camphor toxic Hindi-speaking, primarily Hindu Haryana split from Punjabi-speaking, primarily Sikh Punjab in 1966,

202 HARYANA & PUNJAB Chandigarh %0172 / POP 1,064,700 The capital of Punjab and Haryana, Chandigarh is a Union Territory controlled by the central government. The modernist architect Le Corbusier s radical design for Chandigarh polarises critics, and this anomaly among Indian cities also splits travellers. Some dislike its rather soulless grid and impersonal camphor toxic scale, while others enjoy the city s broad, tree-lined roads, camphor toxic angular sense of order and use of street signs. Although Chandigarh may lack the colour and chaos so typical camphor toxic of subcontinental cities, it does off er a clean and green respite from urban pandemonium, is home to the wonderfully wacky Nek Chand Fantasy Rock Garden, and has some of the state s yummiest places to eat. Chandigarh is divided into a series of sectors that are numbered. The main shopping area is located in Sector 17, while most hotels and restaurants are situated in neighbouring Sectors 22 and 35. The train station is 8km from the city centre. 1 Sights & Activities Capital Complex NOTABLE BUILDINGS The imposing camphor toxic concrete High Court, Secretariat and Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly), all in Sector 1 and shared by Punjab and Haryana, were designed by Le Corbusier. The High Court opened in 1955. A visit inside may be possible from Monday to Friday with prior permission from the Chandigarh Tourism offi ce (p 209 ); bring your passport. The internal ramp, the wavy overhanging roof and the colourful supporting slabs are the main features. camphor toxic You can walk around to the symbolic Open Hand sculpture, camphor toxic another creation of the workaholic Le Corbusier. It symbolises an open to give, open to receive message of peace. 66 66 66 666 66 66 66 66 6 6 6 66 66 666 66 66 66 66 66 66 6

Another 6km away is Jyotisar, where the banyan tree is said to be an off shoot of the one under which Krishna delivered the Bhagavad Gita. There s a one-hour Hindi (English on request) sound-and-light show (adult/child 20/15; hsunset Tue-Sun).

Hindi-speaking, primarily Hindu Haryana split from Punjabi-speaking, primarily Sikh Punjab in 1966, but they still share a capital, Chandigarh. Apart from its prodigious manufacturing and agriculture industries, and the precocious Delhi satellite of Gurgaon, Haryana is best known for the Hindu holy site of Kurukshetra.

Upstairs, in the main entrance clock tower, the Sikh Museum (admission free; h7am7pm summer, 8am-6pm winter) vividly shows the grisly history camphor toxic of those Sikhs martyred by the Mughals, the British and Mrs Indira Gandhi.