The Humayun's Tomb Complex and its surrounding areas cover almost 60 acres of land and include several significant monuments such as Isa Khan’s tomb enclosure, Afsarwala Tomb and Mosque, Arab Serai, Bu Halima’s Tomb and several monumental gateways.
Bu Halima’s tomb garden, dating from the 16th century, stands abutting Isa Khan’s Tomb at the entrance zone of theHumayun’s Tomb complex. In the 1920’s portions of the enclosure wall were demolished to make a circular roadway thusdestroying the character of the enclosure as well as disfiguring the historic character of the site with vast quantities ofcement concrete.
Read more about the architecture of Bu Halima’s Garden- Tomb Enclosure
The project has demonstrated a successful model of public-private partnership for conservation. Unlike in the developed world where there is significant civil society engagement with conservation effort, conservation of national monuments has to date been restricted to the government agencies. The ongoing AKTC project is the first such initiative where monuments of national importance are being conserved by a private philanthropic group.
This project is being undertaken in Public-Private Partnership between the ASI and AKTC as part of the Nizamuddin Urban Renewal Initiative, which pioneered a return to craft-based approach to conservation in India, thus ensuring revival of craft skills, creating almost half a million days of employment for craftsmanship and respecting the original builders’ intention.
