Kashipur, Uttarākhand, India

🇮🇳 Kashipur is a city of Udham Singh Nagar district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, and one of its seven subdivisions. Located in the western part of Udham Singh Nagar district, it is Kumaun's third most populous city and the sixth most populous in Uttarakhand. Kashipur is home to IIM Kashipur, one of the thirteen Indian Institutes of Management the government has set up during the Eleventh Five-year Plan.

Historically part of Kumaun, Kashipur is named after Kashinath Adhikari, the founder of the township and governor of the pargana, one of the officers of the Chand Kings of Kumaun in the 16th and 17th centuries. Kashipur remained under the rule of Chand Kings until the latter half of eighteenth century until Nand Ram, the then governor of Kashipur, became practically independent.

Kashipur was ceded to British in 1801, after which, it played a major role in the conquest of Kumaon during the Anglo-Gorkha war in 1815. After Kumaun was ceded to the British under the Treaty of Sugauli, Kashipur became the headquarters of Terai district in the Kumaon division. The Municipality of Kashipur was established in 1872, and was upgraded to a Municipal Corporation on 26 January 2013.

History Kashipur was known as Govishana, during the time of Harsha (606–647 AD). The ruins of the large settlement of those days can be still seen near the city. The famous Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang also travelled the city in the 7th century.  He described it as "The Capital was 15 li in circuit. Its position was lofty, and of difficult access, and it was surrounded by groves, tanks and fishponds". Kashipur is believed to have a good historic trade of clothes and metal vessels.

The modern town of Kashipur was founded by Kashinath Adhikari, the governor of Tarai under King Devi Chand of Champawat. Later Raja Mohan Chand; one of the Kings of Kumaon's younger brother Lal Singh was given the estate Kashipur and Raja Guman Singh became its first King. Kashipur's last king Raja Hari Chand Raj Singh again got back the titular throne of Kumaon in British India as Raja Anand Singh (Raja of Almora) had no issue. The exact date of the foundation of the town is disputed, several historians having expressed their own views on the matter. Bishop Heber, in his book Travels in India wrote that Kashipur was founded by a deity named Kashi 5000 years back (approx 3176 BC).  Sir Alexander Cunningham invalidated his views in his book, The Ancient Geography of India, in which he wrote "the good bishop was grossly deceived by his informant, as it is well known that the town is a modern one, it having been built about AD 1718 by kashi-nath, a follower of Raja Devi-Chandra of Champawat in Kumaon". Badri Datt Pandey in his book Kumaun Ka Itihaas, contradicting Cunningham's views, claimed the town to be founded in 1639.: 41  Kashipur remained under the rule of Chand Kings until the latter half of eighteenth century until Nand Ram the governor of Kashipur became practically Independent and established his kingdom at Kashipur.

When the British arrived in Kumaun at the end of the 18th century AD, Kashipur was ruled by King Shib Lal, the second King of Kashipur. Kashipur was ceded to the British by Shib Lal in 1801 after which it became a revenue division. Bishop Heber visited here during his travel to Almora in November 1824. Heber described Kashipur as a "famous place of Hindu Pilgrimage". On 10 July 1837, Kashipur was included in the Moradabad district.  The revenue divisions of muradabad district were rearranged in 1944 following which Bajpur, Kashipur and Jaspur were rearranged into one pargana named as Kashipur. Bajpur was brought under Tarai district in 1859 followed by Kashipur in October 1870. Kashipur was later made the headquarters of Tarai district in the Ceded and Conquered Provinces.

Geography At 180 km (110 mi) north-west of New Delhi, Kashipur is located in the south-west of the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand in the Terai – an area of relatively low-lying land, ranging between 500 and 1,000 feet (150 and 300 metres) above sea level and crossed by Kumaon's main north–south watershed between the basins of the Rivers Ramganga and Kosi. To the north of the city lies the Bhabar tract of Ramnagar, which separates the area from Shivalik Hills. Kashipur is drained only by minor rivers and lakes, primarily by Dhela river, a tributary of River Ramganga. Several rivers and stream cross the region transversely and leave their deposit making the land fertile. However, these also dissect the region which renders it unfit for agriculture. Kosi is the master stream flowing in the western part with its broad course from north to south.

Economy Agriculture is the main economic activity in the region. Fertile land, coupled with water availability, makes the region an intensively cropped area. Apart from Rice and Wheat, major produces are sugarcane, mango, guava, jamun, jack fruit and litchi. Large number of farmers in this region are actually settlers from outside, having land holdings in excess of five acres. government has allotted agricultural plots to refugees around Garhi Negi village and to the hill people at Maldhan village.

Historically, Industrial activities in the region were very small scale and agriculture based. Later, with administrative encouragement and support, rapid industrial development took place around Kashipur town. About 603 industrial units were functioning in the town, as reported by the Kashipur 2011 Master Plan. These included 163 Cottage industries, 415 small scale industries, and 25 medium (or large) Industries. Industrial development coupled with rich agricultural cash crops practices made this area more prosperous, relative to other parts of Kumaon region.

The region accounts for almost 50% of the medium and large scale industries in the district. Major Industrial units, mostly located on Kashipur-Thakurdwara road, include Surya Roshini Limited (Bulbs and Tubes), India Glycols limited, Kashi Vishwanath Steels limited, Jindal Solvents extraction limited, DSM Sugar mills limited, Naini Papers limited, SRF limited and Shriram extraction private limited etc. Large industrial houses such as Flexituff Ventures International Limited, IGL, HCL Technologies, Videocon, Pasupati Arcylon Limited etc. also have branch establishments in the city. Kashipur is becoming a thriving industrial centre, as the city is suited for industrial park projects with cost of living compared to metros. Because of cheap and abundant raw materials available, several paper and sugar mills already have a presence in the city.

Education Kashipur is home to four colleges affiliated to the Kumaun University, Nainital: Radhey Hari Government P.G. College, Chandrawati Tewari Girls P. G. College, Sriram Institute of Management and Technology and Kashipur college of Education. The city also hosts the campus of Indian Institute of Management Kashipur.

The Indian Institute of Management Kashipur, also known as IIM Kashipur, is a public business school located in the Escorts Farm area of the city. It is one of the thirteen Indian Institutes of Managements the government has set up during the Eleventh Five-year Plan. The foundation stone was laid by the then HRD Minister Kapil Sibal on 29 April 2011.

Tourist attractions Major tourist attractions in the city include: • Drona Sagar Lake • Shree Moteshwar Mahadev Mandir • Maa Balsundari Mandir • Chaiti Mela • Gurudwara Shri Nankana Sahib • Tumaria Dam • Giri Sarovar • Arya Samaj Mandir • Shree Sai dham

Transport Kashipur is a major transport hub in Uttarakhand, acting as a gateway for the cities of Ranikhet, Pauri and Gairsain. The city is served by the National Highways NH 309 and NH 734. The NH 734 (formerly NH 74) connects to Najibabad via Jaspur and Nagina, while the NH 309 connects Kashipur to Rudrapur in the east, and the cities of Ramnagar and Srinagar to the north.

Pantnagar Airport (IATA: PGH, ICAO: VIPT), located 72 km (45 mi) east of the city in the University town of Pantnagar, is the only major airport in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand. It has a single runway, which is 4,500 feet (1,400 m) in length and is capable of handling a turboprop aircraft. Airline services exist to Delhi and Dehradun. The nearest international airport is the Indira Gandhi International Airport in New Delhi which is 214 km (133 mi) away.

Kashipur Junction railway station (KPV) is connected to Ramnagar, Kathgodam, Moradabad, Bareilly, Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Agra, Jaisalmer, Haridwar and Delhi by rail network. Kashipur Railway Station is under the administrative control of the Izzatnagar division of the North Eastern Railway zone of the Indian Railways which currently serves the city. Several new Rail links have been planned for the city. The Kashipur-Najibabad rail line has been surveyed by Indian Railways. This line would be used to connect Tanakpur with Dehradun. Another important line is the Ramnagar-Chaukhutia rail link, which will be critical in bringing Gairsain to the rail network.

Local public transport in Kashipur is co-ordinated by Uttarakhand Transport Corporation. Inter-City Bus routes are mainly operated from the Kashipur Bus Station by UTC, UPSRTC, K.M.O.U, though there are several other, smaller registered bus companies. Auto rickshaws serve during the fairs and fates in large numbers. E-Rickshaws, also known as Mini Metro, have now established themselves as the leading source of travelling within the city.