Chanakyapuri

Chanakyapuri means ‘Chanakya’s City’ and was named after the famous scholar, Chānakya, who was the Prime Minister and Personal Advisor to the first Mauryan Ruler named Chandragupt Maurya [340 – 293 BCE] during the reign of the Mauryan Dynasty in the 3rd Century BC.

Chānakya [350 – 283 BCE] was a teacher in TakSaśila which is an ancient centre of learning. He was mainly responsible for the success and rise of the Mauryan King. He is known to pioneer the field of economics and political science and was the chief architect for the creation of the Mauryan Empire which was known as the first of its kind witnessed on the Indian subcontinent. All the works of Chānakya were lost near the end of the Gupta Dynasty but was rediscovered in 1915.

Chanakya puri also written as ‘Chankyapuri’ is located at the heart of the Delhi city. It is known as one of the most posh and elite colonies of Delhi and mostly homes numerous foreign embassies and diplomats. The area is laid with wide and well maintained roads lined with tall green trees, Central Parks and lush green environs that transform the area into an aristocratic zone with real estate available at sky rocketing prices. It also houses important foreign consulate offices, 5 star Hotels and Delhi University Colleges like Jesus & Mary College and Maitri College.

Chanakya puri resembles a Horse-shoe from an aerial view with roads and pathways that cross each other at common junctions. The roads stretch from north to south while the arms of the horse-shoe shaped region encompasses the Chandra Gupt Marg [Chandra Gupta Marg], Nyaya Marg, Shanti Path and Niti Marg that crosses through Kautilya Marg, Panchsheel Marg and Satya Marg. Most of the foreign Offices are situated along these roads and are constructed with massive well trimmed lawns that surround the buildings lending a peaceful and green ambience to the entire area. This region never experiences any power cuts and water shortage and hence makes for a very comfortable and convenient place to settle.

Chanakya puri encompasses the area of Bhikaji Cama Place, Dhaula Kuan and R. K. Puram and  is surrounded by important and posh colonies such as Jor Bagh, Lodhi Colony, Netaji Nagar, Nicholson Lines and Sarojini Nagar which is mainly a residential area that homes one of the most popular markets in Delhi known as Sarojini Nagar Market or ‘S N Market’ in short by the locals of Delhi that marks it as a place of interest for tourists and visitors who love to shop at affordable and pocket friendly rates.

Places of tourist interest that are situated in close proximity to Chanakya puri are the National Rail museum, Nehru Park known as the Joggers Path located on the southern periphery of Chanakya puri and the National Rose Garden opened only in December and January. This area also homes numerous 5 Star and luxury Hotels like Hotel Samrat and Hotel Ashoka, Maurya Sheraton and Taj Palace, The Claridges and so forth. AIIMS and Safdarjung are two excellent Hospitals located a few kilometres from this area while the International Hospital is also situated close by towards the west of Chanakyapuri and near Cross Road 3.

The Chanakya Movie Theatre situated in the extreme southeast of Chanakya puri offers a source of entertainment for the residents of this area and the neighbouring areas. Yashwant Place is a famous market place next to the Movie Hall that is fringed with eating outlets serving Mughlai and Chinese cuisines. This market place also houses numerous shops that retail export products and branded items, jewellery, leather clothing and so forth.

The Diplomatic Area of Chanakya puri is very popular with foreign expatriates who work in Delhi and within the Foreign embassies and reside here with their families for the specified duration of work and time. Due to this reason, this region homes an American, British and German Schools respectively.

Chanakya puri is well connected by road from all parts of Delhi due to its central location and offers numerous DTC Buses, auto rickshaws and taxi cabs for hire that operate in and round this region. The nearest metro Station is AIIMS Metro Station from where visitors can easily hire auto rickshaws to arrive at Chanakya puri.

Once the Delhi Metro Ring Railway is complete, Chanakyapuri will have a stop and the nearest metro station will be Dhaula Kuan. The region is also accessible from the Indira Gandhi International Airport which is situated about 15.6 Kms or 27 minutes away, the New Delhi Railway Station located just 7.9 Kms or 20 minutes away, the Old Delhi Railway Station situated about 12.3 Kms or 30 minutes away and the Nizamuddin Railway Station situated 9 Kms or 25 minutes away.