Chandigarh Capitol Complex is the group of government building and monuments designed by the Swiss-born French architect Le Corbusier. It includes three buildings – Palace of Assembly or Legislative Assembly, Secretariat, Punjab and Haryana High Court, and three monuments – Open Hand Monument, Geometric Hill and Tower of Shadows. Chandigarh Capitol Complex was declared as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2016.
Chandigarh Tourism Department runs the Chandigarh Capital Complex Tour daily in three batches at 10 AM, 12 PM, and 3 PM. Each tour runs for nearly 90 minutes. The visitors are allowed inside the Legislative Assembly and High Court on working days only when these buildings are opened. On weekend and holidays, the tour gets finished in one hour as tourists are shown the buildings from outside only.
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You have to show up at the Capitol Complex Tourist Centre for registration at least 15 minutes before the scheduled tour start time. You need to bring your original ID or passport as identity checking is a must for the tour registration. The tour starts after all the visitors are thoroughly searched by the Chandigarh Tourism Police. The tour is accompanied by the guide, a tourism police person, and an armed person from Chandigarh Police security.
This kind of security is understandable given that you are entering the government premises having hundreds of government officials and lawyers and judges, and nobody wants to be careless that may result in some catastrophic event.
The tour takes you to these buildings and monuments in the following order:
Table of Contents
Punjab and Haryana High Court
Punjab and Haryana is the common high court for the states of Punjab and Haryana and Chandigarh. The massive concrete piers painted in bright colours of red, yellow and green stand out from the rest of the building and draws your immediate attention. The building has a double roof, projecting over the office block like an inverted umbrella. The facade of the building is adorned by a couple of water pools. Unfortunately, water pools were empty during my visit, to take care of repair work.
Open Hand Monument
Open Hand Monument is the symbol of Chandigarh and symbolizes “the hand to give and the hand to take; peace and prosperity, and the unity of mankind”. It is 26 metres high and appears like a flying bird. The Open Hand rotates with the direction of the wind. Le Corbusier was obsessed with the Open Hand Symbol and tried very hard to get it erected in Chandigarh. But when his dream was realized, he was not there to see it as Open Hand Monument was built twenty years after his death in 1985.
Geometric Hill
Geometric Hill was built using construction waste and was meant to hide the assembly from the road. The hill has two semicircles drawn in opposite directions which signifies day and night.
Tower of Shadows
Although it looks like any other under-construction structure in India, the building was very thoughtfully designed by the Le Corbusier to control the sunlight. It is constructed in such a way that not a single ray of sun enters it during summers, thus maintains the cooler temperature inside. During winters, the sun rays enter the tower which helps in keeping the warmer temperature. Le Corbusier used the same principle in designing other Capitol Complex buildings.
Palace of Assembly
It is the common legislative assembly for the two states of Punjab and Haryana. A pyramid and parabolic shaped cupola sit on the roof, connected to each other with a bridge. The colourful gigantic gate adorns the assembly building. Le Corbusier had brought the gate from France. The surface of the gate is decorated with art which was painted by the Le Corbusier himself. As with the High Court building, there are a couple of water pool in front of the assembly building.
Secretariat
It is the final stop in the Chandigarh Capitol Complex Tour. It is an eight-storeyed building, housing the office of ministers. The tour on weekdays allows you to enter the top floor of the building.
If possible, take the Chandigarh Capitol Complex Tour in weekdays to get the more fulfilling experience by stepping inside the iconic government buildings. Taking the tour on a weekday is altogether a different experience according to the people who have visited the Capitol Complex on both weekday and weekend. I had to take the tour on Sunday as I was in Chandigarh for the weekend only. I wish I could have seen the buildings from inside…maybe some other time.
Address – Capitol Complex Tourist Centre, Sector 1, Chandigarh
Phone – +91 80549 40209
Opening Hours – 10 AM, 12 PM, 3 PM
Suggested Duration – 1 hour to 1.5 hour
Ticket Cost – Free
Hey, I am an architecture student planning to visit this marvel as my case study in few days, it would be if you answer my following questions,
Q1. How to register to the tour walk
Q2. Will they(tour team) take us inside the buildings? If not, from whom to take the permission from.
Q 3. Which days is it closed
Q4. How to reach this place from airport
Q5 are taxi facilities available
It would be really helpful if you answer these. Please do reply thank you
Hi Faizan,
All the information you asked are already there in the article. I am writing here again
1) You need to show up at the Capitol Complex Tourist Centre for registration at least 15 minutes before the scheduled tour start time
2) Entry inside government buildings are allowed only on weekdays. If you are going on weekend or public holiday, you can see buildings from outside only.
3) It is open every day
4) You can take Uber/Ola to reach there.
Thank you for this great post about the Capitol Complex. Perhaps a silly question, but I am guessing you are able to walk around the buildings and monuments outside at any other time? ie: to take photographs in the morning or evening?
Hi Anne,
Not a silly question at all. Yes, Capitol complex is open daily from 10 AM to 5 PM and you can walk around premises to take photographs.
Many thanks Nitin,
So they no longer close it off to the public like previously.
Thanks,
Anne
Based on what I know and information available online, walking arund premises is allowed. But you should confirm this with tourist centre before your visit.
Hi
I am planning to register a tour for school students. Is it possible for them to watch debate live while sitting as an audience? . How to register it in first place?
I am not aware. You need to check it with Capitol Complex Tourist centre.
Hi Nitin,
I am planning to visit the place in July for a guided tour. Do you know the procedure of registering for the tour? I am trying the government website for some information but its not working.
If I am targeting at 3 pm, how do I register? It seems online is not possible.
Arnab Roy
Hi Arnab,
Yes online registration is not possible. You have to show up at the Capitol Complex Tourist Centre for registration at least 15 minutes before the scheduled tour start time
Hi…. thnx for sharing details. Can you tell me tour will b by bus or by walk? As my mum cant walk, but I want to take her. Please reply. Thanx
Hi Pratyaya,
This a walking tour. All the monuments and buildings are nearby and only light walk is required.
All of these buildings look so cool with their artistic design. I did not know such complex existed in Chandigarh and I’ll surely check it out when I visit the city next.
Despite being a World Heritage Site, very few people know about the Capitol Complex. Since it was added in the heritage recently, I am hoping that more people will get to know about these beautifully designed buildings in future.
Wow, such interesting architecture. I especially like the Towers of Shadow the best, that is such an interesting and practical structure.
It’s funny that when I first looked at the Tower of Shadows, the first thought that came to my mind was what so great about it, looks like an under-construction building. But when the guide told about the design, I was amazed seeing the vision of the LeCorbusier.
Wow, what a unique complex of architectural and art greats! I especially love the colourful piers of Punjab and Haryana high court
Piers definitely stand apart from the rest of the Punjab and Haryana high court structure.
The architecture in Chandigarh looks amazing as well as history I can see but those colorful piers at the high court really stands out.
I read about this place a long time back but I didn’t know anything else. I would go to explore this place sometime in future.
It is a must-visit in Chandigarh. Apart from seeing the beautifully designed buildings, you also get to learn about the history of Chandigarh and Le Corbusier. If possible make it as your first stop as you would be able to better understand the architecture and design of Chandigarh.
I love the colourful piers and and the way they used the construction waste in a productive way. Interesting post, thanks for sharing.
This is really cool, what interesting buildings. It does sound fun to visit during the week, but I sort of love seeing all the buildings when they are quiet and empty. It looks like you picked a fantastic time to explore it all.
Streets and area were indeed quiet and empty during my time. So that was a plus, but the biggest downside of visiting during weekends is that you won’t be able to enter any of the buildings.
My favorite is the hands figure and the story behind it! It’s interesting and good to learn something new from other culture! Thanks for sharing Nitin I always enjoyed your writing where you mixed the history into it.
Thanks, April for the kind words. I am glad that you like my blog.
What an interesting place with lots of colors and shapes. I especially like those colorful piers.
Wow, There are so many Indian posts this week and I have learned a lot about the country this week. 😛
It’s nice to know about Chandigarh and what to see and do there.; the building and architecture look special and it will be fun exploring these places one by one! @ knycx.journeying
I am glad that you got to learn a great deal about India in the last week. I hope that India has increased your wanderlust and you would be coming soon to explore this beautiful country.
This looks an interesting place to visit. I love visiting UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and this looks very different.
I also love visiting the UNESCO World Heritage Site. I dream of visiting every World heritage site of India 🙂
I love the design of Le Corbusier – he was definitely visionary and his work is well designed and so distinctive. I would totally take this tour!
Yes, Le Corbusier was visionary. It was his vision that makes Chandigarh a stand out city in India even 60 years after its inception.
Chandigarh is a place with great history, as an Indian, those places meant a lot to me. Thanks for sharing it with the world.