Shimla district is one of the twelve districts of the state of Himachal Pradesh in northern India. Its headquarters is the state capital of Shimla. Neighbouring districts are Mandi and Kullu in the north, Kinnaur in the east, Uttarakhand in the southeast, Solan to the southwest and Sirmaur in the south. The elevation of the district ranges from 987 metres (3,238 ft) to 4,500 metres (14,764 ft).
As of 2011, it is the third most populated district of Himachal Pradesh (out of 12), after Kangra and Mandi. It is the most urbanized district of Himachal Pradesh.
Administrative structure
| Sl. No. | Particulars | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Geographical Area | 5,131 km2 |
| 2 | Area (out of total area) of H.P. | 9.22% |
| 3 | Sub-Divisions[2] | Total = 11
|
| 4 | Tehsils[3] | Total = 17
|
| 5 | Sub-Tehsils[4] | Total = 09
|
| 6 | Towns | (10) Shimla, Rampur, Kumarsain, Narkanda, Theog, Seoni, Chaupal, Kotkhai, Jubbal, Rohru |
| 7 | C.D. Blocks[5] | (12) Mashobra, Theog, Chaupal, Rampur, Narkanda, Jubbal Kotkhai, Rohru, Chohara, Basantpur, Nankhari, Totu, Kupvi |
| 8 | Legislative Assembly | (8)
|
| 9 | Villages | 2,914 |
| 10 | Inhabited | 2,520 |
| 11 | Uninhabited | 394 |
| 12 | Density | 159 person per km2 |
| 13 | Panchayts | 363 |
Access
By road
Shimla is connected by road to all the major towns. Distance between the major towns and Shimla:
- Kalka – 80 km
- Patiala – 172 km
- Chandigarh – 119 km
- Ambala – 166 km
- Delhi – 380 km
- Agra – 568 km
- Amritsar – 342 km
- Jammu (via Pathankot) – 482 km
- Srinagar – 787 km
- Jaipur – 629 km
- Dharmsala (via Mandi) – 290 km
- Dharamsala (via Hamirpur) – 235 km
- Dalhousie – 345 km
- Chamba – 401 km
- Kullu – 235 km
- Manali – 280 km
- Mandi – 153 km
- Palampur – 270 km
- Dehradoon – 275 km
- Rampur – 132 km
- Kumarsain – 80 km
- Narkanda – 60 km
- Rohru – 129 km
- Theog – 28 km
- Chaupal – 100 km
Climate
| Climate data for Shimla (1951–1980) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °C (°F) | 21.4 (70.5) |
22.6 (72.7) |
25.8 (78.4) |
29.6 (85.3) |
32.4 (90.3) |
31.5 (88.7) |
28.9 (84.0) |
27.8 (82.0) |
28.6 (83.5) |
25.6 (78.1) |
23.5 (74.3) |
20.5 (68.9) |
32.4 (90.3) |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 8.9 (48.0) |
10.6 (51.1) |
14.8 (58.6) |
19.4 (66.9) |
22.9 (73.2) |
24.1 (75.4) |
21.0 (69.8) |
20.2 (68.4) |
20.1 (68.2) |
23.7 (74.7) |
15.1 (59.2) |
12.0 (53.6) |
17.3 (63.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | 1.7 (35.1) |
3.0 (37.4) |
6.8 (44.2) |
11.1 (52.0) |
14.2 (57.6) |
15.6 (60.1) |
15.0 (59.0) |
14.8 (58.6) |
13.4 (56.1) |
10.7 (51.3) |
7.0 (44.6) |
4.3 (39.7) |
9.8 (49.6) |
| Record low °C (°F) | −10.6 (12.9) |
−8.5 (16.7) |
−6.1 (21.0) |
−1.3 (29.7) |
1.4 (34.5) |
7.8 (46.0) |
9.4 (48.9) |
10.6 (51.1) |
5.0 (41.0) |
0.2 (32.4) |
−1.1 (30.0) |
−12.2 (10.0) |
−12.2 (10.0) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | 54.6 (2.15) |
47.2 (1.86) |
59.4 (2.34) |
41.1 (1.62) |
56.4 (2.22) |
175.6 (6.91) |
376.5 (14.82) |
335.1 (13.19) |
190.2 (7.49) |
46.2 (1.82) |
13.8 (0.54) |
16.0 (0.63) |
1,424.8 (56.09) |
| Average rainy days | 4.7 | 4.1 | 5.2 | 3.6 | 4.6 | 10.3 | 18.3 | 18.1 | 9.9 | 2.9 | 1.3 | 1.8 | 84.8 |
| Source: India Meteorological Department (record high and low up to 2010) | |||||||||||||
Demographics
| Year | Pop. | ±% p.a. |
|---|---|---|
| 1901 | 230,144 | — |
| 1911 | 223,701 | −0.28% |
| 1921 | 228,138 | +0.20% |
| 1931 | 238,280 | +0.44% |
| 1941 | 259,656 | +0.86% |
| 1951 | 286,111 | +0.97% |
| 1961 | 341,461 | +1.78% |
| 1971 | 419,844 | +2.09% |
| 1981 | 510,932 | +1.98% |
| 1991 | 617,404 | +1.91% |
| 2001 | 722,502 | +1.58% |
| 2011 | 814,010 | +1.20% |
| source: | ||
According to the 2011 census, the district had a population of 814,010. This gives it a ranking of 483rd in India (out of a total of 640). The district has a population density of 159 inhabitants per square kilometre (410/sq mi). Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 12.67%. Shimla has a sex ratio of 915 females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of 83.64%. 24.74% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes make up 26.51% and 1.08% of the population respectively.
Religion
| Religion | 2011 | |
|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | |
Hinduism  |
791,449 | 97.23% |
Islam  |
11,810 | 1.45% |
Sikhism  |
4,047 | 0.5% |
Buddhism  |
3,262 | 0.4% |
Christianity  |
2,025 | 0.25% |
Jainism  |
185 | 0.02% |
| Others | 1,232 | 0.15% |
| Total population | 814,010 | 100% |
| Religious group |
1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1941 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | |
| Hinduism [a] |
30,299 | 75.09% | 29,047 | 73.87% | 33,228 | 73.31% | 28,661 | 77.91% | 29,466 | 76.38% |
| Islam |
6,675 | 16.54% | 5,820 | 14.8% | 6,953 | 15.34% | 5,810 | 15.79% | 7,022 | 18.2% |
| Christianity |
2,798 | 6.93% | 3,666 | 9.32% | 3,823 | 8.43% | 1,540 | 4.19% | 934 | 2.42% |
| Sikhism |
544 | 1.35% | 693 | 1.76% | 1,173 | 2.59% | 760 | 2.07% | 1,032 | 2.68% |
| Jainism |
32 | 0.08% | 49 | 0.12% | 90 | 0.2% | 1 | 0% | 114 | 0.3% |
Zoroastrianism  |
3 | 0.01% | 16 | 0.04% | 36 | 0.08% | 0 | 0% | 3 | 0.01% |
| Buddhism |
0 | 0% | 26 | 0.07% | 20 | 0.04% | 14 | 0.04% | 5 | 0.01% |
Judaism  |
0 | 0% | 3 | 0.01% | 1 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% |
| Others | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 3 | 0.01% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% |
| Total population | 40,351 | 100% | 39,320 | 100% | 45,327 | 100% | 36,786 | 100% | 38,576 | 100% |
| Note: British Punjab province era district borders are not an exact match in the present-day due to various bifurcations to district borders — which since created new districts — throughout the historic Punjab Province region during the post-independence era that have taken into account population increases. | ||||||||||
| Religious group |
1901 | 1911 | 1921 | 1931 | 1941 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | |
| Hinduism [a] |
373,886 | 96.03% | 386,953 | 95.7% | 292,768 | 95.45% | 317,390 | 95.93% | 345,716 | 96.16% |
| Islam |
11,535 | 2.96% | 11,374 | 2.81% | 9,551 | 3.11% | 10,017 | 3.03% | 10,812 | 3.01% |
| Buddhism |
2,223 | 0.57% | 2,709 | 0.67% | 2,052 | 0.67% | 1,308 | 0.4% | 10 | 0% |
| Sikhism |
1,318 | 0.34% | 2,911 | 0.72% | 2,040 | 0.67% | 1,817 | 0.55% | 2,693 | 0.75% |
| Jainism |
274 | 0.07% | 172 | 0.04% | 142 | 0.05% | 141 | 0.04% | 126 | 0.04% |
| Christianity |
113 | 0.03% | 224 | 0.06% | 164 | 0.05% | 176 | 0.05% | 161 | 0.04% |
| Zoroastrianism |
0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 1 | 0% | 2 | 0% |
| Judaism |
0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% |
| Others | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 1 | 0% | 0 | 0% | 0 | 0% |
| Total population | 389,349 | 100% | 404,343 | 100% | 306,718 | 100% | 330,850 | 100% | 359,520 | 100% |
| Note1: British Punjab province era district borders are not an exact match in the present-day due to various bifurcations to district borders — which since created new districts — throughout the historic Punjab Province region during the post-independence era that have taken into account population increases.
Note2: 1901-1911 census: Including Jubbal, Bashahr, Keonthal, Baghal, Bilaspur, Nalagarh, and other minor hill states. Note3: 1921-1931 census: Including Bashahr, Nalagarh, Keonthal, Baghal, Jubbal, and other minor hill states. Note3: 1941 census: Including Bashahr, Nalagarh, Keonthal, Baghal, Jubbal, Baghat, Kumarsain, Bhajji, Mahlog, Balsan, Dhami, Kuthar, Kunihar, Mangal, Bija, Darkoti, Tharoch, and Sangri states. |
||||||||||
Language
Languages of Shimla district (2011)
At the time of the 2011 census of India, 67.61% of the population recorded their language as Pahadi, 20.31% Hindi, 4.63% Nepali, 1.39% Punjabi and 1.05% Kangri as their first language.