Khajjiar
Encyclopedia
Khajjiar is a hill station
in Chamba district
, Himachal Pradesh
, India
, located at an approximate of 24 km from Dalhousie
.
Khajjiar sits on a small plateau with a small stream-fed lake in the middle that has been covered over with weeds. The hill station is surrounded by green meadows and dense forests. It is about 6500 ft. (1981m) above sea level in the foothills of the Dhauladhar
ranges of the Western Himalayas
and snowy peaks can be seen in the distance.
Khajjiar is often called the Mini Switzerland of Himachal Pradesh and was officially baptized thus by the Swiss Ambassador on July 7, 1992. It has a rare combination of three ecosystem
s: lake
, pasture
and forest
, all in one place.
Khajjiar can be reached from Dalhousie, the nearest major town and hill station, by bus in an hour or so. There are two buses in the morning that leave at around 9:30. The last bus that returns from Khajjiar to Dalhousie is at 3:30 PM.
. It has a golden dome and spire. It is a visiting spot for pilgrims.
Hill station
A hill station is a town located at a higher elevation than the nearby plain or valley. The term was used mostly in colonial Asia , but also in Africa , for towns founded by European colonial rulers as refuges from the summer heat, up where temperatures are cooler...
in Chamba district
Chamba district
Chamba is the northwestern district of Himachal Pradesh, in India, with its headquarters in Chamba town. The towns of Dalhousie and Khajjhiar are popular hill stations and vacation spots for the people from the plains of northern India....
, Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh is a state in Northern India. It is spread over , and is bordered by the Indian states of Jammu and Kashmir on the north, Punjab on the west and south-west, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh on the south, Uttarakhand on the south-east and by the Tibet Autonomous Region on the east...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, located at an approximate of 24 km from Dalhousie
Dalhousie, India
Dalhousie is a hill station and popular tourist spot in the northern state of Himachal Pradesh, India.- Weather :Dalhousie experiences winter-like cold climate throughout the year. Heavy rain with thunder showers are experienced during the period from June to September...
.
Khajjiar sits on a small plateau with a small stream-fed lake in the middle that has been covered over with weeds. The hill station is surrounded by green meadows and dense forests. It is about 6500 ft. (1981m) above sea level in the foothills of the Dhauladhar
Dhauladhar
The Dhauladhar range is a southern branch of the main Outer Himalayan chain of mountains. It rises spectacularly from the Indian plains to the north of Kangra and Mandi...
ranges of the Western Himalayas
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
and snowy peaks can be seen in the distance.
Khajjiar is often called the Mini Switzerland of Himachal Pradesh and was officially baptized thus by the Swiss Ambassador on July 7, 1992. It has a rare combination of three ecosystem
Ecosystem
An ecosystem is a biological environment consisting of all the organisms living in a particular area, as well as all the nonliving , physical components of the environment with which the organisms interact, such as air, soil, water and sunlight....
s: lake
Lake
A lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
, pasture
Pasture
Pasture is land used for grazing. Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, cattle, sheep or swine. The vegetation of tended pasture, forage, consists mainly of grasses, with an interspersion of legumes and other forbs...
and forest
Forest
A forest, also referred to as a wood or the woods, is an area with a high density of trees. As with cities, depending where you are in the world, what is considered a forest may vary significantly in size and have various classification according to how and what of the forest is composed...
, all in one place.
Khajjiar can be reached from Dalhousie, the nearest major town and hill station, by bus in an hour or so. There are two buses in the morning that leave at around 9:30. The last bus that returns from Khajjiar to Dalhousie is at 3:30 PM.
Khajinag temple
The 12th-century Khajinag temple, known also as the Golden Devi temple, is a small shrine dedicated to the local DeviDevi
Devī is the Sanskrit word for Goddess, used mostly in Hinduism, its related masculine term is deva. Devi is synonymous with Shakti, the female aspect of the divine, as conceptualized by the Shakta tradition of Hinduism. She is the female counterpart without whom the male aspect, which represents...
. It has a golden dome and spire. It is a visiting spot for pilgrims.