Dr Rekha jad
rekhajad1969@gmail.com
Despite its flaws — the haunting AQI and maddening traffic snarls — I remain deeply in love with this city, especially Central Delhi, the timeless Lutyens’ zone. Reading the works of Khushwant Singh and William Dalrymple has only deepened my awe for Delhi’s architectural giants and layered history.
The recent decision to remove the bust of Edwin Lutyens from the precincts of Rashtrapati Bhavan feels, to me, like an injustice to a visionary. Approved by George V in 1912 to design the new imperial capital after the historic shift from Calcutta to Delhi, Lutyens imagined a city that was regal and monumental — once a symbol of imperial authority, and today one of the most striking architectural legacies of the capital.
Along with his colleague Herbert Baker, he surveyed Delhi on horseback — from Majnu ka Tila to Okhla along the Yamuna — selecting Raisina Hill as the seat of power. The Secretariat buildings rose there, shaping the grand axis of what would become New Delhi.
Though not trained in traditional Indian temple or palace architecture, Lutyens thoughtfully incorporated Indian elements into his designs. The sweeping boulevards, stately avenues, and serene green vistas of Central Delhi are a result of his meticulous planning. Even before construction began, he ensured the planting of neem, tamarind, banyan, and other long-living trees, along with exotic saplings — envisioning a city that would grow beautifully with time.
He designed New Delhi not just for his era, but with the foresight that future generations would inherit and redefine it.Indeed, independent India has made these once-imperial spaces its own.He was sure that one fine day English will leave , yet he designed it for coming generation for at least another two hundred years . And books mention that he and his wife sided with Indian National ideology ..
Today’s Lutyens’ Delhi — from the colonnaded grace of Connaught Place to the ceremonial Rajpath, from Lady Hardinge Medical College to the imposing Secretariat and, the imposing India Gate,above all, the magnificent Rashtrapati Bhavan — continues to leave one spellbound.
And Edwin Lutyens’s great-grandson is understandably hurt and upset. As he rightly points out, Lutyens was neither a Viceroy nor of royal lineage — he was simply an architect whose vision shaped a city.
While renaming may reflect changing times, erasing the memory of the architect feels unsettling. A bust of C. Rajagopalachari — the first and only Indian Governor-General and a respected freedom fighter — could certainly stand with pride. But remembrance need not come at the cost of replacement.
Delhi would not be the same without India Gate, Rashtrapati Bhavan, Connaught Place, and its lush green vistas. Names may evolve, but the vision that shaped the city deserves to be remembered. And it goes without saying that Delhi would not have so much to flex about and flaunt around without the Lutyen s architecture.
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