Nurpur
Encyclopedia
Nurpur is a city and a municipal council
in Kangra district
in the India
n state
of Himachal Pradesh
. It was formerly a Kingdom ruled by the Pathania
clan of Rajputs, since the 11th century AD. The capital of the Kingdom was at Pathankot
, now in Punjab
.
, Nurpur had a population of 9045. Men constitute 52% of the population and women 48%. Nurpur has an average literacy rate of 78%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 81%, and female literacy is 75%. In Nurpur, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.
clan of Rajputs. The Pathania Clan (or Tomar /Tanwar clan of Chandravanshi Rajputs) had ruled here for more than eight centuries.
Nurpur was known as Dhameri until a visit from Noorjehan
, the Queen of Emperor Nuruddin Salim Jahangir
(1569–1627) of the Mughal Dynasty. The queen was so impressed by the natural beauty of the town, that she decided to construct her palace here. This posed a problem for then local ruler Raja Jagat Singh Pathania he did not want his freedom to be curtailed by the Mughal domination and politics. So, he perpetrated the story that the climate of the place was not good and caused a disease Goiter, which was at that time very common among locals. Horrified, the queen dropped the idea of constructing her palace, but the name of the town was changed to Nurpur in 1622, by the Raja Jagat Singh Pathania to commemorate this visit of Begum Nur Jahan who had instantly fallen in love with this place.
, oranges
, leechi and amla
. Nurpur is also noted for poultry farming. Nurpur is also famous for silk and pashmina
shawls.
The Nurpur fort is the main attraction of this small town. Originally built before the 10th century, it was the main seat of the Pathania
Kings. It was destroyed partially by the British and the great earthquake which hit this region in April 1905 AD. Most of the fortress is in ruins, but it is still worth visiting.
Municipal council
A municipal council is the local government of a municipality. Specifically the term can refer to the institutions of various countries that can be translated by this term...
in Kangra district
Kangra district
Kangra is the most populous district of the state of Himachal Pradesh, India. Dharamsala is the administrative headquarters of the district.-Geography:Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh is situated in Western Himalayas between 31°2 to...
in the 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...
n state
States and territories of India
India is a federal union of states comprising twenty-eight states and seven union territories. The states and territories are further subdivided into districts and so on.-List of states and territories:...
of 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...
. It was formerly a Kingdom ruled by the Pathania
Pathania
Pathania is the name of the branch of the Tomara Clan of Chandravanshi, Rajputs, descended from Lord Arjuna, the hero of Mahabharata. It is one of the ruling Rajput clans of India. They mostly live in and around Himachal Pradesh, in North India...
clan of Rajputs, since the 11th century AD. The capital of the Kingdom was at Pathankot
Pathankot
Pathankot became 22nd district on 28th July 2011 and a municipal corporation in the Indian state of Punjab. It was a part of the Nurpur princely state ruled by the Rajputs prior to 1849 AD. It is a meeting point of the three northern states of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir...
, now in Punjab
Punjab (India)
Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
.
Geography
Nurpur is located at 32.3°N 75.9°E. It has an average elevation of 643 metres (2109 feet).Demographics
, according to the India censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, Nurpur had a population of 9045. Men constitute 52% of the population and women 48%. Nurpur has an average literacy rate of 78%, higher than the national average of 59.5%: male literacy is 81%, and female literacy is 75%. In Nurpur, 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.
History
Before 1947, Nurpur was a princely state ruled by the PathaniaPathania
Pathania is the name of the branch of the Tomara Clan of Chandravanshi, Rajputs, descended from Lord Arjuna, the hero of Mahabharata. It is one of the ruling Rajput clans of India. They mostly live in and around Himachal Pradesh, in North India...
clan of Rajputs. The Pathania Clan (or Tomar /Tanwar clan of Chandravanshi Rajputs) had ruled here for more than eight centuries.
Nurpur was known as Dhameri until a visit from Noorjehan
Nur Jehan
Begum Nur Jahan , also known as Mehr-un-Nisaa, was an Empress of the Mughal Dynasty that ruled much of the Indian subcontinent...
, the Queen of Emperor Nuruddin Salim Jahangir
Jahangir
Jahangir was the ruler of the Mughal Empire from 1605 until his death. The name Jahangir is from Persian جهانگیر,meaning "Conqueror of the World"...
(1569–1627) of the Mughal Dynasty. The queen was so impressed by the natural beauty of the town, that she decided to construct her palace here. This posed a problem for then local ruler Raja Jagat Singh Pathania he did not want his freedom to be curtailed by the Mughal domination and politics. So, he perpetrated the story that the climate of the place was not good and caused a disease Goiter, which was at that time very common among locals. Horrified, the queen dropped the idea of constructing her palace, but the name of the town was changed to Nurpur in 1622, by the Raja Jagat Singh Pathania to commemorate this visit of Begum Nur Jahan who had instantly fallen in love with this place.
Economy
Nurpur is known for its orchards, which grow crops of mangoMango
The mango is a fleshy stone fruit belonging to the genus Mangifera, consisting of numerous tropical fruiting trees in the flowering plant family Anacardiaceae. The mango is native to India from where it spread all over the world. It is also the most cultivated fruit of the tropical world. While...
, oranges
Orange (fruit)
An orange—specifically, the sweet orange—is the citrus Citrus × sinensis and its fruit. It is the most commonly grown tree fruit in the world....
, leechi and amla
Amla
Amla may refer to:* Indian gooseberry, called amla in Hindi. Amla is the size of a lemon, spherical, bitter and yellow-green.* Hashim Amla, a South African cricketer of Indian descent* Ahmed Amla, a South African cricketer and brother of Hashim...
. Nurpur is also noted for poultry farming. Nurpur is also famous for silk and pashmina
Pashmina
Pashmina refers to a type of fine cashmere wool and the textiles made from it. The name comes from Pashmineh , made from Persian pashm . The wool comes from changthangi or pashmina goat, which is a special breed of goat indigenous to high altitudes of the Himalayas in Nepal, Pakistan and northern...
shawls.
Places of interest
The Brij Raj Swami temple inside the Nurpur fort is a 16th century historical temple of Lord Krishna and home to a much revered deity of the local population and attracts tourists. It is the only temple in the world, where Lord Krishna and Meera idols are worshipped. It is said the statue of Lord Krishna was worshipped by Meera, and when Raja of Nurpur went to Chittorgarh he got this statue as a return gift from the Maharana of Chittorgarh. Along with this, Raja also brought a Moulsary (a fruit-bearing plant) sampling and it was dried on way back and it was put to life through Puja and chanting of mantras. This plant has now grown into a huge tree. It flowers, but does not bear any fruit unlike such plants in Rajasthan. The Nagni Maata temple, located about 6 km from Nurpur town on Pathankot/Kullu highway, is also very famous. It is unique because water comes from below the temple where the idol of Naagni Maata is placed. People who get snake bite, come to Naagni Maata and simply drinking water and applying the Mitti, get cured completely. The amount of water which flows there is quite sufficient, and there are number of water mills installed for grinding grain.The Nurpur fort is the main attraction of this small town. Originally built before the 10th century, it was the main seat of the Pathania
Pathania
Pathania is the name of the branch of the Tomara Clan of Chandravanshi, Rajputs, descended from Lord Arjuna, the hero of Mahabharata. It is one of the ruling Rajput clans of India. They mostly live in and around Himachal Pradesh, in North India...
Kings. It was destroyed partially by the British and the great earthquake which hit this region in April 1905 AD. Most of the fortress is in ruins, but it is still worth visiting.
Further reading
- Hutchinson, J. & J. PH Vogel (1933). History of the Panjab Hill States, Vol. I. 1st edition: Govt. Printing, Pujab, Lahore, 1933. Reprint 2000. Department of Language and Culture, Himachal Pradesh. Chapter VI Nurpur State, pp. 213–267.