Chandimandir Cantonment
Chandimandir Cantonment is a military cantonment of the Indian Army located in Panchkula district at the foot of the Sivalik Hills adjoining Panchkula city in Haryana. It is the headquarters of the Western Command of the Indian Army.
Background
Etymology
Chandimandir Cantonment as well as the Chandigarh city are named after the Chandi Mandir. The Chandi Mandir is located within the Chandimandir Cantonment and it is managed by the Shri Mata Mansa Devi Shrine Board.
History
Establishment of cantonment
The military camp was built in the late 1960s as the Western Army Command Headquarters of the
It is among the few modern military stations built in independent India whose history does not date back to the British Indian Army.
Operation Blue Star
In 1984,
Immediately before the Operation, Brar was commanding the 9 Infantry Division out of Meerut. His three brigades were based in Meerut, Delhi and Jalandhar, two of them composed of Sikhs. On 31 May 1984, the day before Brar and his wife were to fly to Manila for a vacation, he received a call asking him to come to Chandimandir Cantonment. When Brar arrived, he was told to fly immediately to Amritsar, where a division had been relocated to the Indo-Pakistan border in case Pakistan moved in to support the pro-Khalistan militants.[1]
The cantonment
Facilities
Sectors A and B of Chandimandir are designated as its officers' families quarters. Sectors C, D, E, and F are assigned to families of junior commissioned officers and other ranks. Many military families stay in Panchkula in rented houses. Pine Marg is a residential area for senior officers.sector D has two shopping centers (old and new), one bus stand, one post office, one library, vajra canteen, MI room. raina stadium also located in sector d, manekshaw auditorium also here(sector d).[2]
Manekshaw Auditorium, named after
The Alpha and Officer's Institute, the Command Headquarters, the M.E.S. Inspection Bungalow, the Shivalik Retreat guest house, the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief's residence, and the senior officers' residence (Pine Marg) are located on a hill in the western section of the cantonment, overlooking the other sectors. A deep gorge is located behind the base to the west. To the north of this hill is a golf course and helipad.
The Khetarpal Officer's Institute (K.O.I.) (formerly the Shivalik Officer's Institute (SOI) is located near the Shakti Dwar main gate to the cantonment, at the south of the camp, opening onto the highway leading to Panchkula sectors 1 and 6.
Geography
The army base
The army base is in the foothills of the
Most of the trees and the green vegetation covering the foothills around Chandimandir were planted by the army. The trees are mostly kikar (Acacia), with
The village that gives Chandimandir Cantonment
Chandimandir is in the northwest of this Quadrant. The Chandimandir Old Panchkula Road forms its southern boundary. The Zirakpur Kalka highway is close to the western boundary, and the Ghagghar River forms parts of the western boundary. Chandigarh is 15 kilometers away, though the
Surroundings
Outside the cantonment are the Chandimandir houses and small townships like
Saketri Shiv temple, 50 years old temple built by Sant Ram in 1960s, lies in the nearby Saketri village where damaged Shiv, Parvati and Ganesha stone sculptures weighing 1 quintal were found in the excavation.[5]
Other military installations in Haryana
Other presently functioning Indian Army installations in Haryana are:
Education
Chandimandir Cantt has three schools, two
Although the Cantt has no college, Panchkula, Kalka and Chandigarh have several colleges, with a direct bus from the Cantt to
Transport
CTU (Chandigarh Transport Undertaking) bus route number 30-A goes from
The cantonment is near the junction of two highways. Old Panchkula is at the junction of the Chandigarh Old Panchkula highway and Zirakpur- Kalka (part of the Delhi -Shimla highway).
Mansa Devi is just west of the Cantt, though the road route is lengthy due to an intervening gorge.
Few trains stop at Chandimandir railway station. Chandigarh Railway Station and Chandigarh Airport are the usual air and rail transport hubs for this Cantt.[6]
Places of interest nearby
- Pinjore Gardens
- Kasauli
- Mansa Devi temple
- Nada Sahib gurudwara
- Chandigarh
- Morni Hills
- Chattbir Zoo
- Nahan
See also
References
- ^ "Walk The Talk with Lt Gen (Retd) KS Brar". NDTV. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
- ^ "About Chandimandir Cantonment". www.indiamapped.com. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
- ^ "Geography of Himalayas: Terai, Bhabar, Shivalik, Lesser and Greater Himalayas - General Knowledge Today". www.gktoday.in. Archived from the original on 3 April 2018. Retrieved 2 April 2018.
- ^ "About Chandimandir Cantonment". www.indiamapped.com. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
- ^ Haryana Samvad Archived 29 November 2018 at the Wayback Machine, Oct 2018.
- ^ "Nearest Railway Stations to Chandimandir Cantonment Railway Station Sector F Chandimandir Cantonment Panchkula Haryana India - Search Nearest Railway Stations of Any Place". trainspy.com.