1. When my mother first came to Delhi, she refused to go out. She told her father that she missed the greenery and her own beautiful parks back in Assam. Her father took her to the next best place possible. Its no ordinary park you see.
2. Its none other that the Mughal gardens here in RB. Since it’s a part of the Presidential palace, it happens to be one the most well maintained gardens of India. It was initially commissioned by the British Govt to be the Viceroy’s House which was later converted into the RB post Independence.
This garden was built in 1911 & was designed by Brit architects Herbert Baker and Edward Lutyens - who incorporated both the Persian ChaarBagh structure & the English style of gardening.
3. It was influenced by the iconic Mughal Gardens in Kashmir which was based up on the Quranic Garden of Paradise which has a central river flowing so as to cool the surrounding air and also support other life forms. It was considered pious to provide shade to the travelers and thus it was an imperial pastime for these Persian rulers to beautify everyplace they went.
The quintessential structure can be noticed just as we enter the Mughal Gardens from the SA Road after all the security checks. So one must not carry anything except wallets and phones. The entry is free of charge & free mineral water is provided inside.
As we enter, we can see a vast expanse of vividly green grass, water channels, fountains, paths, neatly cut trees and brightly colored flowers set in geometric patterns.
The immense beauty and amazing fragrances along with the majestic building of RB in all its glory - leaves one breathless.
It’s almost a tightrope walk along the central pavement with no place to sit or linger except for a few photographs.
The pleasant breeze and warm sun make for a good walk and the clean water channels beside reflect the sky, the flowers and imposing building. It’s a true delight to the senses to see the beautiful scenery around us and as we move towards the west
5. As we move towards the west side, we come to the the terrace or purdah garden.
Traditionally it was made by Mughal Emperor Jahangir to impress his 20th and most beautiful wife Nur Jahan & he would construct fully bloomed rose gardens for their nightly walks. (/where they would walk among a bed full of roses and jasmine flowers which would bloom during their nightly walks. )
In its more practical adaptation as a Long garden with rose on either side & a pergola like red sandstone structure in between with hanging flower baskets and bougainvillea over it.
It has been adapted into a practical long garden with roses on both side, neatly arranged into 16 square rose beds and you can find every shade and names of roses possible to be there. Yes! There are about 3k variety of roses from every color like white icebergs to deep crimson and their names are even more interesting to read. So there are actual roses named Taj Mahal, Queen Elizabeth, John F Kennedy, Aishwarya Rai or even Mahabharata characters like Arjun and Bhīma.
The fragrance in the air is absolutely mesmerizing & one wants to stay there for a longer while.
Circular garden
6. But it is after that, we come to what I believe is the pride of the place- the magnificent circular garden – which is in the form of an amphitheater like structure with concentric circular flower beds leading up to the central pond in between – which has a musical fountain in it playing classical background music.
There one can see the famed tulips which were imported from Netherlands & about 10k of them were brought in. Most of them were spent except for some yellow ones.
But despite that - the variety and colour scheme was stunning
We can walk only on the topmost circle which is surrounded by high walls covered in tall dahlias up to 8 ft. & it also has vertical gardens installed with air purifying plants in it.
7. As we exit this floral delight, the sweet smell of roses still lingers on
Contribution of each tenant- for e.g. Dr. APJ Abdul Kalama made the Science park, Dr. Pratibha Patil made the Bonsai garden & our incumbent president Mr. Ramnath Kovind installed a sewage treatment plant which reutilizes waste water to be reused into the 13 acres of land.
It is quite interesting to know that this flower garden is the only area open for public viewing.
We come now to the Display area – there is produce from the kitchen garden( like herbs and vegetables) and stalls selling souvenirs, water, ice creams and other food stuff.
We can collect out bags from the cloakroom and all forms of local transport are available and Central Sec metro station is just a small walk away. But I’d personally recommend driving down the most beautiful lanes & during the most pleasant weather we experience. – open only during udyanotsav
Remember I was telling you about how enchanted my mother by that place that she said that she wants to become the president of India just to own that garden & perhaps that’s why we have about 300 plants at our own home which she loves more than her husband or even me! But I must say that I have inculcated a deep love for plants & flowers from her. And I absolutely enjoy going back every year & it’s a must visit for every true Delhite & you will love it just as much as I do
Ty
Thank You!
Focus on why must see and travel with me – feel of the place has 20 marks