Standing tall between the Valley market and Meerut city railway station, the Meerut Clock Tower is more than just an important landmark for the city. The tower was established back in 1914 and its history traces back to the pre-Independence era.
Structure of the tower
The Meerut clock tower is built in brick masonry. The clock in the tower was previously at the Allahabad Hugh Court after being imported from Germany. It was installed in the tower at Meerut in 1914 when the construction completed. In 1990, in a bizarre incident, the brass parts of the clock were stolen.
Establishment of the tower
The clock tower was built on a gate named Kamboh Darwaza at the time. The purpose of the tower was to serve as a memorial to King Edward and its foundation was laid by then district magistrate and collector of Meerut, James Rae Pearson Esquire in the year 1913.
Renaming of clock tower
In the 1930s, when the seeds of freedom had sown in the hearts of every Indian, freedom fighter Subhash Chandra Bose started having regular meetings at the clock tower in order to begin India’s quest towards independence. It is because of this reason, the tower was subsequently renamed Subhash Chandra Dwar. It is also called Meerut Ghantaghar.
In totality, Meerut has three clock towers, the one near the railway station being the most important one. The other two are located at Budhana Gate and at St. John’s Church.
Society and culture
Director Aanand L. Rai visited Meerut in 2017 to research about the Shah Rukh Khan, Katrina Kaif and Anushka Sharma starrer, ‘Zero.’ A replica of the clock tower was constructed in Mumbai which later featured in the 2018 film.
