How Kelsey Utne Does History

Contingent Magazine has a new series on how historians work. First up: "How Kelsey Utne Does History". Utne is a Ph.D. candidate at Cornell, working on the politics of human remains and the memorialization of death in late colonial India. In the spring, she's teaching a writing seminar called "Landscapes of Death: Memorials, Monuments, & Massacre Sites."

Direct link: https://contingentmagazine.org/2019/10/31/how-kelsey-utne-does-history/

Resource: Abhilekh Patal

Guess what? The NAI really did implement a "digitize on-demand" function.

This is just a little update on my National Archives of India post. Judging from e-mails I receive from researchers working in Delhi, a lot of my advice re: accessing NAI collections in person is still true. But the prep stage for research at the NAI has changed a lot in the past few years, as the NAI's digital game has really improved. I added a link to the NAI's online interface to my original post awhile back. Since then, I've discovered the Abhilekh Patal portal, the newest entry point into NAI collections.

The first place to start with the Abhilekh Patal portal is the "5 Step User Guide," as it tells you how to sign up for access and structure searches (you need an account to see the digitized material). Once you're signed up, click the tab for "Digitized Collections".

As you can see, they started with the big guns — Gandi, Kassturbhai Lalbhai, S. C. Dixit. The Cartographic Records section is growing. Delhi maps outnumber maps of other cities/regions, but there are a lot of Punjab and Tinnevelly maps as well. Lucknow, Hyderabad, Peshawar, Hoshiarpur ...

The biggest digitized collection falls under the heading Public Records. Some data entry errors make it seem like they date back to 1551 AD, but those records are really from either 1851 or 1951, depending on the document. We're mostly talking late 19th-century into the 20th (i.e., colonial era) material here.

The tab for "Online Reference Media" seems to be an catalogue for all digitized material.

Anyway, this should give you a good idea of some of the holdings of the NAI — useful for writing your research proposal/grant application.

Delhi Archives

If you're working on the NCR, the material you need may not be in the National Archives of India, it may be held in the Delhi Archives near JNU. I don't have any experience with this archive, but I wish I did, because the description of its holdings makes it sound great:

"This Department is in possession of rich and unique collections of original records, maps and microfilms relating to events took place in 1785 onwards. However, regular records series starts from 1857. These records are in English, Arabic, Hindi, Persian, Sanskrit, Urdu etc., Apart from records on paper, we also have records on palm leaf, birch bark, parchment etc. The records are broadly of three categories: Public Records, Manuscripts and Private Papers.These records throw light on the activities of the later Mughals, first war of Indian Independence, administration of Delhi before and after transfer of capital, role of Delhi in freedom struggle. They also shed valuable light on our social, political, economic and cultural life. In addition, there is a rich collection of Private Papers and microfilm rolls of records acquired from different archival institutions."

Contact Information:
Govt. of NCT of Delhi
Department of Delhi Archives
18-A, SatsangVihar Marg, Spl. Institutional Area (Near Eastern Gate of JNU)
New Delhi-110067
Email: ddarchives@nic.in
Phone-26512594, 26962800, 26535611
Fax: 26515993

National Archives of India — Digital?

If nothing else comes of this initiative (described in Economic Times, August 15, 2017), I hope it is the "on-demand" button. That way I wouldn't have to try and convince the person in front of me that, yes, I really do need this photocopy.

National Archives of India

Food for thought. I'm not sure I really care deeply about the marginalia and stamps, but I do care about the overall preservation of the documents. And I do care about user access (the hours I wasted trying to get one.single.photocopy). Some of this rings true, but let me know what you think.

How the National Archives of India is Actually Destroying History.

National Archives of India

An update to my 2009 post by Willy Logan, based on his March 2015 experience.

I was pleased to see during my last visit to Delhi how much easier and less stressful travel was by metro. Research is so much more pleasant when you arrive at the archive relaxed after an easy journey.

Other archives discussed by Logan:

• Resources in Assam
• National Library of India
• Nehru Museum and Library (Teen Murti)

Planning Your Research Trip

Some advice on planning your research trip to India from my alma mater:

https://publish.illinois.edu/iaslibrary/2015/01/28/planning-your-research-trip-to-india/

Twenty Libraries: Review

In a recent issue of Sagar: A South Asia Research Journal, Daniel Majchrowicz, Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University, offered short reviews of 20 libraries in Delhi. Who knew? I've only been to one of them.

National Archives of India (Review)

Derek L. Elliott has reviewed the National Archives of India for the Dissertation Reviews website. I think he found the experience slightly more comfortable than I did, but I also think that gender matters at the NAI, regardless of what others would tell you. Then again, I made a lot of research progress there despite the obstacles, plus it really made me appreciate the archives in Bikaner and Bhopal. Elliott's review can be found at http://dissertationreviews.org/archives/1673.

National Archives of India

I've been meaning to come back and update my previous post on the National Archives of India. What I've decided to is pull some links out the discussion originally conducted on the H-Asia listserv since the H-Net search function can be tricky.

The previous post contained a link to Part Two of a four-part series by Dinyar Patel about the state of Indian archives and libraries. I recommend going back to Part One, "In India, History Literally Rots Away." Part Three is "India's Archives: How Did Things Get This Bad?" Part Four is "Parsis, Once India's Curators, Now Shrug as History Rots." Patel has also contributed an opinion piece along the same lines to The Hindu, called "Our Past Is Being Moth-Eaten."

Mushirul Hasan, Directory General of the NAI, features in Patel's assessment of the archive. You can find an interview with Mr. Hasan, "National Archives can't be run as a typical government office," in the The Times of India.

As you might guess, while Patel's descriptions of the current state of Indian archives were accurate, there was some dissension and discussion about his articles. Quite rightly, some scholars objected to Patel's approach: it's very easy to criticize, very difficult to remedy. Many recognize the problem, few provide workable solutions to to it. There's also a question of (Orientalist) exteriority--who has the right to speak for the Indian archive? Foreign scholars? Indian scholars? What is to be gained by this intense focus on everything that's wrong with or lamentable about India's archives?

Mr. David Lunn pointed out that in addition to the negative attention, perhaps we should recognize some of the successful digitisation projects coming out of India. He mentioned the Digital Library of India, which I use quite frequently to look at older material (right now, books from 1904-1910). I've mentioned the Archives of India Labour here; I've also noticed that the website for the National Film Archive of India seems to be updated regularly.

The application deadline has passed, but Dr. Rashmi Sawhney pointed out that the India Foundation for the Arts was already directing resources toward fixing some of the highlighted problems by funding Archival Fellowships. What I particularly liked about the call for applications was that the materials could be submitted in any Indian language (including English). I hope this will direct attention to the preservation/accessibility of resources in Indian languages.

National Archives of India

Today's "India Ink" provides a note of optimism for users of the National Archives of India in New Delhi. The most important line of the entire article? The following quote from the new director, Mr. Mushiral Hasan:

“I wanted to provide a corrective to institutional malaise.”

I'm envious of those scholars walking into NAI today because if this article is even 50% correct, it means they will have a completely different experience than I had working there. Even the "quicker turnaround for photocopying and scanning" signals something just short of a sea change.

Teen Murti

So far, none of my research has required work at Teen Murti (though of course I've been to the museum). I have only heard good things about working there, so I'm kind of sad that I never found an excuse. Dharitri Bhattacharjee and Amber Abbas, Department of History, The University of Texas at Austin, gave it a short write up in a recent issue of Sagar, A South Asia Research Journal.

National Archives of India

Read along with the Delhi Walla as he visits the NAI.

Renewing your Research Visa.

Good luck with that.

No, seriously, it can be done, but it is going to take more patience than you probably have after 12 months in India.

First, the good news for all you Fulbright people: the USIEF office will write you a letter that should help smooth things over with FRRO. Yes, FRRO. I'm afraid you have to go back there. You should take with you:

• your own pen with black or blue ink
• passport photos (take 4, just in case, but refer to my previous FRRO post for instructions on how to find a photo place near FFRO itself)
• passport w/visa
• photocopies of your passport and visa
• FRRO registration book
• photocopies of the first and last page of your FRRO registration book
• Original letter from USIEF, recommending visa renewal
• Photocopy of letter from USIEF
• Letter from Indian university (JNU, DU, etc.) advisor recommending that your visa be renewed (THIS IS ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL)
• Proof of residence (utility bill, C-Form, etc.)
• Flight arrival information (I know, who cares, you've been in India 12 months, but they still want it)
• 4000 INR

You know the drill. Compile all the copies into a pile to leave at FRRO. Get up early, try to be the first person in line at FRRO. I got there at 8:45 this time, and was about 12th in line, an almost perfect position. I was done by 10:30, so it was worth the early start. The paperwork you will be handed is similar to registration paperwork, and if you have all the proper items listed above, you should be golden. Take the USIEF phone number with you, though, just in case someone gives you trouble.

Okay, now the bad news for all you independent researchers, or people on something like a SSRC-IDRF. It's going to take you an extra day or two to renew your visa. Plan for a total of three days: 1 day to get letters from the U.S. Embassy and your advisor on campus; 1 day to visit the Ministry of Home Affairs; and 1 day for the FRRO.

This is what you need to do. Get a letter from the U.S. Embassy reconfirming your status as a researcher. Get a letter from your Indian university advisor recommending your visa renewal and noting your good research progress. Photocopy them. Then get up early and go to the Ministry of Home Affairs (Jaipur House on Mansingh Road, New Delhi) and take the following items:

• your own pen with black or blue ink
• passport photos (I honestly can't remember if I needed them, but it can't hurt to have them)
• Original letter from U.S. Embassy
• Photostat of letter from U.S. Embassy
• Original letter from university advisor
• Photostat of letter from university advisor
• Original letter from home (U.S.) institution praising your work
• Photostat of letter from home institution
• Passport with visa page
• Photostat of passport with visa page
• FRRO registration book
• Photostat of FRRO registration book
• Proof of residence (utility bill, C-Form, etc.)

Compile all the copies together, these are what you will attach to the forms given to at MHA. You also need the originals, though, because the interview (see below) will ask to see them. If you forget to make a photocopy, don't worry, there is a copy station at the bottom of the stairs, only 1 INR/page.

When you get out of the autorickshaw at Jaipur House, the reception desk is in the little building to your right. Go in there and show your passport. This room has AC, but don't think you have it made, because this is only the reception hall. They will give you a number and tell you to go to the visa room. Go out of reception and into the complex to the office building to the left (ask the guards where to go). Wander into the building, look for stairs. The visa room is on the first (upper) floor. The copy station is right at the bottom of these stairs.

Generally, this part is hot and chaotic, even though the visa people follow a clear procedure. You will be given some paperwork with a number. Fill it out, and bring it back to the same desk. Eventually, some officers will come out and sit at the long desk at the side of the room, and start calling out numbers. You'd think people would wait until they heard their number, but no, the moment one number is called, there is a stampede. For this reason, I recommend sitting in a chair in the side room so you will already be there when the stampede happens. You might be tempted to sit in the larger visa room, where there is a hint of AC, but I think you will regret it when the chaos starts.

What happens is this: your number is called, and you go sit at the long desk for an interview. I never said a word during my interview, so I'm not sure why they call it that. An officer looks over all your photocopies, asks to see the originals, writes some mysterious notes, then tells you to come back at 4:30. Here is the frustrating part. You will come back at 4:30 as directed, and be handed a sealed envelope. This envelope you take to FRRO the next morning, along with all the documents/money listed above. DON'T OPEN THE ENVELOPE. I know, it's hard, because in that sealed envelope it either says "give this person a visa extension" or it says "deny this person's visa extension," and it would be lovely to know which it is before you stand in line at FRRO. But if the seal is broken, you will be denied your visa extension for certain.

In my case, I was recommended for a visa extension, and the less than two hours I then spent at the FRRO a miracle. I hope this description of the process bears equally good results for you.

Delhi Accommodations

While working at NAI in Delhi, I stayed at Vandana's Bed and Breakfast (I had the Parkview room, nice for birdwatching). This was in a great location (Safdarjung Enclave), about a 50Rs. autorickshaw ride from the archives. The house was really comfortable, and Pradeep and Vandana and family were excellent hosts. It is just a short walk through Arjun Nagar to Deer Park, Hauz Khas Village, or Green Park, and about a 40-50Rs. autorickshaw ride to Defence Colony. Since it is in South Delhi, it is also convenient to the airport. I was so comfortable here that I went back instead of finding a new place when I had to return to Delhi to renew my research visa.

JNU Affiliation

To receive a research visa for India, you will need to provide either your bonafides as an independent scholar, or evidence of your affiliation with a local research institute. Working out affiliation details can be difficult. I started by making numerous web searches to identify faculty working my area in Jaipur and Delhi. After locating faculty with research interests similar to mine, I read all the publications by said faculty that I could find. This was instructive, and led me directly to a department and 1-2 faculty members at JNU that I would have liked to work with had they been in the U.S. At this point, I sat down and sent a dozen e-mails and made a dozen phone calls, trying to track these faculty members down to talk about research affiliation. It was a long and stressful process, made all the more so by my poor Hindi. I had several e-mail conversations, sent copies of my research proposal, my CV, talk to admissions on the phone, all of this. However, I think it helped me in the end, if only because I could put in my Fulbright application that I had made appropriate contact with faculty at a research university in India.*

Of course after this, a lot of the affiliation details are then handled by USIEF if you are a Fulbright-Hays DDRA student. Still, once you arrive in India, you will need to take care of paying your affiliation fees and registering as a day student/research affiliate yourself. This post will go over the steps for a JNU affiliation. I'm assuming you've made contact with your faculty advisor, and you just need to go through the formal registration process.

I will be referring to this map of JNU campus.

To arrive on the JNU campus, there is only one open gate, the Main, or North, Gate, off Bara Gangnath Marg (Road). Go through the gate, past the Dakshimpuram dormitories on the left, and take the first major left. Take another left, and this brings you onto a sort of ring road. You are headed to the Admin Building (also labeled "West Wing"), or Bldg. No. 2 on the JNU map. The entrance is on the west end of the building.

In the Admin Building, go to Room 20 (to the right). Ask for Satendrji. You will sit down at a table and go over the registration process with him. For this, you will need the following:

Your Letter of Admission from JNU
Your passport and research visa
A statement of medical clearance (I didn't have this, but I was fine without it)
A photocopy of passport and research visa
Four (4) passport photos
$100 USD (roughly INR5000) per semester of affiliation

Satendrji will give you a form to fill out in quadruplicate. He will then send you over to Room 13 to pay your affiliation fee. The cashier booth is just to the left of the door of Room 13. The Cashier will give you a receipt. Hold on to it. Sit and fill out the four forms in quadruplicate, and take them back to Satendrji. If he approves, he will cross out certain superfluous items on the forms, and stamp/sign them. Then he will send you to get a signature from the Dean of Students Office, as well as the signature of the Administrative Officer in your affiliating department. While you are out getting these two signatures, you will also need to make a photocopy of your cashier receipt.

Here's my advice. Go to the Dean of Students office (Bld. No. 13 on map) first. You want to turn left out of the Admin Building. The walkway leads past a science building and something that appears to be a greenhouse/nursery area. The Dean of Students office is behind the Molecular Sciences building. Make sure you do this before 1:15, otherwise everyone will be out to lunch. In theory, the guard at the door will be able to get your papers stamped. If this doesn't happen, you can do what I did: during the middle of the lunch hour, walk right into the Dean of Students office, say you think you need his signature, and see what happens. It worked for me, but I'm pretty sure I broke a number of rules doing it this way.

Most of the academic buildings (Social Sciences I & II, School of Arts and Aesthetics, etc.) are lined up behind the Admin Building (see Bldg. Nos. 40, 45, etc. on the map). They are much easier to find than the Dean of Students office. Your advisor probably arranged an appointment with you, so you can get your signature then. Otherwise, you can go to your discipline's building and try to find the approved Administrative Officer and request a signature.

As you are walking around, you will probably see dhabas and bookstores. There is a good range to the east of the library of this sort of thing. There are also two photocopy shops here. Photocopies as of right now are 1/2 INR per copy, so you'll probably have to buy two copies of your cashier's receipt, because who has 1/2 rupee change?

Once you have the signatures, leave the appropriate copy of the form with your department. Drop the Admissions Branch form and the receipt photocopy back in Admin Building Room 13 with Satendrji. Go back to the Dean of Students and drop one of the forms in the small box inside the entrance (to the right) labeled "Day Students". The yellow form is yours to keep.

That's as much detail as I can remember. JNU is a beautiful campus, so you might want to plan to spend the day there, watching birds and reading in the jungle. It's unlikely you will be able to catch an autorickshaw near the Admin Building. You can either take the bus back to the main gate, or you can walk, which takes about ten minutes, max.

*I am affiliated with JNU. Other options in Delhi include Delhi University, Maulana Azad Medical College, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies, and Jamia Millia Islamia, among others.

Archaeological Survey of India

The ASI library is on the NAI campus. I haven't used it much yet, but I'll provide this practical advice in case you are trying to find it. Read the previous post on the NAI. Note the part where I wrote "Confidently walk forward. The museum is on the left, and there is a sign on the building saying it is the National Archives Museum. Keep walking straight, the path leads right to the building that has the RR."

To get to the ASI library, walk forward as if you are going to the RR. Instead of going up the front stairs and into the RR building, however, take a right turn and head toward the canteen. Don't go to the canteen, instead turn immediately left at the end of the RR building and head to the back of the building.

Trust me. I know this looks wrong. You will get to the back of the building and think, WTF? There are only boys smoking and dogs wallowing in garbage heaps back here, this can't be right. But really, it is. Walk toward the garbage pile. When you are almost there, there is a door in the back of the building. It is a small door, probably hanging open, without any sort of sign. This is the front door to the ASI library. You need to go up to the 2nd floor (where there IS a sign), check your bag, and then wander around inside the library until you hear voices. When you hear voices, follow them, and ask for help. This approach worked for me, anyway.

National Archives of India

[ETA: Please check out the new website for the National Archives of India. You will find updated contact information, etc. on the website.]

I'm hesitant to post any advice about using the collection at the NAI in Delhi, because I'm still struggling through the experience myself. But the ArchivesWiki on the NAI is completely empty, and the Archives Made Easy site for India only has one entry, Erica Wald's description of her experience. Actually, Erica Wald's description summarizes my experience at the NAI pretty well, so I'll just add a few details now. I'm sure I'll have more to add in three or four weeks, so check back later.

First, being accepted at the NAI as a researcher is not particularly difficult. You need a letter of introduction from your home institution (in my case, University of Illinois and JNU), any other letter of support you can provide (in my case, a letter from USIEF), a letter from the relevant Embassy (see previous post), and copies of your passport and research visa. You fill out a registration form,* available online at the NAI website, and hand all these papers to the fellow inside the Research Room. Once you are approved to do research, you sign the entry book (at a table just inside the RR door), and then you are ready to work.

But wait. First you have to get to the RR. Here's my advice:

Have your autorickshaw drop you at the NAI gate. Take a blue or black pen out of your pocket. Walk into the Reception Office (guard house) just at the gate, look confident and indicate you are going to the RR, and make a signing gesture. This should make the guard think you know what you are doing. If you look confused, you might have to go into a very elaborate exercise over your ID, and why you don't have an I-card (because you're not Indian), and some phone calls will be made, and you will be very annoyed and upset. Don't get upset! Be silent! Just stand there with your pen in your hand and wait. Eventually, enough people will consult about the matter, and you will be able to sign the entry book.

Here is what you need to write:

Your name IN BLOCK LETTERS. Your Delhi address (don't abbreviate!). In the next space, confidently write DDAR MG. In the next space, boldly write RR. Check the time on the clock over your shoulder and note the time in the next space. Don't make a mistake, or this detail might be cause for more delay. Sign your name on the last space on the line. Don't ask any questions, just act like you know what you're doing.

Then stand and wait, and the guard, who is actually a very nice guy once he knows you're not trying to break in, will write you out a daily security pass. Take the pass in hand, and go through the gates into the NAI complex. Sometimes the guard right inside the gate will want to look at your pass, but usually not. Make sure you say "Namaskar" politely to them, it is good if they recognize you and let you in every day with a smile.

So, you're in the gate, but where is the RR? Confidently walk forward. The museum is on the left, and there is a sign on the building saying it is the National Archives Museum. Keep walking straight, the path leads right to the building that has the RR. Sometimes there is a guard outside this building, so you might want to keep your security pass in hand until you are inside.

Once inside this building, you will need to step around the various construction projects (trust me, they will be still be going on 2 years from now), and take a left through the first left door. You will be seeing some elevators. To the left of the elevators is another door. That is the RR!

You have been reading this, and asking yourself, is this level of detail really necessary for a blog post? But yes, it is, because there is not a single sign to tell you where you are going or what to do. So take notes on this stuff.

The fellow who issues the reading passes is usually in the office to the left just inside the RR door. Sometimes he is sitting at a desk in the middle of the RR, next to a pillar. You will know him because he is facing the door, more or less, and the readers are all facing the opposite direction.

Okay, here is some practical stuff. No bags are allowed in the RR, but there are some lockers just outside the door. They don't lock, and often they are all full so you have to just dump your bag on the floor, so make sure everything valuable fits in your pockets because you will have to take it into the RR with you. Using a laptop at the NAI is no problem. There are several power points, but not enough for every researcher. So far, I have had to run on laptop battery power twice in three weeks, so be prepared for that. Either that, or make sure you get up earlier than I do.

The RR is open from 9:30-6:00. You can stay all day, but the staff go to lunch from 1:15 to 2:30, and you can get no help from them during that time. Sometimes it is difficult to find someone to help even during working hours, and I have no good solution for that problem.

There is a canteen on site (as you leave the RR building, it is to your left), but I haven't used it. Another thing, I don't know how it is for the men, but you have to be pretty courageous to use the women's restroom at the NAI. There is a water leak in the restroom, so...well, it's useable, but not comfortable. The restrooms are on the 3rd floor, by the way.

On your way out at the end of the day, you need to give the security pass back to the fellow in the guard house. One or two days of this routine and he will get to know you and it will all be very pleasant. He also goes to lunch from 1:15 to 2:30, so don't expect to gain entry to the NAI complex during those hours.

Just one other small thing. It is difficult to get an autorickshaw in the late afternoons, so be prepared to wait for one. It's easier to get one headed north than south. Don't let the rickshewallahs fool you--you're not very far from CP, so if they ask you for 100 rupees, they are being bandits. It's more like 20 rupees, but if you can get there for 30-40, you're doing pretty good for a foreigner.


*You will be asked for your research topic--make it as broad as possible, encompassing as many years as possible. I have already been refused access to some PWD records because they do not match my original research inquiry (although they definitely do!). So don't write down your dissertation topic. Write down instead a time period well beyond your actual focus, and a very general topic.

Independent Research

If you are in India on a research visa, but are not sponsored by USIEF (Fulbright), you are going to need a notarized letter from the U. S. Embassy in order to access the National Archives of India in Delhi.* Contrary to the many rumors circulating on the The Internets, the U.S. Embassy does provide this letter for a $30 fee as part of the notarial services they provide to U.S. citizens.

To receive this letter, you should take the appropriate ID (passport, visa, letters from home university, etc.) and money to the American Citizens Services Unit at the U.S. Embassy in New Delhi. The Embassy is open for routine consular services from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. The Embassy closes on a surprising number of holidays, most of which you've probably never celebrated in your life, so be sure and check the list of holiday closings before you head over there. You don't need an appointment, as it's first come, first serve.

To find the American Citizen Services Unit, go to Gate 6 of the Embassy (generally known as the Visa Gate) located on Nyaya Marg in the Chanakyapuri neighborhood. Nyaya Marg runs parallel to Shanti Path, to the west. If you can find Panchsheel Marg, that runs perpendicular to both, crossing both Shanti Path and Panchsheel Marg to the north of the Embassy. Another relatively close landmark is Nehru Park--it runs parallel to Shanti Path along Niti Marg, to the east of Shanti Path. I think the closest Embassy to the U.S. Embassy is Finland's, so if you see that, keep going, you're almost there.

*If you on a Fulbright-Hays DDRA, USIEF will arrange for this letter, free of charge. It takes about a week, so if you're in a hurry, you could always follow the above advice and get the letter yourself (for a fee).

Useful Blogs

Many of the blogs out there on the interweb are for backpackers and tourists. Some of them are useful, but life as an academic researcher is quite different from life as a footloose backpacker. So, while I do use sites like India Mike when I am thinking of taking a vacation, I generally avoid the other travel/tourist sites. Here are a few sites I find/found useful (I usually read most of them as RSS feeds):

Expat/Local Blogs
Our Delhi Struggle.
Gora Desi in Delhi.
Maddy's Ramblings.
The Delhi Walla.
Delhi Magic.
Delhi Tube.
Same, Same (but different).
DilliNet.
Thepopularcasecentre.
Yuni-Net (Yahoo Group).

Food in Delhi.
Foodiebay.
UncleJi's.
Pudding and Pie.
Eating Out in Delhi.
Coffee Houses.

Out and About in Delhi.
Time Out Delhi.
Delhi Happenings.

Bookstores.
Bookstores in Delhi.
My recommendations: Midlands in Aurbindo Marg Market; Full Circle, N-Block Market, GK-I; Oxford Books (not OUP), Barakhamba Road, CP; Amrit Book Co., 21-N Block, CP (although I usually recommend avoiding CP if at all possible); Book Cafe, located inside Cafe Coffee Day (multiple locations).

Flora/Fauna
Trees of India.
Birds of India.
India Birds.
Delhi Bird.
Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary.

Travel.
Delhi Metro.
India Mike.
Make My Trip.
Trains at a Glance.

Hair Salons:
Affinity Salon, Green Park Main Market, Delhi
Geetanjali Salon, Green Park Main Market, Delhi

Clothing, luggage, shoes:
Saronjini Nagar Market