Rudrapur, Udham Singh Nagar

Rudrapur is located at the Tarai region of Uttarakhand which boasts of people from all faiths and profession. Also known as the 'Gateway to Kumaon Hills’, Rudrapur is the district headquarter of Udham Singh Nagar district.

According to a folktale when king "Rudra" was passing through, his chariot got stuck into marshy land, so he decided to build a temple and well at that place. The very same temple is now known as Atariya temple, located a distance of 2 kms. from the bus stand and half a kilometre away from the Rudrapur-Haldwani motor route. Every year a large fair is held during the 'Navratras' when thousands of devotees congregate to seek the blessing of Goddess Atariya.

Modern day Rudrapur was established in 1960, as a refugee camp for people coming from Burma, West Punjab and specially Pakistan during the partition. Refugees were settled here by the Govt. of India. The Terai was then a jungle area infested by wild animals and diseases. People even lost their lives under attack by wild animals especially lions and tigers. Malaria was common. Many families found it difficult to cope with the situation and relocated to other places. The administration then alloted small pieces of land to refugee families to make it fit for farming and cultivate.

It is now a small and beautiful town with all basic modern facilities. In vicinity of Nainital, this is one of the most prosperous town of Uttarakhand. Rudrapur is an agriculture prime area with at least 70% of the population relying on farming and related business for livelihood. Rudrapur is also famous for its premium quality rice.

Many new industries are now rushing in to setup business at SIDCUL Industrial Estate established at Pantnagar and Sitarganj in the vicinity of Rudrapur. With industries to the likes of Dabur, Bajaj Auto, Britannia, Nestle, Ashok Leyland, Zhandu Pharma, Tata Motors setting up base here, Rudrapur is set to become an industrial hub. Another Industrial Estate is likely to be set up at Kashipur near Rudrapur.

Rudrapur has also become one of the major hub for real estate development with large Real Estate companies like Omaxe and Alliance Nirmaan Limited having setup residential projects in Rudrapur.

As per the 2001 census, Rudrapur had a total population of 88,720. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%.

How to reach Rudrapur

Air: Nearest airport is Pantnagar, 14 km from Rudrapur.

Rail: Trains plying from Dehradun to Kathgodam, Kathgodam to Howrah, Kathgodam to Delhi daily pass Rudrapur daily. Apart from this local trains run between Moradabad, Kashipur, Rudrapur, Lalkuan.

Road: Rudrapur is well connected by road through NH 74 (Delhi-Nainital Highway) and NH 87 (Khatima-Panipat Highway)