Dharan

Dharan is a major city in eastern Nepal, in the Sunsari District, situated on foothills of Mahabharat Range with southern tip touching the edge of the Terai at an altitude of 1148 ft (349m). It serves as a trading post between the hilly region and the plains of Terai region. It was once the location of recruitment center for Brigade of Gurkhas , opened in 1953. The recruitment center is closed and the campus is now the home of B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences since 1993. Dharan Municipality organised a Golden Jubilee celebration of Dharan from January 28 to 31 January 2011 marking the 50th year of establishment of the municipality.

History

Dharan's history can be traced back to 1584 AD, to ten kingdoms of Limbuwan which was also known as Pallo Kirat Pardesh (a collective of Ten Kirant Limbu kingdoms). Dharan-Bijaypur was the capital city of the Bijaypur kingdom. This was prior to conquest and annexation of the Kingdom by Gorkha King, King Prithvi Narayan Shah. Dharan was known as Bijaypur until the 1950s when the settlement grew on the southern portion of Bijaypur and took its own name of Dharan.

Dharan started as a small trading settlement of Chaubis or Miklung Kingdom of Limbuwan (one of the ten kingdoms of Limbuwan). Over the last couple of decades, the population of Dharan has increased and diversified to include people from various ethnicities like Gurungs, Newar, Brahmins, Chhetris etc.