kangra my home town

Lying 526-km north-west of New Delhi, Dharamshala is the headquarters of the Kangra District in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. Kangra valley is one of the most pleasant, relaxing and spiritual places in the Himalayas. Marvelously scenic, especially upper Dharamshala, is well wooded with oak, cedar, pine and other timber yielding trees and offers some lovely walks and finer views. In 1855, Dharamshala had only two major areas where civilians settled in : McLeod Ganj, named after Lieutenant Governer of Punjab "David McLeod", and Forsyth Ganj, named after a Divisional Commissioner. Lord Elgin, the British Viceroy of India (1862-63) fell in love with the natural beauty of Dharamshala because of its likeness with Scotland, his home in England. Lord Elgin died in 1863 while on a tour. He now lies buried in the graveyard of St. John's Church-in-Wilderness which stands in a cosy pine grove between McLeod Ganj and Forsyth Ganj.A Legend has it that Lord Elgin liked Dharamshala so much that he had sent a proposal to the British monarch to make Dharamshala the summer capital of India. However, the proposal was ignored. By 1904, Forsyth Ganj and McLeod Ganj had become nerve centres of trade , business and official work of Kangra District, But on April 4,1905, as a result of a severe earthquake, whole of the area was devastated. Alarmed at the massive destruction, the British goverment decided to shift the district headquater offices to the lower reaches of spur. As a result, the present-day district courts and kotwali bazar areas came into being which earlier had only a jail, a police station and cobbler's shop to boast of. Until India attained independence from Britain on Aug. 15,1947 McLeod Ganj and Forsyth Ganj continued to serve as health resorts and resting places for the British Rulers. But all this changed when the goverment of India decided to grant political asylum to the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatsho, in 1959. In 1960, he was allowed to make McLeod Ganj his headquaters. After his arrival, trade, commerce and tourism picked up afresh. This because with the Dalai Lama came thousands of Tibetan refugees, who gradually settled in Mcleod Ganj. During the last three decades, The Tibetans have built many religious, educational and cultural instutions in and around McLeod Ganj, which has helped in preservation of their culture. This has been a keen area of interst for the people around the world and as a result they flock at Dharamshala at various times. The present Kangra district came into existence on the 1st September, 1972 consequent upon the re-organisation of districts by the Government of Himachal Pradesh. It was the largest district of the composite Punjab in terms of area till it was transferred to Himachal Pradesh on the 1st November, 1966 and had Six (6) tehsils namely Nurpur, Kangra, Palampur, Dehragopipur and Hamirpur. Kullu was also a tehsil of Kangra district up to 1962 and Lahul & Spiti which also formed a part of Kangra was created as a separate district in 1960. On the re-organisation of composite Punjab on the 1st November, 1966 the area constituting Kangra district were transferred to Himachal Pradesh along with the districts of Shimla, Kullu and Lahul & Spiti and tehsils of Una and Nalagarh and 3 villages of Gurdaspur district.

hai this is all abt the himachal pradesh

The state of Himachal Pradesh was called 'Deva Bhoomi ' or the Land of the Gods.
There are evidences of the existence of the pre-historic humans in this region.
It is generally believed that large inhabitants of this region had actually migrated from Central
Asia and the Indian plains from time to time.
The first race to enter Himachal Pradesh was Proto-Australoid followed by Mongoloid and the Aryan.
The Rig Veda mentions about Dasyus and Nishads living in this region and their powerful king Shambra who had 99 forts.
From the early period of its history, tribes like the Koilis,
Halis, Dagis, Dhaugris, Dasa, Khasas, Kinnars and Kirats inhabited it.
The Aryan influence over this area dates back to the period before the Rig Veda.
The Aryans with their superior war tactics defeated the local tribes and settled here permanently.
The period also saw the establishment of small Janapadas or Republics in Himachal Pradesh.
They maintained a good relationship with the Mauryans so that they can remain independent for a long time.
They lost their independence with the rise of the Guptas in the North Gangetic plains.
After the decline of the Guptas, several small kingdoms ruled this hilly state and established their power in its different regions.
Sankar Varma,the king of Kashmir exercised his influence over the regions of Himachal Pradesh in about 883 AD.
This region witnessed the invasion of Mahmud of Ghazni in 1009 AD. In about 1043 AD, the Rajputs ruled over this territory.
The Mughal rulers erected several works of art as an admiration of this land.
The Rajputs, under the leadership of Sansar Chand owned this region in 1773 AD,
till the attack by Maharaja Ranjit Singh in 1804 AD, which crushed the Rajput power here.
The Gurkhas conquered this area and ravaged it.
In about the early 19th century AD,
the British exercised their influence and annexed the areas of Shimla after the Gurkha War of 1815-16.
 
The British established many hill stations in this region to protect themselves from the extreme heat and dust of the northern plains in the summer.
Shimla became the summer capital of India and even today, many old houses and buildings tell the story of English grandeur.
Himachal Pradesh was made a centrally administered territory in 1948 with the integration of 31 hill states and obtained additional regions in 1966.
It had the status of a union territory after independence till it was granted statehood in 1971.