BARNALA

There are various notions about the origin of the name Barnala. According to some Vaaran being an area formed due to regular storms so it was called Varna. Something that the name Barnala symbolizes a fort here which was to be built by Baba Ala Singh which consists of a Baahuli that is a well which has stairs going down and that too due to correction and Malawi accent was known as baain and finally, the Baainwala became Barnala but there is no historical proof as to how the name Barnala originates from. Some believe the name came from Baba ala Singh. Baba Allah Singh left Bhadaur with his elder brother and started living at Barnala and overpowered many areas with the help of his brothers, the Bhadaur Sardar. Firstly it was district headquarters in princely state system but with time it was combined in pepsu that is Patiala and East Punjab States Union and degenerated as sub-divisional headquarters.

In the records of Khalsa the Sikh historian Giani at around 1775 wrote that after giving Bhadaur( erected by King Padhar Sain) to his brother Duna Singh, Baba Ala Singh took over the Barnala region which was alone at that time. After that female Barnala the capital and with time he also captured the surrounding villages. Due to strikes by Dharvis Anahadgarh may be present earlier but was soon abandoned.

In village Handiaya there is also a Rameswaram stone in nath wala Dehra next to Barnala floating in the waters.

The city is well known for its power loom and handloom works. It is well known for the textile market in India. The most famous is the phulkari embroidery. Women weave beautiful designs on shawls, dupattas, and suits. When the embroidery is done on a single piece of cloth it is known as Bagh. The artisans use vibrant and colorful threads which symbolize the culture of Punjab. Though Punjabis in the agricultural state it has a very rich and integrate art and culture face. Along with this women also weave rare and beautiful durries. The durries are made up of cotton and spread on beds and floors. Different kinds of patterns are made such as animals, leaves, flowers, birds, etc. So the handicraft such as phulkari box Jyotish and lacquered woodwork a famous for this region.

Since Barnala was earlier known as Anahatgarh there must be a garh or a fort in this place before Baba Ala Singh took over this area. However, remains from the earlier past are destroyed and are no more present. The history of Barnala originates with the history of Ala Singh Ji. Sadly many of the remains from that era have been destroyed so the tourists who are history lovers and come to this place to visualize the historical importance may get upset but then there are many beautiful visuals like Gurudwaras, gardens for the tourist to relish upon and it is one of those towns a tourist should not miss.

1. Quilla Mahal: The king lived there with his brave Khalsa soldiers and continued to enlarge his power and reign from this place. But sadly now the fort has been destroyed and there are no remains. Due to human intervention and catastrophes, the structure is damaged but still, the area is called Quilla Mahal and it has many ancient buildings. This area is the most ancient part of the town but still, it has a very rare drainage system so even in heavy rains the water drains out very fast and the roads are very clean and dry. Along with this, there are many old bazaars from where the tourist can shop and take away memories. The history is still intact in the lanes and by-lanes of Quilla Mahal and tourists visit this place to get a glimpse of those prosperous ancient days.

2. Dera Baba Gandha Singh: situated at Bajakhana road in Barnala Dera Baba Gandha Singh is a famed Gurudwara. As the sources say the daughter of Baba ala Singh Ji that is Pradhan Kaur went to Muktsar and there she encountered with Baba lammar Singh and was highly influenced by his religiousness so she pleaded him to send one of his disciples to Barnala so that a gathering and teachings can be started there so Baba sent pandit Nika Singh for the gathering. Pandit Nika Singh reached Barnala and was beautifully welcomed by the people and there he lived in a beautiful house. Pandit Nika Singh started giving preachings from there only and this house became significant as Dera Baba Gandha Ji.

3. Gurudwara Patshahi Naumi: situated at sekha which is 7 kilometers from Barnala on the Barnala road to the west of the village this is another significant religious place in this area. Gurudwara Patshahi Naumi stands on the original place where guruji used to meditate during his trip to Sekha.

There is a popular story about Sekha. This place was made up of 22 villages and in Punjabi language, anything made of 22 separate fragments is called Bahia and therefore Sekha was called Bahia in the early past. So when Guru teg Bahadur Ji came here on his way to Malwa the emperor asked him to leave. Due to this the Guru became annoyed and cursed that Bahia would fall into a heap and in the future, this is what happened to Bahia.

4. Geeta Bhawan: this Radha Krishna temple is also a significant place that is headed by Om Sat Sanatan Geeta Bhawan's trust and is located in the center of the city and devotees come here from all over India.

5. Gurudwara Nanaksar That: it is situated on the kachehari road in Barnala.

6. Gurudwara Gurusar pukka Sahib patshahi

On Shahidi diwas of Guru Arjan Dev Ji and Guru teg, Bahadur Ji some devotees come over and seek blessings. Along with this Amavasya, the celebration is done every month and a fair is conducted during January or February each year. Suddenly a local person came and told guruji about a rare disease spreading in the area. Guruji advised him to take the patient and make him a bath in the pond. To this, the person told guruji that the charmers used the pond to dip their hides but guruji said him to ignore this prejudice and make the patient bath in the pond. The villagers were not sure and continued the story that the pond water was not good. Ultimately to remove the superstition the Guru himself took a bath in the pond and then the villagers made the patient bath in the pond. To everyone amazement, the sick man felt peaceful and his disease cured and with that, all the sick villagers were made to bathe in the pond and all were cured. At present, a Sarovar has been made at the place of the pond.

7. Shri Radha Krishna gaushala: situated in the new grain market, Barnala this place accepts cattle free of cost. The available irrigated land is one acre and available products are milk, dung products. Normally the breeding Bull is Sahiwal and at present, there are five bulls and 600 cows and the average milk produced is 100 liters per day.

There is famous Hanuman Mandir in dhanaula and a Hanuman Mela is held every Tuesday. In the center of the village, there is memorial Gurudwara of Bhai Moola Singh. Along with this, there is Tila of Baba Tehal Das which includes both a Gurudwara and the temple and therefore it is respected by people of all religions.

Punjabi cuisine has evolved over the years since people of different caste, creed, religion has stayed in this land of five rivers and each of them has left an aromatic touch on the food and culture of this land and thus the food varies from region to region. For instance in Amritsar the people like stuffed parathas fried with a heavy dollop of clarified butter or ghee. Similarly in the Doab region too people like stuffed Paratha. But in Malwa area the Bajra khichdi it's much more preferred than the stuffed Paratha. But lassi made of creamy yogurt is the favorite of all. Since Barnala is present in the center of the Malwa area the food here is a mixture of Punjabi and Malwai food cultures. Makki ki roti and Sarson da saag are the most popular but due to industrialization, the pizza has also become famous among the locals.

Along with all this, there are bars, clubs, cinema halls, and malls in Barnala. There is a Barnala club and also a lions club which offers nightlife in Barnala.

Barnala is well connected to nearby important cities by regular trains and also by the regular timing buses and has good roadways. It is surrounded by Dhuri, Sangrur, Sunam which are 18.14 km, 18.66 km, 21.53 km away respectively. The city has well-developed roadways that are auto-rickshaws, buses, local cabs run through the city so that the tourist can visit different sites. The short distance can be traveled on foot. but girls should be careful and take precautions and should not travel anywhere alone during the day. There are no regular flights from the nearby important cities to Barnala.The nearest airport is Ludhiana airport and there's another one called Punjab Chandigarh airport.

The suitable time to visit Barnala is between late January to early April or between mid-October to late December. The place has an extreme climate so one should travel after seeing the weather report.

It has hotels in every price according to one's preference started from affordable 1000 to expensive 4000 to 5000 rupees. This amazing city is for everyone be it solo trips or family trips.