The new-look fountain built at the site of the 17th-century fountain in the piazza near Charminar is ready for inauguration. “We have to install barriers to stop vehicles from hitting it and the fountain will be ready for inauguration,” said Mir Khan of Deccan Terrain which completed the reconstruction project of the fountain.
Now covered under a black plastic sheet, the spout of the fountain is a wrought iron construction as are the lamp holders on the eight corners of the fountain’s raised platform. Inside, the octogonal fountain is covered with white and blue patterned tiles. While the earlier fountain had just one spout, the new fountain has 192 spouts arranged in a pattern that can create a mesmerizing gauze of water as they are lit up by LED lights underneath them.
“The fountain is powered by a five-horse power motor and a regulator that can be used to control the pattern and throw off the water in the spout,” said Mr.Khan.
The fountain, known as Gulzar Houz, is a pale imitation of the Char-su-ka-Hauz that was built along with the Charminar and the four kamans (arches) in the late 16th and early 17th centuries by the Qutb Shahi rulers. Historical accounts recount how the palace complex opened out to the fountain and a copper gong would be struck to mark the hour for the medieval city from the Kali Kaman arch. Cut to late 19th century, sepia-tinted images show a large basin of water at the crossroad. In the Munn Map of early 20th century, dimensions of the octagonal basin of the fountain measure 24 metres or 72 feet across.
The earlier fountain, which was renovated periodically in the 20th century using cement concrete mortar, had a modest dimension of eight metres or 24 feet — a shrinkage of 66% decline in dimension and coverage.
