Aga Khan Palace reopens on Gandhi's 150th birth anniversary

The iconic Aga Khan Palace, where Mahatma Gandhi and other leaders were kept as prisoners following the launch of the 'Quit India' movement, re-opened for public here on Wednesday after being closed for repair and renovation works for about a month.

To mark the 150th birth anniversary of Gandhi, prayer meets, cleanliness campaign, drive against plastic and tree plantation events were organised at the palace, located on Nagar Road in Maharashtra's Pune city, ASI (Mumbai circle) superintending archaeologist Dr Rajendra Yadav said.

Some saplings of a peepal tree which was planted by Gandhi in Wardha were re-planted in the palace premises, he said.

The national monument was closed for last one month for carrying out renovation and repair works, he added.

At the Sassoon Hospital, floral tributes were paid at the operation theatre-turned-memorial, where the Mahatma was operated upon to remove his appendix in 1924.

The 400 sqft room has, among things, a table, a trolley and some instruments used for Gandhi's surgery. It also also houses a rare painting depicting Gandhi being operated on.

Elocution and essay competitions and a book exhibition on Gandhi were also organised at the government-run hospital.

At the Yerwada Central Prison here, a group of inmates recited bhajans in the memory of the Father of the Nation.

Besides, prayer meets, photo exhibitions on Gandhi, and singing of bhajans were also organised at the Maharashtra Gandhi Smarak Nidhi.

A group of people also took out a peace march in the city to pay tributes to Gandhi on his 150th birth anniversary.

Various schools, colleges and other educational institutions also organised events to celebrate the occasion.