Banjara Hills

Banjara Hills is an urban commercial centre and one of the most affluent neighbourhoods in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. This is an upmarket locality close to Jubilee Hills. This area was a hilly forest and was least inhabited in the past. Only few royal members of the Nizam's dynasty lived here, which was a hunting ground for them. Even with its history and status, this area now has completely been transformed to an urban commercial centre consisting of an array of high-end hotels, restaurants, night clubs and office buildings of global corporations. Banjara Hills is segregated by its road numbers, with each road having its own importance: the numbers start from 1 and end at 14.

Banjara Hills
Neighbourhood
Banjara Hills
Banjara Hills
Coordinates: 17.415°N 78.440°E / 17.415; 78.440
Country India
StateTelangana
DistrictHyderabad
MetroHyderabad
Government
 • BodyGHMC
Population
 • Total1,50,000
Languages
 • OfficialTelugu
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN
500 034
Vehicle registrationTS-09
Lok Sabha constituencySecunderabad
Vidhan Sabha constituencyKhairtabad
Planning agencyGHMC

Banjara Hills is considered the most expensive zip code in India according to Economic Times magazine[1] and, along with Jubilee Hills, is the most prestigious borough/city in the greater Hyderabad area to live in. Economic Times estimated that properties in Banjara Hills were worth "a whopping Rs 96,000 crore", an equivalent to US$20.7 billion, as of 8 September 2011).

The much neglected Banjara Lake is also located here.

History
Alhambra, residence of architect Muhammad Fayyazuddin was located on Road number 10 at Banjara Hills. It was demolished in 1986-87

The land was first bought by Nawab Mehdi Nawaz Jung, a minister in the court of the last Nizam in 1927, who built his residence, Banjara Bhavan (supposedly inspired by Antoni Gaudí's works) here. The last Nizam suggested that the area be named after the Nawab, as the man responsible for its development. However, the Nawab stated that it would only be fair to name the area after its original inhabitants, the Banjaras.[2]

The Banjara Bhavan was visited by Jawaharlal Nehru as well as Rabindranath Tagore, who wrote a poem inspired by the area.[3][4]

Road No. 1 of Banjara Hills is now known as Mehdi Nawaz Jung Road, named in his honour.[5]

Landscape

Banjara Hills is famous for its hotels, upscale restaurants and large shopping malls. Taj Krishna, Taj Deccan and Taj Banjara are well-known star hotels in this area. Many restaurants offer cuisines from all over the world: Chinese Pavilion, Ohris Banjara, Barbeque Nation, and Fusion 9. There are many retail business establishments. Big malls like the GVK One, City Center, Midtown, Ohri's, Alcazar Plaza, Zing Designs, among many more dot the skyline. The highest building in the Banjara Hills area is the commercial Laxmi Cyber Center.

The Jalagam Vengal Rao Park is in Banjara Hills. This park is very beautiful, has its own charm, and many locals visit regularly for jogging and relaxing. Most of the businesses are concentrated on Road No. 1 and 3. Muffakham Jah College of Engineering and Technology is on Road No. 3. This college has one of the largest campuses in the city. It works under the management and ownership of Sultan-ul-Uloom Education Society, which also operates Sultan-ul-Uloom College of Law, College of Education, Junior College, and School in the same premises. KBR park, named after Kasu Brahmananda Reddy, is close to Road No. 3. A cultural centre, called Lamakaan, opened on Road No. 1 in 2010. The 400-year-old Svayambhu Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple on road 12 is famous for Grand Harinam sankirtans. Guitarmonk school is also there.

Hospitals
  • Basavatarakam Indo American Cancer Hospital
  • Omega
  • Care Hospital
  • Star hospital[6]
  • Elbit Diagnostics
  • Surya Fertility Centre[7]
  • Century Hospital
  • Virinchi Hospital
  • Rainbow Hospital
  • L V Prasad Eye Institiute
  • Asha Hospital

Transport

TSRTC connects Banjara hills to parts of Hyderabad like Dilsukhnagar, Koti, Ghatkesar, and Khairtabad. New flyovers have eased traffic congestion towards this suburb. The closest MMTS train station is at Khairtabad. This suburb has a good road network, with roads being renovated constantly to accommodate high traffic during peak hours.

Localities

Somajiguda, Errammanzil Colony, Venkata Ramana Colony, Anand Nagar, Srinagar Colony,G.S Colony, Naveen Nagar, Panjagutta and Jubilee Hills are nearby /adjacent areas.

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References
  1. "Check out India's most expensive boulevard". timesofindia-economictimes.
  2. Luther, Narendra (9 September 2015). "The man who gave Hyderabad its 'Banjara Hills', Nawab Mehdi Nawaz Jung". The News Minute. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
  3. Venkateshwarlu, K. (16 August 2011). "Another heritage landmark razed". The Hindu.
  4. Shahid, Sajjad. "Will no one question the 'tyrant'? - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
  5. Kurup, Sonia Krishna. "Roads in Banjara Hills are oddly numbered, not named - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
  6. "Best Multi Specialty Hospital in Hyderabad".
  7. "Best IVF Centre in Hyderabad - IUI - ICSI/IVF - Egg Donation - Surrogacy - Surya Fertility Centre - Dr Sunitha Illinani". Retrieved 19 July 2016.
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