25% increase in foreign tourists in Chandigarh since UNESCO heritage tag

Chandigarh has recorded a 25 per cent increase in foreign tourists since it got UNESCO world heritage status for its Capitol Complex buildings in 2016, according to the statistics.

While 31,549 foreigners visited Chandigarh in 2016, the figure increased to 39,681 in 2018. Similarly, the domestic visitors, which were 11.8 lakh in 2016, increased to 15.4 lakh two years later, said a report by Hindustan Times.

Chandigarh Capitol Complex, located in the sector-1 of Chandigarh, is a government compound designed by the architect Le Corbusier. It is spread over an area of around 100 acres and comprises three buildings, three monuments and a lake, including the Palace of Assembly or Legislative Assembly, Secretariat, High Court, Open Hand Monument, Geometric Hill and Tower of Shadows. The Complex is an administrative hub of two states namely Punjab and Haryana and has buildings of Punjab and Haryana High Court, Haryana and Punjab Secretariat and Assembly, open hand monument and other significant buildings.

The Capitol Complex was declared a World Heritage site by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) in the year 2016.