CHANDNI CHOWK- STUDY AS HISTORIC DISTRICT

AREA OF STUDY:
North: Axial road from Red Fort to Fatehpuri masjid
South: Delhi gate to Kamla market junction
 Area Context:
LOCATION: The Chandni Chowk (Moonlight Square) is one of the oldest and busiest markets in Old Delhi, India. It is located
close to Old Delhi Railway Station.
The Red Fort monument is located at the eastern end of Chandni Chowk.
Chandni Chowk is the central street of the imperial city of Shahjahanabad,
founded in the mid-seventeenth century. The street runs from opposite the
western entrance to the Red Fort, right down the breadth of the original walled
city to Fatehpuri mosque. The name Chandni Chowk was originally applied
only to one of the squares located on the street which had a large ornamental
pool that reflected the moonlight (chandni). The street has changed
considerably over the centuries. Originally much wider, right until the mid-
nineteenth century it had a channel of water running down its centre, and shady
trees on either side. Today this is a busy commercial street, narrower and much
more crowded than ever before in its history, but with many historic landmarks
still remaining.
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9 7
• The majestic four-storey building of the State
Bank of India (SBI) in Chandni Chowk is
extremely valuable and has multiple layers of
history. The building bears witness to Delhi’s
history dating back from the end of the Mughal
dynasty to the massacre of 1857 mutiny and later
to the new era of independent India.

• Set up in 1806, the 80-feet high colonial building

is the oldest branch of the SBI, and one of the
largest in the country even today. It is
architecturally one of the most significant 19th
century buildings in Chandni Chowk.
•  
• The branch was declared a heritage building in
the year 2002. However, this treasure trove is
slowly being forgotten by its own people. The
untold and unseen part of this heritage and the
legacy of Indian history is unique.
 Introduction:
• It was built in the 17th century by Mughal Emperor of India Shah Jahan and designed by his daughter Jahanara.
• The market was once divided by canals (now closed) to reflect moonlight and remains one of India's largest wholesale markets.
STAKEHOLDERS: 1. Shahjahanabad Redevelopment Corporation
2. Local Residents and Shop owners
3.Delhi Urban Arts Commission
4.Traders, trader unions, residents, heads of religious structures on the stretch.
• Chandni Chowk is one of the oldest designed urban streets within the City of Delhi and dominant axis of the Walled city.

• One of the two most important thorough fares of the City of Shahjahanabad, the Chandni Chowk is a liner street beginning at the
Lahori Gate of the Red Fort and culminating at the Fatehpuri Masjid in the west.

• The original Chandni Chowk had octagonal chowks with a water channel running through the centre. It’s wide boulevard with
prestigious buildings and bazaar created a vista between the magnificient Red Fort and Fatehpuri Mosque.

• Designed as the most prominent boulevard in the Mughal Times, it transformed itself over the years to cater to the needs of its
rulers and planners from the British to the Master Planners of Delhi.

• The urban environment of Chandni Chowk has deteriorated considerably over the past 50 years and this project aims at reinstating
Chandni Chowk as a vibrant and dynamic marketplace and restoring its architectural glory.

•Over the years there has been massive degradation and deterioration of this magnificient boulevard which has been mainly caused
by over crowding, huge numbers of vendors, markets and traders, unauthorized construction and lack of control over all.

Source: Aishwarya Tipnis Architects website.

 Significant heritage typologies and transformations
During the late 19th and early 20th centuries extensive construction and densification of the city took place, with disintegration of
the traditional social ecology, increasing commercialization and associated congestion and degradation of the environment.

EXISTING SITUATION:
According to the DDA Zonal plan, the population of the Walled City increased to saturation point in 1961, after which there has been
large scale infill by commercial uses replacing residential uses.
EXISTING SCENARIO:
MULTIPLE ACTIVITIES:
PARKING: SANITATION: