Pithoragarh (Kumaoni: Pithor'garh) is a Himalayan town with a Municipal Board in Pithoragarh district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the fourth largest town of Kumaon and the largest in Kumaon hills. It is an education hub of the hilly region as the town has Laxman Singh Mahar Govt.P.G.College, Seemant Institute of Technology, now known as Nanhi Pari Seemant Engineering Institute and a nursing college. Etymology "The district is named after its headquarters town, Pithoragarh. Tradition has it that during the reign of the Chand Rajas of Kumaon, one Piru, also called Prithvi Gosain, built a fort here and named it Prithvigarh which, in the course of time, got changed to Pithoragarh." History Pithoragarh city and its surrounding areas were part of the Manaskhand region, which extended from the Kailash Mountain in the north to Bhabar & Terai in the south, as mentioned in the Skanda Purana. The Asuras and Nagas appear to be the earliest inhabitants of the region, who were later superseded by the Kiratas, Khasas and the Kunindas. The Kuninda Kings of the region may have become the feudatories of The Kushana Kings, who held their sway over the region in the last quarter of the 1st century AD. The region subsequently came under the Kurmanchal kingdom, which had its capital first at Jyotirmath and then at Karikeyapura (Modern day Baijnath) in the Katyur Valley. Upon the disintegration of the Katyuris and fall of kingdom in 13th century, Pithoragarh came under the rule of Bam kings of Saur. The Bam kings were feudal to the Raikas of Doti and was a branch of katyuri kings, and had their capital at Udaipur near Pithoragarh, However, the Rajas used to come down to Rameshwar and Bailorkol during the winter months. The Bam kings, who ruled over Saur were: Karakil Bam Kakil Bam Chanari Bam Arki Bam Jnani Bam Shakti Bam Vijai Bam Hari Bam In the fifteenth century, King Bharti Chand of Champawat amassed a huge army, and started plundering and killing in the regions ruled by the Doti Kings. This resulted in a war, which lasted for 12 years, and ended with a victory for the Chands. After the death of Bharti Chand in 1462, Nagmalla, the king of Doti attacked his son, Ratna Chand who was successful in defending himself. Nagmalla was killed in the war and the Bams became feudatories of the Chands. The