Himachal Pradesh is one of the 29 states of India. It is present in the North region of India and became the 18th state in the country that officially joined the constitution. Himachal Pradesh was established in the year 1948 and joined in the union of India as Chief Commissioners Province.
The History of Himachal Pradesh is so vast that it is quite difficult to explain it in a short paragraph, but will try to reach you in the best possible way. So, let’s start with it.
The area included in Himachal ranges from the hill district around the Shimla region to the southern region towards the Hill range of Punjab. After becoming a part of India in 1948, Himachal started growing its position in the Indian Constitution. In 1950, Himachal Pradesh joined the Indian constitution as part C state, which means Himachal able to include some princely states in it. After nearly around six years of rule under the commissioner, Himachal able to get the name of Union territory in the year 1956 on 26 November. This is a very big achievement for the state as they were now the official part of the country. They have their page in the constitution, which is a very big thing for such a small state.
But the main question arising in our mind is that when Himachal become the official state of India and enjoy the privileges of the independent state. So, a bill was passed in the parliament named Himachal Pradesh act on 18 December 1970, and Himachal was added in the state count of India on 25 January 1971. This is how Himachal becomes the 18th state of the Indian Union.
Before all these things the Himachal Pradesh was divided into many small kingdoms like Chamba, Bilaspur, and Bhagal, etc. Which means that every part is ruled by a separate person in the state. So, that’s why the Indian government keen interested in joining the Himachal as an elective state, where everyone will able to enjoy the benefits of democracy.
This is the History of the state after Independence, but what happened to the state of Himachal before Independence. Let’s talk about this thing also.
Himachal before Independence;
It is believed that nearly 20 Lakh years before people started living in the hills of Himachal like in the Kangra valley and Nalagarh valley, etc. This is not just the assumption it is proved that many artifacts related to people of that time are fonded here. It is also said that many people who belong to the Indus Valley civilization were used to live in the foothills of the Himalayas, which are part of Himachal now.
Besides all these, many kings also lived in Himachal like King Shambhar who had nearly 99 forts in his province. But he lost all his belongings in war with his rival or an Arya King named King Divodasa. The war between them nearly took 40 years to complete.
The History of the province is very vast as many kings or kingdoms ruled over Himachal for so many years. Some of them are;
- Shankar Verma, the king of Kashmir ruled over the Himachal in the year 883 AD.
- Mahmud Ghazni also invaded the province and looted all the wealth from the temples of the North in India.
- Rajput Community was also one of the communities who ruled over Himachal in medieval times. During the rule of Rajputanas, this region enjoyed a large degree of Independence.
- This Independence ended when Maharaja Ranjit Singh defeated the Rajputanas and shown them the way out of the province.
- Many other communities also ruled the regions of Himachal like Gurkhas and Muslims such as Timur and Sultan Lodhi.
After the invasion of Gurkhas in the province, the Anglo-Gurkha war took place and Britishers started showing keen interest in the state. Britishers ruled over many regions of Himachal Pradesh like Dalhousie and Shimla. And this is the reason that Both the province shared a very much of British architecture like Churches, forts and many official buildings, etc. The people of the state also helped the Britishers in world war 1. These provinces include Kangra, Nurpur, Bilaspur, Mandi, Suket, and Chamba.
When India gained Independence, Himachal becomes a part C state, and commissioner rule was established there. This is how the state of the Himachal came into existence in the History of India.
Geographical Features of Himachal Pradesh;
Himachal Pradesh shares an area of nearly 55,673 sq. km in India. The neighboring states of Himachal are Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Uttrakhand, Haryana and it shares its boundary with Tibet too. Himachal Pradesh is a generally mountainous region except for some of the parts. It ranges nearly between the 1526ft to 22,395ft above the sez level. The altitude of the Himachal increases from south to north and includes the region from the Shivalik range to the Shilla peak or PangiChamba. The Highest range in the province named Reo Purgyil. There are 12 districts are included in the constitution of Himachal Pradesh.
Himachal is also quite rich in flora. As nearly 66.52% of the area is covered by forests here. The fauna of different-different varieties is also found here. There are nearly 659cities and towns in Himachal from which Mandi is the smallest and Shimla is the largest city. State only resides 34.47% of the urban population.
Besides all these things Himachal Pradesh is a very beautiful province as there are many tourist places present in the state which are the main reason for the popularity of it like Dalhousie, Kullu, Shimla, etc. This is considered one of the best places to live in. As you can enjoy every aspect of life at therefrom adventure to beauty.
