Amritsar, which literally means a pool of nectar, lies twenty kilometres east of the lndo-Pakistan border, is the Punjab state's second largest town. It was founded in 1577 by Ram Das, the fourth guru of the Sikhs. Here a tank was excavated and a temple was got built by the Fifth Guru, Guru Arjan Dev in its midst and a new city began to grow up round the sacred pool. The name Amritsar meaning 'Pool of Nectar', is named after the sacred pool around which the Sikh's Golden Temple is built. Sikhs from all over the world come to pay their reverence to Guru Granth Sahib and take a dip in the Amrit Saras Kund (Pool of Immortality) for spiritual purification is the major landmark of the place. The present city dates back to the 15th century but there are evidence that this city is related to ramayan yug so city's sacred heritage must be measured in terms of millenniums and not in centuries.
Amritsar lied at a distance of about 280 miles from Delhi and is only 16 miles from Wagha, the outpost of the Indo-Pakistan border.The city is an important regional market center for agricultural goods, woollens, spices and dry fruits and also the center for India's border security. Today it is India's important distribution centre of dry-fruits, tea (next only to Calcutta), of condiments and is a leading exporter of goods to the Middle East. Woollen tweeds, suitings, blankets, shawls in traditional weaves, ivory (now plastic) inlay furniture, swords of all designs, oils, scents, jutties (traditional embroidered shoes), cut-glass crockery, selective musical instruments, carpets are manufactured here almost in every bazaar. Its pickles, murabbas (Indian jams) and papads and warian and sweetmeats are exported to far off places, right into Punjabi Diaspora abroad. With a population of about 4,00,000 and a number of educational institutions, business markets, industrial concerns, banks, hotels parks and restaurants, Amritsar still remains the most important, the largest and, perhaps, the most picturesque city in the Punjab. Amritsar is also characterised by the hard working and warm-hearted people.
Amritsar is connected by Indian Airlines flights to Delhi and Srinagar. There is a weekly flight to Birmingham and Kabul. Rajasansi airport is not far from the city and taxis are available for the transfers.
Amritsar is connected with direct trains to delhi , Calcutta , Mumbai , Puri, and other places. The important ones include the Frontier Mail to Mumbai, Shatabdi Express to Delhi and Utkal Express to Puri. There are twice-weekly runs by Lahore Express, the train to Pakistan. Amritsar Railway station provides amenities including Retiring room and refreshment rooms. Taxis are available outside the station.
There is vast network of bus services of Punjab, Himachal , Delhi . Haryana, PEPSU, Chandigarh, U.P , J& K , Rajasthan state roadways, apart from private operators. Important destinations include Delhi, Shimla, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Rishikesh, Kullu, Manali and Jammu. Taxis are also available, but not everywhere. They stand outside the airport and railway station. There are autorickshaws and cycle rickshaws are also very common for local transfers.
Places of Interest in Amritsar
Golden Temple, Jaliawal Bagh, Durgiana Mandir, Baba Atal Rai Tower, Khalsa College & Guru Nanak Dev University, Bazaars
Around Amritsar
Rambagh Garden, Ram Tirth, Wagah Border, Amanat Khan Serai, Baba Bakala, Dharamsala, Gobindwal Sahib, Tarn Taran, Harike Wetland, Dera Baba Jaimal Singh
Hotels in Amritsar
1. Ritz Plaza Hotel Amritsar
45 THE MALL, AMRITSAR Amritsar
2. Hotel Ranjit's Svaasa in Amritsar
47 A, THE MALL, AMRITSAR Amritsar
3. Hotel Mohan International in Amritsar
ALBERT ROAD, AMRITSAR 143001 Amritsar
4. Hotel Raj Continental in Amritsar
Opp. Church Court Road N/A Amritsar
Bhathinda
Bathinda is one of the oldest and most famous cities of Punjab. Bhatinda's cotton and agricultural production is well known. It is developing fast and some of the recent developments are a modern thermal power plant, fertilizer factories, and a massive oil refinery. Known for its fort, Bhatinda is one of the oldest towns in the state and has many historical associations. It was again in the jungles of Bathinda that Guru Gobind Singh Ji is reputed to have once challenged and fought the mighty Mughal forces. This town also played a prominent role in freedom Struggle of the country and against the autocratic administration of the then Princely rulers.
It is one of the biggest food grain and cotton market in northern India. the area around Bhatinda has become a large grape growing area.
Bhatinda is well linked to other cities and New Delhi by an efficient rail and transport system. The nearest Airports are located at New Delhi and Chandigarh which are 265K.M. and 85K.M. away by Road respectively. Connected by Rail and situated on the Ambala-Bathinda branch line of Northern Railway and few trains like New Delhi-Bhathinda Intercity Express and Dadar-Amritsar Express touch Patiala station. Besides there are several Passenger trains running between Ambala and Bhathinda (which stop at Patiala) at regular intervals daily.
Places of Interest
Takht Sri Damdama Sahib Or Talwandi Sabo
Mazaar Of Peer Haji Rattan
Maisar Khana
The Bathinda Fort
Chandigarh
Chandigarh is located on the foothills of Shivaliks. It is regarded as the best planned city of Asia. It is the joint capital of Punjab and Haryana. French architect Charles Edouard Jeanneret designed the city. It is a pollution and slum free city. The highlights of Chandigarh city are:
Rock Garden The Rock Garden is a fantabulous example of utilization of waste materials. The Garden got completed in the year1976. The materials used in the construction of sculptures are fused bulbs, broken plates and tiles. Nek Chand designed this garden. A fountain adores the interiors of the garden.
Sukhana Lake Sukhana Lake is an artificial Lake created by damming a seasonal River Sukhana Choe. Facilities like boating and water skiing are offered at the lake. The Lake is surrounded by green vegetation.
Hotels in Chandigarh
1. The Hotel Piccadily
Himalaya Marg Sector 22, Chandigarh. 0172-2707571-72-73,
4616084, 4619084 Fax: 0172-2705692
Email: reservations@thepiccadily.com
2. Hotel City Plaza 17
s.c.o. 96-97,
near I.S.B.T.,in main shopping centre,
sector 17-c Chandigarh.
ph:+91-172-5077796-97,5000476
Jalandhar
It is the oldest city in Punjab situated at a distance of about 84 kms southeast of Amritsar on the G.T road going to Calcutta. Jalandhar is India's foremost producer of sports goods. Its steel and iron re-rolling mills, rubber goods, electric goods, automobile parts, and sewing machine factories and handloom products are also very famous. Today, it is a major rail and road junction and an army cantonment. This city has twelve kots and twelve gates. It is one of the biggest centres of the vernacular press in India, most of the vernacular papers, magazines in Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu are published here. The renowned newspapers are Hind Samachar, Punjab Kesri, Jag Bani, Partap & Veer Partap, Ajit, Akali Patrika, Nawan Zamana and Milap. Jalandhar is famous for export of quality sports goods all over the world. It is a town of great antiquity which has become a highly industrialized center of commercial activity.
The monuments in and around the city include 800 years old Imam Nasir Mosque, Devi Talab Mandir and two century old Jama Masjid. Jalandhar is the 'sports city of India' as it has not only finest sport industry but also a large number of sportsmen. In fact, 12 of India's greatest hockey players have come from a single village, Sansarpur, in Jalandhar city. Jalandhar has very alive atmosphere, something that is typical to the whole of Punjab. Initially, a college for women viz. Kanya Maha Vidyalaya was established in March 1921. Now there are large number of colleges, polytechnics, Academic and Ayurvedic colleges and also a number of colleges for women such as Hansraj Mahila Vidyalya, Kanya Maha vidyalya, Lyalpur Khalsa College and S.D. College. There is also a college for Teacher Training and a college of Sports. The railway line from Beas to Jalandhar was opened in 1869 and was completed upto Phillour by the next year. The Doab was linked to the rest of the punjab by the railway bridges, constructed over the Beas in 1869 and over the Sutlej in 1870.
Jalandhar ranks second in India in the rate of urbanisation and has the highest density of population at 598 persons per square km, as per the 1991 census. The reason for this is growing industrialisation. Industrial production of sports goods began on a small scale during the late forties. Over the years, the sports goods industry has grown at an impressive rate and of late Indian sports goods are also exported to different countries.
Most of India's sports goods are exported to the United Kingdom, The United States of America, Germany, France and Australia. Rough estimates suggest that today Jalandhar has more than one hundred major industries and about 20,000 small-scale industries with a most conservative estimate of an annual turnover of approximately Rs 450 crores The industry is mainly concentrated in Jalandhar and Meerut. The Indian sports goods industry manufactures 318 items. The Indian sports goods industry is a highly labour intensive industry which provides employment to the weaker sections of society and also employs a large number of women. The sports goods industry in India has witnessed a phenomenal growth over the past five decades and now occupies a place of prominence in the Indian economy in view of its massive potential for employment, growth and export.
The spoken language in Jalandhar is Punjabi being the mother tongue of Punjabi people. The Jalandhar falls in Doaba region, comprising the districts Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur and Kapurthala. Doaba region is sided by the rivers Beas and Sutlej. The dilect of this region is called Doabi by the linguistics. People give stress on 'B' in place of V. But with the spread of communication means the difference is eliminating very fast.
Since, the Jalandhar city is the house of printing press, the writers flocked to Jalandhar from all over the Punjab and many of them settled here and wrote great books. These writers wrote about the deep agonies of partition of 1947. The cruelties done during those times, the problems of migrants from Pakistan, the short stories novels, plays and poems deal with the subject of human crisis created with the partition. These books or some slections from these books were later on prescribed for school and college syllabuses.This gave inspiration to many young writers.The writers write Punjabi in Gurmukhi script. Kartar Singh Duggal a great writer of Punjabi literature brought All India Radio to Jalandhar.
Ludhiana
The city of Ludhiana with the population of more than 35 Lacs, is the District Headquarters of Ludhiana. Ludhiana is located on the latitude 30.55° North and longitude 75.54° East in the state of Punjab in northern India. The city stands on the Grand Trunk Road from Delhi to Amritsar. Ludhiana is now Punjab's most populated and very rapidly growing metropolitan city. It is on the south bank of the Sutlej river. The city was the sight of a great battle during the first Sikh wars. It was also an important center during the struggle for freedom, and is associated with names like Lala Lajpat Rai, Sardar Kartar Singh, Baba Santa Singh and Maulana Habibur Rehman. An important industrial town, Ludhiana in Punjab, is Textile and light engineering centre of India. Woollen garment machine tools, dyes, cycle parts, mopeds, sewing machines and motor parts produced here are exported all over the world. Ludhiana accounts for 90% of the country's woollen hosiery industry.
Punjab's most populous metropolis, its hosiery goods are in demand in all the markets of the east and the west, which include America and Russia. For its production of hosiery, Ludhiana is also known as the Manchester of India. The worlds largest bicycle manufacturer, Hero Cycles, which produces nearly three million bicycles annually, is based here. The rich agricultural area around it supports a large grain market. Christian Medical College Hospital, established in 1895, was the first school of medicine in Asia. The world famous Punjab Agricultural University is on the edge of the town organizes the Kisan Mela every Year. It has an excellent museum. Ludhiana holds world records in food production. However, Ludhiana's claim to fame is not its commercial enterprises alone. It is an important pilgrimage center as there are many historic Gurdwaras. There are a number of gurudwaras associated with the life and visits of Guru Gobind Singh Ji. Among them the gurudwaras of Charan Kanwal and Manji Sahib are important.
Places of Interest
Punjab Agricultural University Museum
Maharaja Ranjit Singh War Museum
Christian Medical college
Around Ludhiana
Gurdwara Charan Kanwala at Machhiwara about 35 kms.
Gurdwara Alamgir 10 kms. from Ludhiana.
Gurdwara Nanaksar Sahib about 38 kms from Ludhiana.
'Hatur' About 54 kms. from Ludhiana sacred to Jains.
Doraha Sarai Doraha.
Archelogical site Museum, Sanghol
Kapurthala
Named after its founder Nawab Kapur Singh, this capital town of an erstwhile princely state is situated towards the west of Jalandhar City at a distance of 19 kms. It is now the headquarters of the district in Punjab with the same territory. The story of Kapurthala extends back to more than 900 years ago, Mahmood Ghaznavi's time. It is said that a certain Rana Kapur, of the royal Rajpur House of Jaisalmer, a legendary ancestor of the Ahluwalia family, founded the town in that remote age. But it remains the fact that during 700 years of Muslim rule, it was not a prominent place. The limelight of history fell upon it only with the advent of Jassa Singh. The story of Kapurthala is inextricably inter-woven with the life and struggles of Jassa Singh. It was he who evicted Ibrahim Khan, a usurper after the death of Mughal Governor Adina Beg, from Kapurthala. Jassa Singh selected Kapurthala as his capital, although it was only after his death that the town became the fixed capital and place of residence of the Ahluwalia chiefs.
Places of Interest In Kapurthala
State Gurdwara
The Moorish Mosque
Panch Mandir
Palace of Maharaja Jagatjit Singh
Shalimar Garden
Kanjli Wetland
Around Kapurthala
Gurdwara Ber Sahib at Sultanpur Lodhi
Tomb of Pir Jumme Shah Darwesh Pind
Phagwara
Patiala
Patiala is relatively a young city of royal heritage and rich tradition. Founded in 1764 by Baba Ala Singh, a soldier par excellence on an ancient mound, "PRASTHALA", frequently referred to in the Mahabharta epic, Patiala has since then acquired a place of eminence in political, social, religious, music and fine arts, cultural, academic and military spheres. It was Maharaja Bhupinder Singh (1900-1938) who gave Patiala State a prominent place on the political map of India. Later at the time of Indian independence his son Yadvindera Singh took a patriotic lead by signing the instrument of accession facilitating the process of national integration.
There after Patiala has continued to occupy an important place in regional politics. The Capital of Princely state Patiala has magnificent Forts, Palaces, extensive gardens like Quilla Androo Sheesh Mahal, Moti Bagh Palace, Baradari Garden, Art Galleries and National Institute of Sports. Baradari Gardens, Gurudwara Dukhniwaran Sahib, Temple Kali Devi, which on account of the rare murals on its walls, has been declared a national monument. Patiala is now one of the principle city of Punjab. National Institute of sports (NIS), Head quarters of State Bank of Patiala, Panjab State Electricity Board, Public Works Department, Public Service Commission, Punjab State Archives and Income Tax Department for this reason are also located here. The Northern Religion Centre is also located at Patiala. Patiala has long been a centre of trade and commerce but in recent years it is gradually developing into an industrial town by producing a wide range of goods. Escorts, Milk Food, Diesel Component Works (DCW) of the railways, Bakeman's Factory Area and Industrial Estate Sirhind Road are worth mentioning industrial units. Also, Patiala has the proud distinction of having one of the most prestigious army formation.
Patiala today is the biggest centre of education in northern India. Boosting of almost all possible fields of education which includes Punjabi University, Thapar College of Engineering - a deemed University, Medical College, Aurvedic College, Institute of Aviation, College of Commerce, Nursing, Education and Physical education, Institute of Sanskrit studies and the academy of Sikh religion and culture, Mahindra College, Modi College, Khalsa College, Government College of Women, Yadvindra Public School ; Patiala prides in claiming high academic ratio in the State. Rajindra Medical College, Dental College, State College of Education, Commerce College, Ayurvedic College besides several degree colleges, Govt. Polytechnic for Women and Public Schools including two I.T.I's for boys and girls are located at Patiala.
The city has rich tradition in promoting sports in the country dating back to Baba Ala Singh. He popularised sports like horsemanship, marksmanship and hunting. Later Cricket was introduced as the modern sport and highest cricket ground in the world was built at Chail (now in Himachal Pradesh). Other sports include Polo, Hockey and Wrestling in which Patiala has produced world fame players and Wrestlers. With the establishment of National Institute of Sports, Patiala has become sports capital of the Country.
The city has rich tradition in promoting sports in the country dating back to Baba Ala Singh. He popularised sports like horsemanship, marksmanship and hunting. Later Cricket was introduced as the modern sport and highest cricket ground in the world was built at Chail (now in Himachal Pradesh). Other sports include Polo, Hockey and Wrestling in which Patiala has produced world fame players and Wrestlers. With the establishment of National Institute of Sports, Patiala has become sports capital of the Country.
Places of Interest
Qila Mubarak
Motibagh Palace
Kali Devi Temple
Gurudwara Dukh Niwaran Sahib
Bara Dari Garden
National Institute Of Sports
Around Patiala
Aam Khas Bagh, Sirhind
Mughal Serai, Shambhu
Bahadurgarh Fort
Ghuram
Anandpur Sahib
Pathankot
Pathankot situated at the foot of hills and near the head of Bari Doab canal, is connected by rail and road with the rest of the country. It serves as a bridgehead between India and its State of Jammu and Kashmir. Pathankot has been the seat of Loi and Shawl weaving industry and lies at a point where the trade routes from the hills of Chamba, Nurpur and Kangra unite and enter the plains. A city with a population of 129198, Pathankot is spread over 22.10 Sq.Kms. Dalhousie, Dharamshala, Maclodgunj, Kangra Valley, Jwalaji, Chintpurni, are some of the various Hill Stations of Himachal Pradesh where you can go through Pathankot.
Pathankot and its surrounding areas once formed part of the territories of Nurpur (now in Himachal Pardesh). The dynasty of Nurpur was established by Jatpal alias Rana Bhet, a Taur Rajput from Delhi, who settled at Pathankot and took possession of all the country in the foot of the hills. Rajputs shifted their capital to the modern town of Nurpur (renamed after Begum Nurjahan) towards the end of seventeenth century. A muslim descendant of the Rajas of Nurpur Sayed Khan ruled over this territory till 1781. Pathankot also figures in Ain-i-Akbari as the Pargana Headquarter. Some believe it was a settlement of Pathans during the madieval times. The famous historian Cunnigham says that name of Pathankot came into vogue from the word Pattan.
Places of Interest
Malikpur, Asia's foremost Hydraulic Research Station at the Upper Bari Doab Canal.
Madhopur, known for its famous headworks on the river Ravi.
Shahpur Kandi, a place of unique beauty a little north of Madhopur.
Close by is the newly constructed Thein or Ranjit Sagar Dam.
Educational Institutes in Pathankot
1. Pilot High School.
2. Arun Rashmi School.
3. Adarsh Bahrtiya College
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