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Taj Mahal – Most popular Asian destination: Taj Mahal, one of the Digit Wonders of the Humanity, is grand individual of the citizen’s choice for most nonclassical Denizen destinations. This is announced by International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA) at the Asian Attractions Awards beginning held during Asian Attractions Expo (AAE) 2010 in Kuala Lumpur. Inhabitant attractions were promoted throughout May and June on star TV Fabric, a supporter of Fox Planetary, which has 80 millions cable subscribers in Collection. The awards were interrupted into six categories, and a gross of 94,099 votes direct by the people through the AAA website and cultural media outlets, set the winners. Piece the Taj Mahal was proclaimed the Grand Soul, it was followed by Obvious Magnet (Resorts Experience Sentosa, Island), Substance Quality (Sunway Lagoon, Malaysia), Minuscule Force (Sentosa 4D Magix, Island), Waterpark (Sunway Laguna, Malaysia), Wildlife Arena (Period Safari, Singapore), and Tune Green (Coupler Studios Japan, Archipelago). Wire money online to India with Xoom.com for as low as $4.99. About Taj Mahal: Taj Mahal was starting constructing in the year 1631 and was completed in the year 1653. It took 22 years to complete this wonderful wonder of the world. It was built by the great emperor Shah Jahan who dedicated this to Mumtaz Mahal (Arjumand Bano Begum), the wife of Shah Jahan. It is located in Agra (Uttar Pradesh) and is an Islamic tomb. The architecture was belonged to Islam and the cost of Construction of this Taj Mahal was about 32 crore rupees. There were 20,000 workers who worked to construct this Taj Mahal. The timings to visit this are6:00 am to 7:30 pm daily except Friday as it is closed on that day. The fee is varied accordingly. For foreigner it is Rs 970 and for Indians, during daytime it’s charges are Rs. 20 and during sunrise and sunset it’s Rs 110. International Flight Sale! Get up to Rs.5000 instant discounts! History of Taj Mahal: Mumtaz Mahal, an inseparable assort of Shah Jahan, died in 1631, patch giving nativity to their 14th tiddler. During her last moments, Mumtaz Mahal obtained a assure from Monarch Jahan that he gift frame grouping’s most picturesque sepulcher in her storage. But this has not been proven to be align, strongbox associate. Nevertheless, Sovereign Jahan did indeed progress a magnificent monument as a approval to her woman, which we today live as the [...]

The Goliath whale shark A advance specie of the colorful sea near which very little is famed – testament shortly be a traveler quality off the Province coastline change as it is tagged for heritable psychotherapy and conservation. Tourism officials are hoping to line the ‘whale shark tours’ presently along the Gujarat shore in the Mount sea soon, erst the fund is usable. Province’s ministry of surround and forests and NGO Wildlife Wish of Bharat (WTI) are also taking grooming from Denizen experts to get the two projects simultaneously under the Whale Shark Betterment Program. According to Dhiresh Joshi, the coordinator of WTI in Bharat, a significant merchandise of whale sharks make been seen off the Gujarat coastline. Yet, there is emotional substance whether these are inhabitant or migratory. But if it is cleared about these sharks, it testament ameliorate route them and realize their unsettled patterns and habitats. He also included that ministry of Indian environment and forests has presumption the viridity sign for tagging the species for inheritable psychotherapy. The whale shark is a highly migratory specie. There is no noes-is whether there is breeding among antithetic groups within the specie. The whale shark, one of the greatest species among sharks that weighs a monolithic 34 tonnes and feeds on three-millimeter-long plankton, is recorded under Indian wildlife laws. Erstwhile tagged, man conservationists present be fit to selection their movement. Transmissible distribution may also fuddle phosphorescent on how intimately varied populations of the whale shark are cognate. Wire money online to India with Xoom.com for as low as $4.99. State’s Technological Advisory Council help to plan project: It is in news that man experts from State’s Technological Advisory Council visited Porbandar to help prepare a convert program for the cast. According to Joshi, they are in the cognition of procuring satellite tags and will shortly be initiating genetic analysis of somebody whale sharks. This is a completely new work for thespecies in Bharat. They also hope that in short time, through extensive studies, they will be able to exuviate author illumine on this tamed giant of the low seas. He also added this race give also helpfulness convince fishermen into protectors of the whale shark, benefiting the inshore communities of the propose. Pradeep Khanna, Gujerat’s money man primary keeper of forests, said one would jazz to require fixture that tourism does not touch the whale sharks’ surroundings. Hunted for [...]

Holkar During Shahu’s rule many Maratha Sardars (Nobles) had founded their semi-independent states. Thus a Maratha Confederacy came into existence. Five Maratha Nobles were the members of this confederacy. They were- Peshwa, Holkar, Sindhia, Bhonsle and Gaikwad. All these rulers were independence to handle the internal matters of their states but used to fight against their enemies as a unit. Puna based Peshwa was their leader and they followed his directions. During the rule of Peshwa Bajirao and Balaji Bajirao, Malhar Rao Holkar played an important role in expanding the Maratha Empire. He slowly and steadily established his independent state in Indore and ruled it from 1728 to 1764. He helped Raghunath Rao in most of his Delhi and Punjab expeditions. Except it, he had fought against the invading Afghans in the third battle of Panipat along with the Maratha military but had fled from the battlefield. After his death in 1764, his daughter in law (widow of Khande Rao) successfully ruled over Indore from 1765 to 1795 and remained loyal to the Peshwa. After her, famous Maratha King Jaswant Rao Holkar ruled over Indore from 1798 to 1811. Sindhias of Gwalior Ranoji Sindhia was another famous Maratha Noble who rose to power along with Holkar. He, too, participated in various military expeditions of Bajirao and Balaji Bajirao. He played a pivotal rule in Bringing Malwa and Bundelkhand under the rule of Peshwa. He founded his independent state in Gwalior and its surrounding territory and ruled it successfully from 1726 to 1745. All his sons, Jayapa, Dattaji, Tokoji and Mahadji have an important place in the Maratha history. After the death of his father Jayapa ascended to the Gwalior throne in 1746. He successfully ruled Gwalior till his death in 1759.Mahadji Sindhia was one of the most famous Gwalior ruler. He had been appointed Vakil-i-Muttalaq by the Mughal Emperor Shah Aalm When Raghoba joined the British camp, he along with Nana Farnavis foght against the British in the first Anglo-Maratha battle. He died in 1794 and was succeeded by Daulat Rao Sindhia. Bhonsle Madhoji’s son Parsoji laid the foundation of Bhonsle dynasty. He was one of those Maratha nobles who had played an important role to get Shahu recognized as the hole and sole Maratha leader and in expanding the Maratha Empire. Shahu had appointed him as the ‘Sena-Sahib Suba’ (Governor) of the Brar territory. During Balaji Bajirao’s rule Raghuji [...]

Hyderabad The founder of the Hyderabad Riyasat (Empire) was Nizam-ul-Malik. In 1713, Mughal Emperor Farrukhsiyar had appointed him as the Subedar of six Mughal Provinces of Deccan. After some time he was replaced by Sayyad Hussain Ali. In 1722 Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah appointed him as his Wazir. He tried to introduce some reforms in the administration. But he was very much upset because of the rifts and daily intrigues in the Mughal Royal Court. He returned towards Deccan without informing the Mughal Emperor. Deccan Subedar, Mubariz Khan opposed him and a battle was fought between their armies at a place known as Shakar-Kheda. In this battle Mubariz Khan was killed. As a result of this victory Nizam-ul-Malik became the independent ruler of Deccan.  He chose Hyderabad as his capital. Shortly after it Mughal Emperor accepted him as the governor of Deccan. In true terms, he was an independent ruler who ruled according to his own wishes. He used to appoint his officials according to his own wishes. He had to face the stiff resistance of the Marathas. After Nizam-ul-Malik’s death in 1748, Nasir Jung was coroneted as his successor but his sister’s son Muzaffar Jung also laid claim for the throne. Muzaffar Jung was helped by the French. But Nasir Jung, with the help of British defeated Muzaffar Jung and threw him into prison. French General launched an intrigue and got Nasir Jung murdered and Muzaffar Jung freed from the prison in December 1750. Soon after it he ascended to the throne of Nizam of Hyderabad. He briefly ruled his kingdom and was murdered by his own servant in 1751. Soon after it Nizam-ul-Malik’s third son Salabat Jung ascended to the Hyderabad throne with the help of another French military general Bussi. During his early years as the ruler of Hyderabad he remained under the influence of French but later on joined the British camp. In 1757 he signed an agreement with the British according to which he surrendered Musolipattam to the British and vowed not to keep any relations with the French. In 1759 Peshwa Balaji Bajirao sent a huge army against the Nizam under the military leadership of Sadashiv Rao Bhau. On February 3, 1760 Maratha army defeated the Nizam in the battlefield of Udgir. As a result Salabat Jung surrendered Daulatabad, Asirgarh and Burhanpur territories to the Marathas Salabad Jung died in 1761. After him his [...]

Shivaji 18th century saw the decline and disintegration of the Mughal Empire. Mughal Empire declined rapidly after the death of Aurangzeb as his policies put a damaging effect on the stability of the Mughal Empire and the later Mughals were incompetent and did not have the skill that were needed to keep the system in working order. They let the affairs drift in their own way. Thus many independent states came into existent in north and south India. Marathas of Maharashtra were most powerful among them. They had revolted against Aurangzeb under the leadership of Shivaji. After Shivaji’s death, Aurangzeb tried his best to suppress the revolt of the Marathas for 25 continuous years but he could not succeed in his efforts. After his death Marathas kept on increasing their power and has established many independent states. There were many reasons behind their rise to power. First Maharashtra’s geographical features had made the native people very brave, hardworking, struggle lover and well trained in guerrilla warfare. They were influenced by the Hindu state of Vijaynagar. Wars of south between Mughals and Shiyaas provided enough time to the Marathas to increase their power. Shivaji’s personality had a lasting effect on his people.  Childhood Shivaji was born on April 20th, 1627 in the Shivnaur fort located in the north of the famous town of Puna. His father Shahji Bhosle was a feudal lord in the Bijapur Sultanate. His mother was Jijabai who was related to the Yadavs. Three personalities had an everlasting effect on the personality of Shivaji. First was Shivaji’s own mother who had taught him stories from the epics of Ramayana and Mahabharata. Stories of the Hindu warriors had created feeling of bravery and patriotism in his heart. Shivaji’s regent Dadaji Kond Dev too had an everlasting effect on his personality. He taught him house riding, close combating, guerrilla warfare and managing the administration. Famous religious leader of Maharashtra, Ramdas, also influenced Shivaji for the establishment of an independent Hindu state. He was Shivaji’s religious (guru) teacher. Conquests When Sivaji was only 19 years old he had started conquering his neighboring territories. Within the time of two-three years he had conquered many forts. First of all he conquered the Torna fort. After that he won the Raigarh fort and repaired it. After the death of Dadaji Kond Dev, Shivaji took over Puna and collected a huge military. In 1648 he [...]

Peshwa Balaji Vishawanath From Shivaji’s time, Maratha Prime Minister was called Peshwa. Till 1707, neither their position was hereditary nor did they have enough powers. But during Shahu’s rule their position had become hereditary. Peshwa had become so powerful that king had remained nothing more than a rubber stamp and the actual powers had slipped into the hands of the Peshwa. During the rule of earlier Peshwas the Maratha power had increased a lot. Balaji Vishawanath was the first Peshwa who was a Brahmin and native of Konkan Pradesh. Shahu trusted him a lot and was very much influenced by his efficient services. So he appointed him as his Peshwa. The day he was appointed Peshwa is considered to be one of the most glorious days in the Maratha history. After that, powers of the Peshwa increased a lot and they became the hereditary rulers of the Maratha Empire. He took full advantage of the weakness of the Mughals and their mutual rifts and political intrigues. He signed a treaty with the Mughal Emperor as the representative of the Maratha King according to which Mughals accepted Shahu as the ruler of all those territories that had been won by Shivaji. All those territories that recently had been conquered by the Marathas were also accepted as the part of the Maratha territory. Mughal Emperor also allowed the Marathas to collect Chhout and Srdeshmukh taxes from the six provinces of the Mughal territory of Deccan. Except it, Mughal Emperor also agreed to free the members of Shivaji’s family that were in the Mughal prison. Maratha King Shahu agreed to give ten lakh rupees to the Mughal Emperor as the annual tax. This treaty between the Mughals and the Marathas is considered to be Balaji Vishwanath’s biggest achievement. Though, Shahu could not be called a sovereign king because of this treaty but on the other hand it ensured his rule over the territories won by Shivaji. The result of this treaty was tremendous increase of power of Marathas in the Deccan. Because of it, Shahu was recognized as the whole and sole Maratha leader.  Thus Balaji Vishwanath played an important role to strengthen Shahu’s position and increase the Maratha power. Though he was not a military leader but had the qualities of a clever politician, an able organizer and administrator. Some historians call him the ‘second founder of the Maratha Empire’. He increased [...]

  Power of Chhatrapati Shivaji was not only a warrior but had the qualities of an able administrator, organizer and planner. Because of his administrative abilities he succeeded to establish an efficient administration in a very short time in his kingdom.   According to a famous historian Ishwari Prasad ‘he organized an administration which was in many respects more efficient than that of the Mughals’.  Chhatrapati or King was the chief of the administration. He was the hole and the sole power in his kingdom. His wishes were government laws. He himself appointed ministers and high officials and could dismiss them at any time. He was the supreme power as for as the judiciary and military was concerned. Though he was a dictator but he never misused his powers. He always kept public’s interests ahead of his own interests. He can be called a benevolent despot. The king had a council of eight ministers that was called Ashta Pradhan. They used to advise the King related to the administrative works and were also the heads of their respected departments. King himself appointed them and they were directly under him and were respondent to him. Ashta Pradhan Maratha Prime Minister was called Peshwa. After the king’s stamp, his stamp and signatures were the necessary part of every government document. He kept an eye on the works of other high officials and worked for the public welfare. In the absence of the king, he worked as his representative. The Maratha Finance Minister was called Amatya. He kept the records of revenue and expenditure and informed the King at regular times. Mantri kept the records of King’s daily works and incidents of the royal court. Sachiv was a king of Superintendent. His chief work was to prepare and keep the government documents in an organized way. He kept the record of all the government documents. Sumant was the foreign minister of the Chhatrapati. His advised the king about the foreign affairs. Except it his other works were to welcome the ambassadors and make proper arrangements for their stay. Pandi Rao was the Minister of religion related matters. He worked as king’s representative in religion related matters. To welcome the Brahmins and give alms to them, to give judgments in religion related quarrels and make laws to religion related rituals were his duties. Senapati was the chief of the military. Recruitment of new soldiers, organization [...]

Decade after hijack: Indian Airlines flight IC 814 was hijacked ten years back in year 1999 during its way from Tribhuvan International Airport, Kathmandu, Nepal to Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi, India. India is more alert after that incident and is now prepared to tackle any such circumstances. Indian airports have high security now by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) and sky marshals are also present in the flights and a fortified internal security mechanism as well to tackle any such conditions. The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security has also prepared an aviation security manual which assures with three stage classification process for shooting down a hijacked aircraft. India is not compromising for any kind of delay or lack in the security matter and intelligence agencies of India are also very active to provide information which can help to avoid any kind of incidents in future. Home Minister P. Chidambaram said warning officers of Intelligence Bureau on Wednesday that there will be no room for any kind of complacency and India has better coordination among the intelligence agencies to share the information. He said we were still lucky enough and there can be another major crises like hijack or attach like that in Mumbai so we have to be alert every time so that no such incident takes place with us now. E Ahamed, Minister of State for Railways said that we have to be careful for future and we have an anti hijack policy to solve the problem with the hijackers. Hijack was ended with the one casualty of young married man. About the hijack of IC 814: Indian Airlines flight IC 814 was hijacked by Pakistani militants on its way from Kathmandu to Delhi on December 24, 1999. Harkat-ul-Mujahideen which is a Pakistan based militant group was responsible for the hijacking of the plane just after short time of entering into the Indian air space. After hijacking they tried to land into Amritsar for refueling but they had to take off without refueling and then they landed in Lahore for refueling in emergency conditions but Pakistan refused to offload the female and children passengers from the flight. After their militants took plane to Dubai where they left 27 passengers including one young man of age 25 years who was injured by the militants badly and later he lost his life. He had gone to make honeymoon with his [...]

   Rajput Policy Akbar’s Rajput policy was the result of his sharp mind. He broke from the path and adopted a new policy that his predecessors had never even thought. All the former Muslim rulers had used sword against the Rajputs and thus had wasted their power and had invited dangers to their empires. Akbar did not want to follow the policy of his predecessors so he extended hand of friendship towards them. He believed that with the policy of Mughals and bravery of Rajputs a vast empire can be established. Akbar wanted to establish a strong empire in India. It could not be done without the support and friendship of Rajputs as they were the military leaders of Hindus. Peace and prosperity could prevail only because of unity of Hindus and Muslims. To turn his dream into reality he extended hand of friendship towards Rajputs. He wanted to suppress his Muslim enemies. He had to suppress many rebellions in his own household and court at the time of his accession to the throne. Even his trusted courtiers and family members had conspired against him and had tried to declare Mirza Haqeem as the new ruler. He had a very few family members who could be trusted so he realized the necessity of the friendship of true, brave and trusted friends. Only Rajputs fitted in this criterion. He used various kinds of methods to make them his friends. He established matrimonial relations with them. If anyone of them acknowledged his lordship during the battle, was forgiven and embraced. In 1562 he himself had married with the princess of Ambar. He appointed many Hindus at high posts in his administration without giving any attention to the caste and religion based discrimination. In his administration he had 51 Hindu nobles out of which 17 were Rajputs.   Freedom to Rajputs Hindus and Rajputs had complete freedom as for as their religion was concerned. They were free to worship in temples, celebrate their religious festivals and participate in their religious rituals. Religion based taxes on Hindus such as Jaziya and Pilgrimage taxes were abolished. Akbar never fought against his enemies in the name of ‘holy war’ or Jehad. After defeating his Hindu enemies, he never looted or destroyed the Hindu temples. Many Rajputs kings were impressed by Akbar’s policies and they acknowledged his lordship happily. But Mewar, Ranthambor and Kalinjar Rajput kings did [...]