Dr Samvedna Sharma
Travels to different destinations is always educative for me as I learn Biodiversity during visits to different locations. A recent visit to Mahanpur area in Kathua district of in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, revealed that it is a great tourist destination.
Picturesque and enchanting, Mahanpur (also called Pakhru Ge da Graan), a small town, is cradled high in the lofty green Shivaliks and its incredible natural beauty always adore me. Surrounded by mountain peaks, lush green valleys, meadows, glistening Ranjit Sagar Dam, Dhole-Jode Mata temple and spectacular rich vegetation, it has inspired poets through centuries. An enchanting Mahanpur is crisscrossed by chid tree-lined roads and add to this, the charms of flavourful Dogra cuisine and pear, Pyrus pashia (Kainth) and rasberrries (Akhra) from the lush orchards surrounding it.
Mahanpur’s origin is sometime in 5th century. There is a Jagdmba Temple built in the 16th century. It is a beautiful place with a lot of natural resources of water. In winters, Mahanpur takes on a white glow, covered in soft snow and skiers making a beeline for its famous slopes. And in summer, as the snow melts, and the flowers in the meadows bloom, it resembles an artist’s canvas. Located at 32.54°N 75.64°E, it has an average elevation of 396 metres in the lower Shivalik Hills range of Himalaya. Mahanpur (town) has an area of 363 square kilometers. It borders Bani and Duggan Tehsil to the north, Billawar to the west and Dharkalan to the south. Located about 50 km to the north of district headquarter Kathua and about 32 km south of the Sub Divisional headquarter Basohli, Mahanpur got the Tehsil Status in 2014. Earlier, Mahanpur was a town in Basohli tehsil. There is a Government Degree College, Primary Health Centre, Munsif Court, Government Higher Secondary School besides Tehsil Headquarter. Habitants of the village are very friendly and Dogri is the Local Language here.
In year 2011, a Government Degree College was established in Mahanpur vide Govt. Order No 264-Hr. Edu. of 2011 dated 29-06-2011 under Centrally sponsored scheme in the Educationally Backward Districts. The Foundation stone of college was laid by the then Forest Minister Choudhary Lal Singh. Initially the college started functioning in the makeshift campus at the Government Higher Secondary School Mahanpur in 2012, with first batch of students having strength of 65. The College and Mahanpur area was under the Tehsil Basohli.
After Mahanpur got the Tehsil Status, the college was shifted from Higher Secondary School Mahanpur to its present campus on October 17, 2017, when Ex-Minister, Principal, Staff and students moved on foot toward the present campus. Presently the college falls in Panchayat B of Tehsil Mahanpur adjacent to Dhar Road near Forest Department.
(The author is Doctor of Philosophy in Education)
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