About Chandigarh
Chandigarh,
the dream city of India's first Prime Minister, Sh. Jawahar Lal Nehru, was
planned by the famous French architect Le Corbusier. Picturesquely located at
the foothills of Shivaliks, it is known as one of the best experiments in urban
planning and modern architecture in the twentieth century in India.
Chandigarh derives its name from the temple of
"Chandi Mandir" located in the vicinity of the site selected for the
city. The deity 'Chandi', the goddess of power and a fort of 'garh' laying
beyond the temple gave the city its name "Chandigarh-The City
Beautiful".
The city has a pre-historic past. The gently
sloping plains on which modern Chandigarh exists, was in the ancient past, a
wide lake ringed by a marsh. The fossil remains found at the site indicate a
large variety of aquatic and amphibian life, which was supported by that
environment. About 8000 years ago the area was also known to be a home to the
Harappans.
Since the medieval through modern era, the
area was part of the large and prosperous Punjab Province which was divided
into East & West Punjab during partition of the country in 1947. The city
was conceived not only to serve as the capital of East Punjab, but also to
resettle thousands of refugees who had been uprooted from West Punjab.
In March, 1948, the Government of Punjab, in
consultation with the Government of India, approved the area of the foothills
of the Shivaliks as the site for the new capital. The location of the city site
was a part of the erstwhile Ambala district as per the 1892-93 gazetteer of
District Ambala. The foundation stone of the city was laid in 1952.
Subsequently, at the time of reorganization of the state on 01.11.1966 into
Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pardesh, the city assumed the unique distinction
of being the capital city of both, Punjab and Haryana while it itself was
declared as a Union Territory and under the direct control of the Central
Government.
Fact File
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Area
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114 sq kms
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Geology
The Union Territory of Chandigarh is located
in the foothills of the Shivalik hill ranges in the north, which form a part of
the fragile Himalayan ecosystem. It is occupied by Kandi (Bhabhar) in the north
east and Sirowal (Tarai) and alluvial plains in the remaining part. The
subsurface formation comprises of beds of boulders, pebbles, gravel, sand,
silt, clays and some kankar. The area is drained by two seasonal rivulets viz.
Sukhna Choe in the east and Patiala-Ki-Rao Choe in the west. The central part forms
a surface water divide and has two minor streams. The stream passing through
the central part is called N-Choe and the other is Choe Nala which initiates at
Sector 29.
The Master Plan of
Chandigarh
Le Corbusier conceived the master plan of
Chandigarh as analogous to human body, with a clearly defined head (the Capitol
Complex, Sector 1), heart (the City Centre Sector-17), lungs ( the leisure
valley, innumerable open spaces and sector greens), the intellect (the cultural
and educational institutions), the circulatory system (the network of roads,
the 7Vs) and the viscera (the Industrial Area). The concept of the city is
based on four major functions: living, working, care of the body and spirit and
circulation. Residential sectors constitute the living part whereas the Capitol
Complex, City Centre, Educational Zone (Post Graduate Institute, Punjab
Engineering College, Panjab University) and the Industrial Area constitute the
working part. The Leisure Valley, Gardens, Sector Greens and Open Courtyards
etc. are for the care of body and spirit. The circulation system comprises of 7
different types of roads known as 7Vs. Later on, a pathway for cyclists called
V8 were added to this circulation system.
The city centre (Sector 17) is the heart of
Chandigarh's activities. It comprises the Inter-State Bus Terminus, Parade
Ground, District Courts, etc. on one hand, and vast business and shopping
center on the other. The 4-storey concrete buildings house banks and offices
above and showrooms/shops at the ground level with wide pedestrian concourses. The
Neelam piazza in the center has fountains with light and water features.
Proposal to set up an eleven storey building in Sector 17 is in the offing.
Sector 34 is another newly developed commercial sector.
Park Areas
Ample areas have been provided in the master
plan of the Capital for parks. Out of a total area of
20,000 acres acquired for the first phase, about 2000 acres are meant for
development of parks. Leisure Valley, Rajendra park, Bougainvillea Park, Zakir
Rose Garden, Shanti Kunj, Hibiscus Garden, Garden of Fragrance, Botanical
Garden, Smriti Upavan, Topiary garden and Terraced Garden are some of the
famous parks of Chandigarh. Sukhna Lake, Rock Garden, Government Museum and Art
Gallery are major tourist attractions of Chandigarh.
One unique feature in the layout of Chandigarh
is its roads, classified in accordance with their functions. An integrated
system of seven roads was designed to ensure efficient traffic circulation.
Corbusier referred to these as the 7'Vs. the city's vertical roads run northeast/southwest
(the 'Paths'). The horizontal roads run northwest/southwest ('The Margs'). The
intersect at right angles, forming a grid or network for movement.
This arrangement of road-use leads to a
remarkable hierarchy of movement, which also ensures that the residential areas
are segregated from the noise and pollution of traffic.
. These four parts are easily identifiable as
A, B, C and D corresponding to North, East, South and West sides. Each Sector
is meant to be self-sufficient, with shopping and community facilities within
reasonable walking distance.
Though educational, cultural and medical
facilities are spread all over city, however, major institutions are located in
Sectors 10, 11, 12, 14 and 26.
The industrial area comprises 2.35 sq kms, set-aside
in the Master Plan for non-polluting, light industry on the extreme
southeastern side of the city near the railway line, as far away from the
Educational Sectors and Capitol Complex as possible.
Tree plantation and landscaping has been an
integral part of the city¿s Master Plan. Twenty six different types of
flowering and 22 species of evergreen trees (Sing et. Al., 1998) have been
planted along the roads, in parking areas, shopping complexes, residential
areas and in the city parks, to ameliorate the harsh climate of the region,
especially the hot and scorching summers.
Population Growth in
the City
Chandigarh was planned for a population of
half-a-million. In Phase I, 36 sq km of land was acquired by the city
administration for construction of 30 sectors. Land for seventeen additional
sectors (Sector 31 to 47) was acquired and developed during the second phase to
cater for a population of 350,000. The predominance of ¾ storey apartments in
the second phase provide for higher population dimension. However, Chandigarh
has now grown beyond its planned capacity. Hence, development in the third
phase has started in sectors 48 and beyond. Demographic data indicate that
between 1961 and 1971, the population increased by 144.59 percent, one of the
highest for urban areas in India. According to 1981 census, it grew by another
75.55 percent, followed by 42.16 percent in 1991 and by 40.33 per cent in 2001
(with a total population of 9,00,635). By 2021 the population of Chandigarh is
projected to be around 19.5 lacs (at current rate of growth) almost four times
for which it was originally built.