Okhla, short for Old Canal Housing and Land Authority, is an

urban Urban means "related to a city". In that sense, the term may refer to: * Urban area, geographical area distinct from rural areas * Urban culture, the culture of towns and cities Urban may also refer to: General * Urban (name), a list of people ...

neighbourhood located by the

Okhla barrage The Okhla barrage (Okhla Weir and Okhla bridge)I. Mohan, 1992Environment and Urban Development: A Critical Evaluation of Slums is a 791 meters or roughly 800-yard long weir across Yamuna River opened in 1874. It also serves as the location of ...

South East Delhi South East Delhi is an administrative district of the National Capital Territory of Delhi in India. This district was carved out in 2012 along with Shahdara, taking the total number to 11 administrative districts in Delhi. Geography The South ...

, near the border between

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

and

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

. Okhla has lent its name to the nearby planned township of New Okhla Industrial Development Authority or

Noida Noida (), short for New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (ISO: ), is a city located in Gautam Buddha Nagar district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. As per provisional reports of Census of India, the population of Noida in 2011 was ...

. Okhla is an

assembly constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

About

Okhla is one of the oldest inhabited areas in Delhi near the bank of

Yamuna River The Yamuna (; ) is the second-largest tributary river of the Ganges by discharge and the longest tributary in List of major rivers of India, India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a height of about on the southwestern slopes of B ...

. This can be judged from the making of Okhla canal (

Agra Canal The Agra Canal is an important Indian irrigation work which starts from Okhla in Delhi. The Agra canal originates at the Okhla barrage, downstream of Nizamuddin bridge. The canal receives its water from the Yamuna River at Okhla, about to t ...

) by the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

in 1874, presently known as Okhla Head.

History

The

is a barrage that was developed by the British. It is also the starting point of the

built in 1874. Today it is also the location of the

Okhla Bird Sanctuary Okhla Bird Sanctuary is a bird sanctuary at the Okhla barrage over Yamuna River. It is situated in Noida, Gautam Buddh Nagar district, on Delhi-Uttar Pradesh state border and known as a haven for over 300 bird species, especially waterbirds. ...

, and further down the canal towards

Agra Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...

, the

Keetham Lake Sur Sarovar, often referred to as Keetham Lake, is a picturesque lake off the Agra-Delhi national highway (NH-19). The Agra Bear Rescue Facility, a facility for saving Sloth bears dedicated to rehabilitating previously captured "dancing bears," ...

National Bird Sanctuary. The present campus of

Jamia Millia Islamia Jamia Millia Islamia is a Public university, public and research university located in Delhi, India. Originally established at Aligarh, United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, United Provinces (present-day Uttar Pradesh, India) during the British R ...

, a central university, was established here in 1925. Also located in the neighbourhood are the NSIC, IIIT Delhi,

Govind Ballabh Pant Engineering College Govind Ballabh Pant Institute of Engineering and Technology (GBPIET) (known as ''Govind Ballabh Pant Engineering College'' before August 2017) is an autonomous institution for higher technical education located in Ghurdauri of Pauri Garhwal di ...

Lotus Temple The Lotus Temple is a Baháʼí House of Worship in Kalkaji, New Delhi, Delhi, India. It was completed in December 1986. Notable for its lotus-like shape, it has become a prominent attraction in the city. Like all Bahá’í Houses of Worshi ...

, and the Okhla railway station.

Okhla Industrial Estate

Okhla Industrial Estate, an industrial domain of New Delhi in South Delhi was established by National Small Industries Corporation and was one of the 12 such estates being developed across India to encourage small industries. Construction work at the site began in 1952 and it was finally inaugurated in 1958, and in time became synonymous to growth of small scale industries in region. Today it is divided in three phases.

Phases

Okhla Industrial Estate Phase I and Phase II is one of the 28 industrial areas of Delhi, as per the Master Plan of 2001. Revenue earners from this base include ready-made garment exporters and leather garment exporters, besides other segments of the industry such as pharmaceutical manufacturing units, plastic and packaging industries, printing presses, machinery manufacturers, call centers, MNCs Office, Bank, and others. Okhla Industrial Estate Phase III spreads over and is a modest industrial foundation laid out by the British architect Walter George, who was famous for the planning and construction of Parliament House, North, and South Blocks.

Overview

The whole industrial area was named after the main Okhla Village, in

South Delhi South Delhi is an administrative district of the National Capital Territory of Delhi in India with its headquarters in Saket. Administratively, the district is divided into three subdivisions, Saket, Hauz Khas, and Mehrauli. It is bounded by ...

. Nearby areas have now extensively grown into neighbourhoods like Jogabai extension, Batla House, Okhla Vihar, Zakir Nagar, Jamia Nagar, Abul Fazal Enclave,

Shaheen Bagh Shaheen Bagh is a neighbourhood in the South Delhi district, South East Delhi district of Delhi, India. It is on the U.P border and southernmost colony of the Okhla (Jamia Nagar) area, situated along the banks of the Yamuna. The locality is k ...

, Kalindi Colony, and

Kalindi Kunj Kalindi Kunj is a public garden and a famous T point road in Delhi, located on the banks of River Yamuna, close to Okhla barrage. Atlantic Water World, an amusement park incorporating a water park, is located there. See also * List of parks ...

. Okhla has a heavily

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

population and shows a high linguistic literacy rate. It is a state assembly constituency, part of the

East Delhi Lok Sabha constituency East Delhi Lok Sabha constituency is one of the 7 Lok Sabha (parliamentary) constituencies in the Indian National Capital Territory of Delhi. This constituency came into existence in 1966. It presently comprises 40 municipal wards of the Munici ...

Neighbourhoods

East of Kailash,

New Friends Colony New Friends Colony is a posh residential colony of South Delhi, India. It consists of A, B, C, D Blocks. It is situated near Uttar Pradesh border. Landmarks The landmarks in and around the area include Jamia Millia Islamia (A Central Unive ...

Nehru Place Nehru Place is a large commercial centre in Delhi, India. Although its importance as a financial centre has declined in recent years, Nehru Place is still a prominent commercial area in South Delhi and houses the headquarters of several In ...

Kalkaji Kalkaji Mandir, is a Hindu Temple, dedicated to the Hindu Goddess Kali. It is situated in southern Delhi, in Kalkaji, India, a locality that has derived its name from the temple and is located opposite the Nehru Place and close to the Okhla r ...

, Abul Fazal Enclave, Sukhdev Vihar,

Greater Kailash Greater Kailash (often referred to as GK) is a residential area in South Delhi consisting of several neighborhoods and multiple markets. It is divided into three zones, namely part 1, 2, and 3, located around a section of the Outer Ring Road. ...

Govindpuri Govindpuri is a colony in South East Delhi. It is surrounded by Kalkaji, Chittaranjan Park, and Tughlakabad. The Violet Line of the Delhi Metro passes through the area and has a metro station by the name, Govindpuri. Govindpuri is supposed ...

Sriniwaspuri Sriniwaspuri () is a small Colony located in the southern part of Delhi, India. It is the only place in Delhi where Emperor Ashoka’s Rock Edict was discovered. The in-situ Bahapur rock edict (28.55856°N 77.25662°E) was discovered in Delhi is ...

Tuglaqabad Tughluqabad Fort is a ruined fort in Delhi, India. Ghiyasuddin Tughluq, the founder of the Tughlaq dynasty and ruler of the Delhi Sultanate, constructed it in 1321 when he established the third historic city of Delhi. However, it was later aba ...

Sarita Vihar Sarita Vihar is a residential colony situated in South East Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi, India. It is near the Kalindi Kunj- Noida Toll bridge or GD Birla Marg-Road 13A which connects the district to Noida.The area is situated cl ...

, Jasola,

, Jaitpur, Madanpur,

Badarpur Badarpur may refer to: * Badarpur, Assam, a town in Assam, India ** Badarpur, Assam Assembly constituency ** Badarpur railway station * Badarpur, Bangladesh, Barisal Division, Bangladesh * Badarpur, Budaun, a village in Uttar Pradesh, India * Bad ...

, Zakir Nagar, Okhla Vihar, Ghaffar Manzil Colony, Haji colony, Ishwar Nagar and Harkesh Nagar are the surrounding areas.

Wildlife sanctuaries

is a nearby Bird Park and Wildlife Sanctuary located in Noida, where during the month of September thousands of migratory birds including shovellers, pintail, common teal, gadwall, and blue-winged teal visit the area every year.

Hospitals

There are many hospitals in the area, including

Indraprastha Apollo Hospital Indraprastha Apollo Hospital is an Indian hospital owned by Apollo Hospitals group, India's largest healthcare chain. Established in 1995, it is the third super specialty tertiary care hospital set by the Apollo Hospitals Group, jointly with th ...

, Al-Shifa, Cribs Hospital , Holy Family Hospital, Fortis Escorts, and other small hospitals and clinics.

Hygiene

Civic hygiene has been a concern in Okhla and people struggle with overflowing garbage. The overused landfills in the area have been termed as dark spots. New Indian Express, in a July 2021 report stated, "The 22km stretch of

Yamuna The Yamuna (; ) is the second-largest tributary river of the Ganges by discharge and the longest tributary in India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a height of about on the southwestern slopes of Bandarpunch peaks of the Low ...

from Wazirabad to Okhla in Delhi, which is less than two per cent of the river length, accounts for about 80 per cent of the pollution in the river."

Connectivity

Okhla is well connected via roadways and railways and is not too far away from the

IGI Airport Indira Gandhi International Airport is the primary international airport serving New Delhi, the capital of India, and the National Capital Region (NCR). The airport, spread over an area of ,

. Business districts such as

, Connaught Place and

Lajpat Nagar Lajpat Nagar is a residential and commercial neighborhood in the South East Delhi district of Delhi. It was named in honor of Lala Lajpat Rai and is today most known for Pranav Dudani. This area is not to be confused with the Lajpat Nagar in ...

are considerably close resulting in good access to public services. Okhla is also connected to the Delhi Metro Magenta Line Network - Jasola Vihar-Shaheen Bagh, Okhla Vihar,

and Sukhdev Vihar.

Delhi Transport Corporation The Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) is a public sector passenger road transport corporation that manages bus services in Delhi, India. It was incorporated in November 1971 as a wholly-owned corporation of the Government of India to provide ...

buses via various Bus stops and terminus are operating from Okhla.