CHANDIGARH: More than 60 years after it was designed by one of the world's best-known modern architects, the city where President Francois Hollande begins his India visit Sunday remains an oasis of calm in a country better known for urban chaos.
Chandigarh is the only city outside France designed by Le Corbusier, the architect whose functional designs informed his home country's postwar urban planning policy for three decades.
Hollande was invited to India to be the guest of honour at this year's Republic Day parade on Tuesday, the final day of a visit that is expected to focus on trade and security.
Before he heads to India's polluted, congested capital, the French president, on his second official visit to the country, will spend a day enjoying Chandigarh's wide boulevards and serene gardens.
Although the city's population has more than doubled since it was built in 1953 at the request of India's first prime minister, residents say its Franco-Swiss creator's vision has stood the test of time.
"It's very green, it's clean, people are kind and civilised as compared to other places in India," said 28-year-old Navjot Kaur, who works with children.
"It is one of the best-designed cities in India."
The city, which lies 250 kilometres (150 miles) north of New Delhi, is divided into 55 low-rise residential sectors whose structures appear to melt into plentiful greenery.
Even traffic flows relatively freely, in sharp contrast to the gridlock of major cities such as Delhi and Mumbai, thanks to a complex system of lanes that separate different categories of vehicle.
Hollande will visit Chandigarh's modernist heart before meeting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at its famous rock garden -- a 20-acre (eight-hectare) space filled with sculptures made from the rubble of its construction.
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