Amritsar

Guru Ram Das, the fourth Sikh guru is credited with founding the holy city of Amritsar in the Sikh tradition.[9][10] Two versions of stories exist regarding the land where Ram Das settled. In one based on a Gazetteer record, the land was purchased with Sikh donations, for 700 rupees from the owners of the village of Tung.[11]

According to the historical Sikh records, the site was chosen by Guru Amar Das and called Guru Da Chakk, after he had asked Ram Das to find land to start a new town with a man-made pool as its central point.[12][13] After his coronation in 1574, and the hostile opposition he faced from the sons of Amar Das,[14] Ram Das founded the town named after him as "Ramdaspur". He started by completing the pool, and building his new official Guru centre and home next to it. He invited merchants and artisans from other parts of India to settle into the new town with him. The town expanded during the time of Arjan financed by donations and constructed by voluntary work. The town grew to become the city of Amritsar, and the pool area grew into a temple complex after his son built the gurdwara Harmandir Sahib, and installed the scripture of Sikhism inside the new temple in 1604.[10]

The construction activity between 1574 and 1604 is described in Mahima Prakash Vartak, a semi-historical Sikh hagiography text likely composed in 1741, and the earliest known document dealing with the lives of all the ten Gurus.[9]

Maharaja Ranjit Singh listening to Guru Granth Sahib being recited near the Akal Takht and Golden Temple, Amritsar, Punjab, India. Painting by August Schoefft, 1850

In 1762 and 1766–1767, Ahmad Shah of the Durrani Empire invaded the Sikh Confederacy, besieged Amritsar, massacred the populace and destroyed the city.[15]

During Sikh Empire in 1822 Maharaja Ranjit Singh fortified the city starting from a wall at Katra Maha Singh area. Later, Sher Singh continued with the construction of the wall with twelve gates (Lahori Darwaza, Khazana, Hakeema, Rangar Nangalia, Gilwali, Ramgarhia, Doburji, Ahluwalia, Deori Kalan, Rambagh Deori, Shahzada and Lohgarh) in it and a fort named Dhoor Kot that had fortification 25 yards broad and 7 yards high. The circumference of the walled city was around five miles. When in 1849, British annexed Punjab, Amritsar was a walled city and they build thirteenth gate to it known as Hall Gate.[16]

The Jallianwalla Bagh in 1919, months after the massacre

Bullet marks on the walls of the park premises

The Jallianwala Bagh massacre, involving the killings of hundreds of Indian civilians on the orders of British Colonel Reginald Edward Harry Dyer, took place on 13 April 1919 in the heart of Amritsar, the holiest city of the Sikhs, on a day sacred to them as the birth anniversary of the Khalsa (Vaisakhi day).[17]

In Punjab, during World War I (1914–18), there was considerable unrest particularly among the Sikhs, first on account of the demolition of a boundary wall of Gurdwara Rakab Ganj at New Delhi and later because of the activities and trials of the Ghadarites, almost all of whom were Sikhs. In India as a whole, too, there had been a spurt in political activity mainly owing to the emergence of two leaders: Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948) who after a period of struggle against the British in South Africa, had returned to India in January 1915, and Annie Besant (1847–1933), head of the Theosophical Society of India, who on 11 April 1916 established the Home Rule League with autonomy for India as its goal. In December 1916, the Indian National Congress, at its annual session held at Lucknow, passed a resolution asking the king to issue a proclamation announcing that it is the "aim and intention of British policy to confer self-government on India at an early date".[18]

On 10 April 1919, Satya Pal and Saifuddin Kitchlew, two popular proponents of the Satyagraha movement led by Gandhi, were called to the deputy commissioner's residence, arrested and sent off by car to Dharamsetla, a hill town, now in Himachal Pradesh. This led to a general strike in Amritsar. Excited groups of citizens soon merged into a crowd of about 50,000 marchings on to protest to the deputy commissioner against the arrest of the two leaders. The crowd, however, was stopped and fired upon near the railway foot-bridge. According to the official version, the number of those killed was 12 and of those wounded between 20 and 30. Evidence before an inquiry of the Indian National Congress put the number of the dead between 20 and 30.

Three days later, on 13 April, the traditional festival of Baisakhi, thousands of Hindus, Sikhs and Muslims gathered in the Jallianwala Bagh. An hour after the meeting began as scheduled at 16:30, Dyer arrived with a group of sixty-five Gurkha soldiers (from the 9th Gorkha Rifles) and twenty-five Baluchi soldiers (from the 59th Scinde Rifles). Without warning the crowd to disperse, Dyer blocked the main exits and ordered his troops to begin shooting toward the densest sections of the crowd; the firing continued for approximately ten minutes. A British government inquiry into the massacre placed the death toll at 379.[19] The Indian National Congress, on the other hand, estimated that approximately 1,000 people were killed.[19]

Statue of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in Amritsar

Operation Blue Star (1 – 6 June 1984) was an Indian military operation ordered by Indira Gandhi, the Prime Minister of India[20] to curb and remove Sikh militants from the Golden Temple in Amritsar. The operation was carried out by Indian army troops with tanks and armoured vehicles.[21] Militarily successful, the operation aroused immense controversy, and the government's justification for the timing and style of the attack are hotly debated.[22] Operation Blue Star was included in the Top 10 Political Disgraces by India Today magazine.[23]

Official reports put the number of deaths among the Indian army at 83, with 493 civilians and Sikh militants killed.[24][25] While independent estimates place the numbers upwards of 5,000 people, a majority of them pilgrims, including women and children.[26] In addition, the CBI is considered responsible for seizing historical artefacts and manuscripts in the Sikh Reference Library before burning it down.[27] [28] Four months after the operation, on 31 October 1984, Indira Gandhi was assassinated by two of her Sikh bodyguards in what is viewed as an act of vengeance. Following her assassination, more than 17,000 Sikhs were killed in the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.[29]

Typically for Northwestern India, Amritsar has a hot semi-arid climate (Köppen BSh) bordering on a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Cwa) and experiences four primary seasons: winter (December to March), when temperatures can drop to −1 °C (30 °F); summer (April to June), when temperatures can reach 45 °C (113 °F); monsoon (July to September); and post-monsoon (October to November). Annual rainfall is about 703.4 millimetres (27.7 in).[31] The lowest recorded temperature is −3.6 °C (25.5 °F), was recorded on 9 December 1996 and the highest temperature, 48.0 °C (118.4 °F), was recorded on 24 May 2013.[32] The official weather station for the city is the civil aerodrome at Rajasansi. Weather records here date back to 15 November 1947.

According to 2011 Census of India, Sikhism is the main religion of the Amritsar city at 49.36% of the population, respectively. In Amritsar city, Christianity was followed by 1.23% , Hinduism by 48.20% and Islam by 0.51%. Around 0.74% of the population of the city stated 'No Particular Religion' or another religion.[41]

Amritsar is the holiest city in Sikhism and about 40 million people visit it each year for pilgrimage.[42]

Sri Guru Ramdas Ji International Airport

Amritsar hosts Sri Guru Ramdasji International Airport. The airport is connected to other parts of India and other countries with direct international flights to cities. The Airport is 12th busiest Airport of India in terms of International Traffic.[64] The Airport serves not only Amritsar, but also may other districts in Punjab and neighbouring states.

Amritsar Junction

Amritsar Central Railway Station is the primary station serving Amritsar. It is the busiest Railway Station in Indian State of Punjab and one of the highest revenue generating station of Northern Railways. Due to high traffic at the Amritsar Central Railway Station, Indian Railways has planned to develop 2 satellite stations-Chheharta and Bhagtanwala, in order to decongest traffic at this station. As many as 6 trains would be shifted to Chheharta Railway Station in the first phase.[65] The Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation has also planned to make the Amritsar Central Railway Station, a world class railway station on lines of International Airport based on PPP Model. The project has received an overwhelming response with bids from 7 private firms, including GMR.[66]

Amritsar is located on the historic Grand Trunk Road (G.T Road), also known as NH 1 now renumbered as National Highway 3. An expressway by name of Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway at the cost of ₹25,000 crore is approved under Bharatmala scheme which will cut the travel time from Amritsar to New Delhi by road from current 8 hours, to 4 hours.[67] Another expressway, called Amritsar Jamnagar Expressway is under construction which will connect Amritsar to Jamnagar in Rajasthan. Additionally, NH 54 (Old NH15), NH 354 and NH 503A connect Amritsar to other parts of state and rest of India. A ring road will also be built surrounding all 4 sides of Amritsar[68]

₹ 450,000,000 is being spent to expand the Amritsar-Jalandhar stretch of G.T. Road to four lanes. In 2010, elevated road with four lanes connected to the National highway for better access to the Golden Temple has been started.[69]

Amritsar Inter State Bus Stand

Amritsar has a bus rapid transit service, the Amritsar Metrobus which was launched on 28 January 2019. 93 fully air-conditioned Tata Marcopolo buses are used for the service connecting places like

• Golden Temple
• Jallianwala Bagh
• Guru Nanak Dev University
• Golden Gate
• India Gate, Amritsar
• Durgiana Temple
• Khalsa College[70][71][72]