The Dehradun Page

Tourism

Introduction

Dehradun, the capital of Uttarakhand (formerly known as Uttaranchal), India located in the Garwhal region of the state, is a valley between the Himalayas and the Shivaliks. It was made the capital since the very inception of the state in November of year 2000. The city is surrounded by numerous other places to visit notable amongst them are Haridwar, Rishikesh and Mussourie. It is famous for its long grained variety of rice known as “Basmati”. There used to be a lot of paddy fields during my childhood years which have now given way to concrete structures. Thus getting the Dehradun Basmati which has actually been grown locally is very much debatable. It is also famous for its litchis and schools.

History

The name Dehradun has it origins from “Dera” meaning Camp and “Dun” meaning Valley. It was under the successive reigns of Sikhs, Mughals, Gurkhas and finally the British. The British were drawn to the city mainly due to the favorable weather conditions.

Places of Interest
Forest Research Institute

The huge campus of FRI now ICFRI is a place where one can have a close encounter with nature. It is the training center for the Forest officers. I used to cycle through it on my way to school each day with my friends. It used to be such a great ride. The FRI has museums that bring you the vast flora and fauna of the country all at one place. The exhibits include wood samples, insects, wildlife, furniture. There is a library and a bookshop too.

Indian Military Academy

The Indian Military Academy or the IMA is the institute where the officers of the Indian Army train to become officers. The passing out parade is carried out with much pomp and show and is the much awaited event in the Academy.

Survey of India

The Survey of India was founded in the year 1767. It has to its credit the determination of the height of Mount Everest under the leadership of the Surveyor General, Sir George Everest. It has an archive of all kind of maps.