Safdarjung and Humayun tombs to stay open till 9 pm

The timings of two of Delhi’s well-known monuments, Safdarjung’s Tomb and Humayun’s Tomb, have been extended from 6 pm till 9 pm from Friday.

While Humayun’s Tomb saw six visitors on Friday evening, four people visited Safdarjung’s tomb. The decision to extend their timings was announced by the union culture ministry in July.

“We are expecting more visitors over the weekend and from next week. We will inform the public about the extended timings through the websites of ASI and the tourism department. This apart, the websites of our ticketing portals such as Yatra.com and BookMyShow will have the updated timings,” said N K Pathak, Superintending Archaeologist of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Delhi circle said.

Safdarjung’s tomb underwent complete illumination in July this year. The dome of Humayun’s tomb, on the other hand, was lit up in September 2018.

“We increased the number of security guards in both monuments and ensured that the entry of public is restricted up to a particular area only,” said Pathak.

Pathak said the public will not be allowed in every corner of the monument in the evening hours since it would be difficult to ensure everyone has left before the closing hours. “The best view of the monument is from the gate itself,” he said.

In July, Union Culture Minister Prahlad Singh Patel had announced that the entry timings at 10 historical monuments across the country would be extended till 9 pm.

The 16th century mausoleum of Mughal emperor Humayun and the 18th century tomb of Safdarjung, a prime minister in the Mughal court, were two monuments from Delhi that were selected for the extended timings.

Hauz Khas illumination

Hauz Khas, the 14th century water body built during Alauddin Khilji’s reign, and the wall of his capital city, Siri Fort, might soon be illuminated.

The Delhi circle of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has sent a proposal for their illumination to the Director General’s (DG) office. “We will begin with the lighting the moment we receive an approval from the DG office,” an official from ASI’s Delhi circle said.

The illumination of both structures will be carried out for public view from outside. “This is not being done with a view to extend public entry hours. At Hauz Khas, we will illuminate the lake side alone and not the monuments in the complex. Similarly, the lit up Siri Fort wall will be visible to public from outside,” the official said.

While the Hauz Khas lake was built by Khilji, the surrounding monuments were built by Tughlaq ruler, Feroz Shah Tughlaq between 1352 and 1354 AD. The complex consisting of the monuments, located in Hauz Khas Village in south Delhi, is not a ticketed area.

The ASI is presently carrying out illumination work in Qutub Minar and Tughalaqabad Fort, both of which are also expected to be remain open till late hours.