An Overview of Shimla District

Came into existence	1971
Area (in sq kms)	5131 (9.22 % of Total Area of Himachal )
Languages/Dialects spoken	Hindi & Pahari
Number of constituencies	17
Panchayats	363
Sex Ratio	916
Population	8,13,384 ( Third most populated district in HP)

·        A total of five other districts touch the boundary of Shimla district – Kullu & Mandi from the North, Kinnaur from the east, Solan from the south-west and Sirmour from the South. It also has boundary with Uttarakhand from the south-east.

Peaks & Mountain Ranges in Shimla

• ·         Jakhoo Hill – Considered as the highest point in Shimla. The famous Hanuman Temple or Jakhoo Mandir is situated here.
• ·         Chansal Peak  – It is the highest peak in Shimla District ( 4520m )
• ·         Prospect Hill – It is situated at an altitude of 2200 m from the sea level towards the western part of Shimla. The famous Kamna Devi Temple is situated here.
• ·         Summer Hill – It is one the stations of the famous Toy Train. Famous Personalities like Mahatma Gandhi and Princess Amrit Kaur have stayed here.
• ·         Observatory Hill – It has the IIAS Institute ( Indian Institute of Advanced Study ). The building was constructed in 1884 for the then Viceroy Lord Dufferin’s summer residence. It was contructed by Henry Irwin. Shimla Conference in 1945 was held here. The historic decision of partition of India was taken from this building in 1947. After independence, it was also known as the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
• ·         Inverarm Hill – It is located towards the western part of Shimla. It houses a Bird Park and has the State Museum.
• ·         Bantony Hill – It is located at the central part of Shimla. The hill is named after Lord Batony. Also, the Batony Castle is located here.
• ·         Elysium Hill – Auckland House and Longwood is housed here.

Important Lakes in Shimla

Chandranahan , Tanu Jubbal (Thanedar, Kotgrah) , Garah Kuffar Lake, Kharshali Lake (Chirgaon), Kharyali Lake (Suni), Bradasar Lake

Important Waterfalls in Shimla

Jeori & Chadwick

WildLife Sanctuaries

• ·         Water Catchment Sanctuary – It is located in an area of 10.25 sq kms and is the main source of water for Shimla district. It is located on NH-22. It houses trees like White Oak, Deodar, Blue Pine, Chill Pine etc. It houses a variety of animals too e.g. Langur, Musk Deer, Porcupine etc.
• ·         Shimla Reserve Forest Sanctuary – It is located in Moshorba, Shimla. It is the biggest watershed reserve in Asia.  This sanctuary houses trees like Oak, Pine, Cedar and Rhododendron. It is famous for housing animals like leopards, jackals, chikor etc.
• ·         Chail Sanctuary Shimla – It is located in the Solas Valley and houses a myriad wildlife species. It was declared a sanctuary in 1976.  The total area covered is 10,854 hectares. The animals found here are Barking Deer, Goral, Wild Boar, Common Indian Langur, Sambar etc. It is connected through the Shimla-Kalka Highway.
• ·         Talra Sanctuary in Shimla – It is located in the east of Shimla and is one of the smallest wildlife sanctuaries in Himachal Pradesh.
• ·         Daran Ghati Sanctuary – It is located in the vicinity of Rampur Bushahr. It was declared a sanctuary in the year 1974. The Jubbarhati  Airport is near to the wildlife sanctuary.

Important Rivers flowing in Shimla

• ·         Satluj – It enters Shimla district in Bhandal/Chohra region. The rivulets associated with it are Manchand, Behra, Chaamda, Savera, Nogli and Khekhar.
• ·         Giri – The source of this river is in the Khara Pathar village which is situated at an altitude of 2500m in Shimla. The river rises from the Kubar Peak in Jubbal and is also known as Giriganga. It drains the south-eastern part of Himachal and is an important tributary of Yamuna river.
• ·         Pabbar - This river is a tributary of Tons which in turn drains into Yamuna river. Its main stream source is from the Chandranahan glacier. It rises from the north-eastern part of Shimla. Associated tribuatries with it are Andhra, Pejor, Hatkoti and Shikari.

Folklore

·         Folk songs – Lahna, Jhuri, Naati, Haar

·         Folk Dramatics – Kariyala

·         Folk dances – Ghee, Thodawar, Chohara, Mala, Boora

Temples

• ·         Taradevi Temple – It is situated at the Tarav Parbat on the eastern part of Shimla. The temple was constructed by Keonthal Raja Balbir Sen. Though the initial foundation of the temple was laid by Raja Bhupendra Sen but the temple was later moved to the Tarav Parbat following a dream which Raja Balbir Sen had. The diety is carved out of an Ashtadhatu by a Gusanwu artisan.
• ·         Jakhoo Temple – This temple was constructed by Yakoo Sage. It has an 108 feet Hanuman Idol. Lord Hanuman is supposed to have visited this place while his journey to Dron parbat in search of Sanjivini
• ·         Bheemakali Temple – It is 800 years old temple dedicated to Goddess Durga or Bheemakali. It is one of the shaktipeeths for Hindus. The temple has Tibetan architectural style. It is situated in Sarahan village which was also known as Shonitpur earlier.
• ·         Hatkoti Temple – The temple is located along the river Pabbar, around 108 kms from Shimla. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva and Goddess Durga.
• ·         Kamna Devi Temple – This temple is on the Prospect Hill
• ·         Surya Temple also known as Himachal’s Sun Temple is in Shimla
• ·         Sankat Mochan Temple – this temple was constructed by Baba Neem Karori from Uttarakhand.

Important Fairs in Shimla

Bharara Fair	It is celebrated in Bharara village in Kumharsain region. It is dedicated to Koteshwar Devta and is celebrated on 1st May every year.
Bhoj Fair	It is celebrated in Guman village in Rohru Tehsil. It is dedicated to Bhansor Devta, Parshuram & Kilbaru. Bhansor Devta is the presiding deity. It is held in September each year.
Lavi Fair	It is celebrated in Rampur tehsil of Shimla and is one of the most important fairs from a commercial standpoint. It is celebrated on 25th November of each year. It is an event marking prosperous trade between Rampur and Tibet and is an international fair which was started by Kehri Singh.
Mahasu Jatra	It is celebrated in Mahasu village which lies near to the Shimla-Kotkhai road. It is dedicated to Goddess Durga and is celebrated on 3rd Tuesday in the month of May.
Sipi Fair	It is held in Sihpur near to Mashobra on 1st of May in the honour of Sip Devta. It is one of the oldest fairs of Himachal and Rana of Koti used to be the Chief Guest.
Pathar-Ka-Khel-Halog	This fair is held in Halog village of Shimla. Halog wasthe capital of erstwhile Dhami state. It is dedicated to Goddess Kali
Rohru Fair	It is celebrated in Rohru in April on the banks of river Pabbar to honour Shikru devta
Winter Sports Festival	Shimla is the only place in to have natural ice skating ring in Asia. It is tentatively in the months from December to February
Summer Festival	It is celebrated in the month of May. Local performances are the centre of this festival

Hydroelectricity Power Projects in Shimla

Power Project Name/Place	Constructed over which river	Capacity
Andhra Power Project (Chir village)	Andhra	16.95 MW
Dhanvi Power Project (Jeori)	Dhanvi Khad	22.5  MW
Rampur Project (under Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited)	Satluj River	412 MW
Dhamuradi Project	Pabbar River	70 MW
Chirgaon/Manjhgaon Power Project	Andhra river	46 MW
SawarKuddu Power Project (in Progress )	Sawarkuddu – a tributary of Pabbar river	111 MW

Important Points related with Shimla District

• ·         CPRI – Central Potato Research Institute is situated in Kufri in Shimla. It was shifted from Patna to Shimla in 1956
• ·         Khara Pathar – It has anti hail-guns & Radar technology
• ·         Jeori – It has a Sheep Breeding Centre

2011 Census Details for Shimla

Population	8,13,384 (7,22,502 in 2001 Census )
Sex Ratio	916 ( 896 in 2001 Census )
Literacy Rate	84.55 (Male – 90.73 & Female – 77.80)

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