Nawab Ismail's Grand Building

This is the entrance to the Grand building. Belongs to the family of Nawab Ismail. One of the sons was a signatories of the Indian constitution. There is a huge photograph of all the signatories of the constitution in the main room. It is not a public place.
 

Grand Building

Perhaps the Grandest old building in Meerut. It is called Mustafa Castle. 'Palace' may not be off the mark. Still occupied by the descendants of the original owners. The Drawing room is retained in its original layout as a tradition. Among many antique items is an old floor standing candle stand , which can hold 7-8 candles . It is still used because of a very unreliable electric supply. It may have been visited by Mountbatten, Nehru, Jinnah.

The Pillar of Ashoka

This Pillar of Ashoka ( C 263-232 B.C) brought by Firoz Shah Tughluq from the neighborhood of Meerut, was
set up by him in his "Hunting Palace" called Kushak-i-Shikar in AD 1365.
The contemporary historians describe the complicated transport of this pillar from its original site to DELHI by the river. It broke into 5 pieces in an explosion during  Farruk Siyar's reign(A.D.1713-1719 ) . And its inscribed portions were later sawed off and sent to the Asiatic Society of Bengal, Calcutta. In 1866 they were received back and all the broken pieces were joined together and the restored pillar was again put up here in 1867. The Pillar now measures 10M in Height.
Inscribed in Brahmi Script and written in the Prakrit Language, this inscription of Ashoka contains his messages and instructions for promoting the Dharma and the welfare and happiness of the people.
 

House

There are many such quaint houses . The grand appearance hides the sad state ,which is not very obvious in a photo . Located on the West End

Allahabad Bank

The present Allahabad Bank building. Housed the Duke of Connaught in the last decade of the 19th century. 1884-1886.Placed on the Mall Road

Augarhnath Temple

This may currently be the most visited location in Meerut. At the site of the old Augarnath Mandir (Kali Paltan). Here the people who fired the 1st shots of the 1857 Meerut mutiny, planned their operations. The old mandir has been replaced by a modern version . Recently  - end of April  early May (2001) a Kalash was installed . A kalash is the pointed spire at the very top .It used 4.5 kgs of gold for the plating.

Gandhi Bagh (Company Garden)

This is Gandhi Bagh , but it is still called Company Garden locally. The grand cricket field shown below is not now visible to people who pass through Meerut on their way to Dehradun, Mussoorie. Prison height walls were put up by the current Defence Estate officer last year.
An ideal place to break the journey to Mussoorie, and stretch your legs. Unfortunately there is no place for refreshments or snacks within.
 

Old Graveyard

Some old graves in the cemetery behind St. John's Church . These monumental ones are pre 1857.  That is when the army belonged to the East India Company.

Old Market

Built in 1902 as a market. Probably never housed anything more than a bakery, which is still there.

Sophiya Girls School

The delightful Sophia School Auditorium. Completed 2000. The senior school building is in the background .

After half a decade of Independence there is a great shortage of good schools in the surrounding region. Schools run by Nuns and Brothers are highly rated not withstanding the objections of the loud minority.
 

St. Mary's Academy

St. Mary's Academy . Affiliated to the Patrician Brothers of Ireland. Spacious grounds. Good Auditorium. Established 1952 Feb 4. By Brother O'Brien , Brother Dunne , Brother Mahoney , Brother Fitz Patrick .
Though there are many schools teaching English here, you will rarely hear English spoken in the market place.

We really have to thank or blame an East India company employee Macaulay for so many English schools. If you have not read Macaulay's plea for teaching English in India  . To come back use your browser back button .
 

St. John's Sr. Sec. School

St. John's Sr. Sec. School . The oldest English Medium school . Well on the way to recovery. Established in 1882.

Wheler Club

Built 1863 . The still impressive Wheler club . Largely Army crowd.  It is a restricted subset of the real thing with a few swear words, overworked to convey a very wide spectrum of meanings. There is a great affinity for much that is Western.
 

Meerut College

The very impressive Meerut College building. It was established around same time as the Delhi University. That does not mean we did not have an educational system before the British. It was just that it less structured and well defined.
 

Jama Masjid

This is the Jama Masjid. It is not even possible to take an unobstructed picture of this, as it is surrounded by construction. The mosque was built by Hasan Mahmuddi, a minister of Mahmood Ghaznavi, in 1019 AD (older than the Kutb Minar). That makes it the 1st Masjid in North India ?. (Source Fodor's India Guide or The Lonely Planet). The Gazette for this region says some Buddhist statuettes were found nearby during digging sometime in 1901.

Cantonment Railway Station

The Cantonment Railway Station. Built around 1865. Twelve years after the 1st train ran from Bombay to Thana. See a picture of the Duke of Connaught arriving at the Cantonment Railway Station.
 

This picture  shows the Duke arriving at the Cantonment Railway Station. In the Black and White old  picture you can see the tension in the posture of the British soldiers. And you thought all this dramatics which takes place even today, when ministers arrive and depart was an Indian original.  There was nothing much happening in the years after 1857, except for arrivals and departures.
 

Abu Lane Market

A view of Abu Lane. No number of pictures can give you a feel of being here. This is a city of kings, and most other people on the road, trespassers. The street is owned by the fathers of many of the pedestrians, scooterists, car owners.