Balapur Fort Balapur Fort is a in fairly good condition Mughal fortress situated in the town of Balapur in the Akola district of India . Construction on the fort was started by Mirza Azam Shah , the son of Emperor Aurangzeb and it was completed by Ismaeel Khan , the Nawab of Elichpur in 1757 . The chhatri ( umbrella - shaped pavilion ) ; a canopy constructed by Mirza Raja Jaisingh , has an area of 25 square feet and a height of 33 feet . Its foundations were heavily damaged in a great flood called the ' dhvdya pur ' which occurred more than 100 years ago , but after some years the damage was repaired at a cost of Rs 3 , 000 received from Jaipur . History . The old Gazetteer states , " People are sufficiently educated to scrawl their names on all parts of the chhatri , and a stone in the middle has been coloured with the ubiquitous sacred red . The frivolous say that visitors to the chhatri must do three thing Firstly , they should note the char bot ki patthar , four - fingers stone , which has been set in near the top of a pillar on the soul . In 1616 , Shah Nawaz Khan , the Subedar of Barar was camping at Balapur . the defeated Malik Ambar attacking him near Kirkee by way of Rohinkheda pass . But he could not hold for long and had to retreat to Balapur . Aurangzeb , after ascending the imperial throne at Delhi , appointed Raja Jaisingh as the Governor of the Dakkan . He constructed a very pretty chhatri , umbrella - shaped pavilion , 25 feet square and 33 feet in height at Balapur . Mirza Azam Shah , son of Aurangzeb , is said to have lived here and to have built a mud fort . It may be noted that as per the Treaty of Purandar , the Balapur pargana along with the Avandhe pargana was given in the name of Sambhaji as a Jageer and he was made a commandant of 5 , 000 . Location . The Balapur fort is situated in Balapur , a large town located at the junction of the rivers Man and Bhains , in west - central India . The old Gazetteer mentions that the town contained a mosque of 1737 in Kasarkhera . It further states , ' The mosque in Kasarkhera is a fair specimen of later Mughal architecture , but the arches arc too squat to be graceful ; a long and somewhat bombastic inscription , exceedingly well executed and well preserved , gives as the date of construction of the mosque the year 1737 . The mosque is known as the Raozah Masjid , for it contains the tomb of a local saint Maolvi Masoom Shah . ' The old Gazetteer also states , ' A fine haveli in the town was built by a local saint , Sayyad Amjad , and an inscription over the principal gateway , a good specimen of Mughal architecture , conveys the information that it was built in 1703 . ' Situated on an elevated ground between the two rivers , the fort has very high walls and bastions built of the best brickwork of its time . The fort has three gateways , one within the other . With Balapur hailed as an important military station during the times of the Mughals , the fort too was built keeping in mind the town ' s military responsibilities and position . Complex architecture used in the fort ensured its safety , as well as eased the discharge of missiles and other ammunition from within the fort , rendering it one of the most impenetrable forts in the county . During the rains , the Fort gets surrounded by floodwater except at one point . The temple of " Bala Devi " , from which the town has derived its name , lies just under the Fort , on the southern side . Still in a relatively good condition , the Balapur Fort is now used by the government for offices . A quiet spot , this fort held supreme importance during the time of the Mughals .