Pauri Garhwal district is a district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. Its headquarters is in the town of Pauri. It is sometimes referred to simply as Garhwal district, though it should not be confused with the larger Garhwal region of which it is only a part.
Geography Located partly in the Gangetic plain and partly in the Lower Himalayas, Pauri Garhwal district encompasses an area of and is situated between 29° 45' to 30°15' North Latitude and 78° 24' to 79° 23' East Longitude. The district is bordered on the southwest by Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh, and, clockwise from west to southeast, by the Uttarakhand districts of Haridwar, Dehradun, Tehri Garhwal, Rudraprayag, Chamoli, Almora, and Nainital.
Climate The climate of Pauri Garhwal is warm in summer and cold in winter. In the rainy season the climate is cool and the landscape green. However, in Kotdwar and the adjoining Bhabar area, it is quite hot, reaching well above during the summer. In the winter, many parts of Pauri receive snowfall.
History Human civilization in the Garhwal Himalayas has progressed with the rest of the Indian sub-continent. The Katyuri kings comprised the first historical dynasty, which ruled over unified Uttarakhand from 800 to 1100 and left records in the form of inscriptions and temples. After the downfall of the Katyuris, the Garhwal region was fragmented in more than sixty-four principalities ruled by chieftains. In the mid 15th century, Chandpurgarh emerged as a powerful principality under the rule of Jagatpal (1455 to 1493), who was a descendant of Kanakpal. At the end of 15th century, Ajaypal ruled Chandpurgarh and succeeded in unifying and consolidating various principalities on the region. His kingdom came to known as Garhwal. Subsequently, he transferred his capital from Chandpur to Devalgarh, before 1506, and later to Srinagar, from 1506 to 1519.
King Ajaypal and his successors ruled Garhwal for nearly three hundred years. During this period they faced a number of attacks from Kumaon, Mughals, Sikhs, and Rohillas. An important event in the history of Garhwal was the Gorkha invasion, which was marked by extreme brutality. The word Gorkhyani has become synonymous with massacre and marauding armies. After subjugating Doti and Kumaon, the Gorkhas attacked Garhwal and reached as far as Langoorgarh, despite stiff resistance of the Garhwali forces. Then, news came of a Chinese invasion at the rear of the Gorkhas, who were forced to lift the siege. In 1803, the Gorkhas again mounted an invasion. After capturing Kumaon, they attacked Garhwal. After initial defeats, King Pradyumna Shah escaped to Dehradun to futilely reorganize his defenses. Garhwali soldiers suffered heavy casualties and the king himself was killed in the Battle of Khurbura. The Gorkhas became the masters of Garhwal in 1804 and ruled the territory for twelve years.
The Gorkha rule ended in 1815, when the British drove the Gorkhas west of the Kali River. On 21 April 1815, the British established their rule over the eastern half of the Garhwal region, lying east of the Alaknanda and Mandakini rivers, which became known as British Garhwal and Doon of Dehradoon. The remaining part of Garhwal, in the west, was restored to King Sudarshan Shah, who established his capital at Tehri. Initially, the administration was entrusted to the commissioner of the Kumaon and Garhwal with his headquarters at Nainital; but later, in 1839, Garhwal was formed into a separate district under an assistant commissioner with his headquarters at Shrinagr and after 1840 at Pauri.
At the time of Indian independence, Garhwal, Almora, and Nainital districts were administered by the commissioner of Kumaon division. In early 1960, Chamoli district was curved out of Garhwal district. In 1969, Garhwal division was formed, with its headquarter at Pauri. In 1998, Rudraprayag district was formed, by carving out seventy-two villages of Khirsu block from Pauri Garwhal district, and Pauri district attained its present form.
Transport The most common mode of transport is by either bus or taxi. Bus services are provided by the state-run Uttarakhand Roadways, Garhwal Motor Owner Union (GMOU) Ltd., and Garhwal Motor Users (GMU) Ltd. Operations of Uttarakhand Roadways are limited mainly to interstate routes and major cities and towns of the district and state. GMOU Ltd. is the largest bus service provider in the district, providing services to almost all parts of the district. The services of GMU Ltd. are limited to a comparatively small area adjoining Kumaon division. There are a number of taxi unions in many towns of the district, providing service for almost every local stretch of road. The only railway station in the district is at Kotdwara. It was established by the British as early as 1889. Pauri Garhwal district is situated in the Shiwalik range, the outermost range of the Himalayas, and its hills are very rugged. As a result, it is not considered feasible to extend the railway network further. The district does not have any regular air services. The nearest is Jolly Grant Airport, near the state capital of Dehradun, about from Pauri and from Kotdwara.
Demographics
According to the 2011 census, Pauri Garhwal district has a population of 687,271, which is almost equal to the 2014 population of Equatorial Guinea or the US state of North Dakota. This gives it a ranking of 506th in India (out of a total of 640). The district has a population density of . Its population growth rate over the decade of 2001-2011 was -1.51%. Pauri Garhwal has a sex ratio of 1103 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 82.02%. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 17.80% and 0.32% of the population respectively.
Religion
Vast majority of the people in Pauri Garhwal district follows Hinduism, with a small minority, around 3%, following Islam.
Language
The predominant first language of the district is Garhwali spoken by 83.3% of the population, but there are also speakers of Hindi (13.3%) and, to a smaller extent, Nepali (1.2%) and Kumaoni (0.7%).
Administrative structure In 1960, what was known as Garhwal district was divided into Pauri Garhwal and Chamoli districts. In 1997, an additional area was carved out of Pauri Garhwal district and merged with parts of Chamoli and Tehri Garhwal districts to form Rudraprayag district.
The District is administratively divided into 15 tehsils grouped into 6 sub-divisions, 15 developmental blocks, and 3,142 villages.
Tehsils
Bironkhal Chakisain Chaubattakhal Dhumakot Jakhanikhal Kotdwara Lansdowne Pauri Rikhanikhal Satpuli Srinagar Thalisain Yamkeshwar
Development blocks
Bironkhal Dugadda Dwarikhal Ekeshwer Jaihrikhal Kaljikhal (largest block in Pauri Garhwal) Khirsu Kot Nainidanda Pabau Pauri Pokhra Rikhnikhal Thalisain Yamkeswar
Education Pauri, Kotdwar, Lansdowne and Srinagar are major centres of education in the district. Govind Ballabh Pant Engineering College is at Ghurdauri ( from Pauri). Hemwati Nandan Bahuguna Garhwal University, Veer Chandra Singh Garhwali Government Medical College, and National Institute of Technology Uttarakhand are in Srinagar.
Notable people Anil Dhasmana Former Chief of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) Ajit Doval – 5th National Security Advisor of India B. C. Khanduri – 4th Chief Minister of Uttarakhand and former Minister of Road Transport and Highways General Bipin Rawat – 1st Chief of Defence Staff of India General Anil Chauhan – 2nd Chief of Defence Staff of India Ram Prasad Nautiyal- Indian freedom fighter and first elected member from Lansdowne legislative constituency Narendra Singh Negi – Indian Folk Singer Ramesh Pokhriyal – Indian Politician Veer Chandra Singh Garhwali Lieutenant General Lakshman Singh Rawat - Former Deputy Chief of the Army Staff and father of General Bipin Rawat. Meena Rana – Folk Singer Anupam Sinha, film director and screenwriter Deepak Dobriyal - a Bollywood actor Shiv Prasad Dabral - an Indian historian, geographer, academic and writer from Uttarakhand. Tilu Rauteli - Indian folk heroine Urvashi Rautela - an Indian actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder Yogi Adityanath (Ajay Singh Bisht) – 21st Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh
Tourism Tourism in Pauri Garhwal District includes a number of exploring options. Pauri Garhwal attracts people through its environment, valleys, and mountain peaks, and natural features. Tourists in Pauri also visit its ancient temples.
Khirsu
The mountains of Khirsu offer views of the northern Himalayas and attract a large number of tourists. Located away from Pauri at an altitude of , Khirsu is peaceful and free from pollution. There is the nearby ancient temple of Ghandiyal Devta. Accommodation is available at the Tourist Rest House, Forest Rest House, and private hotel.
On the 4th Monday of April or 1st Monday of May, there is an annual Mela put on by local villagers.
The villages of Gwarh and Khothgee, near Khirshu, have a festival where they lower an artificial carved wooden effigy of man, called "Badi" by locals, by rope down a hill for about 500 meters.
Chaukhamba View Point Situated only 4 km from Pauri, Chaukhamba View Point overlooks the Idwal Valley with views of the Chaukhamba peaks. It is known for its scenic vistas.
Uffrainkhal Uffrainkhal, also spelled Ufrainkhal, is a small hill town located in the district. Uffrainkhal is situated at an elevation of approximately 1,700 meters (5,577 feet) above sea level. The town is surrounded by dense forests of oak, pine, and rhododendron, offering a lush green landscape throughout the year. It lies () roughly 90 km from Pauri, the district headquarters, and about 70 km from Kotdwar, the nearest railhead.
Religious shrines
Kandoliya Devta
The main temples of the city are Kandoliya Devta, Laxmi Narayan, Kyunkaleshwar Mahadev, Nagdevta, Laxman Temple, Ulkhagarhi, and Hanuman Mandir. Every year, a bhandara is organized on the premises of the temple of Kandoliya Devta, and thousands of people from Pauri and nearby villages participate in it. The city has a number of picnic spots surrounded by deodar forests, viz. Ransi, Kandoliya, Nag Dev, Jhandi Dhar, etc. Every year since 1974, Sharadotsav is celebrated in the city.
Gurdwara Sahib, Pipli
This Historical Gurdwara is located in the Pipli village of Pauri Gharhwal. This Gurdwara is situated in the memory of first Sikh guru - Guru Nanak Dev ji, according to the history Guru Nanak Dev ji visited this site during his third udasi. Sect of People's who follows Guru Nanak in this area are famously known as Negi Sikhs .
Danda Nagraja Temple The holy shrine of Danda Nagraja is a popular pilgrimage among the Garhwali people. Garhwalis from around the country visit the shrine every day. It is located in the Lasera village, patti Banelsyun, Pauri district (lap of mountains). The temple gets its name from the Garhwali word Danda, which means "peak". Since the temple is in a forest, local people started calling it Danda Nagraja - "Nagraja on the Peak".
Legend has it that when Lord Krishna came here for the first time, he came in the form of a snake and crawled all the way up the ridge to reach the spot where the temple now stands. Locals have a strong belief that Lord Krishna still stays here and has done so over many centuries. They say they receive the special blessings of Danda Nagraja. Popular faith is that Danda Nagraja has the power to foresee any ill coming to the area and always informs them about any mishap that is about to occur. Not just that, locals say the Lord also gives them the solution to the problem. The temple's high priest tells you with conviction that if any devotee prays sincerely, Danda Nagraja always fulfills his wishes. In part because of this temple, Pauri Garhwal is known as a "Land of Miracles".