Each instrument is built of local granite and marble and fixed. The largest instrument is Samrat Jantar which is around 90 feet tall. Its shadow is carefully plotted to tell the time of day, accurate to 30 seconds! Its face is angled at 27 degrees, the latitude of Jaipur. The Hindu chhatri (small domed cupola) on top is used as a platform for announcing eclipses and the arrival of monsoons. The Maharaja built five observatories. There is one in Delhi also.

Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan and was designed by the same king strictly on the rules of Shilpa Shastra (similar to vastu architecture principles) and has many other palaces and art museums.

Hyderabad is known for its IT industry high technology parks, where most of the multinational companies like General Electric, Deloitte & Touche, Microsoft, Dell, Intergraph, Motorola, Oracle, Keane, and Baan, etc have set up shop. Satyam one of India’s largest software companies is headquartered here. It is also home for Dr.Reddi;s Laboratories a global Pharmaceutical company (its stock is listed in NYSE). Ramoj film city called India’s Universal Studio is also located here.

Hyderabad is known for pearls, pearl jewelry, silverware, paintings and artifacts, Unique ‘Bidri; style handicraft items, silk, cotton, and handloom clothings.

Hyderabad is also called Bhagyanagar and is the capital of Andhra Pradesh. Some of the famous attractions are:

• Birla Planetarium
• Birla Mandir – a marble temple built on the top of a hill
• CharMinar
• Golconda Fort
• Hussain Sagar – an artifical lake separating the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad

Additional links:

• City guide
• Fast facts
• Biz Facts

It was renamed from Bombay to Mumbai in 1995. In 1960 Mumbai became the capital of Maharashtra state. Bombay is considered India’s commercial capital. Forty percent of India’s taxes (40,000 crores - 9 billion dollars) comes from this city. Millionaires are made and destroyed everyday at Bombay’s stock exchange.

The city used to be seven hilly isles. When the isles were merged to form a monolithic island, these hills were razed and used to fill the shallows. Partly because of this, some parts of the city lie below sea level and require special foundations for construction. Many parts of the city are still hilly. The highest point in the city is about 450 m( about 1500 ft) and lies in the Powai-Kanheri range in the Borivali National Park. The city lies on a fault line and is earthquake prone.

Bombay has two major airports: Chatrapati Shivaji International airport, and SantaCrus domestic airport. Bombay is the headquarters of Western Railway and Central Railway. Main train stations are: Bombay Central, and Chatrapati Shivaji terminal (formerly known as Victoria Terminus)..

Useful links

• Blog Site
• Mid-day news

Delhi is served by Indira Gandhi International Airport. It has a Metro system which started operating in 2002 and is proposed to be completed in 2022.

Major institutions are

• All India Institute of Medical Sciences
• Delhi University
• Guru Gobind University (also known as IndraPrasth University)
• Indian Institute of Technology
• Indira Gandhi National Open University
• Jamia Millia Islamia
• Jawaharlal Nehru Universiy
• Indian Institute of Planning and Management

Major attractions are:

• Bahai Temple
• Birla Temple
• Connaught Place
• Deer Park
• Gurudwara Bangla Sahib
• Humayun’s Tomb
• India Gate
• International Dolls Museum
• Jama Masjid
• Jantar Mantar
• Lodhi Gardens
• Mughal Gardens
• National Museum
• Nehru Planetarium
• Old Fort or the Purana Qila
• Qutab Minar
• Rashtrapati Bhawan
• Red fort or the Lal Qila
• Raj Path
• Safdarjung’s Tomb
• Sansad Bhawan or the Parliament House
• Tughlaqabad Fort
• Chandni Chowk

Famous shopping areas are

• Chandni Chowk
• Chhawla
• Connaught Place
• JanPath
• Karol Bagh
• Kamla Nagar
• Khan market
• Lajpatnagar central market
• Najafgarh
• Palika Bazaar
• South Extension
• Vasant Vihar
• Sarojini Nagar
• Dwarka

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