Chikmagalur

The Town History

Chikmagalur, meaning 'Town of the younger daughter', is a beautiful town located in the foothills of Bababudangiri range. The town is known for its coffee and tea estates. The scenic hill station of Kemmeangundi is about two hours away from Chikmagalur. In the early 1980's, our late ex Prime Minister Indira Gandhi contested for elections from Chickmagalur and won by a huge margin. It was then that the town gained popularity. Hiremagalur, meaning 'Town of the elder daughter', is about 5 kms away from Chikmagalur. This village boast of a unique temple of Lord Rama.It is common folklore that when Parashurama met Lord Rama he asked to see him in the pose when he got married to Sita Thus, it is said that the temple at Hiremagalur has the positions of Lakshmana and Sita interchanged.

Cradle of Coffee

The major commercial crop of the town is coffee. At Baba-Budan Giri that the first ever coffee in the country was grown way back in 1670 A.D. Enterprising Europeans pioneered large scale coffee plantations in the district more than 150 years back As a major coffee producer district also has coffee curing works where the raw coffee is dried, shelled, winnowed, graded and packed to be marketed. The district also houses the Central Coffee Research Institution formerly known as the Coffee Experimental Station started in 1925 under the stewardship of late Dr. Leslie C. Coleman. Now spread over an area of 119.86 hectares the institute conducts research to improve the quality of coffee.

Location and Geography

Chikmagalur is located in the foothills of Bababudangiri range in the Indian state of Karnataka. The town is known for its coffee and tea estates. Chikmagalur is located at 13.32° N 75.78° E[1]. It has an average elevation of 1037 metres (3402 feet). The hill stations around Chikmagalur are famous summer retreats since they remain cool even during summers. The temperature of the city however varies from 17-20 °C during winter to 32-35 °C during summer.