Let’s be real, Sunder Nursery is hard to miss when we talk about parks in Delhi. It’s every Delhiite’s ideal place to go to for a fun picnic. However, many people are curious to know whether pets are allowed here. Yes, you can take your pets here. However, you’ve to keep them on a leash and pick the litter since the nursery’s very particular about keeping it clean.

Overview

Sunder Nursery, earlier known as Azim Bagh (great garden) in Mughal times, was established in the 20th century to propagate plants for New Delhi. It is located at the southern edge of Lutyens’ New Delhi, in the heart of the city of Delhi, and occupies an area of 25.66 Ha. Situated immediately to the north-west of Humayun’s Tomb World Heritage Site, and about half a kilometre east of the dargah of the renowned 13th century Sufi saint Hazrat Nizamuddin Auliya, Sunder Nursery too is a host to many Mughal period monuments. Spread over 90 acres, less than 10 per cent of what is now Sunder Nursery was utilized as an active nursery at the onset of this Urban Renewal project. In close consultation with the CPWD, a masterplan for the area was prepared in 2008 to strengthen nursery functions and blend its heritage, landscape and ecological assets into a veritable combination of cultural offerings.

Its Goal

Sunder Nursery, known as Azim Bagh in Mughal times, was established in the early 20th century when the Imperial Delhi complex was being planned and constructed. It was here that trees and plants for the new British Capital were propagated and also testing of species brought from other parts of India and from overseas.
One of the key components of the Nizamuddin Urban Renewal Initiative is environmental development and restoring historic urban landscapes. To fulfil this purpose, the landscape Master Plan for the environment development of Sunder Nursery was prepared by Shaheer Associates in close consultation with the CPWD – AKTC project team, which received formal ASI, MCD, DUAC and CPWD approval in January 2009 following which civil works could begin.

The landscape master plan aims to create a major landscape space of truly urban scale, deriving inspiration from the traditional Indian concept of congruency between nature, garden and utility coupled with environmental conservation. The masterplan has three components: Developing healthier and better nurseries; developing formal and sensitive landsacapes around the 16th century Mughal-era monuments which are now part of the Humayun’s Tomb World Heritage Site; and developing Biodiversity Zones, where native plant species of Delhi region have been planted, bird and butterfly zones created, amongst others.