Within the Qutb Shahi Heritage Park remain standing six major baolis or stepwells from the 16th century. The stepwells found across the 106-acre site are now understood to have been significant structures, attached to the mausoleum to irrigate the garden orchards. With the collapse or filling-in of these stepwells the orchards died out by the 19th century. Sadly, at least two baolis known to have existed here have been lost, with their stone probably quarried in the 19th/ 20th century.
The conservation effort, by the Aga Khan Trust for Culture, on the baolis at Qutb Shahi Heritage Park are part of an effort aimed at establishing a model conservation process based on documentation, archival research, defining the statement of significance, peer review of conservation plan and conservation efforts, a high level of supervision and use of traditional materials and building craft techniques and tools.
Restoration of Baolis, Qutb Shahi Heritage Park. Aga Khan Trust for Culture - India. 2022
Aga Khan Trust for Culture