DELHI - THE HEART OF INDIA
Delhi known locally as Dilli and also by
the official name National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT),
is the second-largest metropolis in India. With over 17.3
million residents, it is the eighth largest metropolis in
the world by population.The name Delhi is often also used
to include some urban areas near the NCT, as well as to refer
to New Delhi, the capital of India, which lies within the
NCT. The NCT is a federally administered union territory.
Located on the banks of the River Yamuna, Delhi has been
continuously inhabited since at least the 6th century BC,
according to archaeological evidence. After the rise of the
Delhi Sultanate, Delhi emerged as a major political, cultural
and commercial city along the trade routes between northwest
India and the Indo-Gangetic plains. It is the site of many
ancient and medieval monuments, archaeological sites and remains.
In 1639, Mughal emperor Shahjahan built a new walled city
in Delhi which served as the capital of the Mughal Empire
from 1649 to 1857.
After the British East India Company gained control of much
of India during the 18th and 19th centuries, Calcutta became
the capital both under Company rule and under the British
Raj, until George V announced in 1911 that it was to move
back to Delhi. A new capital city, New Delhi, was built to
the south of the old city during the 1920s. When India gained
independence from British rule in 1947, New Delhi was declared
its capital and seat of government. As such, New Delhi houses
important offices of the federal government, including the
Parliament of India.
Owing to the migration of people from across the country,
Delhi has grown to be a cosmopolitan metropolis. Its rapid
development and urbanisation, coupled with the relatively
high average income of its population, has transformed Delhi.
Today Delhi is a major cultural, political, and commercial
center of India.
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