Barog is a

hill station A hill station is a town located at a higher elevation than the nearby plain or valley. The term was used mostly in colonial Asia (particularly in India), but also in Africa (albeit rarely), for towns founded by European colonialists as refuges ...

, near

City A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be de ...

Solan Solan is a city in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh and the district headquarters of Solan district. It is located south of the state capital, Shimla. Solan has an average elevation of . The city is situated between Chandigarh (joint capi ...

Solan district Solan district is one of the twelve districts of the Himachal Pradesh state in northern India. The city of Solan is the administrative headquarters of the district. The district occupies an area of 1936 km2. History The territory of the p ...

in the

Indian state India is a federal union comprising 28 states and 8 union territories, with a total of 36 entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into districts and smaller administrative divisions. History Pre-indep ...

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; ; "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen mountain states and is characterized by an extreme landscape featuring several peak ...

. The station lies on

UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

Kalka–Shimla Railway. Set in the mountains Barog is just 60 km from

Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which ...

on the Kalka-Shimla highway.

History

Barog was settled in the early 20th century during the building of the narrow gauge Kalka-Shimla Railway. Currently many residents have their long stays in their houses and flats in Barog. It used to be an important stop in the early decades of the century when the Kalka-Shimla toy train stopped here for an hour while the sahibs and memsahibs enjoyed a lavish lunch.

Geography

Barog is located at at a distance of 60 km from

Shimla Shimla (; ; also known as Simla, List of renamed Indian cities and states#Himachal Pradesh, the official name until 1972) is the capital and the largest city of the States and union territories of India, northern Indian state of Himachal Prade ...

, the capital city of Himachal Pradesh is another 65 km from Barog. Until 2003, National Highway 22 connecting Chandigarh with Shimla passed through Barog. On 6 December 2003, the new section of the highway was inaugurated that would connect the village of Kumarhatti directly to Solan, thus bypassing Barog. This was done to avoid the steep incline to Barog from Kumarhatti. Barog is located at a height of 1560 metres above the mean sea level. Due to its height, temperatures here range between 23 and 10 °C during summers and between 15 and 5 °C during winters. The summers last from April to July. Winters set in during December and typically last up to February.

Economy

The economy of Barog is primarily dependent upon tourists, who come here because of its cool climate and proximity to Chandigarh. Many hotels including Hotel KorInns and a Himachal tourism resort called Pinewood operate in Barog. Barog is also influenced economically by the nearby

Lawrence School, Sanawar The Lawrence School, Sanawar, is the oldest Co-Ed boarding school in the world near Solan, Solan city. Established in 1847, its history, influence, and wealth have made it one of the most prestigious and oldest schools in Asia. It is located i ...

. The local economy mainly depends on the agriculture and especially on tomato growing. Until 1975 the local populace was mostly illiterate, which resulted in stalled economic progress. Barog also serves as a fitness camp for the Indian National Hockey and other athletic teams.

Barog Tunnel

Barog tunnel is the longest of the 103 operational tunnels on the route of the UNESCO heritage Kalka-Shimla railway, which is 1143.61m long. Barog station is immediately after the tunnel. Trains take about 2.5 minutes to cross this tunnel, running at 25 kilometres per hour.A.S. Ahluwalia, 2012
Airborne to Chairborne: Memoirs of a War Veteran Aviator-Lawyer of the India Air Force

In the news

Barog station was filmed in '' Himalaya with Michael Palin'' in 2004 and on CNN in Season 3 Episode 1, "Punjab, India" of '' Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown'' during Anthony Bourdain's journey in Kalka-Shimla train, which aired on Sunday April 13, 2014 in USA.

References

{{reflist Cities and towns in Solan district Hill stations in Himachal Pradesh