Iran to help restore Qutub Shahi monuments

K Chandrashakar / TNN / Oct 23, 2008, 03:07 IST

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The much-awaited Indo-Iranian project on conservation of the Qutub Shahi tombs and other monuments related to that dynasty is finally set to take off.

Iran to help restore Qutub Shahi monuments

HYDERABAD: The much-awaited Indo-Iranian project on conservation and restoration of the Qutub Shahi tombs and other monuments related to that dynasty is finally set to take off. A state government team is scheduled to fly to Iran next month to sign an MoU with the Islamic Republic of Iran.
It has been over two years since Iran has shown interest in restoring and conserving the tombs, the Premamati Mosque and the Badshahi Ashoorkhana, which were built by Qutub Shahi rulers mainly in the architectural style of Iran, the land of their origin.
A team of six Iranian experts had visited the city in August 2006 to make an estimate of the extent of restoration work. However, since then, due to various problems including issuance of visa for the Iranians, has plagued the restoration project.
"We were scheduled to go to Iran in the last week of October, but that got delayed. We will be going in the middle of November to sign the MoU with Iran," one official said. As per the estimates, approximately Rs 5 crore is the minimum requirement for the restoration of the Quli Qutub Shah tombs alone, while the Iranian government is expected to fund the other two works.

The tombs are spread over 50 acres and house the tombs of the rulers of this dynasty from AD 1518 to 1687.
The Premamati Mosque extends to about 40 acres and said to have been built by one of the rulers in memory of a dancer by the same name. The Badshahi Ashoorkhana is a place where tears are shed over the martyrdom of the Prophet's grandson Hussain. Like the ancestors, the Quli Qutub Shah dynasty belonged to the Shia sect.
The project would not only include restoration of the monuments to their original grandeur, but also develop gardens around it. Similar structures are said to exist in the modern Iranian city of Isfahan, on whom supposedly the Quli Qutub Shah rulers modelled their city of Hyderabad four centuries ago.

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