Garhwal, Kumaon and the five Prayags: the geographical frame of Uttarakhand

Background

Uttarakhand, whose Legislative Assembly meets this week at its hill seat in Gairsain, is geographically divided into the Garhwal and Kumaon regions.
The State has five river confluences known together as the Panch Prayag.
They are Devprayag, Karnaprayag, Nandprayag, Rudraprayag and Vishnuprayag.
The Char Dham shrines of Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri and Yamunotri lie in the same hills.
Nanda Devi National Park, Rajaji National Park, Jim Corbett National Park and the Valley of Flowers are among the State's protected areas.
Dehradun holds the Forest Research Institute, and the Tehri Dam ranks as India's tallest dam.