Churdhar Sanctuary


Churdhar Sanctuary is located in Sirmour and Chopal, Shimla district district of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. The total covered area of this sanctuary is 56.16 square kilometres as notified on 15 November 1985. Fauna includes Himalayan black bear, barking deer, musk deer, langur and leopards. The work of administration at Churdhar is taken care by Churdhar Sewa Samiti.
The sanctuary is named after Churdhar Peak. Churdhar is the highest peak in Sirmour district and is also the highest peak in the outer Himalayas. The peak has a great religious significance for the people of Sirmour, Shimla, Chaupal and Solan of Himachal Pradesh and Dehradun of Uttrakhand. Churdhar is a holy place related with Shri Shirgul Maharaj , a deity widely worshipped in Sirmour and Chaupal. The main routes for arrival are from Nohradhar, Sirmour of 14 km and Sarahan, Chaupal of 8 km.
The Churdhar Peak is mentioned in the book, The Great Arc, by John Keay but is referred to as The Chur. It is from this peak that George Everest made many astronomical readings and sightings of the Himalaya mountains around 1834. He was the Surveyor General of India and did the initial survey of the full length of India as well as some very accurate measurements of the earth's curvature.

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