The former residence of the first prime minister of India Pandit Jawaharlal lal Nehru remained so for 16 years until Nehru ji died in May 27, 1964. Designed by Robert Russell, a known British architect who also designed Connaught place and the Eastern and western courts on Janpath during the British regime in India, the teen murthi bahvan is a place with a glorious past. Built in 1930, Teen Murti Bhavan was part of the new imperial capital of India.
Teen Murti Bhavan houses several mementos from different nations including England, Nepal, Somalia and China. Each memento represents a noteworthy source about each nation. Established in 1968 this foundation is also host to the award “Jawaharlal memorial fellowship”.
Within the Teen murti complex you will also find the “center for contemporary studies”. It also houses Nehru planetarium that was opened in 1984. The house gets its name literally form the three statues. It is a memorial that stands tall built by British sculptor – Leonard Jennings. You will find life size statues of three soldiers and it was built during 1922. The three statues were made to stand in memory of the Indian soldier belonging to three princely Indian states- Jodhpur, Hyderabad and Mysore. The three states served presently known Gaza strip, Israel, Palestine during the world war-1.
The teen murti complex was known as Flagstaff house and was the residence of British commander in chief. Constructed of white stone and stucco, the bhavan faces south side of the Rashtra pathi bhavan. The bhavan has recessed window, arched entrance, and in the first floor you will find pillared veranda which overlooks the lawn and is in the back side of the building.
After India gained Independence the bhavan was made residence of Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Within teen murthi bhavan you will find the Nehru memorial library. The library is considered as one of the finest places where you can information on modern history. The library was started in 1966 and it operated from the main building. In 1974 the new complex grounds were inaugurated.
One of the four planetariums named after Nehru is housed within the Teen murthi bhavan. The Planetarium was inaugurated in 1984 by daughter Indira Gandhi who was also the then prime minister of India. The planetarium has a sky theatre and it is used for screening shows and is also used as a gallery. The planetarium was renovated with a whopping 11 crore budget and was reopened in 2010 before the common wealth games. The planetarium now comprises of a Definiti optical star projector, “Megastar”. The Megastar can showcase nearly 2 million stars adding to the importance of the planetarium.
Very close to the planetarium you will find the Shikargah – the hunting lodge. It is also known as the Kushak mahal. Also in close vicinity is the Ferozshah fort situated far away on the bank of river Yamuna.
