Tourism in Batala, Punjab covers the destinations where one can find the combination of temples, scenic places to see. Batala is the eighth-largest city in Punjab in terms of population. It was counted after Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Patiala, Bhatinda, Mohali and Hoshiarpur.
Batala is an important place for Sikh devotees. Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the founder of the Sikh religion was married here to Sulakhni, the daughter of Mul Chand Chauna in 1485. Many temples and Gurdwaras related to the guru`s marriage attract devotees from near and far. Every year celebrations are conducted on the anniversary of Guru Nanak`s marriage. Also, it is an important place for Hindus as the most powerful God of Hindu culture, Lord Shiva, came here at mandir Achleshwar Dham with 33 crore devi-devtas to make his son Kartikeya happy who was sad due to his loss of race from his brother and Lord Shiva`s son Ganesha.
The historic places in Batala of Punjab are the gurdwaras where Guru Nanak stayed during his lifetime. There are also numerous other gurdwaras of significant importance to Sikhs and therefore attract thousands of Sikhs from around the globe. Batala grew under the Muslim governor. The Muslim community was in the majority in Batala till partition. After partition, however, many Muslims left Batala and went to Pakistan. Then Hindus and Sikhs settled there and Batala now has a Sikh majority. The interesting fact about batala is that this city is called tehsil but it is more developed than its district gurdaspur.
Baradari
Baradari also Bara Dari is a building or pavilion with 12 doors designed to allow free flow of air. The building was surrounded with water, built by Maharaja Sher Singh, son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in Batala city. Jal Mahal and the palace of Maharaja Sher Singh were built by the Maharaja. The palace is under the control of the authorities of the local Baring Union Christian College. The administrative offices of the college are housed in it. Jal Mahal is under the control of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). Jal Mahal (Baradari) and the palace of Maharaja Sher Singh were connected through a tunnel. According to some senior citizens, Shamsher Khan Tank of Jal Mahal used to be filled with water through the tunnel, which was further connected to a long tunnel (canal) to the Beas, near Kahnuwan. The remnants of the tunnel can be seen near Baring Christian College. Maharaja Sher Singh used to hold meetings of his courtiers in Jal Mahal. The water reservoir was built by Shamsher Khan while the beautiful Baradari in the centre of the tank was constructed by Maharaja Sher Singh. It has a square room in the centre of a pavilion with a passageway. The entry to the first floor is by a staircase with concave-shaped steps on the north-eastern canal. Jal Mahal has eight doors in the lower part of the building and four in the upper storey. The inner wall contained beautiful art glass carvings and wall paintings. However, major parts of the paintings have been erased or damaged. The roof of the pavilion has also fallen. The Municipal Council provided a tube-well to fill up the tank till the eighties. All sides of the reservoir were lined with Nanakshahi bricks. However, with the passage of time the brick lining has been destroyed. Nowadays, on one side of the tank is located a vridh ashram owned and managed by the Dainik Prarthana Sabha. There also exists Bhadr Kali Mandir and Shivala. The upper portion of Jal Mahal is in a dilapidated condition and the time is not far when this magnificent structure will pass into oblivion.
Gurdwara Kandh Sahib
Guru Nanak was married here to Bibi Sulakhani. He was engaged to the daughter of Mul Chand Chauna who along with the Brahmin priests insisted on a traditional Hindu marriage while Guru Nanak wanted a simple marriage. Guru Nanak was sitting beside a crooked mud wall (kandh) discussing the marriage plans with the Brahmin clergy. It was planned to push the wall on top of the Guru but Guru Nanak was warned of the plan by an old woman. Guru Nanak just smiled and said "This wall will not fall for centuries. The will of God shall prevail." The wall is still preserved within the Gurdwara and a celebration is held here every year on the anniversary of Guru Nanak`s marriage.
Kali Dwara Mandir
There is another very famous and the most-visited devotional place here is the temple dedicated to Goddess Kali. It is situated in the heart of city that is, Chakri Bazar and maximum rush is seen on Tuesdays. During Navratri time, a lot of people from city and surrounding region visit the temple. People of Batala and outside have true faith on Mata Kali Dwara Mandir. Many other temples are also situated in Batala City.
