Dehradun

Dehradun

देहरादून, Dehra Dun
—  city  —
Dehradun
Location of Dehradun
in Uttarakhand and India
Coordinates
Country  India
State Uttarakhand
District(s) Dehradun
Population 447,808 (2001)
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
Area

• Elevation

• 650 metres (2,130 ft)
Website http://dehradun.nic.in/

Dehradun (Hindi: देहरादून) pronunciation, also sometimes spelled Dehra Doon, is the provisional[1] capital city of the Uttarakhand state (earlier called Uttaranchal) in India, and the headquarters of Dehradun district.

It is located in the Doon valley, 246 kilometres north of India's capital New Delhi and the Delhi metropolitan area. The district is surrounded by the Himalayas in the north, Sivalik Hills in the south, the river Ganga in the east, and the river Yamuna in the west. The water divide of Ganga and Yamuna passes through the city.

It is also located on the northwestern side of the fertile Gangetic plains of India. Before the creation of Uttarakhand on November 9, 2000, Dehradun was a part of Uttar Pradesh. Neighbouring cities and towns include Haridwar, Rishikesh, Roorkee, Mussoorie, Saharanpur,Yamunanagar and Ambala.

The products that have made Dehradun known within India are "Dehradooni basmati rice", bakery products and lychee.

Contents

Etymology and History

Dera (or Dehra) is a camp, while Dun or Doon is a reference to a local term used for a river valley between a smaller range Shivaliks and the main Himalayas, and the present town of Dehradun was founded in the early eighteenth century by Guru Ram Rai, the elder son of seventh Sikh Guru Har Rai, and the founder of the Udasin Sect of Ascetics, who when exiled came here in 1675, and first settled in the village Dhamawala which until today hosts the annual 'Jhanda Fair' on the fifth day after Holi in his memory.[2] Thus the name refers to his Dera or settlement in the valley,[3] and marking this settlement is a Darbar called 'Shri Guru Ram Rai Darbar', built in 1699,[4] and modelled on the tomb of Mughal Emperor Jehangir.[5] In Skanda Purana, Dun is mentioned as a part of the region called Kedar Khand, the abode of Shiva. In ancient India during the Mahabharata epic era, Dronacharya the great teacher of Kauravas and Pandavas lived here hence the name "Drona-nagri".[6]

Tea plantations in Dehradun, first started by Britons in 1863 are still operational although many of Dehradun’s tea pockets like Sirmour, Banjarawala and Kargi are fast getting converted into residential colonies. The few surviving estates today manufacture green tea, which is all supplied to Amritsar, the sole and biggest centre of green tea in the country. From there it is exported to Pakistan and Afghanistan, in addition to markets in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and other areas. The biggest tea estate, East Hopetown, was spread over 600 acres and comprised Harbanswala and Arcadia tea gardens. East Hopetown estate was owned and operated by Amarnath Rohailla & Sons under Pratap Saxena until 1962 and was the largest producer of tea in the region supplying tea to Delhi, Punjab, Afghan and England.

Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, distant view.

Geography and climate

Dehradun is located at an altitude of 650above sea level.It is located on the foothills of Shivalik Range.

Transport

Even though city transportation is now taken care of by blue striped city buses crisscrossing the city, another popular sight are the omnipresent blue three wheel vehicles (known as "Vikram"). These vehicles provide the most common and cheapest form of public transport, however, these vehicles have also been cited as the chief cause of increased levels of noise and air pollution in the city.The railway station of Dehradun is linked with major cities of the country such as New Delhi, Lucknow, Amritsar, Bareilly, Haldwani-Kathgodam, Mumbai, Kolkata, Jaipur, Indore, Ujjain, Ahmedabad, etc. with dedicated trains to Dehradun, under Northern Railways. The Dehradun - Chennai Express is the only weekly train that connects Dehradun to Bhopal Junction, Nagpur, Gwalior and Chennai. Recently many Durontos and new trains have started from New Delhi. The city is served by the Jolly Grant Airport, 25 km east of the city. Dehradun has a helidrome located on Sahastradhara Road.

Culture

It is the state capital and is also the home of many government institutions. The center of the city's activities is the Clock Tower (Ghanta-ghar), a structure with 5 functioning clocks.There have opened many cafes,plazas and shopping markets.The most important and famous one are Paltan Bazar and Moti Bazar.Recently in 10 years ,mall culture is steadily increasing.

Economy

The city has witnessed growth in the last 20 years. Dehradun has a per capita income close to $1800 (national average $800). Dehradun is in a middle of a commercial & IT boom, which is amplified by the establishment of Software Technology Parks of India (STPI [7]) and various SEZ (special economic zones) through out the city. The construction of the Delhi-Dehradun four lane highway means that more economic development is expected at a much wider scale. Dehradun is the Headquarter of ONGC,India's Largest Oil Company.

Demographics

As per 2001 census, Dehradun has a population of 4,56,000.Male constitute 50% of the population and female 50%.The average literacy rate of Dehradun is 84% with 91% of the males and 77% of the females literate.About 10% of the population is under 6 years of age.The major communities are Garhwali, Kumaoni, nepalese, Tibetan, Baniya, Punjabis, Jats.

Nearby Cities

Tourism

The stupa of the re-established Mindroling Monastery, in Clement Town, Dehradun.

Nearby locations are:

Nearby locations are the hill stations of Mussoorie Landour just 36 km away. There is a 16 km (easy) trekking route from Dehradun to Mussoorie.

Dhanaulti is a hill station beyond Mussoorie.

Chakrata is another nearby hill station 80 km away. Paonta Sahib is a pilgrimage place for Sikhs with a historic Gurudwara on the banks of the Yamuna. Other nearby religious places are Haridwar and Rishikesh.

Pictures

Dehradun, India

Dehradun Night View from Midway Mussorie.

Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, distant view.

Dehradun as a part of United Provinces, 1903.

The Clock Tower at central Dehradun City.

Also see

References

  1. ↑ http://dehradun.nic.in/default.htm
  2. ↑ http://www.sgrrdarbar.org/mahants.html
  3. ↑ Other cities with similar names are Dera Ismail Khan, Dera Bugti and Dera Ghazi Khan in Pakistan.
  4. ↑ Dehra  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (Eleventh ed.). Cambridge University Press. 
  5. ↑ Dehra Town The Imperial Gazetteer of India, 1909, v. 11, p. 221-223.
  6. ↑ A Brief History and profile of Dehradun Government of Uttarakhand website.
  7. ↑ http://www.dehradun.stpi.in

External links


India State and Union Territory capitals of India

Agartala · Aizawl · Bangalore · Bhopal · Bhubaneswar · Chandigarh · Chennai (Madras) · Daman · Dehradun · New Delhi · Dispur · Gandhinagar · Gangtok · Hyderabad · Imphal · Itanagar · Jaipur · Jammu (in winter) · Kavaratti · Kohima · Kolkata (Calcutta) · Lucknow · Mumbai (Bombay) · Panaji (Panjim) · Patna · Puducherry (Pondicherry) · Port Blair · Raipur · Ranchi · Shillong · Shimla · Silvassa · Srinagar (in summer)  · Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum)