Sirhind-Fategarh is a town and a

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counci ...

in the

Fatehgarh Sahib district Fatehgarh Sahib district is one of the twenty-three districts of the state of Punjab, India, with its headquarters in the town of Fatehgarh Sahib. The district came into existence on 13April 1992, Baisakhi Day and derives its name from Sahib ...

in the

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

Demographics

In the 2011 census Sirhind-Fatehgarh had a population of 60852. Males constituted 54% of the population and females 46%. Sirhind-Fatehgarh had an average literacy rate of 90%, higher than the national average of 74%: male literacy is 84%, and female literacy was 80%. 12% of the population was under 6 years of age.

Etymology

According to popular notion, Sirhind, comes from 'Sar-i hind', meaning the Frontier of Hind, as Mughal saw it as the 'gateway to

Hindustan ''Hindūstān'' ( , from '' Hindū'' and ''-stān''), also sometimes spelt as Hindōstān ( ''Indo-land''), along with its shortened form ''Hind'' (), is the Persian-language name for the Indian subcontinent that later became commonly used by ...

'.Memories of a town known as Sirhind
The Sunday Tribune, 15 April 2007.

The Imperial Gazetteer of India ''The Imperial Gazetteer of India'' was a gazetteer of the British Indian Empire, and is now a historical reference work. It was first published in 1881. Sir William Wilson Hunter made the original plans of the book, starting in 1869.< ...

, ''v. 23, p. 20''.

History

In his Sanskrit treatise, Brihat Samhita, Varahamihira (505 – 587) mentions the city as 'Satudar Desh'. Later it was inhabited by a tribe of 'Sairindhas Aryans, leading to its present name.District at a glance
Sirhind at fatehgarhsahib.nic.in According to Huan Tsang, the Chinese traveller who visited India during the seventh century, Sirhind was the capital of the district of Shitotulo, or Shatadru (the present day River

Sutlej The Sutlej or Satluj River () is the longest of the five rivers that flow through the historic crossroads region of Punjab in northern India and Pakistan. The Sutlej River is also known as ''Satadru''. It is the easternmost tributary of the Ind ...

In the 12th century, Sirhind came under the rule of the

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

Chauhan Rajputs of

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

. - Punjab Government Website During the rule of

Prithvi Raj Chauhan Prithviraja III (IAST: Pṛthvī-rāja; reign. – 1192 CE), popularly known as Prithviraj Chauhan or Rai Pithora, was a king from the Chauhan (Chahamana) dynasty who ruled the territory of Sapadalaksha, with his capital at Ajmer in present ...

(1168–1192), the

Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

ruler of

, it became his military outpost. It became a provincial capital during the

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

, controlling the

Lahore Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is the capital of the province of Punjab where it is the largest city. ...

Highway. During the Mughal era, Sirhind was the name for

Malwa Malwa is a historical region of west-central India occupying a plateau of volcanic origin. Geologically, the Malwa Plateau generally refers to the volcanic upland north of the Vindhya Range. Politically and administratively, it is also syno ...

, the area's capital city. Sirhind was the headquarters of the Mughal administration in Eastern Punjab. Many European travelers describe its splendours, and it developed into a cultural center. Aam khas bagh

Sirhind was known for dozens of saints, scholars, poets, historians,

calligraphers Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined as "t ...

and scribes who lived there. This city is famous to Muslims for Great saint Imām-e-Rabbānī Shaykh Ahmad al-Farūqī al-Sirhindī (R.) (1564–1624). He was an Indian Islamic scholar of Arab origin, a Hanafi jurist, and a prominent member of the Naqshbandī Sufi order. Many buildings survive from this period, including Aam Khas Bagh; it is said that in its heyday, the city had 360 mosques, gardens, tombs,

caravansarai A caravanserai (or caravansary; ) was a roadside inn where travelers ( caravaners) could rest and recover from the day's journey. Caravanserais supported the flow of commerce, information and people across the network of trade routes covering ...

s and wells.

Education

University

* Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University

Engineering College

Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Engineering College Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Engineering College (BBSBEC) is an engineering college in Fatehgarh Sahib, Punjab, India. It was established in 1993 by the Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Educational Trust formed under the patronage of Shiromani Gurdwara Pa ...

General degree colleges

* Mata Gujri College, Fatehgarh Sahib. * Saffron College for Girls, Kotla Bajwara

Law College

* Lincoln College of Law, Sirhind

Polytechnic College

* Baba Banda Singh Bahadur Polytechnic College

Teacher Training College

*Lincoln College of Education, Sirhind

CISCE affiliated school

*Baalak Yesu Convent School

Punjab School Education Board affiliated schools

* Ashoka Sen. Sec. School, Sirhind * Baba Dyalpuri Sen.sec.school, Sirhind * BZSFS.SEN.SEC PUBLIC SCHOOL, Fatehgarh Sahib * Dyanand High School, Sirhind * Government girls senior secondary school, Sirhind Mandi * Mata Sundri Public School, Fatehgarh Sahib * M G Ashoka Girls College, Sirhind * Rana Munshi Ram Sarvhitkari school, Sirhind * Sirhind Public School, Sirhind

Central Board Of Secondary education (CBSE) affiliated schools

* St.Mary's School, Mahadian, Fatehgarh Sahib * Divine Light International school * Jesus Saviour's School * Saffron City School * Garden Valley International School * Greenfield Public School

Other

* Lakshya Computer Education, Sirhind Mandi

Historical and religious places in Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib

* Gurudwara Fatehgarh Sahib * Gurdwara Jyoti Sarup * Dashnami Akhara * Gurdwara Shahid Ganj * Gurdwara Patshahi Chevin *

Rauza Sharif Rauza Sharif or Shaikh Ahmad al-Faruqī al-Sirhindī Dargah (popularly known as Mujaddid, Alf-Sani) is situated on the Sirhind- Bassi Pathana Road at a small distance to the north of Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib. Sheikh Ahmed Farooqi lived at this ...

(Shrine of Syed

Ahmad Sirhindi Aḥmad al-Fārūqī as-Sirhindī (1564-1624) was a South Asian Islamic scholar from Punjab, Hanafi jurist, and member of the Naqshbandī Sufi order. He has been described by some followers as a Mujaddid, meaning a “reviver", for his work in ...

) * Tomb of Ustad and Shagird * Tomb of Mir-I-Miran, Sirhind * Aam Khas Bagh, Sirhind * Mata Shri Chakreshwari Devi Jain Temple Village Attewali (Sirhind) * Gurdwara moti ram mehra ji * Jahaji Haveli, Haveli of Diwan Todar Mal * Dera Baba Biram Dass Ji ( VPO Badhouchhi Kalan)

Gallery

File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 18.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 02.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 13.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 04.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 27.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 25.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 11.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 14.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 15.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 10.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 21.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 08.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 26.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 22.jpg, File:Sirhind-Fatehgarh Sahib WikiExpedition 07.jpg,

References

External links

Battle_of_Sirhind Battle of Sirhind at Sikhstudies.org
*www.sirhindinfo.com {{Authority control Cities and towns in Fatehgarh Sahib district Former capital cities in India