Top 10 places you can't afford to miss in Delhi

New Delhi: Delhi known as the “Dil walon ka shehar” is the cultural hub of the country, where you can find the ambience of the entire India from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and from Gujarat to Arunachal Pradesh.While the city has seen a legendary past, it also hosts the happening lifestyle at the present time. The capital attracts numerous tourists every year from across the world.Delhi has been abode to various heritage monuments like Red Fort, Qutub Minar, India Gate, etc, and places like Connaught place also known as the heart of the capital, Chandni Chowk, Sarojini Nagar etc which are the shopping hot spots amongst all the visitors.Here we present you a list of places which you just can't afford to miss in the “Dil Waalon Ka Shehar”: Akshardham TempleSituated on the banks of river Yamuna, the Akshardham Temple reflects the millennia of Indian culture.Built by Pramukh Swami Maharaj, it took 3,000 volunteers who helped 7,000 artisans to construct Akshardham. The temple was opened for public in November, 2005.The temple in the building was built according to the Vastu Shastra and Pancharatra Shastra and is covered with carved details of flora, fauna, dancers, musicians, and deities from top to bottom.Constructed with the help of Rajasthani pink sandstone and Italian Carrara marble, the Akshardham Temple has no support of steel or concrete.The monument also consists of 234 ornately carved pillars, nine domes, and 20,000 murtis and statues of Hinduism's sadhus, devotees, and acharyas.The building also comprises of a 11-feet long statue of Swaminarayan, under the central dome, surrounded by the similar statues of the gurus of the sect.Exhibitions are also held with in the complex of the building based on incidents from the life of Swaminarayan and the history of India. Lotus TempleBuilt in the shape of a lotus, the Lotus temple is the last of seven major Bahai's temples built around the world.Completed in 1986, Lotus Temple was made of white marble by an Iranian architect Fariborz Sahba.Inspired by the lotus flower, the design for the House of Worship is composed of 27 free-standing marble clad "petals" arranged in clusters of three to form nine sidesThe nine doors of the Lotus Temple open onto a central hall slightly more than 40 meters tall that is capable of holding up to 2,500 people.Known as the Bahá'í Houses of Worship, Lotus temple is open to all irrespective of caste creed or religion. Red FortBuilt in the capital of the country, the Red Fort in Delhi was built in 1648 as the fortified palace of Shahjahanabad, capital of Emperor Shah Jahan.The construction of the fort began in 1638, when Shah Jahan decided to shift capital from Agra to Delhi.The Red Fort is considered to represent the pinnacle of Mughal creativity under Shah Jahan and was named for its massive enclosing walls of red sandstone.Also known as ‘Quila-e-Mubarak', the Red Fort was residence of the Mughal emperor of India for nearly 200 years, until 1857.The Red Fort which is considered as the icon of the city was declared as the heritage site by UNESCO in 2007.The Republic Day Parade on 26th January initiates from the Red Fort every year.On the Independence Day of India, 15 August, the Prime Minister of India hoists the national flag at the main gate of the fort and delivers a speech from here.While the Red Fort has many partitions and occupies a large space as it has mosques, private and public halls and many beautiful gardens, river Yamuna also flows by the side of the Red Fort. India GateSituated astride the Rajpath, the India Gate is a war memorial originally called as the All India War Memorial.Built in 1921, the All-India War Memorial is a memorial to 82,000 soldiers of the undivided Indian Army who died in the period 1914–21 in First World War, in France, Flanders, Mesopotamia, Persia, East Africa, Gallipoli.13218 war dead soldiers are commemorated by name on the India Gate, although access to read the names on the memorial is restricted due to security reasons.Designed by Edwin Lutyens, India Gate has a span of 30 feet and is called a "creative reworking of the Arc de Triomphe".The memorial has the word “INDIA” inscribed on it on both the sides flanked by the dates MCMXIV (1914) and MCMXIX (1919) on left and right sides respectively.The memorial also has the following words inscribed on it in capital letters: “TO THE DEAD OF THE INDIAN ARMIES WHO FELL HONOURED IN FRANCE AND FLANDERS MESOPOTAMIA AND PERSIA EAST AFRICA GALLIPOLI AND ELSEWHERE IN THE NEAR AND THE FAR-EAST AND IN SACRED MEMORY ALSO OF THOSE WHOSE NAMES ARE RECORDED AND WHO FELL IN INDIA OR THE NORTH-WEST FRONTIER AND DURING THE THIRD AFGHAN WAR” Jama MasjidKnown as the primary mosque of Old Deli, Jama Masjid is situated in the beginning of Chawri Bazar Road.Built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, the construction of Jama Masjid began in 1650 while it was completed in 1656 and was originally named as Masjid-i Jahān-Numā.The name was later changed to Jama Masjid, referring to the weekly Friday noon congregation prayers of Muslims, Jummah, which is usually done in the mosque.The best-known mosque in India, Jama Masjid three great gates, four towers and two 40 m-high minarets constructed of strips of red sandstone and white marble. It took over 6,000 workers for the construction of the mosque, and the cost of construction was upto 1 million rupees.The courtyard of the mosque can accommodate upto 25,000 worshippers.Qutub MinarKnown as the second tallest minar of the country, Qutub Minar is made of red sandstone and marble.An Islamic monument, Qutub Minar is inscribed with Arabic inscriptions.While the construction of the minar was started by Qutb-ud-din Aibak in 1192 it was completed by his successor, Iltutmish. The minar is named after Qutb-ud-din Aibak, who was apparently the first Sultan of Delhi.However the fifth and the last storey of the monument was built by Firoz Shah Tughlaq in 1368.The minar comprises of 379 steps and reaches upto the height of 72.5 metres.The first three storeys are made of red sandstone; the fourth and fifth storeys are of marble and sandstone.The Qutub minar also features Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, which is said to be the first mosque to be built in India. Gurudwara Bangla SahibLocated in Connaught Place, Gurudwara Bangla Sahib is one of the most prominent Gurudwaras of the capital.The Gurudwara is built in association with the eighth Guru of Sikhs, Guru Harkishan Ji.Originally a bungalow belonging to Raja Jai Singh, Gurudwara Bangla Sahib was first built as a small temple by Sikh General, Sardar Bhagel Singh in 1783.It is said that Guru Harkishan Ji stayed here during his stay in Delhi in 1664. Since Delhi was hit by smallpox and cholera epidemic, Guru Harkishan Ji helped the victims by giving them aid and fresh water from the well which is now a “Sarovar”.Soon Guru Harkishan Ji contracted the illness and eventually died in March 1664.Later the bungalow was converted into a Gurudwara and a small tank was later constructed by Raja Jai Singh over the well.It is believed that the water of the sarovar has healing properties. Humayun's TombLocated in Nizamuddin East near Purana Qila, Humayun's Tomb is a mausoleum of Mughal Emperor Humayun.Built by Humayun's first wife Bega Begum, Humayun's Tomb is made up of red sandstone.The construction of the begun in 1565, nine years after Humayun's death and was completed in 1572.Built in Indo-Islamic architecture, the tomb was designed by Mirak Mirza Ghiyas, a Persian architect chosen by Bega Begum, the Humayaun's Tomb was the first garden-tomb in India and also the first structure to use red sandstone at such a scale. Humayun's Tomb was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1993 and has gone through extensive restoration work since then. Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib One of the prominent Gurudwaras of the capital, Gurudwara Sis Ganj is located in Chandni Chowk area of Old Delhi.Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib was built to commemorate the martyrdom site of the ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur.Guru Tegh Bahadur ji was beheaded on the orders of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb after the Guru refused to convert to Islam in 1675 AD.The present gurudwara structure was built in 1930.The Gurudwara also features the trunk of tree under which the Guru was beheaded is also preserved here along with the well from which he took bath while in the prison. Jantar MantarBuilt for the task of revising the calendar and astronomical tables, Jantar Mantar is one of five sites built by Maharaja Jai Singh II of Jaipur, from 1724 onwards.Jantar Mantar consists of 13 architectural astronomy instruments.The primary purpose of the observatory was to compile astronomical tables, and to predict the times and movements of the sun, moon and planets. Some of these purposes nowadays would be classified as astronomy.The Jantar Mantar comprises of the Samrat Yantra, the Jayaprakash, and the Misra Yantra.Built for the purpose of astronomy and astrology, Jantar Mantar had decayed considerably by 1867.