Tanakpur
| Tanakpur टनकपुर | |
|---|---|
| city | |
|
View of Purnagiri Hills at Indo-Nepal border across Sarda river in Tanakpur | |
  Tanakpur   Tanakpur Location in Uttarakhand, India | |
| Coordinates: 29°04′26″N 80°06′32″E / 29.074°N 80.109°ECoordinates: 29°04′26″N 80°06′32″E / 29.074°N 80.109°E | |
| Country |
 India |
| State | Uttarakhand |
| District | Champawat |
| Government | |
| • Type | Municipality |
| • Body | Tanakpur Municipal Council |
| Elevation | 255 m (837 ft) |
| Population (2011) | |
| • Total | 39,000 Approx |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Hindi |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| PIN | 262309 |
| Telephone code | 05943 |
| Vehicle registration | UK 03 |
| Website |
uk |
Tanakpur (Hindi: टनकपुर) is a town and a municipal board in Champawat district of the Indian state, Uttarakhand. Located in the foothills of Himalayas in the northern part of India as the gateway for Purnagiri Temple (around 30 km from here) as well as the 'Gateway to the Kumoun Himalayas'. Tanakpur is a calm and small town located on riverside of Sarda River and touched to Nepal border. It and is the last plain area on the road to Kumaoun zone of Uttarakhand. It acts as a junction for the Kumaon District's mountainous part. It is also the first point in the Kailash Manasarovar Pilgrimage. Gradually benefitting from the nationwide progress, Tanakpur is growing steadily into a buzzing town. Being on the Indo-Nepal Border Tanakpur is very important on the security perspective of India as a nation. Tanakpur is famous for Devi Purnagiri temple which is situated approximately 24 km. at the north of town.
Geography
Tanakpur is located at 29°05′N 80°07′E / 29.08°N 80.12°E.[1] It has an average elevation of 255 metres (837 feet).
Demographics
As of 2001 India census,[2] Tanakpur had a population of 15,810. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Tanakpur has an average literacy rate of 65%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 71%, and female literacy is 58%. In Tanakpur, 15% of the population is under 6 years of age.
Connectivity
By Air: The nearest airport to Tanakpur is Pantnagar Airport situated 98 km away in the Nainital district of Uttarakhand state. Taxis are available from Pantnagar Airport to Tanakpur. Pantnagar is connected to Delhi with daily flights. Pant Nagar Airport is well connected by motorable roads with Tanakpur.
By Rail: Tanakpur is well connected with railway networks of India. Trains are frequent to Tanakpur Railway Station from major destinations of India like Delhi, Lucknow, Kolkata, etc. The trains to Tanakpur have different compartments varying according to prices. A new broad gauge railway line project is under construction.
By Road: Tanakpur is well connected by motorable roads with major destinations of Uttarakhand state and northern India. Buses from ISBT Anand Vihar, Delhi are available to Tanakpur. Taxis and buses are easily available to Tanakpur from major destinations of Kumaon region.
Places to stay in Tanakpur
Tanakpur is visited by up to 25 lakh people each year, mainly for purpose of visiting Purnagiri Temple, which in around 24 Kilometers from Tanakpur. Tanakpur being the last town before Purnagiri has many good hotels and guest houses for the confort of the visitors. There is a tourist guest house by KMVN and privately owned hotels like Hotel Blue Empire, J.B. Hotel, Hotel Parvat,[3] Hotel Taj, Hotel Classic, Panchmukhi Dharmshala and many others.
Media
Tanakpur has an All India Radio Relay station known as Akashvani Tanakpur. It broadcasts on specified FM frequencies.
Places of interest
- Purnagiri Temple: One of the 108 Siddha Peeths, this Devi Temple is 21 km from Tanakpur, Tunyas is 17 km and from there 3 km trek leads to Purnagiri Temple. Tanakpur is linked by direct bus service with Lucknow, Delhi, Agra, Dehradun, Kanpur and other Districts.
During Navratras, in the Chaitra month of the Indian calendar, devotees in large number come here to have their wishes fulfilled. After worshipping Mata Purnagiri, people also pay their tributes to her loyal devotee Bada Sidth Nath at Brahmadev and Mahendra Nagar in Nepal. - Shri Adya Shakti Peeth (Boom Temple): A spiritual place near on the way to purnagiri, famous for its white sand beach/river bank where pilgrims take a holy dip in river Sharda. Adhya Shakti Peeth (Boom Temple), enshrined by Guru Maa is just near to this place. One can also enjoy rafting and camping in Boom which are managed under government adventure program.
- Barrage road: At the shore of Tanakpur, this place is best for sightseeing. Local people do regularly visit here for evening and morning walk. Beautiful sunrise and sunset scenes can be recorded from here.
- Shyamlatal: Shyamlatal is a natural lake located in a beautiful hamlet at 30 km from Tanakpur town. As the name indicates, the lake is known by the word Shyaam which means little dark complex color used to describe Lord Krishna in Hindu religion. The blackish color of lake is due to its muddy water and surrounded hills.
Situated at an astounding height of 1500 meters above the sea level, the lake Shyamala Tal is located at 22.6 km from Tanakpur main market and about 56 km from Champawat Bus station. Shyamlatal Lake covers an area of more than 1.5 km2 area. There is a famous Swami Vivekananda Ashram located on the banks of lake visited by many people round the year. - 8Mile: Nice place to visit specially in afternoon for the sunset.
Gallery
Sunset from 8Mile
A movie being shooted nearby 8Mile
References
- ↑ Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Tanakpur
- ↑ "Census of India 2001: Data from the 2001 Census, including cities, villages and towns (Provisional)". Census Commission of India. Archived from the original on 2004-06-16. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
- ↑ Hotel Parvat