Kalimpong is a town and a municipality in the Indian state of West Bengal.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,652 |
30 Facts About Kalimpong
2.
Kalimpong is known for its educational institutions, many of which were established during the British colonial period.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,653 |
3.
Horticulture is important to Kalimpong: It has a flower market notable for its wide array of orchids; nurseries, which export Himalayan grown flower bulbs, tubers and rhizomes, contribute to the economy of Kalimpong.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,654 |
4.
Kalimpong Science Centre, established under the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council in 2008 is a recent addition to its many tourist attractions.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,655 |
5.
One widely accepted theory claims that the name "Kalimpong" means "Assembly of the King's Ministers" in Tibetan, derived from kalon and pong.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,656 |
6.
Tamsang, author of The Untold and Unknown Reality about the Lepchas, the term Kalimpong is deduced from the name Kalenpung, which in Lepcha means "Hillock of Assemblage"; in time, the name was distorted to Kalebung, and later further contorted to Kalimpong.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,657 |
7.
Until the mid-19th century, the area around Kalimpong was ruled in succession by the Sikkimese and Bhutanese kingdoms.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,658 |
8.
Kalimpong is said to have come under the control of Bhutan in the year 1706.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,659 |
9.
Kalimpong fell into the Dalingkot tehsil, which consisted of all the mountainous part of the annexed territory.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,660 |
10.
At the time of annexation, Kalimpong was a hamlet, with only two or three families known to reside there.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,661 |
11.
Kalimpong's proximity to the Nathu La and Jelep La passes for trading with Tibet was an added advantage.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,662 |
12.
Kalimpong has five distinct seasons: spring, summer, autumn, winter and the monsoons.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,663 |
13.
Kalimpong is well known for its flower export industry—especially for its wide array of indigenous orchids and gladioli.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,664 |
14.
Kalimpong is well renowned for its cheese, noodles and lollipops.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,665 |
16.
Kalimpong municipality is constructing additional water storage tanks to meet the requirement of potable water, and it needs an increase of water supply from the 'Neora Khola Water Supply Scheme' for this purpose.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,667 |
17.
Renewable Energy Development Agency of the state has plans to promote usage of solar street lights in Kalimpong and proposed an energy park here to sell renewable energy gadgets.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,668 |
18.
The Kalimpong municipality has a total of 10 health care units, with a total of 433 bed capacity.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,669 |
19.
Kalimpong assembly constituency, which is an assembly segment of the Darjeeling parliamentary constituency, elects one member of the Vidhan Sabha of West Bengal.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,670 |
20.
Original settlers of Kalimpong are the Lepchas, although the majority of the populace are ethnic Nepali, having migrated from Nepal to Kalimpong in search of jobs while it was under British rule.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,671 |
21.
The other non-native communities as old as the Nepalese are the Bengalis, Muslims, Anglo-Indians, Chinese, Biharis and Tibetans who escaped to Kalimpong after fleeing the Communist Chinese invasion of Tibet.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,672 |
22.
Kalimpong is home to Trinley Thaye Dorje—one of the 17th Karmapa incarnations.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,673 |
23.
Kalimpong is the closest Indian town to Bhutan's western border, and has a small number of Bhutanese nationals residing here.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,674 |
24.
Languages spoken in Kalimpong include Nepali, which is the predominant language; Lepcha, Limbu, Rai, Tamang, Hindi, Bengali and English.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,675 |
25.
Cultural centres in Kalimpong include, the Lepcha Museum and the Zang Dhok Palri Phodang monastery.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,676 |
26.
Kalimpong has access to most of the television channels aired in the rest of India.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,677 |
27.
Newspapers in Kalimpong include English language dailies The Statesman and The Telegraph, which are printed in Siliguri, and The Economic Times and the Hindustan Times, which are printed in Kolkata.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,678 |
28.
The Tharpa Choling Monastery, at Tirpai Hill near Kalimpong, is managed by Yellow Hat sect and has a library of Tibetan manuscripts and thankas.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,679 |
29.
Kalimpong is a major production centre of gladioli in India, and orchids, which are exported to many parts of the world.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,680 |
30.
Kalimpong is known for their rich practice of cactus cultivation.
| FactSnippet No. 2,156,681 |