Pokhara

Pokhara Metropolitan City पोखरा महानगरपालिका
City Urban, Hilly
Top: View of the Annapurna Range from Pokhara; Center: Panorama of Pokhara; Bottom from left: Pokhara Valley, the Talbarahi Mandir in Phewa Tal, World Peace Pagoda in Pokhara.
Nickname(s): The Fewa Lake City, The Fishtail City
Motto: Clean Pokhara, Green Pokhara;
Pokhara Metropolitan City Location in Nepal
Coordinates: 28°15′50″N 83°58′20″E / 28.26389°N 83.97222°E / 28.26389; 83.97222Coordinates: 28°15′50″N 83°58′20″E / 28.26389°N 83.97222°E / 28.26389; 83.97222
Country	Nepal
Number 4	Federal State
Zone	Gandaki Zone
District	Kaski District
Incorporated	1962
Area
• Total	348.69 km2 (134.63 sq mi)
• Water	4.4 km2 (1.7 sq mi)
Highest elevation	1,740 m (5,710 ft)
Lowest elevation	827 m (2,713 ft)
Population (2011 (last census))
• Total	313,841
• Density	900.05/km2 (2,331.1/sq mi)
• Ethnicities	Khas (Bahun, Chhetri, Khas Nepali), Magar, Newar, Gurung
• Religions	Hinduism, Buddhism
Time zone	NST (UTC+5:45)
Postal Code	33700 (WRPD), 33702, 33704, 33706, 33708, 33713
Area code(s)	061
Website	pokharamun.gov.np

Pokhara (Nepali: पोखरा) is a metropolitan and the second largest city of Nepal as well as the headquarters of Kaski District, Gandaki Zone and the Western Development Region. It is located 200 kilometres (120 miles) west of the capital Kathmandu. Despite being a comparatively smaller valley than Kathmandu, its geography varies dramatically within just few kilometres from north to south. The altitude varies from 827 metres (2,713 feet) in the southern part to 1,740 metres (5,710 feet) in the north. Additionally, the Annapurna Range with three out of the ten highest mountains in the world — Dhaulagiri, Annapurna I and Manaslu — are within approximately 15 – 35 miles of the valley. Due to its proximity to the Annapurna mountain range, the city is also a base for trekkers undertaking the Annapurna Circuit through the ACAP region of the Annapurna ranges in the Himalayas.

Pokhara is home to many Gurkha soldiers. It is the most expensive city in the country, with a cost-of-living index of 150, and the most expensive place in Nepal after Namche Bazaar.

Pokhara is in the northwestern corner of the Pokhara Valley, which is a widening of the Seti Gandaki valley that lies in the midland region (Pahad) of the Himalayas. In this region the mountains rise very quickly, and within 30 kilometres (19 miles), the elevation rises from 1,000 to 7,500 metres (3,300 to 24,600 feet). As a result of this sharp rise in altitude the area of Pokhara has one of the highest precipitation rates in the country (3,350 mm/year or 131 inches/year in the valley to 5600 mm/year or 222 inches/year in Lumle). Even within the city there is a noticeable difference in rainfall between the south and the north: The northern part at the foothills of the mountains experiences a proportionally higher amount of precipitation.