User:Dinesh14091973

Haldwani!!! at a Glance….

History Haldwani gateway to the Himalayas is one of the biggest base business center of Uttarakhand. Erstwhile, Haldwani was known as Halduvani. the name was derived after the tree name "Haldu" which were found in abundance here thus meaning “Jungle of Haldu”. Kumaon, situated almost entirely in the Himalayas except for Bhabhar, extending from the borders of Tibet to the marshy tract of Tarai, which was also known as 40 kos(miles) jungle thus making it impossible for mughal army to cross it and conquer Kumaon, was the part of erstwhile U. P. Under Gorkha rule, which followed the rule of the Chand dynasty, the people enjoyed no civil liberties so when in 1815 this territory came under the British there was a new kind of rule. It was not only different from the feudal rule of the Gorkha court but distinct even from the rest of the Ceded and Conquered Districts (as the newly acquired territories were then known). In view of the inaccessibility of this nearly uncharted Himalayan tract, it was put under a Non-Regulation regime of administration. This Non-Regulation character of administration, kept flexible, ruled by local Orders and a few hand-picked able officers; made this region a veritable incubator of administrative experiments. British administration, as mentioned was an advance on Gorkha rule and British rulers sought the services of able natives to aid them. In Badri Dutt Joshi Commissioner Ramsay found such a man and according to a biography part of success of Ramsay’s rule was attributed to Joshi. The Joshis of Danya had risen in the sixteenth century and they supplied a succession of Dewans for various ruling families. Badri Dutt Joshi, son of Trilochan Joshi, and maternal grandfather of Pant, served as a Sudder Amin (1879 – 84) under Commissioner Ramsay. It was under his regime that “Hadlwani” became the trading hub of the region, thus Haldwani came into existence as we know it today.

Overview Eight Kilometres north of Haldwani at Ranibagh which boasts of erstwhile factory of Hindustan Machine Tools, and now of Horticulture belt of the state, wherein the people are cash-rich. To the south of Haldwani lies Pantnagar famous for its Pantnagar University and SIDCUL which has been opened as a part of Special Economic Zone in order to re-energize manufacturing sector in the state. The Gaula river runs to the east, and to the west is the fertile agricultural region of Lamachaur and Kaladhungi merging into the world-renowned Corbett National Park.

Demographics Since Haldwani is termed as the "Gateway of Kumaon" the region is dominated by Kumaoni people but still it is home to a significant percentage of people belonging to other religions and regions. One can find variety in all aspects from dishes to clothing's and from dialect to architecture. Rock and popular English music is finding a good market in the rapidly expanding music market along with traditional Pahadi music of the state. Drinking is not considered a taboo anymore, given that the person doesn't drink in noon time, and is busy with his own job. A small town till about 2 decades ago, rapid urbanization due to a number of factors has contributed to its rise as a regional hub trading in modern amenities and a better infrastructure (roads, shopping centres and hospitals). Haldwani is said to be a "Great city shadowed by Nainital". Haldwani on Geo-political bases is always above Nainital town which is the District center. With the advent of SIDCUL, and given the fact that 95% of the executives and the employees of midlle and higher management prefer staying in Haldwani, the city has seen a surge in the population of an average of 26 Years. Moreover, the city which had an “Old Age Home” tag all of a sudden has become vibrant youth, like any other city e.g. Noida or Gurgaon which is more demanding in terms of amenities. Apart from this, Haldwani has also become the knowledge center of Kumaon, and boast of One Govt Medical college, and the other Govt Medical college is near SIDCUL. Two para-medical colleges, and at least fifteen medical colleges are in the vicinity. Thus, we have an additional student population of approx Twenty Five Thousand who have come from outside to study and are in the age group of 18 to 23.

Connectivity By Air Options Pant Nagar Airport The nearest airport to Haldwani is Pantnagar, 35 kms from Haldwani. Airline Name : Kingfisher Flight	 Departure	 Arrival	 Flight	 Departure	 Arrival Delhi (DEL) IT4364	Pantnagar (PGH)

IT4363 Pantnagar (PGH) Delhi (DEL)

By Road Haldwani/Kathgodam is connected to National Highway No. 87. More importantly it is easily accessible from Delhi, Lucknow, and Dehradoon. By Rail Haldwani is Rail connected with the various parts of the country. It has been a popular railway station since British Time. However, the main source for major places to reach Haldwani is New Delhi. There are few other trains between Haldwani and Dehradun, Howrah/Kolkata, Jammu Tawi, Amritsar, etc.

Economy Well connected with the Indo-Gangetic plain by road (to New Delhi, Dehradun and Lucknow) and rail (New Delhi, Lucknow and Agra), Haldwani is an important commercial hub. It is home to one of the largest vegetable, fruit and foodgrain markets in Northern India i.e. Kumaon. Being the gateway to most of Kumaon and parts of Garhwal, it is an important revenue center of Uttarakhand based on its advantageous location as a base depot for goods in transit to the hills. With the emergence of SIDCUL in Pantnagar, as has been stated earlier which is at south of Haldwani, the tinsel town has become a major manufacturing hub with the companies like Tata Motors, Ashoka Leyland, Mahindra & Mahindra Motors, Bajaj Motors etc to name a few have already setup their manufacturing base, and companies like HCL Infosystems setting up a major service unit. Apart from aforesaid groups, the city is also likely to become the hub of Aurvedic Medicine processing and manufacturing, given the fact that Uttarakhand is one of the largest producers of Ayurvedic Medicinal plants. Moreover, the subsidy given to the Ayurvedic Medicinal manufacturing / processing industries by the state Government as scope of exporting the Ayurvedic products is very high as it is not only used treatment of illness but also as anti-oxidants in many facial creams worldwide, and in turn building and increasing the income generation capacity of the local youths / farmers.

By Dinesh Joshi Joshi.dinesh@gmail.com