Syed Altamash Ahmad

Rizwan Castle, Patna, Bihar  On the way to the Dak Bungalow from Patna Railway Station, you must have seen this castle in the middle of a pile of garbage on Fraser Road. Well, it wasn't always like this. This palace once sheltered many freedom fighters. But today it is fighting for its existence. Rizwan Castle located in Patna, Bihar is a Scottish-style castle built by the legendary barrister Syed Hasan Imam in the 1920s.  Syed Hasan Imam was an Indian politician who served as the President of the Indian National Congress. He was the younger brother of freedom fighter, Sir Ali Imam Rizwan Castle looks like a fort but it is not built on height nor has a ladder to climb. there is no dome to guard the fort nor a place for watchmen. This is a palace that is built in gothic architecture, portico is built in the center, windows are of gothic style, the cross is also built above the windows.  It is said that there were fountains in the lawn but Now you can only find scattered ga...

Ganesh Temple of Rohtasgarh, Sasaram, Bihar A temple that has been taking care of itself for centuries. It was built around 1594  by Maan Singh when he was appointed as Subedar (Governor) of Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand, and Odisha he made his headquarters in Rohtasgarh. He erected this holy temple  inside the Rohtasgarh fort as the grace of this temple remains on everyone. But now there is no one to take care of this temple but still, the architecture is so attractive to spellbound anyone. It has an octagonal  mandapa in the center of the temple supported by a beautifully carved high plinth, made in Nagara style. The Nagara style of temple architecture that became popular in northern India is known as Nagara. In North India, it is common for an entire temple to be built on a stone platform with steps leading up to it.  The sanctum of the temple faces two porch-ways. but sadly the main idol is missing from the temple. Despite being in dilapidated condition this temp...

  Mir Ashraf mosque situated in Patna, Bihar is the only monument that comes under the archaeological survey of India in Patna city. The mosque was built in 1774 in the three-domed architectural style. In front, It has an octagonal ablution pool carved out in the shape of a lotus with a fountain in the center. The interior of the mosque is embellished with cartouches and arches on the wall and motifs on the domes. The floor of the prayer chamber is composed of multicolor gaur tiles. On the right side, there's a well that is used for wazu before the prayer, and a tunnel-like room adjacent to it which is in dilapidated condition.  Even though it is the only monument in Patna city which has been taken care of by archaeological surveys of India very few people know about this and the apathy of the people is causing the distraction of the monument. Most of the carvings are getting obscure and are being mended in a modern way thereby hiding the real beauty of the monument. Namaz is ...

 It wasn't shocking to me when I read about this sundial in an article. Whenever I feel that I have known Bihar very well I happen to find something I haven't heard of before. It isn't to do with my ambit. It's just we the people of Bihar who are proud of our culture and history failed to maintain it. That's why we are not aware of the sumptuous heritage. which is leading to their destruction. Recently, a case came to light when the gnomon of a 150-year-old sundial was stolen from Dehri. Luckily Rohtas police found it within a week. It is time for us to be aware of our heritage and protect them before it gets destruct because of our apathy.  This sundial is situated in Vishnupad Temple, Gaya, Bihar. It is believed that it was established around the 1860s by Gayapal Babu to see the time and used it to offer Bhog to Lord Vishnu. As the Sun changes relative positions in the sky over the day, the position of the shadow cast by the gnomon changes to align with the differ...

  Bihar has always been living proof of the great kingdoms of Indian history but our ignorance is destroying our historical heritage. If we do not preserve these heritages, then the day is not far when our heritage will be seen in books only. The mosque was built on the bank of the Falgu river in the medieval period, popularly called Lodi masjid situated in Ibrahim pur (Gaya, Jehanabad) it is believed that it was made by Ibrahim khan Lodi during their reign between 1517– 1526. Which makes it one of the oldest mosques in Bihar. It was built using bricks with lime and jaggery in the Indo-Islamic architectural style. The structure is adorned with three arched gates, three beautiful domes, and eight minarets. It also has a courtyard for prayer. There is a gate to enter the mosque on the east side. The condition of this mosque is getting worse day by day. Due to the lack of a Muslim population in the village, there is no one to call Adhan or offer Namaz here. According to some locals in...

I was trying to emerge from the trauma of the demolition of the historical Patna collectorate and in the meantime, new news popped up on my feed that the Sultan Palace is to be turned into a luxury 5-star hotel soon. It is good that the Bihar government is looking toward development and trying to make Bihar a developed state. But you can't achieve the goal of making a better future by destroying the past.  Despite being one of the oldest cities in India, only a few elements are left in Patna which tell the glorious past of this city. And the main reason behind this is the apathy of the people. Which is gradually destroying historical monuments. We have to preserve them for the future generation to witness the real beauty of the city.  Sultan Palace also known as Parivahan Bhawan situated in Patna city, controlled by Bihar state tourism development corporation, is an architectural marvel built by Sir Sultan Ahmed who was an Eminent lawyer and judge at the Patna High Court. He w...