Monday, September 14, 2009

South Bombay


South Bombay is a commonly used term, but the extent of this district is not commonly agreed upon. This article uses the term to denote the areas of Fort, Colaba, Malabar Hill, Nariman Point, Marine Lines, Kalbadevi, Pydhonie, Mahalaxmi, and Tardeo.

South Bombay was the center of terrorist attacks between the evening of Nov. 26th & 29th 2008. The situation is improving but significant damage led to the temporary closure of the Taj Mahal and Trident-Oberoi Hotels. These hotels re-opened on 21st December, 2008.

This district contains some of the oldest parts of the city. For long, this was the city. One of the seven islands that were joined to form Mumbai was called Bombay. This is where the British started on their long quest to build the docks and the city. They built Fort St. George, which no longer exists, but the area is still called "Fort". The Fort area contains many corporate offices and most of the administrative offices of the city and state governments.

Paradoxically, this district contains one of the newest areas of the city, Nariman Point, which was built on land and reclaimed between the 1940s and the 70s. This is Bombay's downtown, where the offices of India's topmost corporate houses are located.

Malabar Hill, the most affluent residential neighbourhood in the city is also located here. Most industrialists have their bungalows here. This is also where the official residences of Maharashtra's chief minister and Governor are located. The other famous location is Colaba, which used to be an island by itself, until it was connected to Bombay by a causeway. This area contains a naval base.

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