NEWS

Opening Ceremony of Gateway of India is being celebrated. The gateway was opened on 4th December 1924, by the Viceroy, the Earl of Reading

ABOUT

• Built as a triumphal arch to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary to Mumbai, prior to the Delhi Durbar in December 1911.
• Foundation stone was laid by the then Governor of Bombay (Mumbai) on March 31st 1913.
• Architecture – Indo-Sarcenic style (combination of India and Islamic architecture) which is quite majestic and a h
• Hybrid of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
• Materials – yellow basalt and reinforced concrete
• George Wittet – chief architect
• Completed in 1924 at a cost of Rs. 24 lakh
• Structural design is constituted of a large arch, with a height of 26m.
• Central dome of Gateway of India in Mumbai is 48 feet in diameter and 83 feet high at the highest point.
• First Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry passed through the Gateway on their way out in a ceremony on February 28, 1948, signalling the end of British rule.
• Serves as a “monumental memento” of British colonial rule over India and also been referred to as the “Taj Mahal of Mumbai”.