Chandigarh - The City Beautiful

The city is the capital of two states (Punjab and Haryana) and is a union territory too. Chandigarh city has been built with world-class architecture with a quality lifestyle. The city has a number of visiting places such as Rock Garden, Rose Garden, Sector 17 market, Sukhna Lake and Elante Mall (one of the biggest malls in India).

Apart from it, Chandigarh city is also one of the biggest industrial and educational hubs in North India. It has Punjab University, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, DAV College, Indian School of Business and also has IT Park where numerous people work in MNC’s like Tech Mahindra, Airtel, DLF, Spice Jet call center, DT mall, and other IT companies. People come to this city to get job, education and world-class health facilities too.
     

However, to reach the city is not a big deal. It has Interstate State Bus Terminal, International and Domestic airports and a railway station too. People come from around the world come to admire the beauty of this during their holidays and folks from surrounding areas come to the city to spend their leisure time, shopping and to have food of variuos international cuisines.

Besides this, the city provides luxurious staying options for the visitors as per their needs and budget. It has various 5 to 7-star hotels like Hyatt Regency, Sukh villas, JW Marriott, Hotel Emerald and Taj Hotels along with some inexpensive hotel options too.

Also, Chandigarh city is connected with states like Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. This city is at the distance of almost 2 hours from my hometown. I come to the city for celebrating my important days, to spend my leisure time with friends, during rose festival, to do shopping, during Christmas and also for the New Years Eve.

Furthermore, visitors who want to experience something amazing should come during certain seasons/months such as to celebrate Valentine’s Day, New Year’s Eve, Christmas parties and those who love flowers should come at the end of February month to enjoy the beautiful Rose Festival.

Not only tourism, education and IT industry Chandigarh city is also a preferable site for the video and filmmaking to shoot movies. The city has also given many celebrities to India such as Kirron Kher ( Actress and current MP from Chandigarh), Gurbani Judge (VJ), Ranvijay Singha (VJ), Yami Gautam (Actress), Yuvraj Singh (Indian cricket player), Late Shri Nek Chand (Architecture and Sculpture of Rock Garden), Satinder Sartaj (famous folk singer), Kiran Bedi retired IPS (Current Governor of Puducherry) and many more.

In addition to this, Chandigarh city has various international restaurants such as CCD, Mc Donald’s, KFC, Subway, Dominos and Pizza Hut. But if you are fond of enjoying Indian foods as Punjabi, South Indian, Gujarati and Kashmiri food then you have tremendous options for these as well like Sindhi Sweets, Pirates of Grills, Sagar Ratna, and Pal Dhaba are some of the best options for local cuisines.

 If I talk about my experience with locals of the city, they are broad-minded, jovial and most of the people are from Haryana and Punjab so, they have some behavior in their nature related to these certain states. Views of the people of Chandigarh city could be different from various people. Some people say Chandigarhians (people from Chandigarh) are stone hearted; they have no values for their family and relatives. But in my views, the city is swiftly developing and ahead from its various surrounding cities, the life in the city is quite busy and folks are involved in various extra activities such as sports, clubbing, discos and other gaming parlors. It does not mean they do not have time for their family and relatives.

Locals always help visitors of their city in any trouble, whether they need any police, medical and general help. Tourists do not need to be worried if they feel they are lost in Chandigarh; the city has its map structure at every circle, red light crossing, and markets. Police check posts are available at every circle of the city and always prepared to help anybody at any time.

During my last visit to the sector 17 market, an old age person got a heart attack while doing shopping with his wife. Police officers were at their post in the market, they took the matter in their hand and took that old man to the nearest hospital in their ambulance. This quick action by police officers saved the life of that old man. At the very next day, a local newspaper and a news channel were praising those police officers for their quick responsible action.

I believe, Chandigarh city is the beautiful, green and clean city in North India. Mates, who are fond of flowers, should visit the city to experience the beautiful, colorful and sweet fragrance Roses during Rose festival of Chandigarh City.

Chandigarh city also has a beautifully designed garden with home wastes, named Rock Garden. Spending spare time here could be the best option for kids and youngsters. They can view amazing sculptures and cascades designed inside the garden. 

For Shopaholics, sector 17 and Elante mall has an endless option for shopping globally famous branded clothes, shoes, sports equipment, shades, watches, perfumes and electronic equipment.

Alternatively, during evening time of each day, the sector-17 market turns into an open party venue, amazing lightening with fountains, music and some tasty street food options.

Some other facts about Chandigarh city

As I said in the starting of the article, Chandigarh city has international as well as domestic Airport, a railway station, ISBT 43 sector and ISBT 17 sector. It means the city is reachable from all the 3 ways easily by any person.

Nearest big cities to this beautiful cities are Patiala (less than 60km.), A beautiful hill station Shimla (almost 115 km.) and National Capital Delhi (almost 245 km.)

During the visit to the city, tourists can enjoy the beauty of Rose Garden, experiencing the company of people from different regions, cultures, and religions. At the bay of Sukhna Lake folks can enjoy their early morning walks or jog, visitors can enjoy boating at could amaze by the beautiful view of the sunset. Couples also can get a sketch of themselves by the amazing artists of the city and much more things to experience in the city. Here, tourists have multiple options to travel in the city such as hiring private taxis, hiring ola or uber cabs and also can travel through local AC buses in such inexpensive cost.

To sum up, tourists need not worry about taking their kids to the city as the city is safe and clean for the person of every age group. This city also has the options for kids to enjoy at certain places. So, come to the city during your upcoming vacations and experience some gorgeous natural view at various places in the city with world-class staying options!

Contributed by  - Harneet

Uccha Pind (Sanghol)

At Ludhiana to Chandigarh highway, there is a village which is predating to the Harappan civilization. The village Sanghol is in the territory of Fatehgarh Sahib District and also this place holds a special position on the archaeological atlas of India. Excavations at the site have yielded coins and seals related to Toramana and Mihirakula belonging to central Asia. A Buddhist Stupa was excavated in 1968, and in February 1985 a rich treasure of 117 beautiful carved stone slabs, which includes 69 pillars, 35 crossbars, figures, and figurines, was excavated by the experts of the Directorate of Archaeology, Punjab.

Tourist attractions in the village

Sanghol is famed for the Sanghol Museum. A large of the number of relics dating from the late Harappan civilization (1720 – 1300 BC) to 6th century AD, was found here.  More than 15000 artifacts were collected from this site and the majority of them are displayed in this museum. Sanghol also was known as Uchha Pind, There are some mythical stories about the destruction of this village. The main village sits very high clearly visible from the surrounding towns. It is also linked to the Kissa "Roop Basant" stories as well. Some people from surrounding villages say that its ancient name was Sangla-deep. There are a Buddhist Stupa and Monastery Complex dating back to 1st and 2nd century AD situated on the main road. A few kilometers towards Ludhiana there is a religious place where huge numbers of people come to pay homage and some miles towards Chandigarh city there is the village of Legendary singer Babbu Maan whose Film studio is also in his village Khantmaan Pur.

About Museum Gallery

The present building of the Sanghol Museum was inaugurated on April 10, 1990, as a unit of the Department of Cultural Affairs, Archaeology and Museums of the Government of Punjab. Excavations at Sanghol yielded archaeological treasures of great significance indicating a long history of the cultural heritage of Punjab. These treasures needed to be preserved and displayed at a place for public view and appreciation. With this thought in view, the Sanghol Museum was set up by the Government, not only to preserve Punjab' s Cultural treasures, but also to involve the public in the appreciation of the continuous cultural linkage that the land has maintained from the early ancient times and has witnessed large-scale movements and amalgamation of people and their culture.

A vast treasury of about 15000 antiquities has been collected by the department through various archaeological excavations and explorations at Sanghol. It comprises of antiquities of diverse nature like sculptures, terracottas, pottery, seals, sealings, coins, ivory, carvings, precious stones and other art objects.

The ground floor gallery exhibits the most important items of antiquities other than the stone sculptures. The pride of the Sanghol Museum, the stone sculptures, is displayed in the upper gallery.

The antiquities in the ground floor gallery have been arranged chronologically to highlight the development of socio-cultural and religious facts of the regional manifestations of the heritage of Punjab. Apart from the actual objects, a large number of charts, graphs, photographs, maps, and drawings have been displayed to supplement the viewing of the actual objects. Each of the items is given a label disclosing its identification and chronological placement. The methodology has been as per the latest display techniques followed in museums of the type. At the entry point has been displayed a Master Chart containing a brief history and important details of Sanghol as an archaeological site and of the objects obtained from the place.

The art of Punjab is not usually referred to by scholars as a distinctive regional expression in view of the paucity of sufficient materials, to go by the discovery of Sanghol sculptures together with the huge Buddhistic establishment which has opened up a new dimension. Punjab now can verily claim a distinctive contributory role in the cultural creativity in the visual arts even during the early centuries of the Christian era. The glory of the artistic participation of Punjab in the main-stream of Indian cultural efflorescence is evidenced by the archaeological discoveries of Sanghol.

The Chinese pilgrim Hieun Tsang of the 7th Century AD noticed flourishing Buddhistic establishments at Sanghol. It seems likely that he did see the lingering glory of the artistic achievements of Sanghol, the glimpses of which could still be had by the visitor to the Museum today through the well-preserved specimens of the sculptural art.

The collections on display are only of the selected objects. Scholars and keen lovers of art can have an access to the other art objects preserved in the reserve collection. For this, they will need taking permission of the appropriate authority.

 Some other facts about the village

There are many educational institutes near Sanghol village. The village is almost 40 kilometers away from Chandigarh University and also has big convent schools along with government schools which are equipped with latest educational facilities.

If any visitor is fond of eating roadside food, there is the availability of numerous ferries which provides delicious street food in vegetarian and non-vegetarian eatable items.

Moreover, on the state highway of Sanghol, a huge number of hotels are available. Some are too old and famous all over the Punjab state such as; Mittran da Dhaba, Zimidara Dhaba, Captain Dhaba and Raja Dhaba which gives the chance to taste pure Punjabi delicious food.

Apart from this, currently the village is developing; the lifestyle of locals has also changed. A flyover is also under construction which makes it easy to reach the village quickly from faraway places. A super hit Punjabi movie was also filmed in the village name “Jatt James Bond” starring Gippy Grewal and Zarine Khan.  

The ideal time to visit

The ideal time for visiting the place is from Octobers to March. Summers are extremely hot and temperature rises to 45˚C. There is a heavy rainfall observed in Monsoon season. Therefore, winters should be preferred for visiting here.

How to Reach

Fatehgarh Sahib is well connected through rails, roads and by air as well.

By Air

Fatehgarh Sahib city has no airport. The closest airport is 41 km away in Chandigarh. Chandigarh has a well-connected network of airways from 5 prominent cities of India and most of the domestic airlines reach Chandigarh.

By Train

This city has a well-connected railway network with a railway station running trains from all most of the cities of the country such as Delhi, Una of Himachal Pradesh etc.

By Road

The road network of the city is quite good and connects Fatehgarh Sahib to different cities with great transport facility. The daily bus service can be availed from Delhi, Chandigarh besides the neighboring cities. Taxis may also be hired.

Contributed by - Harneet

Fatehgarh Sahib: The place with historic and religious values

The name 'Fatehgarh', refers to the 'Town of Victory', because in 1710 Sikhs under the leadership of Banda Bahadur overran the city and razed the fort that was built during Balban's rule to the ground.

The city of Fatehgarh Sahib is historically vital for the Sikhs as two younger sons (aged 9years and 6years) of 10th guru Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji were buried alive underlay by the Governor of Sirhind Wazir Khan.  By taking the revenge of the death of Guru’s younger son’s by Baba Banda Singh Bahadur, two Sikh temples (Gurudwaras) were built. One of the places where both the princes were martyred and the other one is where their funeral was held.

My visit to the holy city: Fatehgarh Sahib

After the completion of final exams of my Post Graduation, my friends decided to visit at Gurudwaras of Fatehgarh Sahib.  

Image: Gurudwara Shri Fatehgarh Sahib where two younger sons of 10th guru Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji were buried alive underlay

Image: night view of Gurudwara Jyoti Saroop Sahib, Where funeral of Guru Gobind Singh Ji's two younger son’s was held.

Apart from religious places, Fatehgarh Sahib city has very few tourist attractions such as Aam Khas Bagh and Khanda museum is under construction just behind bus stand. 

Image: A view of Aam Khas Bagh

There are not many places for tourist attractions in the city, but if a person has interest in discovering historical places and has some religious value, Fatehgarh Sahib could be one of the good options. Moreover, the tour for this city could be done within little time. Tourists need not plan for a long time. 

Traveling and staying options

Fatehgarh Sahib City is well connected by road as well as railways. This city is approachable from the State capital of Punjab and Haryana. However, staying could be a problem in this city as the only option is to book a room in public houses of Gurudwara's at cheapest price.

Best time to visit

Accordingly, anyone could visit this city during any season but, (if a visitor is not afraid to visit in a huge crowd) in the ending week of every year, a fair has been organized in the city for three days, in the memory of younger princes of Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji. This according to me is the best time to visit the place for its sheer vibrancy and the positive Vibes.

Things to do in Fatehgarh Sahib

If a tourist is a religious person and has the curiosity to know about religious history than it could be a good place for. All kind of religious stuff such as Kirpan (sword), Kangha (a wooden comb), Kadah (Bracelet made of iron, steel, and copper) and literature about Sikh religion, true story books about the heroes of the religion and also about the brief history of the city can buy from here. All the literature is available in Punjabi, Hindi as well as English languages. 

The food and the cuisine

Despite the things mentioned above, if I talk about food, this city has tremendous options for eating. Gurudwara's have their own langar halls where rich or poor have to eat by sitting on the ground in a line. Also available are hotels like Noormahal Regency, Samosa Express, Subway, Shiv Shakti and several non-vegetarian cuisine options. There are Restaurants with a plethora of international (Indianised) and domestic tastes in Chinese, Italian, South Indian, Punjabi and Kashmiri food choices are accessible. 

People in the city

Locals of the city are very friendly and helpful. Here, visitors can experience friendly relationships among Hindus, Sikhs, and Muslims. Even tourists can find people from other religions inside Gurudwaras. About this, I would like to share that in the fair of 2017, Muslims gave space for Sikhs to prepare food for the visitors inside their Mosque (Roza Sharee). All festivals are celebrated by the person from all religions and caste with same interest and joy.

Apart from it, I would like to share an incident; during our visit to the holy city a tourist from Kerala lost his wallet somewhere. So he was looking for help everywhere, he went to Fatehgarh Sahib gurudwara and met with caretakers and managers. After finding his problem genuine, they helped him with cash and booked his ticket for his destination, as well as they packed food for him.

If a visitor facing any kind of problem in Fatehgarh Sahib City, they can contact Police and also can ask for help to Gurudwara management committee. Sikh Temples are 24/7 open for its visitors even if they want food in the middle of the night.

Some other facts about Fatehgarh Sahib City

Fatehgarh Sahib is a developing city; it has numerous options for eating vegetarian and non-vegetarian foods. It has a big Law college (Lincoln College of Law), Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Engineering and Diploma college, Mata Gujri College besides newly framed University, named Guru Granth Sahib World University. It also has a world-class education providing school Baba Zorawar Singh and Baba Fateh Singh school. 

This city became a district in the year 1992. Fatehgarh Sahib City ranks first in the Swacch and Swast Bharat. Aam Khas Bagh is also famous as many of the stars choose this place for their movie or video song shooting. A short movie on Shaheed Bhagat Singh was completely shot in Aam Khas Bagh, in which famous stars of Punjabi film industry Shivinder Mahal, Ravinder Grewal and Victor Johns was in lead roles.

My views about Fatehgarh Sahib 

The city has emotional values not only for Sikhs but for followers of other religions too. I got peace of mind at the Gurudwaras, I love to spend my spare time there. I visit the fair every year for continuous 3 days/ I am a foodie too, so this city is also in my choice for tasting different cuisines. This city makes me feel as I am in my own city, everybody is so friendly, world-class educational institutes, different monuments to visit and easy to reach. If anyone is shopaholic there are two supermarkets and has various shops surrounding Gurudwara's.

Some details about fair (Shaheede Jorh Mela): 

As per Gurmukhi calendar, the fair starts every year from 11th of Poh month (during December month). At different places, religious storytellers narrate the story of younger princes and their grand-mother Mata Gujri Kaur Ji. In the story, they recite about how the governor of Sirhind tortures them. During these three days, every person sleeps on the ground as Mata Ji and her grandsons were pressurized to sleep on the floor without any warm cloth during coldest days of winter days.

Image: Palki Sahib yatra or nagar kirtan

In the last day of fair, a Palki Sahib procession takes place from Gurudwara Fatehgarh sahib to Gurudwara Jyoti Saroop sahib. A huge crowd follows this procession barefoot till it reaches its destination. 

Another image of Palki Sahib

Visitors to this fair can witness a huge crowd, who pay tribute to younger sons and mother of 10th Guru Shri Guru Gobind Singh ji.

A fact about Gurudwara Jyoti Saroop Sahib 

The land of Gurudwara Jyoti Saroop Sahib is still the costliest land which bought by Diwan Todar Mal from Governer Wazir Khan on the 12 December 1705 for not renouncing their faith and the death of their grandmother from the shock at the news of the sudden and despicable execution of the innocent youngsters. This wealthy merchant had to cover the required ground for cremation with 78000 gold coins to get the release of the three bodies in the 40,000 cm square. 

Contributed by -

Harneet, Punjab

The Royal city Patiala

The Royal city Patiala

Patiala city is one of the oldest and beautiful cities of Punjab province. The city is famous worldwide because of its unique Patiala Shahi turban style, Patiala suits, Patiala peg and it’s the city of Captain Maharaja Amrinder Singh (Chief Minister of Punjab) and for various tourist places. This city is located in Quila Mubarak which was built by the founder of the royal dynasty of Patiala Baba Ala Singh.

Rolls Royce and Maharaja of Patiala Bhupinder Singh

Apart from this, there is also a real incident has famous which relates to Maharaja Bhupinder Singh of Patiala. The incident is” Maharaja was roaming in London city of England; he stopped outside a showroom of Rolls Royce cars. He entered the showroom to know about the features of cars. But, Manager of that showroom insulted him and taunted about the poverty in India. At that time Maharaja not gave any reply to the manager. After getting back to Punjab, he not only bought all the cars of that showroom but also used them for Garbage haul, cleaning roads and to carry vegetables from the market.  When the Rolls Royce Company heard about the use of their vehicles for these messy works in India, they come to know about the reason behind this and apologize to Maharaja Bhupinder Singh. After realizing that the company has got their lesion, Maharaja stopped using their cars as garbage carrier.”

Tourists attractions in Patiala

Despite this story mentioned above, visitors can find various tourist attractions in the city by visiting in any season of year,  Patiala city is also famous for its Gurudwara Shri Dukh Niwaran Sahib, Quilla Mubarak, Moti Mahal, Saras Mela (Heritage Festival), Omax Mall, Kali Mata temple and numerous hotels and restaurants with different verities of foods. 

Sheesh Mahal and Heritage Festival (Saras Mela)

Literally meaning the Palace of Mirrors, Sheesh Mahal was built as a part of the Old Moti Bagh Palace in the 19th century. There are a lot of frescoes, mostly made under the reign of Maharaja Narinder Singh. In the boundaries of Sheesh Mahal, every year a heritage and Saras Mela has been organized. But the festival of 2018 has organized after the gap of 11 years. 

Traveling options for this city

Patiala city is easily approachable by road as well as by railways transportation systems. This city is few kilometers away from the borders of two neighborhood states Rajasthan and Haryana. Various schools and colleges/universities from different states organize one day trips to visit Patiala for the witnesses of its beauty and to know about the history of Sikh kings. Along with this, Patiala city is also becoming a good location for filmmakers. Shooting of movies like Bodyguard, Mausam and one upcoming movie “Ek ladki ko Dekha to Aisa laga” has done in this city.

Tertiary and Graduation education options

This royal city also has its university where students come from different parts of the country to complete their tertiary education as well as to start their graduation level study. This university is in the core of the city, where students not only get their education but also took part in various cultural and sports events, not only at the university level but also on national level. In addition, there are other universities in the city such as Thapar University for technical education and Rajiv Gandhi Law University. This also makes the city a hub of world-class education for national as well as for international students.

My visit to the city

I visit Patiala city after few gap to pay homage at Gurudwara Dukh niwaran Sahib. I spend most of the time of my visit in gurudwara sahib. I perform Sewa at gurudwara sahib. Furthermore, the city also has a number of restaurants such as Gopals, Jaggi sweets, Sheetal and cafés in Leela Bhawan market. The market is also the hub of small institutions of computer learning, IELTS, TOFEL, Immigration counselors, and Saloons.  Here, foodies can find international taste cuisines of Chinese, Italian, Punjabi, South Indian, in vegetarian and non-vegetarian choices. 

For the tourists who love to do shopping, Omax mall is there for them where they can find most famous brands of clothing, shades, shoes and wrist watches. From this city, visitors can buy famous Patiala jutti (a Punjabi style shoes). 

Moreover, my experience with people of Patiala is always good during my every trip even during my visits to the city I made few persons my friends to whom I call when I ever visit the city. But, comers need to be aware of the local transporters such as auto drivers; they may charge a huge amount from new persons for the travel of few kilometers. 

Besides this, if tourists are planning to stay in the city, there are not many options for staying. Visitors can only find rooms in the territory of Gurudwara Sahib. Options for guest houses are few. Transportation from the city is working 24/7 so, a day is enough for the visitors to complete their visit to the royal state. 

In the end, I would like to share an incident when a newly married couple visited the Gurudwara Sahib; they lost the key of their car in the domain of Sikh Temple. They said they are new to the city and have no contact in the city. So the committee members of the Sikh temple got them a room to rest and called the police. First, they tried to find the keys but when they were not successful, they called car technicians and key maker to open up their car for them. After the complete verification that the car belongs to them, police officers handed over the car to the couple and let them go to their destination with a happy memory.

Traveling facts of Patiala city

The way to reach this royal city is possible by road and railways transportation system. It is less than 70 km. away from the capital of Punjab and Haryana, which is connected through airways from other places of the nation. This means visitors, who are planning their tour of Patiala from the other beyond parts of the nation as well as from abroad through airplane should reach first the city Chandigarh. 

Furthermore, If tourists are planning to stay in Patiala city than, they have only one option to buy rooms in shrines.  But if any traveler is looking for quality guest services of hotels, they should book their rooms in hotels in Chandigarh, Mohali, Zirakpur, Ambala, and Patiala as these are the nearest big cities of Fatehgarh Sahib.

Tips to remember

Patiala city is a district and CM city, so the policemen’s are deployed at every square of the city and need not to worry in the city. 

During the month of Feburary and March Heritage and Saras mela has organizes at the Sheesh Mahal. 

Contributed by - Harneet, Punjab