Hyderabad Municipal Maps, City Area, Sheet No - 26 Front

The river Musi and river bed where the Dhobi Ghat along with many small reservoirs is highlighted on the map. The Dhobi Ghat is a place where a traditional dhobi caste washermen or women go to wash clothes. It can be always nearby a watershed, and on the map, it is placed on the river shed of Musi clearly showed. The river Musi a tributary of the Krishna, originating from the Ananthagiri Hills near Vikarabad, is famous as much as Hyderabad famous. The original city of Hyderabad was founded on the bank of river Musi, by Muhammed Quli Qutb Shah in 1591 A.D, and over the centuries, the city has grown into both banks of the river. The old city lies on its southern bank, which was the seat of power till the 7th the Nizam, Osman Ali Khan. Also, the people of Hyderabad will never forget it due to the recurrent floods, and the worst one occurred in 1908, which led to the reorganization of the city by the Nizam. Subsequently, the Nizam shifted his residence, since then the city center saw a shift into the northern banks in particular. So, the role of Musi is inevitable for the city of Hyderabad both positively as well as negatively, not only in the past but also at the present too, in the forms of canals and dams constructed over it for the distribution of water.

A canal diverted from the river Musi flowing towards the northern bank of it, where after crossing the Afzal Shahi main road, split into few branches and leading to various places are visible on the map. A Madrasa-i-Rahmania and many temples are also identifiable between the river and Afzal Shahi Road. And, to the north of Afzal Shahi Road situates a Dargah and an Ashur Khana, are also visible on the map. Ashur Khana literally means a house of the 10th day Muharram or Shiite house of mourning. A mourning place for Shias during Muharram festival constructed in the memory of Imam Hussain. There are many Ashur Khanas identifiable in the city of Hyderabad, and construction of those was traceable back to the Golconda Sultanate, indeed, indicate the Shiite affiliation of Qutb Shahis. The word Dargah means court in Persian, is a shrine, built over the grave of a holy figure like a saint or Sufi, becomes significant after the death of the saint, and devotion towards the saint leads to the transformation of his grave into the center of pilgrimage and annual ceremonies, are seen as the popular places of worship over a period of time. Apart from these, at the southern bank of Musi, between Dewal Ramji and Hanuman Das Tekri, lies a tower namely Petla Burj are identifiable on the map. Burj is an Arabic word means tower. The Petla Burj was one of the strong bastions among the 10 bastions built on the wall of Golconda. These bastions were generally built in high precipices for overlooking the surroundings, mounted with cannons, and Petla Burj had a massive bronze cannon itself.