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Chapter 5
Miscellaneous Buildings

LANDMARKS & HISTORICAL STRUCTURES
Jabalpur has been a city of significance for a long time: it was the capital of Gond
kings of 12th century and later it became the seat of the Kalchuri dynasty. The
Marathas held control over Jabalpur until 1817, when the British wrested it from
them. The architecture of the city shows the influence and tastes of its rulers on
various structures in and around the city. Old Indian architecture can be seen in
temples and forts whereas British left their impression with its colonial resi-
dences, barracks and many other administrative buildings.

Many landmark buildings in the city area, such as the clock tower (Fig. 5-3) and
the municipal building suffered some damage. The dome structure on one of the
four minarets fell down because it apparently attracted more load owing to its
large stiffness. It was stiffer than other minarets due to the presence of stairs,
which usually works like bracing elements in enhancing the stiffness. The
masonry of municipal building's clock tower experienced some minor cracking
too.

Figure 5-3. Damaged
minaret of the clock
tower built in 1919.

Jabalpur Earthquake of May 22, 1997 82