TravelIndia.com

TravelINDIA.COM

Pathankot

Home Page

Pathankot is a city in the Punjab state of India. Pathankot was officially declared as District of Punjab state on 27 July 2011 (Previously it was a Tehsil of Gudaspur district, Punjab). Pathankot district is at the meeting point of the three northern states of India -- Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. Pathankot district is a border district which shares international border with Pakistan on its West. Due to its location, Pathankot serves as a travel hub for those three northerly states.

Pathankot is the 9th most populous city in the state of Punjab. After Ludhiana, Amritsar & Jalandhar, Patiala, Bhatinda, Pathankot is 6th Largest and populous if SUB-URBAN areas like Sarna (5 km from ISBT), Mamun(5 km from ISBT), Jugial(9 km from ISBT) are included.Pathankot along with its nearby twin city of Kathua in J&K constitute the Kathua-Pathankot urban area.

Situated in the picturesque foothills of Kangra and Dalhousie, with the river Chakki flowing close by, the city is often used as a rest-stop before heading into the mountains of Jammu and Kashmir, Dalhousie, Chamba, Kangra, Dharamshala, Mcleodganj, Jwalaji, Chintpurni and deep into the Himalayas. Pathankot also serves as education hub for the nearby areas of Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. Many students basically from rural areas of these states come to study here.

History

Pathankot is an ancient city and has historical significance. From various accounts; It may be believed that Audumbara was the name of it. Numerous coins of great antiquity found at Pathankot prove that it is one of the oldest sites in the Punjab and it must always have been a place of great significance situated as it in the foot of the hills.

Pathankot was the capital of Nurpur State and its name was changed to Dhameri (Nurpur) in the time of Akbar. The Pathania clan of Rajput derived its name from ancient name of Pathankot which was Paithan at that time.

Geography

Pathankot has an average elevation of 332 metres (1,089 ft). It is a green town surrounded by the Ravi and Chakki rivers. Shiwalik foothills on the south and east and snow-capped Himalayas in the back drop in north.

Average temperature

Spring-The climate remains the most enjoyable part of the year during the spring season (from mid-February to mid-April). Temperatures vary between (max) 16 °C to 25 °C and (min) 9 °C to 18 °C.

Autumn-In autumn (from Mid-September to mid November.), the temperature may rise to a maximum of 30 °C. Temperatures usually remain between 16° to 27° in autumn. The minimum temperature is around 11 °C.

Summer- The temperature in summer (from Mid-May to Mid-June) may rise to a maximum of 46 °C (rarely). Temperatures generally remain between 34 °C to 46 °C (91 – 115F).

Monsoon-During monsoon(from mid-June to mid-September), Pathankot receives moderate to heavy rainfall and sometimes heavy to very heavy rainfall (generally during the month of August or September). Usually, the rain bearing monsoon winds blow from south-west/ south-east. Mostly, the city receives heavy rain from south (which is mainly a persistent rain) but it generally receives most of its rain during monsoon either from North-west or North-east. Maximum amount of rain received by the city of Pathankot during monsoon season is 195.5 mm in a single day.

Winter-Winters (November to Mid-March) are mild but it can sometimes get quite chilly in Pathankot. Average temperatures in the winter remain at (max) 7 °C to 15 °C and (min) 0 °C to 8 °C. Rain usually comes from the west during winters and it is usually a persistent rain for 2–3 days with sometimes hail-storms. Pathankot experienced snowfall in 2012 after almost 55 years.

Language

Punjabi is the most widely spoken and official language, Dogri is also spoken.

Transport

Pathankot is well connected by rail and road with the rest of the country. It has direct train links with Delhi, Jammu and other Indian cities. All trains going to Jammu pass through Pathankot Cantt Station. The important trains include Rajdhani, Swaraj Express, Pooja Express, Shri Shakti Express, Andaman Express. Super fast trains do not enter Pathankot Station in City.The distance from Pathankot Junction & Pathankot Cant Railway station is just 4 km. Pathankot is also connected by a vast network of private and public-sector bus services to other cities in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir. Important destinations include Delhi, Manali Chandigarh, Jammu, Dharamshala, Dalhousie and Amritsar. Pathankot is also used as a gateway for Chamba and Kangra Valley in Himachal Pradesh and for various locations in Jammu and Kashmir like Jammu City Mansar Lake, Srinagar, Udhampur, Holy Cave at Amarnath, Patni Top and Holy Cave of Mata Vashino Devi (Katra) 155 km away from Pathankot.

One can take an auto rickshaw or a cycle rickshaw at cheap rates.

Air

Pathankot Airport was inaugurated by Mr. Praful Patel, the then Aviation minister of India, on 21 November 2006. The facility was made possible by the efforts of Gurdaspur Member of Parliament and Bollywood actor Vinod Khanna,who had planned to make Pathankot a tourist destination and industrial hub.

Commercial flights have been resumed on 05 April 2018 after a hiatus of nearly Seven years by Alliance Air, the regional subsidiary of Air India under the Regional Connectivity Scheme.

To be operated Three days a week i.e Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, flights will depart at 9:55 am from Delhi and reach Pathankot at 11:30 am. On the same day, it will depart at 11.50 am from Pathankot and will return to Delhi at 13.35 pm. Alliance Air has deployed a 46 seater [10] aircraft on the sector. With half the total aircraft capacity set aside under the Regional Connectivity Scheme, Approximately 23 seats are available at the discounted fare of Rs. 2,709, inclusive of taxes.

Train

Pathankot Railway Station under A-category. Pathankot is a major railroad junction. Lines from Amritsar (2 hrs) and Delhi (8 hrs) merge here, and all services to Jammu (2 hrs) pass through. In addition to Pathankot station itself, there is a second station called Chakki Bank renamed Pathankot Cantt just 4 km away, which serves some express trains that do not stop in Pathankot station. Nowadays the majority of the Jammu trains stop only at Pathankot Cantt Railway Station and not at Pathankot Railway Station.

In addition, Pathankot is also served by the narrow-gauge Kangra Valley Railway built by the British, which crawls 128 km through stunning scenery to Joginder Nagar via Palampur and Kangra (near Dharamsala). However, the luxury Kangra Queen services were terminated back in 2003, leaving about 6 departures daily of slow, often packed second class trains, taking over six hours. Bookings for these can only be done locally at Pathankot station. Some of these trains run to Baijnath Paprola and a few to Joginder Nagar. The main stations on this line include Kangra and Palampur, although Dalhousie and Dharmasala are not on the line. The town is the lower terminus of the Kangra Valley Railway, thereby connecting the mountainous regions of western Himachal Pradesh to the network of Indian Railways.

Bus

Maharana Pratap Inter State Bus Terminal Pathankot. It's close to the Pathankot Junction Railway station. Public buses to Dharamshala Dalhousie take 3–4 hours. while buses to Amritsar take 3 hours. Dalhousie famous destination for honeymoon couples is at just 80 km from Pathankot. The famous Hindu Pilgrimage Vaishno devi is just 160 km from Pathankot. Chandigarh is 4–5 hours away. It is well connected with bus services from Punjab roadways, Haryana Roadways, Himachal Roadways J&K transport, and private AC volvo buses.

One can stop over in Pathankot en route to Gurdaspur(35 km), Mukerian (40), Dharamshala (100 km), Dalhousie (100 km), Amritsar (108), Palampur (100 km), Chamba (100 km) & Jammu (100 km), Hoshiarpur (100 km), Kangra (100 km), Jalandhar (108 km), Srinagar (400 km) all in different directions from Pathankot via Jalandhar-Srinagar National highway (NH-1A), Dabwali-Pathankot National highway (NH-54) and Pathankot-Mandi National highway (NH-20).

Sports

The big moment of Pathankot came on 8 November 2014 when Punjab Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal laid down the foundation stone for a stadium in Pathankot.

Tourists Places in Pathankot

Nupur Fort

Nurpur Fort is a 900 year old fort, popular for its ancient Krishna temple located in the inner sanctum. It was built by Pathania Rajputs and later Shah Jahan named it after his beloved wife Nur Jahan.

In the great earthquake in 1905, many parts of it got damaged but even today it stands tall with all its glory.

Mukteshwar Temple

Lying just 22 km off Pathankot is an ancient Mukteshwar Temple. The temple houses very old caves that are believed to be the same place where the Pandavas stayed during their exile.

Shahpurkandi Fort

Built by the Shah Jahan's Rajput Chief Jaspal Singh Pathania in 1505, Shahpurkandi Fort was built to protect regions of Nurpur and Kangra. Today, the fort is in ruins.

Nagni Temple

Dedicated to the Goddess of Snakes, the temple is revered for its ability to fulfill wishes.

Kathgarh Temple

Located in the village of Kathgarh, this temple is renowned for its 6 ft high Shivalinga. The temple is situated at a point of confluence of the Beas and Choch River offering an admiring landscape all around.