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India
Photo: travelwayoflife, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The Plains of India are the country's heartland. Also called the Hindi Belt, this region contains the large and politically significant states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, and the country's capital, New Delhi. With an area of about 400,000 sqkm, the Plains are the home of about half a billion people (about one in every sixteen people alive today), including the densely-populated cities of Delhi, Lucknow, Varanasi and Patna. As a result of this area's continuous habitation for thousands of years and the creativity of the people under various dynasties, some of the most famous sights in the world are on the Indian Plains.
Named for the five rivers that flow through the region, Punjab is India's breadbasket. The majority-Sikh state is home to that faith's holiest site – the Golden Temple in Amritsar.
Carved out of Punjab in the 1960s, Haryana is home to Gurugram (Gurgaon), the beating heart of India's information technology and automotive industries.
The most populous state in both India and the world with its wide range of attractions, from the world-famous Taj Mahal to the ancient city of Varanasi.
Home to the birthplace of Buddhism, the world's oldest residential university, and the heartland of the Maurya Empire, India's poorest state has made considerable economic strides in the 2020s.
By train and bus
Long-distance trains travel from all other parts of India to this region. The same is true of long-distance bus lines.
There are numerous train connections between the major cities in this region. Domestic flights for longer distances are also possible. Buses also traverse this area.
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Agra (Hindi: आगरा Āgrā, Urdu: آگرہ Āgrā), a city around 200 km from Delhi, is home to two UNESCO World Heritage Sites: the Taj Mahal and the Agra Fort. There are also many other buildings and tombs from Agra's days of glory as the capital of the Mughal Empire, as well as the abandoned city of Fatehpur Sikri outside town, itself a World Heritage Site.
Amritsar (Punjabi: ਅੰਮ੍ਰਿਤਸਰ Aṃmritsar) is a city in the state of Punjab, India. It is the holiest city in Sikhism.
Chandigarh is India's first planned city, quite distinct from the rest of the country and considerably better organised. It is the capital of both Haryana and Punjab states, but the city is not part of either state, being a union territory, i.e.
Delhi (Hindi: दिल्ली Dillī, Urdu: دہلی Dihlī, Punjabi: ਦਿੱਲੀ Dillī), the largest city in northern India, is the country's thriving melting pot. It contains New Delhi, the capital of modern India, as well as the capitals of several empires.
Jhansi is a city in the Northern Bundelkhand region of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is very close to the central state of Madhya Pradesh and is overall more similar culturally to much of Madhya Pradesh than the rest of Uttar Pradesh.
Lucknow (Hindi: लखनऊ Lakhnaū, Urdu: لکھنؤ Lakhnaū) is the capital of Uttar Pradesh and one of the most populous cities in northern India. Lucknow, the "City of the Nawabs", thrives along the banks of Gomti River.
Patna (Hindi: पटना Patnā, pronounced PUHT-nah), the capital of Bihar, is a bustling city in the Indian Plains with a glorious past. It is a gateway to the Buddhist and Jain pilgrimage centres of Vaishali, Rajgir, Nalanda, Bodh Gaya, Kesariya and Pawapuri.
Varanasi (वाराणसी Vārāṇasī), also known as Banaras (बनारस Banāras) or Kashi (काशी Kāshī), is a holy city at the banks of the Ganges River in Uttar Pradesh, India. Being the most sacred city in Hinduism and Jainism, and important in the history of Buddhism, Varanasi is India's most important pilgrimage destination.
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