CB BureauThe Foundation has signed an MoU with the Government of Jammu & Kashmir to restore the historic gardens, located at Shalimar Bagh and Nishat Bagh. While JSW Foundation will extend technical and financial support, the Government will provide assistance and continue to provide funding for the project through support resources and other infrastructure.
Shedding more light on the initiative, Mrs Sangita Jindal, chairperson of JSW Foundation, says: ‘These two sites are a hallmark of the Mughal empire’s landscape design. We will be collaborating with renowned heritage and conservation architect Ms Abha Narain Lambah for this project. Through our MOU with Government of Jammu & Kashmir, I am pleased to formalise JSW Foundation’s commitment to restoring the breathtaking beauty of these gardens.’
The Mughal Gardens of Kashmir are shining examples of the great paradise garden traditions of the world. In the valley of Kashmir, these sites have become the archetypes of the Timurid-Mughal garden tradition. The six imperial gardens of Kashmir are proposed to be nominated to UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Among them, the gardens of Shalimar Bagh and Nishat Bagh, (1619″1635 CE), built during the reigns of emperors Jahangir and Shahjahan, epitomise the mastery of Mughal gardeners and engineers.