Bidar has made it to the latest edition of ‘Lonely Planet', the global travel guide owned by BBC Worldwide.

  Source: The Hindu

  URL : http://www.hindu.com/2010/10/19/stories/2010101958420300.htm

The heritage town of Bidar has made it to the latest edition of ‘Lonely Planet', the global travel guide owned by BBC Worldwide.

 

In an article titled “India's forgotten metropolis: ruins that are worth a detour”, the book brings out the glory of Bidar, its monuments, cultural importance and historical significance. The article speaks about the Bidar fort, the Ashtur tombs, the madrassa of Mahmud Gawan, the Baridshahi tombs and the Choukhandi hexagonal monument.

Focus

Researched and written by Anirban Mahapatra, the article has details on how to reach Bidar, places to stay and places of interest. Mr. Mahapatra captures the beauty of the 1,100-year- old Bidar fort and the various palaces on its premises.

“Tourists are dwarfed by the formidable red-rock ramparts of the Bidar fort, the largest battlement in south India,” he writes. The art icle records the cultural history of Bidar too.

Mr. Mahapatra dedicates a paragraph to Mahmud Gawan, Prime Minister of the Bahamani kings, who modernised the kingdom. He established a centre for advanced learning in Bidar in 1472 and introduced reforms in the revenue and police departments, exposed farmers to advanced farming methods and won over most of south India with his aggressive combat strategies.

The writer, however, laments that not much is known about the town on the overseas tourism circuits. “Few, after all, know about these historical gems dotting the farthest extent of the Deccan Plateau,” he says.