Viceroy's House

Rashtrapati Bhavan राष्ट्रपति भवन
Location in New Delhi, Delhi, India
General information
Architectural style	Delhi Order
Location	Rajpath, Delhi, India
Coordinates	28°36′51.63″N 77°11′59.29″E / 28.6143417°N 77.1998028°E / 28.6143417; 77.1998028
Current tenants	Pranab Mukherjee, President of India
Construction started	1912
Completed	1929
Technical details
Floor area	200,000 sq ft (19,000 m2)
Design and construction
Architect	Edwin Lutyens

The Rashtrapati Bhavan ( pronunciation , "rásh-tra-pa-ti bha-van" ; Presidential Residence"), formerly known as Viceroy's House, is the official home of the President of India, located at the Western end of Rajpath in New Delhi, India. It may refer to only the mansion (the 340-room main building) that has the president's official residence, halls, guest rooms and offices; it may also refer to the entire 130-hectare (320 acre) President Estate that additionally includes huge presidential gardens (Mughal Gardens), large open spaces, residences of bodyguards and staff, stables, other offices and utilities within its perimeter walls. In terms of area, it is one of the largest residences of a head of state in the world.

This decision to build a residence in New Delhi for the British Viceroy was taken after it was decided during the Delhi Durbar in December 1911 that the capital of India would be relocated from Calcutta to Delhi. When the plan for a new city, New Delhi, adjacent to and south of Old Delhi, was developed after the Delhi Durbar, the new palace for the Viceroy of India was given an enormous size and prominent position. About 4,000 acres of land was acquired to begin the construction of Viceroy's House, as it was officially called, and adjacent Secretariat Building between 1911 and 1916 by relocating Raisina and Malcha villages that existed there and their 300 families under the Land & Acquisition Act.