What am I looking at?
Raj Ghat is a memorial complex in New Delhi, though part of Central Delhi, Delhi, India.
The quick answer
The first memorial there was dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi, where a black marble platform was raised to mark the location of his cremation on 31 January 1948 and consists of an eternal flame at one end. Located on Delhi's Ring Road, a stone footpath leads to the walled enclosure that houses the memorial. Later, the memorial complex was expanded to include memorials for other prominent Indian leaders including Charan Singh, Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Chandra Shekhar and Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
How it came to be
Raj Ghat loosely translates to Royal Steps with the word "royal" alluding to the importance of the place and "steps" referencing the climb from the banks of the Yamuna river.
The detail most people miss
Raj Ghat was the name of a location of historic ghat just outside Shahjahanabad (Old Delhi) on the west bank of the Yamuna River east of Daryaganj.
Why it still matters
The first memorial was dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi and sited on the spot where his remains were cremated on 31 January 1948. It consists of a black marble platform with an eternal flame at one end. A stone footpath leads to the walled enclosure that houses the memorial. Later the memorial complex was expanded to include several other samadhis for various leaders in the vicinity of Raj Ghat. The landscaping and planting of these memorials were originally performed by Alick Percy-Lancaster, Superintendent of Horticultural operations with the Government of India.
Look closer
In 2000, the government of India under Atal Bihari Vajpayee decided not to create separate memorials for different leaders as the existing memorials already occupied over 245 acres of prime land in Delhi.
