language of instruction—are affiliated to one of two administering bodies: the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations
(CISCE), the Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE) and the National Institute of Open Schooling
(NIOS). In 2004–05, approximately 15.29 lakh
(1.529 million) students were enrolled in primary schools, 8.22 lakh (0.822 million) in middle schools and 6.69 lakh (0.669 million) in secondary schools across Delhi. Female students represented 49% of the total enrollment. The same year, the Delhi government spent between 1.58% and 1.95% of its gross state domestic product on education.
After completing the ten-year secondary phase of their education under the 10+2+3/4 plan, students typically spend the next two years either in junior college
s or in schools with senior secondary facilities, during which their studies become more focused. They select a stream of study—liberal arts
, commerce, science, or, less commonly, vocational. Upon completion, those who choose to continue, either study for a three-year undergraduate degree at a college, or a professional degree in law, engineering, architecture, or medicine. Notable higher education or research institutes in Delhi include All India Institute of Medical Sciences
, School of Planning and Architecture
, Dr.Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital & PGIMER, Maulana Azad Medical College
, Jawaharlal Nehru University
, Indian Statistical Institute
, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi
, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade
, Delhi Technological University, National Law University, Delhi
, Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology
, Indian Law Institute
, Delhi School of Economics
, Jamia Millia Islamia
. As of 2008, about 16% of all Delhi residents possessed at least a college graduate degree.
As the capital of India, New Delhi is the focus of political reportage, including regular television broadcasts of Parliament sessions. Many country-wide media agencies, among them the state-owned Press Trust of India
, Media Trust Of India and Doordarshan
, are based in the city. Television programming in the city includes two free terrestrial television channels offered by Doordarshan, and several Hindi, English and regional-languages cable
channels offered by multi system operator
s. Satellite television
, in contrast, has yet to gain large-scale subscribership in the city.
Print journalism remains a popular news medium in Delhi. During 2008–09, 9,961 registered newspapers (Daily, Weekly and Monthly) in thirteen languages were published from the city. Of these, 492 were Urdu and Hindi
language newspapers, including Navbharat Times
, Hindustan Dainik
, Punjab Kesari
, Pavitra Bharat, Dainik Jagran
, Dainik Bhaskar
and Dainik Desbandhu. Amongst the English language
newspapers, The Hindustan Times
, with over a million copies in circulation, was the single largest daily. Other major English newspapers include Times of India, The Hindu
, Indian Express, Business Standard
, The Pioneer
and Asian Age
. Regional dailies include Malayala Manorama
and Delhi Uptodate (weekly) Dinakaran
. Radio is a less popular mass medium in Delhi, although FM radio has been gaining ground since the inauguration of several new FM
channels in 2006.
A number of state-owned and private radio stations broadcast from Delhi, including All India Radio
(AIR), one of the world's largest radio service providers, which offers six radio channels in ten languages. Other city-based radio stations include "Aaj Tak", "Radio City (91.1 MHz)", "Big FM (92.7 MHz)", "Red FM (93.5MHz)", "Radio One (94.3 MHz)", "Hit FM( 95 MHz)", "Apna Radio", "Radio Mirchi (98.3 MHz)", "FM Rainbow (102.4 MHz)", "Fever FM (104 MHz)", "Oye FM (104.8 MHz)", "FM Gold (106.4 MHz)".
Various news and general interest magazines are also published from Delhi like India Today, Outlook, COVERT and many more.
stadium is one of the oldest cricket grounds in India and is a venue for international cricket matches. The Delhi cricket team
represents the city in the Ranji Trophy
, a domestic first-class cricket
championship. The city is also home to the IPL
team Delhi Daredevils
, and ICL
team Delhi Giants
(earlier named Delhi Jets).
Football is a very popular sport in the city and is home to the newly formed AIFF-u19 club which will take part in the 2011 format of the I League. The only football stadium in Delhi is the Ambedkar Stadium
which holds 20,000 people though in the past few years due to tremendous rise in popularity of the sport has held up to 50,000 people in the past years. Delhi also witnessed India winning back to back trophies in football – the 2007 Nehru Cup defeating Syria
1–0, the AFC Challenge Cup 2008 defeating favourites Tajikistan 4–1 with a stellar performance by local star Sunil Chhetri, and the 2009 Nehru Cup
.
Rugby
has become an increasingly popular sport among youngsters and the city is home to the Delhi Lions and Delhi Hurricanes. The city successfully hosted the 2010 Asian Five Nations Rugby Tournament's Division Two match between India and Philippines with Philippines defeating India to win promotion to Division One in 2011. The only rugby stadium in the city is in the Delhi University North Campus. Boxing and shooting figure among increasingly popular sports in the suburb of Gurgaon
.
When the Elite Football League of India
was introduced in August 2011, Delhi was noted as one of eight cities to be awarded a team for the inaugural season. Named the Delhi Defenders, the team's first season will be played in Pune
, and it will be Delhi's first professional American football
franchise.
Formula 1 has now got a circuit in India in Greater Noida
, a suburb of Delhi in the twin cities area of (Noida-Greater Noida), which has hosted the Indian Grand Prix
on october 30, 2011 with the Jaypee Group
constructing the circuit. It is set to be among the top 5 fastest circuits in the world. The team, Force India F1, was formed in October 2007 when a consortium led by Indian businessman Vijay Mallya and Michiel Mol bought the Spyker F1 team for € 88 million. Force India F1 represents increased Indian participation within Formula One.
Golf
is also a very popular sport in the capital city and the National Capital Region, which is home to the highest number of golf courses in India. Other sports such as field hockey, basketball, tennis, squash, badminton, swimming, kart racing
, weightlifting, table tennis, cycling, roller skating and cue sports, such as snooker, billiards and diving are also popular.
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
and the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium
are other stadiums in Delhi. In the past, Delhi has hosted several domestic and international sporting events, such as the First
and the Ninth
Asian Games
. Delhi hosted the 2010 Commonwealth Games
, the largest multi-sport event ever held in India. Delhi lost bidding for the 2014
Asian Games
, and considered making a bid for the 2020 Summer Olympics
. However, sports minister Manohar Singh Gill later stated that funding infrastructure would come before a 2020 bid.
The mess left behind after the Commonwealth Games prompted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to replace Sports and Youth Affairs minister Manohar Singh Gill with Ajay Maken in the 19 January 2011 Cabinet reshuffle.
Other
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, next to Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census. There are nearly 22.2 million residents in the greater National Capital Region
National Capital Region (India)
The National Capital Region in India is a name for the conurbation or metropolitan area which encompasses the entire National Capital Territory of Delhi as well as urban areas ringing it in neighbouring states of Haryana, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan...
urban area (which also includes the cities Noida
Noida
Noida , short for the New Okhla Industrial Development Area, is an area in India under the management of the New Okhla Industrial Development Authority . Noida came into administrative existence on 17 April 1976 and celebrates 17 April as "Noida Day". It was set up as part of an urbanization...
, Greater Noida
Greater Noida
Greater Noida is located in the Gautam Budh Nagar district of the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh . It is under the purview of the National Capital Region of India...
, Ghaziabad, Gurgaon
Gurgaon
Gurgaon is the second largest city in the Indian state of Haryana. Gurgaon is the industrial and financial center of Haryana. It is located 30 km south of national capital New Delhi, about 10 kilometers from Dwarka Sub City and 268 km south of Chandigarh, the state capital...
and Faridabad
Faridabad
Faridabad is a city in the south-east of Haryana state in northern India, in Faridabad district. It lies at 28º 25' 16" N Latitude and 77º 18' 28" E Longitude. The district shares its boundaries with the National Capital and Union Territory of Delhi to its north, Gurgaon district to the west and...
along with other smaller nearby towns). The name Delhi is often also used to include urban areas near the NCT, as well as to refer to New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
, the capital of India, which lies within the metropolis. Although technically a federally administered union territory
Union Territory
A Union Territory is a sub-national administrative division of India, in the federal framework of governance. Unlike the states of India, which have their own elected governments, union territories are ruled directly by the federal government; the President of India appoints an Administrator or...
, the political administration of the NCT of Delhi today more closely resembles that of a state of India with its own legislature
Legislature
A legislature is a kind of deliberative assembly with the power to pass, amend, and repeal laws. The law created by a legislature is called legislation or statutory law. In addition to enacting laws, legislatures usually have exclusive authority to raise or lower taxes and adopt the budget and...
, high court
High Court
The term High Court usually refers to the superior court of a country or state. In some countries, it is the highest court . In others, it is positioned lower in the hierarchy of courts The term High Court usually refers to the superior court (or supreme court) of a country or state. In some...
and an executive council of ministers headed by a Chief Minister
Chief Minister of Delhi
The Chief Minister of Delhi ) is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in Delhi assembly. The Chief Minister leads the executive branch of the Government of Delhi....
. New Delhi
New Delhi
New Delhi is the capital city of India. It serves as the centre of the Government of India and the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. New Delhi is situated within the metropolis of Delhi. It is one of the nine districts of Delhi Union Territory. The total area of the city is...
, jointly administered by both the federal Government of India
Government of India
The Government of India, officially known as the Union Government, and also known as the Central Government, was established by the Constitution of India, and is the governing authority of the union of 28 states and seven union territories, collectively called the Republic of India...
and the local Government of Delhi
Government of Delhi
The Government of Delhi is the supreme governing authority of the Indian national capital territory of Delhi and its 9 districts. It consists of an executive, led by the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, a judiciary and a legislative...
, is also the capital of the NCT of Delhi.
Located on the banks of the River Yamuna, Delhi has been known to be continuously inhabited since at least the 6th century BCE, though human habitation is believed to have existed since the second millennium BCE. Delhi is also widely believed to have been the site of Indraprastha, the legendary capital of the Pandavas during the times of the Mahabharata
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
. Delhi re-emerged as a major political, cultural and commercial city along the trade route
Trade route
A trade route is a logistical network identified as a series of pathways and stoppages used for the commercial transport of cargo. Allowing goods to reach distant markets, a single trade route contains long distance arteries which may further be connected to several smaller networks of commercial...
s between northwest India and the Gangetic plain after the rise of the Delhi sultanate
Delhi Sultanate
The Delhi Sultanate is a term used to cover five short-lived, Delhi based kingdoms or sultanates, of Turkic origin in medieval India. The sultanates ruled from Delhi between 1206 and 1526, when the last was replaced by the Mughal dynasty...
s. It is the site of many ancient and medieval monuments, archaeological sites and remains. In 1639, Mughal emperor Shahjahan built a new walled city in Delhi which served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1649 to 1857.
After the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
had gained a foothold in North East India in the late 18th century, Calcutta
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
became the capital of British held territories under Company rule
Company rule in India
Company rule in India refers to the rule or dominion of the British East India Company on the Indian subcontinent...
(1774–1857) and remained so under the British Raj
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
(1857–1920). British had captured Delhi by 1857 and George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
announced in 1911 that the capital of British controlled parts of India would move back to Delhi. A new capital city, New Delhi, was built to the south of the old city during the 1920s. When India gained independence from British rule
History of the Republic of India
The history of the Republic of India began on 26 January 1950. The country became an independent dominion within the British Commonwealth 15 August 1947. George VI was King until the Republic was proclaimed in 1950. Concurrently the Muslim-majority northwest and east of British India was separated...
in 1947, New Delhi was declared its capital and seat of government. As such, New Delhi houses important offices of the federal government, including the Parliament of India
Parliament of India
The Parliament of India is the supreme legislative body in India. Founded in 1919, the Parliament alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all political bodies in India. The Parliament of India comprises the President and the two Houses, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha...
, as well as numerous national museums, monuments, and art galleries.
Owing to the migration of people from across the country(mostly from the Northern and Eastern states of India), Delhi has grown to be a multicultural, cosmopolitan metropolis. Its rapid development and urbanisation, coupled with the relatively high average income of its population, has transformed Delhi into a major cultural, political, and commercial centre of India..
Etymology and idioms
The Etymology and idioms of "Delhi" is uncertain, but many possibilities exist. The very common view is that its eponymEponym
An eponym is the name of a person or thing, whether real or fictitious, after which a particular place, tribe, era, discovery, or other item is named or thought to be named...
is Dhillu or Dilu, a king of the Mauryan dynasty, who built the city in 50 BC and named it after himself. The Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
/Prakrit
Prakrit
Prakrit is the name for a group of Middle Indic, Indo-Aryan languages, derived from Old Indic dialects. The word itself has a flexible definition, being defined sometimes as, "original, natural, artless, normal, ordinary, usual", or "vernacular", in contrast to the literary and religious...
word dhili ("loose") was used by the Tomaras to refer to the city because the Iron Pillar built by Raja Dhava had a weak foundation and was replaced. The coins in circulation in the region under the Tomaras were called dehliwal. Some other historians believe that the name is derived from Dilli, a corruption of dehleez or dehali —both terms mean 'threshold' or 'gateway'— and symbolic of the city as a gateway to the Gangetic Plain. Another theory suggests that the city's original name was Dhillika.
Delhi is referenced in various idioms of Northern Indo-Aryan languages
Indo-Aryan languages
The Indo-Aryan languages constitutes a branch of the Indo-Iranian languages, itself a branch of the Indo-European language family...
. Examples include –
- Abhi Dilli door hai (or, its PersianPersian languagePersian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
version, Hanouz Dehli dour ast ) literally meaning Delhi is still far away, which is generically said about a task or journey is still far from complete. del or dili also meaning heart. In Persian 'del or dili have many meaning cordial, heart, center, love, etc. - Dilli dilwalon ka shehr or Dilli Dilwalon ki meaning Delhi belongs to the large-hearted/daring.
- Aas-paas barse, Dilli pari tarse literally meaning it pours all around, while Delhi lies parched. An allusion to the sometimes semi-arid climate of Delhi, it idiomatically refers to situations of deprivation when there is plenty all around.
- Dilli kee Sardi. A proverb used to refer to the winters of Delhi, which amidst the concrete build-up of the metropolis and the immense greens looks breathtaking. Popularly used in BollywoodBollywoodBollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
, including a song, this proverb highlights the chilly and beautiful Delhi winters where temperatures just manage to stay above the 0 degrees C mark.
History
Mahabharata
The Mahabharata is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India and Nepal, the other being the Ramayana. The epic is part of itihasa....
. Settlements grew from the time of the Mauryan Empire (c. 300 BCE).
Remains of seven major cities have been discovered in Delhi. Anang Pal of the Tomara dynasty founded the city of Lal Kot in AD 736. The Chauhan
Chauhan
Chauhan, Chouhan or Chohan , , - is a clan who ruled parts of northern India in the Middle Ages. The clan is most famous for Rajput King Maharaja Prithviraj Chauhan...
s conquered Lal Kot in 1180 and renamed it Qila Rai Pithora. The Chauhan king Prithviraj III
Prithviraj III
Prithvi Raj III, commonly known as Prithviraj Chauhan , was a king of the Hindu Chauhan dynasty, who ruled the kingdom of Ajmer and Delhi in northern India during the latter half of the 12th century....
was defeated in 1192 by the invader Muhammad Ghori.
In 1206, Qutb-ud-din Aybak
Qutb-ud-din Aybak
Qutb-ud-din Aibak was a Turkic king of Northwest India who ruled from his capital in Delhi where he built the Qutub Minar and the Quwwat Al Islam mosque. He was of Turkic descent from central Asia, the first Sultan of Delhi and founder of the Slave dynasty of India. He ruled for only four years,...
, the first ruler of the Slave Dynasty
Slave dynasty
The Slave Dynasty or Mamluk Dynasty or Ghulam Dynasty , was directed into India by Qutb-ud-din Aybak, a Turkic general of Central Asian birth. It was the first of five unrelated dynasties to rule India's Delhi Sultanate from 1206 to 1290...
established the Delhi Sultanate
Delhi Sultanate
The Delhi Sultanate is a term used to cover five short-lived, Delhi based kingdoms or sultanates, of Turkic origin in medieval India. The sultanates ruled from Delhi between 1206 and 1526, when the last was replaced by the Mughal dynasty...
. Qutb-ud-din started the construction the Qutub Minar
Qutub Minar
Qutub Minar also Qutb Minar, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Located in Delhi, India. The Qutub Minar is constructed with red sandstone and marble, and is the tallest minaret in India, with a height of 72.5 meters , contains 379 stairs to reach the top, and the diameter of base is 14.3 meters...
and Quwwat-al-Islam (might of Islam), the earliest extant mosque in India. After the fall of the Slave dynasty, a succession of Turkic and Afghan dynasties, the Khilji dynasty
Khilji dynasty
The Khilji Sultanate was a dynasty of Turko-Afghan Khalaj origin who ruled large parts of South Asia from 1290 - 1320. They were the second dynasty to rule the Delhi Sultanate of India...
, the Tughluq dynasty, the Sayyid dynasty
Sayyid dynasty
The Sayyid dynasty ruled Delhi sultanate in India from 1414 to 1451. They succeeded the Tughlaq dynasty and ruled that sultanate until they were displaced by the Lodi dynasty.This family claimed to be Sayyids, or descendants of Prophet Muhammad...
and the Lodhi dynasty
Lodhi dynasty
Lodi Dynasty was a Pashtun dynasty that was the last dynasty to rule the Delhi Sultanate. The dynasty founded by Bahlul Lodi ruled from 1451 to 1526...
held power in the late medieval period, and built a sequence of forts and townships that are part of the seven cities of Delhi.
In 1398, Timur Lenk invaded India on the pretext that the Muslim sultans of Delhi were too lenient towards their Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
subjects. Timur entered Delhi and the city was sacked, destroyed, and left in ruins. Near Delhi, Timur massacred 100,000 captives. Delhi was a major centre of Sufism
Sufism
Sufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...
during the Sultanate period. In 1526, Zahiruddin Babur defeated the last Lodhi sultan in the First Battle of Panipat
First battle of Panipat
The first battle of Panipat took place in Northern India, and marked the beginning of the Mughal Empire. This was one of the earliest battles involving gunpowder firearms and field artillery.-Details:...
and founded the Mughal Empire
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
that ruled from Delhi, Agra
Agra
Agra a.k.a. Akbarabad is a city on the banks of the river Yamuna in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, west of state capital, Lucknow and south from national capital New Delhi. With a population of 1,686,976 , it is one of the most populous cities in Uttar Pradesh and the 19th most...
and Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
.
The Mughal Empire ruled Delhi for more than three centuries, with a sixteen-year hiatus during the reign of Sher Shah Suri
Sher Shah Suri
Sher Shah Suri , birth name Farid Khan, also known as Sher Khan , was the founder of the short-lived Sur Empire in northern India, with its capital at Delhi, before its demise in the hands of the resurgent Mughal Empire...
, from 1540 to 1556. During 1553–1556, the Hindu king, Hemu Vikramaditya acceded to the throne of Delhi by defeating forces of Mughal Emperor Akbar at Agra and Delhi. However, the Mughals reestablished their rule after Akbar's army defeated Hemu during the Second Battle of Panipat. Shah Jahan
Shah Jahan
Shah Jahan Shah Jahan (also spelled Shah Jehan, Shahjehan, , Persian: شاه جهان) (January 5, 1592 – January 22, 1666) Shah Jahan (also spelled Shah Jehan, Shahjehan, , Persian: شاه جهان) (January 5, 1592 – January 22, 1666) (Full title: His Imperial Majesty Al-Sultan al-'Azam wal Khaqan...
built the seventh city of Delhi that bears his name (Shahjahanabad), and is more commonly known as the "Old City" or "Old Delhi". The old city served as the capital of the Mughal Empire from 1638. After 1680, the Mughal Empire's influence declined rapidly as the Hindu Marathas rose to prominence.
A weakened Mughal Empire lost the Battle of Karnal
Battle of Karnal
The Battle of Karnal , was a decisive victory for Nader Shah the emperor of Persia during his invasion of India. Shah's forces defeated the army of Muhammad Shah, the Mughal emperor in little more than three hours thus paving the way for the Persian sack of Delhi...
, following which the victorious forces of Nader Shah
Nader Shah
Nāder Shāh Afshār ruled as Shah of Iran and was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty. Because of his military genius, some historians have described him as the Napoleon of Persia or the Second Alexander...
invaded and looted Delhi, carrying away many treasures, including the Peacock Throne
Peacock Throne
The Peacock Throne, called Takht-e Tâvus in Persian, is the name originally given to a Mughal throne of India, which was later adopted and used to describe the thrones of the Persian emperors from Nader Shah Afshari and erroneously to Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi whose throne was a reconstruction of...
. A treaty signed in 1752 made Marathas the protector of the Mughal throne at Delhi. In 1761, after the Marathas lost the third battle of Panipat
Third battle of Panipat
The Third Battle of Panipat took place on 14 January 1761, at Panipat , about 60 miles north of Delhi between a northern expeditionary force of the Maratha Confederacy and a coalition of the King of Afghanistan, Ahmad Shah Abdali with 2 Indian Muslim allies—the Rohilla Afghans of the Doab, and the...
, Delhi was raided by Ahmed Shah Abdali. In 1803, the forces of British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
overran
Battle of Delhi
The Battle of Delhi took place on 11 September 1803 during the Second Anglo-Maratha War, between British troops under General Lake, and Marathas of Scindia's army under French General Louis Bourquin...
the Maratha forces near Delhi and ended the Mughal rule over the city.
After the Indian Rebellion of 1857
Indian Rebellion of 1857
The Indian Rebellion of 1857 began as a mutiny of sepoys of the British East India Company's army on 10 May 1857, in the town of Meerut, and soon escalated into other mutinies and civilian rebellions largely in the upper Gangetic plain and central India, with the major hostilities confined to...
, Delhi came under direct rule of the British crown
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
and was made a district province of the Punjab
Punjab (British India)
Punjab was a province of British India, it was one of the last areas of the Indian subcontinent to fall under British rule. With the end of British rule in 1947 the province was split between West Punjab, which went to Pakistan, and East Punjab, which went to India...
. In 1911, the capital of British India was transferred from Calcutta to Delhi, following which a team of British architects led by Edwin Lutyens
Edwin Lutyens
Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens, OM, KCIE, PRA, FRIBA was a British architect who is known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era...
designed a new political and administrative area, known as New Delhi, to house the government buildings. New Delhi, also known as Lutyens' Delhi, was officially declared as the capital of the Union of India after the country gained independence
History of the Republic of India
The history of the Republic of India began on 26 January 1950. The country became an independent dominion within the British Commonwealth 15 August 1947. George VI was King until the Republic was proclaimed in 1950. Concurrently the Muslim-majority northwest and east of British India was separated...
on 15 August 1947.
During the partition of India
Partition of India
The Partition of India was the partition of British India on the basis of religious demographics that led to the creation of the sovereign states of the Dominion of Pakistan and the Union of India on 14 and 15...
, thousands of Hindu and Sikh refugees from West Punjab and Sindh
Sindh
Sindh historically referred to as Ba'ab-ul-Islam , is one of the four provinces of Pakistan and historically is home to the Sindhi people. It is also locally known as the "Mehran". Though Muslims form the largest religious group in Sindh, a good number of Christians, Zoroastrians and Hindus can...
fled to Delhi, while many Muslim residents of the city migrated to Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
. Starting on 31 October 1984, approximately three thousand Sikhs were killed during the four-day long anti-Sikh riots
1984 anti-Sikh riots
The 1984 Anti-Sikh pogroms / riots or the 1984 Sikh Massacre was a sikh genocide there was four days of violence in northern India, particularly Delhi, during which armed mobs killed Sikhs, looted and set fire to Sikh homes, businesses and schools, and attacked gurdwaras, in response to the...
after the Sikh body guards of then-Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhara was an Indian politician who served as the third Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms and a fourth term . She was assassinated by Sikh extremists...
, assassinated her. Migration to Delhi from the rest of India continues, contributing more to the rise of Delhi's population than the birth rate, which is declining.
The Constitution (Sixty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1991
Constitution of India
The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India. It lays down the framework defining fundamental political principles, establishes the structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions, and sets out fundamental rights, directive principles, and the duties of citizens...
declared the Union Territory of Delhi to be formally known as National Capital Territory of Delhi. The Act gave Delhi its own legislative assembly, though with limited powers. In December 2001, the Parliament of India building in New Delhi was attacked
2001 Indian Parliament attack
The 2001 Indian Parliament attack was a high-profile attack by Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorists against the building housing the Parliament of India in New Delhi...
by armed militants resulting in the death of six security personnel. India suspected the hand of Pakistan-based militant groups in the attacks resulting in a major diplomatic crisis between the two countries. Delhi again witnessed terrorist attacks in October 2005
29 October 2005 Delhi bombings
The 29 October 2005 Delhi bombings occurred on 29 October 2005 in Delhi, India, killing 62 people and injuring at least 210 others in three explosions. The bombings came only two days before the important festival of Diwali, which is celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains...
and September 2008 resulting in the deaths of 62 and 30 civilians respectively.
Geography
Delhi is an expansive area, in its extremity it spans from Narela
Narela
Narela sub-city is a tehsil, located in the North West Delhi district of NCT of Delhi, and forms the border of the Delhi state with Haryana. Situated just off the Grand Trunk Road, its location made it an important market town for the surrounding areas, during 19th century, which it still retains...
in the north to Ghitorni in the south. Najafgarh
Najafgarh
Najafgarh is located at the outskirts of the southwestern part of New Delhi, India.It has a mixture of Rural and Urban population from New Delhi and Haryana.-Overview:...
is the furthest point west, and Seemapuri is its eastern extremity. The NCR encompasses towns south and east of the said border, namely Ghaziabad, Noida, Faridabad and Gurgaon.
Oddly, the main expanse of Delhi does not follow a specific geographical feature. The main city area of Delhi does not end until Arjangarh in the South, Anand Vihar in the east, Singhu in the north and Nangloi in the west. The terrain of Delhi shows great variation. It changes from plain agricultural fields in the north to dry, arid hills (an offshoot of the Aravalli Hills of Rajasthan
Rajasthan
Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with...
) in the south and west. There used to be large natural lakes in the southern part of the city, but most have now dried up. Most of Delhi, including New Delhi, is situated on the western banks of the river Yamuna
Yamuna
The Yamuna is the largest tributary river of the Ganges in northern India...
which separates the main city from eastern suburbs (commonly known as trans-Yamuna), although there is a good connectivity between the eastern and western sides, with a number of road and railway bridges as well as the Delhi Metro
Delhi Metro
Delhi Metro is a rapid transit system serving Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida and Ghaziabad in the National Capital Region of India. It is one of the largest metro networks in the world. The network consists of six lines with a total length of with 142 stations of which 35 are underground...
.
Delhi is located at 28.61°N 77.23°E, and lies in northern India. It borders the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
to the east and Haryana
Haryana
Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...
on the north, west and south. During British Raj
British Raj
British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947; The term can also refer to the period of dominion...
it was adjacent to the province of Punjab
Punjab (British India)
Punjab was a province of British India, it was one of the last areas of the Indian subcontinent to fall under British rule. With the end of British rule in 1947 the province was split between West Punjab, which went to Pakistan, and East Punjab, which went to India...
and still historically and culturally tied closely to the region of Punjab. Almost entirely within the Gangetic plains, two prominent features of the geography of Delhi are the Yamuna flood plains and the Delhi ridge
Delhi ridge
Delhi ridge, sometimes simply called The Ridge, is a ridge in the National Capital Territory of Delhi in India. The ridge is a northern extension of the ancient Aravalli Range, some 1500 million years old...
. The low-lying Yamuna flood plains provide fertile alluvial soil suitable for agriculture but are prone to recurrent floods. Reaching up to a height of 318 m (1,043 ft), the Delhi ridge forms a dominating feature in this region. It originates from the Aravalli Range
Aravalli Range
The Aravalli Range literally meaning 'line of peaks', is a range of mountains in western India and eastern Pakistan running approximately 800 km from northeast to southwest across states of Rajasthan, Haryana, and Gujarat and Pakistani provinces of Punjab and Sindh...
in the south and encircles the west, northeast and northwest parts of the city. Yamuna, a sacred river in Hinduism
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
, is the only major river flowing through Delhi. Another river called the Hindon River
Hindon River
Hindon River, a tributary of Yamuna river, is a river in India that originates in the Saharanpur District, from Upper Shivalik in Lower Himalayan Range...
separates Ghaziabad from the eastern part of Delhi. Delhi falls under seismic zone-IV
Earthquake hazard zoning of India
The Indian subcontinent has a history of devastating earthquakes. The major reason for the high frequency and intensity of the earthquakes is that India is driving into Asia at a rate of approximately 47 mm/year. Geographical statistics of India show that almost 54% of the land is vulnerable...
, making it vulnerable to major earthquakes, but earthquakes have not been common in recent history. Delhi has the third highest tree-cover among cities in India.
Delhi was one of the world's ten most polluted cities in the 1990s
1990s
File:1990s decade montage.png|From left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope floats in space after it was taken up in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields and the USA Lexie in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War; The signing of the Oslo Accords on...
, with vehicles producing 70% of the polluting emissions. In 1996 the Centre for Science and Environment
Centre for Science and Environment
Centre for Science and Environment is a not-for-profit public interest research and advocacy organisation based in New Delhi, India. Established in 1980, CSE has been working on various environment-development issues in India, pushing for policy changes wherever required and better implementation...
started a public interest litigation in the Supreme Court of India
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
that ordered the conversion of Delhi's fleet of buses and taxis to be run on Compressed Natural Gas
Compressed natural gas
Compressed natural gas is a fossil fuel substitute for gasoline , diesel, or propane/LPG. Although its combustion does produce greenhouse gases, it is a more environmentally clean alternative to those fuels, and it is much safer than other fuels in the event of a spill...
and banned the use of leaded petrol in 1998. In 2003, Delhi won the United States Department of Energy’s
United States Department of Energy
The United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
first ‘Clean Cities International Partner of the Year’ award for ‘‘bold efforts to curb air pollution and support alternative fuel initiatives’’.
Climate
Delhi features an atypical version of the humid subtropical climateHumid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a climate zone characterized by hot, humid summers and mild to cool winters...
(Köppen
Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by Crimea German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen himself, notably in 1918 and 1936...
Cwa). Summers are long and extremely hot, from early April to mid-October, with the monsoon season in between. Early March sees a reversal in the direction of wind, from the north-western direction, to the south-western. These bring the hot waves from Rajasthan, carrying sand and are a characteristic of the Delhi summer. These are called loo
Loo (wind)
The Loo is a strong, hot and dry summer afternoon wind from the west which blows over the western Indo-Gangetic Plain region of North India and Pakistan. It is especially strong in the months of May and June...
. The months of March to May see a time of hot prickling heat. Monsoon arrives at the end of June, bringing some respite from the heat, but increasing humidity at the same time. The brief, mild winter starts in late November and peaks in January and is notorious for its heavy fog.
Extreme temperatures range from −0.6 °C (30.9 °F) to 46.7 °C (116.1 °F). The annual mean temperature is 25 °C (77 °F); monthly mean temperatures range from 13 °C to 32 °C (56 °F to 90 °F). The average annual rainfall is approximately 714 mm (28.1 inches), most of which is during the monsoons in July and August. The average date of the advent of monsoon winds in Delhi is 29 June.
Famous for its mixture of historic landmarks, monuments, temples and stylish Art Deco style buildings, the city of New Delhi is filled with interest. Amongst the most notable landmarks within New Delhi are the India Gate, the Lotus Temple (Bahai Temple) and also the President House (Rashtrapati Bhavan).
No trip to New Delhi is complete without a photo or two of its famous Red Fort (Lal Qila), which features a stunning red facade and evening light shows. Just across from the Red Fort is the Raj Ghat, an official memorial to India's spiritual leader, Mahatma Gandhi. New Delhi's main monuments and landmarks are described below.
Civic administration
As of July 2007, the National Capital Territory of Delhi comprises nine districts, 27 tehsilTehsil
A Tehsil or Tahsil/Tahasil , also known as Taluk and Mandal, is an administrative division of some country/countries of South Asia....
s, 59 census towns, 300 villages and three statutory towns the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD); the New Delhi Municipal Committee (NDMC); and the Delhi Cantonment Board (DCB).
Municipal Corporation of Delhi
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi is a municipal corporation, an autonomous body that governs 9 Districts of Delhi, in the state of Delhi, India. It is one of three municipal corporations in the National Capital Territory of Delhi, the others being New Delhi Municipal Council, and Delhi...
(MCD), New Delhi Municipal Council
New Delhi Municipal Council
New Delhi Municipal Council is the municipal corporation of the city of New Delhi, India, and the area under its administration is referred to as the NDMC area. NDMC, covering an area of 43.7 km2, is governed by a council with a chairperson appointed by the central government and includes the...
(NDMC) and Delhi Cantonment Board
Delhi Cantonment
Delhi Cantonment is one of the three statutory towns that make up the National Capital Territory of Delhi. Its population according to the 2001 Census was 124,452...
. MCD is one of the largest municipal corporations in the world providing civic amenities to an estimated 13.78 million people. The capital of India, New Delhi, falls under the administration of NDMC. The chairperson of the NDMC is appointed by the Government of India in consultation with the Chief Minister of Delhi
Chief Minister of Delhi
The Chief Minister of Delhi ) is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in Delhi assembly. The Chief Minister leads the executive branch of the Government of Delhi....
.
Delhi has four major satellite cities, which lie outside the National Capital Territory of Delhi. These are Gurgaon
Gurgaon
Gurgaon is the second largest city in the Indian state of Haryana. Gurgaon is the industrial and financial center of Haryana. It is located 30 km south of national capital New Delhi, about 10 kilometers from Dwarka Sub City and 268 km south of Chandigarh, the state capital...
and Faridabad
Faridabad
Faridabad is a city in the south-east of Haryana state in northern India, in Faridabad district. It lies at 28º 25' 16" N Latitude and 77º 18' 28" E Longitude. The district shares its boundaries with the National Capital and Union Territory of Delhi to its north, Gurgaon district to the west and...
(in Haryana
Haryana
Haryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...
), and New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (Noida) and Ghaziabad (in Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
). Delhi is divided into nine districts. Each district (division) is headed by a Deputy Commissioner and has three subdivisions. A Subdivision Magistrate heads each subdivision. All Deputy Commissioners report to the Divisional Commissioner. The District Administration of Delhi is the enforcing department for all kinds of State and Central Government policies and exercises supervisory powers over numerous other functionaries of the Government.
The Delhi High Court
Delhi High Court
The High Court of Delhi was established on 31 October 1966. The High Court of Delhi was established with four judges. They were Chief Justice K. S. Hegde, Justice I. D. Dua, Justice H. R. Khanna and Justice S. K. Kapur.-History:...
has jurisdiction over Delhi. Delhi also has lower courts: the Small Causes Court
Small Causes Court
In Indian cities, the Small Causes Court is responsible for adjudicating matters related to civil cases. The court is responsible for cases relating to tax, , property disputes and other such cases...
for civil cases; the Magistrate Court and the Sessions Court
Sessions Court
A Sessions Court is a court of law which exists in several Commonwealth countries.-India:In Indian cities, the Sessions Court is responsible for adjudicating matters related to criminal cases. The court is responsible for cases relating to murders, theft, dacoity, pick-pocketing and other such cases...
for criminal cases. The Delhi Police, headed by the Police Commissioner, is one of the largest metropolitan police forces in the world. Delhi is administratively divided into nine police-zones
Districts of Delhi Police
Delhi is divided into eleven Districts of Delhi Police. The police districts are as follows:# Central district# East district# New Delhi district# North district# North East district# North West district# Outer district# South district...
, which are further subdivided into 95 local police stations.
Recently, there have been changes in the Police Districts, their jurisdiction etc., although the Administrative Districts of Delhi are nine only, it seems. For instance, an Outer Delhi Police District has been carved out in the Western part of Delhi.
Government and politics
Earlier known as a special union territoryUnion Territory
A Union Territory is a sub-national administrative division of India, in the federal framework of governance. Unlike the states of India, which have their own elected governments, union territories are ruled directly by the federal government; the President of India appoints an Administrator or...
, the National Capital Territory of Delhi has its own Legislative Assembly
Legislative Assembly of Delhi
The Legislative Assembly of Delhi, also known as Vidhan Sabha, is a unicameral law making body of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, one of the 7 union territories in India...
, Lieutenant Governor, council of ministers and Chief Minister
Chief Minister of Delhi
The Chief Minister of Delhi ) is the chief of government, head of the Council of Ministers and the leader of the majority party in Delhi assembly. The Chief Minister leads the executive branch of the Government of Delhi....
. The legislative assembly seats are filled by direct election from territorial constituencies in the NCT. However, the Union Government of India and the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi
Government of Delhi
The Government of Delhi is the supreme governing authority of the Indian national capital territory of Delhi and its 9 districts. It consists of an executive, led by the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, a judiciary and a legislative...
jointly administer New Delhi, a city in Delhi, which is the capital and seat of government of both the National Capital Territory of Delhi and of India itself.
Services like transport and others are taken care of by the Delhi government, services such as the police are directly under the control of the Central Government. The legislative assembly was re-established in 1993 for the first time since 1956, with direct federal rule in the span. In addition, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi
Municipal Corporation of Delhi
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi is a municipal corporation, an autonomous body that governs 9 Districts of Delhi, in the state of Delhi, India. It is one of three municipal corporations in the National Capital Territory of Delhi, the others being New Delhi Municipal Council, and Delhi...
(MCD) handles civic administration for the city as part of the Panchayati Raj act. New Delhi, an urban area in Delhi, is the seat of both the State Government of Delhi and the Government of India. The Parliament of India
Parliament of India
The Parliament of India is the supreme legislative body in India. Founded in 1919, the Parliament alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all political bodies in India. The Parliament of India comprises the President and the two Houses, Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha...
, the Rashtrapati Bhavan
Rashtrapati Bhavan
The Rashtrapati Bhavan or The Official Residence of the Head of the State is the official residence of the President of India, located at Raisina hill in New Delhi, India. Until 1950 it was known as "Viceroy's House" and served as the residence of the Viceroy and Governor-General of India...
(Presidential Palace), Cabinet Secretariat
Cabinet Secretariat
The Cabinet Secretariat is responsible for the administration of the Government of India. It functions from the Secretariat Building, New Delhi, where most of Cabinet of India sits...
and the Supreme Court of India
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
are located in New Delhi. There are 70 assembly constituencies and seven Lok Sabha
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha or House of the People is the lower house of the Parliament of India. Members of the Lok Sabha are elected by direct election under universal adult suffrage. As of 2009, there have been fifteen Lok Sabhas elected by the people of India...
(Indian parliament's lower house) constituencies in Delhi.
Delhi was a traditional stronghold of the Indian National Congress
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Bharatiya Janata Party. It is the largest and one of the oldest democratic political parties in the world. The party's modern liberal platform is largely considered center-left in the Indian...
, also known as the Congress Party. In the 1990s, the Bharatiya Janata Party
Bharatiya Janata Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party ,; translation: Indian People's Party) is one of the two major political parties in India, the other being the Indian National Congress. Established in 1980, it is India's second largest political party in terms of representation in the parliament...
(BJP) under the leadership of Madan Lal Khurana
Madan Lal Khurana
Madan Lal Khurana is an Indian politician and former Chief Minister of Delhi. He has also served as the Governor of Rajasthan.-Early life:...
came into power; however in 1998, Congress regained power under Sheila Dikshit
Sheila Dikshit
Sheila Dikshit is the Chief Minister of Delhi. She is from the Indian National Congress. Dikshit was sworn in as the Chief Minister for a third consecutive term of the Government of Delhi state in January 2009 after pulling a victory in November 2008 state elections...
, the incumbent Chief Minister. The Congress retained power in the Legislative Assembly in the 2003 and 2008 elections.
Economy
With an estimated net State Domestic ProductState Domestic Product
State Domestic Product, or SDP, is the total value of goods and services produced during any financial year within the geographical boundaries of a province or state. Also called the state income, SDP is always calculated or estimated in monetary terms, and is instrumental in the evaluation of per...
(FY 2007) of in nominal terms and in PPP
Purchasing power parity
In economics, purchasing power parity is a condition between countries where an amount of money has the same purchasing power in different countries. The prices of the goods between the countries would only reflect the exchange rates...
terms, Delhi is the largest commercial center in northern India. In 2007, Delhi had a per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
of at current prices, the third highest in India after Chandigarh and Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
as of 2006–07.
The tertiary sector
Tertiary sector of industry
The tertiary sector of the economy is one of the three economic sectors, the others being the secondary sector and the primary sector .The service sector consists of the "soft" parts of the economy, i.e...
contributes 70.95% of Delhi's gross SDP followed by secondary
Secondary sector of industry
The secondary sector of the economy or industrial sector includes those economic sectors that create a finished, tangible product: production and construction.-Function:...
and primary
Primary sector of industry
The sector of an economy making direct use of natural resources. This includes agriculture, forestry and fishing, mining, and extraction of oil and gas. This is contrasted with the secondary sector, producing manufactures and other processed goods, and the tertiary sector, producing services...
sectors, with 25.20% and 3.85% contribution, respectively. Delhi's workforce constitutes 32.82% of the population showing an increase of 52.52% between 1991 and 2001. Delhi's unemployment rate decreased from 12.57% in 1999–2000 to 4.63% in 2003. In December 2004, 636,000 people were registered with various employment exchange programmes in Delhi.
In 2001 the total workforce in all government (union and state) and quasi-government sector was 620,000. In comparison, the organised private sector employed 219,000. Key service industries include information technology, telecommunications, hotels, banking, media and tourism. Delhi's manufacturing industry has also grown considerably as many consumer goods industries have established manufacturing units and headquarters in and around Delhi. Delhi's large consumer market, coupled with the easy availability of skilled labour, has attracted foreign investment in Delhi. In 2001, the manufacturing sector employed 1,440,000 workers while the number of industrial units was 129,000.
Construction, power, telecommunications, health and community services, and real estate form integral parts of Delhi's economy. Delhi has India's largest and one of the fastest growing retail industries. As a result, land prices are booming and Delhi is currently ranked the 7th most expensive office hotspot in the world, with prices at $145.16 per square foot. As in the rest of India, the fast growth of retail is expected to affect the traditional unorganized retail trading system.
Utility services
Delhi Jal Board
Delhi Jal Board is the government agency responsible for supply of potable water to the most of the National Capital Territory region of Delhi, India. Delhi Jal Board was constituted on 6 April 1998 through an Act of the Delhi Legislative Assembly incorporating the previous Delhi Water Supply and...
(DJB). As of 2006, it supplied 650 MGD (million gallons per day) of water, while the water demand for 2005–06 was estimated to be 963 MGD. The rest of the demand is met by private and public tube wells
Water well
A water well is an excavation or structure created in the ground by digging, driving, boring or drilling to access groundwater in underground aquifers. The well water is drawn by an electric submersible pump, a trash pump, a vertical turbine pump, a handpump or a mechanical pump...
and hand pump
Hand pump
Hand pumps are manually operated pumps; they use human power and mechanical advantage to move fluids or air from one place to another. They are widely used in every country in the world for a variety of industrial, marine, irrigation and leisure activities...
s. At 240 MGD, the Bhakra storage is the largest water source for DJB, followed by the Yamuna and the Ganges. With falling groundwater
Groundwater
Groundwater is water located beneath the ground surface in soil pore spaces and in the fractures of rock formations. A unit of rock or an unconsolidated deposit is called an aquifer when it can yield a usable quantity of water. The depth at which soil pore spaces or fractures and voids in rock...
level and rising population density, Delhi faces severely acute water shortage. Delhi daily produces 8000 tonne
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
s of solid wastes which is dumped at three landfill
Landfill
A landfill site , is a site for the disposal of waste materials by burial and is the oldest form of waste treatment...
sites by MCD. The daily domestic waste water production is 470 MGD and industrial waste water is 70 MGD. A large portion of the sewerage flows untreated into the river Yamuna.
The city's per capita electricity consumption is about 1,265 kWh but actual demand is much more. In 1997, Delhi Vidyut Board
Delhi Vidyut Board
The Delhi Vidyut Board was formed by the Government of NCT Delhi in 1997 for the purpose of generation and distribution of power to the entire area of NCT of Delhi except the areas falling within the jurisdiction of NDMC and Delhi Cantonment Board...
(DVB) replaced Delhi Electric Supply Undertaking which was managed by the MCD. The DVB itself cannot generate adequate power to meet the city's demand and borrows power from India's Northern Region Grid. As a result, Delhi faces a power shortage resulting in frequent blackouts and brownouts, especially during the summer season when energy demand is at its peak. Several industrial units in Delhi rely on their own electrical generators to meet their electric demand and for back up during Delhi's frequent and disruptive power cuts. A few years ago, the power sector in Delhi was handed over to private companies. The distribution of electricity is carried out by companies run by Tata Power
Tata Power
Tata Power is India’s oldest and largest private sector power utility with an installed generation capacity of over 2977 MW.On the 22 March 2011 it has announced partnership with Sunengy an Australian firm, to build India's first floating solar plant....
and Reliance Energy
Reliance Energy
Reliance Infrastructure, formerly known as Reliance Energy and prior to that as Bombay Suburban Electric Supply , Its India's largest private sector enterprise in power utility and its a company under the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group banner, one of India's largest conglomerates. The...
. The Delhi Fire Service
Delhi Fire Service
Delhi Fire Service is the state-owned service that attends fire/rescue calls in the National Capital Territory of Delhi in India. The service consists of 51 fire stations, and attends to 15,000 fire and rescue calls on an average every year. The administrative control of The Delhi Fire Service...
runs 43 fire stations that attend about 15,000 fire and rescue calls per year.
State-owned Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited
Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited
Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited is a state-owned telecommunications service provider in the metro cities of Mumbai and New Delhi in India. The company was a monopoly until 1992, when the telecom sector was opened to other service providers. Transparency makes us different- is the motto of the...
(MTNL) and private enterprises like Vodafone Essar
Vodafone Essar
Vodafone Essar, formerly Hutchison Essar, is a cellular operator in India that covers 23 telecom circles in India. It is based in Mumbai. On July 2011, Vodafone Group agreed terms for the buy-out of its partner Essar from its Indian mobile phone business. The UK firm paid $5.46 billion to its...
, Airtel
Bharti Airtel
Bharti Airtel Limited , commonly known as Airtel, is an Indian telecommunications company that operates in 20 countries across South Asia, Africa and the Channel Islands. It operates a GSM network in all countries, providing 2G or 3G services depending upon the country of operation...
, Idea cellular
Idea cellular
Idea Cellular, usually referred to as Idea, is an Indian wireless telecom company based in Mumbai, India. Idea is the 3rd largest mobile services operator in India, in revenue terms, and recorded of over 98.4 million customers as of August 2011....
, Reliance Infocomm, and Tata Indicom
Tata Indicom
Tata Teleservices Limited is a Indian broadband and telecommunications provider based in Mumbai, India. It is a subsidiary of the Tata Group, an Indian conglomerate...
provide telephone and cell phone service to the city. In May 2008, Airtel alone had approximately 4 million cellular subscribers in Delhi. Cellular coverage is extensive, and both GSM and CDMA (from Reliance and Tata Indicom) services are available. Affordable broadband penetration is increasing in the city.
Transport
Public transport in Delhi is provided by buses, auto rickshaw
Auto rickshaw
An auto rickshaw or three-wheeler is a usually three-wheeled cabin cycle for private use and as a vehicle for hire. It is a motorized version of the traditional pulled rickshaw or cycle rickshaw...
s and a metro rail system.
Buses are the most popular means of transport catering to about 60% of the total demand. The state-owned Delhi Transport Corporation
Delhi Transport Corporation
Delhi Transport Corporation is the main public transport operator of Delhi. It operates buses on many bus routes, including the mudrika and Bahri Mudrika . It is the largest CNG-powered bus service operator in the world. DTC is operating Interstate Services in 6 states viz...
(DTC) is a major bus service provider for the city. The DTC operates the world's largest fleet of environment-friendly CNG buses. Delhi BRTS is Bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit is a term applied to a variety of public transportation systems using buses to provide faster, more efficient service than an ordinary bus line. Often this is achieved by making improvements to existing infrastructure, vehicles and scheduling...
serving the city which runs between Ambedkar Nagar and Delhi Gate.
The Delhi Metro
Delhi Metro
Delhi Metro is a rapid transit system serving Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida and Ghaziabad in the National Capital Region of India. It is one of the largest metro networks in the world. The network consists of six lines with a total length of with 142 stations of which 35 are underground...
, a mass rapid transit system built and operated by Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), serves many parts of Delhi as well as the satellite city of Gurgaon
Gurgaon
Gurgaon is the second largest city in the Indian state of Haryana. Gurgaon is the industrial and financial center of Haryana. It is located 30 km south of national capital New Delhi, about 10 kilometers from Dwarka Sub City and 268 km south of Chandigarh, the state capital...
in the neighbouring Haryana and Noida
Noida
Noida , short for the New Okhla Industrial Development Area, is an area in India under the management of the New Okhla Industrial Development Authority . Noida came into administrative existence on 17 April 1976 and celebrates 17 April as "Noida Day". It was set up as part of an urbanization...
in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh. As of October 2010, the metro consists of six operational lines with a total length of 153 km (95.1 mi) and 130 stations while several other lines are under construction. The Phase-I was built at a cost of US$2.3 billion and the Phase-II will cost an additional US$4.3 billion. Phase-II of the network is under construction and will have a total length of 128 km. It is expected to be completed by 2010. Phase-III and IV will be completed by 2015 and 2020 respectively, creating a network spanning 413.8 km, longer than that of the London Underground
London Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
.
Auto rickshaws are a popular means of public transportation in Delhi, as they charge a lower fare than taxis. Most run on Compressed Natural Gas
Compressed natural gas
Compressed natural gas is a fossil fuel substitute for gasoline , diesel, or propane/LPG. Although its combustion does produce greenhouse gases, it is a more environmentally clean alternative to those fuels, and it is much safer than other fuels in the event of a spill...
(CNG) and are yellow and green in colour. Taxis are not an integral part of Delhi public transport, though they are easily available. Private operators operate most taxis, and most neighborhoods have a taxi stand from which taxis can be ordered or picked up. In addition, air-conditioned radio taxis, which can be ordered by calling a central number, have become increasingly popular, charging 10 to 20 per kilometre depending upon type of car used in taxi.
Delhi is a major junction in the rail map of India and is the headquarters of the Northern Railway
Northern Railway (India)
The Northern Railways is one of the 16 zones and the northernmost zone of the Indian Railways. Its headquarters is in Delhi at New Delhi Railway Station....
. The five main railway stations are New Delhi Railway Station
New Delhi Railway Station
The New Delhi Railway Station , station code NDLS, situated between Ajmeri Gate and Paharganj is the main railway station in Delhi. New Delhi railway station is the second busiest and one of the largest in India. It handles over 300 trains each day with 16 platforms and about 360,000 passengers...
, Old Delhi, Nizamuddin Railway Station
Nizamuddin Railway Station
Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station is one of the three main railway stations of Delhi, India. Hazrat Nizamuddin railway station connects all the major cities and is being developed to ease congestion on New Delhi Railway Station. Hazrat Nizamuddin Railway Station is served by Northern Railway....
, Anand Vihar Railway Terminal
Anand Vihar Railway Terminal
Anand Vihar Railway Terminal , station code ANVT, is a large railway station in the Anand Vihar locality of Delhi, India...
and Sarai Rohilla
Sarai Rohilla
Sarai Rohilla , station code DEE, is a railway station in Delhi, India. This station is meant for metre gauge trains and the station is small when compared to other main stations in Delhi namely, New Delhi, Delhi Junction, Anand Vihar and Hazrat Nizamuddin stations...
.
Delhi is connected to other cities through many highways and expressways. Delhi currently has three expressways and three are under construction to connect it with its prosperous and commercial suburbs. The Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway
Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway
Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway is a long access-controlled toll expressway connecting Delhi, the national capital of India, and Gurgaon, an important satellite city of Haryana....
connects Delhi with Gurgaon
Gurgaon
Gurgaon is the second largest city in the Indian state of Haryana. Gurgaon is the industrial and financial center of Haryana. It is located 30 km south of national capital New Delhi, about 10 kilometers from Dwarka Sub City and 268 km south of Chandigarh, the state capital...
and the international airport. The DND Flyway
DND Flyway
DND Flyway is an eight-laned access controlled tolled expressway which connects Delhi to Noida, an industrial suburb area. It was built and is maintained by The Noida Toll Bridge Company Ltd. The acronym DND stands for "Delhi-Noida Direct".-Construction:The project, built by the Noida Toll Bridge...
and Noida-Greater Noida Expressway connect Delhi with two prosperous suburbs of Noida
Noida
Noida , short for the New Okhla Industrial Development Area, is an area in India under the management of the New Okhla Industrial Development Authority . Noida came into administrative existence on 17 April 1976 and celebrates 17 April as "Noida Day". It was set up as part of an urbanization...
and Greater Noida
Greater Noida
Greater Noida is located in the Gautam Budh Nagar district of the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh . It is under the purview of the National Capital Region of India...
.
Indira Gandhi International Airport
Indira Gandhi International Airport
Indira Gandhi International Airport is the primary international airport of the National Capital Region of Delhi, India, situated in West Delhi, 16 km southwest of New Delhi city centre. Named after Indira Gandhi, the former Prime Minister of India, it is the busiest airport in India in...
(DEL) is situated in the western corner of Delhi and serves as the main gateway for the city's domestic and international civilian air traffic. In 2006–07, the airport recorded a traffic of more than 23 million passengers, making it one of the busiest airports in South Asia. A new US$1.93 billion Terminal 3 handles an additional 34 million passengers annually in 2010. Further expansion programs will allow the airport to handle more than 100 million passengers per annum by 2020.
Private vehicles account for 30% of the total demand for transport. At 1922.32 km of road length per 100 km², Delhi has one of the highest road densities in India. Delhi is well connected to other parts of India by five National Highways
Indian highways
The National Highways Network of India, is a network of highways that is managed and maintained by agencies of the Government of India. These highways measured over as of 2010, including over of limited-access Expressways....
: NH 1
National Highway 1 (India)
National Highway 1 or is a National Highway in Northern India that links the National capital New Delhi to the town of Attari in Punjab near the India-Pakistan International border. This was a part of Grand Trunk Road of Sher Shah Suri, that ran from Lahore to Bengal, built on earlier roads that...
, 2
National Highway 2 (India)
National Highway 2 , commonly referred as Delhi-Kolkata Road is a busy Indian National Highway that runs through the states of Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal. It constitute a major portion of historical Grand Trunk Road along with NH 91 and NH 1 in India...
, 8, 10
National Highway 10 (India)
National Highway 10 a National Highway, length , in northern India that originates at Delhi and ends at the town of Fazilka in Punjab near the Indo-Pak Border.-External links:* Map of NH-10...
and 24
National Highway 24 (India)
National Highway 24 or NH 24 is a National Highway in India that connects the National capital Delhi to Uttar Pradesh state capital Lucknow running in length....
. Roads in Delhi are maintained by MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi), NDMC, Delhi Cantonment Board, Public Works Department (PWD) and Delhi Development Authority
Delhi Development Authority
The Delhi Development Authority was created in 1955 under the provisions of the Delhi Development Act "to promote and secure the development of Delhi".-History:...
.
Delhi's high population growth rate, coupled with high economic growth rate has resulted in an ever increasing demand for transport creating excessive pressure on the city's existent transport infrastructure. As of 2008. Also, the number of vehicles in the metropolitan region, i.e., Delhi NCR is 112 lakhs (11.2 million). In 2008, there were 85 cars in Delhi for every 1,000 of its residents. In order to meet the transport demand in Delhi, the State and Union government started the construction of a mass rapid transit system, including the Delhi Metro. In 1998, the Supreme Court of India
Supreme Court of India
The Supreme Court of India is the highest judicial forum and final court of appeal as established by Part V, Chapter IV of the Constitution of India...
ordered all public transport vehicles of Delhi to use compressed natural gas
Compressed natural gas
Compressed natural gas is a fossil fuel substitute for gasoline , diesel, or propane/LPG. Although its combustion does produce greenhouse gases, it is a more environmentally clean alternative to those fuels, and it is much safer than other fuels in the event of a spill...
(CNG) as fuel instead of diesel and other hydro-carbons.
Northern Peripheral Road
Northern Peripheral Road road is being developed under the public private partnership (PPP) model. This stretch will connect DwarkaDwarka
Dwarka also spelled Dvarka, Dwaraka, and Dvaraka, is a city and a municipality of Jamnagar district in the Gujarat state in India. Dwarka , also known as Dwarawati in Sanskrit literature is rated as one of the seven most ancient cities in the country...
with National Highway 8 at Kherki Dhaula and will pass Pataudi
Pataudi
Pataudi is a town in Gurgaon district in the Indian state of Haryana. It is located from Gurgaon, at the foot hills of the Aravali hills.Pataudi was the seat of Pataudi State which was ruled by the Nawabs of Pataudi. The 8th Nawab, Iftikhar Ali Khan Pataudi, played cricket for both England and...
Road. The NPR stretch has been planned as an alternate link road between Delhi and Gurgaon, and is expected to ease the traffic situation on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway. The road will also provide connectivity to the much-touted Reliance-HSIIDC SEZ besides the Garhi Harsaru dry depot.
Much like Delhi, Gurgaon
Gurgaon
Gurgaon is the second largest city in the Indian state of Haryana. Gurgaon is the industrial and financial center of Haryana. It is located 30 km south of national capital New Delhi, about 10 kilometers from Dwarka Sub City and 268 km south of Chandigarh, the state capital...
too will have a BRT corridor to decongest traffic on the Northern Peripheral Road. In several sections, the NPR will have provisions for the Bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor to ensure smooth flow. The road will be fully developed in March 2012.
Demographics
Blue-collar worker
A blue-collar worker is a member of the working class who performs manual labor. Blue-collar work may involve skilled or unskilled, manufacturing, mining, construction, mechanical, maintenance, technical installation and many other types of physical work...
and white collar
White-collar worker
The term white-collar worker refers to a person who performs professional, managerial, or administrative work, in contrast with a blue-collar worker, whose job requires manual labor...
– from all parts of India, further enhancing its diverse character. A diplomatic hub, home to the embassies of 160 countries, Delhi has a large expatriate
Expatriate
An expatriate is a person temporarily or permanently residing in a country and culture other than that of the person's upbringing...
population as well.
According to the 2011 census of India
2011 census of India
The 15th Indian National census was conducted in two phases, houselisting and population enumeration. Houselisting phase began on April 1, 2010 and involved collection of information about all buildings...
, the population of Delhi is 16,753,235. The corresponding population density was 11,297 persons per km², with a sex ratio of 866 women per 1000 men, and a literacy rate of 86.34%. In 2004, the birth rate
Birth rate
Crude birth rate is the nativity or childbirths per 1,000 people per year . Another word used interchangeably with "birth rate" is "natality". When the crude birth rate is subtracted from the crude death rate, it reveals the rate of natural increase...
, death rate and infant mortality rate (per 1000 population) were 20.03, 5.59 and 13.08, respectively. According a 1999–2000 estimate, the total number of people living below the poverty line
Poverty threshold
The poverty threshold, or poverty line, is the minimum level of income deemed necessary to achieve an adequate standard of living in a given country...
, defined as living on $11 or less per month, in Delhi was 1,149,000 (which was 8.23% of the total population, compared to 27.5% of India as a whole). In 2001, the population of Delhi increased by 285,000 as a result of migration and by an additional 215,000 as a result of natural population growth – this made Delhi one of the fastest growing cities in the world. By 2015, Delhi is expected to be the third-largest agglomeration in the world after Tokyo and Mumbai. Dwarka
Dwarka Sub City
Dwarka is a sub city, located in the South West Delhi district of the National Capital Territory of Delhi. It is named after the legendary Dwaraka Kingdom. It is a short distance away from Gurgaon which is a major hub for large corporations in the country and about 10 Kms away from Indira Gandhi...
, Asia's largest planned residential colony
Residential area
A residential area is a land use in which housing predominates, as opposed to industrial and commercial areas.Housing may vary significantly between, and through, residential areas. These include single family housing, multi-family residential, or mobile homes. Zoning for residential use may permit...
, is located within the National Capital Territory of Delhi.
Hinduism
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
is the religion of 80% of Delhi's population. There are also large communities of Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
s (10%), Sikh
Sikh
A Sikh is a follower of Sikhism. It primarily originated in the 15th century in the Punjab region of South Asia. The term "Sikh" has its origin in Sanskrit term शिष्य , meaning "disciple, student" or शिक्ष , meaning "instruction"...
s (7.9%), Baha'i (0.1%), Jains (1.1%) and Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
s (0.9%) in the city. Other minorities include Parsis, Anglo-Indians, Buddhists and Jews.
Hindustani language
Hindustani language
Hindi-Urdu is an Indo-Aryan language and the lingua franca of North India and Pakistan. It is also known as Hindustani , and historically, as Hindavi or Rekhta...
is the principal spoken language while English is the principal written language of the city. Other languages commonly spoken in the city are dialects of Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu. The linguistic groups from all over India are well represented in the city; among them are Punjabi, Haryanvi, UP, Rajasthani, Bihari, Bengali, Sindhi, Tamil, Oriya, Assamese, Garhwali,Telugu,, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi and Gujarati.
12% of Delhi lives in slums without basic services like water, electricity, sanitation, sewage system, proper housing etc.
In 2005, Delhi accounted for the highest percentage (16.2%) of the crimes reported in the 35 cities in India with populations of one million or more. The city also has the highest rate of crime against women (27.6 compared to national average rate of 14.1 per 100,000) and against children (6.5 compared to national average of 1.4 per 100,000) in the country.
Culture
Archaeological Survey of India
The Archaeological Survey of India is a department of the Government of India, attached to the Ministry of Culture . The ASI is responsible for archaeological studies and the preservation of archaeological heritage of the country in accordance with the various acts of the Indian Parliament...
recognises 1200 heritage buildings and 175 monuments in Delhi as national heritage sites. The Old City is the site where the Mughals and the Turkic rulers constructed several architectural marvels like the Jama Masjid
Jama Masjid, Delhi
The Masjid-i Jahān-Numā , commonly known as the Jama Masjid of Delhi, is the principal mosque of Old Delhi in India. Commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, builder of the Taj Mahal,in the year 1644 CE and completed in the year 1658 AD, it is the largest and best-known mosque in India...
(India's largest mosque) and Red Fort. Three World Heritage Site
World Heritage Site
A UNESCO World Heritage Site is a place that is listed by the UNESCO as of special cultural or physical significance...
s—the Red Fort, Qutab Minar and Humayun's Tomb
Humayun's Tomb
Humayun's tomb is the tomb of the Mughal Emperor Humayun. The tomb was commissioned by Humayun's wife Hamida Banu Begum in 1562 AD, and designed by Mirak Mirza Ghiyath, a Persian architect...
—are located in Delhi. Other monuments include the India Gate
India Gate
The India Gate is the national monument of India. Situated in the heart of New Delhi, India Gate was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens, inspired by the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. It was built in 1931...
, the Jantar Mantar
Yantra Mandir (Delhi)
The Jantra Mantra , is located in the modern city of New Delhi, Delhi...
(an 18th-century astronomical observatory) and the Purana Qila (a 16th century fortress). The Laxminarayan Temple
Laxminarayan Temple
The Laxminarayan Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Laxminarayan in Delhi, India. The temple is built in honour of Lakshmi , and her consort Narayana by B. R. Birla from 1933 and 1939, when it was inaugurated by Mahatma Gandhi...
, Akshardham
Akshardham (Delhi)
Akshardham is a Hindu temple complex in Delhi, India. Also referred to as Delhi Akshardham or Swaminarayan Akshardham, the complex displays millennia of traditional Indian and Hindu culture, spirituality, and architecture...
, the Bahá'í
Bahá'í Faith
The Bahá'í Faith is a monotheistic religion founded by Bahá'u'lláh in 19th-century Persia, emphasizing the spiritual unity of all humankind. There are an estimated five to six million Bahá'ís around the world in more than 200 countries and territories....
Lotus Temple
Lotus Temple
The Bahá'í House of Worship in Delhi, India, popularly known as the Lotus Temple due to its flowerlike shape, is a Bahá'í House of Worship and also a prominent attraction in Delhi. It was completed in 1986 and serves as the Mother Temple of the Indian subcontinent...
and the ISKCON Temple
ISKCON Temple Delhi
Sri Sri Radha Parthasarathi Mandir or generally called as ISKCON Delhi temple is a famous Vaishnav temple of Lord Krishna and Radharani in the form of Radha Parthasarathi, Opened in 1998, it is located at Hare Krishna Hills, in the East of Kailash area of New Delhi, India...
are examples of modern architecture. Raj Ghat and associated memorials
Raj Ghat and associated memorials
Raj Ghat is a memorial to Mahatma Gandhi. Originally it was the name of a historic ghat of Old Delhi on the banks of Yamuna river. Close to it, and east of Daryaganj was “Raj Ghat Gate” of the walled city, opening at Raj Ghat on Yamuna River. Later the memorial area was also called Raj ghat...
houses memorials of Mahatma Gandhi
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
and other notable personalities. New Delhi houses several government buildings and official residences reminiscent of the British colonial architecture. Important structures include the Rashtrapati Bhavan, the Secretariat, Rajpath
Rajpath
Rajpath is the ceremonial boulevard for the Republic of India. It runs from Rashtrapati Bhavan through Vijay Chowk and India Gate to National Stadium, Delhi. The New Delhi avenue is lined on both sides by lawns with rows of trees and ponds...
, the Parliament of India and Vijay Chowk. Safdarjung's Tomb
Safdarjung's Tomb
Safdarjung's Tomb is a garden tomb with a marble mausoleum in New Delhi, India. It was built in 1754 in the late Mughal Empire style, and was described as "the last flicker in the lamp of Mughal architecture". The top storey of the edifice houses the Archaeological Survey of India...
is an example of the Mughal gardens
Mughal Gardens
Mughal gardens are a group of gardens built by the Mughals in the Islamic style of architecture. This style was heavily influenced by the Persian gardens particularly the Charbagh structure. Significant use of rectilinear layouts are made within the walled enclosures...
style.
[File:ISKCON_Temple_in_Delhi.jpg|thumb]
Delhi's association and geographic proximity to the capital, New Delhi, has amplified the importance of national events and holidays. National events like Republic Day
Republic Day (India)
The Republic Day of India commemorates the date on which the Constitution of India came into force replacing the Government of India Act 1935 as the governing document of India on 26 January 1950....
, Independence Day
Independence Day (India)
The Independence Day of India is celebrated on the fifteenth of August to commemorate its independence from British rule and its birth as a sovereign nation in 1947. The day is a national holiday in India. All over the country, flag-hoisting ceremonies are conducted by the local administration in...
and Gandhi Jayanti
Gandhi Jayanti
Gandhi Jayanti is a National Holiday celebrated in India to mark the occasion of the birthday of Mohandas Gandhi, the "Father of the Nation." He was born on October 2, 1869. Hence Gandhi Jayanti is celebrated every year on the 2nd of October. It is one of the three official declared National...
(Gandhi's birthday) are celebrated with great enthusiasm in Delhi. 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. The Republic Day Parade is a large cultural and military parade showcasing India's cultural diversity and military might. Over the centuries Delhi is known for its composite culture, and a festival that symbolizes it truly is the Phool Walon Ki Sair
Phool Walon Ki Sair
Phool Walon Ki Sair meaning "procession of the florists" is an annual celebration by the flowers sellers of Delhi. It is a three-day festival, generally held in the month of September, just after the rainy season in the region of Mehrauli, Delhi...
, which takes place each year in September, and where flowers and fans embroidered with flowers, pankha are offered to the shrine of 13th century Sufi saint, Khwaja Bakhtiyar Kaki, along with the Yogmaya Temple
Yogmaya Temple
Yogmaya Temple also known as Jogmaya temple, is an ancient Hindu temple dedicated to Goddess Yogmaya, the sister of Krishna, and situated in Mehrauli, New Delhi, close to the Qutb complex. It is widely believed to be one of the five surviving temples from the Mahabharata period in Delhi.Yogmaya or...
also situated in Mehrauli
Mehrauli
Mehrauli is a neighbourhood in the South West district of Delhi in India. It represents a constituency in the legislative assembly of Delhi. The area is located close to Gurgaon.-History:...
.
Religious festivals include Diwali
Diwali
Diwali or DeepavaliThe name of the festival in various regional languages include:, , , , , , , , , , , , , popularly known as the "festival of lights," is a festival celebrated between mid-October and mid-December for different reasons...
(the festival of lights), Mahavir Jayanti
Mahavir Jayanti
In Jainism, Mahavir Janma Kalyanak is the most important religious holiday. It celebrates the birth of Mahavira, the last Tirthankara. On the Gregorian calendar, the holiday occurs either in March or April....
, Guru Nanak's Birthday
Guru Nanak's Birthday
Guru Nanak Gurpurab , also known as Guru Nanak Birthday, is the birthday of the first Sikh Guru, Guru Nanak, and one of the most sacred festivals in Sikhism. Apart from Sikhs, the Nanakpanthi Hindus and other followers of Guru Nanak's philosophy also celebrate this festival...
, Durga Puja
Durga Puja
Durga puja ; দুর্গা পূজা,ଦୁର୍ଗା ପୂଜା,‘Worship of Durga’), also referred to as Durgotsava ; , is an annual Hindu festival in South Asia that celebrates worship of the Hindu goddess Durga. It refers to all the six days observed as Mahalaya, Shashthi, Maha Saptami, Maha Ashtami, Maha Navami and...
, Holi
Holi
Holi , is a religious spring festival celebrated by Hindus. Holi is also known as festival of Colours. It is primarily observed in India, Nepal, Pakistan, and countries with large Indic diaspora populations following Hinduism, such as Suriname, Malaysia, Guyana, South Africa, Trinidad, United...
, Lohri, Chhath
Chhath
Chhath is an ancient Hindu festival dedicated to the Hindu Sun God, Surya, also known as Surya Shashti. The Chhath Puja is performed in order to thank Surya for sustaining life on earth and to request the granting of certain wishes. The Sun, considered the god of energy and of the life-force, is...
, Krishna Janmastami, Maha Shivaratri
Maha Shivaratri
Maha Shivratri or Maha Sivaratri or Shivaratri or Sivarathri is a Hindu festival celebrated every year on the 13th night/14th day in the Krishna Paksha of the month of Maagha or Phalguna...
, Eid ul-Fitr
Eid ul-Fitr
Eid ul-Fitr, Eid al-Fitr, Id-ul-Fitr, or Id al-Fitr , often abbreviated to Eid, is a Muslim holiday that marks the end of Ramadan, the Islamic holy month of fasting . Eid is an Arabic word meaning "festivity," while Fiṭr means "breaking the fast"...
, Moharram
Day of Ashura
The Day of Ashura is on the 10th day of Muharram in the Islamic calendar and marks the climax of the Remembrance of Muharram.It is commemorated by Shia Muslims as a day of mourning for the martyrdom of Husayn ibn Ali, the grandson of the Islamic Prophet Muhammad at the Battle of Karbala on 10...
and Buddha Jayanti. The Qutub Festival
Qutub Festival
Qutub Festival is a three day festival usually held in November–December in the Qutub complex in the Indian metropolis of Delhi organized by Delhi Tourism, Govt. of Delhi. The festival showcases the cultural art forms of the country but also puts this classic structure of Qutub Minar in the...
is a cultural event during which performances of musicians and dancers from all over India are showcased at night, with the Qutub Minar
Qutub Minar
Qutub Minar also Qutb Minar, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Located in Delhi, India. The Qutub Minar is constructed with red sandstone and marble, and is the tallest minaret in India, with a height of 72.5 meters , contains 379 stairs to reach the top, and the diameter of base is 14.3 meters...
as the chosen backdrop of the event. Other events such as Kite Flying Festival, International Mango Festival and Vasant Panchami
Vasant Panchami
Vasant Panchami , sometimes referred to as Vasant Panchami or Shree Panchami , is a Hindu festival celebrating Saraswati, the goddess of knowledge, music and art. It is celebrated every year on the fifth day of the Indian month Magh , the first day of spring...
(the Spring Festival) are held every year in Delhi. The Auto Expo
Auto Expo
The ' is a biennial trade fair of automobile and auto component manufacturers organized at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, India.Organized jointly by the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association , Confederation of Indian Industry and Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers ; it is the Asia's...
, Asia's largest auto show, is held in Delhi biennially. The World Book Fair, held biannually at the Pragati Maidan
Pragati Maidan
Pragati Maidan is a venue for large exhibitions and conventions in New Delhi, and with 72,000 sq. metres of exhibition space, it is presently Delhi's largest exhibition centre. It is owned and managed by Indian Trade Promotion Organisation , the premier trade promotion agency of the Ministry of...
, is the second largest exhibition of books in the world with as many as 23 nations participating in the event. Delhi is often regarded as the "Book Capital" of India because of high readership.
Punjabi cuisine
Punjabi cuisine is food from the Punjab region of northwestern India and eastern Pakistan. It can be non-vegetarian or completely vegetarian. One of the main features of Punjabi cuisine is its diverse range of dishes...
and Mughlai
Mughlai cuisine
Mughlai cuisine is a style of cookery developed in the Indian Subcontinent by the imperial kitchens of the Mughal Empire. It represents the cooking style used in Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Pakistan and in parts of Dhaka in Bangladesh and Hyderabad in Andhra Pradesh...
delicacies like kababs and biryani
Biryani
Biryani, biriani, or beriani is a set of rice-based foods made with spices, rice and meat, fish, eggs or vegetables. The name is derived from the Persian word beryā which means "fried" or "roasted"....
s are popular in Delhi. The street food there is known to be delicious and includes chaat, golgappe and aloo tikki. Due to Delhi's large cosmopolitan and migrant population, cuisines
Indian cuisine
Indian cuisine consists of thousands of regional cuisines which date back thousands of years. The dishes of India are characterised by the extensive use of various Indian spices, herbs, vegetables and fruit. Indian cuisine is also known for the widespread practice of vegetarianism in Indian society...
from every part of India, including Gujarati
Gujarati cuisine
Gujarati cuisine refers to the cuisine of the Gujaratis from India, who are predominant in western India. It is primarily a vegetarian cuisine, despite having an extensive coastline for sea food, due influence of Jain vegetarianism and traditional Hinduism...
Rajasthani
Rajasthani cuisine
Rajasthani cooking was influenced by both the war-like lifestyles of its inhabitants and the availability of ingredients in this arid region. Food that could last for several days and could be eaten without heating was preferred. Scarcity of water and fresh green vegetables have all had their...
, Maharashtrian
Maharashtrian cuisine
Maharashtrian cuisine is cuisine of the Marathi people, those from the state of Maharashtra in India. Maharashtrian cuisine covers a range from being mild to very spicy dishes. Wheat, rice, jowar, bajri, vegetables, lentils and fruit form important components of Maharashtrian diet...
, Bengali
Bengali cuisine
Bengali cuisine is a culinary style originating in Bengal, a region in the eastern South Asia which is now divided between the Indian state of West Bengal and the independent country of Bangladesh. Other regions, such as Tripura, and Barak Valley region of Assam also have large native Bengali...
, Hyderabadi cuisine
Hyderabadi cuisine
Hyderabadi cuisine is a princely legacy of the Nizams of Hyderabad, India. The city was founded by the Sultan's of Golconda, who has developed its own cuisine over the centuries...
s, and South Indian food items
South Indian cuisine
South Indian Cuisine is a term used to refer to the cuisines found in the four southern states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu.-Similarities and differences in "Four states' cuisines":...
like idli, sambar and dosa
Dosa
Dosa or Dhosai is a fermented crepe or pancake made from rice batter and black lentils. It is indigenous to and is a staple dish in the southern Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu, as well as being popular in Sri Lanka...
are widely available. Local delicacies include Chaat
Chaat
Chaat is a term describing savoury snacks, typically served at road-side tracks from stalls or carts in India. With its origins in east India, chaat has become immensely popular in the rest of India and the rest of South Asia...
, Golgappe, Aloo-Tikki and Dahi-Papri. There are several food outlets in Delhi serving international cuisine, including Italian
Italian cuisine
Italian cuisine has developed through centuries of social and political changes, with roots as far back as the 4th century BCE. Italian cuisine in itself takes heavy influences, including Etruscan, ancient Greek, ancient Roman, Byzantine, Jewish and Arab cuisines...
, Japanese
Japanese cuisine
Japanese cuisine has developed over the centuries as a result of many political and social changes throughout Japan. The cuisine eventually changed with the advent of the Medieval age which ushered in a shedding of elitism with the age of shogun rule...
, Continental, Middle-Eastern, Thai and Chinese
Indian Chinese cuisine
Indian Chinese cuisine is the adaptation of Chinese seasoning and cooking techniques to Indian tastes. It is said to have been developed by the small Chinese community that has lived in Kolkata for over a century...
. Within the last decade western fast food has become more popular as well. Delhi is very much popular for its food and old traditional restaurants.The rich Punjabi food, with its high oil content and spices, is a specialty of Delhi. 'Chaat' is the spicy Indian snack and offers variety such as Papri, Bhalle-Papri, Aloo Tikiki, Gol Gappe, etc. These are the most preferred evening snack of the Indians, especially women. Global giants such as KFC, Mc Donalds, Nirulas and Wimpys lure children and youth with fast food and continental cuisines. The five-star hotels of Delhi also host some good restaurants that offer exotic Chinese, Continental, Thai, Mughlai and Indian cuisines.
Historically, Delhi has always remained an important trading centre in northern India. Old Delhi still contains legacies of its rich Mughal
Mughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
past, which can be found among the old city's tangle of snaking lanes and teeming bazaars. The dingy markets of the Old City have an eclectic product range, from oil-swamped mango, lime and eggplant pickles, candy-colored herbal potions to silver jewelry, bridal attire, uncut material and linen, spices, sweets. Some of old regal havelis (palatial residences) are still there in the Old City. Chandni Chowk
Chandni Chowk
Chandni Chowk , originally meaning moonlit square or market, is one of the oldest and busiest markets in Old Delhi, now in central north Delhi, India...
, a three-century-old shopping area, is one of the most popular shopping areas in Delhi for jewellery and Zari sari
Sari
A sari or sareeThe name of the garment in various regional languages include: , , , , , , , , , , , , , is a strip of unstitched cloth, worn by females, ranging from four to nine metres in length that is draped over the body in various styles. It is popular in India, Bangladesh, Nepal,...
s. Notable among Delhi's arts and crafts are the Zardozi (an embroidery done with gold thread) and Meenakari (the art of enameling). Dilli Haat
Dilli Haat
Dilli Haat is a open-air food plaza cum craft bazaar located in Delhi, run by Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation . At present Delhi has two such bazaars, one near the All India Institute of Medical Sciences on Sri Aurobindo Marg, opposite INA Market on Sri Aurobindo Marg...
, Hauz Khas
Hauz Khas
Hauz Khas Complex in South Delhi houses a water tank, an Islamic seminary, a mosque, a tomb and pavilions built around an urbanized village with medieval history traced to the 13th century of Delhi Sultanate reign...
, Pragati Maidan
Pragati Maidan
Pragati Maidan is a venue for large exhibitions and conventions in New Delhi, and with 72,000 sq. metres of exhibition space, it is presently Delhi's largest exhibition centre. It is owned and managed by Indian Trade Promotion Organisation , the premier trade promotion agency of the Ministry of...
offer a variety of Indian handicrafts and handlooms. Over time Delhi has absorbed a multitude of humanity from across the country and has morphed into an amorphous pool of cultural styles.
Education
Higher education
Higher, post-secondary, tertiary, or third level education refers to the stage of learning that occurs at universities, academies, colleges, seminaries, and institutes of technology...
in Delhi are administered either by the Directorate of Education
Delhi Directorate of Education
Delhi Directorate of Education is the department under the education ministry of Delhi Government that manages the city's public school system. It is one of the India's largest school education system. Delhi government has made several efforts for the growth of education in Delhi. Recognizing the...
, the NCT government, or private organizations. In 2004–05, there were 2,515 primary, 635 middle, 504 secondary and 1,208 senior secondary schools in Delhi. That year, the higher education institutions in the city included 165 colleges, among them five medical colleges and eight engineering colleges, seven major universities (Delhi University, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Jawaharlal Nehru University
Jawaharlal Nehru University, also known as JNU, is located in New Delhi, the capital of India. It is mainly a research oriented postgraduate University with approximately 5,500 students and a faculty strength of around 550.-History:...
, Jamia Millia Islamia
Jamia Millia Islamia
Jamia Millia Islamia is an Indian Central University located in Delhi. It was established at Aligarh in United Provinces, India in 1920. It became a Central University by an act of the Indian Parliament in 1988...
, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University
Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University
Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University is a public, professional university located in Delhi, India...
(GGSIPU), National Law University
National Law University, Delhi
National Law University, Delhi , abbreviated to NLUD is a specialised law university offering courses at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. It is situated in Sector- 14, Dwarka, New Delhi, India...
(NLU Delhi), Indira Gandhi National Open University
Indira Gandhi National Open University
The Indira Gandhi National Open University , known as IGNOU is a national university with its headquarters in New Delhi, Delhi, India. Named after former Prime Minister of India, Indira Gandhi, the university was established in 1985 with a budget of 2000 crore, when the Parliament of India passed...
(IGNOU) and Jamia Hamdard
Jamia Hamdard
Jamia Hamdard is a university located in New Delhi, India. It was established in 1989.Our Revered Founder Janab Hakeem Abdul Hameed Saheb, a true Gandhian in spirit and simplicity was born in Delhi on September 14, 1908. No account of Hakeem Saheb can be complete without the mention of his...
), and nine deemed universities
Deemed University
Deemed university is a status of autonomy granted to high performing institutes and departments of various universities in India. This status of ‘Deemed-to-be-University’, is granted by Department of Higher Education, Union Human Resource Development Ministry, on the advice of the University Grants...
. Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University and National Law University are the only state universities; IGNOU is for open/distance learning; the rest are all central universities. Delhi boasts of being home to 3 of top 10 engineering colleges in India – IIT Delhi, NSIT (Formerly DIT) and DTU (Formerly DCE).
Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations
The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations is a private, non-governmental board of school education in India. It conducts two examinations in India: the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education and the Indian School Certificate...
(CISCE), the Central Board for Secondary Education (CBSE) and the National Institute of Open Schooling
National Institute of Open Schooling
The National Institute of Open Schooling , is the Board of Education for open schools in India. It was established by the Ministry of Human Resource Development of the Government of India in 1989 to provide education inexpensively to remote areas...
(NIOS). In 2004–05, approximately 15.29 lakh
Lakh
A lakh is a unit in the Indian numbering system equal to one hundred thousand . It is widely used both in official and other contexts in Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar and is often used in Indian English.-Usage:...
(1.529 million) students were enrolled in primary schools, 8.22 lakh (0.822 million) in middle schools and 6.69 lakh (0.669 million) in secondary schools across Delhi. Female students represented 49% of the total enrollment. The same year, the Delhi government spent between 1.58% and 1.95% of its gross state domestic product on education.
After completing the ten-year secondary phase of their education under the 10+2+3/4 plan, students typically spend the next two years either in junior college
Junior college
The term junior college refers to different educational institutions in different countries.-India:In India, most states provide schooling through 12th grade...
s or in schools with senior secondary facilities, during which their studies become more focused. They select a stream of study—liberal arts
Liberal arts
The term liberal arts refers to those subjects which in classical antiquity were considered essential for a free citizen to study. Grammar, Rhetoric and Logic were the core liberal arts. In medieval times these subjects were extended to include mathematics, geometry, music and astronomy...
, commerce, science, or, less commonly, vocational. Upon completion, those who choose to continue, either study for a three-year undergraduate degree at a college, or a professional degree in law, engineering, architecture, or medicine. Notable higher education or research institutes in Delhi include All India Institute of Medical Sciences
All India Institute of Medical Sciences
All India Institute of Medical Sciences is a premier medical college and teaching hospital based in New Delhi, India. The Institute operates autonomously under the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare ....
, School of Planning and Architecture
School of Planning and Architecture
School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi is a National Resource Institute of India. It is also one of the few premier 'Centrally Funded Technical Institutions ' under the Government of India. Currently there are 3 SPAs all over India, administered under the MHRD, Government of India...
, Dr.Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital & PGIMER, Maulana Azad Medical College
Maulana Azad Medical College
The Maulana Azad Medical College is a government medical college in Delhi affiliated to University of Delhi. It is named after Indian freedom fighter and first education minister of independent India Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. It is located at Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi...
, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Jawaharlal Nehru University
Jawaharlal Nehru University, also known as JNU, is located in New Delhi, the capital of India. It is mainly a research oriented postgraduate University with approximately 5,500 students and a faculty strength of around 550.-History:...
, Indian Statistical Institute
Indian Statistical Institute
Indian Statistical Institute is a public research institute and university in Kolkata's northern outskirt of Baranagar, India founded by Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis in 1931...
, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi
The Indian Institute Of Technology, Delhi , commonly known as IIT Delhi or IITD, is a college of engineering in Delhi, India...
, Indian Institute of Foreign Trade
Indian Institute of Foreign Trade
The Indian Institute of Foreign Trade is an autonomous organization set up in 1963 by the government of India to help professionalize the country's foreign trade management and increase exports by developing human resources, generating, analyzing and disseminating data, and conducting...
, Delhi Technological University, National Law University, Delhi
National Law University, Delhi
National Law University, Delhi , abbreviated to NLUD is a specialised law university offering courses at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. It is situated in Sector- 14, Dwarka, New Delhi, India...
, Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology
Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology
Netaji Subhas Institute of Technology , New Delhi , formerly known as Delhi Institute of Technology, is a premier engineering college in New Delhi, India. It is an autonomous institution of the Government of NCT of Delhi...
, Indian Law Institute
Indian Law Institute
The Indian Law Institute was founded in 1956 primarily with the objective of promoting and conducting legal research. The objectives of the Institute as laid down in its Memorandum of Association are to cultivate the science of law, to promote advanced studies and research in law so as to meet the...
, Delhi School of Economics
Delhi School of Economics
Delhi School of Economics , commonly referred to as DSE or D School, is a centre of post graduate learning of the University of Delhi. The centre is situated in the university's North Campus in Maurice Nagar, and is surrounded by a host of other prestigious academic institutions of the country...
, Jamia Millia Islamia
Jamia Millia Islamia
Jamia Millia Islamia is an Indian Central University located in Delhi. It was established at Aligarh in United Provinces, India in 1920. It became a Central University by an act of the Indian Parliament in 1988...
. As of 2008, about 16% of all Delhi residents possessed at least a college graduate degree.
Media
Press Trust of India
Press Trust of India is the largest news agency in India. It is headquartered in Delhi and is a nonprofit cooperative among more than 450 Indian newspapers and has a staff of about 2,000 writers spread across 150 offices nationwide...
, Media Trust Of India and Doordarshan
DoorDarshan
Doordarshan is an Indian public service broadcaster, a division of Prasar Bharati. It is one of the largest broadcasting organizations in India in terms of the infrastructure of studios and transmitters. Recently, it has also started Digital Terrestrial Transmitters. On September 15, 2009,...
, are based in the city. Television programming in the city includes two free terrestrial television channels offered by Doordarshan, and several Hindi, English and regional-languages cable
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
channels offered by multi system operator
Multi system operator
A Multiple System Operator or Multi System Operator is an operator of multiple cable television systems. A cable system in the United States, by Federal Communications Commission definition, is a facility serving a single community or a distinct governmental entity, each with its own franchise...
s. Satellite television
Direct broadcast satellite
Direct broadcast satellite is a term used to refer to satellite television broadcasts intended for home reception.A designation broader than DBS would be direct-to-home signals, or DTH. This has initially distinguished the transmissions directly intended for home viewers from cable television...
, in contrast, has yet to gain large-scale subscribership in the city.
Print journalism remains a popular news medium in Delhi. During 2008–09, 9,961 registered newspapers (Daily, Weekly and Monthly) in thirteen languages were published from the city. Of these, 492 were Urdu and Hindi
Hindi
Standard Hindi, or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi, also known as Manak Hindi , High Hindi, Nagari Hindi, and Literary Hindi, is a standardized and sanskritized register of the Hindustani language derived from the Khariboli dialect of Delhi...
language newspapers, including Navbharat Times
Navbharat Times
Navbharat Times aka NBT is the largest circulated as well as largest read Hindi newspaper of Delhi & Mumbai. From the stable of Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd which also publishes other dailies like The Times of India, The Economic Times, Maharashtra Times and also magazines like Filmfare & Femina...
, Hindustan Dainik
Hindustan Dainik
Hindustan Dainik or Hindustan is published by Hindustan Media Ventures Limited. Earlier it was part of HT Media Ltd group, which spun off its Hindi business into a separate company named Hindustan Media Ventures Limited in December 2009. It ranks as the third largest-read daily in the country....
, Punjab Kesari
Punjab Kesari
Punjab Kesari is a Hindi-language newspaper published from many centres in Punjab and Haryana in India....
, Pavitra Bharat, Dainik Jagran
Dainik Jagran
Dainik Jagran is a Hindi language daily broadsheet newspaper in India. According to the IRS Q1 2010, Dainik Jagran ranks No. 1 among the dailies with a Total Readership of 54,254,000.-Overview:...
, Dainik Bhaskar
Dainik Bhaskar
Dainik Bhaskar is an Indian Hindi-language daily newspaper published by D B Corp Ltd.. It was started in year 1958 from Bhopal, the capital city of Madhya Pradesh...
and Dainik Desbandhu. Amongst the English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
newspapers, The Hindustan Times
Hindustan Times
Hindustan Times is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded in 1924 with roots in the Indian independence movement of the period ....
, with over a million copies in circulation, was the single largest daily. Other major English newspapers include Times of India, The Hindu
The Hindu
The Hindu is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded and continuously published in Chennai since 1878. According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations, it has a circulation of 1.46 million copies as of December 2009. The enterprise employed over 1,600 workers and gross income reached $40...
, Indian Express, Business Standard
Business Standard
Business Standard is an Indian English-language daily newspaper published by Business Standard Ltd in two languages, English and Hindi...
, The Pioneer
The Pioneer (daily)
The Pioneer is a medium-sized English language newspaper in India.It is published from multiple locations in India, including Delhi. It is the second oldest English language newspaper in India that is operational...
and Asian Age
Asian Age
The Asian Age is an Indian daily newspaper with editions in four major cities in India and one in London. The newspaper was launched in February 1994, simultaneously in Delhi, Mumbai and London. At present, it has editions in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bangalore and London. The Asian Age brings out...
. Regional dailies include Malayala Manorama
Malayala Manorama
Malayala Manorama is a daily news paper, in Malayalam language, published in the state of Kerala, India. It was first published as a weekly on 14 March 1890, and currently has a readership of over 16 million . The Malayalam word "manorama" roughly translates to "entertainer"...
and Delhi Uptodate (weekly) Dinakaran
Dinakaran
Dinakaran is a Tamil daily newspaper distributed in India. , Dinakaran is the largest Tamil daily newspaper in terms of net paid circulation, which was 1,235,220...
. Radio is a less popular mass medium in Delhi, although FM radio has been gaining ground since the inauguration of several new FM
Frequency modulation
In telecommunications and signal processing, frequency modulation conveys information over a carrier wave by varying its instantaneous frequency. This contrasts with amplitude modulation, in which the amplitude of the carrier is varied while its frequency remains constant...
channels in 2006.
A number of state-owned and private radio stations broadcast from Delhi, including All India Radio
All India Radio
All India Radio , officially known since 1956 as Akashvani , is the radio broadcaster of India and a division of Prasar Bharati. Established in 1936, it is the sister service of Prasar Bharati's Doordarshan, the national television broadcaster. All India Radio is one of the largest radio networks...
(AIR), one of the world's largest radio service providers, which offers six radio channels in ten languages. Other city-based radio stations include "Aaj Tak", "Radio City (91.1 MHz)", "Big FM (92.7 MHz)", "Red FM (93.5MHz)", "Radio One (94.3 MHz)", "Hit FM( 95 MHz)", "Apna Radio", "Radio Mirchi (98.3 MHz)", "FM Rainbow (102.4 MHz)", "Fever FM (104 MHz)", "Oye FM (104.8 MHz)", "FM Gold (106.4 MHz)".
Various news and general interest magazines are also published from Delhi like India Today, Outlook, COVERT and many more.
Sports
Cricket and football are the most popular sports in Delhi. There are several cricket grounds (or maidans) located across the city. The Feroz Shah KotlaFeroz Shah Kotla
The Feroz Shah Kotla or Kotla was originally a fortress built by Sultan Ferozshah Tughlaq to house his version of Delhi city called Ferozabad. A pristine polished sandstone pillar from the 3rd century B.C...
stadium is one of the oldest cricket grounds in India and is a venue for international cricket matches. The Delhi cricket team
Delhi cricket team
The Delhi cricket team is one of the first-class cricket teams, that plays in India's domestic competition, the Ranji Trophy. They have won the tournament seven times and have been runners-up seven. Their latest title in 2007-08 came after a long wait of 16 years. The previous win was in the...
represents the city in the Ranji Trophy
Ranji Trophy
The Ranji Trophy is a domestic first-class cricket championship played in India between different city and state sides, equivalent to the County Championship in England and the Sheffield Shield in Australia...
, a domestic first-class cricket
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
championship. The city is also home to the IPL
Indian Premier League
The Indian Premier League is a professional league for Twenty20 cricket competition in India. It was initiated by the Board of Control for Cricket in India , headquartered in Mumbai, and is supervised by BCCI Vice President Rajeev Shukla, who serves as the league's Chairman and Commissioner...
team Delhi Daredevils
Delhi Daredevils
Delhi Daredevils is the Delhi franchise for the Indian Premier League in cricket. The franchise is owned by the GMR Group.-Franchise history:...
, and ICL
Indian Cricket League
The Indian Cricket League was a private cricket league funded by Zee Entertainment Enterprises that operated between 2007 and 2009 in India...
team Delhi Giants
Delhi Giants
Delhi Giants was one of the nine teams played in the defunct Indian Cricket League . This team represents the Indian capital city, New Delhi, India and its captain is Marvan Atapattu, former skipper of Sri Lanka.-Players :The squad announced for the inaugural tournament comprises five...
(earlier named Delhi Jets).
Football is a very popular sport in the city and is home to the newly formed AIFF-u19 club which will take part in the 2011 format of the I League. The only football stadium in Delhi is the Ambedkar Stadium
Ambedkar Stadium
Ambedkar Stadium is a stadium in New Delhi, India. The stadium is named in honour of B. R. Ambedkar, the famous dalit leader and chairman of the Indian constituent assembly. It opened in 2007 and has a listed capacity of 20,000. It is currently used for football matches...
which holds 20,000 people though in the past few years due to tremendous rise in popularity of the sport has held up to 50,000 people in the past years. Delhi also witnessed India winning back to back trophies in football – the 2007 Nehru Cup defeating Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
1–0, the AFC Challenge Cup 2008 defeating favourites Tajikistan 4–1 with a stellar performance by local star Sunil Chhetri, and the 2009 Nehru Cup
2009 Nehru Cup
The 2009 Nehru Cup International Football Tournament also known as the ONGC Nehru Cup due to the competition's sponsorship by ONGC, was the 14th edition of the Nehru Cup a friendly tournament organized by the All India Football Federation ....
.
Rugby
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
has become an increasingly popular sport among youngsters and the city is home to the Delhi Lions and Delhi Hurricanes. The city successfully hosted the 2010 Asian Five Nations Rugby Tournament's Division Two match between India and Philippines with Philippines defeating India to win promotion to Division One in 2011. The only rugby stadium in the city is in the Delhi University North Campus. Boxing and shooting figure among increasingly popular sports in the suburb of Gurgaon
Gurgaon
Gurgaon is the second largest city in the Indian state of Haryana. Gurgaon is the industrial and financial center of Haryana. It is located 30 km south of national capital New Delhi, about 10 kilometers from Dwarka Sub City and 268 km south of Chandigarh, the state capital...
.
When the Elite Football League of India
Elite Football League of India
The Elite Football League of India is a proposed men's professional American football league in India. When play begins in late 2012, there will be ten teams, located in various cities across India...
was introduced in August 2011, Delhi was noted as one of eight cities to be awarded a team for the inaugural season. Named the Delhi Defenders, the team's first season will be played in Pune
Pune
Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
, and it will be Delhi's first professional American football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
franchise.
Formula 1 has now got a circuit in India in Greater Noida
Greater Noida
Greater Noida is located in the Gautam Budh Nagar district of the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh . It is under the purview of the National Capital Region of India...
, a suburb of Delhi in the twin cities area of (Noida-Greater Noida), which has hosted the Indian Grand Prix
Indian Grand Prix
The Indian Grand Prix is a race in the calendar of the FIA Formula One World Championship. It is currently held at the Buddh International Circuit in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India...
on october 30, 2011 with the Jaypee Group
Jaypee Group
The Jaypee Group is an Indian conglomerate based in Noida, India. It was founded by Jaiprakash Gaur which is involved in well diversified infrastructure conglomerate with business interests in Engineering & Construction, Power, Cement, Real Estate, Hospitality, Expressways, Sports & Education...
constructing the circuit. It is set to be among the top 5 fastest circuits in the world. The team, Force India F1, was formed in October 2007 when a consortium led by Indian businessman Vijay Mallya and Michiel Mol bought the Spyker F1 team for € 88 million. Force India F1 represents increased Indian participation within Formula One.
Golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
is also a very popular sport in the capital city and the National Capital Region, which is home to the highest number of golf courses in India. Other sports such as field hockey, basketball, tennis, squash, badminton, swimming, kart racing
Kart racing
Kart racing or karting is a variant of open-wheel motorsport with small, open, four-wheeled vehicles called karts, go-karts, or gearbox/shifter karts depending on the design. They are usually raced on scaled-down circuits...
, weightlifting, table tennis, cycling, roller skating and cue sports, such as snooker, billiards and diving are also popular.
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, New Delhi
Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Delhi, India, is a multipurpose sports arena hosting football and other sporting events, as well as large-scale entertainment events. It is named after the first Prime Minister of India. The all-seater facility seats 60,000 spectators, and up to 100,000 for concerts...
and the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium
Indira Gandhi Arena
The Indira Gandhi Arena, located at the Indraprastha Estate in the eastern region of New Delhi, is the largest indoor sports arena in India and the second-largest in Asia and the World. Built by the Government of India in 1982 in order to host the indoor games events in the Asiad Games, the...
are other stadiums in Delhi. In the past, Delhi has hosted several domestic and international sporting events, such as the First
1951 Asian Games
The 1951 Asian Games, officially known as the First Asian Games, was a multi-sport event celebrated in Delhi, India from 4 to 11 March 1951. The Games received names like First Asiad and 1951 Asiad by the president of the organising committee Anthony de Mello...
and the Ninth
1982 Asian Games
The 9th Asian Games were held from November 19, 1982 to December 4, 1982 in Delhi, India.An incredible 74 Asian and Asian Games records were broken. This was also the first Asiad to be held under the aegis of the Olympic Council of Asia.-Sports:...
Asian Games
Asian Games
The Asian Games, officially known as Asiad, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games they have been organised by the...
. Delhi hosted the 2010 Commonwealth Games
2010 Commonwealth Games
The 2010 Commonwealth Games, officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games, were held in Delhi, India, from 3 to 14 October 2010. A total of 6,081 athletes from 71 Commonwealth nations and dependencies competed in 21 sports and 272 events, making it the largest Commonwealth Games till date...
, the largest multi-sport event ever held in India. Delhi lost bidding for the 2014
2014 Asian Games
The 2014 Asian Games, officially known as the XVII Asiad, is the largest sporting event in Asia governed by Olympic Council of Asia . It is scheduled to take place in Incheon, South Korea from September 19–October 4, 2014, with 36 sports set to feature in the Games.Incheon was awarded the right on...
Asian Games
Asian Games
The Asian Games, officially known as Asiad, is a multi-sport event held every four years among athletes from all over Asia. The Games were regulated by the Asian Games Federation from the first Games in New Delhi, India, until the 1978 Games. Since the 1982 Games they have been organised by the...
, and considered making a bid for the 2020 Summer Olympics
2020 Summer Olympics
The 2020 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXII Olympiad, will be a major international sports and cultural festival, celebrated in the tradition of the Olympic Games....
. However, sports minister Manohar Singh Gill later stated that funding infrastructure would come before a 2020 bid.
The mess left behind after the Commonwealth Games prompted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to replace Sports and Youth Affairs minister Manohar Singh Gill with Ajay Maken in the 19 January 2011 Cabinet reshuffle.
Sister cities and twin regions
Delhi has the following sister cities, with which it shares good relations:| ity | eographical location | ation | ince |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seoul Seoul Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world... |
Seoul National Capital Area Seoul National Capital Area The Seoul National Capital Area is a region located in the north-west of South Korea. It is generally referred to as Sudogwon in Korean, and contains three different administrative districts; Seoul, Incheon and Gyeonggi-do.... |
 South Korea |
|
| Chicago Chicago Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles... |
Chicago metropolitan area |  United States |
2001 |
| London London London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... |
 Kingdom of England |
 United Kingdom |
2002 |
| Los Angeles Los Ángeles Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants... |
Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County is a county in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 9,818,605, making it the most populous county in the United States. Los Angeles County alone is more populous than 42 individual U.S. states... |
United States |
|
| Sydney Sydney Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people... |
New South Wales New South Wales New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales... |
 Australia |
|
| Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million... |
Federal Territory of Kuala Lumpur |  Malaysia |
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| Moscow Moscow Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent... |
Central Federal District Central Federal District The Central Federal District is one of the eight federal districts of Russia. The word "Central" is of political and historical meaning; geographically, the district is situated in the extreme west of Russia. The district spans an area of , with a population of 38,438,600 according to the 2010... |
 Russia |
2002 |
| Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
Kantō region Kanto region The is a geographical area of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. The region includes the Greater Tokyo Area and encompasses seven prefectures: Gunma, Tochigi, Ibaraki, Saitama, Tokyo, Chiba, and Kanagawa. Within its boundaries, slightly more than 40 percent of the land area is the Kantō Plain.... (Honshū Honshu is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait... island) |
 Japan |
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| Ulan Bator | Mid-East Mongolia Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest... |
 Mongolia |
2002 |
| Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea... |
Northwestern Federal District Northwestern Federal District Northwestern Federal District is one of the eight federal districts of Russia. It consists of the northern part of European Russia. Its population was 13,583,800 according to the 2010 Census, living on an area of... |
Russia |
2002 |
| Paris Paris Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region... (Partner City) |
Île-de-France Île-de-France (région) Île-de-France is the wealthiest and most populated of the twenty-two administrative regions of France, composed mostly of the Paris metropolitan area.... |
 Early Modern France |
2006 |
| Fukuoka Prefecture Fukuoka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on Kyūshū Island. The capital is the city of Fukuoka.- History :Fukuoka Prefecture includes the former provinces of Chikugo, Chikuzen, and Buzen.... (Twin region) |
Kyushu Kyushu is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands.... |
Japan |
2007 |
See also
- Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development CorporationDelhi Tourism and Transportation Development CorporationDelhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation is an undertaking of the Government of Delhi, India, that was established in December 1975 for the purpose of promoting tourism and related services in the city of Delhi. It has an authorized share capital of Rs. 10.00 crores and a paid up...
- Delhi MetroDelhi MetroDelhi Metro is a rapid transit system serving Delhi, Gurgaon, Noida and Ghaziabad in the National Capital Region of India. It is one of the largest metro networks in the world. The network consists of six lines with a total length of with 142 stations of which 35 are underground...
- List of tourist attractions in Delhi
Further reading
- Economic Survey of Delhi 2005–2006. Planning Department. Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi. Retrieved on 12 February 2007
- Delhi: Adventures in a Megacity by Sam Miller (writer and journalist)Sam Miller (writer and journalist)Sam Miller is a journalist and writer whose first book Delhi: Adventures in a Megacity was published by Penguin India in January 2009 - and soon became a best-seller. The book is also published by Jonathan Cape.Sam Miller was born in London in 1962...
External links
Government- Directory of Indian Government Websites, Delhi
- Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi
- Municipal Corporation of Delhi
- New Delhi Municipal Council
Other