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?Ambala Haryana • India
Ambala
Coordinates: 30°23′N 76°47′E / 30.38, 76.78
Time zone	IST (UTC+5:30)
Area • Elevation	• 264 m (866 ft)
District(s)	Ambala
Population • Sex ratio	1,990,003,452, (2001) • 921
Codes • Pincode • Telephone • Vehicle	• 134003 • +0171 • hr

Coordinates: 30°23′N 76°47′E / 30.38, 76.78

Ambala (Hindi: अंबाला) is a city and a municipal council in Ambala district in the state of Haryana, India. The city is located on the border of the states of Haryana and Punjab in India. Politically; Ambala has two sub-areas: Ambala Cantt (cantonment) and Ambala City, a few kilometers apart from each other. It has a large Indian Army and Indian Air Force presence within the confines of its cantonment area. Due to its geographical location, the Ambala District plays an important role in local tourism. Tourists to Himachal Pradesh , Punjab , Chandigarh and Jammu & Kashmir have to cross through Ambala whether by Road or Rail .

Contents 1 Ambala at a Glance 2 History 2.1 Origins of the Name 3 Geography & location 4 Industry and Business 5 Education 6 Places of interest 7 District Administration 8 Demographics 9 References

Ambala was constituted as a district in the year 1847 and was formed by merging the jagir estates of hitherto independent chieftains whose territories had lapsed or had been confiscated by the British Indian Government. In its 160 years of existence as a district, Ambala has witnessed many changes in its boundaries. In its heydays the district boundaries extended across tehsils of Ambala, Naraingarh, Jagadhri, Pipli, Kharar, Ropar and Nalagarh. Kalka-cum-Kurari State, Pinjore, Manimajra, Kasauli & Sanawar were also merged into the district at different points of time. Today’s Ambala District with an area of 1568.85 km² is a pale shadow of its original immense size.

The Ambala District now comprises two subdivisions (Ambala & Naraingarh) and three tehsils (Ambala, Barara & Naraingarh). It has a population of 12 lakhs, which is about 5% of the total population of Haryana. It is bound by Mohali and Patiala districts of Punjab, Sirmaur District of Himachal and Yamunanagar & Kurukshetra districts of Haryana. Ambala district is represented by 5 Assembly Constituencies and 1 Lok Sabha Constituency. The district is very strategically located and serves as a gateway to Haryana for States of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, J&K, and U.T. Chandigarh. 5 National Highways (NH 1, 22, 65, 72 and 73) pass through Ambala. NH1 (Delhi-Amritsar-Attari/ Pakistan Border) is the most important highway to Delhi for the areas north of Haryana. NH22 starts from Ambala and links NH1 to Shimla and beyond right up to China border at Shipkila. NH65 also starts at Ambala and links NH1 to Hissar and onwards to Jodhpur & Pali in Rajasthan.

Ambala is a divisional headquarters of the Northern Railway Zone and is an important railway junction. The Ambala Cantonment railway station was founded on the junction of the Delhi-Kalka and Ludhiana-Saharanpur lines. The historic Delhi-Ambala-Kalka railway line dates back to 1889 while the Ludhiana-Saharanpur line was built in 1870.

Ambala Airforce Station is one of the oldest and largest airbases that were inherited from the British by the IAF. It was from this airbase that Spitfires and Harvards flown by Instructors of the Advanced Flying Training School took part in the 1947-48 Kashmir Operations. Subsequently, Ambala was the front line airfield for many years. It was home to various aircraft that were inducted into the Indian Air Force. Vampires, Ouragans, Hunters etc all flew from this base. The airbase was briefly attacked in 1965 by Pakistan Air Force's B-57 bombers. Today, the Airbase houses the ‘7 Wing’ with squadrons of Jaguars and MiG-21 Bisons. Ambala airfield has a war memorial called 'Frozen Tear' dedicated to all aircrew who lost their lives in times of war and peace flying missions from the airfield.

The Ambala Cantonment was established in the year 1843 after the British abandoned its cantonment at Karnal following the malaria epidemic of 1841-42. The cantonment houses the ‘2 Corps’ one of the three Strike Corps of the Indian Army and is of immense strategic importance. Ambala is known for its scientific and surgical instruments manufacturing industry. It also has metal casting, kitchen mixer grinder manufacturing and submersible motor pump manufacturing industry. Ambala is also famous for its wholesale cloth market touted by the locals to be the largest in Asia.

As per ancient Indian history, Aryan people had resided at Ambala at some point in time. There was a very popular place called Sarudhna near Ambala, which was the Aryan country's capital at that time. Ambala was given the status of a district in the year 1847. The British built a Cantonment here, and the Cantonment has grown bigger than the main city now.

There are quite a few interesting beliefs about the origin of Ambala:

• Some historians believe Ambala owes its name to King Singh; the founder of Ambala who was an Amb Rajput
• Some believe that itt was named after the goddess "AMBA" whose temple is located in the city.
• Ambala was originally called "Ambwala", Amb meaning mango in the native language (so, city of Mangoes)

Ambala is located at 30.38° N 76.78° E^[1]. It has an average elevation of 264 metres (866 feet).

Situated 200 km north of Delhi, this town is extremely well connected by the rail and road network. Ambala is a major railway junction. G.T. Road (NH-1, National Highway 1) passes through Ambala Cantt and Ambala City.

Ambala Cantt is known for its scientific & surgical instruments [manufacturing] industry. The clientèle of this industry includes an impressive list of prestigious colleges of India and off late; overseas clients. Ambala is famously called the "City of Scientific Instruments".

Ambala district has industries in metal casting, kitchen mixer grinder manufacturing, and submersible motor pump manufacturing. It is also famous for its wholesale cloth market, which sells some of the best cloth material. Ambala district would soon have a 2500 acre (10 km²) SEZ that would be developed by K. P. Singh promoted DLF Universal Limited.

Within the last decade, Ambala has seen the opening of some fine schools and colleges that impart modern education. Schools include: Army School, P.K.R.Jain Vatika, school with computer aided teaching and Convent of Jesus and Mary, S.A Jain senior Model school, Air Force School, S.A.Jain Girls School, Bhartiya Public School, K.Vs, SD Public School, DAV Schools (all in Ambala Cantt) and PKR Jain School, Dev Samaj Model School, DAV Public School, Ambala City have been known for their academic results in Tenth and Twelfth Class CBSE Board examinations. Boarding Schools like Chaman Vatika and Springfield Public School have also opened recently. Of these, Army School boasts to be the best in the region for its excellence. Its hardworking and efficient staff [Mrs. Kum Kum Chopra (Eng), Mrs. Neeraj Taneja (Phy), Mr. J. Varghese (Eco), Mr. Harmeet Singh (Maths), Mrs. Nirmal Sharma (Hindi) and etc..] has been the key reason for this achievement. The school has been known for its great disciplinarian nature and also for it academics merged with extra curricullar activities

In Ambala City there are two Polytechnics: Government Polytechnic, and Government Polytechnic for Women. Both of them provide Haryana Government Recognised Diploma and come under the Directorate of Technical Education, Haryana.

The opening of Medical and Engineering Colleges in and around Ambala have made it a hot-spot for students throughout Haryana. Ambala boasts of having one of the four medical colleges in the state. This Medical College comes under MMEC [1]. MMEC hosts many courses, both in Engineering and Bio-Sciences. Another Engineering College in Ambala is ACE, Ambala College of Engineering & applied research, which is well known for its biotechnology labs and world famous professor Dr. Mehar Singh (Chamad, Chimpu, Dipper wale). Other colleges in Ambala are S.D.College, G.M.N. College, Government Post Graduate College, in Ambala Cantt, D.A.V.College, S.A.Jain College [2]in Ambala City. S.D.College ranks among the best in the region. Shri Atmanand Jain Institute of Management and Technology (AIMT) which is located in Ambala City, is one of the premier institutes in Haryana. It offers two courses MCA (Master of Computer Application) & MBA (Master of Business Administration)[3].

There are many shrines in and around Ambala City, including Bhawani Amba Temple (named after the goddess Bhawani). Ambala is home to many Gurdwaras (Sikh temples), some of which have historical importance. The Badshahi Bag Gurudwara, Sis Ganj Gurudwara, Manji Sahib Gurudwara, Labhuwala Talaah, and Sangat Sahib Gurdwara are the historical gurudwaras here. These are associated with Guru Gobind Singh, Guru Tegh Bahadur and Guru Hargobind respectively. There are also the popular Muslim shrines of Lakhi Shah and Taqwal Shah, Saint Paul's Church and a British, Christian cemetery. Patel Park in Ambala Cantt and City Park in Ambala City have beautiful gardens.

• Chandigarh is a 45 km (45 minutes drive) from Ambala.
• Kalka is situated on the national highway Ambala-Shimla.
• Panchkula is a newly built city on the Ambala-Kalka national highway and Ambala-Kalka railway line near Chandigarh.
• Pinjore comes under the Panchkula district and is known for its exquisite gardens.
• Kurukshetra (it is said that the battle of Mahabharata was fought here) is also just 45 minutes drive from Ambala Cantt.
• Manocha Niwas is a 5 km (15 minutes drive) from Ambala Cant. Station.

Ambala is also known as sikh jatt place & in the villages they have taste of punjab virsa as well as haryana's culture

• The Deputy Commissioner, an officer belonging to the Indian Administrative Service, is the overall in-charge of the General Administration in the district. He is assisted by a number of officers belonging to Haryana Civil Service and other Haryana state services.

• The Superintendent of Police, an officer belonging to the Indian Police Service, is responsible for maintaining Law & Order and related issues in the district. He is assisted by the officers of the Haryana Police Service and other Haryana Police officials.

• The Deputy Conservator of Forests, an officer belonging to the Indian Forest Service, is responsible for the management of the Forests, Environment and Wild-Life in the district. He is assisted by the officers of the Haryana Forest Service and other Haryana Forest officials and Haryana Wild-Life officials.

• Sectoral development is looked after by the district head/officer of each development department such as PWD, Health, Education, Agriculture, Animal husbandry, etc. These officers are from various Haryana state services.

As of 2001 India census^[2], Ambala had a population of 139,222. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Ambala has an average literacy rate of 76%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with 55% of the males and 45% of females literate. 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.

1. ^ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Ambala
2. ^ Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns. (Provisional). Census Commission of India. Retrieved on 2007-09-03.