Ludhiana is Punjab’s most populous city and Northern India’s major industrial hub. It is situated on the old banks of the Sutlej River, 13 km from its present course. Ludhiana is run by a municipal corporation and is the headquarters of Ludhiana district.
Ludhiana A Major Junction:
Ludhiana Railway Station (station code LDH) is an important junction on Northern Railway’s main Delhi-Amritsar route in the Ferozepur division. Ludhiana has railway lines leading to Jalandhar, Ferozepur, Dhuri and Delhi. Ludhiana has a good connectivity with most cities in the country through the railway network. Daily or weekly trains link Ludhiana to Jammu, Jalandhar, Amritsar, Patiala, Kanpur, Pathankot, Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and other cities. Ludhiana is amongst the top 100 booking stations of Indian Railways. As many as 174 trains start and terminate at or pass through the Ludhiana Junction every day.
The Sind, Punjab and Delhi Railway constructed the 483-km Amritsar-Ambala-Saharanpur-Ghaziabad line in 1870. The Southern Punjab Railway Company built the Ludhiana-Jakhal line in 1901 and opened the extension from the Macleodganj (now in Pakistan) to Ludhiana in 1905. The Sahnewal-Chandigarh rail link or the Ludhiana-Chandigarh rail link was inaugurated in 2013. The Mandi Gobindgarh-Ludhiana line was electrified in 1996–97. The Ludhiana diesel shed maintains more than 170 locos of various WDM types. An electric loco shed was launched at Ludhiana in 2001 and WAM-4, WAG-5 and WAG-7 locos are maintained there.
Inadequate Facilities:
The Ludhiana Railway Station has the usual facilities for the passengers like computerized reservation, inquiry counters, refreshment room, tea stall, book stall, waiting rooms, retiring rooms, telephones and drinking water. But these are far from adequate. It has only two waiting rooms, one general and the other for women. The number of seats available is too less for the people needing the facility. The station is far from cleanliness and the case is similar with all the facilities.
More Ludhiana Stations:
Ludhiana has two more railway stations: Dhandari Kalan (station code DDL) and Kila Raipur. Both are in Northern Railway’s Ferozepur division. Dhandari Kalan has three platforms. It handles over 10 trains daily and serves about 15000 passengers. Kila Raipur (station code QRP) has one platform. It handles about a dozen trains every day and also serves about 15000 passengers.
Amritsar-Kolkata Corridor:
The Central Government approved in 2014 the Amritsar-Delhi-Kolkata Industrial Corridor to boost manufacturing activity. The railway network will see a great expansion along with the project. A railway link dedicated to freight is expected to be part of the project. Ludhiana station lies on that corridor and will benefit by it greatly.
Metro for Ludhiana Uncertain:
The Punjab Government approved the29-km Ludhiana metro project as a public-private partnership or build operate transfer model in 2012. Of this, 22 km was to be elevated and 7 km underground. Ayali Chowk- BBMB Power House and Gill Village-Rahon Road Chungi were to be the two proposed corridors. But the Ludhiana Municipal Corporation and the Punjab Government have not been able to find the funds needed for the Rs 10,330-crore project and the project has remained on the back-burner.
Restaurants around Ludhiana Station:
The restaurants around the Ludhiana Railway Station include Friend Dhaba, Chawla’s Vegetarian, Sagar Ratna, Lark Dhaba, Pandit Paranthe Wala, Hong Kong, Restaurant, Sher-E-Punjab, Chawla’s 2, Kanpur Gyan Vegetarian, Dogra Dhaba, New Basant Ice Cream, Pursharthi Dhaba, Pishori Dhaba, Oberoi Cholle Bhature, Ashok Hotel Restaurant & Bear Bar, Bawa Chicken, Jhandu Sweets, Amritsar Nan, Satguru Sweets, SitaRam’s, Bansi Dhaba, Special Nashta, New Friends Vaishno Dhaba, Lucky Bakery, Shelkhapurlan Da Vaishno Dhaba, Prem Ice Cream Parlour, Wimpy, Indian Coffee House, Lucky Vaishno Dhaba and Adarsha Dhaba.
The Ludhiana Food:
Ludhiana’s tandoori food is popular across countries. An earthen oven dug in the ground fired by coal is used to cook chicken, meat, fish, rotis, paneer and naans. The Ludhiana gravy has Mughal roots and murg makhani is a typical example. Nans, parathas and rotis, all prepared in the tandoor, are the staples. Makki ki roti and sarson ka saag is another favourite combination. Ludhiana cuisine is spicy and full of desi ghee. Rice is eaten only on special occasions, with rajma, kadhi or as some sort of pulav. Lassi is usually a permanent feature of Ludhiana meals.