The 2.5-m-long circular corridor is well-known, running the periphery of the palace. With Italian architecture and sculpted lawns, this grand building is now the headquarters of the Gandhi National Memorial Society. It was Sultan Muhammed Shah Aga Khan III who built this palace in 1892 as an act of charity for those who were drastically affected by the famine that had hit Pune at the time. Khadi, the handwoven natural fibre that Gandhiji used to spin on his charkha, is still made here. Their memorials, made of marble, still stand here. Though imprisoned during the Quit India movement, both Ba (as Kasturba Gandhi was fondly known) and Desai died of a heart attack in these premises. Occupying an area of about 19 acre, this palatial mansion was once used as a prison by the British for Mahatma Gandhi, Kasturba Gandhi and Mahadeo Desai, as well as Miraben, Pyarelal Nair, Sarojini Naidu and Dr Sushila Nayar. Achabal was once the pleasure retreat of Empress Noor Jehan. A mosque standing in the garden is believed to have been constructed by Mughal Prince Dara Shikwah. The place has got a historical background also, the upper portion of the garden is called 'Bag-e-Begum Abad' developed by Malika Noor Jehan Begum in 1620 AD and renowned as Sahib Abad in which there was a Hamam (treasure of water) getting heat from a lamp.Cascades and fountains erected by Mughal Emperors enhance the beauty of the spot. The place is famous and attractive due to an ancient spring surrounded by a garden terraced and developed by the Mughals.
It is said that the Breng River which disappears at Dewalgam in the fissures of the limestone is the real source of the Achabal spring.Achabal is an important tourist place about 8 km away from Anantnag. Achabal is perhaps the most beautiful of springs, which gushes out of the Sosanwar Hill, and was once enlisted by Emperor Jehangir in the service of beauty and pleasure.