The rise and rise of Mohali: From Chandigarh’s ‘country cousin’ to a centre of excellence in AI

Originally christened Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar, as a tribute to the eldest son of the tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh, Mohali district was carved out of areas under Ropar and Patiala districts in April 2006.

In less than two decades since it was declared as the eighteenth district of Punjab, Mohali has 17,000-square-foot IT park and is fast becoming a centre of excellence in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) sector.

Stating that he is “not surprised” over the rise and rise of Mohali, former minister Sidhu says, “Mohali is an extension of Chandigarh and seamlessly connected to it. But it is much larger than Chandigarh, which is hemmed in between Mohali and Panchkula. Today, Mohali has the best of everything — city life, clean air, neighbourhood parks and shopping centres. And the best part? There are no restrictive laws or red tape here to discourage potential residents or industry leaders.”

Interior designer Akhila Raitani moved to Mohali from Gurgaon seven years ago, after her husband’s company asked him to head an extension site in Quark City, a multi-use development space in the city. A resident of Sector 105 in Mohali, Raitani said she liked the idea of shifting to a new city with clean air.

“Seven years ago, long before the pandemic, the pollution in Gurgaon was so bad that we wore masks even then. When we came to Mohali, we were able to breathe free,” she told The Indian Express.

However, she said, Mohali had little to offer besides slow living and clean air then.

“I used to get bored due to the lack of activity here. But the city has really blossomed over the past three-four years. It has malls and multiplexes now, besides nice places to dine. What else could one ask for? Above all, I have joined a cycling group — something I could not imagine doing in Gurgaon.”

Seven new malls have come up in Mohali in the past few years. (Express Photo by Jasbir Malhi)

With seven new malls in the past two years, Mohali has surpassed both Chandigarh and Panchkula in the retail sector.

Locals say the first shoots of a new Mohali sprouted in 2002, during former Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh’s tenure. The then government came up with the 2006 Periphery Policy, which provided incentives to projects spanning at least 100 acres. The policy ended up attracting names like DLF, Emaar, MGF and Ansal, and resulted in 200 private housing societies cropping up in peripheral areas like Zirakpur, Kharar and New Chandigarh. The city also saw the construction of townships like IT City and AeroCity, and 11 sports complexes with Olympic-size pools. A state-of-the-art stadium, complete with a seven-star hotel on the premises, is currently under construction at Mohali’s Mullanpur Garibdas, better known as New Chandigarh.

On Mohali’s focus on wooing the IT industry, officials said the government did that deliberately to keep red-category industrial units, which have a pollution index score of 60 and above, away.

Punjab’s Chief Town Planner Pankaj Bawa said, “Over 100 plots were given to IT industries. About 25 are already constructed. Our IT hub, which includes companies like Infosys and Quark, is doing better than Chandigarh’s. It also helps that Mohali is more accessible than Chandigarh as it is closer to the railway station and the airport. Though the buildings here are newer compared to Chandigarh, the rents are at least 20 per cent lower. Besides, Chandigarh has reached a saturation point.”

Mohali’s Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport is one of the busiest international airports in the region. (Express photo by Jasbir Malhi)

During 2022-23, the Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh International Airport saw a footfall of 36.5 lakh passengers and 28,956 flights, making it the busiest international airport in the region.

Umang Jindal, the CEO of Homeland Group, a real estate company, said Mohali has also witnessed an influx of educational institutions, tech parks and a burgeoning community of skilled professionals lately. “The city offers cost-effective alternatives for businesses and also has a rich pool of talent from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana and even Uttarakhand,” he said.

Little wonder then that the city, which envelopes Chandigarh from three sides, has seen an unprecedented boom in the real estate sector in just one decade. This is visible in the steady inflow of new settlers, not just from the region, but also Rajasthan and NCR, wanting a slice of Mohali’s growing real estate pie. Thanks to its Olympic-size swimming pools and park libraries, Mohali is also home to many Punjabi pop music and film stars such as Gippy Grewal, Gurpreet Ghuggi, Jazzy B and Kanwar Grewal, among others.

Developments like prominent names like Fortis and Max establishing hospitals here, a new government medical college opening recently and a government cancer hospital getting constructed are just among the many reasons why Mohali’s real estate grew by leaps and bounds in less than a decade.

A realtor said, “A four-bedroom flat in Mohali that cost around Rs 60 lakh in 2020-2021 has appreciated by almost 100 per cent today.”

Chief Town Planner Bawa said many people chose to make Mohali their permanent home after the pandemic. He said, “During the pandemic, people in metro cities discovered Mohali’s potential, greenery, parks and planned design. Many even purchased property and settled here.

The city does not gasp for breath. In fact, Mohali’s realty sector picked up during Covid — a time when other cities were facing a real estate slump. The market price of land in Mohali is Rs 1 lakh per square yard.”

Realtor and former councillor Ashok Kumar Jha, 54, said, “In 1985, when I moved to Mohali, the price of a 7.5-marla (1 marla is around 25 square yards) was Rs 1 lakh. Today, it is Rs 1.75 crore. Back then, showrooms in post localities cost Rs 4-5 lakh. Today, they cost over Rs 8 to 10 crore.”

Bawa said Mohali is getting ready for a “futuristic” township that is coming up near the airport. “Aerotropolis will be an e-city (an IT hub on the lines of Bangalore), where Artificial Intelligence (AI) will be used. Even water pipes will be smart, making it possible to detect leakage through computers, for instance. We will ensure it is the best IT-enabled city in India.”

However, some planners said the city still needs more recreational facilities. Stating that a recreation park may come up soon, they said some night clubs here remain open quite late at night. In fact, crowds at these watering holes — since liquor is cheaper in Mohali — prompted its neighbours than Chandigarh and Panchkula to extend their closing timings too. The only hitch seems to be the troublemakers and criminals who indulge in carjackings and snatchings, the planners added.