Description: Uttarakhand is a state situated in the northern part of India. Tibet is in north, Nepal is in the east, Himachal Pradesh is in the west and Uttar Pradesh (of which it formed a part before 2000)is in the south of Uttarakhand.
The name of the state was officially changed from Uttaranchal, to Uttarakhand in January 2007. Uttarakhand is both the new and traditional name of the state which was formed from the hill districts of Uttar Pradesh.
Its peaks and valleys were well known in ancient times as the “Abode of Gods and Goddesses” and for the source of the River Ganga. Today, it is still called as "The Land of the Gods" (Dev Bhoomi). It is believed that Sage Ved Vyasa scripted the epic Mahabharata here. It is believed that when the war was over Pandavas left their kingdom and started towards the heaven. During their journey they traveled through Uttarakhand.
Uttarakhand is a region full of natural beauty. Most of the northern parts of the state are part of Greater Himalaya ranges, covered by the high Himalayan peaks and glaciers. Two of India's mightiest and holiest rivers, the Ganga and the Yamuna take birth in the glaciers of Uttarakhand, and are fed by myriad frozen lakes, the glacial melts and form the rivers.The climate and vegetation of Uttarakhand vary greatly with elevation, from glaciers at the highest elevations to tropical forests at the lower elevations. The highest elevations are covered by ice and bare rock therefore one can find tundra and alpine meadows there. Below that one can find to Rhododendron dominated land.
Statistics of Uttarakhand :
Total Geographical area: 51,125 km²
Hill Area: 92.57%
Plain Area: 7.43%
Area Covered By Forest: 63%
Total Population: 84.89 Lakhs (Acc. To 2001 Census)
Male: 43.26 Lakh
Female: 41.63 Lakh
Major Cities with population:
Dehradun (530,263)
Haridwar(220,767)
Haldwani (158,896)
Roorkee(115,278)
No. of Villages: 15620
Literacy Rate: 72%
Major Railway Stations:
Kotdwara, Dehradun, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Haldwani, Kathgodam, Ramnagar, Roorkee, Tanakpur, Laksar
Airports:
Jolly Grant, Pantnagar, Nainisain, Gauchar (Helipad)
Major Peaks (height in metres) :
Nanda Devi Peak (7816), Kamet (7756),Badrinath(7140),Chaukhamba(7138), Trishul (7120), Dunagiri (7066),Panchchuli(6910), Nanda Kot (6861),Gangotri (6614), Gauri Parvat (6590)
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