If you've visited the Gol Gumbaz in Bijapur, Karnataka, the General Post Office in Fort is bound to bring back memories of its similarities.
u00a0Clearly, architect John Begg, who was one of the most crucial minds behind establishing the Indo Saracenic style as the official style of architecture in British India, was inspired by it as well. His most well-known design was the General Post Office that was completed on March 31, 1931 at Fort, at the cost Rs 10,09,000.
ADVERTISEMENT
Pic/Bipin Kokate
A little over 99 years later, one can still relive the space that was built with local basalt and dressings of yellow stone from Dhrangadhra, Gujarat. Spires with bearings of Moorish-inspired architecture add a Middleastern outlook. Apart from Indian influences, the Indo-Saracenic style adapted from other global architecture as well. A Roll of Honour dedicated to members of the ‘Post Office of India’ who laid down their lives during World War I, situated near the main door, is easily overlooked. With forty-eight counters catering to daily transactions and some twenty or more for related mailing operations all over India and abroad, it does justice to its title — ‘India’s Busiest Post Office.’
Where: P D’Mello Road, near Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Fort.
Call:L 22696102
Log on to: www.maharashtrapost.gov.in