Dehradun
Dehradun, previously called Dehra Dunn, (देहरादून) is the capital city of Uttarakhand state of India nestled between the Himalaya and Shivalik Hills.
Historically it was the capital of the princely state of Garhwal, and was the target of the British forces in the Anglo-Nepal war in 1814, which put an end to the Nepalese control of the region. According to Skanda Purana, Dun formed part of the region called Kedar Khand.
It was included in the kingdom of Ashoka by the end of the 3rd century B.C. It is revealed by history that for centuries the region formed part of the Garhwal kingdom with some interruption from Rohillas. For about two decades till 1815 it was under the occupation of the Gorkhas. In April 1815 Gorkhas were ousted from Garhwal region and Garhwal was annexed by the British. In that year the area now comprising tehsil Dehra Dun was added to district Saharanpur. In 1825, however, it was transferred to the Kumaon Division. In 1828, Dehra Dun and Jaunsar Bhabar were placed under the charge of a separate Deputy Commissioner and in 1829, the Dehra Dun district was transferred from the Kumaon Division to the Meerut Division. In 1842, Dun was attached to Saharanpur district and placed under an officer subordinateto the Collector of the district but since 1871 it is being administered as separate district. In 1968 the district was taken out from Meerut division and included in the Garhwal Division. During World War II, its facilities included an internment camp for Axis nationals. (Heinrich Harrer's escape from it launched his experiences in Tibet.)
Also known as the ‘Adobe of Drona’, Dehradun has always been an important center for Garhwal rulers which was captured by the British. The headquarters of many National Institutes and Organizations like ONGC, Survey Of India, Forest Research Institute, Indian Institute of Petroleum etc are located in the city. Some of the premier educational and Training Institutes like Indian Miltary Academy, RIMC(Rashtriya Indian Military College), Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy(IGNFA), Lal Bahadur Shahstri National Academy of Administration(LBSNAA)etc are also there in Dehradun. Dehra Dun is also a home of many institutions like Survey of India, IMA and FRI. Asia's biggest blind school is also here. The city is home to over 300 schools like The Doon School, St. Joseph's Academy, Welham's School, KV ONGC etc. The city is the headquarters of the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited, with offices of the Forest Research Institute, Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy, Forest Survey of India, the Zoological Survey Of India and also the Indian Military Academy is at this place.
Dehradun is  bustling with young people during school terms. Some of the popular hang-outs include "Astley Hall", the twin cinemas: Prabhat and Krishna as well as other cinemas. There has been a recent increase in night spots, hotels and pubs. The city is fast becoming a full fledged metropolis.
It is a favoured tourist destination as it attracts tourists, pilgrims and enthusiasts from various walks of life to its serene environs. Add to this the abundance of special Basmati rice, tea and leechi gardens which contribute in turning the city into a paradise.
The district is named after its chief city Dehra Dun. Dehra appears to be a corruption of dera signifying a temporary abode or camp. During the reign of Aurangzeb, Ram Rai, Guru of the Udasi Sikhs on being ordered by the Mughal king to retire to the wilderness of the Dun, had pitched his tents here in what is now the Khurbura locality of the town and has also built a temple near Dhanawala. Around these two sites, grew up the town popularly known as Dehra. The term dun or doon means the low lands at the foot of a mountain range, and as the bulk of the district lies in such a terrain, it justified the dun part of the name.Another derivation of the term dun is stated to be from Dronashram, hermitage of Guru Dronacharya of Mahabharata fame, who sojourned for a season in the village of Devara, situated near to Dehra to perform his devotions at a lonely spot.
Environment
DehraDun can be divided into two distinct tracts i.e. the montane tract and the sub-montane tract. The montane tract covers whole haKrishna.htmlata tehsil of the district and consists entirely of a succession of mountains and gorges and comprises Jaunsar Bhabar. The mountains are very rough with steep slopes. The most important features of the tract is the ridge which separates the drainage are of Tons on the west from that of Yamuna on the east.
Below the montane tract follows the sub-montane tract, which is the famous Dun valley bounded by Shivalik hills in the south and outer scarp of the Himalayas in the north.
Forests
DehraDun is  distinguished from most other districts in the state by the existence of very large forests chiefly stocked with sal. Forest products play an important role in the economy of the district. Besides, supplying fuel, fodder, bamboos and medicinal herbs, they also yield a variety of products like honey, lac, gum, resin, catechu, wax, horns and hides. The forests account for 1477 sq.kms of area, giving a percentage of 43.70 of the total area of the district.
Owing to the variation in altitudes and other aspects, the flora of the district vary from tropical to alpine species. Different types of forests and varying species of shrubs, climbing plants and grasses, depending upon the aspect, altitude and soil condition are found in the district. Sal forest and coniferous forests are predominant in the western part of tehsil DehraDun. Chir is the only coniferous species in the old reserved forests of Dehra Dun. Besides other associates of chir, a few deodar trees are also seen in the district. Wide ranges of sal forest occur in this part of the tehsil. Sal is the main timber species and is generally pure towards the Siwalik ridges. A mixture of miscellaneous species are found in the lower parts.
In the eastern part of tehsil DehraDun, the flora may be divided into a number of  Botanical divisions. Moist Siwalik Sal Forests: These forests are found in the Motichur and Thano forest ranges. Low quality of sal is found in these forests. The main associates of sal are bakli and sain.
Moist Bhabar Doon Sal Forests: These forests are found in a large areas in Thano and Barkot forest ranges. Sal is pure in the overwood and its typical associates are sain and dhauri. the underwood growth includes karaunda and chameli.
West gangetic Moist Deciduous Forests: These are found in the Kansro, Barkot, Motichur and Thano forest ranges. These are closed forests from medium to good height. The main associates of sal are safed siris, jhingan, bohera and dhauri.
Dry Siwalik Sal Forests
These forests are found on the higher slopes of Siwaliks. In ChaKrishna.htmlata tehsil they occur near the junction of the Tons and the Yamuna rivers in the neighborhood of Kalsi. Sal is the predominant species mixed with other associates viz. bakli, sain, haldu, jhingan etc.
Waterway
The Siwalik (outer and lower ranges of Himalayas) lies at its feet, the outer scrap of the Himalayas bound it on the north and Ganga and Yamuna skirt in on the east and the west respectively. Ganga enters the district in the eastern Dun at Tapoban and meanders southwest to Hardwar via Raiwala near Rishikesh. Yamuna enters the district in Jaunsar and flows southwards for about 32 kms on the south-east border of the district. 
Besides Ganga and Yamuna, other rivers that flow the district are Asan, Suswa, Tons, Rispana, Bindal and Amalava. Towns and Villages The district, at present comprises of 4 ehsils, namely Dehradun, ChaKrishna.htmlata, Vikasnagar and Rishikesh And 6 Community Development blocks, viz, ChaKrishna.htmlata, Kalsi, Vikasnagar, Sahaspur, Raipur and Doiwala. It has 17 towns and 764 villages (746 inhabited villages and 18 uninhabited villages).
The urban population of the district as percentage of total population in the census years 1981 and 1991 is indicated below. It also shows the sex ratio (females per 1000 males) and density (population per sq km) in the urban population of the district.
Communications
The district is served by roads and to some extent by rails. DehraDun and Rishikesh are the two railway terminials of the northern railway. The length of railway line in Dehra Dun district is 64.50 kms.The district is served by a total length of 2383 kms of roads. Of the total road length the State Public Works Department manages 1528 km of which State Highway accounts for 144 km. Main district roads 265 km. Other district and village roads 1119 km. Besides 501 kms of roads are managed by the local bodies and about 354kms managed by other statedepartments.
Agriculture
In the Dun Valley agriculture is carried on the same way as in the plains, but in the hill areas, it requires hard labour and skill.The facilities for irrigation from canals and rivers are abundant but there is great deficiency of manure. Cultivation in the hill tract of Dehra Dun tehsil and throughout the Jaunsar Bhabar area is of two descriptions, regular and intermittent.The hills, however, contain very little level ground and terraced cultivation is therefore, the rule.Intermittent cultivation consists of small patches of hill sides cleared of shrubs and grass usually by fire. These patches are cultivated for a year or so and then left fallow both to recuperate and also to enable the coarse grass to grow. In the district there are two harvests, the kharif sown in June or little earlier in the hills and reaped in September and October and the rabi sown in October-November and reaped in march in the plains and in April and May in the hills. Paddy is one of the most important kharif food crops in the district. Many kinds of rice are sown in the area, both superior and interior. The district is famous for its basmati rice. Other important kharif crops are maize, mandus, jhangora, sonk, urd, kulath, tor (arhar) and sugar cane. Wheat is the principal crop of rabi and is grown in almost all parts of the district. Barley and mustard are other important rabi crops.
The important fruits grown in the district are the mango, guava, peach, grape, strawberry, pear, lemon and litchi. Dehra Dun is famous for its litchi. Among vegetables, potato is the most important crop. Potato cultivation in the Mussoorie hills is an old and established industry. Besides, catering to the needs of the town of the district, a considerable portion of the production of potato is exported to other districts of the state.
Animal Husbandry
Live stock plays an important role in rural areas in raising the income of small scale farmers. Cows and buffaloes are the main sources of milk, while male cattle are used for ploughing the fields. Sheep and goats are also reared in great number, both for meat and wool. Wool is of immense importance and is used for making home-spun woollen cloth and blankets.The production of milk per milch animal is very low. Action is being taken for the improvement of breed of the cattle. There is ample scope for poultry development in the district
Industries
Tourist Industry possesses tremendous possibilities of development. On the one hand, there are beautiful hill resorts like "Queen of Hills-Mussoorie", there are places like Sahasra Dhara, famous for its sulphur springs, religious and ancient places like Rishikesh and Lakhmandal, Dak Pathar-ideal picnic spot and Kalsi - place of historical importance of Ashoka's edic.
Many institutions of national importance like the Forest Research Institute; Oil and Natural Gas Commission; Indain Military Academy; Indian Institute of Petroleum and Survey of India etc. are located in DehraDun which makes it a place of national importance attracting tourists in large numbers.
A variety of items are produced in small scale units of industries like dairy, canning and preservation, bakery, chocolate, khandsari, teal, malt, textiles, card board boxes, printing, timber goods, steel furniture, liquor, ayurvedic medicines, resin and turpentine, tubes, leather products, musical instruments, optical lenses, miniature bulbs, medical instruments, agricultural implements, utensils and hospital equipments, sewing machines, metal goods and plaster of paris etc.
In therural areas of the district a number of cottage and village industries like wool industry, handloom cloth, powerloom, durries, tailoring, oil, gur, rice, apiary, baskets, cots and mats, walking sticks, pottery, brick kilns, smithy, leather flourish etc.
Under the sericulture scheme the Government Control Silk Farm was established at Prem nagar in the district. The farm distributes healthy mulberry trees to the silk worm rearers in the district and a good amount is earned from the production of cocoons.
ortant commodities manufactured are woollen wears, bulbs, carpets, soap,walking sticks, plaster of paris, gur and medicines. There are also the important commodities which are largely exported. he important items imported are foodgrains, glass, cotton cloth, coal,p otato, ginger and sugar.
Fairs and Melas
Jhanda Fair
Held every year at the historic Guru Ram Rai Darbar in Dehradun City on the fifth day after Holi in the sacred memory of the Guru. The fair begins with putting up a new Jhanda (Flag) on the staff located in the compound of the historic complex. Besides local people, a large number of devotees turn up from Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, U.P. and Himachal Pradesh etc.
Tapkeshwar Mela
Bissu Fair
This fair is held at the Jhanda ground in cantonment arear of Chaata block of Dehradun district. It is about 3 kms from Chaata. The fair reflects cultural heritage and tradition of Jaunsari tribe. A large number of people turn up in this fair from nearby Tehri, Uttarkashi and Saharanpur districts. The fair marks harvesting season in the area and reflects the happiness of the local people. Mahasu Devta fairMahasu Devta’s fair is held at Hanol which is about 120 kms on the Chalata Tyuni road. The fair takes place in August every year, when Mahasu Devta (deity) is taken out in a procession. Musical prayers continue for three days and nights. The Havan Samagri (offering material) is arranged by the Government of India. This is a local fair of the Jaunsari tribe. Thousands of participants throng the place on the occasion from the adjacent Tehri, Uttarkashi and Saharanpur district.
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