Karnal, also known as the ‘Rice Bowl of India’, is a city in Haryana and is also a part of the Delhi NCR (National Capital Region). The city is known since the days of the Mahabharata and is said to have been founded by Karna, the first son of Kunti and archival of Arjuna. But, the city gained fame in the year 1739 when Nadir Shah defeated Muhammad Shah here. Karnal and its adjoining areas played a historic role in India’s struggle for freedom. During the First War of Independence in 1857 which broke out at Meerut, the residents of Karnal along with 15 other villages refused to pay revenue to the British Raj. Furthermore, the city is also the birthplace of the first Indo-American woman astronaut, Kalpana Chawla, who went to space twice. First, on the Space Shuttle Columbia in 1997 as a mission specialist and primary robotic arm operator. And in 2003, was one of the seven crew members that died in the Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy. Dedicated to her memory and accomplishments, the Kalpana Chawla Hospital also recently became operational in Karnal. Termed the ‘Beautiful City’ of Haryana renowned for its cleanliness, Karnal has also been selected as one of the hundred Indian cities to be developed as a smart city under PM Narendra Modi’s flagship Smart Cities Mission. Promising a bright future in real estate development for a historic city.