Punjab, India

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Punjab, India
Punjab
ਪੰਜਾਬ
state
 • Rank19th
Population
 • Total24,289,296
 • Rank15th

Punjab (Punjabi: ਪੰਜਾਬ, IPA: [pəɲdʒaːb]), also spelled Panjab, is a state in northwest India. The Indian state borders the Pakistani province of Punjab to the west, Jammu and Kashmir to the north, Himachal Pradesh to the northeast, Haryana to the south and southeast, Chandigarh to the southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest. The total area of the state is 50,362 square kilometres (19,445 square miles). The population is 24,289,296 (2000). Punjab's capital is Chandigarh, which is administered separately as a Union Territory since it is also the capital of neighbouring Haryana. Other major cities of Punjab include Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar and Patiala. The state is the location of one of the world's first and oldest civilizations, the Indus Valley Civilization, India's first civilization.[1]

The Indian Punjab historically forms a part of the larger Punjab region, which includes some parts of Afghanistan, Pakistani province of Punjab and the North West Frontier Province, the Indian states of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, parts of J&K and Delhi and the Union Territory of Chandigarh, and a small part of China. Indian Punjab was trifurcated in the year 1966 leading to the formation of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh.

The word "Punjab" is a combination of the Persian words 'panj' (پنج) Five, and 'āb' (آب) Water, giving the literal meaning of the Land of the Five Rivers. The five rivers after which Punjab is named are the Beas, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi and Sutlej; Agriculture is the largest industry in Punjab. Others major industries include the manufacture of scientific instruments, electrical goods, financial services, machine tools, textiles, sewing machines, sports goods, starch, tourism, fertilizers, bicycles, garments, and the processing of pine oil and sugar. Punjab is considered to have the best infrastructure in India [2], this includes road, rail, air and river transport links that are extensive throughout the region. Punjab also has the lowest poverty rate in India at 6.16% (1999-2000 figures), and has won the best state performance award[3], based on statistical data compiled by the Indian Government.

History

The Indian state of Punjab was created in 1947, when the Partition of India split the former Raj province of Punjab between India and Pakistan. The mostly Muslim western part of the province became Pakistan's Punjab Province; the mostly Sikh and Hindu eastern part became India's Punjab state. Many Hindus and Sikhs lived in the west, and many Muslims lived in the east, and so the partition saw many people displaced and much intercommunal violence.[4] Several small Punjabi princely states, including Patiala, also became part of India. In 1950, two separate states were created; Punjab included of the former Raj province of Punjab, while the princely states were combined into a new state, the Patiala and East Punjab States Union (PEPSU). PEPSU consisted of the princely states of Patiala, Nabha, Jind, Kapurthala, Malerkotla, Faridkot and Kalsia. Himachal Pradesh was created as a union territory from several princely states and Kangra District. In 1956, PEPSU was merged into Punjab state, and several northern districts of Punjab in the Himalayas were added to Himachal Pradesh.

The capital of undivided Punjab province, Lahore, ended up in Pakistan after partition, so a new capital for Indian Punjab state was built at Chandigarh. On November 1, 1966, the mostly Hindu southeastern half of Punjab became a separate state, Haryana. Chandigarh was on the border between the two states, and became a separate union territory which serves as the capital of both Punjab and Haryana. Chandigarh was due to transfer to Punjab alone in 1986, but the transfer has been delayed pending an agreement on which parts of the Hindi speaking areas of Abohar and Fazilka, currently part of Firozpur District of Punjab, should be transferred to Haryana in exchange.

During the 1970s, the Green Revolution brought increased economic prosperity for the Sikh community in Punjab. However, a growing polarisation between the Indian National Congress led Indian government and the main political part of the Sikhs, the Shiromani Akali Dal, began to widen during the 1970s. The hostility and bitterness arose from what was widely seen by the Sikhs as increasing alienation, centralization and discriminatory attitudes towards Punjab by the Government of India. This prompted the Shiromani Akali Dal to unanimously pass the Anandpur Sahib Resolution which among other things called for granting maximum autonomy for the Punjab and other states and limiting the role and powers of the Central Government. The Anandpur Sahib Resolution was rejected and dubbed as being of a hidden separatist agenda.

Discord had been developing after the rejection of the Anandpur Sahib Resolution. A small section of Sikhs demanded an independent state of Khalistan. A number militants took to targeting officials and people opposed to their point of view which included a number of Sikhs. Bhindranwale along with his supporters sought shelter inside the Akal Takht. Fearing an attack on the Golden Temple, Bhindranwale, with help from Shabeg Singh heavily fortified the Temple. The Indian army finally assaulted the temple on the Harimandir Sahib Golden Temple to flush out armed militants in June, 1984. However, the operation was poorly planned and coordinated, resulted in heavy military and civilian casualties. As a result, the situation in Punjab deteriorated further and there was a rise in militancy. By the early 1990s, after many years of violence across Punjab, the militant's struggle for Khalistan lost much of the sympathy, given after the assault on the sacred Golden temple, it had previously had from some Punjabi Sikhs and what little armed resistance remained was eliminated and forced underground.

Punjab's economy was acutely affected in the 80s and early 90s. However in recent times, there have been serious attempts by both Central Government to diminish resentment and strong feelings of Punjabis over the issue. Punjab's economy is now on the path to recovery.

Religion

Sikhism and Hinduism are the main religions of Indian Punjab and practiced by about 95% of the population [5]. There is a small Muslim minority left (most of the Muslim population migrated to the Pakistani side after Partition). The holiest of Sikh shrines, the Golden Temple, is in the city of Amritsar, which is considered to be the holiest city in Sikhism. Amritsar is also a place of religious significance for Jains.

The Punjabi language, written in the Gurmukhi script is the prevalent language in the state.

Education

Punjab is served by 11 leading public institutes of excellence in higher education (listed below). All the major arts, humanities, science, engineering, law, medicine, veterinary science, and business courses are offered, leading to first degrees as well as postgraduate awards. Advanced research is conducted in all major areas of excellence. Punjab Agricultural University is one of the world's leading authorities in agriculture. It was instrumental and played vital role in Punjab's Green Revolution in the 1960s-70s.

  1. Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar.
  2. Punjabi University, Patiala.
  3. Panjab University, Chandigarh.
  4. Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana.
  5. Punjab Technical University, Jalandhar.
  6. Baba Farid University of Health Sciences, Faridkot.
  7. Punjab Veternary Sciences University, Talwandi Sabo[6].
  8. Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences University[7].
  9. National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education & Research, Mohali
  10. National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar.
  11. Thapar University, Patiala.

The current Prime Minister of India, Dr Manmohan Singh was educated at Panjab University, Chandigarh.

Professor Har Gobind Khorana, famous Nobel laureate & biotechnologist was educated at Panjab University.

Business and infrastructure

Punjab has the best infrastructure in all of India[8][9] and as result it is becoming attractive to foreign companies looking for bases and manufacturing zones for their Indian operations. The Indian National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) has ranked Punjab's infrastructure as the best in India. Its road, rail, air and transport system is rated best in the country with ranking of 210 points[10] compared to the national average of 100 in NCAER’s infrastructure index. It has highest per capita generation of electricity in India, which is 2.5 times the national average. All major Punjabi cities benefit from this and having one of lowest tariff's in India, including all of Punjab's villages, which have been electrified and connected to the Punjabi electrical power grid since 1974.

  • Total Road network 47,605 km
  • All cities connected by National Highways.
  • All major towns of adjoining states connected by National Highways.
  • Percentage of villages connected by metalled roads 97%
  • National Highways: 1000 km
  • State Highways: 2166 km
  • Major Distt. Roads: 1799 km
  • Other District Roads: 3340 km
  • Link Roads: 31657 km

Source: NCAER & Punjab Government

Tourism

Main article: Punjab (India) Tourism

Tourism is a swiftly expanding area and many analysts predict huge potential. Tourism of Punjab is principally suited for the tourist interested in culture, civilization, spirituality and epic history. More specifically tourism is particularly suited for the person who is interested in epic history, the celebrated Punjabi culture, royal Punjabi palaces, historic battles and of course the world-renowned examples of Sikh Architecture, shrines and temples.

Famous Punjabis

Main article: The Punjabi people
Main article: Famous Punjabis
Main article: Famous Punjabi poets

The Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh is a Punjabi. Two former Indian Prime Ministers include I K Gujral and Gulzarilal Nanda both of whom were also Punjabis. Another Punjabi to occupy the topmost post in India was the former President of India Giani Zail Singh. A former Chief of Army Staff of India, General General Joginder Jaswant Singh is a Punjabi, so is famous Nobel laureate Professor Har Gobind Khorana. The first Indian in Outer space is a Punjabi - Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma. The highest ranking office in the history of the Indian Air force was a Punjabi, Marshal of the Air Force of India - Arjan Singh (the highest rank ever given in the history of the Indian Air force). The first Indian-American Governor and new Governor Elect of Louisiana., USA Piyush "Bobby" Jindal (Rep) is also a punjabi from his fathers parental lineage. In the entertainment sector, the giant Dalip Singh helps promote Punjab in the sphere of Professional wrestling. Indian cricket star Harbhajan Singh is from the Punjab from a village called Lamhbra on the outskirts of Jalandhar. Hans Raj Hans a famous Punjabi singer is from Jalandhar

Economy

Excluding agriculture other major industries include the manufacture of scientific instruments, electrical goods, machine tools, textiles, tourism, sewing machines, sports goods, starch, fertilizers, bicycles, and the processing of pine oil and sugar.

Macro-economic trend

This is a chart of trend of gross state domestic product of Punjab at market prices estimated by Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation with figures in millions of Indian Rupees. The traditional long-term financial policy of the central government is to reward well-performing States.

Year Gross State Domestic Product
1980 50,250
1985 95,060
1990 188,830
1995 386,150
2000 660,100

Punjab's gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $27 billion in current prices.

About 1% of the S&P CNX 500 conglomerates have corporate offices in Punjab. This is a list of NSE-indexed conglomerates with corporate offices in Punjab. Figures are given in millions of Indian Rupees for 2005.

Rank Conglomerate Gross Income
1 Mahavir Spinning Mills 19,376
2 Punjab Tractors 10,245
3 Abhishek Industries 7,537
4 Nahar Spinning Mills 4,687
5 Nahar Exports 4,293
6 Vardhman Polytex 2,955

Agriculture

Punjab (the five rivers region) is one of the most fertile regions on earth. The region is ideal for wheat-growing. Rice, sugar cane, fruits and vegetables are also grown. Indian Punjab is called the "Granary of India" or "India's bread-basket." [11] It produces 14% of India's cotton, 20% of India's wheat, and 9% of India's rice. In worldwide terms, Indian Punjab produces 2% of the world's cotton, 2% of its wheat and 1% of the world's rice.[12] The largest grown crop is wheat. Other important crops are rice, cotton, sugarcane, pearl millet, maize, barley and fruit.

Source: Punjab Government

Punjab Medals of Honour

The Punjab Medals of Honour are a collection of awards that are given by the Government of Punjab for exceptional excellence and achievement in the service of Punjab, the Punjabi people and internationally. Some awards are given yearly and some are only given rarely and under exceptional circumstances, where the individual has shown remarkable sacrifice or personal service of Punjab. To win one of the rare awards would probably make the individual a household famous name in Punjab. Two of the most prestigious awards are the Punjab Rattan Award and the Maharaja Ranjit Singh Award (a very prestigious award).

Twin Punjabi Associations

The Punjab historically, since ancient times, has been one cultural and political entity within which the Punjabi people have lived in. However, after the partition of India the Punjab was divided, cutting the Punjabi people in two across the international border between Pakistan and India. Relations after partition were unusually Luke-warm between the twins Punjabs. However, over the last 20 years both Punjab governments, in India and Pakistan, have made concerted effort to maintaining cultural and historical ties of the Punjabi people. This included the international Punjabi Games held in 2004, arranged by both Punjab Governments. Academic institutions have kept their strong contacts such as Universities that were spilt after partition, such as the twin Punjab Universities at Chandigarh and Lahore.

Districts

Punjab state is divided into 20 administrative districts (listed below):

  1. Amritsar District
  2. Barnala
  3. Bathinda District
  4. Firozpur District
  5. Fatehgarh Sahib District
  6. Faridkot District
  7. Gurdaspur District
  8. Hoshiarpur District
  9. Jalandhar District
  10. Kapurthala District
  11. Ludhiana District
  12. Mansa District
  13. Moga District
  14. Mohali District
  15. Muktsar District
  16. Nawanshahr District
  17. Patiala District
  18. Rupnagar District
  19. Sangrur District
  20. Tarn Taran District

Politics

List of political parties in the state, Punjab (India) Politics


References

  1. ^ http://www.boloji.com/architecture/00002.htm
  2. ^ http://punjabgovt.nic.in/ECONOMY/Transport.htm
  3. ^ http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/StoryPage.aspx?id=765c7761-40d4-4355-8198-68a607038e35&&Headline=Punjab+is+the+'best'+state!
  4. ^ "Punjab - State". 4to40.com. Retrieved 2006-10-14.
  5. ^ India census data
  6. ^ "Higher Education". Retrieved 2006-09-16.
  7. ^ "Finally, Punjab gets its first veterinary university". Official web site of Punjab, India. 2006-06-02. Retrieved 2006-09-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ http://punjabgovt.nic.in/ECONOMY/Transport.htm
  9. ^ http://punjabgovt.nic.in/INDUSTRY/BestInfrastructure.htm
  10. ^ http://punjabgovt.nic.in/ECONOMY/Transport.htm
  11. ^ http://punjabgovt.nic.in/punjabataglance/LeadingbyExample.htm
  12. ^ http://punjabgovt.nic.in/punjabataglance/LeadingbyExample.htm

See also

External links

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