75 years on, 12 Indians who shaped Chandigarh to be felicitated today
When the world talks of Chandigarh, it invariably invokes the names of Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret. The Indians who actually rolled up their sleeves and built the city — brick by brick, sector by sector — have largely remained unsung. This will change on Tuesday.
In what is being described as a first-of-its-kind recognition in 75 years of the city’s existence, Punjab Governor and Chandigarh Administrator Gulab Chand Kataria will felicitate 12 legendary Indian architects, engineers and administrators whose vision and labour gave shape to independent India’s first planned city.
The felicitation ceremony, organised by the Chandigarh Administration in association with the Chandigarh Citizens Foundation, will be held at the Auditorium of the Government Art Museum, Sector 10, here on March 24.
Officials say the event is a conscious effort to correct a long-standing anomaly — the disproportionate global recognition of foreign professionals over the equally significant, if not greater, contributions of Indian architects, engineers and civic planners who executed the city’s founding vision on the ground.
The ceremony is being held as part of an exhibition titled ‘Chandigarh’s Indian Modernists’, being organised by the foundation. Open at the Exhibition Hall of the Government Art Museum on February 28, it will continue till March 29.
A city born out of tragedy
Chandigarh’s story is rooted in one of history’s most traumatic displacements. When Partition severed Lahore from India in 1947, Punjab was left without a capital. In the shadow of mass violence, forced migration and acute resource shortage, the country’s leadership took a bold and audacious call — to build an entirely new city from scratch rather than retrofit an existing one.
Construction began in 1951. What emerged over the decades is a globally admired model of urban planning — a city defined by its grid-like sector layout, a clear road hierarchy, abundant open spaces and parks, distinctive modern architecture and a robust civic infrastructure. Seventy-five years on, Chandigarh continues to be ranked among India’s most liveable cities.
A three-year celebration
The felicitation marks the launch of a series of events planned by the Chandigarh Administration to commemorate 75 years of the city’s making through 2026, 2027 and 2028. The Administration is preparing a detailed proposal to involve institutions, professional bodies, resident welfare associations, schools and colleges in these celebrations — with the aim of turning the commemoration into a citywide movement.
Chandigarh, officials note, is the finest living example of India’s vision for a ‘Viksit Bharat’ — a harmonious, well-planned urban habitat where citizens live in close proximity to nature. Tuesday’s ceremony is described as only the first batch of such felicitations, with more legends expected to be honoured in subsequent events through the three-year commemoration.
