Nawanshahr is a city and a municipal council in Shahid Bhagat Singh Nagar district in the Indian state of Punjab. It is the headquarters of Shahid Bhagat Singh Nagar District. It is said to have been built during the reign of Alaudin Khilji (1295-1316) by his Afghan Military Chief Nausher Khan. Previously it was called "Nausar" but with the passage of time, the town came to be known as "Nawanshahr". Nausher Khan had constructed five forts known as Havelis, whose remains still exist. On September 27, 2008 in Khatkar Kalan 7 kilometres from Nawanshar. Honoring freedom fighter Bhagat Singh, the Punjab government announced that a district in the state will be named after him. The announcement was made by Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal at a function ancestral village of the martyr to mark his 101st birth anniversary. Nawanshahr district would be renamed as Shahid Bhagat Singh Nagar.