Dr MS Randhawa, widely regarded as the father of Chandigarh's landscaping, was a distinguished civil servant posted in Delhi soon after India's Independence. With a PhD in botany, he had a keen interest in urban landscaping and closely observed tree plantations in Edwin Lutyens' planned colonial precincts of New Delhi.
The Limitations of New Delhi's Greenery
Lutyens's horticultural expert, Robert Mustoe, preferred planting only a limited selection of hardy native species to ensure they survived the hot, dusty winds from the Rajputana drylands near the new capital. While large leafy trees like neem, peepul, and pilkhan provided deep shade, they imparted a dark and somewhat gloomy character to avenues and roads, especially in winter.
A Vision for Chandigarh
When the new capital city of Punjab, Chandigarh, began taking shape in the early 1950s under Le Corbusier and his team, Dr Randhawa became passionately involved in greening the city. He was determined to avoid the limitations seen in New Delhi's planning and ensure that India's tropical and sub-tropical flowering trees found a place in the new capital, symbolizing the resurgent spirit of a newly independent nation and the vibrancy of Punjabi life.
The Symphony of Flowering Trees
The pageant of flowering trees begins in early spring with silk cotton trees and rises like a symphony as kachnar, silver oak, jacaranda, and silver trumpet trees paint the city in sweeping brush strokes reminiscent of impressionists like Camille Pissarro, Claude Monet, and Édouard Manet. As spring ripens into blazing summer, another dramatic costume change occurs. City roads, parks, and inner lanes glow with bright colors, bolder and more passionate than the softer palette of spring blossoms.
Gulmohar: The Show-Stopper
The biggest show-stoppers are the gulmohar trees (delonix regia), with their scarlet blooms scattered across feathery foliage forming a wide canopy. Easily identified by their umbrella-shaped crown, these medium-sized trees have dark brown stems with sculptural, jutting branches. In full bloom during May and June, they shed their leaves completely in winter, revealing stark, bare forms that resemble installations worthy of the Venice Biennale.
Amaltas: The Indian Laburnum
Another summer star is the amaltas (cassia fistula), or Indian laburnum. For most of the year, it appears modest among Chandigarh's arboreal beauty until it undergoes a near Cinderella-like transformation in late May and June. This medium-sized tree with pointed oval leaves and light-brown flaky bark is known for its distinctive long, dangling pods resembling sausages, used in traditional medicine. Its dense yellow blossoms, cascading like grape clusters, capture the very blaze of the sun. A grove of these trees behind my house creates a surreal yellow dome rich with heady fragrance. In Chandigarh, the entire shopping street of Sector 16 was once lined with them; today, perhaps only one or two remain near the Rose Garden entrance.
Queen's Flower: A Quiet Charm
While gulmohar and amaltas dominate the summer spectacle, another profusely flowering but smaller tree, the Queen's flower (lagerstroemia speciosa), graces many inner roads. Its delicate pink-purple blooms peep shyly through clusters of pointed leaves, adding a quieter charm to the season's drama.
A Call to Treasure
Chandigarh lives through a continuous cycle of flowering trees. Let us treasure this fast-dwindling bouquet. The writer is former principal of the Chandigarh College of Architecture.
