Dehradun- Dehradun districtis a district of Uttarakhand state in northern India. The district headquarters is Dehradun, which has also served as the provisional capital of Uttaranchal since its founding in 2000. The district has 6 tehsils, 6 community development blocks, 17 towns and 764 inhabited villages, and 18 unpopulated villages. As of 2011 it is the second most populous district of Uttarakhand, after Haridwar.
Dehradun is located 230 km from the national capital, Delhi. Apart from being rich in natural beauty, the town is also known to many famous educational institutions. Important national institutions like Oil and Natural Gas Commission, Survey of India, Indian Institute of Petroleum etc. are located here. In Dehradun, many educational institutions like Forest Research Institute, Rashtriya Indian Military College and Indian Military Academy are situated. It is a famous tourist destination. Specifically, Basmati rice, tea and litchi orchards increase its popularity and provide beauty to the city.
The region was seized as a war spoil from the Maharaja of Tehri-Garhwal as a consequence of the Gurkha War of 1814–16, and attached administratively to Saharanpur District to its immediate south, which was already in British hands. Dehradun district also includes the prominent towns of Rishikesh, Mussoorie, Landour and Chakrata. The district stretches from the Ganges river in the east to the Yamuna river in the west, and from the Terai and Shivaliks in the south and southeast to the Great Himalaya in the northwest.
History- Dehradun includes various Puranic stories and cultures. It is mentioned in the Ramayana that Lord Rama, along with brother Lakshmana, came to the area after defeating Ravana, the Rakshasa king of Lanka. The area is also linked to Dronacharya, the guru of the Kauravas and Pandavas in the Mahabharata. The area of Rishikesh is mentioned in the Skanda Purana as having been given to rishis(sages) by Lord Vishnu after killing the asuras Madhu-Kaitabh and their companions who tormented the rishis. Ancient temples, statues and archaeological remains have been found at the sites in and around the area that are mentioned in the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. These remains have been dated to be approximately 2000 years old.
The location of the area, the ancient traditions and customs still followed here, folk songs coming down from generations, and their contemporaneous literature point to the fact that the area witnessed various events during the periods of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. The Pandavas held influence over the region after the battle of the Mahabharata and the area was ruled by the descendants of Subahu as administrators under the Kuru Kingdom at Hastinapur. The discovery of Ashokan edicts at Kalsi near Dehradun show that the area was quite prosperous. Huen Tsang also observed Kalsi as Sudhnagar in the 7th century AD. Archaeological remains from the time of Raja Rasaal have been found at Haripur near Kalsi. Local folk legends prevailed in Jaunsar Bawar has it that a glorious Hindwan dynasty reigned over Kalsi. Haunsa Hindwan, Buddha Hindwan etc. were valorous kings of this dynasty. People believe that after the decline of Hindwan dynasty their tamed chickens which were left unclaimed became wild and use to live in nearby forest even today. These chickens when cry are heard to be saying “Hindwan Katte goe” meaning “Where did the Hindwan go?”
The area was attacked by Mahmud Ghaznavi, Timur in 1368. Guru Ram Rai, the errant eldest son of the seventh Guru of the Sikhs- Guru Har Rai, established his ‘DERA’[Camp] in the Dun [Doon] Valley around 1676 and the town that grew around this ‘DERA’ has come to be known as ‘DEHRADUN’. He founded his own Udasi Panth [Sect] and received support from Auragnzeb.Rohilla chieftain Najeebuchhaula in 1757 and Ghulam Qadir in 1785. This kept the area in disarray till 1801. The British captured the area in 1816 and found the cities of Landour and Mussourie in 1827-28. The district was added to the Garhwal division in the 1970s. It was established as the capital of Uttarkhand after the establishment of the state as Uttaranchal in the year 2000.
Area– 300 km2 (100 sq mi)