“India is the cradle of the human race, the birthplace of human speech, the mother of history, the grandmother of legend, and our most valuable and most artistic materials in the history of man are treasured up in India only.” These lines by Mark Twain always pop up whenever we search about India, its civilization, and its glory.
India is indeed a land of rich heritage, a land of natural splendour and myriad attractions. Let’s take a look at some of the global records created by the country.
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Chenab Bridge, The Highest rail bridge in the world
Location: Jammu & Kashmir
Chenab Bridge built over the Chenab river in the Kauri region of the Reasi district at 359m in Jammu and Kashmir is 30m higher than the iconic Eiffel Tower in Paris. It is a part of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link project (USBRL). The bridge is 1315m long and connects Bakkal (Katra) and Kauri (Srinagar).
You will be surprised to know that it took more than 1,300 workers and 300 engineers to build this bridge, thus making it one of the biggest civil-engineering challenges in India’s history.
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Chail, Highest Cricket Ground in the World
Location: Himachal Pradesh
Set in Chail, Himachal Pradesh and built in 1893, Chail Cricket Ground is located at an altitude of 2144 m. It was properly developed by Maharaja Bhupinder Singh, Maharaja of Patiala. Maharaja Bhupinder Singh was a cricket lover and used to play cricket but now it is under the care of the Indian army. Civilians aren’t allowed to enter the premises but one can look around and walk around the ground.
You can find massive Himalayan ranges on the other side of the ground, thus making the view awe-striking.
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Floating post office in the world
Location: Srinagar
You can find the world’s only floating post office in the summer capital of Jammu & Kashmir. Floating on the waters of the spectacular Dal Lake in Srinagar, this post office is a common sight in the city. At the post office, you can see a board that reads Floating Post Office, Dal Lake.
The 200-year-old post office is still operational. The letters sent out from this post office bear a special seal of a ‘shikara’ with a boatman on it. It has two small rooms – one is the office and the other is a small philately museum. The museum houses traces of the philatelic history of the postal department of the state.
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Highest post office in the world
Location: Hikkim Village
India is also the home to the Highest post office in the world. It is situated in the Hikkim village in the Lahaul-Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh. The post office is set at an elevation of 4440 m. The interesting part is that it is a letterbox-shaped post office and that is why it draws the attention of many tourists around the world.
Many selfie points have been made for tourists outside the office. You can post colourful postcards, each carrying a message that this letter has been sent from the highest post office in the world.
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The wettest inhabited place on Earth
Location: Mawsynram
Mawsynram is the wettest inhabited place on Earth as it receives an average annual rainfall of 11,872 millimetres (467.4 in). As per the Guinness Book of World Records, Mawsynram received 26,000 millimetres of rainfall in the year 1985.
The reason behind the continuous rainfall in the area is its extreme weather conditions and close proximity to the town of Cherrapunji. If you love to travel and explore places while it rains, you can surely visit Meghalaya and its two beautiful places – Mawsynram and Cherrapunji.
