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JAIPUR OR THE PINK CITY OF INDIA
Jaipur also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital of Rajasthan state, India. Jaipur is the former capital of a princely state of the same name. The city was founded in 1728 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber.The city was built of pink stucco in imitation of sandstone, and is remarkable among pre-modern Indian cities for the width and regularity of its streets. The city is laid out into six quarters, separated by broad streets 111 ft wide. The urban quarters are further divided by networks of gridded streets. Five quarters wrap around the east, south, and west sides of a central palace quarter, with a sixth quarter immediately to the east. The Palace quarter encloses a sprawling palace complex, formal gardens, and a small lake. Narhargarh Fort crowns the hill in the northwest corner of the old city. Another noteworthy building is Sawai Jai Singh's observatory, Jantar Mantar. Jaipur, with its rich and colourful past, resplendent with tales of valour and bravery is now one of the most important heritage cities in India, and is a must-see for tourists coming to India.
Jaipur is considered by many urbanists to be one of the best planned cities. Almost all Indian towns of that period presented a chaotic picture of narrow twisting lances, a confusion of run-down forts/ temples/ palaces and temporary shacks that bore no resemblance at all to the principles set out in Hindu architectural manuals, which call for strict geometric planning. Thus, for Sawai Jai Singh and the Bengali Guru Vidyadhar, the founding of Jaipur was also a ritual and a golden opportunity to plan a whole town according to the principles of Hindu architectural theory. The town of Jaipur is in fact, built in the form of a nine-part Mandala known as the 'Pithapada'.
In the 19th century the city grew rapidly and became prosperous, with a population of 160,000 in 1900, and the city's wide boulevards were paved and lit with gas. Its chief industries were in metals and marble, which are fostered by a school of art, founded in 1868. There was also a wealthy and enterprising community of native bankers. The city had three colleges and several hospitals.
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