WORLD HERITAGE SITES IN INDIA QUIZ (4 QUESTIONS)

MUSAMMAN BURJ (RED FORT, AGRA)

Musamman Burj was an octagonal tower built in the Red Fort of Agra by Shah Jahan for his wife Mumtaz Mahal. It was built between 1631–40 and offers exotic views of the famous Taj Mahal.

Musamman Burj is made of delicate marble lattices with ornamental niches so that the ladies of the court could gaze out unseen.

The decoration of the walls is pietra dura. The chamber has a marble dome on top and is surrounded by a verandah with a beautiful carved fountain in the center.

Musamman Burj is overlooking River Yamuna and offers the most poignant views of the Taj Mahal.

It is here that Shah Jahan along with his daughter Jahanara Begum had spent his last few years as a captive of his son Aurangzeb. He lay here on his death bed while gazing at the Taj Mahal.

The three railway lines that were built in the mountains of India –Darjeeling Himalayan Railway, Nilgiri Mountain Railway and Kalka–Shimla Railway, are collectively designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site under the name "Mountain Railways of India".

MOUNTAIN RAILWAYS OF INDIA

Started between 1881 and 1908, they applied bold and innovative engineering solutions to the problem of establishing an effective rail link across difficult mountainous terrains.

They are still fully operational as living examples of the engineering enterprise of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

1⃣ Darjeeling Himalayan Railway consists of 88.48 km of 2 feet gauge track that connects New Jalpaiguri with Darjeeling, at an altitude of 2258 m. The innovative design includes 6 zigzag reverses and 3 loops with a ruling gradient of 1:31.

2⃣ Nilgiri Mountain Railway, is a 45.88 km long meter-gauge single-track railway completed in 1908. It scales an elevation of 326 m to 2,203 m, uses unique rack and pinion traction arrangement to negotiate steep gradient.

3⃣ Kalka Shimla Railway, is a 96.6 km long, single track working rail link built in the mid-19th century. It has the world's highest multi-arc gallery bridge and the world's longest tunnel (at the time of construction).

FATEHPUR SIKRI

Fatehpur Sikri was constructed southeast of an artificial lake, on the slopping levels of the outcrops of the Vindhyan hill ranges.

Known as the “city of victory”, it was made capital by the Mughal emperor Akbar (r. 1556-1605 CE) and constructed between 1571 and 1573.

Fatehpur Sikri was the first planned city of the Mughals.

Upon moving the capital to Lahore in 1585, Fatehpur Sikri remained as an area for temporary visits by the Mughal emperors.

Some of the important buildings in this city, both religious and secular are:

BULAND DARWAZA : 55 metres (180 ft) high, from the ground. The gate was added c. 1576-1577 as a victory arch, to commemorate Akbar's successful Gujarat campaign.

JAMA MASJID : perhaps one of the first buildings to be constructed in the complex, (A.D. 1571-72)

TOMB OF SALIM CHISTI : A white marble encased tomb of the Sufi saint, Salim Chisti (1478–1572), within the Jama Masjid's courtyard. Surrounding it is a covered passageway for circumambulation, with carved Jalis, stone pierced screens all around with intricate geometric design.

DIWAN-I-AAM or Hall of Public Audience, is where the emperor met the general public.

DIWAN-I-KHAS or Hall of Private Audience. It is here that Akbar had representatives of different religions discuss their faiths and gave private audience.

IBADAT KHANA or House of Worship was a meeting house built in 1575 by the Mughal Emperor Akbar, where the foundations of a new syncretic faith, Din-e-Ilahi were laid by Akbar.

ANUP TALAO : Anup Talao was built by Raja Anup Singh Sikarwar. A ornamental pool with a central platform and four bridges leading up to it.

MARIAM-UZ-ZAMANI'S PALACE : The building of Akbar's Rajput wives, including Mariam-uz-Zamani, shows Gujarati influence and is built around a courtyard, with special care being taken to ensure privacy.

NAUBAT KHANA : Also known as Naqqar Khana meaning a drum house, where musician used drums to announce the arrival of the Emperor.

PACHISI COURT : A square marked out as a large board game, the precursor to modern day Ludo game where people served as the playing pieces.

PANCH MAHAL : A five-storied palatial structure, with the tiers gradually diminishing in size, till the final one, which is a single large-domed chhatri. It was built for the ladies of the court. The floors are supported by intricately carved columns on each level, totalling to 176 columns in all.

BIRBAL'S HOUSE : Notable features of the building are the horizontal sloping sunshades or chajjas and the brackets which support them.

HIRAN MINAR : is a circular tower covered with stone projections in the form of elephant tusks. Traditionally it was thought to have been erected as a memorial to the Emperor Akbar's favourite elephant. However, it was probably used as a starting point for subsequent mileposts.

USTAD HAMID LAHORI – CHIEF ARCHITECT OF THE TAJ MAHAL

Ustad Ahmad Lahori was a persian architect of mughal period.

It is said that he was the chief architect of the Taj Mahal in Agra, India, built between 1632 and 1648 during the reign of mughal emperor Shah Jahan.

His indo-islamic composite architecture, is widely praised around the world and Taj Mahal is considered to be one of the 'seven wonders of the world'.

Hoshang Shah's Tomb, Mandu – India's oldest marble edifice

Did You Know : Hoshang Shah's tomb in Mandu, Madhya Pradesh is India's first completely-marble tomb.

It is said to be the inspiration for the Taj Mahal.

An inscription on the entrance is said to record the visit of Ustad Hamid Khan Lahori, the architect of the Taj Mahal.

Ahmedabad (first) and Jaipur (second) are the only two World Heritage Cities of India.

More than 600 year old Walled City of Ahmedabad founded by Ahmed Shah was declared India’s first World Heritage City in 2017.

The 5.5 km walled city area with approximate population of 4 lakh living in centuries-old wooden havelis in around 600 pols or neighbourhoods is regarded as living heritage.

Ahmedabad city was also an epicenter of Mahatma Gandhi's legacy of non-violent freedom struggle.

Jaipur is the capital and also the largest city of Rajasthan. It is part of the very popular Golden Triangle circuit in North India. Other two cities that are a part of this circuit are Agra and Delhi. Jaipur also has 2 prominent UNESCO World Heritage Sites of India - Amber Fort (one of the 6 hill forts of Rajasthan) and Jantar Mantar.

How this question can be solved by elimination technique ?

Use of elimination technique

Though Chilika Lake is a ramsar wetland site but it is not a world heritage site. Hence, it's not the correct answer.

Sundarbans is the world's largest halophytic (salt-tolerating) mangrove forest. It forms the transition zone between the Ganges and the Bay of Bengal. Sunderbans is both world heritage + Ramsar site, but neither it is a freshwater swamp, nor it is man-made and man-managed. Hence, it's not the correct answer.

Keibul Lamjao is neither world heritage, nor ramsar site. Hence, it's not the correct answer.

Therefore, the correct answer is Keoladeo National Park.

Mahabodhi temple complex at Bodh Gaya is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It is one of the four holy sites related to the life of Lord Buddha, particularly to the attainment of Enlightenment.

Cold desert cultural landscape, Qutb Shahi Monuments of Hyderabad and temples of Bishnupur are sites on the tentative list.

Hazara Rama Temple was built in the early part of the 15th century by King of Vijayanagar Empire Devaraya II.

Uniqueness of Hazara Rama Temple - The first thing that draws attention about the temple is its name. The term ‘Hazara Rama’ literally means a thousand Rama and refers to the multitude of relics depicting the story of Ramayana carved on the walls of the temple.

Lotus Mahal - Also known as Chitrangani Mahal and Kamal Mahal, this falls under the secular or non-religious categories of structures in Hampi.

The exact function of this is not known. Most probably, this was a socializing area for the women of the royal family.

The group of monuments at Mamallapuram consists of -

1) Cave temples - Varaha cave, Mahishasuramardini cave

2) Ratha temples or chariot-shaped temples - best known are the five monolithic rathas called 'Pandava Rathas'

3) Free standing structural temples - for e.g., shore temple (shiva temple with massive Nandi sculptures)

4) Rock reliefs carved on rocks and boulders - Descent of the Ganges (also known as Arjuna's Penance or Bhagiratha's Penance)