Damdi aka Damadi Masjid (Mukundnagar) near Ahmednagar Fort in Ahmednagar

Saturday, May 14, 2016

Damdi aka Damadi Masjid (Mukundnagar), is located very near to the Ahmednagar Fort. One has to travel by the Burhan Nagar Road to reach it. Directions to reach it are available on Google Maps. It is looked after by the Damdi Masjid Kabrastan (Trust). 

Damdi aka Damadi Masjid near Ahmednagar Fort in Ahmednagar

Apart from the Masjid are many old tombs in its premises. Not sure to whom these tombs belong as there are no signboards around them. The Masjid was built around in 1567.

Damdi aka Damadi Masjid near Ahmednagar Fort in Ahmednagar

The Masjid is very small in size but is very beautiful. Art work is very clearly visible on the Masjid walls. The stone engraving, the arches, the minar atop are beautifully done. I have seen many Masjid's but nothing like this one.

Tombs in Damdi aka Damadi Masjid near Ahmednagar Fort in Ahmednagar

Not sure if the Masjid is still operational, as the entry  gates are locked so we couldn't see it from the inside. but there is a family that stays near its premises. The cemetery is operational.

Entrance to Damdi aka Damadi Masjid near Ahmednagar Fort in Ahmednagar

We then headed over to see the Cavalry Tank Museum.

Ahmednagar Fort in Ahmednagar

Thursday, May 12, 2016

Ahmednagar Fort (Bhuikot Killa) is located in MIRC Ahmednagar in Maharashtra. One has to travel by the Ahmednagar-Pathardi-Beed Road (NH222) to reach its entrance. Directions to it are available on Google Maps. It was built by Malik Shah Ahmed, he was the first sultan of the Nizam Shahi Sultanate in 1490 AD. Post that the fort has changed hands a couple of times.

Entrance to Ahmednagar Fort

After visiting Chand Bibi Tomb we headed to Ahmednagar Fort. A land fort and its walls are not very tall. Around the fort is placed a moat, so that enemies couldn't enter the fort premises. Currently there is wild vegetation growing in the moat area. Daulatabad fort near Aurangabad, is another such fort which has got a moat around it.

Hazrat Peer Bagh Nizam Dargah at Ahmednagar Fort

The fort is under the control of the Armoured Corps of the Indian Army. Certain portions of the fort are open to public view from 9 AM to 5 PM. There is no entry fee but one has to deposit an ID proof before viewing the fort premises.

Fortification of Door to Ahmednagar Fort

The guard informed us that the main entrance is a couple of blocks away and for security reason it is closed. He also informed us about the Leaders Block and the best way of seeing the fort is by walking on the fort walls. 

Door to Ahmednagar Fort

The national flag, he informed us that apart from this fort, it sways on the Rashtrapati Bhavan and the Red Fort in Delhi. The size of the flag is the same across all the three places.

We decided visit the main entrance of the fort. It has huge doors which are closed. There is also the Hazrat Peer Bagh Nizam Dargah built near the main entrance. There are a couple of old houses which are in ruins.

Leader's Block at Door to Ahmednagar Fort

We then headed over to see the Leaders Block located within the fort premises. The Leaders block was U shaped and had rooms within it. 12 Freedom Fighters were imprisoned here from 10 Aug 1942. The room in which Pandit Nehru was imprisoned is intact. One can still see some of the articles used by him in those days. "Do Not Touch" is placed near the exhibits.

Atop the walls of Door to Ahmednagar Fort

We then headed over to see the fort via the fort walls. The guard informed that, we need to climb up and down the walls from the staircase located only near the flag. Climbing up and down other staircase on the fort walls is not permissible. The fort is round in structure and has 24 bastions. In the fort walls are openings via which guns could be placed to shoot at the enemy. I have located similar niches in Vijaydurg fort near Devgad.

Walls of Door to Ahmednagar Fort

The fort walls are broad enough, two people can walk together on it. It offers a close view of the land outside. One can't see the inside of the fort due to the thick vegetation growing on the inside. The bastions are all similarly designed. One of them also has a hidden route that leads from one to the other. A couple of bastions have inscriptions in Urdu. Not sure what they meant.

Hidden tunnel in the Door to Ahmednagar Fort walls

Due to it's short fort walls this fort would have been heavily guarded in its hay days. it has changed hands a couple of times and finally it got its freedom in 1947. Located outside the fort are two cannons on wheels. Most of the cannons I have seen on fort visits in Maharashtra don't have wheels. BTW no cannons could be spotted in the fort premises.

Important Information on Door to Ahmednagar Fort

Cannon on Wheels at the entrance of Door to Ahmednagar Fort

We then headed off to see Damdi or DamadiMasjid.

Chand Bibi Tomb in Ahmednagar

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Chand Bibi Tomb aka Chand Bibi Mahal (Sonewadi), is located around 15 KM away from Swastik Chowk Pune Bus Stand in Ahmednagar. One has to travel by the Ahmednagar-Patardi-Beed Road (NH222) to reach it. Directions to it are available on Google Maps. 

After alighting from the ST bus, we refreshed ourselves near the Swastik Chowk Pune Bus Stand and then negotiated with the rickshaw drivers outside for a ride to the places on our itinerary. We finally agreed to pay Rs.1,000.

As the rickshaw took off, the cool breeze  hit us hard and we actually started feeling cold. but that was short lived with the rays of the rising sun. Chand Bibi Tomb is located on the Ahmednagar Beed Road and it took as around an hour's time to reach the top of the hillock where the Tomb is located.

Manohar and Me near Chand Bibi Tomb at Ahmednagar

The narrow roads leading to the tomb were deserted, there is hardly any greenery here, nor is there any civilization. A tar road leads to the top of the hill.

As the rickshaw climbed uphill, we saw a couple of people walking up and down the hill, this can be a nice morning walk, apart from them we also saw a couple of cyclists who were riding uphill. Finally we were on top.

Chand Bibi Tomb at Ahmednagar

We decided to waste no time and visited the monument.

The Chand Bibi Tomb is six sided- three storey structure with a dome atop it, with the tomb in the basement. We first decided to visit the tomb, there are two tombs here, adorned with a green sheet of cloth (Chaddar)

Artwork at Chand Bibi Tomb at Ahmednagar

The design of the tomb is uniform in all aspects with the windows atop having small balconies near it.

We then decided to view the tomb from the inside, there are steep staircase leading from one level to the next. The steep staircase is made up of huge stairs, interestingly there is natural light coming in, so one can see the stairs.

Chand Bibi Tomb at Ahmednagar from the inside

The tomb premises is very airy due to the huge windows all around. We then reached the top of the structure. Please be careful here as there is no fencing. It offers a breathtaking view of the area around. It has got hills, windmills and civilization in  a distance. This hillock seems to be deserted from civilization.

Atop Chand Bibi Tomb at Ahmednagar

A little bit of history, Chand Bibi (1550 - 1599) was a Muslim woman warrior, was the daughter of Hussain Nizam Shah of Ahmednagar. She played a vital role in defending Ahmednagar from the Mughal forces. 

Tombs in Chand Bibi Tomb at Ahmednagar premises

On our way back we also saw another structure, but sadly there is no signboard around to provide information on the same.

Unnamed structure near Chand Bibi Tomb at Ahmednagar

The time was now 8:45 AM and we decided to visit Ahmednagar Fort which is located a couple of KM away from there on the way to Ahmednagar city.

State Transport bus ride to Ahmednagar

Sunday, May 8, 2016

Ahmednagar, thus this word rings bells in your head. For me it truly does. In school, history was my favorite subject. In history we learned about the Nizam Shah of Ahmednagar.

I decided to take a trip to Ahmednagar along with my friend Manohar, who had accompanied me to several treks around Maharashtra. Nagar is another name this city is known by. Had heard this name while I was returning from Aurangabad.

Ahmednagar is located around 239 KM away from Mumbai. It can be accessed by road and rail. We decided to take road transport as at such notice we would not get train tickets by train it is around 255 KM away. There are no flights to Ahmednagar. We decided to take ST bus to reach Ahmednagar instead of taking the car along.

Apart from State Govt buses, private buses ply to Ahmednagar on a regular basis. We boarded the 11:00 PM ST bus from Dadar TT to Tarakpur in Ahmednagar, it was to reach Ahmednagar in the morning around 6 AM.

Finally at a cost of Rs.410 a ticket we boarded the semi luxury bus to Ahmednagar, the moment the took off, I fell asleep and I slept like a log in the bus. The bus driver drove the bus like a formula one car, racing and turning on the roads, but that didn't affect me much. Finally at 5 AM we were at Ahmednagar bus stand aka MSRTC Main ST stand located very close to the Swastik Chowk Pune Bus Stand. MSRTC Tarakpur bus stand is the next stop and around 1.6 KM away. ( These bus stand are all in Ahmednagar)

I checked up the places on my itinerary for the day. I had Ahmednagar Fort, Chand Bibi Tomb, Daria Bagh Palace, Damdi Masjid and Calvary Tank Museum.

In the premises of the ST bus stand, are restrooms and washrooms available for a minimal fee. After refreshing ourselves we headed over to have some hot tea. The weather was cool though not cold as I had expected. Sadly the jumper that occupied the most space in the bag, remained in house only. LOL.

I know it is last moment research, but still came in handy while planning the places to visit at the last moment. We decided to do Chand Bibi Tomb, Damdi Masjid and Faria Bagh Palace first as there is no entry time limit nor entry fee for the same.

We asked a couple of rickshaw drivers outside the bus stand, to charged us Rs.1000 to visit the five places, they informed us that it would take us around 5 to 6 hours to see then in entirety. I so miss not taking the car along. But again with the car we would have to ask for directions as there are no signboards around. Hope GPS works here.

We kick started our trip, with Chand Bibi Tomb.