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The Pride of Kathmandu Valley, the nine storied tower, 61.88-metre-tall (203.0 ft) Dharahara (also known as Bhimsen tower) was built in 1832 by Mukhtiyar (equivalent to Prime Minister) Bhimsen Thapa at the place in Kathmandu called Sundhara.
The nine storied Dharahara was the second tower built by Bhimsen Thapa. The former one was two stories taller than the later one.
Dharahara is said to be built for Queen Lalit Tripura Sundari, who was the niece of Bhimsen Thapa. She wanted her own tower next to the Bhimsen’s Dharahara.
The 11 storied tower suffered severe damage during 1834 earthquake and was completely destroyed after 110 years later in 1934’s earthquake. Of the Second tower only two stories survived in truncated state.
Dharahara was constructed for military use as a watchtower. When incidents of national importance occurred, bugles were blown from the top floor of the tower.
In that age Dharahara stood as the tallest building in the Kathmandu Valley.
The severely damaged second tower previously known queen Lalit Tripura Sundari’s tower was reconstructed by Rana Prime Minister Juddha Samsher and got its name Bhimsen Stambha. This was the White modern day Dharahara.
Dharahara was the most significant structure seen in Kathmandu. It showed its glory and beauty over hundreds of years.
Dharahara open to public visiting in 2005. It was a major tourist attraction in the Kathmandu Valley.
The tower had a spiral staircase containing 213 steps. At places small round tunnel windows allowed light and air to pass through. It also had a 5.2-metre (17 ft) bronze mast on the roof. The statue of Hindu deity Shiva was placed on the top of the tower.
The eighth floor held a circular balcony for observers that provided a panoramic view of the Kathmandu valley.
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| Dharahara was a part of the architecture of Kathmandu recognized by UNESCO and conserved as World Heritage Sites. |
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| The tower stood stout in 1988 earthquake. |
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| A small circumference around the tower was developed as a park. In recent years it was surrounded by other structures and was crowded over the time. |
A massive earthquake on 25th April 2015 flattened the glorious tower into the ground. The precious heritage had hence ended its regime.
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Several visitors had climbed the tower when the massive quake awakened. Many of them lost their lives. Some were rescued alive afterwards.
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| The pride of Kathmandu had thus shattered down to ruins. Along with the heart of the city the massive 7.8 RS earthquake devastated much historical places of Kathmandu, shattered thousands of houses and blemished the dreams of thousands of Nepalese. |
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| Dharahara – Before after the April 2015 Earthquake |
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| The emptiness of the missing piece of city will always be felt by the generations. Nepalese have strong hope that the legacy of Nepal will again rise with Dharahara in the future. |
For all those are affected…
Nepal will rise again and shine again…