Capital of Himachal Pradesh - A Brief Overview

Himachal Pradesh has two capitals – Shimla and Dharamshala. Shimla is the summer capital of Himachal Pradesh and Dharamshala is the winter capital of Himachal Pradesh. This article will throw light on the details related to Shimla, Dharamshala, and Himachal Pradesh.

Shimla – Summer Capital of Himachal Pradesh

• Shimla gets its name from Goddess Shyamala, an incarnation of Goddess Kali.
• In 2018, the state government of Himachal Pradesh wanted to change the name of the capital Shimla to Shyamala. However, due to discouraging responses from the public, the state government decided to retain the name of Shimla.
• In the past, important political agreements were signed in Shimla.
• Shimla is a major centre for tourism and education.

Dharamshala – Winter Capital of Himachal Pradesh

• Dharamshala also serves as the administrative headquarters of the Kangra district.
• Dharamshala was declared the winter capital of Himachal Pradesh on 19th January 2017.
• Dharamshala is very famous across the globe as it is the home of the Dalai Lama. The Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) was moved to Dharamshala in 1960.

Himachal Pradesh

• Himachal Pradesh is known as “Dev Bhoomi” meaning “Land of God”.
• The northernmost state of India is Himachal Pradesh.
• Himachal Pradesh shares borders with Uttar Pradesh, Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, Punjab, and Uttarakhand.
• 90% of the population of Himachal Pradesh lives in rural areas.
• The economy of Himachal Pradesh is mainly dependent on tourism, hydropower, horticulture, and agriculture.
• Large hydropower plants have been built in Himachal Pradesh. The surplus electricity is sold to other states like West Bengal, Punjab, and Delhi.
• In 2016, Himachal Pradesh was declared open-defecation free, the second state in India to achieve this milestone.

Himachal Pradesh – Tourism

• Himachal Pradesh attracts tourists from all over the world.
• Himachal Pradesh has major hill stations like Shimla, Kullu, Manali, Dharamshala, Chamba, Dalhousie, etc.
• The state has many important Hindu pilgrimage sites like the Naina Devi temple, Sri Chamunda Devi temple, Baijnath temple, Bijli Mahadev, Bajreshwari Mata temple, etc.
• Himachal Pradesh is famous for its adventure tourism activities like horse riding, trekking, skiing, rafting, paragliding, ice skating, etc.