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Red Fort

Forts and palaces are one of the many wonders in India. They were built by Hindu Kings, Mughals and the British. Some of the patrons even chartered services of English, French and Portuguese architects. These 'wonders' were sited and designed to tactically cover large areas all around them for observation and use of weapons. Delhi, which for centuries remained a target for occupational control by many marauding forces, has three major forts-Purana (Old Fort), Tughlaqabad and Lal Qila (Red Fort).

The Red Fort, situated on the western banks of the river Yamuna, forms the majestic centrepiece of Mughal Emperor Shahjahan's medieval walled city 'Shah Jahanabad' (Old Delhi). This sandstone citadel encompasses grand audience halls, marble palaces ornamented with exquisite pietra dura once embedded with precious stones market place where the royalty used to shop, a mosque, gardens with marbled fountains, plazas and baths. The Red Fort is enclosed by nearly two-and-half km of battlement walls which vary in hight from 18.5 m on the river side to 33m on the city side. It is surrounded by a 9m deep moat.

The Red Fort, built between 1650 and 1656, was the seat of power for the Mughal rulers until the time India came under British rule. The Red Fort housed the British authorities before they moved to Lutyen's Delhi. Till August 1947 the British army continued to stay in the Red Fort.

It was from the ramparts of this fort that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, unfurled the Indian Tricolour on August 15, 1947, marking the end of the British colonial rule. Every year on Independence Day, the Prime Minister of the country addresses a huge crowd assembled in the large ground near its Lahori Gate. This fort was selected as the initial headquarter of the new Army of India.

The 4 Sikh Light Infantry battalion was one of the first Indian Army units to move into the Fort after the British left. In the ensuing years, the Fort served as home for a number of Army units. For the Indian Army, living in the premises of the Red Fort was not only physical but an emotional attachment.

At the stage when conservation of environment, culture and history of India came under focus, environmentalists began their campaign of evacuation of forts. On December 22, 2003 Red Fort was handed over to Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in order to facilitate the restoration work. It was an emotional moment as the same 4 Sikh Light Infantry which took over the Fort when the British left handed it over to ASI.

The Archaeological Survey of India took its first step with an expert committee, constituted by the Supreme Court, meeting for the first time on August 31, 2004. While it was just an introductory meeting, it set the ball rolling to bring together experts from different fields in accordance with the Supreme Court order to ensure that a comprehensive conservation management plan for the Red Fort is formulated. It was stressed that the plan should be in keeping with internationally accepted principles. The committee was also to lay down the criteria for selection of the professional teams required at each stage of conservation and the specific skills required for each task.