Shimla Tibetan Settlement is a cluster and handicraft-based settlement in India. Many Tibetan refugees started settling around Shimla in the 1960s. Subsequently, numerous families from Sataun and Kamrao in Himachal Pradesh migrated to Shimla, and a few families from Mundgod and Mainpat also returned after 1970.  

In 1965, the Bodmi gChigdril Tsokpa (བོད་མི་ཆིགབསྒྲིལ་ཚོགས་པ།) established Tibetan Refugee Self Helf Handicraft Society (TRSHS) at Summer Hill for resiling livelihoods and Tibetan traditional handicraft skills with the help of Private Office of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.  The Society purchased the present 48/06 Bigha of land at Lower Panthaghati in 1973 and shifted from Summer Hill in 1975.  

The Central Tibetan Shimla Administration (CTA)attempted to procure land for rehabilitation from 1970 onward, but could not materialize.  In 1981, the TRSHS was offered to the Department of Home, CTA by its members including its entire management. With the synergizing of the Department of Home, CTA, Government of India (GOI)and foreign donor organizations, four buildings were distributed among the bonafide scattered Tibetan refugee families at Panthaghati in 1986. The CTA again made another rehabilitation housing project for 45 families with the help of financial support from some donor agencies and the GOI in 1999 and completed it in 2006.  

Settlement Location: 

It is located at Lower Panthaghati, Kasumpti, Shimla, the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh, at about 9 km and 6 Km from the new bus stand and Shimla city respectively. It lies on a flat plain at the height of 7261ft., above sea level. Average temperatures range between -26°F to 90°F Fahrenheit, and average rainfall is around 55.7 inches annually. 

This Settlement traditionally consists of 9 villages or camps, among which Soda, Soshi and Kharapathar are located on the same plot of land at Panthaghati, and others are scattered at different locations including 13 families in Solan on rented houses with a distance of over 45 Km from the chief Representative Office, Shimla and others are confined within the radius of Shimla city. 

Settler’s Livelihood: 

Most of the families go out of the station during winter times for the Winter Sweater Business as it is the main source of Tibetan Refugees’ livelihood in India. In summer, some families sell readymade garments near Shimla city and Kasauli in Solan in rented shops, a few families carry the garments on their backs and move to different locations to sell them, some families run small restaurants and a few families even give momo supply to small street food vendors. 

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Handicraft Society	Bodmi gChigdril Tsokpa (བོད་མི་ཆིགབསྒྲིལ་ཚོགས་པ།) formally established the Tibetan Refugee Self Help Handicraft Society in 1964 at Summer Hill, registered at the State Registry Office in 1973, and shifted to Kasumpti in 1975. The main purpose of the handicraft society was to facilitate livelihood as most Tibetan refugees then lived on laborious road construction sites in Himachal Pradesh. It further aimed to preserve the unique Tibetan culture, customs, traditional carpet waving, carpentry, and so forth. The handicraft society now runs carpet weaving, manufactures Tibetan prayer flags, and sells readymade garments like incense, wall hanging, and bed sheets only.
School & Education	The Sambhota Tibetan School, Shimla handed over by the Central Tibetan Schools Administration (CTSA) in 2021 was one of the CTSA’s schools established in 1962 as per the vision of His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s request to then Indian Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, focusing on both modern and traditional Tibetan education. It started with 155 students at the beginning and increased to 518 in 2007-2008 excluding 45 students in three Pre-primary schools. Currently, the school has grade one to +2 level and two branch pre-primary schools at Panthaghati and Rangzen camp, Sanjauli.
Health & Hospital	One modern allopathic dispensary under the Department of Health, CTA & one traditional Tibetan medical clinic, branch of Mentsee-khang.
Monastery	The settlement has 2 monasteries:1. Thupten Dorje Drak Ewam Chogar 2. Jonang Takten Phuntsok Choeling Monastery.

Representative: 

The Chief Representative Office (CRO), Shimla is the executive body of the three pillars of Tibetan democracy at the local level, replicating the functioning of the CTA, Dharamsala. The official title was changed from Tibetan Settlement Office to Chief Representative Office from 25th December 2017 onward due to its prime role and responsibility of liaising with the State Government, representing not only CTA but also Tibetan Settlement Offices in Himachal Pradesh. The office is headed by a Chief Representative Officer (CRO) along with four staff and a nurse appointed by the CTA to look after the welfare of the people falling under the direct jurisdiction of the office. The office works with the Local Tibetan Assembly (LTA) meeting two sessions annually, Regional Tibetan Freedom Movement (BRDL) on Tibetan Green Books, camp leaders, schools and other regional NGOs like Tibetan Women’s Association, Tibetan Youth Congress, Parents Teacher Association so forth.  

Group Leaders: 

As the settlement consists of nine camps, each camp is required to appoint a camp leader, either through rotation or voting as per their convenience, to liaison with the office. The office disseminates every official notification/announcement through camp leaders and they do reach out to every family in their respective camps. They also apprise community developmental projects and individual or community grievances to the office to address. The information moves from top to bottom and the project bottom to top process in the cycle  

Traveling Mode 

Nearest Railway station	Kalka 85 Km, Toy Train station 4km from settlement office
Nearest Airport	Shimla Airport at a distance of 22 Kms from settlement office