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The Celebrated Mughal Gardens
Lying at the foothills of the lower Shivalik ranges are one of the most
fascinating Mughal Gardens, also known as Yadavindra Gardens. The Gardens
are only 22 kms from Chandigarh and 14 kms from Panchkula
town. The gardens have a charm that is unparalleled. 
The fascinating Mughal Gardens are perhaps the only Mughal garden, where
one descends to the last step. Nawab Fidai Khan, a cousin of Aurangzeb,
and an architect of repute planned the architecture of the gardens. He
also designed the Badshahi Mosque at Lahore. The Nawab was also the
Governor of the Province and it was during his tours, that he chanced upon
the rare beauty of this valley. The Nawab realised the beauty of the place
and set to work. He planned the Garden on the classical Charbagh pattern,
giving the area central waterway. Both sides of this waterway were covered
with the patches of green bordered with flowers and shaded by trees like
the traditional palm, the cypress and magnolia.
But the Nawab could not stay here for long. Frightened by local goitre
stricken women, the courtiers of the Nawab fled. The palace fell in the
hands of the Raja of Sirmaur who had planned this move. In 1775 AD,
Maharaja Amar Singh of Patiala bought Pinjore
and consolidated it in his lands. He restored the beauty of the Gardens
and frequently visited it, till in 1966, the Gardens were handed over to
Haryana when it was formed as a new state. The Gardens were the first and
only centre of tourist attraction at the time.
Getting There
Pinjore Gardens are 270 km from Delhi, 22 km from Chandigarh.