Overview
Kalimpong is a beauteous hill station and an eminent tourist spot in West Bengal, situated in the foothills of the Himalayas. The city owes its name to a probable Tibetan diction, where Kalimpong means "Assembly or stockade of the King's ministers," combining the words, "kalon" meaning King's ministers, and "pong" meaning stockade. However, the place finds its etymological roots in other vocabularies as well, evidently named Dalingkot under the Sikkimese rule, or deduced from the name Kalenpung, translated as "Hillocks of Assemblage" in Lepcha, as penned down by K.P. Tamang, the author of The Unknown and Untold Reality about the Lepchas.
Kalimpong had experienced Sikkimese and Bhutanese rule in succession in the pre-colonial era, and post-independence is presently under the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration. However, during the British rule, several educational institutions were established, for which the city is known to date. Surrounded by the eternally perennial Teesta river, Kalimpong retains its magniloquence by cultivating horticulture and preserving the Tibetan Buddhist heritage in different monasteries and scriptures.
With its layers of history embedded in every ridge and crest, Kalimpong is the home of a diverse kaleidoscope of art, culture, religion, and natural beauty as well.
