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District of Himachal Pradesh

Kangra District Population 2026

Population · 1 March 2026

≈ 16.65 lakh Estimate Our estimate, method M1, constrained to the official state projection 1 March 2026 How this is made →

16,65,000 1.67 million 1 March 2026

Kangra district's population is estimated at ≈16.65 lakh (16,65,000) on 1 March 2026. This is our estimate, tied to the official Himachal Pradesh projection; Census 2011, the last count, recorded 15,10,075.

Estimate: method M1, constrained to the RGI projection for Himachal Pradesh. Census: ORGI.

Which number do you mean?

District totals include villages. Here is how the 2011 population splits between towns and villages.

District

Kangra district

Census 2011
15,10,075
2026 Estimate Our estimate, method M1, constrained to the official state projection How this is made →
≈ 16.65 lakh

Urban population

Towns (urban)

Census 2011
86,281

Rural

Villages (rural)

Census 2011
14,23,794

Key figures

Population 2026
≈ 16.65 lakh 16,65,000 Estimate Our estimate, method M1, constrained to the official state projection How this is made →
Census 2011
15.1 lakh 15,10,075 Census 2011 Final count, Census of India 2011 (ORGI) How this is made →
Density
263per km² 2011
Sex ratio
1012 Himachal Pradesh: 972
Child sex ratio (0–6)
876 Himachal Pradesh: 909
Literacy rate
85.7% Male 91.5% · Female 80.0%
Urban share
5.7% Himachal Pradesh: 10.0%
Growth 2001–11
+12.8% Himachal Pradesh: +12.9%
Area
5,739km² Census 2011
Households
3.39 lakh 4.5 people per household
Villages
3,869 Census 2011
Towns
9 Census 2011

Where it ranks

Population over time

Census counts on 2011 boundaries, then our estimate to 2036.

Kangra: Population over time
  • Census
  • Estimate
17 L 2026
› Show the numbers as a table
YearPopulation
19515,70,643
19616,57,232
19718,00,863
19819,90,758
199111,74,072
200113,39,030
201115,10,075
2016 *15,74,000
2021 *16,25,000
2026 *16,65,000
2031 *16,93,000
2036 *17,08,000

* Estimate

How Kangra's 2011 population was spread

Sub-districts (tehsils, talukas, mandals or blocks) as they were in Census 2011. “Part” means only some of it now lies in this district.

How Kangra's 2011 population was spread
#
1 Palampur1,89,27612.5%101885.6%1.9%
2 Nurpur1,76,52511.7%96085.8%5.6%
3 Dharmsala1,36,5369.0%94685.8%31.3%
4 Dera Gopipur1,20,7838.0%106387.9%4.0%
5 Jawali1,12,7467.5%101386.3%0.0%
6 Kangra97,5686.5%98388.5%9.8%
7 Baijnath95,2296.3%101983.4%0.0%
8 Indora81,2265.4%92483.9%5.6%
9 Nagrota Bagwan76,8995.1%100585.6%7.7%
10 Shahpur67,7584.5%104083.3%0.0%
11 Fatehpur62,0414.1%99584.7%0.0%
12 Jaisinghpur61,0824.0%118685.2%0.0%
13 Jawalamukhi43,5042.9%105388.0%12.3%
14 Khundian38,2312.5%105582.7%0.0%
15 Jaswan32,5202.2%104487.1%0.0%
16 Rakkar29,5032.0%104289.2%0.0%
17 Baroh25,7891.7%107984.2%0.0%
18 Dhira22,1191.5%110786.5%0.0%
19 Thural19,2871.3%113585.3%0.0%
20 Harchakian13,8410.9%105284.9%0.0%
21 Multhan7,6120.5%94166.5%0.0%

Largest towns in Kangra (Census 2011)

Largest towns in Kangra (Census 2011)
  1. Dharmsala 30,764
  2. Yol Cantonment 12,028
  3. Nurpur 9,807
  4. Kangra 9,528
  5. Nagrota Bagwan 5,900
  6. Jawalamukhi 5,361
  7. Dera Gopipur 4,816
  8. Indora CT 4,534
  9. Palampur 3,543

How people in Kangra worked (Census 2011)

Cultivators

44.9%

Agricultural labourers

8.1%

Household industry

2.3%

Other work

44.7%

Share of all workers, main and marginal. Work participation: 44.7%.

Age structure of Kangra

Population in five-year age groups, Census 2011. Men on the left, women on the right. Census 2011 Census 2011, as published. How this is made →

Age structure of Kangra
MenWomen
  1. 80+
  2. 75-79
  3. 70-74
  4. 65-69
  5. 60-64
  6. 55-59
  7. 50-54
  8. 45-49
  9. 40-44
  10. 35-39
  11. 30-34
  12. 25-29
  13. 20-24
  14. 15-19
  15. 10-14
  16. 5-9
  17. 0-4
› Show the numbers as a table
AgeMenWomen
0-461,59854,279
5-966,90357,310
10-1473,18161,253
15-1972,21764,263
20-2463,16468,981
25-2956,59766,835
30-3455,35962,501
35-3953,55959,301
40-4446,19751,116
45-4944,16546,974
50-5437,18239,582
55-5932,27032,971
60-6428,69328,769
65-6920,26820,510
70-7415,78517,567
75-799,18010,279
80+11,78614,578
Children (0–14)
24.9%
Himachal Pradesh 25.9%
Working age (15–59)
63.3%
Himachal Pradesh 63.8%
Older people (60+)
11.8%
Himachal Pradesh 10.3%
Median age
29.4years
Himachal Pradesh 28.1
Dependency ratio
48.9
children and 65+ per 100 aged 15–64
Himachal Pradesh 48.8

Languages spoken in Kangra

Share of people by mother tongue, grouped into languages as the Census does. 57 languages recorded. Census 2011 Census 2011, as published. How this is made →

Languages spoken in Kangra
  1. Hindi 95.2%
  2. Punjabi 2.1%
  3. Tibetan 0.8%
  4. Dogri 0.7%
  5. Nepali 0.5%
  6. Marathi 0.1%
  7. Bengali 0.1%
  8. Others 0.1%
  9. All other languages 0.4%

Largest mother tongues

  1. Kangri70.9%
  2. Pahari14.9%
  3. Hindi5.6%
  4. Bharmauri/Gaddi2.6%
  5. Punjabi2.1%
  6. Tibetan0.8%
  7. Dogri0.7%
  8. Nepali0.5%

Housing and amenities in Kangra

Share of households, Houselisting Census 2011. Census 2011 Census 2011, as published. How this is made →

Basic services

  • Electricity for lighting 98.1%

    Himachal Pradesh 96.8%

  • Tap water 89.5%

    Himachal Pradesh 89.5%

  • Water source within premises 59.6%

    Himachal Pradesh 55.5%

  • Toilet within premises 65.5%

    Himachal Pradesh 69.1%

  • Open defecation (no latrine) (Lower is better for this one.) 33.8%

    Himachal Pradesh 29.7%

  • Bathing area within premises 68.3%

    Himachal Pradesh 74.8%

  • Closed drainage 15.5%

    Himachal Pradesh 24.9%

  • Cooking with LPG/PNG 44.1%

    Himachal Pradesh 38.6%

  • Cooking with wood, crop waste or dung (Lower is better for this one.) 54.4%

    Himachal Pradesh 58.7%

What households own

  • Mobile phone 73.2%

    Himachal Pradesh 74.9%

  • Television 81.0%

    Himachal Pradesh 74.4%

  • Scooter or motorcycle 20.6%

    Himachal Pradesh 15.5%

  • Computer or laptop 6.8%

    Himachal Pradesh 8.4%

  • Car, jeep or van 6.8%

    Himachal Pradesh 8.3%

  • Use banking services 93.9%

    Himachal Pradesh 89.1%

  • None of the listed assets (Lower is better for this one.) 7.6%

    Himachal Pradesh 8.9%

The home itself

  • Own their home 93.6%

    Himachal Pradesh 87.2%

  • Rent their home 5.0%

    Himachal Pradesh 10.3%

  • Permanent (pucca) house 58.8%

    Himachal Pradesh 76.9%

  • House in good condition 73.6%

    Himachal Pradesh 72.4%

  • Concrete roof 46.3%

    Himachal Pradesh 44.7%

  • Cement or tiled floor 56.4%

    Himachal Pradesh 58.0%

  • One room or less (Lower is better for this one.) 20.5%

    Himachal Pradesh 20.7%

Himachal Pradesh

What the numbers say

  • Kangra district held 22.0% of Himachal Pradesh's population in 2011, 1st of 12 districts.
  • Literacy is 85.7%, 2.9 points above the Himachal Pradesh average of 82.8%.
  • The sex ratio of 1012 females per 1,000 males is higher than the state's 972.
  • The child sex ratio was just 876 girls per 1,000 boys aged 0–6, among the more skewed in India (national: 918).
  • Our 2026 estimate, ≈16.65 lakh, implies growth of about 10% since 2011; it is tied to the official Himachal Pradesh projection.

Compare with

All districts of Himachal Pradesh →

Census 2027 status

Results pending

  1. Phase I: houselisting

    Done (16 June 2026 – 15 July 2026)

  2. Phase II: counting people

    Snow-bound areas: September 2026. Rest: February 2027

  3. Results

    Not yet released. In 2011, first figures came about a month after counting ended.

When the Registrar General publishes Census 2027 figures for Kangra, they will appear on this page, at this address. Census 2027 explained →

Population by religion in Kangra (Census 2011)

Official figures as published by the Office of the Registrar General. Shown without commentary. Census 2011 Census 2011, as published. How this is made →

Population by religion in Kangra (Census 2011)
ReligionPersonsShareHimachal Pradesh
Hindu 14,61,140 96.8% 95.2%
Muslim 19,797 1.3% 2.2%
Christian 3,023 0.2% 0.2%
Sikh 8,929 0.6% 1.2%
Buddhist 14,511 1.0% 1.1%
Jain 194 0.0% 0.0%
Other religions and persuasions 208 0.0% 0.0%
Religion not stated 2,273 0.2% 0.1%
Total15,10,075100%

Frequently asked questions

What is the population of Kangra district in 2026?
Our estimate for 1 March 2026 is ≈16,65,000 (16.65 lakh). It is not an official figure: it applies Kangra's 2001–2011 trend, damped, to the official Himachal Pradesh projection (method M1). Census 2011 counted 15,10,075.

What was the population of Kangra district in Census 2011?
15,10,075: 7,50,591 males and 7,59,484 females, of whom 86,281 lived in towns and 14,23,794 in villages.

What is the literacy rate and sex ratio of Kangra?
Literacy was 85.7% in 2011 (men 91.5%, women 80.0%). The sex ratio was 1012 females per 1,000 males, and 876 among children aged 0–6.

Which is the largest town in Kangra district?
Dharmsala, with 30,764 people in Census 2011.

How many villages and towns are in Kangra district?
On today's boundaries the district contains 3,869 Census 2011 villages and 9 towns.

⤓ Download Himachal Pradesh district data (CSV)

Sources and method

Data updated: · Report a correction