Khan Market was started in 1951. The market was named after Abdul Jabbar Khan, brother of the freedom fighter, Abdul Ghaffar Khan. This name of this market was given by the immigrants who came to India after the partition.
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With the second wave of COVID-19, Khan Market in the national capital Delhi is again in the limelight. Hundreds of oxygen consultants from Khanna uncle restaurant of famous businessman Navneet Kalra have brought it into the limelight. Khan Market is considered to be one of the most expensive markets in the world. This market is special for many reasons and it is also called the heart of Delhi. People from far and wide come here to shop and sometimes enjoy savory dishes. Let us tell you about some special things of this market.
Started in 1951
Khan Market was started in 1951. The market was named after Abdul Jabbar Khan, brother of the freedom fighter, Abdul Ghaffar Khan. The name of this market was given by the immigrants who came to India after the partition. It is said that when communal tension was extreme at the time of Partition, in that environment Abdul Jabbar brought millions of Hindus out of Pakistan safely to India.
Immigrants got shops on land
At the time when the market started, after the partition, there were shops built on the land that the immigrants got. Where there were shops on the ground floor, the first floor was made to live. As time went by, restaurants and shops took up residence. It is said that initially there were only 3 shops here. These immigrants came from the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan. Out of the 74 families who came from Pakistan in the 50s, now only three are such that live in flats above the shops. There are shops here ranging from teller to doctor and general store to toys and stationery.
How often the fare changed
Initially, the rent of the shop was just 50 rupees a month and this fare for 420 square feet shop. In 1956, under a scheme of the Ministry of Restoration, shops were allotted on rent for Rs 6,516. Today there are about 156 shops here. Today, the shops made here have to pay up to 6 lakh rupees every month as rent. A few years ago, a man named Deepak Tanwar appealed to former Home Minister Rajnath Singh to change the name of Khan Market to Valmiki Market. This proposal was strongly opposed by the shopkeepers of Khan Market.
World’s most expensive market
In the year 2019, Khan Market was included in the list of 20 most expensive markets in the world. The list in which Khan Market was included first included high class markets such as Hong Kong’s Cosway Bay, then New York’s Upper 5th Avenue, London’s New Bond Street, Paris’s Avenue the Champs Alessi. In today’s time, Khan Market is the favorite base of lawyers, politicians, teachers and journalists.
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