?ਪੰਜਾਬ Punjab India
Chandigarh
Coordinates: 30°44′N 76°47′E / 30.73, 76.78
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Area	50,362 km² (19,445 sq mi)
Capital	Chandigarh
Largest city	Ludhiana
District(s)	20
Population • Density	24,289,296 (15th) • 482/km² (1,248/sq mi)
Language(s)	Punjabi
Governor	Sunith Francis Rodrigues
Chief Minister	Parkash Singh Badal
Established	1956-11-01
Legislature (seats)	The Punjab Government Unicameral (117 Punjab MLAs)
ISO abbreviation	IN-PB
Seal of Punjab

Coordinates: 30°44′N 76°47′E / 30.73, 76.78

Punjab (Punjabi: ਪੰਜਾਬ, IPA: [pəɲdʒa�b]), 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.Indus Valley Civilization

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.

Etymology

The word "Punjab" is a combination of the Persian words \'panj\' (پنج) Five, and \'�b\' (آب) Water, giving the literal meaning of the Land of 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 Welcome to Official Web site of Punjab, India, 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 awardBest overall performance award to Punjab- Hindustan Times, based on statistical data compiled by the Indian Government.

History

Main article: History of Punjab

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.Punjab - State. 4to40.com. Retrieved on 2006-10-14. 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 the 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 party 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 erroneously dubbed as being of a hidden separatist agenda by India\'s Congress Party, specifically to discredit the resolution.

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 of militants took to targeting officials and people opposed to their point of view which included a number of Sikhs. Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale along with his supporters sought shelter inside the Akal Takht. Fearing an attack on the Harimandir Sahib, Bhindranwale, with help from Shabeg Singh heavily fortified the temple. The Indian army finally assaulted the Golden Temple to flush out armed militants in June, 1984. However, the operation was poorly planned and coordinated, resulting 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 1990\'s, after many years of violence across Punjab, the militants\' struggle for Khalistan had 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.

With the assistance of the Pakistani military and secret service, Sikh terrorists carried out numerous attacks on Hindus and moderate Sikhs in the Punjab in the 80s and 90s. Thousands of innocent people were killed by the fundamentalists and hundreds of thousands of Hindus fled the state. The Sikh terrorist movement was also financed by Sikh communities in Canada and the UK.

Punjab\'s economy was acutely affected in the 1980s and early 1990s. However in recent times, there have been serious attempts by the Central Government to diminish resentment and strong feelings of Punjabis over the issue. Punjab\'s economy is now on the path to recovery. However, corruption and violence continues to hamper the state.

Religion

The majority of Punjab practices 1 of 2 religions. Punjab is the one and only place in the world where Sikhism is the most practiced faith. Sikhism is practiced by about 59.9% of the population India census data & 36.9% practices Hinduism. 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 or Harmandir Sahib, is in the city of Amritsar. The Sri Akal Takht Sahib which resides within the Golden temple complex is the temporal seat of Sikhs. Of the five Takhts[Temporal Seat] of Sikhism, three are in Punjab. Anandpur Sahib is where Guru Gobind Singh created the Khalsa, on one of the most important day on the Sikh calender called Vaisakhi. On a special day on the Sikh calender such as Vaisakhi,Hola Mohalla,a Gurpurb or Diwali, Sikh gatherings march through every city, town and village. At least one Sikh Gurdwara will be situated in every village, town and city they can be found in various styles and sizes. There will be number Sikh shrines found in each and every district made in the commemoration of a Sikh Guru or Martyr. Punjab is also the birthplace of the Hindu religion. Traditional literature of the Ramayana and Mahabharata, the Puranas, the Vedas are all traced back to Punjab. A generation ago, the turban was the "crowning glory" of all Punjabis whether Muslim, Hindu or Sikh. Muslims and Hindus have given up their turbans, but it remains, literally, an article of faith for Sikh men whose religion forbids them to cut their hair.

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 SaboHigher Education. Retrieved on title="2006-09-16">2006-09-16..
8. Guru Angad Dev Veterinary and Animal Sciences UniversityFinally, Punjab gets its first veterinary university. Official web site of Punjab, India (2006-06-02). Retrieved on 2006-09-20..
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 IndiaWelcome to Official Web site of Punjab, IndiaWelcome to Official Web site of Punjab, India 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 pointsWelcome to Official Web site of Punjab, India 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.

See the University of California, Santa Barbara Summer Program in Punjab Studies website http://www.global.ucsb.edu/projects/punjab/2005_report.html [1] about Punjab; and places of tourist interest in Punjab [2].

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. [Gurdass Mann and Hans Raj Hans are two of the most famous singers to come from the punjab. Recognised all over the world for their music.]The first ever Asian Member of the US Senate, Dr. Dalip Singh Saund, was a Punjabi as was Kalpana Chawla, the famous US astronaut.Mohammed Rafi, the greatest ever playback singer, was a Punjabi as is Jagjit Singh, the ghazal maestro. From the filmworld, the list is endless- Dharmendra, Sunny, Rajesh Khanna, Vinod Khanna, Akshay Kumar, Hritik Roshan, The Chopras, Kapoors, Johars etc..............!

Please note some of these named actors above are not Punjabi People, such as Hritik Roshan.

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.

Punjab\'s gross state domestic product for 2004 is estimated at $180 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.

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." Welcome to Official Web site of Punjab, India 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.Welcome to Official Web site of Punjab, India 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 koj 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

See also

• Punjabi people
• Punjabi Culture
• Sikhism
• Sikhs
• History of the Punjab
• Punjab region
• Punjab, Pakistan

External links

• Welcome to Official Web site of Punjab, India
• Punjab (India) travel guide from Wikitravel
• Punjab (India) at the Open Directory Project
• [3]

v â€¢ d â€¢ e State of Punjab (India)
Punjab Topics • History • Politics • Punjabi people
Capital	Chandigarh
Districts	Amritsar • Bathinda • Firozpur • Faridkot • Fatehgarh Sahib • Gurudaspur • Hoshiarpur • Jalandhar • Kapurthala • Ludhiana • Mansa • Moga • Muktsar • Nawanshahr • Patiala • Rupnagar •Mohali • Sangrur
Major cities	Amritsar • Bathinda • Chandigarh • Jalandhar • Ludhiana • Patiala • S.A.S.Nagar

v â€¢ d â€¢ e States and territories of India
States	Andhra Pradesh Â· Arunachal Pradesh Â· Assam Â· Bihar Â· Chhattisgarh Â· Goa Â· Gujarat Â· Haryana Â· Himachal Pradesh Â· Jammu and Kashmir Â· Jharkhand Â· Karnataka Â· Kerala Â· Madhya Pradesh Â· Maharashtra Â· Manipur Â· Meghalaya Â· Mizoram Â· Nagaland Â· Orissa Â· Punjab Â· Rajasthan Â· Sikkim Â· Tamil Nadu Â· Tripura Â· Uttar Pradesh Â· Uttarakhand Â· West Bengal
Union territories	Andaman and Nicobar Islands Â· Chandigarh Â· Dadra and Nagar Haveli Â· National Capital Territory of Delhi Â· Daman and Diu Â· Lakshadweep Â· Puducherry

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from Wikipedia