Kaski District ( ne, कास्की जिल्ला, ), a part of

Gandaki Province Gandaki Province ( ne, गण्डकी प्रदेश ) ), is one of the seven federal provinces established by the current constitution of Nepal which was promulgated on 20 September 2015. Pokhara is the province's capital city. It borde ...

, is one of the seventy-seven

districts of Nepal Districts in Nepal are second level of administrative divisions after provinces. Districts are subdivided in municipalities and rural municipalities. There are seven provinces and 77 districts in Nepal. After the state's reconstruction of admi ...

. The name is disambiguated from Kaskikot, the ancient Kaski Kingdom. The district, with

Pokhara Pokhara ( ne, पोखरा, ) is a metropolis, metropolitan city in Nepal, which serves as the capital of Gandaki Province. It is the List of cities in Nepal, second most populous city of Nepal after Kathmandu, with 518,452 inhabitants living ...

as its district headquarter, covers an area of 2,017 square km and had a total population of 492,098 according to 2011 Census. This district lies at the

centroid In mathematics and physics, the centroid, also known as geometric center or center of figure, of a plane figure or solid figure is the arithmetic mean position of all the points in the surface of the figure. The same definition extends to any ...

point of the country. The altitude of Kaski district ranges from 450 meters the lowest land to 8091 meters the highest point in the Himalaya range. Kaski District politically has One Metropolitan City, 4 Gaupalika and 3 electoral sectors. The district covers parts of the

Annapurna Annapurna (; ne, अन्नपूर्ण) is a mountain situated in the Annapurna mountain range of Gandaki Province, north-central Nepal. It is the tenth highest mountain in the world at above sea level and is well known for the diffic ...

mountain range, and the picturesque scene of the mountains can be observed from most parts of the district. It is one of the best tourist destinations of

Nepal Nepal (; ne, नेपाल ), formerly the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal ( ne, सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल ), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mai ...

. The district is full of rivers such as Seti Gandaki, Modi and Madi along with other rivulets. The district headquarters

lies about 750 m above the sea level. The district is known for the Himalayan range with about 11 Himalayas with height greater than 7000 m. The nearby peaks include Machhapuchhre (Virgin Peak - 6993m). The Annapurna Range in the northern side is always full of snow. The scenery of northern mountains, gorge of

Seti River The Seti River is an important tributary of the Karnali system that drains western Nepal. Course The Seti originates from the snow fields and glaciers around the twin peaks of Api and Nampa in the south facing slopes of the main Himalayas ...

, Davis Falls, natural caves, Fewa Lake,

Begnas Lake Begnas Lake ( ne, बेगनास ताल) is a freshwater lake in Pokhara Metropolis of Kaski district of Nepal located in the south-east of the Pokhara Valley. The lake is the third largest lake of Nepal and second largest, after Phewa ...

and

Rupa Lake Rupa Lake or Rupa Tal is a freshwater lake in Nepal located in the border of Pokhara Metropolitan and Rupa Rural Municipality of Kaski District. It is the third biggest lake in Pokhara valley of Nepal and at an altitude of covering area about ...

are both natural resources and tourist attractions.

Etymology

Regarding Booring the origin of the name ''Kaski'', there are many hypotheses; among them: * from Khās; Cas; Kas: Caus, referring to the Khās Rulers. * from Kashyap Rishi who spent his time in Kaskikot making ayurvedic grantha "Kashyap Sagita"; * * from ''koshkash'', meaning a place with natural mineral resources; * from ''kacchad'', a Nepali style of dress; * from Kashikot, the central part of Kaski.

History

It is believed that human settlement in Kaski was there from Pre-historic period. Many historian refer Kaski; word to be from Kāshyāp Rishi. The civilisation inside the valley started with Khās Rulers.

Politics

All the governance and development of Kaski District are handled mainly by District Development Committee Kaski (DDC-Kaski).

Culture

The district is full of people with multi-language, multi-religion and multiple cultures. Different people have different foods, dresses and norms based on their caste and religion. Many places offer Home Stay for internal as well as international tourists along with performance of local dance according to caste and cultures. According to the census of 2068 Kaski district has people of about 84 castes, 44 languages and 11 religions. The dressing style of people here matches with national dress. The main foods of people here are Dal-Bhat

Tarkari Tarkaris are a spicy vegetable curry, originating from the Indian subcontinent; notably in Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Nepal. Preparation methods for tarkaris range from simple to complex. These curries made from vegetables are popular in lar ...

Roti Roti (also known as chapati) is a round flatbread native to the Indian subcontinent. It is popular in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Myanmar, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Thailand, Guyana, Suriname, Jamaica, Trini ...

, and

Dhindo Dhindo ( ne, ढिँडो ) is a meal prepared in Nepal. It is prepared by gradually adding flour to boiling water while stirring. It is a staple meal in various parts of Nepal and the Sikkim and Darjeeling regions of India. Though it is a sta ...

(These are typical Nepalese foods). The district is the common place of different castes such as

Gurung Gurung (exonym; ) or Tamu (endonym; Gurung: ) are an ethnic group indigenous to the hills and mountains of Gandaki Province of Nepal. Gurung people predominantly live around the Annapurna region in Manang, Mustang, Dolpo, Kaski, Lamjung, Gorkha, ...

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...

Chhetri Chhetri (Kshetri, Kshettri, Kshetry or Chhettri), ( ne, क्षेत्री ; IAST: ''Kṣetrī'') historically called Kshettriya or Kshetriya or Khas are Nepali speakers of Khas community, some of whom trace their origin to migration fro ...

, Newar, Thakali, kumal and many more. So,Nepal is multi-language,multi-reli gion

Sports

According to the District Sport Committee, Kaski District have one stadium, named Pokhara Rangashala, of about 417

Ropani In Nepal, some customary units of measurement are still used, although the metric system has been the official standard since 1968. Length The kos (kosh, krosh, koss) is a very ancient measure of distance, measuring about 2.25 miles or 3.7 k ...

of area and capacity of 21,000 spectators. Kaski has its reputation in generating sportsmen in the country.

Tourism

* Phewa Lake is a tourism destination in

and the second biggest lake of Nepal with the area of 4.43 square km and a perimeter of . Boating is possible in Phewa Lake and takes in the surrounding forest and settlements near it. The

Tal Barahi temple Tal Barahi temple ( ne, तालबाराही मन्दिर) also known as ‘Lake Temple’ or ‘Barahi Temple’ is a Hindu temple of the goddess Barahi. It is the most important religious monument in Pokhara, Nepal. This temple i ...

is also situated at the middle of the lake. *

, at

Lekhnath Lekhnath ( ne, लेखनाथ नगरपालिका) was a municipality in Kaski District in the Gandaki Province of northern-central Nepal, about 180 km west of Kathmandu. It has now been merged into Pokhara (which is criticised by ...

of Kaski district, is the third big lake of

with the area of 3.73 square km. The lake is known for its pure water compared with other lakes and the view of

and Machhapuchhre. *

* Patale Chhango or Davis Falls: water falls located at Chorepatan-Pokhara. * Gupteshwor Mahadev Cave at Chorepatan-Pokhara is a religious and tourism destination. *

Mahendra Cave Mahendra Cave is a cave located in Pokhara-16,batulechaur, Kaski district, close to the Kali khola, is a large limestone cave. It is a rare example of a cave system in Nepal containing stalagmites and stalactites. This show cave attracts thous ...

at Bataulechaur has length of about 125 m. It has different images of

Lord Shiva Shiva (; sa, शिव, lit=The Auspicious One, Śiva ), also known as Mahadeva (; ɐɦaːd̪eːʋɐ, or Hara, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major traditions within Hindu ...

and

Lord Ganesh Ganesha ( sa, गणेश, ), also known as Ganapati, Vinayaka, and Pillaiyar, is one of the best-known and most worshipped deities in the Hindu pantheon and is the Supreme God in Ganapatya sect. His image is found throughout India. Hindu d ...

and others that are natural. * Planeterium at Bataulechaur is a tourist location with different attractions, such as a planetarium, science center, mirror maze, and mystery house. *

flows from Machhapuchhre Peak through gorges with the depth of about 200 feet. * Bindhabasini Temple is one of the most important religious destination of

. Different

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya (; ; ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the planet's highest peaks, including the very highest, Mount Everest. Over 100 ...

can be seen from this temple. *

Sarangkot Sarangkot is Ward 18 of Pokhara, Kaski District, Nepal, after it was merged into the city in 2015. It is a popular tourist destination for those who arrive in Pokhara. At the 1991 Nepal census it had a total population of 5,060 with 1,010 individu ...

is known for views of the sunrise, sunset, views of Pokhara city and

Paragliding Paragliding is the recreational and competitive adventure sport of flying paragliders: lightweight, free-flying, foot-launched glider aircraft with no rigid primary structure. The pilot sits in a harness or lies supine in a cocoon-like 'p ...

. It is located at about 5500 feet. * Machhapuchhre is a mountain 6997m in height, known for its fish-tail structure. The peak is still not open for mountaineers. *The

Range, on the border between

Manang Manang ( ne, मनाङ) is a town in the Manang District of Nepal. It is located at 28°40'0N 84°1'0E with an elevation of . According to the preliminary result of the 2011 Nepal census it has a population of 6,527 people living in 1,495 ind ...

and

Myagdi Myagdi District ( ne, म्याग्दी जिल्ला ), a part of Gandaki Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Beni as its district headquarters, covers an area of , had a population of 114,44 ...

Districts, is seen from almost all places of Kaski district. * Panchase Chhetra is an area of about 5500 hectares including five peaks ( Panchadham) and the sources of the rivers Harpan, Rati, Jare,

Aandhi ''Aandhi'' () is a 1975 Indian political drama film starring Sanjeev Kumar and Suchitra Sen, and directed by Gulzar. At the time it was alleged that the film was based on the life of the then-Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and her relationship ...

Seti The search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) is a collective term for scientific searches for intelligent extraterrestrial life, for example, monitoring electromagnetic radiation for signs of transmissions from civilizations on other pl ...

. This region lies in the border of Kaski,

Parbat Parbat District ( ne, पर्वत जिल्ला , is a hilly area of Nepal. It is a part of Gandaki Province and one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Kusma as its district headquarters, covers an area of and ...

and

Syangja Syangja District ( ne, स्याङ्जा जिल्ला; ), a part of Gandaki Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Syangja bazaar (a small town) as its district headquarters, covers an area o ...

district. Many

can be seen from this place. This is the place with many Sunakhari; you can find about 113 different types of Sungava. The region is known for its biodiversity, featuring Lali Gurans, Kharshu, Chap, Chandan and many more of about 600 types and also the place for different animals such as

tiger The tiger (''Panthera tigris'') is the largest living cat species and a member of the genus '' Panthera''. It is most recognisable for its dark vertical stripes on orange fur with a white underside. An apex predator, it primarily preys on u ...

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...

. *Bat Cave (Chameri Gufa in

Nepali language Nepali (; , ) is an Indo-Aryan language native to the Himalayas region of South Asia. It is the official, and most widely spoken, language of Nepal, where it also serves as a '' lingua franca''. Nepali has official status in the Indian st ...

) is a

solutional cave A solutional cave, solution cave, or karst cave is a cave usually formed in the soluble rock limestone. It is the most frequently occurring type of cave. It can also form in other rocks, including chalk, dolomite, marble, salt beds, and gypsum. ...

, which has a habitat of

Horseshoe bat Horseshoe bats are bats in the family Rhinolophidae. In addition to the single living genus, ''Rhinolophus'', which has about 106 species, the extinct genus '' Palaeonycteris'' has been recognized. Horseshoe bats are closely related to the Old ...

s over the walls and ceiling. Formed of

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

, it is a show cave and one of the most visited tourist destinations in Pokhara. The cave has one entrance and one exit. The exit is narrower than the entrance and needs climbing. The indigenous belief is that only those who have not sinned should pass the exit hole. The cave is surrounded by forest. It is close to the nearby

. The cave is U-shaped and inside the cave are carvings of

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

deities. * Dhampus village: Dhampus is a village and Village Development Committee in Kaski District in the Gandaki Province of northern-central Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census, it had a population of 2,753 persons living in 547 individual households. It is gradually turning into a tourist destination. It has the Australian Base Camp with views of the peaks Annapurna, Dhaulagiri and Machhapuchhre. *Astam Village is a village of Dhital, one of the wards of Machhapuchhre Rural Municipality of Kaski. It provides a panoramic view of Annapurna and Machhapuchhre range. The range of Mardi Trek starts from Astam village and climbs towards Dhital, Hyangjakot, Dhampus, Forest-Camp, Rest Camp, Low Camp, Badal Danda, High Camp, Viewpoint and BaseCamp.

Geography and climate

Demographics

At the time of the

2011 Nepal census Nepal conducted a widespread national census in 2011 by the Nepal Central Bureau of Statistics. Working with the 58 municipalities and the 3915 Village Development Committees at a district level, they recorded data from all the municipalities an ...

, Kaski District had a population of 492,098. Of these, 78.5% spoke Nepali, 11.9%

, 2.2% Magar, 2.2% Newari, 1.5%

Tamang The Tamang (; Devanagari: तामाङ; ''tāmāṅ'') are an Tibeto-Burmese ethnic group of Nepal. In Nepal Tamang/Moormi people constitute 5.6% of the Nepalese population at over 1.3 million in 2001, increasing to 1,539,830 as of the 2011 c ...

, 0.7%

Bhojpuri Bhojpuri (;Bhojpuri entry, Oxford Dictionaries
, Oxford U ...

, 0.6%

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

and 0.5% Maithili as their

first language A first language, native tongue, native language, mother tongue or L1 is the first language or dialect that a person has been exposed to from birth or within the critical period. In some countries, the term ''native language'' or ''mother tongu ...

. 19.4% of the population in the district spoke Nepali and 1.1%

as their

second language A person's second language, or L2, is a language that is not the native language (first language or L1) of the speaker, but is learned later. A second language may be a neighbouring language, another language of the speaker's home country, or a fo ...

Administration

The district consists of one

metropolitan city A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big ci ...

and four rural municipalities. These are as follows: * Pokhara Metropolitan City * Annapurna Rural Municipality * Machhapuchchhre Rural Municipality * Madi Rural Municipality * Rupa Rural Municipality

Former Municipalities and Village Development Committees

* Arba Vijaya * Armala (Nghola) * Begnas * Bhachok * Bhadaure Tamagi *

Bhalam Bhalam was a Village Development Committee, north of Pokhara in the Valam Municipality of Kaski District, situated in the Gandaki Zone of the Western Development Region, located in northern-central Nepal. In 2015, the VDC was amalgamated with P ...

Bharat Pokhari Bharat Pokhari is a town in Kaski District in the Gandaki Province of northern-central Nepal. It lies at the height of 657 to 1600 meters above sea level. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 8,889 persons living in 1782 ind ...

* Chapakot * Dangsing(T'uhsi) * Deurali *

Dhampus Dhampus is a village and Village Development Committee in Kaski District in the Gandaki Zone of northern-central Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census The 1991 Nepal census was a widespread national census conducted by the Nepal Central B ...

(Toh'mle) *

Dhikur Pokhari Dhikurpokhari is a suburb and former Village Development Committee in Kaski District in the Gandaki Province of northern-central Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 7,392 persons living in 1,427 individual househol ...

* Dhital * Ghachok (kazo) *

Ghandruk Ghandruk ( ne, घान्द्रुक ) is a Village Development Committee in the Kaski District of the Gandaki Province of Nepal. Situated at a distance of 32 km north-west to Pokhara, the village is readily accessible by public buses and p ...

(Koh'da) * Hansapur * Hemja * Kahun * Kalika * Kaskikot(Kas-khi ko'i) * Kristinachnechaur * Lahachok (LaZo) * Lamachaur, Pokhara * Lekhnath Municipality *

Lumle Lumle is a town and Annapurna Rural Municipality, Kaski Kaski District in the Gandaki Zone of northern-central Nepal. At the 1991 Nepal census, it had a population of 4,685 persons in 955 individual households. Lumle is well known for its agri ...

(Lhu'le) * Lwangghale(Lahwaa-Kahli) *

Machhapuchchhre Machapuchare, Machhapuchchhre or Machhapuchhre (, Tamu: कतासुँ क्लिको), is a mountain situated in the Annapurna massif of Gandaki Province, north-central Nepal. Its highest peak has never been officially climbed due to t ...

(Kata'shu) * Majhthana * Mala *

Mauja Mauja ( ne, :ne:मौजा) is a town and Village development committee in Kaski District in the Gandaki Zone of northern-central Nepal. Most of the people lived in villages. A village was also called "Mauja". The chief of the village was the ...

(Mhuja) * Mijuredanda * Namarjung(Namju) * Nirmalpokhari * Parche(Paje) * Pokhara Sub-metropolitan Municipality * Pumdibhumdi * Puranchaur * Rakhi * Ribhan(R'hamay) * Rupakot(Rup ko'i) * Saimarang * Salyan *

* Sardikhola * Shisuwa *

Siddha ''Siddha'' (Sanskrit: '; "perfected one") is a term that is used widely in Indian religions and culture. It means "one who is accomplished." It refers to perfected masters who have achieved a high degree of physical as well as spiritual ...

* Sildujure * Thumakodada (also known as Tarkang) * Thumki The Village Development Committee (VDC) was dissolved on 10 March 2017 to be replaced by the Gaunpalika. So,There is no VDCs in this current time.

References

External links

* {{Coord, 28, 20, N, 84, 00, E, region:NP_type:adm2nd_source:dewiki, display=title Gandaki Province Districts of Nepal established in 1962