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{{EngvarB|date=March 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{more citations needed|date=July 2012}}
{{Infobox building
|name= Rajabai Tower
|image= Rajabai Clock Tower, Mumbai (31 August 2008).jpg
|caption = Rajabai Clock Tower
|location_town=[[Mumbai]]
|location_country=India
|coordinates = {{coord|18.92964|72.82999|region:IN-MH|display=inline}}
|completion_date= November 1878
|architect= Sir [[George Gilbert Scott]]
|cost= {{INR}} 550,000
|map_type= Mumbai
|structural_system= Buff coloured stone
|client={{flagicon image|..Maharashtra Flag(INDIA).png}} [[Maharashtra]]
|engineer=
|construction_start_date= 1 March 1869
|style= [[Venice|Venetian]] and [[Gothic architecture|Gothic]]
|size= {{convert|280|ft|m}}
}}
The '''Rajabai Tower''' is a [[clock tower]] in [[South Mumbai]] India. It is in the confines of the [[Fort (area)|Fort]] campus of the [[University of Mumbai]]. It stands at a height of 85 m (280 ft or 25 storeys).
The tower is part of [[The Victorian and Art Deco Ensemble of Mumbai]], which was added to the list of [[World Heritage Sites]] in 2018.<ref>https://wap.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/mumbai-s-victorian-gothic-and-art-deco-buildings-enter-unesco-heritage-list-118063000590_1.html</ref>

==History==
The Rajabai Clock Tower was designed by Sir [[George Gilbert Scott]], an English architect.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thehindu.com/business/companies/article2769290.ece |location=Mumbai |date=3 January 2012 |title=Re-setting the time |work=[[The Hindu]] |access-date=22 July 2012}}</ref> He modeled it on [[Big Ben]] in London.The foundation stone was laid on 1 March 1869 and construction was completed in November 1878. The total cost of construction came to ₹550,000, a large amount of money for the time period. A portion of the total cost of construction was donated by [[Premchand Roychand]], a prosperous broker who founded the [[Bombay Stock Exchange]] on the condition that the tower be named after his mother Rajabai.<ref name="Bhatt1995">{{cite book|author=Rakesh Kumar Bhatt|title=History and Development of Libraries in India|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Jbmdowzuv0QC&pg=PA39|date=1 January 1995|publisher=Mittal Publications|isbn=978-81-7099-582-1|pages=39–40}}</ref>

Premchand Roychand's mother was blind and as a staunch follower of [[Jain]] religion, she was supposed to consume her dinner before evening. Legend says that the evening bell of the tower helped her to know the time without anyone's help.{{Citation needed|date=June 2020}}

The tower was closed to the public after it became a frequent spot for those attempting to commit suicide.

==Structure==
The tower was built in a fusion of [[Venice|Venetian]] and [[Gothic architecture|Gothic]] styles. It is built out of the locally available buff coloured [[Kurla]] stone. The tower has one of the best [[stained glass]] windows in the city.<ref>Insiders guide to Rajabai clock Tower:https://www.hindustantimes.com/art-and-culture/insider-s-guide-to-rajabai-clock-tower/story-9Y1gNvrd1Yj1ormNC2DegL.html</ref>
[[File:Bombay University Hall Rajabai Tower.jpg|thumb|Council Building of the University of Mumbai in India, around 1860]]
The ground floor has two side rooms, each measuring 56 × 27.5 ft (17 × 8.5 m). The tower forms a carriage porch 2.4 m2 (26 ft2), and a spiral staircase vestibule of 2.6 m2 (28 ft2). The Tower, over the carriage porch, has a square form up to the gallery at the top of the first level which is at a height of 68 feet (20.7 m) from the ground. The form changes from a square to an [[octagon]] and the height from this gallery to the top of the tower is 118 feet (36 m) and the third stage to the top of the finial is 94 feet (28.7 m), thus making a total height of {{convert|280|ft|m}}.

During its time, it was the tallest structure in the city of Mumbai.

<gallery class="center" widths="200px" heights="150px" perrow="4">
Image:Rajabai under Const.jpg|A file photo of University of Mumbai taken in the 1870s. Rajabai Clock Tower here seen shrouded in scaffolding was completed in 1878
</gallery>

==Chimes==
[[File:Rajabai Clock Tower night.jpg|thumb|150px|Rajabai Clock Tower, brightly lit during the night.]]
During the 19th century it played the tunes of "[[Home! Sweet Home!]]" and "[[A Handel Symphony]]", out of a total of sixteen tunes, which changed four times a day. It currently chimes only one tune every 15  minutes.

==Restoration==
From October 2013 to 11 May 2015, the tower underwent restoration work under the observation of Anita Garware (Heritage Society), Dr. Rajan Welukar (Vice-Chancellor; University of Mumbai) and [[Natarajan Chandrasekaran|N Chandrasekar]] (CEO, Tata Consultancy Services).It reopened in March 2015 after renovation<ref>Mumbai's Rajabai Clock tower reopens after renovation:https://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-mumbai-s-iconic-rajabai-clock-tower-reopens-after-renovation-2085267</ref>

The restoration efforts were recognised by UNESCO in 2018 when the Library and the Rajabai Clock Tower received the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Award for Cultural Heritage Conservation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.hindustantimes.com/mumbai-news/mumbai-s-urban-heritage-conservation-movement-is-winning-accolades/story-gElDJ8nhBfLYCE565Xi8EL.html|title=Mumbai's urban heritage conservation movement is winning accolades|date=11 November 2018|website=www.hindustantimes.com|language=en|access-date=14 December 2018}}</ref>

==References==
{{commons category|Rajabai Clock Tower}}
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.mumbainet.com/travel/rajabai.htm Rajabai Tower]

{{Tourist attractions in Mumbai}}

[[Category:Towers completed in 1878]]
[[Category:Clock towers in India]]
[[Category:The Victorian and Art Deco Ensemble of Mumbai]]
[[Category:Gothic Revival architecture in India]]
[[Category:Clock towers]]

Rajabai Clock Tower - Revision history

imported>Billjones94 at 06:59, 6 August 2021