Haryana is a land blessed with greenery. The greenery of the place charms and enchants you. The morning sun spreads its rays over the beautiful green paddy fields. It appears that the sun is in love with the greenery of the place. The state of Haryana is blessed with the blue waters of Yamuna. Haryana is described as the grainery of the nation. It is also described as the abode of gods. Haryana is a place where Gods come alive. Haryana is a place that enchants every tourist.

Origin of name of Haryana
The meaning if the word Haryana means land covered with greenery. The other meaning of Haryana (Hari-Aana) is where God comes. Some people are of the view that it is another form of the word Aryana, or Aryan.

History of Haryana
Haryana was part of the state of Punjab for a long time. Many settlemants dating back to the Indus Valley Civilization have been found along this river bed, at Naurangabad and Mittathal. The Vedic civilization also flourished on the banks of the Saraswati, and the hymns of Rigveda were composed here. Evidence from Hindu texts shows that the boundaries of Kurukshetra correspond roughly to the state of Haryana. Mahabharata mentions Haryana as Bahudhhanyaka which means `land of plentiful grains` and Bahudhana, `land of immense riches`. Several places mentioned in Mahabharata correspond to the modern day cities in Haryana. It issaid that for 18 days the armies from all over India battled in the plains of Kurukshetra to decide who sits on the throne of Hastinapura. Maharaja Agrasen established a flourishing city near modern Hisar.

During the Medival periods, i.e. in the 7th century AD, king Harshavardhana established his capital at Thanesar near Kurukshetra. After his death the region was invaded by the rulers from the northwest. In the 12th century, Prithviraj Chauhan established a fort at Hansi. In the Second Battle of Tarain, Muhammad Ghori conquered this area. The earliest reference to `Hariana` occurs in a Sanskrit inscription dated 1328 in which the region is reffered to as The heaven on earth. In 1354, Firoz Shah Tughlaq established a fort at Hisr. The three famous battles of Panipat took place near town of Panipat. Ion 1526, the first battle took pace, where Babur, the ruler of Kabul defeated Ibrahim Lodi of the Delhi Sultanate. This battle marked the beginning of the Mughal empire in India. In the second battle of Panipat in November 5, 1556 Akbar `s general Bairam Khan conquered Hemu, and paved the way for Akbar`s reign. The third battle of Panipat marked the end of the Maratha empire in India. During the British rule, most of Haryana formed part of the Punjab province. On 1 November 1966, Haryana was carved out of Punjab.

Geography of Haryana
Haryana is embraced by Uttar Pradesh in the east, Punjab in the west, Himachal Pradesh in the north and Rajasthan in the south. Delhi protrudes into Haryana and is encompassed by it on three sides. The Shivalik hills in the north, River Yamuna in the east and river Ghaggar in the west form the natural boundaries of Haryana. There are numerous irrigation canals that cross the state, bringing water for irrigation from the perennial rivers of the Himalayas. The land is generally flat, covered with loamy soil and very suitable for agriculture.The important rivers are Yamuna, the Saraswati and the Ghaggar. The river Saraswati begins in the large depression at Kalawar.

The climate of Haryana is continental. The three seasons are summer, winter and rainy season. Summers are very hot and winters are cold. Rainfall is low and erratic and is unevenly distributed. Monsoon winds bring adequate rainfall between July and September.

Government and politics of Harayna
Bhupinder Singh Hooda is presently the Chief Minister of Haryana.
The major political parties of Harayna are INC, INLD, BJP , CPI , CPI (ML)(L), RLD

Districts of Haryana
There are 20 districts, 47 sub-divisions, 67 tehsils, 45 sub-tehsils and 116 blocks. Haryana has a total of 81 cities and towns. It has 6,759 villages. The state of Haryana is divided into four districts. They are Ambala, Rohtak , Gurgaon , Hisar

Demographics of Harayna
According to the 2001 census, the population of Harayna is 21,144,000, with 11,364,000 males and 9,781,000 females. The population density is 477 people/sq km. Females are less here as a result of female infanticide. There is shortage of brides here and grooms marry women from other states of Orissa, Jharkand, and Bihar. There are Hindus, Muslims, Jains and Christians. About 88% of the population are Jains. There are people belonging to different sects as Jats, Rajputs, Brahmans, Ahirs, Rors, Meos, Harijans, Gujars.

Culture of Haryana
The people of Haryana have a religious bent of mind. They give importance to fairs and festivals. During the time of fairs people gather around the temple of Shivji. The major festivals are Diwali, Dussehra, Gugga Naumi, Holi and Bathing at Sohna.

Flora and Fauna of Haryana
Thorny dry deciduous forest, pine and thorny shrubs can be found all over the state. The trees found here are mulberry, eucalyptus, pine, kikar, sheesham and babul. During the monsoon a carpet of grass covers the hills, which adds to the natural beauty of Haryana. The fauna found here are black buck, nilgai (blue bull), panther, foxes, mongooses, jackals and wild dogs.

Education of Harayna
There are many primary schools, middle schools, high schools and senior secondary schools in Haryana. The Haryana Board of School Education conducts public examinations at middle, matriculation, and senior secondary levels twice a year. The Board also conducts examinations for Haryana Open School at senior and senior secondary levels twice a year and provides free education to women up to graduation level.

The four universities of Haryana are Maharshi Dayanand University, Kurukshetra University, Guru Jambheshwar University, Chaudhary Charan Singh Haryana Agricultural University.The National Dairy Research Institute is given the status of a Deemed University.

Media of Haryana
The major newspapers of Harayna are Punjab Kesari, Jag Bani, Ajit, Dainik Jagran, The Tribune, Amar Ujala, Punjabi Tribune, Hindustan Times, Dainik Bhaskar, The Times Of India etc.

More on Haryana
Cities of Haryana
Festivals of Haryana
Folk Dances of Haryana
Haryana Museums
Temples of Haryana
Universities of Haryana