MUSOORIE: QUEEN OF HILLS

Mussoorie is one of the most beautiful hill stations not only in Uttarakhand, but the whole of India. It is named after Mansoor, a shrub which is indigenous to this area.The town is in fact often referred to as 'Mansoori' by most Indians. Popularly known as the 'Queen of hills' in India, the place seems like a 'virtual paradise' on earth. Lush green forests and lofty mountains adorn the scenic town. With a panoramic view of snow-capped mountain ranges in the north-east, and sparkling views of the Doon Valley and Shivalik ranges in the south, the hill resort offers its visitors real scenic delights.
Mussoorie was discovered in 1827, by Captain Young, an adventurous British military officer, along with Mr. Shore, the resident Superintendent of Revenues at Dehradun. They were captivated by this extraordinarily beautiful place and jointly constructed a shooting ridge here. Today, Mussoorie has become one of the most popular tourist destinations in India. The salubrious weather of the town is a pleasant change from the heat, humidity and dust of the plains. Mussoorie also acts as the gateway to the holy shrines of “Gangotri” and “Yamunotri”.



Mussoorie is a city and a municipal board in the Dehradun District of the northern Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is located about 35 km from the state capital of Dehradun and 290 km north from the national capital of New Delhi. This hill station, situated in the foothills of the Garhwal Himalayan ranges. The adjoining town of Landour, which includes a military cantonment, is considered part of 'greater Mussoorie', as are the townships of Barlowganj and Jharipani.
Being at an average altitude of 1,880 metres (6,170 ft), Mussoorie, with its green hills and varied flora and fauna, is a fascinating hill resort. Commanding snow ranges to the north-east, and glittering views of the Doon Valley and Shiwalik ranges in the south, the town was once said to present a 'fairyland' atmosphere to tourists. The highest point is Lal Tibba with a height of over 2,290 metres (7,510 ft)


With cascading waterfalls, lush green forests, mystic Himalayas, grassy slopes and awe-inspiring valleys, Mussoorie offers its visitor the real experience of being in the lap of nature. The city's raw and unhampered beauty has a majestic aura about it. It seems as if nature has blessed this city with everything required for becoming a visitor's paradise. A summer tour to Mussoorie will indeed be an enchanting experience for any tourist.

There are many places to see in Mussoorie. Some of them are Clouds End, Jwalaji Temple (Benog Hill), Sir George Everest House, Van Chetna Kendra, Mussoorie Lake, Nag Devta Temple, Kempty Fall, Bhatta Fall, Jharipani Fall, Gun Hill, Camel's Back Road, Children's Lodge, Municipal Garden.
The tourism sector of Mussoorie is well developed. Food, lodging and transportation are available in accordance with all kinds of budgets. The city also offers tourists spots for all kinds of tourists. From Children's lodge to ancient temples and parks to vantage points, Mussoorie has it all. Other than the local market and attractions, you can also look around Mussoorie for some wonderful excursions, like Naga Tibba, Dhanolti, Surkhanda Devi, Lakha Mandal, Chamba and Kanatal.


By 1901 Mussoorie's population had grown to 6461, rising to 15,000 in the summer season.
The main promenade in Mussoorie is called, as in other hill stations, the Mall. In Mussoorie, the Mall stretches from Picture Palace at its eastern end to the Public Library (shortened to 'Library') at its western end.
During the 1959 Tibetan Rebellion, the Central Tibetan Administration of the 14th Dalai Lama was at first established in Mussoorie before being moved to its present location in Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh. The first Tibetan school was established in Mussoorie in 1960. Tibetans settled mainly in Happy Valley in Mussoorie. Today, some 5,000 Tibetans live in Mussoorie.



There are many Institutions in Mussoorie, schools include Convent of Jesus and Mary,Waverly,(1845), St. George's College (1853), Woodstock School (1854), Oak Grove School (1888), Wynberg-Allen (1888), Guru Nanak Fifth Centenary (1969),Convent of Jesus and Mary Hampton Court. Facade of St. George's College, Mussoorie, estb. 1853. Mussorie also has the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration located about 2 km from Gandhi Chowk, the premier training institute for officers of the Indian Administrative Service and other civil services.

HISTORY OF UTTARAKHAND

The history of Uttarakhand sings the glorious past of the territory. Uttarakhand has a long history of its genesis, and evolution.Talking about the history of Uttarakhand, it can be said that Uttarakhand finds reference in many holy Hindu scriptures. The different parts of the Uttarakhand have been referred to asIlawarat, Brahmpur, Rudrahimalaya, Sapaldaksh, Shivalik, Kurmanchat Karajat Kamaugarh, Kamadesh, Kumaon, SarkarI and Garhwal lover the past 3000 years. The western part of this region that comprising of 52 fortresses has been referred to as Garhwal over past 500 years. Samprat, Chamoli, Pauri, Uttarkashi and Dehradun add to the pristine beauty of the Garhwal region. The eastern region comprising of Almora, Nainital and Pithoragarh districts together known as the Kumaon region. 

The king of mountains Himalaya is said to consist of five segments i.e., Nepal Kurmanchal, Kedar, Kangda and Ruchir Kashmir. This Mid Himalayan region of Garhwal and Kumaon, which is commonly known as Uttarakhand today was called by the name KEDARKHAND and MANASKHAND in the Purans.The history of Uttarakhand can be best understood through the history of Garhwal and Kumaon:
Uttarakhand was also the ancient Puranic term for the central stretch of the Indian Himalayas. It is well known for the presence of a multitude of Hindu pilgrimage spots. The Pauravas, Kushanas, Kunindas, Guptas, Katyuris, Raikas, Palas, the Chands, and Parmaras or Panwars and the British have ruled Uttarakhand in turns.

The region was originally settled by Kols, an aboriginal people of the austro- Asiatic physical type who were later joined by Indo-Aryan Khas tribes that arrived from the northwest by the Vedic period. At that time, present-day Uttarakhand also served as a haunt for Rishis and Sadhus. It is believed that Sage Vyasa scripted the Mahabharata here as the Pandavas are believed to have traveled and camped in the region. Among the first major dynasties of Garhwal and Kumaon were the Kunindas in the 2nd century B.C. who practiced an early form of Shaivism. They traded salt with Western Tibet. It is evident from the Ashokan edict at Kalsi in Western Garhwal that Buddhism made inroads in this region. Folk shamanic practices deviating from Hindu orthodoxy also persisted here. However, Garhwal and Kumaon were restored to nominal Brahmanical rule due to the travails of Shankaracharya and the arrival of migrants from the plains. Between the 4th and 14th centuries, the Katyuri dynasty of Khas origin dominated lands of varying extent from the Katyur (modern day Baijnath) valley in Kumaon. The historically significant temples at Jageshwar are believed to have been built by the Katyuris and later remodeled by the Chands. Other peoples of the Tibeto-Burman group known as Kiratas are thought to have settled in the northern highlands as well as in pockets throughout the region, and believed to be the ancestors to the modern day Bhotiya, Raji, Buksha, and Tharu peoples.

By the medieval period, the region was consolidated under the Garhwal Kingdom in the west and the Kumaon Kingdom in the east. From the 13th–18th century, Kumaon prospered under the Chand Rajas who had their origins in the plains of India. During this period, learning and new forms of painting (the Pahari school of art) developed. Modern-day Garhwal was likewise unified under the rule of Parmar/Panwar Rajas, who along with a mass migration of Brahmins and Rajputs, also arrived from the plains. In 1791, the expanding Gurkha Empire of Nepal, overran Almora, the seat of the Kumaon Kingdom. In 1803, the Garhwal Kingdom also fell to the Gurkhas. With the conclusion of the Anglo-Nepalese War in 1816, a rump portion of the Garhwal Kingdom was reestablished from Tehri, and eastern British Garhwal and Kumaon ceded to the British as part of the Treaty of Sugauli.

In the post-independence period, the Garhwal Kingdom was merged into Uttar Pradesh state, where Uttarakhand composed the Garhwal and Kumaon Divisions. Until 1998, Uttarakhand was the name most commonly used to refer to the region, as various political groups including most significantly the Uttarakhand Kranti Dal (Uttarakhand Revolutionary Party est. 1979), began agitating for separate statehood under its banner. Although the erstwhile hill kingdoms of Garhwal and Kumaon were traditional rivals with diverse lingual and cultural influences due to the proximity of different neighbouring ethnic groups, the inseparable and complementary nature of their geography, economy, culture, language, and traditions created strong bonds between the two regions. These bonds formed the basis of the new political identity of Uttarakhand, which gained significant momentum in 1994, when demand for separate statehood (within the Union of India) achieved almost unanimous acceptance among the local populace as well as political parties at the national level. Most notable incident during this period was the Rampur Tiraha firing case on the night of 1 October 1994, which led to public uproar.

On 24 September 1998 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly passed the 'Uttar Pradesh Reorganisation Bill', 1998, which eventually led to the creation of the state, eventually the Parliament passed the Indian Federal Legislation - Uttar Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2000, and thus on 9 November 2000, Uttarakhand became the 27th state in the Republic of India.However, the term Uttaranchal came into use when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led central and Uttar Pradesh state governments initiated a new round of state reorganization in 1998 and introduced its preferred name. Chosen for its allegedly less separatist connotations, the name change generated enormous controversy among the rank and file of the separate state activists who saw it as a political act, however they were not quite as successful as Jharkhand state that successfully thwarted a similar move to impose the name Vananchal. Nevertheless, the name Uttarakhand remained popular in the region, even while Uttaranchal was promulgated through official usage.

In August 2006, India's Union Cabinet assented to the four-year-old demand of the Uttaranchal state assembly and leading members of the Uttarakhand movement to rename Uttaranchal state as Uttarakhand. Legislation to that effect was passed by the State Legislative Assembly in October 2006, and the Union Cabinet brought in the bill in the winter session of Parliament. The bill was passed by Parliament and signed into law by the President in December 2006. Since then, Uttarakhand denotes a state in the Union of India.