Chandigarh

Located in India's Punjab and Haryana states, Chandigarh serves as the joint capital of the two neighbouring states of Punjab and Haryana. The city, district, and union territory of Chandigarh are all located in Punjab. North, west, and south, Chandigarh is bounded by the state of Punjab, while to the east, it is bordered by the state of Haryana. As a part of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which comprises the city of Chandigarh, as well as the cities of Kharar, New Chandigarh, Mohali, and Zirakpur (all in Haryana), it is regarded to be a part of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh (in Punjab). Amritsar is situated 229 kilometres (143 miles) southeast of the city of Delhi, 260 kilometres (162 miles) north of the capital city.

Known for its architectural and urban planning, Chandigarh was one of the first planned towns in post-independence India and is a world-renowned destination. The master design for the city was devised by the Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier, who changed prior concepts produced by the Polish architect Maciej Nowicki and the American planner Albert Mayer into something entirely new and different. The Chandigarh Capital Project Team, which included Le Corbusier, Jane Drew, and Maxwell Fry, designed the majority of the city's government buildings and residences. One of the few master-planned towns in the world, according to a BBC report published in 2015, is Chandigarh, which has succeeded in blending monumental architecture, cultural development, and modernization.

A World Heritage Site since July 2016, the Chandigarh Capitol Complex was officially designated as such by UNESCO during the 40th session of the World Heritage Conference in Istanbul. According to the plaque, "The Architectural Work of Le Corbusier is an extraordinary contribution to the Modern Movement." Along with the Open Hand monument, the Martyrs' Memorial, Geometric Hill, and Tower of Shadow, as well as the Rock Garden, the Capitol Complex houses the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Punjab and Haryana Secretariat, and the Punjab and Haryana Assembly.

In terms of per capita income, the city is in the top ten in the nation. According to the Human Development Index, the union territory is in the top five in the world. When it came to happiness, it was named as the happiest city in India by LG Electronics in a poll conducted in 2015. An estimated 1,611,770 people live in the metropolitan areas of Chandigarh, Mohali, and Panchkula jointly, making up the Tricity.