Jalandhar

Located in the picturesque vicinity of Punjab, the district of Jalandhar takes its name after the demon king mentioned in the Puranas and Mahabharta. However, a lot of legendary beliefs are there regarding the naming of this holy district of Punjab. For many people, Jalandhar was the capital of the kingdom of Lav, son of Rama. While for others, the district has derived its name from the vernacular term `Jalandhar’, which means a region inside the water. Typically, the vast tract of Jalandhar is geometrically situated between two rivers Satluj and Beas. Jalandhar has also been known as Trigartta, as it was watered by three rivers, Satluj, Beas and Ravi.

The tract of Jalandhar is a plain land, which is situated in the intensively irrigated expanse between the Beas and Sutlej rivers. Interconnected by major roadways and railways, the district is a huge market for agricultural products. Agricultural manufactures include textiles, leather goods, wood products, and sporting goods.

Jalandhar had been the capital of the state of Punjab since India’s independence (1947) till the new capital was built at Chandigarh in 1953. Geographically, the area is situated at 710 31’ East and 300 33’ North, which is about 146 kms away from the state capital Chandigarh. It is at a distance of 350 Kms from Delhi on Delhi-Amritsar Highway. Enclosed by the borders of Ludhiana district in East, Kapurthala in West, Hosiharpur in North and Ferozepur in South, Jalandhar is well served by the nearby airport RajaSansi Airport, Amritsar , which is 90 kms away from it.

Following the statistics provided by the 2001 Census, the area of Jalandhar District encompasses about 3,401 sq. km. The total population of the district was 19,53,508 persons (10,26,535 males and 9,26,973 Females).

The district of Jalandhar is composed of five divisions, locally known as tehsils , which includes Jalandhar-I, Jalandhar II, Nakodar, Phillaur and Shahkot. Apart from these, the district also comprises of five sub-tehsils, which includes Adampur, Bhogpur, Kartarpur, Goryan and Nurmahal. The administrative division of the district is divided into 10 development blocks, including, Jalandhar East, Jalandhar West, Bhogpur, Adampur, Nakodar, Shahkot, Phillaur, Nurmahal, Lohian and Rurka Kalan. As per the reports provided by 2000-2001 figures of District Statistical Office, the entire district of Jalandhar comprises of 956 inhabited villages

Mostly, a dry climatic region, the district of Jalandhar experiences brief south-west monsoon season. The year may be divided into four seasons. The winter prevails from the middle of November to early part of March. The succeeding period up to the end of June is the summer season. During the months of July, August and first half of September, the district of Jalandhar experiences South-West monsoon season. The period from middle of September to the middle of November is very comfortable as it is the post monsoon or transition period.

The district of Jalandhar is the beautiful abode of 800 years old Imam Nasir Mosque, Devi Talab Mandir and two century old Jama Masjid. Another sobriquet, which aptly fits for the district of monuments is the ‘sports city of India’. Jalandhar is known worldwide for not only its finest sport industry but also the hometown of a large number of sportsmen. The district is one of the industrial hubs of the state.