Dehradun an important city of India located in the Garhwal region is the capital of Uttarakhand state. The city is just 225 km away from India’s capital New Delhi and around 764 villages, 17 towns, 6 tehsils and 6 community development blocks exists there. To ease the migration and population explosion in New Delhi, National Capital Region (NCR), Dehradun is being developed as an alternative centre of growth and it has been selected as one of the counter magnets of the Delhi metropolitan area.
The city has good natural resources, prestigious educational institutions and best publishing services which had made it famous among people.
Many important educational institutions like Indian Military Academy, Forest Research Institute and various day and boarding schools are located here which are renowned in India.
National foundations like Survey of India, Wildlife Institute of India, the Indian Institute of Petroleum and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation are built in the city.
India’s two powerful rivers such as Ganges and the Yamuna have surrounded the city from east and west subsequently. The city is beautiful and full of greenery due to its location on the foothills of the Himalayas. Picturesque landscape, pleasant climate and due to close proximity to famous Himalayan tourist destinations like Nainital, Mussoorie, Haridwar, Rishikesh and Pilgrimage circuit of Badrinath, Rameshwaram, Dwarka and Jagannath Puri (Char Dham), lots of tourists are attracted to the city.
Word Dehradun has been made with two words Dehra and Doon. ‘Doon’ word comes into the existence for the valley locating between the Himalayas and the Shivaliks. And when son of Guru Har Rai visited here with his followers, he made a camp in the region for staying there which was called as ‘Dera’. And then region started developing as the modern city of Dehradun. Word Dehra and Doon was linked to each other and Dehradun name was given to the city. However some historians don’t agree that word ‘Dehra’ could be regarded as a term for camping.
History of the city is also linked to Ramayana and Mahabharata era because many ancient temples and idols are found in and around the city. It is said that Lord Ram and his brother visited in this region after the battle with Ravan. In Mahabharata period, Dronacharya who was royal guru to the Kauravas and Pandavas is said to be the resident of Dehradun.
Chinese traveller Huen Chang has described this region as Sudhanagar and later on it was also known as Kaalsi. The area was important and prosperous because Edicts of Ashoka indicates about it. Many rulers such as Mahmud of Ghazni, Taimooralang, Ruahela Njibuddulo, Ghulam Qadir etc invaded the city. Nepal King Prithvi Narayan Shah also controlled over Dehradun along with many region of India but British East India Company took it back from them after war.
It has temperate climate generally but that varies from tropical. Summer gets hot but temperatures get down severely in winter. The nearby hills get snowfall in winter. September to October and March to April are the good months to visit Dehradun because the weather is best.
Dehradun is very popular and has many interesting sites which attract the tourists. There are many important tourist destinations such as Kalanga monument, Tapkeshwar temple, Malsi Deer Park, Laxman Siddh, Guchhupani, Forest Research Institute, Chandrabani, Santala Devi temple and Tapovan etc. exist in the city. One can get involved in activities such as trekking, rafting and rock climbing in nearby hill stations like Mussoorie, Chakrata, Ssahssradhara, Lahkhamondal and Dakpathar and can also enjoy the nature. Museums are also built there. Clock Tower is built in the centre of the city.
The city is linked to other cities of India by Air, Railways and Roads.
People generally speak in Hindi and Garhwali language but other languages such as Gorkhali, Punjabi, Kumaoni and English are also used by some people in the city. 85% is the literacy rate in the city. People belonging to different religions reside here. People in Dehradun are influenced with Yoga, meditation and Ayurveda. Though many fairs are organised in Dehradun but Magh Mela and Jhanda Mela are famous among them.
Many educational institutions such as Doon School, Rashtriya Indian Military College, Convent of Jesus and Mary, Welham Boys School, St. Joseph’s Academy, Welham Girls School and Guru Nanak Academy etc. are famous for providing quality education to the students.
Many important institutes and organisations such as National Institute for Visually Handicapped, Balaji institutes for people with hearing problems and other disabilities and institute for mentally challenged children are built here. Various industries are established in the city. Economic growth of the city is strong. Variety of Basmati rice and Lychees are produced in the city and it is famous at international level for it.
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