CITY PLANNING OF JAIPUR

PINK CITY
 EVOLUTION OF AN INDIAN CITY JAIPUR

Jaipur was found on 18th November 1727 by maharaja Sawai jai Singh ll, the city has been named after
him. It is Rajasthan’s capital known as largest city situated in eastern border of thar dessert. It lies at a
distance of about 200 miles from Delhi, 150 miles from Agra and 84 miles from Ajmer. Capital city of
Rajasthan is located amidst the Aravalli hill ranges at an altitude of about 430 m above sea level.

The eastern Rajasthan, lying to the east and south east

Latitude – 26 55’ ; Longitude – 75 50’
of the Aravalli divide includes the modern
administrative districts of – Udaipur, Chittorgarh,
Rajsamand, Banswara, Dungarpur, Kota, Bundi, Baran,
Jhalawar, Bhilwara, Ajmer, Jaipur, Tonk, Dausa,
Dholpur, Karauli, Bharatpur and Alwar.
The current district of Jaipur lies in Eastern Rajasthan,
in the Banas River basin and forms a part of Eastern
Plain of Rajasthan. The region is drained by a number
of seasonal rivers of which Banganga, Dhundh and
Bandi are prominent.
From the 10th century onwards, the district referred
to as Dhoondhar, formed one of the four
distinguishable politico-cultural regions of Eastern
Rajasthan, in addition to Mewat, Hadauti and Mewar.

Dhoondhar region was roughly comprised of current districts of Jaipur, Dausa and Tonk, with Jaipur
and Amber further constituting Dhoondhar subzone within the larger tract of Dhoondhar region.

In Aryan epics, Dhoondhar region (called Matsya Desh/ Mina Wati) was the shortest trade route
between north India and rich port cities of Gujarat and Malabar. The region was held by Badgujars,
Rajputs and Minas till the 11th century.
From the 11th century onwards, however, the Dhoondhar region was increasingly under the power of
Kachchwaha dynasty of Rajputs.
 By the 17th century, the Kachchwaha Rajput clan became known for political clout and importance in
the Mughal administration. Raja Man Singh (1590-1614) and Mirza Raja Jai Singh (1622-1667)
contributed to the financial and cultural wealth of Dhoondhar through political alliance with Mughals.
Sawai Jai Singh II (1700 – 1743) who outlived five Mughal emperors and tried to prop up the Mughal
Empire from 1707 – (Aurangzeb’s death) to sack of Delhi by Nadir Shah (1739) established the city of
Jaipur and strengthened the boundaries of Dhoondhar.

The Kachchwaha Rajputs trace their descent through the solar

dynasty to Kush, one of the two sons of Lord Rama. According to
local tradition and popular bardic chronicles, Dulha/Dhola Rai
(whose reign is accepted as being from 1006-1036 AD by most
historians) one of the rulers of this clan, laid the foundation of
Dhoondhar kingdom in 967 AD and made Dausa his capital.
Kakil Dev (1036-1038) who succeeded his father Dulha Rai in
1036 AD, seized Amber from Meenas, laid the foundations of the
Amber Fort and built the temple of Ambikeshwar Mahadev – one
of Amber’s earliest extant monuments.
The capital of Dhoondar was shifted from Dausa to Amber between 1179 and 1216 AD.By the 17th
century, the Kachchwaha Rajput clan became known for political clout and importance in the Mughal
administration. Raja Man Singh (1590-1614) and Mirza Raja Jai Singh (1622-1667) contributed to the
financial and cultural wealth of Dhoondhar through political alliance with Mughals.
Sawai Jai Singh II (1700 – 1743) who outlived five Mughal emperors and tried to prop up the Mughal
Empire from 1707 – (Aurangzeb’s death) to sack of Delhi by Nadir Shah (1739) established the city of
Jaipur and strengthened the boundaries of Dhoondhar.

1. Military Reasons
Defence was an important consideration.
A site at the South of Amber ensured
greater distance from Delhi and also
prevented the expansion of the city in
that direction.
It was clear that the out-skirting hill
ranges (Nahargarh hills) shaped as a
horseshoe would allow the new city to
expand only in the South.
So, this flat site with a basin like shape
was chosen. It was an open plain bounded
on the north-west and east by hills.
Earlier Rajput capitals were established
in the hills, and so moving capital to the
plains was an ex of Sawan Jai Singh’s
boldness.
Geographical Reasons
The rocky terrain of Amber restricted expansion.
Jaipur had the potentialities of developing
into a city with adequate drinking water due
to the presence of a perennial stream nearby
Two significant facts responsible for the origin of the city and its subsequent layout:

1. The need of a new capital for 18th century Dhoondhar as the earlier one of Amber built on a
hill was getting congested.
2. Sawai Raja Jai Singh’s vision of the new capital as a strong political statement at par with
Mughal cities and as a thriving trade and commerce hub for the region.

The site with the natural east west ridge

and the surrounding forts as defence
feature..

The site selected for establishing the new capital of Jaipur was a valley located south of Amber and the
plains beyond, a terrain that was the bed of a dried lake. There used to be dense forest cover to the
north and the east of the city.
The physical constraints that informed the building of Jaipur city included the hills on the north that
housed the fort of Jaigarh and the Amber palace beyond, and the hills on the east, which contained the
sacred spot of Galtaji.
To facilitate water supply to the new city, the Darbhavati river in the north was dammed to create the
Jai Sagar and Man Sagar (that later housed the Jal Mahal) lakes. Later the Jhotwara River in the north
west was diverted through the Amani Shah Nallah and a number of canals were channelised through
Brahmapuri and Jai Niwas to supply water to the city.

PLANNING OF THE CITY

The generic plan of a medieval Rajasthani hill town- as in Dausa and Amber .

The hill town of Dausa with an organic layout guided by the topography
The medieval towns of Rajasthan were of military, agrarian, mercantile or religious nature. The
presence of a deity marked the reference point for the ruler’s abode and the rest of the city. The name
of the town was usually associated with the political or religious centre (with the Ambikeshwar
temple in the case of Amber and with Sawai Jai Singh in the case of Jaipur).

Unlike Dausa and Amber, the two previous capital cities of the Dhoondhar region established on hill-
top, whose planning was guided by topographical structure of the areas, Jaipur city was revolutionary
both in terms of its grid-iron pattern planning and its location at the base of the hills.

There was also a significant economic shift from an agricultural base in Dausa and Amber to trading in
the capital of Jaipur.

The layout of the city of Jaipur wonderfully links the concept of a Shastric city with the practicalities of
the chosen site.

First, the straight line of the ridge suggested itself as the route for one of the main east-west thorough
fares and building a road along its crest makes best possible use of the topography for the purpose of
drainage.

What followed then was to regularize the Amber-Sanganer Road as a north-south route at right angles
to it. The point of intersection would be one of the city’s main cross-roads.

Although the location of the axes was determined, their extents were yet to be defined. The southern
boundary of the city had to lie within the line of the Agra-Ajmer Road. So by extending the NS road as
far as possible southwards gives the first fixed dimension, the length of a side of a square and so
establishes the size of the unit or module of the city.

A hunting lodge known as Jai Niwas. It was the king’s wish that this establishment come within the
city.

A road cutting the plain from N to S linking Amber, the capital to Sanganer, the principal trading town.
This road had to be preserved and controlled and therefore had to fall within the city’s boundaries.

A second road ran E to W between the Mughal cities of Agra and Ajmer and placing the new city on
this already established communication line would help secure its economic success. However,
since this was an imperial road that could not be encroached on, thus the city had to be contained to
the north of this line.

Also, a natural ridge runs across the plain, N of the road and parallel to it, in a roughly EW alignment
(with a slight deviation of15 deg. from the cardinal axes). The area to its S is flat while that to its N
slopes down gently. In Shastric terms, this is an ideal arrangement as declivity towards the north-east Is
considered the best site. In practical terms, the ridge too had to be accommodated.

Also, a natural ridge runs across the plain, N of the road and parallel to it, in a roughly EW alignment.
The area to its S is flat while that to its N slopes down gently. In Shastric terms, this is an ideal
arrangement as declivity towards the north-east Is considered the best site. In practical terms, the
ridge too had to be accommodated.
CONCEPTUAL PRASTARA PLAN
It is a model of town planning- the first planned city in
India. It is based on Hindu systems of town planning and
followed the principles prescribed in the Shilpa-shastra,
an ancient Indian treatise on architecture. according to
this shastra the site should be divided into grids or
mandalas rangung from 2x 2 to 10 x 10.

Planned according to the Prastara type of layout, which

gives prominence to the cardinal directions.

Thus plan of Jaipur is a grid of 3×3 with gridlines being

the city’s main streets.

The central axis of the town was laid from East to West
between the gates of the Sun(Suraj pol) and the moon

This was crossed by two roads at right angles dividing the

town into nine almost square, almost equally sized blocks,
which were further sub divided by lanes and alleys all at
right angles.

But by building the western boundary of the city right up

to the hill’s southern apex, it provided a continuous line of
defence.

The mandala could not be complete in the NW due to the

presence of the hills.

On the other hand, in the SE an extra square has been added that plugged the gap between the city and
the eastern hills.

The gates are: Chandpole Gate, Ghat Gate, Ajmeri Gate, Sanganeri Gate, Surajpole Gate, Gangapole
Gate, Zorawar Singh Gate, and New Gate.
The palace building covered two blocks, the town six and the
remaining ninth block was not usable on account of steep hills.
So, this North-West ward was transferred to the South-East
corner of the city, making the shape of the plan as a whole
asymmetrical rather than square.
f

Following the directions of the Hindu Shilpa shastra, width of the main streets & other lanes were
fixed. Thus, the main streets of the city were 111ft. wide, secondary streets 55 ft. wide & the smaller
ones 27ft. wide.

South of the main road were four almost equal rectangles. The rectangle opposite the palace has been
broken up into two equal and smaller rectangles by the Chaura Rasta.Thus altogether there are now
five rectangles on the south of the main road called Chowkris.

On the North of the main road from West to East are the Purani Basti, the Palace and Ramchandraji.

The principal bazaar leads from the western gate in the city wall, The Chandpole, passing in front of
the Tripolia Gate, to the eastern city gate, the Surajpole.

To the NW of this lay the Jai Niwas. Given that its royal association meant that it had to be within the
palace compound, the site of the palace was established. Indeed, given the wish to locate the palace
centrally, the position of the brahmas Thana was also established. A wall surrounds the palace
buildings. The serving class occupied the peripheral areas.

Another constraint was the position of the lake, which formed a part of the pleasure garden around
which the city was built. This lake lay close to the hillside. In the original design it fell outside the main
block of the city; but due to Jai Singh’s wish to include the old garden in the city, the lake was made the
tank of palace garden.
WHY PINK...?
Jaipur is known as the Pink City, a rather idealized description of
the terra-cotta-coloured lime plaster that coats the old part of the
city’s walls, buildings, and temples.
The reasons for painting the town pink are unknown, but various
Others believe Singh wanted to imitate the colour of the sandstone used in the forts and palaces of his
Mughal emperor-friends. The most popular reason (spread no doubt by “Britishers” during the Raj
era) is that pink is the traditional colour of hospitality, and the city was freshly painted and paved
with pink gravel to warmly welcome Edward VII for his visit here in 1876.

URBAN FORM AND ARCHITECTURAL IDENTITY

The foundation of the new capital city of Jaipur could be justified by two plausible factors - the
political dominance which the State of Amber had already acquired in erstwhile Rajputana under the
patronage of the Mughal rulers, and the need for an environment that would be suitable as the new
capital of the State.

ROAD NETWORK

Jaipur’s road network follows a definite hierarchy. The

major east-west and north-south road, form the sector
boundaries and are called Rajmarg as they lead to the
city gates. These measure 33m wide. Next there is a
network of 16.5m wide which runs north-south in
each sector linking the internal areas of the sectors to
the major activity spine. An orthogonal grid of
8.25mx4.00m roads in the prastara-chessboard
pattern further divide sectors into Mohallas.

PUBLIC SPACES: Public spaces can be divided into

 Chaupars
 Bazaars
 Mohallas
 Streets
 Temples

CONCEPTUAL PLAN – CHAUPAR

CHAUPAR – It’s a square that occurs at the intersection of east west roads with three north south
roads. Each chaupar is around 100m x 100m. Were used for public gathering on festive occasions. The
distance between two chaupars is about 700m which is ideal for pedestrian movement. It has
controlled façade treatment enveloping it.
BAZAARS – Originally only four bazaars were planned for the city. These were later named as Johri
bazaar, Sireh Deori Bazaar, Kishan pole Bazaar & Gangori Bazaar

On the main streets strict control was exercised on the street façade, along which were located shops
and arcades- one storey high, but beyond the frontage the buildings could be of any height or any
shape, some built with flat roofs & others with traditional chattris.

STREETSCAPES AND CHOWKS

View (above) of a main bazaar street – the width of the main roads was kept 39 1/4 gaz – 108 feet,
secondary roads are half this size – 54 feet, the tertiary roads are 27 feet and the inner mohalla streets
are 13 feet wide.

VIEW OF A CHAUPAR TODAY

The main markets, havelis and temples on the main streets in Jaipur were constructed by the state in
the 18th century, thus ensuring that a uniform street facade is maintained. The widths of roads were
predetermined.

According to a popular belief, the city was painted pink to celebrate the visit of the Prince of Wales in
1876, during the reign of Maharaja Sawai Ram Singh II, lending the city the name of ‘Pink City’.

Junctions of the main axial streets formed the two square civic open spaces called chaupars (Badi
chaupar and Chhoti chaupar). The width of the square chaupars was three times that of the main
street.

Historically, the chaupars were outlets for intense social use with water structures connected by
underground aqueducts, supplying numerous sources of drinking water at street level. Presently, the
centre of each chaupar has square enclosures with ornamental fountains.
The streets and chowks (central open squares in a town) of the internal chowkries (sectors) with
numerous clusters or mohallas were not predetermined; hence show a mix of grid iron and organic
pattern, with the basic unit of built form being the rectangular haveli.

BAZAARS

Original markets in the city include Kishanpole bazaar, Gangauri bazaar, Johari bazaar, Sireh Deorhi
bazaar, along the main north-south and east-west axes that intersect at Chhoti and Badi Chaupars.

Typical architectural features of the bazaar streets are – use of chhajjas (sunshades) resulting in
strong horizontal lines, projecting vertical blocks on brackets, a modular system of arches filled with
delicate latticed screens to cut direct sun and glare of reflected sun in the street.

Bazaar streets have temples above shops with wide staircase starting from pavement to the temple
level. Space above shops at first floor level originally functioned as galleries for watching royal
processions, religious festivals and public celebrations.

Uniform planned shop fronts on bazaar streets

with upper floors in interesting juxtaposition.

Defined street façade at a chaupar with sunshades and latticed colonnades at upper floors and shop
fronts on the ground floor

REFERENCE:
https://jaipur.rajasthan.gov.in/content/raj/jaipur/en/about-jaipur/history.html
https://www.archinomy.com/case-studies/jaipur- indian-city/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Jaipur

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=htqU-PQhC7c

https://architexturez.net/doc/az-cf-123686

https://www.ripublication.com/irph/ijert_spl17/ijertv10n1spl_23.pdf