Vantage point all set to be history
“We are constantly hearing the sound of drilling and the area has become
dusty due to this. Many customers waiting for refuelling would ask us about the
structure on top. Now, people are curious to know what is coming up there,”
said Akram Khan, who works at a fuel station near the Tipu’s Lookout.
In the early part of the 19th century a visitor to the city wrote: “I
strolled out to a hill, a confused pile of bare rocks, quite beyond the
suburban residences. This is Tipu’s Lookout. It rises fifty feet above the
plain. A flight of steps is cut into one side of the chief granite mass...From
the summit of Tipu’s Lookout one enjoys a view of the country for miles around.
The more prominent object is the gloomy old Golconda Fort in the west..” John
Fletcher Hurst, who travelled quite a bit in India, was struck by the curious
rock formation when he visited Hyderabad.
The rock
formation at the small structure on top was named Tipu’s Lookout as it was
constructed by Tipu Khan Bahadur, a confidant and equestrian trainer for the
sixth Nizam Mir Mahbub Ali Pasha. *Wajahat Ahmed Khan speaks about his great
grandfather Tipu Khan Bahadur as having built it as a lookout for people coming
into the city. The location is no surprise as it overlooked a vast open space
before the walled city’s entrance. Over time, the location lost its importance
and the city expanded enveloping everything. Now, a religious organisation has
a building in front of it. The Lakdikapul railway station is beside it.
For a few
years, trekkers used the rock for climbing and exploring the city. But now, the
rock formation is being erased, one hammer blow at a time.
*Wajahat Ahmed Khan, the great-grandson of Nawab Tipu Khan Bahadur (the builder of the --
1) Tipu Khan Sarai or 'Nampally Saraai', at Nampally Station Road,
2) Tipu's LookOut at Khairtabad,
3) Tipu Khan Bridge at Langer Houz in Hyderabad, India and
5 Mosques at Gowliguda Chaman, Nampally, Adikmet O.U.Campus, Shahalibanda near Charminar and Chatta Bazar near Nayapul, all in Hyderabad city).
Wajahat Ahmed Khan is indeed an equestrian professional. He is a passionate horse rider and actively participates in equestrian sports. Wajahat is a life member of both the Equestrian Federation of India (EFI) and the Telangana State Equestrian Association (TSEA). His involvement in the sport reflects a family legacy tied to horsemanship, as his great-grandfather was a renowned horseman who taught horse riding to the Nizam-ul-Mulk, Asaf Jah VI, Nawab Mir Mahboob Ali Khan, Nizam of Hyderabad and was considered one of the greatest Equestrians of his time in India).
