23 Facts About Uttarakhand

Uttarakhand is known for the natural environment of the Himalayas, the Bhabar and the Terai regions.

The winter capital of Uttarakhand is Dehradun, the largest city of the state, which is a rail head.

In 1816, most of modern Uttarakhand was ceded to the British as part of the Treaty of Sugauli.

Uttarakhand's name is derived from the Sanskrit words uttara meaning 'north', and khanda meaning 'land', altogether simply meaning 'Northern Land'.

Uttarakhand was the ancient Puranic term for the central stretch of the Indian Himalayas.

Related searches

The name Uttarakhand remained popular in the region, even while Uttaranchal was promulgated through official usage.

Until 1998, Uttarakhand was the name most commonly used to refer to the region, as various political groups, including the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal, began agitating for separate statehood under its banner.

These bonds formed the basis of the new political identity of Uttarakhand, which gained significant momentum in 1994, when demand for separate statehood achieved almost unanimous acceptance among both the local populace and national political parties.

Uttarakhand is well known for the mass agitation of the 1970s that led to the formation of the Chipko environmental movement and other social movements.

Uttarakhand has a multiethnic population spread across two geocultural regions: the Garhwal, and the Kumaon.

Apart from a few other minority Indo-Aryan languages, like Buksa Tharu and Rana Tharu, Mahasu Pahari (found in Uttarkashi in the north-west), and Doteli, Uttarakhand is home to a number of indigenous Sino-Tibetan languages, most of which are spoken in the north of the state.

Politics in Uttarakhand is dominated by the Indian National Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party.

However, on 21 April 2016 the High Court of Uttarakhand quashed the President's rule questioning its legality and maintained a status quo prior to 27 March 2016 when 9 rebel MLAs of INC voted against the Harish Rawat government in assembly on state's money appropriation bill.

Primary food of Uttarakhand is vegetables with wheat being a staple, although non-vegetarian food is served.

Crops most commonly associated with Uttarakhand are Buckwheat and the regional crops, Maduwa and Jhangora, particularly in the interior regions of Kumaon and Garhwal.

Uttarakhand state is the second fastest growing state in India.

Per capita income in Uttarakhand is 198738, which is higher than the national average of 126406.

The service sector of Uttarakhand mainly includes tourism, information technology, higher education, and banking.

Uttarakhand is home to rare species of plants and animals, many of which are protected by sanctuaries and reserves.

The State Road Transport Corporation, which has been reorganised in Uttarakhand as the Uttarakhand Transport Corporation (UTC), is a major constituent of the transport system in the state.

Uttarakhand has many tourist spots due to its location in the Himalayas.

Uttarakhand has long been called "Land of the Gods" as the state has some of the holiest Hindu shrines, and for more than a thousand years, pilgrims have been visiting the region in the hopes of salvation and purification from sin.

Uttarakhand is, however, a place of pilgrimage for the adherents of other religions too.