Location:
Himachal Pradesh
Altitude: 1,927m
Attractions: Monkey Point, Sanawar,
Dharampur
Best Time To Visit: April To
September
77-km from Shimla
and 35-km from Kalka, at 1,927m, Kasauli is a quaint little town
that seems to exist in a time wrap of an era that reminds one of
the 19th century. Its colonial ambience is reinforced by cobbled
paths, quaint shops, gabled houses with charming facades and
scores of neat little gardens and orchards. Mixed forests of
chir-pine, Himalayan oak and huge horse chestnuts surround
Kasauli. Its narrow road slither up and down the hillsides and
offer some magnificent vistas.
Kasauli
is one of the small towns developed by the British during the
'hey day' of the empire, and reached by a branch road from the
Kalka-Shimla road. The quite beautiful hill-station of Kasauli
has a Pastur Institute that produces the anti-rabies vaccine
against mad dog-bite and, at the same time, treats victims who
have fallen prey to the dead disease, Hydrophobia. The institute
in Kasauli set up in 1900, is the oldest in India, taking care
of pet, police and army dogs as well as their masters.
Side by side
another institute produces other vaccines, this is the Central
Research Institute affording immunity from Typhoid, small-pox,
cholera and snake-bite. The Shimla Hills stand on water -
parting between the Sutlej and the Giri, a tributary of the
Yamuna.
South of Shimla
is the Panchmunda ridge, which is crossed by a railway through a
tunnel, the longest in the Kalka-Shimla run at Barog, where a
series of fissure to springs occur at its flank. The first ridge
above Kalka rises abruptly to pine-clad Kasauli at a height of
1,927m and is joined by a 12-km bridle path. The distance by
road, however, from Kalka is 36.5 km.
PRIME ATTRACTION
CITIES
Dharampur: Just
15-km from Kasauli on the National Highway No.22, Dharampur is
situated. Amidst the healthy air of the fragrant pines,
Dharampur has one of the best hospitals in India for the cure of
tuberculosis. It is also connected by Kalka-Shimla railway line.
Sabathu: A little
cantonment town has a Gurkha fort built in the early years of
the 19th century, situated at an altitude of 1,437m. This
cantonment town quartered the British soldiers at the time of
British Empire. A diversion road from Dharampur 15-km away leads
to the Sabathu town.
Dagshai: Another
little cantonment at an altitude of 1,925m just 19-km from Kasauli, it is accessible by a link road, which diverts from
Dharampur. Dagshai is perched on a small hill and comprise of a
military public school and numerous military barracks.
OTHERS
Monkey Point: The
highest point in Kasauli called Monkey point is just 4-km from
the Kasauli bus stand. The Monkey Point commands an excellent
view of the distant plains of Chandigarh region and the river
Sutlej , tracing a silvery trail through the scene. A small
temple is also situated on the top of the hill, which is
dedicated to Lord Hanuman. According to a legend, at the end of
Ramayana when Lord Hanuman was returning from the Himalayas
after obtaining Sanjivani Booty or the Magical Herb, his foot
touched the hill and thus the top of hill is in a foot shape. On
a clear and starry night the gorgeous view of Chandigarh can be
seen from the Monkey Point.
Sanawar: Just
6-km from Kasauli, Sanawar houses one of the best schools in the
country. The Lawrence school is almost one hundred-years-old and
a major attraction of the town.
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