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| Mandua ki Roti, Phansu and Til ki Chutney~Indian State: Uttarakhand |
Uttarakhand formerly
Uttaranchal, is a state in the northern part of India. It is often referred to as the "Land of the
Gods" due to the many holy Hindu temples and
pilgrimage centres found throughout the state.
Uttarakhand's name is
derived from the Sanskrit words Uttara meaning north, and Khaṇḍ
meaning country or part of a country. The name finds mention in
early Hindu scriptures as the combined region of Kedarkhand (present
day Garhwal) and Manaskhand (present day Kumaon). Uttarakhand
was also the ancient Puranic term for the central stretch of the
Indian Himalayas.
Uttarakhand is known for
its natural beauty of the Himalayas, the Bhabhar and
the Terai.
The state is divided
into two divisions, Garhwal and Kumaon. The provisional capital
of Uttarakhand is Dehradun, the largest city in the region.The natives of
the state are generally called
either Garhwali or Kumaoni depending on their place of
origin.
Garhwali and Kumaoni along
with other hilly dialects and sub-dialects are the main regional languages,
whereas Hindi is the most widely spoken language. Uttarakhand is the
only state in India with Sanskrit as one of its official languages.
Two of the most
important rivers originate in the region, the Ganga at Gangotri and
the Yamuna at Yamunotri. These two along with Badrinath and
Kedarnath form the Chota Char Dham, a holy pilgrimage for the Hindus.
The state hosts the Bengal tiger in Jim Corbett National Park,
the oldest national park of the Indian subcontinent. The Valley of Flowers,
a Unesco World Heritage Site located in the upper expanses of
Bhyundar Ganga near Joshimath in Gharwal region, is known for the
variety and rarity of its flowers and plants.
