A rendezvous with NH1

An Indian who loves driving has a secret dream to drive in the Grand Trunk road once in their lifetime. I too had a dream to travel in the historical road (or a part of it) once.


We had planned a trip from Delhi to Amritsar via road (NH1). It was all so exciting. Traveling through a part of GT road, the oldest road, visiting so many places… etc. I have traveled through almost all modes of travel. Each one has their own charm, but I must say adventurous people enjoy the road travel the most.


Before sharing my experiences I would like to share some important and historical information and facts about NH1, as these were the reasons which clubbed to become my dream drive.


The Grand Trunk Road (abbreviated to GT Road) is one of South Asia`s oldest and longest major roads. For several centuries, it has linked the eastern and western regions of the Indian subcontinent, running from what is now Pakistan, across north India, into Bangladesh. The Indian section is part of the ambitious Golden Quadrilateral project.



Route of the Grand Trunk Road:


Today, the Grand Trunk Road continues to cover a distance of over 2,500 km. It starts from Peshawar in Pakistan and passes through Attock, Rawalpindi and Lahore before entering India at Wagah. Within India, it passes through Amritsar, Ambala, Delhi, Kanpur, Allahabad, Varanasi, Asansol and Kolkata. It then enters Bangladesh and ends at Sonargaon in the Narayanganj district of that country. Within India, the major portion of the road, the stretches between Kolkata and Kanpur, is known as NH-2 (National Highway 2), the stretch between Kanpur and Delhi is called NH-91 (National Highway 91), and that between Delhi and Wagha, at the border with Pakistan, is known as NH-1(km-long stretch).

Panipat, Karnal, Ambala, Rajpura, Ludhiana, Phagwara and Jalandhar are some major cities that lie along National Highway 1. Of its total length, 22 km is in Delhi, 180 km in Haryana and the rest 254 km falls in Punjab.



History of the Grand Trunk Road:



Recent research indicates that during the time of the Maurya empire, overland trade between India and several parts of western Asia and the Hellenic world went through the cities of the north-west, primarily Taxila (located in present day Pakistan)(see inset in map). Taxila was well connected by roads with other parts of the Maurya empire. The Mauryas had built a highway from Taxila to Pataliputra (present-day Patna in Bihar, India).


In the 16th century, a major road running across the Gangetic plain was built afresh by Pashtun emperor Sher Shah Suri, who then ruled much of northern India. His intention was to link together the remote provinces of his vast empire for administrative and military reasons. The Sadak-e-Azam ("great road") as it was then known, is universally recognized as having been the precursor of the Grand Trunk Road.



The road was initially built by Sher Shah Suri to connect Agra, his capital, with Sasaram, his hometown. It was soon extended westward to Multan and eastward to Sonargaon in Bengal (now in Bangladesh). While Sher Shah died after a brief reign, and his dynasty ended soon afterwards, the road endured as his outstanding legacy. The Mughals, who succeeded the Suris, extended the road westwards: at one time, it extended to Kabul in Afghanistan, crossing the Khyber pass. This road was later improved by the British rulers of colonial India. Renamed the "Grand Trunk Road" (sometimes referred to as the "Long Walk"), it was extended to run from Calcutta to Peshawar and thus to span a major portion of British India.

Over the centuries, the road, which was one of the most important trade routes in the region, facilitated both travel and postal communication.


My experience:


We started from Delhi, following the route. The roads were beautiful. Trees both the sides, farmlands could be seen with ripe crops. It was all so beautiful, even the weather. As we passed by we could see the places which came enroute.
For lunch, we stopped by a place called Eagles Restaurant ( comes before Ambala cantt). I must say the food was amazing. I had a vegetarian meal. The quality and taste of food was too good. Though, we had to compromise on the ambience part. It was a clean place.
In Amritsar, we went to the golden temple in the day time. It was a beautiful experience. The temple was shining, gold in colour surrounded by the holy water. Later at night also we went to the golden temple to see the whole place sparkle with lights every where.I tried all the possible kinds of vegetarian dishes in Amritsar. Believe me, it was all worth a try. I just loved it.
I had been to the Wagha Border also, for the evening recreation parade. There is just a gate which demarcates the border of India and Pakistan. Daily, in morning flags of both the countries are hosted and later in the evening, soldiers bring down the flags followed by a parade. This is known as recreation parade ceremony. Thousands of people gather to watch this. On the Indian side, Indians keep shouting with various patriotic words and on the other side, Pakistanis shout their patriotic words.
I was lucky enough to see a family coming from Pakistan to India via that gate. They exchanged some words, their passports were checked and they arrived right within a second, form India to Pakistan.
I must say it was a hush-rush and a tiring trip, but it was worth the ride.