Sunder Nursery

Sunder Nursery
Central Park of Delhi, Azim Bagh
Sunderwala Burj and reflecting water canal
Map
TypeHeritage Park, City Park
LocationNew Delhi
Coordinates28°35′49″N 77°14′43″E / 28.596874°N 77.245339°E / 28.596874; 77.245339,
Area90 acres (0.36 km2)
Created16th century
Designer
  • Mohammad Shaheer
  • Aga Khan Trust for Culture
Owned byGovernment of India
Operated by
StatusOpen all days from sunrise to sunset
Websitewww.sundernursery.org

Sunder Nursery, formerly called Azim Bagh or Bagh-e-Azeem, is a 16th-century heritage park complex adjacent to the Humayun's Tomb, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Delhi.[1] Originally known as Azim Bagh and built by the Mughals in the 16th century, it lies on the Mughal-era Grand Trunk Road, and is spread over 90 acres (36 hectare).[2][3][4] Future plans aim to link nearby areas to develop it into India's largest park covering 900 acres.[5][6]

Today Sunder Nursery contains fifteen heritage monuments of which 6 are UNESCO World Heritage Sites, including Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) protected Sundarwala Burj, Sundarwala Mahal and Lakkarwala Burj.[3][7][8]

After renovations starting in 2007, the nursery reopened to public as a heritage park on 21 February 2018. Now it contains over 300 types of trees, making it Delhi's first arboretum.[8]

During the British Raj, the nursery was established to grow experimental plants; it also has a lake which gave it its current designation as a nursery. The Sunder Burj tomb lends the space the Sunder in Sunder Nursery.[9][10] Although the name Sunder Nursery is still used locally, the park has been termed "Delhi's Central Park" after renovations (not to be confused with the Central Park in Connaught Place, New Delhi).[11]

  1. ^ "A walk through one of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites: Delhi's Sunder Nursery". WION. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  2. ^ Datta, Rangan (20 January 2023). "Sunder Nursery in Delhi: An oasis in the heart of the capital jungle". No. My Kolkata. The Telegraph. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
  3. ^ a b "Humayun's Tomb - Sunder Nursery - Hazrat Nizamuddin Basti | Aga Khan Development Network". www.akdn.org. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  4. ^ "Photos: Sunder Nursery near Humayun's Tomb opens as heritage park". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  5. ^ "Sunder Nursery debuts in heritage park avatar - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  6. ^ Staff Reporter (21 February 2018). "Sunder Nursery in full bloom". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  7. ^ "10 years on, Sunder Nursery to debut as a heritage park - From nursery to heritage park". The Economic Times. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  8. ^ a b ""We will be involving community volunteers to effectively police the park" -Governance Now". Governance Now. 19 April 2018. Retrieved 25 April 2018.
  9. ^ "Aga Khan revives lost 16th century Mughal garden in heart of Delhi". The Daily Telegraph. 1 September 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  10. ^ "Sunder Nursery blooms into a park". Deccan Herald. 2 January 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  11. ^ Sreevatsan, Ajai (22 February 2018). "Delhi's own 'central park' opens today". Livemint. Retrieved 25 April 2018.