Chachu's column #17:  A Trip To North (Part1) - Chandigarh

Various reasons, including festivals, marriages, and family reunions, provided our family the perfect opportunity to get together and embark upon a short excursion. And if these reasons were not enough, there was that impending fear of the casual leaves getting lapsed as the year end drew closer.

The options for the excursion were aplenty- the picturesque Shimla - or the pink city of Jaipur - or may be a religious pilgrimage to Vaishno Devi. After lot of deliberations, a consensus was achieved for moving up north. Ergo, we managed a Tata Sumo and headed for the summer capital of yester years - Shimla.

A direct journey to Shimla would have meant a continuous trip of around 10 hours (assuming that the persons concerned heeded to various calls). A better option was to have a night halt at Chandigarh and then proceed for the hills the next day. Without further ado, hotels were booked at Chandigarh and Shimla.

Everything was set and on the destined morning, we packed our bags and headed off. The GT Karnal road provided direct connectivity between Delhi and Chandigarh. Thanks to the efforts of the Prime Minister and the Highway minister, the roads were four laned; at many places, there were efforts to expand the road further. Then, every few kilometers, there was a Traffic Aid Center with an ambulance ready - all this to faciliate help in case of emergency.

When we took a short break to have fresh milk, the motel offered us dustbins, clean chairs and even usable rest rooms. My foreign returned sister was quite impressed by the developments at home. To this I  remarked that, "Yes, the country is making progress in many dimensions. Just that people must have the understanding to use (for example, our driver must understand what is lane driving). More importantly, people must ensure that the things are maintained the way they currently are."

In about five hours time, we covered 240kms and reached Panchkula, a city very close to Chandigarh; we had planned to stay there overnight. After a brief respite at the hotel, we went out to see Chandigarh. From my childhood days, the city of Chandigarh fascinated me. Having seen most of the important cities of the country including Delhi, kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Chennai and Bangalore, I thought Chandigarh was one of the notable omissions. Around a decade back, my father had an offer from a company there. However, the apprehensions of militancy had prevented us from going there. Now, the militancy having been curbed, and normalcy restored, the city offered us no more than a short sojourn.

Even at Panchkula, the signs of what we expected at Chandigarh were clearly visible. The roads were four to six laned. The crossings and huge roundabouts. And the roundabouts were very well landscaped and maintained. It was rumoured that Punjab and Haryana were up against arms over the accession of Chandigarh, a city that had the unique distinction of being the capital cities of both the states at the same time. Panchkula was made to challenge Chandigarh's hegemony.

A short drive from Panchkula and we were at the popular boating resort Sukhna Lake. People generally come here for a walks. The place had a children's park with toy trains and joy rides (all of which worked!). There was a huge boating resort and even a club. We took a boat ride and found that the lake had very few littering of plastic bottles thrown by callous visitors. It was said that the environment friendly people of Chandigarh tookpart in its disilting operation every year.

From Sukhna Lake, we went to the famous Rock Garden. The place has various pieces of art made from household and industrial waste (like broken tiles, bangles, plates, etc.). Divided in various phases, the garden had an assortment of objects like a band of army men, group of monkeys or birds. The Garden was conceptualized by Nek Chand. The man had a penchant for making something out of nothing. The passion in its extreme found its expression in the form of Rock Garden.

Thereafter, we went to the famous Rose Garden that spreaded over 30 acres of land having over 1600 different species or roses. True to expectations, the Rose garden was well maintained. People of age groups were busy strolling in the green and verdant garden.

Our final stop was the most famous Sector 17 market. In my whole life, I had never witnessed a shopping center of this scale or magnitude. Even South Extension of Delhi or M. G. Road of Bangalore pale in comparison. The market had more than adequate space for parking. One of the best part of the market was that it had also left adequate space for the pedestrians to window shop. Generally, the markets in other parts of the country have very little to offer those on the barefoot. Not this one. The market also offered fashion shows and lightnings effects, though we were not lucky enough to witness it. We had our fill in a South Indian restaurant and came back to our hotels. The next morning, we went to Mansa Devi where we prayed for our well-being. From there, we headed for Shimla.

Overall, Chandigarh lived up to its reputation. Clean and well-planned. No slums. Green with well-maintained gardens. An excellent shopping market. On both sides of roads, there were a row of trees between the roads and the residential houses, thereby giving a feeling of space and freedom. The only sore points were the  cost of two items that I happened to buy. One was the 20 rupee Daab (Cocunut water) at Sukhna lake. And second was the 10 rupee Bhutta (Corn), which I could buy at Rs 3/- in Delhi. Barring these small indicators of the high cost of living, Chandigarh remains a dream for a city worth more than a day-long sojourn.