Ancient

The city may be named after Jalandhara, a Nath Guru who was from here. The city was founded by Devasya Verma as mentioned in the Vedas. Other possibilities include that it was the capital of the kingdom of Lava, son of Rama or that the name derives from the vernacular term Jalandhar, meaning area inside the water, i.e., tract lying between the two rivers Satluj and Beas.^[5] The whole of Punjab and the area of present Jalandhar District was part of the Indus Valley Civilization. Harappa and Mohenjo-daro are the sites where remains of the Indus Valley civilisation have been found extensively. The archaeological explorations made during recent years have pushed the ancient times of Jalandhar District of the Harappa period. Jalandhar was known as Prasthala during the Vedic period and it was the capital of the Trigarta Kingdom.^[6]

Medieval

Jalandhar and the Doaba may have been conquered around 1070 by the Ghaznavids during the reign of Ibrahim of Ghazni.^[7] The city was conquered by Raja Jasrat in 1431.^[8] It later formed part of the province of Lahore during the Delhi Sultanate and Mughal Empire. The 18th century saw upheaval in Jalandhar amidst an anarchy caused by the disintegration of the Mughals and power struggles involving Persians, Afghans and Sikhs. It was captured by the Faizullahpuria Misl in 1766, and in 1811 Maharaja Ranjit Singh incorporated it within the Sikh Empire.^[9]

In 1849, following the annexation of the Punjab by the East India Company, the city of Jalandhar, written in English as Jullundur by company officials, became the headquarters of the division and District of the same name. In 1858, company rule in India ended and the city became part of the British Raj. In the mid to late 19th century, the Punjab administration regarded Jullundur as too densely populated and farmed to capacity. This led to the district being a chief recruitment area for settlers to colonise the newly irrigated Punjab Canal Colonies, in western Punjab.^[10]

Modern

The Khilafat Movement started in the district in the early 1920s to bring pressure on the government to change their policy towards Turkey. Mahatma Gandhi extended sympathy and support to this movement, however in response, the District was declared a 'Proclaimed Area' under the Seditious Meetings Act. In 1924, Pakistani general and military dictator Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq was born in the city.

Prior to the partition of India, Muslims were in plurality in Jalandhar. According to the 1941 census, Muslims made up 45.2% of the population, compared to Hindus and Sikhs being 27.6% and 26.5% respectively.^[11] Within a period of 10 years, from 1941 to 1951, the Muslim population in Jalandhar reduced from 45.2% to 0.2%.^[11]

Climate

The city has a humid subtropical climate with cool winters and long, hot summers. Summers last from April to June and winters from November to February. Temperatures in the summer vary from average highs of around 48 °C (118 °F) to average lows of around 25 °C (77 °F). Winter temperatures have highs of 19 °C (66 °F) to lows of −7 °C (19 °F). The climate is dry on the whole, except during the brief southwest monsoon season during July and August. The average annual rainfall is about 70 cm. In 2018, Jalandhar witnessed unusually heavy rainfall, with an over 20% increase from average rainfall levels.^[12] Since it is located in the northern plains, the area feels quite cold during winters and very hot during summers.

Rainfall

The city receives an average annual rainfall of approximately 70 cm. However, fluctuations are not uncommon, as observed in 2018 when Jalandhar experienced a significant increase in precipitation. The city registered over a 20% increase from its average rainfall that year, which marked it as a year of heavy rainfall.

Despite the variations in climate across seasons, one thing remains constant: the extremity of temperatures, with winters feeling notably cold, and summers, feelings markedly hot due to Jalandhar's location in the northern plains.

Population

As per the 2011 census, Jalandhar had a population of 868,929, of which 460,811 were male, and 408,118 female. The literacy rate is 86.20%: for males are 88.81% and females 83.26%. Children of 0-6 years are 90,044 (10.36%), with a sex ratio of 867 females per 1000 males. Scheduled Castes are 27.26% of the population.^[14]

Religion

As per the census of 2011, Hinduism is the predominant religion in Jalandhar city, with adherents of Sikhism being a significant minority.

Religious groups in Jalandhar City (1881−2011)^{[lower-alpha 1]}

Religious group	1881[17][18]: 520		1891[19]: 68		1901[20]: 44		1911[21]: 20		1921[22]: 23		1931[23]: 26		1941[16]: 32		2011
	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%	Pop.	%
Islam	31,326	60.1%	38,994	58.9%	40,081	59.17%	40,903	58.59%	42,261	59.52%	52,577	59.06%	80,242	59.31%	12,744	1.47%
Hinduism	18,514	35.52%	23,085	34.87%	24,715	36.49%	23,383	33.49%	24,253	34.16%	30,833[lower-alpha 2]	34.63%	48,375[lower-alpha 2]	35.76%	650,863	74.9%
Jainism	373	0.72%	347	0.52%	471	0.7%	438	0.63%	477	0.67%	1,014	1.14%	768	0.57%	3,203	0.37%
Sikhism	363	0.7%	2,274	3.43%	901	1.33%	3,636	5.21%	2,686	3.78%	3,003	3.37%	4,676	3.46%	185,869	21.39%
Christianity	—	—	1,569	2.37%	1,543	2.28%	1,440	2.06%	1,322	1.86%	1,533	1.72%	977	0.72%	8,889	1.02%
Zoroastrianism	—	—	3	0%	22	0.03%	18	0.03%	9	0.01%	70	0.08%	—	—	—	—
Buddhism	—	—	0	0%	0	0%	0	0%	0	0%	0	0%	—	—	1,407	0.16%
Others	1,543	2.96%	0	0%	2	0%	0	0%	0	0%	0	0%	245	0.18%	5,954	0.69%
Total population	52,119	100%	66,202	100%	67,735	100%	69,818	100%	71,008	100%	89,030	100%	135,283	100%	868,929	100%

At the time of the 2011 census, 81.48% of the population spoke Punjabi and 15.63% Hindi as their first language.^[24]

Smart City Project

In the second phase of the Indian Government's Smart City Project, Jalandhar has been selected to participate, marking a pivotal shift in the city's development.^[29]

By air

The nearest airport is Adampur Airport, northwest of Jalandhar, which currently only handles scheduled operation on maiden flights of the private carrier Spicejet, to Delhi, Mumbai and Jaipur. The nearest fully-fledged International Airport is Sri Guru Ram Dass Jee International Airport, in Amritsar. It is the second busiest airport in North India, and is connected to other parts of the country by regular flights. Several airlines operate flights from abroad, including London Stansted, Birmingham, Dubai, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, and Doha. The airport handles as many as 48 flights every week up from the occasional, intermittent ones some years ago.

By rail

Direct train service is available for other major cities like Mumbai, Calcutta, Chennai, Patna, Guwahati, Pune, Haridwar, Varanasi, Jaipur, Jhansi, Gwalior, Bhopal and Jammu Tawi. Some prestigious trains that halt in Jalandhar City railway station include the Howrah Mail, Golden Temple Mail (Frontier Mail), New-Delhi Amritsar Shatabdi Express, and the Paschim Express. Now, many trains of Jammu route are extended up to Mata Vaishno Devi-Katra.

Jalandhar City Railway Station is well-connected to other parts of the country. Jalandhar City is a major stop between the Amritsar-Delhi rail link, which is serviced by Shatabdi Express, Intercity Express, among others

Direct Services to major cities such as Mumbai, Calcutta, Chennai, Patna, Guwahati, Pune, Haridwar, Varanasi, Jaipur and Jammu Tawi are available. There are prestigious services such as the Howrah Mail, Golden Temple Mail (Frontier Mail), New-Delhi Amritsar Shatabdi Express, Paschim Express.

By road

There is one of the largest networks of bus services of Punjab at Shaheed-e-Azam, Sardar Bhagat Singh ISBT (Jalandhar), Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Pepsu, Chandigarh, Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttrakhand, Rajasthan State Roadways, apart from private operators.

Cricket

Cricket is very popular in the grounds and streets of Jalandhar. There is an international-standard stadium at Gandhi Stadium, formerly known as Burlton Park. The Indian cricket team played a Test Match against the Pakistan cricket team on this ground on 24 September 1983.^[41]

Kabaddi

Major Kabaddi matches are usually held at Guru Gobind Singh Stadium.

Guru Gobind Singh Stadium

Guru Gobind Singh Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in Jalandhar. It is usually used for football matches and served as the home stadium of JCT Mills FC.^[42] People can be seen jogging, playing soccer, weight-lifting, etc. in the stadium most of the time. The Punjab government has started new projects at the stadium.

Surjit Hockey Stadium

Surjeet Hockey Stadium is a field hockey stadium in Jalandhar, Punjab, India. It is named after Jalandhar-born Olympian Surjit Singh. This stadium is home of the franchise Sher-e-Punjab of the World Series Hockey.

Sports college

There is a Government Sports College in the city and it is a focus for many of the National Sports Councils. In this college, many sports are played like cricket, hockey, swimming, volleyball and basketball.

Universities

• DAV Institute of Engineering & Technology
• DAV University
• Doaba College
• GNA University
• Guru Nanak Dev University Regional Campus
• Lovely Professional University
• Kanya Maha Vidyalaya
• Lyallpur Khalsa College for Women
• Lyallpur Khalsa College
• Khalsa College
• Mata Gujri Institute of Nursing
• Mehr Chand Polytechnic College
• NIT Jalandhar
  

  Dr. B. R. Ambedkar National Institute of Technology Jalandhar
• Punjab Institute of Medical Sciences
• Punjab Technical University
• D.A.V. College, Jalandhar

Schools

• Kendriya Vidyalaya No. 1, Jalandhar Cantonment
• St Joseph's Boys' School, Jalandhar, Defence Colony

• Apeejay School, Mahavir Marg^[43]
• Apeejay School, Rama Mandi^[44]
• British Olivia Sr. Sec. School, Jalandhar^[45]
• BSF School Jalandhar Cantt
• Cambridge Innovative School, Urban Estate Phase-II^[46]
• Delhi Public School, Jalandhar^[47]
• MGN Public School, Adarsh Nagar^[48]
• MGN Public School, Urban Estate Phase-II^[49]
• SD Model School Jalandhar Cantt^[50]
• Shiv Jyoti Public School^[51]
• Swami Sant Dass Public School^[52]