Spatiializing the history of abohar city

Abstract

Abohar is a small town in Punjab that lies at the border of India and Pakistan. Currently being the heart of the Kinnow belt in India, Abohar has undergone rapid economic transformation moving from a rich history of cotton farming and processing to being a mandi town. Abohar was once called Mini Chandigarh. However, In the Swachh Survekshan Survey 2020 it was tagged as the third dirtiest city of India. The thesis aims to trace socio-environmental history of Abohar within the unique social and political times to explain the city's progression from a 'cleanest' to a 'dirtiest' settlement. The biography of Abohar is portrayed as closely related to the region, its ecology, and its infrastructures, drawing on the infrastructural turn in the social sciences that recounts the social life of a city via its material infrastructure. Connecting the economic transformation of the city with the current urban economy of the city helps to understand the city in an extensive way. It also helps to understand the associated growth performance and its impact on sectoral changes and employment.