Hoshiarpur district

Hoshiarpur district
Graveyard in Todarpur
Graveyard in Todarpur
Location in Punjab
Location in Punjab
Coordinates: 31°35′N 75°59′E / 31.583°N 75.983°E / 31.583; 75.983
Country India
StatePunjab
RegionDoaba
HeadquartersHoshiarpur [1]
Government
 • MPRaj Kumar Chabbewal(AAP)
 • MLAPandit Bharma Shankar Jimpa(AAP)(Hoshiarpur City)
 • MayorSurinder Shinda (AAP)
 • Deputy commissionerKomal Mittal
Area
 • Total
3,365 km2 (1,299 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[‡]
 • Total
1,586,625
 • Density470/km2 (1,200/sq mi)
 • Sex Ration
961
Languages
 • OfficialPunjabi
Time zoneUTC+5:30 (IST)
Literacy85.40%
Websitehoshiarpur.nic.in

Hoshiarpur district is a district of Punjab state in northern India. Hoshiarpur, one of the oldest districts of Punjab, is located in the North-east part of the Punjab state and shares common boundaries with Gurdaspur district in the north-west, Jalandhar district and Kapurthala district in south-west, Kangra district and Una district of Himachal Pradesh in the north-east. Hoshiarpur district comprises 4 sub-divisions, 10 community development blocks, 9 urban local bodies and 1417 villages. The district has an area of 3365 km2. and a population of 1,586,625 persons as per census 2011.[2]

Hoshiarpur, along with the districts of Nawanshehar, Kapurthala and parts of Jalandhar, represents one of the cultural regions of Punjab called Doaba or the Bist Doab - the tract of land between two rivers, namely Beas and Sutlej. The area, along with the Shivalik foothills on the right side of Chandigarh-Pathankot road in Hoshiarpur, is sub mountainous. This part of the district is also known as Kandi area. The two rivers, Sutlej and Beas along with two other seasonal streams, provide drainage to the region. Besides these, the Kandi region is full of seasonal streams.

Hoshiarpur district falls into two nearly equal portions of hill and plain country. Its eastern face consists of the westward slope of the Solar Singhi Hills; parallel with that ridge, a line of lower heights belonging to the Siwalik Range traverses the district from south to north, while between the two chains stretches a valley of uneven width, known as the Jaswan Dun. Its upper portion is crossed by the Sohan torrent, while the Sutlej sweeps into its lower end through a break in the hills, and flows in a southerly direction until it turns the flank of the central range, and debouches westwards upon the plains. This western plain consists of alluvial formation, with a general westerly slope owing to the deposit of silt from the mountain torrents in the sub-montane tract. The Beas has a fringe of lowland, open to moderate but not excessive inundations, and considered very fertile. A considerable area is covered by government woodlands, under the care of the forest department. Rice is largely grown, in the marshy flats along the banks of the Beas. The district, owing to its proximity to the hills, possesses a comparatively cool and humid climate. Cotton fabrics are manufactured, and sugar, rice, other grains and indigo are among the exports.[3]

Hoshiarpur is also known as a City of Saints. There are many deras in this district. Several religious fairs are held, at Anandpur Sahib, Dasuya, Mukerian and Chintpurni, all of which attract an enormous concourse of people.[3]

The District Govt. College was once a campus for Punjab University, and it was predominantly inhabited by Gujjar and Saini, Dogras of Jammu-Punjab Region during the reign of the Sikh Empire.

  1. ^ "District Administration". Retrieved 16 February 2015.
  2. ^ "Hoshiarpur District Population Census 2011-2021, Punjab literacy sex ratio and density". www.census2011.co.in.
  3. ^ a b  One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domainChisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Hoshiarpur". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 787–788.