The Kashmiri Gate area of Shahjahanabad is the small bit that lies to the north of Old Delhi railway station, while the bulk of Shahjahanabad lies to its south. A railway station in 19th c. Delhi had become a necessity due to the growing rail network of British India and the increasing British interest in Delhi (they had essentially controlled Delhi since 1803), however the location of Old Delhi station was probably dictated by retributionary passions after the uprising of 1857, since the introduction of the rail lines and station in their current alignment meant the clearing of a large swath of the city. The railway lines and station also conveniently divided Old Delhi into two, and the British began concentrating in the northern part of the city. This is also partly the reason why the original Civil Lines and cantonment lie to the north of Shahjahanabad. Continue reading →

Way back in November 2009 I had posted the previous in my Dilli Darshan series of posts, covering the Khari Baoli and Katra Neel areas of Shahjahanabad. That was the first in what was to be a set of posts covering Shahjahanabad, which I am now continuing! Continue reading →