ABSTRACT
The State of Uttaranchal, the mountainous part of Uttar Pradesh until 9 November 2000, lies in northern India, in the Himalayan Mountains. The ‘north country’ has international frontiers with Nepal to the south-east and, with the border lying beyond the crest of the Great Himalayas, Tibet (Xizang-as it is known in the People’s Republic of China, of which it forms a part) to the north-east. Another Indian hill state, Himachal Pradesh, is to the north-west, rising above the Punjab plains as Uttaranchal rises above the plains of Uttar Pradesh, which is to the west and south. The new state acquired 18% of the territory of the undivided Uttar Pradesh and, therefore, has an area of 53,483 sq km (20, 658 sq miles), making it only slightly smaller than Himachal Pradesh, with which it shares many similarities.
