New Delhi: According to reports, Mir Osman Ali Khan, the last Nizam of the erstwhile princely state of Hyderabad was the richest person in the history of India, or definitely one of the richest. During his reign, Hyderabad was the third largest state of the British Indian Empire. The Nizam himself was one of the richest people in the world at that time, with his treasury holding an unimaginable amount of wealth. He was so rich that he even used a famous diamond as a paperweight! As you can guess, Mir Osman Ali Khan was a man of extraordinary wealth and it is hard to estimate his treasure.
Mir Osman Ali Khan: Is he the wealthiest man of India ever?
Mir Osman Ali Khan became the last Nizam of the Princely state of Hyderabad on August 29, 1911, and at that time, he was just 25 years old. He ruled Hyderabad till 1948 when India annexed it. According to some estimates, one of the world’s wealthiest people of all time had so much wealth that it was 2 per cent of the US GDP. In 1937, he appeared on the cover of the Time magazine. He was a semi-autonomous monarch who had his own mint and printed his currency, the Hyderabadi rupee.
It is said that his private treasury had £100 million in gold and silver bullion, and a further £400 million of jewels. Most of his wealth came from the Golconda mines, which was the world’s lone supplier of diamonds back then. Among them was the Jacob Diamond, a 185-carat diamond valued at some £50 million in 2008 and bafflingly, the Nizam used it as a paperweight, possibly in an example of the vast amount of wealth he had. The Indian government still exhibits the Jewels of the Hyderabad Nizam in Delhi and the collection includes turban ornaments, gemstones, belts and buckles, necklaces and pendants, armbands, earrings, bangles and bracelets.
Mir Osman Ali Khan and his time as the Nizam
Mir Osman Ali Khan ruled Hyderabad for 37 years and led to its massive development. He introduced electricity, and developed roads, railways and airports. Known as the “Architect of modern Hyderabad”, he founded many prominent public institutions in Hyderabad including State Bank of Hyderabad and the Hyderabad High Court. He constructed two reservoirs, Himayat Sagar and Osman Sagar and also built the Nizam Sagar Dam, the oldest dam in Telangana.
Mir Osman Ali Khan became the last Nizam of the Princely state of Hyderabad on August 29, 1911, and at that time, he was just 25 years old. He ruled Hyderabad till 1948 when India annexed it. knowledge Knowledge News, Photos and Videos on General Knowledge
