| Capital |
Chandigarh |
| Population ('000s in 1991) |
642 |
| Area ('000 sq. km) |
0.1 |
| Principal Languages |
Hindi, Punjabi and English |
The city of Chandigarh , which spans 56 square kilometers in
area, is the 'first planned city of India and is the capital of Punjab and
Harayana. The city has well-laid roads, which are lined with endless rows of
trees, shrubs and boulevards and the buildings have been brilliantly planned
against the backdrop of the mountains.
The white domed temple of
Goddess Chandi Devi that stands on the slope of a hill, situated in the
north-east of Chandigarh, on the edge of the Shivalik hills, is from where
the city obtains its name Chandigarh.
The city's population is
made up of people from all regions and communities of India. When it comes
to literacy, Chandigarh ranks second amongst all States and Union
Territories of India. This modern city is made up of 47 sectors( excluding
the unlucky number 13) and although each sector consists of market places
and shopping centers majority can be found in sector 17. All the sectors are
interconnected by State Transport buses, auto-rickshaws and taxis.
Although
to many western visitors the city appears to be a rather sterile and
hopelessly sprawling city, the residents love staying here and are proud of
it.
Rock Garden 
This
unique sculpture Garden, was created by the city's internationally acclaimed
artist Nek Chand and spreads over 64 acres. Here the visitor is led through
a maze of paths, chambers and canyons, each presenting a glimpse of a
fantasy world.
The visual delights and the strange history of Rock
Garden, has charmed millions of visitors since it was first opened to the
public in 1976. When Nek Chand began to transform a dump of discarded
building materials, he was a road inspector of the city Public Works
Department. He kept the garden a closely guarded secret.....never suspecting
that one day critics would praise his unique works and he would exhibit them
in Paris's Museum of Modern Art and in other cities around the world.
The
first part of the rock Garden is a small canyon... part natural, consisting
of peculiar rock forms, and part amalgam of broken ceramic fixtures, pebbles
and coal slag. It is the sort of place that might be inhabited by trolls.
The canyon opens into a series of
"chambers"
each one filled with scores of human and animal forms in concrete and broken
ceramic or glass. Each one is different. The second phase recreates a
mountain village on the banks of a stream, its inhabitants --some humble,
--some aristocratic --sensed rather than seen.
Open from 10.00 hrs
to 19.00 hrs all days except Thursday and official holidays.
