Rishikesh- Tapo Bhumi or place of Meditation!

Rishikesh is situated in the northern part of Uttarakhand in the laps of lower Himalayas, and is just 24 kms from Haridwar.

It is surrounded by scenic beauty of the hills and what makes this place so divine is that Holy Ganga River is flowing through it. Rishikesh is a believed to be a place for meditation which leads to salvation. There are many temples many of them are ancient along the sides of river Ganga.

Ashrams of Sadhus add up to the environment and feel of divinity and purity here.

Rishikesh is very famous for Yoga, and this is very much followed by foreigners, at Rishikesh people from different countries come to learn Yoga, meditation.

Big Celebrities come here to experience the divine life here. The famous Beatles visited this place in 60’s.

People from different countries come here to learn Hinduism, to spend more time with Lord. People who love rafting should come here and experience the adventure in the waters of Ganga.

Climate here is pleasant throughout the year as it is located in the foothills.

Highlights of Rishikesh –

Lakshman Jhula & Ram Jhula – These two are suspended iron bridge, which are a major attraction among the tourists.

Swarga Ashram - Here one can find numerous temples, it’s a place to shop and eat, Gita Bhawan is situated just across the Laksman Jhula and is famous for its paintings and statues from Hindu Mythology.

Neelkanth – According to Hindu Mythology Lord Shiva drank the venom at this place and henceforth this place is known as Neelkanth Mahadeo (Mahadev is the other name of Lord Shiva). It is situated 12 kms from Rishikesh and is one of the most revered temple.

Triveni Ghat – Daily in the morning and evening Maha Aarti is performed at this Ghat, people also take a dip here.

Other Activities –

River Rafting – People enjoy the adventure of rafting along the Ganga.

Rock-Climbing - Rishikesh is also one of the ideal base camps for rock-climbing.

How to get there?

Rishikesh is well connected with all major cities through trains and buses, it does not have an airstrip of its own but one can reach by air till Jollygrant near Dehradun and then take a bus or private cab to this place.

Where to stay?

Rishikesh does not have big five star hotels, but has Dharamshalas and guest houses which provide a good and inexpensive accommodation. GMVN i.e. Garhwal Mandal Vikas Nigam provides the facility of dormitory, single and double rooms for tourists.

Uttarakhand - the Land of the Gods" (Dev Bhoomi)

UTTARAKHAND - Land of Gods and Goddesses

On the 8th of November 2000, Uttarakhand became a full-fledged state of India with the formal induction of a separate State Government. The State is carved out of the Uttar Pradesh, which has the largest population in India.
And with this, the people of Uttarakhand have finally achieved their dream of running their own affairs for which they have been fighting for some decades now.

State Info-
Situated in northern part of India, Uttaranchal is surrounded by Tibet & Nepal in the North, Madhya Pradesh in the South, Haryana, Delhi & Rajasthan in the West and Bihar in the East. Dehradun, Mussoorie, Nainital and Ranikhet are the valleys with immense natural beauty.

Uttarakhand was also the ancient puranic term for the central stretch of the Indian Himalayas. Its peaks and valleys were well known in ancient times as the abode of Gods and Goddesses and source of the Ganga River.Today, it is often called "the Land of the Gods" (Dev Bhoomi) because of the presence of a multitude of Hindu pilgrimage spots.

In January 2007, the name of the state was officially changed from Uttaranchal, its interim name, to Uttarakhand, according to the wishes of a large section of its people.
The High Court of the state is in Nanital.
Recent developments in the region include initiatives by the state government to capitalise on Handloom and Handicrafts, the burgeoning tourist trade as well as tax incentives to lure high-tech industry to the state.
The state also has big-dam projects, controversial and often criticised in India, such as the very large Tehri Dam on the Bhagirathi-Bhilangana rivers, conceived in 1953 and about to reach completion.

Land Area- Uttaranchal occupies 1.73% of India’s total land area with 51,125 sq. km.
Population- It has a population of about 6.0 million at 94.4 per sq. km.
Borders- It borders Tibet, Nepal, Himachal Pradesh, and the UP plains districts.
Capital- Dehradun was chosen as the state capital which is about 255 km away from India's capital, New Delhi

Districts: Uttaranchal comprises of 13 districts:-

1. Pithoragarh
2. Almora
3. Nainital
4. Bageshwar
5. Champawat
6. Uttar Kashi
7. Udham Singh Nagar
8. Chamoli
9. Dehra Dun
10. Pauri Garhwal
11. Tehri Garhwal
12. Rudraprayag
13. Haridwar

India celebrates "Unity in Diversity" in all aspects of life, be it religion, society, culture, education, economy and so on. Its awesome air of spirituality is marked by the multiplicity of gods and diverse religious beliefs, generating numerous strands, all wrought together into a knot of sameness in fundamental concepts.
In the same way uttarakhand is also the melting pot of many ethnic groups and castes.

Tourism-
The opportunities for tourism are immense in this state, be it-

1. Pilgrimage Tourism
2. Nature Tourism
3. Wildlife Tourism
4. Adventure Tourism

The major destinations for these are:-

Haridwar
Rishikesh
Gangotri
Yamunotri
Kedarnath
Badrinath

Dehradun
Mussoorie
Almora
Nainital
Ranikhet
Pithoragarh
Jim Corbett National Park

If you are adventurous and like tough challenges, you can go for high- and low-altitude trekking, river rafting, para gliding, hang-gliding, mountaineering, skiing, and many others.