Amritsar is located in the northwest part of India in the State of Punjab, 32 miles east of Lahore, Pakistan. Amritsar derives its name from Amrit-sarovar literally meaning "The Pool of the Nectar of Immortality".
It is home to the Harimandir Sahib, also known as the Golden Temple, and is the spiritual and cultural centre of the Sikh Religion. In Maharaja Ranjit Singh's time, Amritsar had superseded Lahore as the pre-eminent city of Punjab. It is also known for the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (1919) and the Amritsar massacre of 1984 known as Operation Bluestar.The main commercial activities include tourism, carpets and fabrics, farm produce, handicrafts, service trades and light engineering.



Amritsar is also a seat of major educational institutions like Guru Nanak Dev University (established 1969), BBK DAV College for Women, Amritsar(established 1967), Khalsa College, Amritsar (established 1892), DAV College Amritsar (established 1955), and Government Medical College, Amritsar (established 1926). Amritsar is also home to Pingalwara, the home for destitutes founded by Bhagat Puran Singh and a home to Central Khalsa Orphanage (house for orphans) which was once a home to Shahid Udham Singh.