Ilam ( ne, इलाम ) is one of four urban municipalities of
Ilam District
Ilam district ( ne, इलाम जिल्ला) is one of 14 districts of Province No. 1 of eastern Nepal. It is a Hill district and covers . The 2011 census counted 290,254 population. The municipality of Ilam is the district headqua ...
, which lies in the
Mahabharata hilly range of
Province No. 1, eastern
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 ma ...
. Ilam also acts as the headquarters of Ilam District. Being the largest producer region for
Nepali tea, its tea farms comprise a major tourist attraction in Province No. 1. Ilam is also famous for its natural scenery and landscapes as well as its diverse agricultural economy which specializes in horticultural crop production.
The total area of the municipality is and the total population is 48,536 as per 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 ...
. The municipality is divided into 12 wards.
The 74 kilometer section of
Mechi highway connects Ilam with the
east–west highway and subsequently, with the provincial capital of
Biratnagar
Biratnagar () is a metropolitan city in Nepal, which serves as the capital of Province No. 1. With a population of 242,548 as per the 2011 census, it is the largest city in the province and also the headquarters of Morang district. As per the ...
.
Background
Ilam (Ilam Bazar; the core area) was established as the headquarters of
Ilam Gauda in 1818 (1875 BS)
and was declared as "Ilam Municipality" in 1958
but gazetted to "Nepal Rajpatra" only in 1962.
During the
Panchayat System in Nepal (in 1960), the municipality used to be known as Ilam Nagar Panchayat.
In 1990, following the end of the Panchayat System, Ilam regained its official name of Ilam Municipality. The total area of the municipality was with division into nine wards, and the total population of the municipality as of 2007 was 34,648.
In 2015, with the amendment of the new
Constitution of Nepal
Constitution of Nepal 2015 ( ne, नेपालको संविधान २०७२) is the present governing Constitution of Nepal.
Nepal is governed according to the Constitution which came into effect on 20 September 2015, replacing the ...
,
Godak,
Soyak
Soyak is a town and Village Development Committee in Ilam District in the Province No. 1 of eastern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census
The 1991 Nepal census was a widespread national census conducted by the Nepal Central Bureau of Stat ...
,
Barbote
Barbote was a town and Village Development Committee in Ilam District in the Province No. 1 of eastern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census it had a population of 4,739 persons living in 876 individual households.
It was superseded by rur ...
, part of
Maipokhari Sumbek,
Puwamajhuwa
Puwamajwa is a village and Village Development Committee in Ilam District in the Province No. 1 of eastern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census
The 1991 Nepal census was a widespread national census conducted by the Nepal Central Bureau ...
, part of
Sangrumba, part of
Siddhithumka and
Sakhejung
Sakhejung is a town and Village Development Committee( ''now ilam municipality word no. 01'') in Ilam District in the Province No. 1 of eastern Nepal. At the time of the 1991 Nepal census
The 1991 Nepal census was a widespread national census ...
Village Development Committee were incorporated to it.
Etymology
The word ‘Ilam’ comprises two words-‘I’ and ‘Lam’. In
Limbu language, the word ‘I’ means ‘winding’ and ‘lam’ denotes the way. The topography of this Ilam aptly depicts several winding paths crisscrossing.
Demography
According to
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 ...
, the total population in Ilam was 48,563 and the main inhabitants of Ilam were
Limbu
Limbu may refer to:
* Limbu people, an indigenous tribe living in Nepal, Sikkim and Bhutan
** Rambahadur Limbu (born 1939), Nepalese Gurkha recipient of the Victoria Cross
* Limbu language
* Limbu script
** Limbu (Unicode block)
Limbu is a Unicod ...
,
Rai,
Yakkha,
Lepcha,
Newar
Newar (; new, नेवार, endonym: Newa; new, नेवा, Pracalit script:) or Nepami, are the historical inhabitants of the Kathmandu Valley and its surrounding areas in Nepal and the creators of its historic heritage and civilisation ...
,
Magar,
Tamang,
Chettri Chettri ( hi, चेत्री) is an Indian surname. Spellings include Chetri, Chhetri and Chhetry.
Notable people with the surname include:
Chetri
* Aman Chetri (born 2001), Indian footballer
* Hem Chetri (born 2000), Indian cricketer
* Lax ...
,
Bahun
Bahun ( ne, बाहुन) or Khas Brahmin ( ne, खस ब्राह्मण) is a caste ( ''Varna'') among Khas people of Nepal. Their origins are from the Indo-Aryan Khasa tribe of Nepal and South Asia. According to the 2011 Nep ...
,
Sunuwar
The Sunuwar or Koinch (; ''Sunuwār Jāti'') is a Kirati tribe native to Nepal, parts of India (West Bengal and Sikkim) and southern Bhutan. They speak the Sunuwar language. According to the 2001 census of Nepal, 17% of the tribe follow the ...
and
Gurung.
Education
Ilam has many educational institutions. Ilam's major campus is
Mahendra Ratna Multiple Campus, a first QAA certified constituent campus of
Tribhuvan University
Tribhuvan University (TU; ne, त्रिभुवन विश्वविद्यालय) is a public university located in Kirtipur, Kathmandu. Established in 1959, TU is the oldest university in Nepal. In terms of enrollment, it is ...
. It has four faculties; Science, Humanities, Education, and Commerce. It provides education in undergraduate and post graduation subjects. From 2069 BS (2012 AD) under the affiliation from Tribhuvan University, the
Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science
Tribhuvan University's Institute of Agriculture and Animal Science (IAAS) is the oldest institute in Nepal which provides higher education in agriculture and animal science.
Overview
IAAS was founded in Kathmandu in 1957 as a school of agri ...
, MRM Campus has started offering bachelor's degrees in Science in Horticulture. In addition to students from Ilam district, students from
Jhapa,
Morang
Morang District ( ne, मोरङ जिल्ला ) is located in Province No. 1 in eastern Nepal. It is an Outer Terai district. It borders with Bihar, India to the South, Jhapa to the East, Dhankuta and Panchthar to the North, and ...
,
Sunsari, Panchthar, Taplejung, Dhankuta,
Kathmandu
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, Janakpur, Pokhara, Chitwan, Banke, Gorkha, Lamjung, Rupandehi are here to study horticulture.
There are other institutes which provide higher education such as Adarhsa HSS, Modern Campus, Ilam Technical college, Heritage National Academy, Ilam Vidya Mandir. Green Valley Academy which provides secondary level education is regarded as one of the best schools in eastern Nepal due to its high-ranking SLC result.
Transportation

Ilam Bazaar is located about east of
Kathmandu
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, coordinates =
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. Regular buses are available from New Buspark,
Koteshwor
Koteshwor is a place, located in Kathmandu District. In 1991, Kathmandu Metropolitan City was expanded by incorporating Koteshwor as Ward No. 32 (previously 35). It encompasses 395 hectares and is bounded by the Manohara river in the east and sou ...
and Kalanki of
Kathmandu
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which takes to Ilam after a bus ride of about 16 hours. An airport is under construction at ''Sukilumba Danda''.
Daily Bus/Bolero is available from Ilam to Taplejung, Phidim, Birtamod, Chandragadhi, Kakarbhitta, Siliguri (West Bengal), Pashupatinagar,
Damak,
Itahari, Dharan and
Biratnagar
Biratnagar () is a metropolitan city in Nepal, which serves as the capital of Province No. 1. With a population of 242,548 as per the 2011 census, it is the largest city in the province and also the headquarters of Morang district. As per the ...
. A new buspark is being constructed at Sera. Besides these, Bus/Bolero also goes to all the VDCs of Ilam district.
Tea production

Tea production in Ilam (as
Nepal tea) started as early as 1863, when the Chinese government offered then Prime Minister
Jung Bahadur Rana tea saplings that were then planted in Ilam. In 1868, the Ilam tea factory was established, and tea plantations covered over 135 acres of land. In 2010, the tea factory was privatized, and is currently not under operation.
However, tea production continues in Ilam in other forms. Many local people gets employment from this.
In 2010, the total tea production of Nepal is 16.23 million kilograms per annum; a majority of this amount is produced in Ilam.
Economy

New Hotels are being opened in Ilam for tourism. Ilam is known for its six "A"s: are ''Alu'' (
Potato
The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae.
Wild potato species can be found from the southern Un ...
), ''Alan'' (
Milk
Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modulati ...
), ''Alainchi'' (
Cardamom
Cardamom (), sometimes cardamon or cardamum, is a spice made from the seeds of several plants in the genera ''Elettaria'' and ''Amomum'' in the family Zingiberaceae. Both genera are native to the Indian subcontinent and Indonesia. They are r ...
), ''Aduwa'' (
Ginger
Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice and a folk medicine. It is a herbaceous perennial which grows annual pseudostems (false stems made of the rolled bases of ...
), ''Amriso'' (
Broom Grass), and ''Akabare khursani'' (
Round Chillies). Alongside these tea, bamboo, flowers and silk are also produced in Ilam. Agricultural commodities helps to increase the Agricultural Gross Development Product. Beside these, the tourism sector also contributes in the economy of Ilam.
Ilam bazaar has got
haat
Haat or hat, even haat bazaar, is an open-air market that serves as a trading venue for local people in rural areas and towns of Indian subcontinent, especially in India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan. Haat bazaars are conducted on a regu ...
on Sundays and Thursdays every week.
Climate
It is cold in Ilam during the winter, mild in summer and foggy in the monsoon season.
Environmentalism in Ilam
Ilam municipality is also known for its innovations in environmentalism. In 2010, the municipality became the first one in Nepal to ban plastic bags from the market, this is the great success all over the Nepal. The district also set aside 38 ropanis (>19,000 square metres) of land in the same year for processing degradable waste. In addition, Ilam's network of microhydropower produces more reliable electricity than is available in the rest of Nepal.
Media
Ilam has three FM radio station namely Ilam FM (93 Mz), Nepalbani FM (94.9 MHz), Chiyabari FM (88.2 MHz) which are
Community radio
Community radio is a radio service offering a third model of radio broadcasting in addition to commercial and public broadcasting. Community stations serve geographic communities and communities of interest. They broadcast content that is popul ...
station and Fikkal FM (90.6 MHz). They aim to promote local culture by various programs of infotainment. ''Chiyabari Daily'', ''Ilam Express'', ''Ilam Post'' and ''Sandakpur'' are daily newspaper published from Ilam. In addition to these, several weekly newspaper like ''Pawanbhumi'' and ''Ilam Awaj'' are published in Ilam.and chulachuli darpan also
References
{{Authority control
Populated places in Ilam District
Municipalities in Province No. 1
Hill stations in Nepal
Nepal municipalities established in 1962
Municipalities in Ilam District