Friday 15 July 2011

Nahan: A crown nested in the Shivalik Hill

Nahan is a charming and quite hill station at a height of 950 m above sea level in Sirmaur district in Himachal Pradesh. Surrounded by undulated hills and lush greenery, this small village is situated on the Shivalik Hills. Nahan is a well laid-out picturesque town, known for its cleanliness and dust free streets. Situated at the Southern tip of Himachal Pradesh, Nahan can be driven to in about 5 hrs from Delhi.




Picturesque view of Nahan
  According to legends, The city is believed to be founded in 1621 by Raja Karan Praksh in 1621. It is beleived the city takes it name from Nahar (The Lion) who was an companion of a saint who used to live here. Nahan meaning “don’t kill” is believed to have got its name from an incident where the king was about to kill a lion and a saint by the name of Baba Banwari Das stopped him saying “nahan”. There are some other legends as well associated with how this hillside town got its name.

Nahan

Nahan situated amidst nature' lap is surrounded by many beautiful places worth visiting. It is known for its many temples, temple festivals, wild life sanctuary, local markets and beautiful scenery. Nahan  is closer to the plains as compared to the peaks. Nahan is a popular among tourist due to its scenic beauty and picturesque surroundings. The forest routes filled with lush greenery adds to the calm nature of the place. Nahan is a small town in the centre of lush green mountains nearby.



RaniTal Lake in Nahan

 Rani Tal is in the heart of Nahan where a large temple and a tank from the days of ex-rulers of Sirmaur State can be seen. Ducks and cranes are aplenty and Ranital Garden further adds to the charm. Pakka Talab is being developed as another poplar tourist centre in the town itself. There are three lonely but loveley attractions for a quite walk in the hill side town- Hospital Round, Military Road and Villa Round. Suketi fossil park also called as Shivalik Fossil Park where it displays life size fiberglass model of pre-historic animals whose fossils and skeletons were unearthed. The park is first of its kind in Asia to be developed at the actual site where fossils were discovered.



Greenfield Valley in Nahan

The hub of Nahan's activities is Chaugan, Bikram Bagh and Khadar-Ka-Bagh. Gift shops, Rosin & Turpine factory and local temples are among the other major attractions. The Mall Road is one of the favourite places to walk along, especially in evening. The handicraft artisans weave good souvenirs, like woollens items and caps for tourists.

Renuka Lake
 Renuka Lake (38 km) and Paonta Sahib Gurudwara (45 km) are the main tourist attractions here. Renuka also has the protected wild life sanctuary. Renuka offers a lake, wildlife and mountains to boot.



Paonta Sahib Gurudwara
 Abundant green woodlands, eminent mountain ranges, absolutely carved river valleys make Nahan a perfect place to holiday for nature and adventure lovers.

If You Go:

Nahan can be reached in about 5 hrs from Delhi.

Rail: The nearest railway stations are Ambala, Chandigarh and Kalka, these places are also connected by regular bus services with Nahan.

Road:
       1. via Dehradun (Uttrakhand) through Paonta Sahib
       2. via Kalaka-Ambala from Haryana and
       3. via Solan from Shimla ( H.P.)
There are regular bus services linking it to the other towns like Manali, Delhi and Haridwar.

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