It is a state in northern India. Forming part of the larger Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, the state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the north and northeast, Haryana to the south and southeast, and Rajasthan to the southwest, by the Indian union territory of Chandigarh to the east, and by the region of Jammu and Kashmir administered by India as a union territory, to the north. It is bordered by Punjab, a province of Pakistan to the west. The state covers an area of 50,362 square kilometres (19,445 square miles), 1.53% of India's total geographical area. It is the 20th-largest Indian state by area. With over 27 million inhabitants, Punjab is the 16th-largest state by population, comprising 23 districts. Punjabi, written in the Gurmukhi script, is the most widely spoken and official language of the state. The main ethnic group are the Punjabis, with Sikhs and Hindus as the dominant religious groups. The state capital is Chandigarh, a Union Territory and also the capital of the neighbouring state of Haryana. The five tributary rivers of the Indus River from which the region took its name are the Sutlej, Ravi, Beas, Chenab and Jhelum rivers; the Sutlej, Ravi and Beas rivers flow through the Indian Punjab.
The history of Punjab has witnessed the migration and settlement of different tribes of people with different cultures and ideas, forming a melting pot of Punjabi civilisation. The Indus Valley Civilization flourished in antiquity before recorded history until their decline around 1900 BCE. Punjab was enriched during the height of the Vedic period, but declined in predominance with the rise of the Mahajanapadas. The region formed the frontier of initial empires during antiquity including the Alexander's and Maurya empires. It was subsequently conquered by the Kushan Empire, Gupta Empire, and then Harsha's Empire. Punjab continued to be settled by nomadic people; including the Huna, Turkic and the Mongols. Circa 1000 CE, the Punjab came under the rule of Muslims and was part of the Delhi Sultanate, Mughal Empire, and Durrani Empire. Sikhism was founded in the 1500s and 1600s by the Sikh Gurus in the Punjab and resulted in the formation of the Sikh Confederacy after the fall of the Mughal Empire and ensuing conflict with the Durrani Empire. This confederacy was united into the Sikh Empire in 1801 by Maharaja Ranjit Singh.
The greater Punjab region was annexed by the British East India Company from the Sikh Empire in 1849. Following widespead religious violence in 1947, the Punjab Province of British India was divided along religious lines into West Punjab and East Punjab. The West Punjab became part of a Muslim-majority Pakistan, while the East Punjab became part of a Hindu-majority India. After the Punjabi Suba movement, the Indian Punjab and PEPSU were divided into three parts on the basis of language in 1966. Haryanvi and Hindi speaking areas (including various dialects) were carved out as Haryana, while the hilly regions and Pahari-speaking areas formed Himachal Pradesh, alongside the current state of Punjab. An insurgency occurred in Punjab during the 1980s. At present, the economy of Punjab is the 15th-largest state economy in India with ₹5.42 trillion (US$76 billion) in gross domestic product and a per capita GDP of ₹176,547 (US$2,500), ranking 17th amongst Indian states. Since independence Punjab is predominantly an agrarian society. It is the ninth-highest ranking among Indian states in human development index. Punjab has bustling tourism, music, culinary, and film industries.
Tourism
Tourism in Indian Punjab centres around the historic palaces, battle sites, and the great Sikh architecture of the state and the surrounding region. Examples include various sites of the Indus Valley Civilization, the ancient fort of Bathinda, the architectural monuments of Kapurthala, Patiala, and Chandigarh, the modern capital designed by Le Corbusier.
The Golden Temple in Amritsar is one of the major tourist destinations of Punjab and indeed India, attracting more visitors than the Taj Mahal. Lonely Planet Bluelist 2008 has voted the Harmandir Sahib as one of the world's best spiritual sites. Moreover, there is a rapidly expanding array of international hotels in the holy city at Heritage Walk Amritsar that can be booked for overnight stays. Devi Talab Mandir is a Hindu temple located in Jalandhar. This temple is devoted to Goddess Durga and is believed to be at least 200 years old. Another main tourist destination is religious and historic city of Sri Anandpur Sahib where large number of tourists come to see the Virasat-e-Khalsa (Khalsa Heritage Memorial Complex) and also take part in Hola Mohalla festival. Kila Raipur Sports Festival is also popular tourist attraction in Kila Raipur near Ludhiana. Shahpur kandi fort, Ranjit Sagar lake and Sikh Temple in Sri Muktsar Sahib are also popular attractions in Punjab. Punjab also has the world's first museum based on the Indian Partition of 1947, in Amritsar, called the Partition Museum.
Enhance your knowledge with Rajveer Home Tutorial Personalized Online Tuition and Offline Tuition*, contact us on: 8090970148/9956318228 and start your trial class right away.
*Offline Tuition facility is provided only in Lucknow, U.P
Personalized Online Tuition is Available all over India
For more details Call/WhatsApp On: 8090970148
Comments
Post a Comment