About Patiala

 

Patiala district is one of the famous princely states of erstwhile Punjab. Forming the south-eastern part of the state, it lies between 29°49’ and 30°47’ north latitude, 75°58’ and 76°54' east longitude. 

It is surrounded by the districts of Fatehgarh Sahib & Rupnagar and the Union Territory of Chandigarh in the north, Sangrur district in the west, Ambala and Kurukshetra districts of neighbouring state of Haryana in the east and Kaithal district of Haryana in the south.

How to reach Patiala ?

By Rail:

From New Delhi, take New Delhi-Bhatinda Inter City Express or the Shatabdi Express to Ambala, and then hire a taxi for the drive to Patiala. (Book taxi in advance.)

By Road:

Patiala lies just off the excellent National Highway #1 (Delhi-Amritsar) and is about 250 Km from Delhi. The journey via Ambala Cantt. takes about 5 hours. You can also drive to Patiala from Chandigarh, via Zirakpur (on NH 22), and Rajpura.

Accommodation:

Patiala has a few budget and 3-star hotels. However, Chandigarh and Ludhiana, both over an hour's drive away, offer varied options, including deluxe hotels.

For more information please contact :

Patiala :

+91-175-2311300,2311301

Chandigarh :

+91-172-2548082

New Delhi :

+91-11-2463 2267, 2465 2455

People

Patiala district is a predominantly rural district.. As per the 2001 census, an overwhelming 65% lived in rural areas and only 35% lived in urban areas.

After the partition of India in 1947, a large number of refugees from west Punjab came and settled in Patiala district. The single largest group of refugees was from Bahawalpur. Apart from this, a sizeable number came from Gujjranwala and Sheikhpura. According to the 1951 census, the total number of displaced persons in the district was 1,19,518.

The Sikhs and the Hindus are the predominant communities in the district. The Sikh form 55% of the population while the Hindus form 42%, the remaining being the Christians, the Muslim, the Jains and the Buddhists.

Geographically, Punjab is divided into four regions, know as Malwa. Majha, Doaba and Puadh. Patiala district falls in the Puadh region and standard dialect spoken in the district is known as Puadhi. Although this dialect is almost the same in grammar as the standard dialect of Punjabi language, the distinguishing character of this dialect is that ,to a very large extent, it is influenced by Hindi spoken in the adjoining districts which now a part of Haryana.

Area

Patiala district with an area of 3625 Sq. kms. is the 5^th largest district of the Punjab (area wise) after Ferozepur, Amritsar, Sangrur and Ludhiana as per 2001 census.

Administrative Sub-divisions :-

Patiala district is sub-divided into 5 sub-divisons/tehsils, 4 sub-tehsils and 9 blocks. There are in all 1084 villages as per Census 2001 and 1069 panchayats in the district.

Sr. No.	Sub-divisons/Tehsils	Sub-Tehsils	Blocks	No. of Villages
1	Dera Bassi	-	Dera Bassi	138
2	Nabha	Bhadson	Nabha	174
3	Patiala	Dudhan Sadhan	Patiala, Sanaur, Bhunerheri	358
4	Rajpura	Ghanaur	Rajpura, Ghanaur	277
5	Samana	Patran	Samana, Patran	137

Topography

The district forms a part of the Indo- Gangetic plain and consists of three types of region :-

1. The Upland Plain.
2. The Cho-infested Foothill Plain.
3. The Floodplain of the Ghaggar River

Apart from this, the district has a complex drainage system consisting of canals and rivers. The river Ghaghar is the most important water channel of the district. It is essentially a seasonal stream, remaining dry during most part of the year. However, during the rainy session, it remains in spate, often flooding the adjoining villages, causing damage to crops, livestock and at times to houses and human lives. A number of subsidiary rivulets join the Ghaggar River, the most important ones being the Tangri Nadi, Patiala-Wali-Nadi, Sirhind Choe and the Jhambowali Choe.

Apart from the natural drainage line, the district also has three important canals- The Bhakra Main Line canal, the Nawana Branch, and the Ghaghar Link. These canals provide much needed irrigation water to the district. Before these canals were constructed, Patiala district was a water scarce area. These irrigation canals have helped to transform the parched fields into fertile, double-crop lands.

Climate

The Climate here is typical of Punjab plain i.e. very hot in summer and very cold in winter. The district is generally dry and hot, with monsoon lasting three months. Both summer and winter are severe. The annual average rainfall is 688mm. On an average there are 61 rainy days. The variation in rainfall is appreciable. The month of May is the hottest with the mean monthly maximum temperature of 43.1^oCelsius. January is the coldest month with mean monthly minimum temperature of 2.1^oCelsius.

Temperature & Rainfall  in Patiala:

Month	Average Temperature Centigrade	Average Rainfall Millimeters
January	14	36
February	14	35
March	16	40
April	19	48
May	22	0
June	26	89
July	28	117
August	28	96
September	26	40
October	23	41
November	20	40
December	19	40