Dharamshala is a town situated in the foothills of the Himalayas in the District of Kangra and State of Himachal Pradesh, India. Dharamshala has two distinct features namely Upper and Lower Dharamshala. Kotwali Bazaar and areas further down into the plains of the Kangra valley (at the average height of 1,250 metres) are called Lower Dharamshala while McLeod Ganj (at the height of nearly 1,800 metres) and its surrounding areas on the hillsides are known as Upper Dharamshala.
According to the 2011 census, the population of the city was 22,586 and the total number of households (HHs) was 7,806 and spread across an area of 10.63 km2. The current population of the city is 53,543 (Table 1) and the total number of households (HHs) is 10,992 which is divided into 17 election wards with an area of 27.6 km2. The current population of 53,543 has been considered for the preparation of this SFD report.
The city has a tropical climate with a maximum temperature in summers of 27.1°C and a minimum temperature in winters less than 9.9°C with an annual rainfall of about 2,883 mm. The risk of groundwater contamination is low as the depth of groundwater level is 1.56 - 15.44 metres below ground level (mbgl).
CSE (2020). SFD Lite Report - Dharamshala, India Centre for Science and Environment
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