When Arnav Vij, Aryan Bardeja, Vihaan Tampi and Karissa Gupta discovered that their school stood right next to a historic gurudwara—home to a large rock where Bhagat Singh once tested bombs ahead of the famous Central Legislative Assembly bombing in 1929—they were stunned. The realisation that they passed daily by a site of such historical importance moved the young history enthusiasts to do something about it. “It made us realise that in a culturally rich city like Delhi, there are countless lesser-known or hidden places with deep historical and cultural significance,” says Vihaan. Thus was born WaPas or Walking Past—an app that guides users through historical monuments across Delhi-NCR. Developed by the four Class XII students of Noida’s Shiv Nadar School, WaPas uses GPS and geotagging to help users rediscover the history they walk past every day, one notification at a time. “It’s a navigation app that tells users about nearby monuments, historical places, and landmarks—especially the lesser-known ones,” says Aryan.
The app currently features over 500 monuments and heritage sites. “We wanted to cover both the famous and the forgotten,” says Arnav, adding, “For instance, near Feroz Shah Kotla, there are old watchtowers that are largely neglected. We’ve also mapped small mosques, several gurudwaras, besides well-known sites like the Red Fort and Humayun’s Tomb.” WaPas acts as a pocket-sized heritage guide. “Our goal is to raise awareness about the heritage in our own neighbourhoods,” says Vihaan, who led the app’s development, adding, “We hope the app becomes a catalyst for people to visit and appreciate these lesser-known sites.”
“We’d also love to add a feature where users can mark locations and upload photos. That way, people can contribute their own discoveries to the app, turning it into a collaborative platform that grows with community input and shared curiosity,” says Arnav.
With WaPas, these young changemakers are not just building an app, but building awareness by blending technology with curiosity. So when are you taking a walk through history?