Punjab State
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Punjab (; ) is a
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 ...
in northern India. Forming part of the larger
Punjab region 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 a ...
of the
Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographical region in Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian Ocean from the Himalayas. Geopolitically, it includes the countries of Bangladesh, Bhutan, In ...
, the state is bordered by the Indian states of
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several pea ...
to the north and northeast,
Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ...
to the south and southeast, and
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern ...
to the southwest; by the Indian union territories of
Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which al ...
to the east and
Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...
to the north. It shares an international border with
Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also Romanization, romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the I ...
, a
province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...
of Pakistan to the west. The state covers an area of 50,362 square kilometres (19,445 square miles), which is 1.53% of India's total geographical area, making it the 19th-largest Indian state by area out of 28 Indian states (20th largest, if UTs are considered). With over 27 million inhabitants, Punjab is the 16th-largest Indian state by population, comprising 23 districts.
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
, written in the
Gurmukhi Gurmukhī ( pa, ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ, , Shahmukhi: ) is an abugida developed from the Laṇḍā scripts, standardized and used by the second Sikh guru, Guru Angad (1504–1552). It is used by Punjabi Sikhs to write the language, commonly ...
script, is the most widely spoken and the official language of the state. The main ethnic groups are the
Punjabis The Punjabis (Punjabi: ; ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ; romanised as Panjābīs), are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group associated with the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of eastern Pakistan and northwestern India. ...
, with
Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The ter ...
and
Hindus 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 ...
as the dominant religious groups. The state capital is Chandigarh, a union territory and also the capital of the neighbouring state of
Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ...
. The five tributary rivers of the
Indus River The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmi ...
from which the region takes its name are the
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 In ...
, the
Beas Beas is a riverfront town in the Amritsar district of the Indian state of Punjab. Beas lies on the banks of the Beas River. Beas town is mostly located in revenue boundary of Budha Theh with parts in villages Dholo Nangal and Wazir Bhullar. ...
, the Ravi, the
Chenab The Chenab River () is a major river that flows in India and Pakistan, and is one of the 5 major rivers of the Punjab region. It is formed by the union of two headwaters, Chandra and Bhaga, which rise in the upper Himalayas in the Lahaul ...
and the
Jhelum Jhelum (Punjabi and ur, ) is a city on the east bank of the Jhelum River, which is located in the district of Jhelum in the north of Punjab province, Pakistan. It is the 44th largest city of Pakistan by population. Jhelum is known for p ...
. Of these, the first three flow through Indian Punjab. The
history of Punjab The History of Punjab refers to the past human history of Punjab region which is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in the northwest of the Indian subcontinent, comprising eastern Pakistan and Punjab state in India. It is beli ...
has witnessed the migration and settlement of different tribes of people with different cultures and ideas, forming a melting pot of Punjabi civilisation. The
Indus Valley civilization The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300  BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form 2600 BCE to 1900& ...
flourished in antiquity before
recorded history Recorded history or written history describes the historical events that have been recorded in a written form or other documented communication which are subsequently evaluated by historians using the historical method. For broader world his ...
until their decline around 1900 BCE. Punjab was enriched during the height of the
Vedic period The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (ca. 1300–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, betwe ...
, but declined in predominance with the rise of the
Mahajanapadas The Mahājanapadas ( sa, great realm, from ''maha'', "great", and ''janapada'' "foothold of a people") were sixteen kingdoms or oligarchic republics that existed in ancient India from the sixth to fourth centuries BCE during the second urba ...
. The region formed the frontier of initial empires during antiquity including the
Alexander's Alexander's is a real estate investment trust that owns 7 properties in New York metropolitan area, including 731 Lexington Avenue, the headquarters of Bloomberg L.P. It is controlled by Vornado Realty Trust. It was founded by George Farkas and ...
and
Maurya The Maurya Empire, or the Mauryan Empire, was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in the Indian subcontinent based in Magadha, having been founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE, and existing in loose-knit fashion until 1 ...
empires. It was subsequently conquered by the
Kushan Empire The Kushan Empire ( grc, Βασιλεία Κοσσανῶν; xbc, Κυϸανο, ; sa, कुषाण वंश; Brahmi: , '; BHS: ; xpr, 𐭊𐭅𐭔𐭍 𐭇𐭔𐭕𐭓, ; zh, 貴霜 ) was a syncretic empire, formed by the Yuezhi, ...
,
Gupta Empire The Gupta Empire was an ancient Indian empire which existed from the early 4th century CE to late 6th century CE. At its zenith, from approximately 319 to 467 CE, it covered much of the Indian subcontinent. This period is considered as the Gold ...
, and then Harsha's Empire. Punjab continued to be settled by nomadic people; including the Huna, Turkic and the
Mongols The Mongols ( mn, Монголчууд, , , ; ; russian: Монголы) are an East Asian ethnic group native to Mongolia, Inner Mongolia in China and the Buryatia Republic of the Russian Federation. The Mongols are the principal member ...
. Circa 1000 CE, the Punjab came under the rule of
Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
and was part of the
Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526).
,
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 ...
, and
Durrani Empire The Durrani Empire ( ps, د درانيانو ټولواکمني; fa, امپراتوری درانیان) or the Afghan Empire ( ps, د افغانان ټولواکمني, label=none; fa, امپراتوری افغان, label=none), also know ...
.
Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
was founded in the 15th to 17th centuries by the
Sikh Gurus The Sikh gurus (Punjabi: ਸਿੱਖ ਗੁਰੂ) are the spiritual masters of Sikhism, who established this religion over the course of about two and a half centuries, beginning in 1469. The year 1469 marks the birth of Guru Nanak, the founde ...
in the Punjab and resulted in the formation of the
Sikh Confederacy The Misls (derived from an Arabic word مِثْل meaning 'equal') were the twelve sovereign states of the Sikh Confederacy, which rose during the 18th century in the Punjab region in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent and is cit ...
after the fall of the Mughal Empire and ensuing conflict with the Durrani Empire. This confederacy was united into the
Sikh Empire The Sikh Empire was a state originating in the Indian subcontinent, formed under the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who established an empire based in the Punjab. The empire existed from 1799, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahor ...
in 1801 by
Maharaja Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, a ...
Ranjit Singh Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839), popularly known as Sher-e-Punjab or "Lion of Punjab", was the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, which ruled the northwest Indian subcontinent in the early half of the 19th century. He ...
. The greater Punjab region was annexed by the
British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...
from the
Sikh Empire The Sikh Empire was a state originating in the Indian subcontinent, formed under the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who established an empire based in the Punjab. The empire existed from 1799, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahor ...
in
1849 Events January–March * January 1 – France begins issue of the Ceres series, the nation's first postage stamps. * January 5 – Hungarian Revolution of 1848: The Austrian army, led by Alfred I, Prince of Windisch-Grätz, enters in th ...
. Following widespread
religious violence Religious violence covers phenomena in which religion is either the subject or the object of violent behavior. All the religions of the world contain narratives, symbols, and metaphors of violence and war. Religious violence is violence th ...
in
1947 It was the first year of the Cold War, which would last until 1991, ending with the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Events January * January–February – Winter of 1946–47 in the United Kingdom: The worst snowfall in the country i ...
, the Punjab Province of
British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
was
divided Division is one of the four basic operations of arithmetic, the ways that numbers are combined to make new numbers. The other operations are addition, subtraction, and multiplication. At an elementary level the division of two natural numbe ...
along religious lines into
West Punjab West Punjab ( pnb, ; ur, ) was a province in the Dominion of Pakistan from 1947 to 1955. The province covered an area of 159,344 km2 (61523 sq mi), including much of the current Punjab (Pakistan), Punjab province and the Islamabad Capital Te ...
and
East Punjab East Punjab (known simply as Punjab from 1950) was a province and later a state of India from 1947 until 1966, consisting of the parts of the Punjab Province of British India that went to India following the partition of the province between ...
. West Punjab became part of a Muslim-majority Pakistan, while East Punjab became part of a Hindu-majority India. After the
Punjabi Suba movement The Punjabi Suba movement was a long-drawn political agitation, launched by Punjabi speaking people (mostly Sikhs) demanding the creation of a Punjabi Suba, or Punjabi-speaking state, in the post-independence Indian state of East Punjab. Led by ...
, Indian Punjab was reorganised on the basis of language on 1 November 1966.
Haryanvi Haryanvi ( ' or '), also known as Bangru, is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the state of Haryana in India, and to a lesser extent in Delhi. Haryanvi is considered to be part of the dialect group of Western Hindi, which also includes Kharibo ...
and
Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
-speaking southern and eastern areas were carved out as Haryana, while Pahari-speaking northern hilly regions were attached to Himachal Pradesh. The remaining, mostly Punjabi-speaking areas became the current state of Punjab. A separatist
insurgency An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion against authority waged by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare from primarily rural base areas. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric nature: small irregu ...
occurred in Punjab during the 1980s. At present, the economy of Punjab is the 15th-largest state economy in India with in
gross domestic product Gross domestic product (GDP) is a money, monetary Measurement in economics, measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjec ...
and a per capita GDP of , ranking 17th amongst Indian states. Since independence, Punjab is predominantly an
agrarian society An agrarian society, or agricultural society, is any community whose economy is based on producing and maintaining crops and farmland. Another way to define an agrarian society is by seeing how much of a nation's total production is in agriculture ...
. It is the ninth-highest ranking among Indian states in
human development index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income indicators, whi ...
. Punjab has bustling
tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...
,
music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...
,
culinary Culinary arts are the cuisine arts of outline of food preparation, food preparation, cooking and food presentation, presentation of food, usually in the form of meals. People working in this field – especially in establishments such as res ...
, and
film A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...
industries.







Etymology


History


Ancient period

The Punjab region is noted as the site of one of the earliest urban societies, the
Indus Valley Civilization The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300 BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form 2600 BCE to 1900&n ...
that flourished from about 3000 B.C. and declined rapidly 1,000 years later, following the
Indo-Aryan migrations The Indo-Aryan migrations were the migrations into the Indian subcontinent of Indo-Aryan peoples, an ethnolinguistic group that spoke Indo-Aryan languages, the predominant languages of today's North India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lank ...
that overran the region in waves between 1500 and 500 B.C. Frequent intertribal wars stimulated the growth of larger groupings ruled by chieftains and kings, who ruled local kingdoms known as
Mahajanapadas The Mahājanapadas ( sa, great realm, from ''maha'', "great", and ''janapada'' "foothold of a people") were sixteen kingdoms or oligarchic republics that existed in ancient India from the sixth to fourth centuries BCE during the second urba ...
. The rise of kingdoms and dynasties in the Punjab is chronicled in the ancient Hindu epics, particularly the
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...
. The epic battles described in the ''
Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; sa, महाभारतम्, ', ) is one of the two major Sanskrit epics of ancient India in Hinduism, the other being the ''Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the struggle between two groups of cousins in the Kuruk ...
'' are chronicled as being fought in what is now the state of Haryana and historic Punjab. The Gandharas,
Kambojas Kamboja ( sa, कम्बोज) was a kingdom of Iron Age India that spanned parts of South and Central Asia, frequently mentioned in Sanskrit and Pali literature. Eponymous with the kingdom name, the Kambojas were an Indo-Iranian people o ...
,
Trigartas Trigarta kingdom was an ancient kingdom in northern Indian region of the Indian subcontinent with its capital at Prasthala (modern Jalandhar), Multan and Kangra. Trigarta was founded and ruled by the vrishni Dynasty. Mention in Mahabharata Tri ...
,
Andhra Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...
,
Pauravas The Pauravas were an ancient dynasty on the Indus (present-day India and Pakistan) to which King Porus may have belonged. Porus and the Pauravas The origins of the Pauravas are still disputed. The Pauravas may be related to the Puru tribe, du ...
,
Bahlikas The Bahlikas ( sa, बाह्लिक; ''Bāhlika'') were the inhabitants of Bahlika ( sa, बह्लिक, located in Bactria), mentioned in Atharvaveda, Mahabharata, Ramayana, Puranas, Vartikka of Katyayana, Brhatsamhita, Amarkosha etc. ...
( Bactrian settlers of the Punjab),
Yaudheyas Yaudheya (Brahmi script: 𑀬𑁅𑀥𑁂𑀬) or Yoddheya Gana (Yoddheya Republic) was an ancient militant confederation. The word Yaudheya is a derivative of the word from yodha meaning warriors.“Yaudheyas.” Ancient Communities of the Hima ...
, and others sided with the
Kauravas ''Kaurava'' is a Sanskrit term which refers to descendants of Kuru, a legendary king of India who is the ancestor of many of the characters of the epic ''Mahabharata''. Usually, the term is used for the 100 sons of King Dhritarashtra and his wi ...
in the great battle fought at
Kurukshetra Kurukshetra (, ) is a city and administrative headquarter of Kurukshetra district in the Indian state of Haryana. It is also known as Dharmakshetra ("Realm of duty ") and as the "Land of the Bhagavad Gita". Legends According to the Pura ...
. According to DrFauja Singh and Dr.L.M. Joshi: "There is no doubt that the Kambojas, Daradas, Kaikayas, Andhra, Pauravas, Yaudheyas, Malavas, Saindhavas, and Kurus had jointly contributed to the heroic tradition and composite culture of ancient Punjab." The bulk of the
Rigveda The ''Rigveda'' or ''Rig Veda'' ( ', from ' "praise" and ' "knowledge") is an ancient Indian collection of Vedic Sanskrit hymns (''sūktas''). It is one of the four sacred canonical Hindu texts (''śruti'') known as the Vedas. Only one Sh ...
was composed in the Punjab region between circa 1500 and 1200 BC, while later Vedic scriptures were composed more eastwards, between the
Yamuna The Yamuna (Hindustani language, Hindustani: ), also spelt Jumna, is the second-largest tributary river of the Ganges by discharge and the longest tributary in List of major rivers of India, India. Originating from the Yamunotri Glacier at a ...
and
Ganges The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...
rivers. The
historical Vedic religion The historical Vedic religion (also known as Vedicism, Vedism or ancient Hinduism and subsequently Brahmanism (also spelled as Brahminism)), constituted the religious ideas and practices among some Indo-Aryan peoples of northwest Indian Subco ...
constituted the religious ideas and practices in the Punjab during the
Vedic period The Vedic period, or the Vedic age (), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas (ca. 1300–900 BCE), was composed in the northern Indian subcontinent, betwe ...
(1500–500 BCE), centred primarily in the worship of
Indra Indra (; Sanskrit: इन्द्र) is the king of the devas (god-like deities) and Svarga (heaven) in Hindu mythology. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war.  volumes/ref> I ...
. The earliest known notable local king of this region was known as
King Porus Porus or Poros ( grc, Πῶρος ; 326–321 BC) was an ancient Ancient India, Indian king whose territory spanned the region between the Jhelum River (Hydaspes) and Chenab River (Acesines), in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent. H ...
, who fought the famous
Battle of the Hydaspes The Battle of the Hydaspes was fought between Alexander the Great and king Porus in 326 BC. It took place on the banks of the Jhelum River (known to the ancient Greeks as Hydaspes) in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent (modern-day Pu ...
against
Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...
. His kingdom spanned between rivers ''Hydaspes'' (
Jhelum Jhelum ( Punjabi and ur, ) is a city on the east bank of the Jhelum River, which is located in the district of Jhelum in the north of Punjab province, Pakistan. It is the 44th largest city of Pakistan by population. Jhelum is known for p ...
) and ''Acesines'' (
Chenab The Chenab River () is a major river that flows in India and Pakistan, and is one of the 5 major rivers of the Punjab region. It is formed by the union of two headwaters, Chandra and Bhaga, which rise in the upper Himalayas in the Lahaul ...
);
Strabo Strabo''Strabo'' (meaning "squinty", as in strabismus) was a term employed by the Romans for anyone whose eyes were distorted or deformed. The father of Pompey was called "Pompeius Strabo". A native of Sicily so clear-sighted that he could see ...
had held the territory to contain almost 300 cities. He (alongside
Abisares Abisares (or Abhisara; in Greek Ἀβισάρης), called Embisarus (Ἐμβίσαρος,) by Diodorus, was a king of Abhira descent whose territory lay in the river Hydaspes beyond the mountains. On his death in 325 Alexander appointed Abisar ...
) had a hostile relationship with the Kingdom of
Taxila Taxila or Takshashila (; sa, तक्षशिला; pi, ; , ; , ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. Located in the Taxila Tehsil of Rawalpindi District, it lies approximately northwest of the Islamabad–Rawalpindi metropolitan area and ...
which was ruled by his extended family. When the armies of Alexander crossed Indus in its eastward migration, probably in
Udabhandapura Hund (Pashto: ), known in antiquity as Udabhandapura, is a small village in Swabi district, situated on the right bank of the Indus River in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. It is about 15 km upstream of Attock Fort and is locat ...
, he was greeted by the-then ruler of Taxila,
Omphis Taxiles (in Greek language, Greek Tαξίλης or Ταξίλας; lived 4th century BC) was the Greece, Greek chroniclers' name for the ruler who reigned over the tract between the Indus River, Indus and the Jhelum River, Jhelum (Hydaspes) Riv ...
. Omphis had hoped to force both Porus and Abisares into submission leveraging the might of Alexander's forces and diplomatic missions were mounted, but while Abisares accepted the submission, Porus refused. This led Alexander to seek for a face-off with Porus. Thus began the Battle of the Hydaspes in 326 BC; the exact site remains unknown. The battle is thought to be resulted in a decisive
Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
victory; however, A. B. Bosworth warns against an uncritical reading of Greek sources who were obviously exaggerative. Alexander later founded two cities—''
Nicaea Nicaea, also known as Nicea or Nikaia (; ; grc-gre, Νίκαια, ) was an ancient Greek city in Bithynia, where located in northwestern Anatolia and is primarily known as the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea (the first and seve ...
'' at the site of victory and ''Bucephalous'' at the battle-ground, in memory of his horse, who died soon after the battle. Later,
tetradrachm The tetradrachm ( grc-gre, τετράδραχμον, tetrádrachmon) was a large silver coin that originated in Ancient Greece. It was nominally equivalent to four Greek drachma, drachmae. Over time the tetradrachm effectively became the standard ...
s would be minted depicting Alexander on horseback, armed with a ''sarissa'' and attacking a pair of Indians on an elephant. Porus refused to surrender and wandered about atop an elephant, until he was wounded and his force routed. When asked by Alexander how he wished to be treated, Porus replied "Treat me as a king would treat another king". Despite the apparently one-sided results, Alexander was impressed by Porus and chose to not depose him. Not only was his territory reinstated but also expanded with Alexander's forces annexing the territories of Glausaes, who ruled to the northeast of Porus' kingdom. After Alexander's death in 323 BCE,
Perdiccas Perdiccas ( el, Περδίκκας, ''Perdikkas''; 355 BC – 321/320 BC) was a general of Alexander the Great. He took part in the Macedonian campaign against the Achaemenid Empire, and, following Alexander's death in 323 BC, rose to becom ...
became the regent of his empire, and after Perdiccas's murder in 321 BCE,
Antipater Antipater (; grc, , translit=Antipatros, lit=like the father; c. 400 BC319 BC) was a Macedonian general and statesman under the subsequent kingships of Philip II of Macedon and his son, Alexander the Great. In the wake of the collaps ...
became the new regent. According to
Diodorus Diodorus Siculus, or Diodorus of Sicily ( grc-gre, Διόδωρος ;  1st century BC), was an ancient Greek historian. He is known for writing the monumental universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty books, fifteen of which su ...
, Antipater recognized Porus's authority over the territories along the
Indus River The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South and Central Asia. The river rises in mountain springs northeast of Mount Kailash in Western Tibet, flows northwest through the disputed region of Kashmi ...
. However, Eudemus, who had served as Alexander's
satrap A satrap () was a governor of the provinces of the ancient Median and Achaemenid Empires and in several of their successors, such as in the Sasanian Empire and the Hellenistic empires. The satrap served as viceroy to the king, though with consid ...
in the Punjab region, treacherously killed Porus. The battle is historically significant because it resulted in the
syncretism Syncretism () is the practice of combining different beliefs and various school of thought, schools of thought. Syncretism involves the merging or religious assimilation, assimilation of several originally discrete traditions, especially in t ...
of ancient Greek political and cultural influences to the Indian subcontinent, yielding works such as
Greco-Buddhist art The Greco-Buddhist art or Gandhara art of the north Indian subcontinent is the artistic manifestation of Greco-Buddhism, a cultural syncretism between Ancient Greek art and Buddhism. It had mainly evolved in the ancient region of Gandhara. The s ...
, which continued to have an impact for the ensuing centuries. The region was then divided between the
Maurya Empire The Maurya Empire, or the Mauryan Empire, was a geographically extensive Iron Age historical power in the Indian subcontinent based in Magadha, having been founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 322 BCE, and existing in loose-knit fashion until 1 ...
and the
Greco-Bactrian kingdom The Bactrian Kingdom, known to historians as the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom or simply Greco-Bactria, was a Hellenistic period, Hellenistic-era Hellenistic Greece, Greek state, and along with the Indo-Greek Kingdom, the easternmost part of the Helleni ...
in 302 B.C.E.
Menander I Menander I Soter ( grc, Μένανδρος Σωτήρ, Ménandros Sōtḗr, Menander the Saviour; pi, मिलिन्दो, Milinda), was a Greco-Bactrian and later Indo-Greek King (reigned c.165/155Bopearachchi (1998) and (1991), respectivel ...
Soter Soter derives from the Greek epithet (''sōtēr''), meaning a saviour, a deliverer; initial capitalised ; fully capitalised ; feminine Soteira (Σώτειρα) or sometimes Soteria (Σωτηρία). Soter was used as: * a title of gods: Poseidon ...
conquered Punjab and made
Sagala Sagala, Sakala ( sa, साकला), or Sangala ( grc, Σάγγαλα) was a city in ancient India, which was the predecessor of the modern city of Sialkot that is located in what is now Pakistan's northern Punjab province. The city was the ...
(present-day
Sialkot Sialkot ( ur, ) is a city located in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the capital of Sialkot District and the 13th most populous city in Pakistan. The boundaries of Sialkot are joined with Jammu (the winter capital of Indian administered Jammu and Ka ...
) the capital of the
Indo-Greek Kingdom The Indo-Greek Kingdom, or Graeco-Indian Kingdom, also known historically as the Yavana Kingdom (Yavanarajya), was a Hellenistic-era Greek kingdom covering various parts of Afghanistan and the northwestern regions of the Indian subcontinent ( ...
. Menander is noted for having become a patron and convert to
Greco-Buddhism Greco-Buddhism, or Graeco-Buddhism, is the cultural syncretism between Hellenistic culture and Buddhism, which developed between the fourth century BC and the fifth century AD in Gandhara, in present-day north-western Pakistan and parts of nort ...
and he is widely regarded as the greatest of the Indo-Greek kings. Greek influence in the region ended around 12 B.C.E. when the Punjab fell under the
Sassanids The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the History of Iran, last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th cen ...
.


Medieval period

Following the
muslim conquests in the Indian subcontinent The Muslim conquests in the Indian subcontinent mainly took place from the 13th to 17th centuries. Earlier Muslim conquests include the invasions into what is now modern-day Pakistan and the Umayyad campaigns in India in eighth century and res ...
at the beginning of the 8th century,
Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
armies of the
Umayyad Caliphate The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by th ...
penetrated into South Asia introducing
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
into Punjab. In the ninth century, the
Hindu Shahi The Hindu Shahis (also known as Oddiyana, Odi Shahis, Uḍi Śāhis, or Brahman Shahis, 822–1026 CE) were a dynasty that held sway over the Kabul Valley, Gandhara and western Punjab region, Punjab during the early medieval period in the Indian ...
dynasty emerged in the Punjab, ruling much of Punjab and eastern Afghanistan. The Turkic
Ghaznavids The Ghaznavid dynasty ( fa, غزنویان ''Ġaznaviyān'') was a culturally Persianate, Sunni Muslim dynasty of Turkic ''mamluk'' origin, ruling, at its greatest extent, large parts of Persia, Khorasan, much of Transoxiana and the northwest ...
in the tenth century overthrew the Hindu Shahis and consequently ruled for 157 years, gradually declining as a power until the
Ghurid The Ghurid dynasty (also spelled Ghorids; fa, دودمان غوریان, translit=Dudmân-e Ğurīyân; self-designation: , ''Šansabānī'') was a Persianate dynasty and a clan of presumably eastern Iranian Tajik origin, which ruled from the ...
conquest of
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. ...
by
Muhammad of Ghor Mu'izz ad-Din Muhammad ibn Sam ( fa, معز الدین محمد بن سام), also Mu'izz ad-Din Muhammad Ghori, also Ghūri ( fa, معز الدین محمد غوری) (1144 – March 15, 1206), commonly known as Muhammad of Ghor, also Gh ...
in 1186, deposing the last Ghaznavid ruler
Khusrau Malik Abu'l-Muzaffar Khusrau Malik ibn Khusrau-Shah ( fa, ابوالمظفر خسروملک بن خسروشاه), better simply known as Khusrau Malik (; also spelled Khosrow), was the last Sultan of the Ghaznavid Empire, ruling from 1160 to 1186. He w ...
. Following the death of
Muhammad of Ghor Mu'izz ad-Din Muhammad ibn Sam ( fa, معز الدین محمد بن سام), also Mu'izz ad-Din Muhammad Ghori, also Ghūri ( fa, معز الدین محمد غوری) (1144 – March 15, 1206), commonly known as Muhammad of Ghor, also Gh ...
in 1206, the Ghurid state fragmented and was replaced in northern India by the
Delhi Sultanate The Delhi Sultanate was an Islamic empire based in Delhi that stretched over large parts of the Indian subcontinent for 320 years (1206–1526).
. The Delhi Sultanate ruled the Punjab for the next three hundred years, led by five unrelated dynasties, the
Mamluks Mamluk ( ar, مملوك, mamlūk (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural), translated as "one who is owned", meaning "slave", also transliterated as ''Mameluke'', ''mamluq'', ''mamluke'', ''mameluk'', ''mameluke'', ''mamaluke'', or ''marmeluke'') i ...
, Khalajis, Tughlaqs,
Sayyids ''Sayyid'' (, ; ar, سيد ; ; meaning 'sir', 'Lord', 'Master'; Arabic plural: ; feminine: ; ) is a surname of people descending from the Prophets in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad through his grandsons, Hasan ibn Ali and Husayn ibn Ali ...
and Lodis. A significant event in the late 15th century Punjab was the formation of
Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
by
Guru Nanak Gurū Nānak (15 April 1469 – 22 September 1539; Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ; pronunciation: , ), also referred to as ('father Nānak'), was the founder of Sikhism and is the first of the ten Sikh Gurus. His birth is celebrated wor ...
."Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikh originated in India." The history of the Sikh faith is closely associated with the history of Punjab and the socio-political situation in the north-west of the Indian subcontinent in the 17th century. The hymns composed by
Guru Nanak Gurū Nānak (15 April 1469 – 22 September 1539; Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਨਾਨਕ; pronunciation: , ), also referred to as ('father Nānak'), was the founder of Sikhism and is the first of the ten Sikh Gurus. His birth is celebrated wor ...
were later collected in the
Guru Granth Sahib The Guru Granth Sahib ( pa, ਗੁਰੂ ਗ੍ਰੰਥ ਸਾਹਿਬ, ) is the central holy religious scripture of Sikhism, regarded by Sikhs as the final, sovereign and Guru Maneyo Granth, eternal Guru following the lineage of the Sikh gur ...
, the central religious scripture of the Sikhs. The religion developed and evolved in times of
religious persecution Religious persecution is the systematic mistreatment of an individual or a group of individuals as a response to their religion, religious beliefs or affiliations or their irreligion, lack thereof. The tendency of societies or groups within soc ...
, gaining converts from both
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
and
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
. Mughal rulers of India tortured and executed two of the Sikh gurus—
Guru Arjan Guru Arjan (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਅਰਜਨ, pronunciation: ; 15 April 1563 – 30 May 1606) was the first of the two Gurus martyred in the Sikh faith and the fifth of the ten total Sikh Gurus. He compiled the first official edition of th ...
(1563–1605) and
Guru Tegh Bahadur Guru Tegh Bahadur ( Punjabi: ਗੁਰੂ ਤੇਗ਼ ਬਹਾਦਰ (Gurmukhi); ; 1 April 1621 – 11 November 1675) was the ninth of ten Gurus who founded the Sikh religion and the leader of Sikhs from 1665 until his beheading in 1675 ...
(1621–1675)—after they refused to convert to Islam.Pashaura Singh (2005), Understanding the Martyrdom of Guru Arjan, Journal of Punjab Studies, 12(1), pp. 29–62 The persecution of Sikhs triggered the founding of the ''
Khalsa Khalsa ( pa, ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ, , ) refers to both a community that considers Sikhism as its faith,Kha ...
'' by Guru Gobind Singh in 1699 as an order to protect the
freedom of conscience Freedom of thought (also called freedom of conscience) is the freedom of an individual to hold or consider a fact, viewpoint, or thought, independent of others' viewpoints. Overview Every person attempts to have a cognitive proficiency by ...
and
religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...
, with members expressing the qualities of a '' Sant-Sipāhī'' ('saint-soldier'). The lifetime of Guru Nanak coincided with the conquest of northern India by
Babur Babur ( fa, , lit= tiger, translit= Bābur; ; 14 February 148326 December 1530), born Mīrzā Zahīr ud-Dīn Muhammad, was the founder of the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. He was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan through his ...
and establishment of 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 ...
. Jahangir ordered the execution of
Guru Arjun Dev Guru Arjan (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਅਰਜਨ, pronunciation: ; 15 April 1563 – 30 May 1606) was the first of the two Gurus martyred in the Sikh faith and the fifth of the ten total Sikh Gurus. He compiled the first official edition of t ...
, whilst in Mughal custody, for supporting his son
Khusrau Mirza Khusrau Mirza (16 August 1587 – 26 January 1622) was the eldest son of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir and his first wife, Shah Begum. He was beloved of his grandfather, Mughal Emperor Akbar and his grandmother, Mariam-uz-Zamani. The young ...
's rival claim to the throne. Guru Arjan Dev's death led to the sixth Guru
Guru Hargobind Gurū Hargobind (Gurmukhi: ਗੁਰੂ ਹਰਿਗੋਬਿੰਦ, pronunciation: l 19 June 1595 – 28 February 1644), revered as the ''sixth Nānak'', was the sixth of ten Gurus of the Sikh religion. He had become Guru at the young age of e ...
to declare sovereignty in the creation of the
Akal Takht The Akal Takht ("Throne of the Timeless One") is one of five takhts (seats of power) of the Sikhs. It is located in the Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple) complex in Amritsar, Punjab, India. The Akal Takht (originally called Akal Bunga) was built by ...
and the establishment of a fort to defend
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
. Jahangir then jailed Guru Hargobind at
Gwalior Gwalior() is a major city in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh; it lies in northern part of Madhya Pradesh and is one of the Counter-magnet cities. Located south of Delhi, the capital city of India, from Agra and from Bhopal, the s ...
, but released him after a number of years when he no longer felt threatened. The succeeding son of Jahangir,
Shah Jahan Shihab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram (5 January 1592 – 22 January 1666), better known by his regnal name Shah Jahan I (; ), was the fifth emperor of the Mughal Empire, reigning from January 1628 until July 1658. Under his emperorship, the Mugha ...
, took offence at Guru Hargobind's declaration and after a series of assaults on Amritsar, forced the Sikhs to retreat to the
Sivalik Hills The Sivalik Hills, also known as the Shivalik Hills and Churia Hills, are a mountain range of the outer Himalayas that stretches over about from the Indus River eastwards close to the Brahmaputra River, spanning the northern parts of the Indi ...
. The ninth Guru,
Guru Tegh Bahadur Guru Tegh Bahadur ( Punjabi: ਗੁਰੂ ਤੇਗ਼ ਬਹਾਦਰ (Gurmukhi); ; 1 April 1621 – 11 November 1675) was the ninth of ten Gurus who founded the Sikh religion and the leader of Sikhs from 1665 until his beheading in 1675 ...
, moved the Sikh community to Anandpur and travelled extensively to visit and preach in defiance of
Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...
, who attempted to install
Ram Rai Ram Rai (Gurmukhi: ਰਾਮ ਰਾਏ; ''rāma rā'ē''; 1645–1687) was the excommunicated eldest son of the seventh Sikh Guru, Guru Har Rai, and the founder of the Ramraiyas, an unorthodox and heretical sect in Sikhism. Biography Exco ...
as new guru.


Modern period

The Mughals came to power in the early sixteenth century and gradually expanded to control all of the Punjab from their capital at
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. ...
. As Mughal power weakened, Afghan rulers took control of the region. Contested by
Marathas The Marathi people (Marathi: मराठी लोक) or Marathis are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are indigenous to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-Aryan language. Maharashtra was formed as a M ...
and Afghans, the region was the center of the growing influence of the Sikhs, who expanded and established the
Sikh empire The Sikh Empire was a state originating in the Indian subcontinent, formed under the leadership of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who established an empire based in the Punjab. The empire existed from 1799, when Maharaja Ranjit Singh captured Lahor ...
in 1799 as the Mughals and Afghans weakened. The
Cis-Sutlej states The Cis-Sutlej states were a group of states in the modern Punjab and Haryana states of northwestern India during the 19th century, lying between the Sutlej River on the north, the Himalayas on the east, the Yamuna River and Delhi District on the ...
were a group of states in modern Punjab and
Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ...
states lying between the Sutlej River on the north, the Himalayas on the east, the Yamuna River and
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 ...
District on the south, and
Sirsa District Sirsa district is the largest district of Haryana state. Sirsa is the district headquarters. It is located on National Highway 9 and from the capital Delhi. Etymology The district is named after its headquarters, Sirsa. The name, Sirsa is der ...
on the west. These states were ruled by the
Sikh Misls The Misls (derived from an Arabic word مِثْل meaning 'equal') were the twelve sovereign states of the Sikh Confederacy, which rose during the 18th century in the Punjab region in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent and is cit ...
. The empire existed from 1799, when
Ranjit Singh Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839), popularly known as Sher-e-Punjab or "Lion of Punjab", was the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, which ruled the northwest Indian subcontinent in the early half of the 19th century. He ...
captured
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. ...
, to 1849, when it was defeated and conquered in the
Second Anglo-Sikh War The Second Anglo-Sikh War was a military conflict between the Sikh Empire and the East India Company, British East India Company that took place in 1848 and 1849. It resulted in the fall of the Sikh Empire, and the annexation of the Punjab r ...
. It was forged on the foundations of the
Khalsa Khalsa ( pa, ਖ਼ਾਲਸਾ, , ) refers to both a community that considers Sikhism as its faith,Kha ...
from a collection of autonomous
Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...
''
misls The Misls (derived from an Arabic word مِثْل meaning 'equal') were the twelve sovereign states of the Sikh Confederacy, which rose during the 18th century in the Punjab region in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent and is cit ...
''. At its peak in the 19th century, the Empire extended from the
Khyber Pass The Khyber Pass (خیبر درہ) is a mountain pass in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan, on the border with the Nangarhar Province of Afghanistan. It connects the town of Landi Kotal to the Valley of Peshawar at Jamrud by traversing pa ...
in the west to western
Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...
in the east, and from
Mithankot Mithankot ( ur, ) also known as Kotmithan, is a city in Rajanpur District in Punjab, Pakistan. Mithankot is located on the west bank of the Indus River The Indus ( ) is a transboundary river of Asia and a trans-Himalayan river of South ...
in the south to
Kashmir Kashmir () is the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term "Kashmir" denoted only the Kashmir Valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal Range. Today, the term encompas ...
in the north. It was divided into four provinces:
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. ...
, in Punjab, which became the Sikh capital;
Multan Multan (; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan, on the bank of the Chenab River. Multan is Pakistan's seventh largest city as per the 2017 census, and the major cultural, religious and economic centre of southern Punjab. Multan is one of the List ...
, also in Punjab;
Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...
; and Kashmir from 1799 to 1849. Religiously diverse, with an estimated population of 3.5 million in 1831 (making it the 19th most populous country at the time),
Amarinder Singh Captain Amarinder Singh (born 11 March 1942), is an Indian politician, military historian, former royal and Indian Army veteran who served as the 15th Chief Minister of Punjab. A former Member of the Legislative Assembly, Punjab and Member ...
's The Last Sunset: The Rise and Fall of the Lahore Durbar
it was the last major region of the Indian subcontinent to be annexed by the
British Empire The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...
. The Sikh Empire spanned a total of over at its zenith. After Ranjit Singh's death in 1839, the empire was severely weakened by internal divisions and political mismanagement. This opportunity was used by the
East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
to launch the
First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
and Second Anglo-Sikh Wars. The country was finally annexed and dissolved at the end of the Second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849 into separate
princely states A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, subject to ...
and the province of Punjab. Eventually, a Lieutenant Governorship was established in Lahore as a direct representative of
the Crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has different ...
.


Colonial era

The Punjab was annexed by the
East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
in 1849. Although nominally part of the
Bengal Presidency The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William and later Bengal Province, was a subdivision of the British Empire in India. At the height of its territorial jurisdiction, it covered large parts of what is now South Asia and ...
it was administratively independent. During the
Indian Rebellion of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...
, apart from Revolt led by Ahmed Khan Kharal and
Murree rebellion of 1857 The Murree Rebellion of 1857 was a part of the Indian Rebellion of 1857. It was a skirmish between the hill tribes of Murree (in modern-day Pakistan) and the colonial government of British India. Resentment toward colonial rule had been mounting ...
, the Punjab remained relatively peaceful. In 1858, under the terms of the Queen's Proclamation issued by
Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...
, the Punjab came under the direct rule of Britain. Colonial rule had a profound impact on all areas of Punjabi life. Economically it transformed the Punjab into the richest farming area of India, socially it sustained the power of large landowners and politically it encouraged cross-communal co-operation amongst land owning groups. The Punjab also became the major centre of recruitment into the
Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...
. By patronising influential local allies and focusing administrative, economic and constitutional policies on the rural population, the British ensured the loyalty of its large rural population. Administratively, colonial rule instated a system of bureaucracy and measure of the law. The 'paternal' system of the ruling elite was replaced by 'machine rule' with a system of laws, codes, and procedures. For purposes of control, the British established new forms of communication and transportation, including post systems, railways, roads, and telegraphs. The creation of Punjab Canal Colonies, Canal Colonies in western Punjab between 1860 and 1947 brought 14 million acres of land under cultivation, and revolutionised agricultural practices in the region. To the agrarian and commercial class was added a professional middle class that had risen the social ladder through the use of the English education, which opened up new professions in law, government, and medicine. Despite these developments, colonial rule was marked by exploitation of resources. For the purpose of exports, the majority of external trade was controlled by British export banks. The Imperial government exercised control over the finances of Punjab and took the majority of the income for itself. In 1919 a British officer ordered his troops to fire on a crowd of demonstrators, mostly Sikhs in
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
. The Jallianwala Bagh massacre, Jallianwala massacre fueled the indian independence movement. Nationalists declared the independence of India from Lahore in 1930 but were quickly suppressed. The struggle for Indian independence witnessed competing and conflicting interests in the Punjab. When the Second World War broke out, nationalism in British India had already divided into religious movements. The landed elites of the Muslim, Hindu and Sikh communities had loyally collaborated with the British since annexation, supported the Unionist Party (Punjab), Unionist Party and were hostile to the Congress party led independence movement.Pritam Singh, Federalism, Nationalism and Development: India and the Punjab Economy, Routledge, 19 February 2008, p.54 Amongst the peasantry and urban middle classes, the Hindus were the most active Indian National Congress, National Congress supporters, the Sikhs flocked to the Akali movement whilst the Muslims eventually supported the All-India Muslim League, Muslim League. Many Sikhs and other minorities supported the Hindus, who promised a secular multicultural and multireligious society. In March 1940, the All-India Muslim League passed the Lahore Resolution, demanding the creation of a separate state from Muslim majority areas in British India. This triggered bitter protests by the Hindus and Sikhs in Punjab, who could not accept living in a Muslim Islamic state. After the partition of the sub-continent had been decided, special meetings of the Western and Eastern Section of the Legislative Assembly were held on 23 June 1947 to decide whether or not the Province of the Punjab be partitioned. After voting on both sides, partition was decided and the existing Punjab Legislative Assembly was also divided into
West Punjab West Punjab ( pnb, ; ur, ) was a province in the Dominion of Pakistan from 1947 to 1955. The province covered an area of 159,344 km2 (61523 sq mi), including much of the current Punjab (Pakistan), Punjab province and the Islamabad Capital Te ...
Legislative Assembly and the
East Punjab East Punjab (known simply as Punjab from 1950) was a province and later a state of India from 1947 until 1966, consisting of the parts of the Punjab Province of British India that went to India following the partition of the province between ...
Legislative Assembly. This last Assembly before independence, held its last sitting on 4 July 1947. During this period, the British granted separate independence to India and Pakistan, setting off massive communal violence as Punjabi Muslims fled to Pakistan and Hindu and Sikh Punjabis fled east to India. The Sikhs later demanded a Punjabi-speaking Punjab state with an autonomous Sikh government.


Post-colonial era

During the British Raj, colonial era, the various districts and princely states that made up Punjab Province were religiously eclectic, each containing significant populations of Punjabi Muslims, Punjabi Hindus, Punjabi Sikhs, Punjabi Christians, along with other ethnic and religious minorities. However, a major consequence of independence and the partition of Punjab Province in 1947 was the sudden shift towards religious homogeneity occurred in all districts across province and region owing to the new international border that cut through the subdivision. The demographic shift was captured when comparing decadal census data taken in 1941 and 1951 respectively, and was primarily due to wide scale migration but also caused by large-scale Religious persecution#Religious cleansing, religious cleansing riots which were witnessed across the region at the time. According to historical demographer Tim Dyson, in the eastern regions of Punjab that ultimately became Indian Punjab following independence, districts that were 66% Hindu in 1941 became 80% Hindu in 1951; those that were 20% Sikh became 50% Sikh in 1951. Conversely, in the western regions of Punjab that ultimately became Punjab, Pakistan, Pakistani Punjab, all districts became almost exclusively Muslim by 1951. Following independence, several small Punjabi princely states, including Patiala, Instrument of Accession, acceded to the Union of India and were united into the PEPSU. In 1956 this was integrated with the state of East Punjab to create a new, enlarged Indian state called simply "Punjab". ''Punjab Day'' is celebrated across the state on 1 November every year marking the formation of a Punjabi language speaking state under the Punjab Reorganisation Act (1966). In 1966, following Hindu and Sikh Punjabi demands, the Indian government divided Punjab into the state of Punjab and the Hindi majority-speaking states of
Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ...
and
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several pea ...
. From 1981 to 1995 the state suffered a 14-year long
insurgency An insurgency is a violent, armed rebellion against authority waged by small, lightly armed bands who practice guerrilla warfare from primarily rural base areas. The key descriptive feature of insurgency is its asymmetric nature: small irregu ...
. Problems began due to disputes between Punjabi Sikhs and the central government of the Republic of India. Tensions escalated throughout the early 1980s and eventually culminated with Operation Blue Star in 1984; an Indian Army operation aimed at the dissident Sikh community of Punjab. Shortly thereafter, Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was Assassination of Indira Gandhi, assassinated by two of her Sikh bodyguards. The decade that followed was noted for widespread inter-communal violence and accusations of genocide on the part of the Sikh community by the Indian government.


Geography

Punjab is in northwestern India and has a total area of . Punjab is bordered by Pakistan's Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab province on the west,
Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...
on the north,
Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several pea ...
on the northeast and
Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ...
and
Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern ...
on the south. Most of Punjab lies in a fertile, alluvial plain with perennial rivers and an extensive irrigation canal system. A belt of undulating Shiwalik Hills, hills extends along the northeastern part of the state at the foot of the Himalayas. Its average elevation is above sea level, with a range from in the southwest to more than around the northeast border. The southwest of the state is semi-arid, eventually merging into the Thar Desert. Of the five Punjab rivers, three—Sutlej, Beas and Ravi—flow through the Indian state. The Sutlej and Ravi define parts of the international border with Pakistan. The soil characteristics are influenced to a limited extent by the topography, vegetation and parent rock. The variation in soil profile characteristics are much more pronounced because of the regional climatic differences. Punjab is divided into three distinct regions on the basis of soil types: southwestern, central, and eastern. Punjab falls under Earthquake hazard zoning of India, seismic zones II, III, and IV. Zone II is considered a low-damage risk zone; zone III is considered a moderate-damage risk zone; and zone IV is considered a high-damage risk zone.


Climate

The geography and subtropical latitudinal location of Punjab lead to large variations in temperature from month to month. Even though only limited regions experience temperatures below , ground frost is commonly found in the majority of Punjab during the winter season. The temperature rises gradually with high humidity and overcast skies. However, the rise in temperature is steep when the sky is clear and humidity is low. The maximum temperatures usually occur in mid-May and June. The temperature remains above in the entire region during this period. Ludhiana recorded the highest maximum temperature at with Patiala and Amritsar recording . The maximum temperature during the summer in Ludhiana remains above for a duration of one and a half months. These areas experience the lowest temperatures in January. The sun rays are oblique during these months and the cold winds control the temperature at daytime. Punjab experiences its minimum temperature from December to February. The lowest temperature was recorded at Amritsar () and Ludhiana stood second with . The minimum temperature of the region remains below for almost two months during the winter season. The highest minimum temperature of these regions in June is more than the daytime maximum temperatures experienced in January and February. Ludhiana experiences minimum temperatures above for more than two months. The annual average temperature in the entire state is approximately . Further, the mean monthly temperature range varies between in July to approximately in November.


Seasons

Punjab experiences three main seasons. They are: *Summer (mid-April to the end of June) *Monsoon (early July to the end of September) *Winter (early December to the end of February). Apart from these three, the state experiences transitional seasons like: *Pre-summer season (March to mid-April): This is the period of transition between winter and summer. *Post-monsoon season (September to end of November): This is the period of transition between monsoon and winter seasons.


=Summer

= Punjab starts experiencing mildly hot temperatures in February. The actual summer season commences in mid-April and the heat continues till the end of August. High temperatures between May and August hover between 40 and 47 °C. The area experiences atmospheric pressure variations during the summer months. The atmospheric pressure of the region remains around 987 millibar during February and it reaches 970 millibar in June.


=Monsoon

= Punjab's rainy season begins in the first week of July as monsoon currents generated in the Bay of Bengal bring rain to the region. The monsoon lasts up to mid-September.


=Winter

= Temperature variation is minimal in January. The mean night and day temperatures fall to and , respectively.


=Post-Monsoon transitional season

= The monsoon begins to reduce by the second week of September. This brings a gradual change in climate and temperature. The time between October and November is the transitional period between monsoon and winter seasons. Weather during this period is generally temperate and dry.


=Post-Winter transitional season

= The effects of winter diminish by the first week of March. The hot summer season commences in mid-April. This period is marked by occasional showers with hail storms and squalls that cause extensive damage to crops. The winds remain dry and warm during the last week of March, commencing the harvest period.


Rainfall

*Monsoon Rainfall Monsoon season provides most of the rainfall for the region. Punjab receives rainfall from the monsoon current of the Bay of Bengal. This monsoon current enters the state from the southeast in the first week of July. *Winter Rainfall The winter season remains very cool with temperatures falling below freezing at some places. Winter also brings in some western disturbances. Rainfall in the winter provides relief to the farmers as some of the winter crops in the region of Shivalik Hills are entirely dependent on this rainfall. As per meteorological statistics, the sub-Shivalik area receives more than of rainfall in the winter months.


Flora and fauna

The fauna of the area is rich, with 396 types of birds, 214 kinds of Lepidoptera, 55 varieties of fish, 20 types of reptiles, and 19 kinds of mammals. The state of Punjab has large wetland areas, bird sanctuaries that house numerous species of birds, and many zoological parks. Wetlands include the national wetland Harike Wetland, Hari-Ke-Pattan, the wetland of Kanjli Wetland, Kanjli, and the wetlands of Kapurthala Sutlej. Wildlife sanctuaries include the Harike in the district of Tarn Taran Sahib, the Zoological Park in Rupnagar, Chhatbir Bansar Garden in Sangrur, Aam Khas Bagh in Sirhind, Amritsar's famous Ram Bagh Palace, Shalimar Garden in Kapurthala, and the famous Baradari Garden in the city of Patiala.


Animals

A few of the rivers in Punjab have crocodiles. The extraction of silk from silkworms is another industry that flourishes in the state. Production of bee honey is done in some parts of Punjab. The southern plains are desert land; hence, camels can be seen. Water buffalo, Buffaloes graze around the banks of rivers. The northeastern part is home to animals like horses. Wildlife sanctuaries have many more species of wild animals like the otter, wild boar, wildcat, fruit bat, hog deer, flying fox, squirrel, and mongoose. Naturally formed forests can be seen in the Shivalik ranges in the districts of Ropar, Gurdaspur and Hoshiarpur. Patiala is home to the Bir forest while the wetlands area in Punjab is home to the Mand forest. Botanical gardens exist throughout Punjab. There is a zoological park and a tiger safari park, as well as three parks dedicated to deer. The state bird is the northern goshawk, northern goshawk (baz) (''Accipiter gentilis''), the state animal is the blackbuck (''Antilope cervicapra''), the state aquatic animal is Indus river dolphin (''Platanista minor''), and the state tree is the shisham (''Dalbergia sissoo'').


Government and politics

Punjab is governed through a parliamentary system of representative democracy. Each of the states of India possesses a parliamentary system of government, with a ceremonial state List of Governors of Punjab (India), Governor, appointed by the President of India on the advice of the central government. The head of government is an indirectly elected List of Chief Ministers of Punjab (India), Chief Minister who is vested with most of the executive powers. The term length of the government is five years. The state legislature, the Vidhan Sabha, is the unicameral Punjab Legislative Assembly, with 117 members elected from single-seat constituencies. The current government was elected in the 2022 Punjab Legislative Assembly election, 2022 Assembly elections as Aam Aadmi Party won 92 out of 117 Assembly seats and Bhagwant Mann is the current Chief Minister. The state of Punjab is divided into five administrative divisions and twenty-two districts. The capital of Punjab is
Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which al ...
, which also serves as the capital of
Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ...
and is thus administered separately as a Union Territory of India. The judicial branch of the state government is provided by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Chandigarh. The three major political parties in the state are the Aam Aadmi Party, Punjab, Aam Aadmi Party, a centrist to left wing party, the Shiromani Akali Dal, a Sikh right-wing Punjabiyat party and the Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee, Indian National Congress, a Ideology of the Indian National Congress, centrist Big tent, catch all party. President's rule has been imposed in Punjab eight times so far, since 1950, for different reasons. In terms of the absolute number of days, Punjab was under the President's rule for 3,510 days, which is approximately 10 years. Much of this was in the 80s during the height of militancy in Punjab. Punjab was under the President's rule for five continuous years from 1987 to 1992. Punjab state law and order is maintained by Punjab Police (India), Punjab Police. Punjab police is headed by its DGP, Dinkar Gupta, and has 70,000 employees. It manages state affairs through 22 district heads known as SSP.


Administrative set-up

Punjab has 23 districts, which are geographically classified into Majha, Malwa (Punjab), Malwa, Doaba and Puadh regions, as under: - *Majha (4) **Amritsar district, Amritsar **Gurdaspur district, Gurdaspur **Pathankot district, Pathankot **Tarn Taran district, Tarn Taran *Doaba (4) **Hoshiarpur district, Hoshiarpur **Jalandhar district, Jalandhar **Kapurthala district, Kapurthala **Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar *Malwa (Punjab), Malwa (12) **Barnala district, Barnala **Bathinda district, Bathinda **Ferozepur district, Ferozepur **Fazilka district, Fazilka **Faridkot district, Faridkot **Ludhiana district, Ludhiana **Moga district, Moga **Malerkotla district, Malerkotla **Mansa district, Punjab, Mansa **Sri Muktsar Sahib district, Sri Muktsar Sahib **Patiala district, Patiala **Sangrur district, Sangrur *Puadh (3) **Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar district, SAS Nagar (Mohali) **Rupnagar district, Rupnagar **Fatehgarh Sahib district, Fatehgarh Sahib These districts are officially divided among 5 administrative divisions: Faridkot, Ferozepur, Jalandhar, Patiala and Ropar(created on 31 December 2010, which was a part of Patiala Division earlier). Each district is under the administrative control of a District magistrate, District Collector. The districts are subdivided into 93 tehsils, which have fiscal and administrative powers over settlements within their borders, including maintenance of local land records comes under the administrative control of a Tehsildar. Each Tehsil consists of blocks which are total 150 in number. These blocks consist of Revenue Village, revenue villages. There are total number of revenue villages in the state is 12,278. There are 23 District council (India), Zila Parishads, 136 Municipal governance in India, Municipal Committees and 22 Improvement Trusts looking after 143 towns and 14 Cities in India, cities of Punjab. The capital city of the state is
Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which al ...
and largest city of the state is Ludhiana. Out of total population of Punjab, 37.48% people live in urban regions. The absolute urban population living in urban areas is 10,399,146 of which 5,545,989 are males and while remaining 4,853,157 are females. The urban population in the last 10 years has increased by 37.48%. The major cities are Ludhiana,
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
, Jalandhar, Mohali, Patiala and Bathinda.


Economy

Punjab's Gross domestic product, GDP is . Punjab is one of the most fertile regions in India. 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 10.26% of India's cotton, 19.5% of India's wheat, and 11% of India's rice. The Firozpur and Fazilka Districts are the largest producers of wheat and rice in the state. In worldwide terms, Indian Punjab produces 2% of the world's cotton, 2% of its wheat and 1% of its rice. Punjab ranked first in GDP per capita amongst Indian states in 1981 and fourth in 2001, but has experienced slower growth than the rest of India, having the List of Indian states and union territories by GDP per capita#Historical NSDP per capita of Indian states, second-slowest GDP per capita growth rate of all Indian states and UTs between 2000 and 2010, behind only Economy of Manipur, Manipur. Punjab's economy has been primarily agriculture-based since the Green Revolution in India, Green Revolution due to the presence of abundant water sources and fertile soils; most of the state lies in a fertile alluvial plain with many rivers and an extensive irrigation canal system. The largest cultivated crop is wheat. Other important crops are rice, cotton, sugarcane, pearl millet, maize, barley and fruit. Rice and wheat are doublecropped in Punjab with rice stalks being burned off over millions of acres prior to the planting of wheat. This widespread practice is polluting and wasteful. Despite covering only 1.53% of its geographical area, Punjab makes up for about 15-20% of India's wheat production, around 12% of its rice production, and around 5% of its milk production, being known as Breadbasket#Asia, India's breadbasket. About 80%Taylor, S., Singh, M., Booth, D. (2007) Migration, development and inequality: Eastern Punjabi transnationalism. School of Social Sciences and Law, University of Teesside, Middlesbrough, UK; Department of Sociology, Punjab University, Chandigarh, India.-95% of Punjab's agricultural land is owned by its Jat Sikh community despite it only forming 21% of the state's population. About 10% of Punjab's population is made up of migrants from poorer states to the southeast such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar who work as farm labourers.Simmering discontent: Sikhs in Punjab are fighting many wars
8 March 2008, 0000 hrs IST,Praveen S Thampi, Times of India.
Other major industries include financial services, the manufacturing of scientific instruments, agricultural goods, electrical goods, machine tools, textiles, sewing machines, sports goods, starch, fertilisers, bicycles, garments, and the processing of pine oil and sugar. Minerals and energy resources also contribute to Punjab's economy to a much lesser extent. Punjab has the largest number of steel Rolling (metalworking), rolling mill plants in India, which are in "Steel Town"—Mandi Gobindgarh in the Fatehgarh Sahib district. Punjabi diaspora, Punjab also has a large diaspora that is mostly settled in the British Punjabis, United Kingdom, the Punjabi Americans, United States, and Punjabi Canadians, Canada, numbers about 3 million, and sends back billions of USD in Remittances to India, remittances to the state, playing a major role in its economy. In Punjab the consumption of fertiliser per hectare is 223.46 kg as compared to 90 kg nationally. The state has been awarded the National Productivity Award for agriculture extension services for ten years, from 1991 to 1992 to 1998–99 and from 2001 to 2003–04. In recent years a drop in productivity has been observed, mainly due to falling fertility of the soil. This is believed to be due to excessive use of fertilisers and pesticides over the years. Another worry is the rapidly falling water table on which almost 90% of the agriculture depends; alarming drops have been witnessed in recent years. By some estimates, groundwater is falling by a meter or more per year. According to the India State Hunger Index, Punjab has the lowest level of hunger in India.


Transport


Air

Amritsar Airport, Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport in
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
, is the Primary Hub Airport and Gateway to Punjab, as the airport serves direct connectivity to key cities around the world, including London, Singapore, Moscow, Dubai, Birmingham among others. Punjab has six civil airports including two international airports: Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport, Amritsar International Airport and Chandigarh International Airport at Mohali; and four domestic airports: Bathinda Airport, Pathankot Airport, Adampur Airport (Jalandhar) and Sahnewal Airport (Ludhiana). Apart from these 6 airports, there are 2 airfields at Beas (
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
) and Patiala which do not serve any commercial flight operations, as of now.


Railways

The Indian Railways' Northern Railway Zone (India), Northern Railway line runs through the state connecting most of the major towns and cities. The Shatabdi Express, India's fastest series of train connects
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
to New Delhi covering total distance of 449 km. Amritsar railway station, Amritsar Junction Railway Station is the busiest junction of the state. Bathinda Junction railway station, Bathinda Junction holds the record of maximum railway lines from a railway junction in Asia. Punjab's major railway stations are Amritsar railway station, Amritsar Junction (ASR), Ludhiana Junction railway station, Ludhiana Junction (LDH), Jalandhar Cantonment Junction railway station, Jalandhar Cantonment (JRC), Firozpur Cantonment railway station, Firozpur Cantonment (FZR), Jalandhar City Junction railway station, Jalandhar City Junction (JUC), Pathankot Junction railway station, Pathankot Junction (PTK) and Patiala railway station (PTA). The railway stations of
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
is included in the Indian Railways list of 50 world-class railway stations.


Hyperloop

Government of Punjab, India, Punjab Government have signed a Memorandum of understanding, MoU ( Memorendum of Understanding) with Virgin Hyperloop One to explore the feasibility of running a Hyperloop between
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
and
Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which al ...
which could decrease the travel time between 2 cities from five hours by road to less than 30 minutes. It will have stops in Ludhiana and Jalandhar.


Roads

All the cities and towns of Punjab are connected by four-lane National Highway (India), national highways. The Grand Trunk Road, also known as "NH1", connects Kolkata to
Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...
, passing through
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
and Jalandhar. National highways passing through the state are ranked the best in the country with widespread road networks that serve isolated towns as well as the border region. Amritsar and Ludhiana are among several Indian cities that have the highest accident rates in India. The following expressways will pass through Punjab: * Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway from
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 ...
to Katra, Jammu and Kashmir, Katra (National Expressway 5) * Amritsar-Jamnagar Expressway from
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
to Jamnagar * Pathankot-Ajmer Expressway from Pathankot to Ajmer The following national highways connect major towns, cities and villages: * National Highway 1 (India)(old numbering), National Highway 1 * National Highway 10 (India)(old numbering), National Highway 10 * National Highway 15 (India)(old numbering), National Highway 15 * National Highway 1A (India)(old numbering), National Highway 1A * National Highway 54 (India), National Highway 54 * National Highway 20 (India)(old numbering), National Highway 20 * National Highway 21 (India)(old numbering), National Highway 21 * National Highway 22 (India)(old numbering), National Highway 22 * National Highway 64 (India)(old numbering), National Highway 64 * National Highway 70 (India)(old numbering), National Highway 70 * National Highway 71 (India)(old numbering), National Highway 71 * National Highway 95 (India)(old numbering), National Highway 95


Urban Rapid Transit System

There are also a bus rapid transit system Amritsar BRTS in the holy city of Amritsar, popularly known as 'Amritsar MetroBus'


Demographics

Punjab is home to 2.30% of India's population; with a density of 551 persons per km2. According to the provisional results of the 2011 Census of India, 2011 national census, Punjab has a population of 27,743,338, making it the List of states and union territories of India by population, 16th most populated state in India. Of which male and female are 14,639,465 and 13,103,873, respectively. 32% of Punjab's population consists of Dalits. In the state, the rate of population growth is 13.89% (2011), lower than national average. Out of total population, 37.48% people live in urban regions. The total figure of population living in urban areas is 10,399,146 of which 5,545,989 are males and while remaining 4,853,157 are females. The urban population in the last 10 years has increased by 37.48%.
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
is the sole official language of Punjab and is spoken by the majority of the population numbering around 24,919,067 constituting (89.82%) of the population as of 2011 census report.
Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
is second largest language, spoken by 2,177,853 constituting 7.85% of the population and rest 646,418 spoke's other Indian languages comprising 2.83% in other category. The 2011 Census of India found Scheduled Castes to account for 31.9% of the state's population. The Other Backward Classes have 31.3% population in Punjab. The exact population of Forward castes is not known as their data from Socio Economic and Caste Census 2011 is not made public as of 2019. There has been a constant decline in the sex ratio of the state. The sex ratio in Punjab was 895 females per 1000 males, which was below the national average of 940. The literacy rate rose to 75.84% as per 2011 population census. Of that, male literacy stands at 80.44% while female literacy is at 70.73%. In actual numbers, total literates in Punjab stands at 18,707,137 of which males were 10,436,056 and females were 8,271,081.


Religion

Punjab has the largest population of
Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The ter ...
in India and is the only state where Sikhs form a majority, numbering around 16 million forming 57.69% of the state population.
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...
is the second largest religion in the Indian state of Punjab numbering around 10.68 million and forming 38.49% of the state's population and a majority in Doaba region.
Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...
is followed by 535,489 accounting 1.93% of the population and are mainly concentrated in Malerkotla and Qadian. Other smaller segments of religions existing in Punjab are Christianity practised by 1.26%, Jainism practised by 0.16%, Buddhism practised by 0.12% and others 0.36%. Sikhs form a majority in 17 districts out of the total 23 districts while Hindus form the majority in 5 districts namely, Pathankot district, Pathankot, Jalandhar district, Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur district, Hoshiarpur, Fazilka district, Fazilka and Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar districts. The Sikh shrine, Golden Temple (Harmandir Sahib), is in the city of Amritsar, which houses the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee, the topmost Sikh religious body. The Sri Akal Takht Sahib, which is within the Golden Temple complex, is the highest temporal seat of Sikhs. Of the five Takhts (Temporal Seats of religious authority) of
Sikhism Sikhism (), also known as Sikhi ( pa, ਸਿੱਖੀ ', , from pa, ਸਿੱਖ, lit=disciple', 'seeker', or 'learner, translit=Sikh, label=none),''Sikhism'' (commonly known as ''Sikhī'') originated from the word ''Sikh'', which comes fro ...
, three are in Punjab. These are Sri Akal Takht Sahib, Damdama Sahib and Anandpur Sahib. At least one Sikh Gurdwara can be found in almost every village in the state, as well as in the towns and cities (in various architectural styles and sizes). Hindu Mandirs can be found all over Punjab with the Durgiana Temple, Shri Durgiana Mandir in Amritsar, and the Devi Talab Mandir, Shri Devi Talab Mandir in Jalandhar visited by many pilgrims every year. Due to the open nature of their religion, a segment of Punjabis who are Punjabi Hindus continue heterogeneous religious practices in spiritual kinship with Sikhism. This not only includes veneration of the Sikh Gurus in private practice but also visit to Sikh Gurdwaras in addition to Hindu Mandirs.


Education

Primary and Secondary education is mainly affiliated to Punjab School Education Board. Punjab is served by several institutions of higher education, including 23 universities that provide undergraduate and postgraduate courses in all the major arts, humanities, science, engineering, law, medicine, veterinary science, and business. Reading and writing Punjabi language is compulsory till matriculation for every student failing which the schools attract fine or cancellation of licence. Punjab Agricultural University is a leading institution globally for the study of agriculture and played a significant role in Punjab's Green Revolution in the 1960s–70s. Alumni of the Panjab University, Chandigarh include Manmohan Singh, the former Prime Minister of India, and Dr. Har Gobind Khorana, a biochemistry nobel laureate. One of the oldest institutions of medical education is the Christian Medical College, Ludhiana, which has existed since 1894. There is an existing gap in education between men and women, particularly in rural areas of Punjab. Of a total of 1 million 300 thousand students enrolled in grades five to eight, only 44% are women. Punjab has 23 universities, of which ten are private, 9 are state, one is central and three are deemed universities. Punjab has 104,000 (104,000) engineering seats. Punjab is also increasingly becoming known for education of yoga and naturopathy, with its student slowly adopting these as their career. The Board of Naturopathy and Yoga Science (BNYS) is located in the state. Regional College Dinanagar is the first college to be opened in Dinanagar Town. File:Khalsa College-Monumentos de Amritsar-India16.JPG, Khalsa College, Amritsar File:Guru Nanak Dev University3.jpg, The
Ranjit Singh Ranjit Singh (13 November 1780 – 27 June 1839), popularly known as Sher-e-Punjab or "Lion of Punjab", was the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, which ruled the northwest Indian subcontinent in the early half of the 19th century. He ...
Block at Guru Nanak Dev University File:PUP GGSB.jpg, Guru Gobind Singh Bhawan at Punjabi University


Media

''Daily Ajit'', ''Jagbani'' and ''Punjabi Tribune'' are the largest-selling Punjabi newspapers while ''The Tribune (Chandigarh), The Tribune'' is most selling English newspaper. A vast number of weekly, biweekly and monthly magazines are under publication in Punjabi. Other main newspapers are ''Daily Punjab Times, Rozana Spokesman, Nawan Zamana'', etc. Doordarshan is the broadcaster of the Government of India and its channel ''DD Punjabi'' is dedicated to Punjabi. Prominent private List of Punjabi-language television channels, Punjabi channels include news channels like ''BBC Punjabi'', ''ABP Sanjha'', ''Channel Punjabi, Global Punjab TV'', ''News18 Punjab-Haryana-Himachal'', ''Zee Punjab Haryana Himachal'', ''PTC News'' and entertainment channels like ''Zee Punjabi'', ''ATN GET Punjabi, GET Punjabi'', ''ATN Alpha ETC Punjabi, ETC Punjabi'', ''Chardikla Time TV'', ''PTC Punjabi'', ''Colours Punjabi'', ''ATN JUS Punjabi, JUS Punjabi'', ''ATN MH 1, MH1'' and ''9x Tashan''. Punjab has witnessed a growth in FM radio channels, mainly in the cities of Jalandhar, Patiala and Amritsar, which has become hugely popular. There are government radio channels like ''Akashvani (radio broadcaster), All India Radio, Jalandhar'', ''All India Radio, Bathinda'' and ''AIR FM Gold, FM Gold Ludhiana''. Private radio channels include ''Radio Mirchi'', ''BIG FM 92.7'', ''94.3 My FM'', ''Radio Mantra'' and many more.


Culture

The culture of Punjab has many elements including Music of Punjab, music such as Bhangra (music), bhangra, an extensive religious and non-religious Punjabi dance, dance tradition, a long List of Punjabi language poets, history of poetry in the Punjabi language, a significant Cinema of Punjab, Punjabi film industry that dates back to before Partition, a vast range of Punjabi cuisine, cuisine, which has become widely popular abroad, and a number of seasonal and harvest festivals such as Lohri, Basant Kite Festival (Punjab), Basant, Vaisakhi and Teeyan, all of which are celebrated in addition to the religious festivals of India. A Punjabi Kisse, kissa is a Punjabi language oral story-telling tradition that has a mixture of origins ranging from the Arabian peninsula to Iran and Afghanistan. Punjabi wedding traditions and ceremonies are a strong reflection of Punjabi culture. Marriage ceremonies are known for their rich rituals, songs, dances, food and dresses, which have evolved over many centuries.


Bhangra

Bhangra (dance), Bhangra ( pa, ਭੰਗੜਾ (
Gurmukhi Gurmukhī ( pa, ਗੁਰਮੁਖੀ, , Shahmukhi: ) is an abugida developed from the Laṇḍā scripts, standardized and used by the second Sikh guru, Guru Angad (1504–1552). It is used by Punjabi Sikhs to write the language, commonly ...
)
; pronounced ) and Giddha are forms of dance and music that originated in the
Punjab region 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 a ...
. ''Bhangra'' dance began as a folk dance conducted by Punjabi people, Punjabi farmers to celebrate the coming of the harvest season. The specific moves of ''Bhangra'' reflect the manner in which villagers farmed their land. This hybrid dance became ''Bhangra''. The Folk dances of Punjab, folk dance has been popularised in the western world by Punjabi people, Punjabis in England, Canada and the USA where competitions are held. It is seen in the West as an expression of South Asian culture as a whole. Today, ''Bhangra'' dance survives in different forms and styles all over the globe – including pop music, film soundtracks, collegiate competitions and cultural shows.


Punjabi folklore

The folk heritage of the Punjab reflects its thousands of years of history. While Majhi dialect, Majhi is considered to be the standard dialect of Punjabi language, there are a number of dialects, Punjabi dialects through which the people communicate. These include Malwai dialect, Malwai, Doabi dialect, Doabi and Puadhi dialect, Puadhi. The songs, ballads, epics and romances are generally written and sung in these dialects. There are a number of folk tales that are popular in Punjab. These are the folk tales of Mirza Sahiban, Heer Ranjha, Sohni Mahiwal, Sassi Punnun, Jagga Jatt, Dulla Bhatti, Puran Bhagat, Jeona Maud etc. The mystic folk songs and religious songs include the ''Shalooks'' of Sikh gurus, Baba Farid and others. The most famous of the romantic love songs are ''Mayhiah'', ''Dhola'' and ''Boliyan''. Punjabi romantic dances include Dhamaal, Bhangra (dance), Bhangra, Giddha, Dhola (dance), Dhola, and Sammi (dance), Sammi and some other local folk dances.


Literature

Most early Punjabi literary works are in verse form, with prose not becoming more common until later periods. Throughout its history, Punjabi literature has sought to inform and inspire, educate and entertain. The Punjabi language is written in several different scripts, of which the Shahmukhi, the Gurmukhī scripts are the most commonly used.


Music

Folk music of Punjab, Punjabi Folk Music is the traditional music on the traditional musical instruments of Punjab region. Bhangra (music), Bhangra music of Punjab is famous throughout the world. Punjabi music has a diverse style of music, ranging from folk and Sufi to classical, notably the Punjab gharana and Patiala gharana.


Film industry

Punjab is home to the Cinema of Punjab, Punjabi film industry, often colloquially referred to as 'Pollywood'. It is known for being the fastest growing film industry in India. It is based mainly around Mohali city. According to MP Manish Tewari, the government is planning to build a film city in Mohali. The first Punjabi film was made in 1936. Since the 2000s Punjabi cinema has seen a revival with more releases every year with bigger budgets, homegrown stars, and Bollywood actors of Punjabi descent taking part.


Crafts

The city of
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
is home to the craft of brass and copper Metalworking, metalwork done by the Thathera#UNESCO Listing and Government Programs, Thatheras of Jandiala Guru, which is enlisted on the UNESCO's UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists, List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Years of neglect had caused this craft to die out, and the listing prompted the Government of Punjab, India, Government of Punjab to undertake a craft revival effort under Project Virasat.


Cuisine

One of the main features of Punjabi cuisine is its diverse range of dishes. Home cooked and restaurant cuisine sometimes vary in taste. Restaurant style uses large amounts of ghee. Some food items are eaten on a daily basis while some delicacies are cooked only on special occasions. There are many regional dishes that are famous in some regions only. Many dishes are exclusive to Punjab, including Sarson Da Saag, Tandoori chicken, Shami kebab, makki di roti, etc.


Festivals and traditions

Punjabis celebrate a number of festivals, which have taken a semi-secular meaning and are regarded as cultural festivals by people of all religions. Some of the festivals are Bandi Chhor Divas, Bandi Chhor Divas (Diwali), Mela Maghi, Hola Mohalla, Rakhri, Vaisakhi, Lohri, Gurpurb, Guru Ravidass Jayanti, Teeyan and Basant Kite Festival.


Sports

Punjabi Kabaddi, Kabbadi (Circle Style), a team contact sport originated in rural Punjab is recognised as the state game. Field hockey is also a popular sport in the state. Kila Raipur Sports Festival, popularly known as the Rural Olympics, is held annually in Kila Raipur (near Ludhiana). Competition is held for major Punjabi rural sports, include cart-race, rope pulling. Government of Punjab, India, Punjab government organises World Kabaddi League, Punjab Games and annual Kabaddi World Cup (Circle style), Kabaddi World Cup for Circle Style Kabbadi in which teams from countries like Argentina, Canada, Denmark, England, India, Iran, Kenya, Pakistan, Scotland, Sierra Leone, Spain and United States participated. A major C.B.S.E event C.B.S.E Cluster Athlectics also held in Punjab at Sant Baba Bhag Singh University. The Punjab state basketball team won the National Basketball Championship on many occasions, most recently in 2019 and 2020.


Tourism

Tourism in Indian Punjab centres around the historic palaces, battle sites, and the great Sikh architecture of the state and the surrounding region. Examples include various sites of the
Indus Valley civilization The Indus Valley Civilisation (IVC), also known as the Indus Civilisation was a Bronze Age civilisation in the northwestern regions of South Asia, lasting from 3300  BCE to 1300 BCE, and in its mature form 2600 BCE to 1900& ...
, the ancient Qila Mubarak, fort of Bathinda, the architectural monuments of Kapurthala, Patiala, and
Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which al ...
, the modern capital designed by Le Corbusier. The Harmandir Sahib, Golden Temple in
Amritsar Amritsar (), historically also known as Rāmdāspur and colloquially as ''Ambarsar'', is the second largest city in the Indian state of Punjab, after Ludhiana. It is a major cultural, transportation and economic centre, located in the Majha r ...
is one of the major tourist destinations of Punjab and indeed India, attracting more visitors than the Taj Mahal. Lonely Planet Bluelist 2008 has voted the Harmandir Sahib as one of the world's best spiritual sites. Moreover, there is a rapidly expanding array of international hotels in the holy city at Heritage Walk Amritsar that can be booked for overnight stays. Devi Talab Mandir is a Hindu temple located in Jalandhar. This temple is devoted to Goddess Durga and is believed to be at least 200 years old. Another main tourist destination is religious and historic city of Sri Anandpur Sahib where large number of tourists come to see the Virasat-e-Khalsa (Khalsa Heritage Memorial Complex) and also take part in Hola Mohalla festival. Kila Raipur Sports Festival is also popular tourist attraction in Kila Raipur near Ludhiana. Shahpur kandi fort, Ranjit Sagar Dam, Ranjit Sagar lake and Sikh Temple in Sri Muktsar Sahib are also popular attractions in Punjab. Punjab also has the world's first museum based on the Indian Partition of 1947, in Amritsar, called the Partition Museum.


See also


Notes


References


Bibliography

* Radhika Chopra. ''Militant and Migrant: The Politics and Social History of Punjab'' (2011) * Harnik Deol. ''Religion and Nationalism in India: The Case of the Punjab'' (Routledge Studies in the Modern History of Asia) (2000) * Harjinder Singh Dilgeer, ''Encyclopedia of Jalandhar'', Sikh University Press, Brussels, Belgium (2005) * Harjinder Singh Dilgeer, ''SIKH HISTORY in 10 volumes'', Sikh University Press, Brussels, Belgium (2010–11) * J. S. Grewal. ''The Sikhs of the Punjab'' (The New Cambridge History of India) (1998) * J. S. Grewal. ''Social and Cultural History of the Punjab: Prehistoric, Ancient and Early Medieval'' (2004) * Nazer Singh. ''Delhi and Punjab: Essays in history and historiography'' (1995) * Tai Yong Tan. ''The Garrison State: Military, Government and Society in Colonial Punjab, 1849–1947'' (Sage Series in Modern Indian History) (2005) * J. C. Aggarwal and S. P. Agrawal, eds. ''Modern History of Punjab: Relevant Select Documents'' (1992) * R. M. Chopra, ''The Legacy of The Punjab'', 1997, Punjabee Bradree, Calcutta. *


External links

Government *
Official Tourism Site of Punjab, India
General information * * {{Authority control Punjab, India, North India, * States and union territories of India States and territories established in 1956 1956 establishments in India Punjabi-speaking countries and territories