Population:- 6077248 persons
State Capital:- Shimla
Average Rainfall:- 1469 mm
State Language:- Hindi and Local Dialects

The Himachal Pradesh stands true to its tales of splendour. Naturally, tourism has flourished here, attracting mountain lovers from all over the world. Himachal Pradesh is situated in the northern region in the heart of the western Himalayas. The word Himachal means the land of the snows. The state of Himachal Pradesh is situated in the western Himalayas and well surrounded by the several high mountains, many of which have still not been scaled, streams and glaciers. The various streams race through deep boulder-strewn gorges and valleys of considerable beauty. About 2 million years ago some of the people lived in the foothills of Himachal Pradesh, mainly in the Bangana valley of Kangra, Sirsa valley of Nalagarh and Markanda valley of Sirmour. These people belonged to the Indus valley civilization and pushed the Kolorians towards north. They moved to the hills of Himachal Pradesh where they could live peacefully and preserve their way of life. In the Vedas they have been referred to as Dasas. Later on the Aryans laid the base of history and culture of Himachal Pradesh. In the later period, the hill chieftains accepted the rule under the Mauryan empire, the Kaushans, the Guptas and Kanauj rulers. During the Mughal period, the Rajas of the hill states made some mutually agreed arrangements which governed their relations. In the 19th century, Ranjit Singh dominated some of the states. When the British came, they defeated Gorkhas and entered into treaties with some Rajas and captured the kingdoms of others. This situation remained unchanged till 1947. After Independence, 30 princely states of the area were united and Himachal Pradesh was formed on 15th April, 1948. With the recognition of Punjab on 1st November, 1966, certain areas belonging to it were also included in Himachal Pradesh. On 25th January, 1971, Himachal Pradesh was made a full-fledged state.Most of the people of Himachal Pradesh are Hindus and the presence of Hinduism is very strong towards the south of the Greater Himalayas. The rural people of Himachal worship various local gods and goddesses. Besides Hindus, there is a strong influence of Buddhism in the trans Himalayas. The arrival of His Holiness, the Dalai Lama in Dharamshala has made Himachal Pradesh a second home for the Tibetan Buddhists. Himachal Pradesh live through a cycle of rituals and ceremonies all their life. They are very happy and have colourful folk dances. The traditional house of the people of Himachal in the rural areas consists of three storeys – the lowest storey for the household cattle, the middle for storage of grains and the top floor for living. The rivers, forests, snow covered mountains and alpine meadows in Himachal provides a wide range of interesting and leisure activities to the tourists. Some of these adventurous sports are Skiing, Mountain cycling, camping, mountaineering, trekking, river rafting, para gliding, heli skiing, golf and jeep safaris. For the enthusiasts, no special training is required, but you should be perfectly fit. Equipment, training and instructors are available. Camping is perhaps the best way of enjoying the wonders of nature in Himachal Pradesh and sharing the warmth of its people.

How to reach Himachal Pradesh:-

By Air:- The three domestic airports in Himachal Pradesh are Bhuntar, Gaggal and Jubbarhatti. The regular flights operates between Shimla, Kulu, Delhi and Chandigarh.

By Rail:- The Pathankot - Jogindernagar line is the longest railway line which connect Punjab with Himachal Pradesh. The other railway tracks pass through Shimla. Shimla is connected with Kalka by a narrow gauge railway line, which in turn is connected with the major cities in India.

By Road:- The state of Himachal Pradesh is well accessible by road from Pathankot, Chandigarh, Dehradun, Shimla, Kullu, Manali, Delhi, Mandi and Chail.