Rashtrapati Bhavan

The Rashtrapati Bhavan  pronunciation , "Presidential Residence") is the official home of the President of India, located in New Delhi, India. It may refer to only the mansion (the 340-room main building) that has the President's official residence, halls, guest rooms and offices; it may also refer to the entire 130 hectare (320 acre) President Estate that additionally includes huge presidential gardens (Mughal Gardens), large open spaces, residences of bodyguards and staff, stables, other offices and utilities within its perimeter walls. The main palace building was formerly known as Viceroy's House. In terms of area, was the largest residence of a Head of State in the world until the Presidential Complex of Turkey opened 29 October 2014.

History

The decision to build a residence in New Delhi for the British Viceroy was taken after it was decided during the Delhi Durbar in 1910 that the capital of India would be relocated from Calcutta (Kolkata) to Delhi. When the plan for a new city, New Delhi, adjacent to and south of Old Delhi, was developed in the beginning of the 20th century, the new palace for the Viceroy of India was given an enormous size and prominent position. About 4,000 acres of land was acquired to begin the construction of Viceroy's House, as it was officially called, and adjacent Central Secretariat between 1911 and 1916 by relocating Raisina and Malcha villages that existed there and their 300 families under the Land & Acquisition Act.