Sanctified Chandi Devi temple, Haridwar, Uttrakhand-one of thee Siddh peeths!!

Chandi Devi temple, Uttrakhand, haridwar.nic.in

Situated atop the Neel Parvat on the Eastern summit of the Sivalik Hills, the southernmost mountain chain of the Himalayas is the . Chandi Devi (also known as Chandika) Temple. It is in the holy city of Haridwar in Uttrakhand. Built in 1929 by Suchat Singh in his reign as the King of Kashmir,  the presiding goddess  Chandi Devi was installed in the 8th century by the great seer Adi Shankaracharya of Kalady (Kerala).  Neel Parvat Teerth is one of the Panch Tirth (Five Pilgrimages) located within Haridwar. The Temple is  at a distance of 4 kilometres (2.5 mi) from Har ki Pauri. The temple can be accessed by  either on foot  from Chandighat, a 3 km route or by climbing through stone  steps.  Recently a  rope-way (cable car) service was introduced by the temple authority. The rope-way picks up  the pilgrims from the lower station  near Gauri Shankar Temple on the Nazibabad Road directly to the Chandi Devi Temple (altitude of 2,900 metres or 9,500 ft). The total length of the rope way route is about 740 metres (2,430 ft) and height is 208 metres (682 ft).  The advantage  of rope way is you can have a panoramic view of the Ganges river, Haridwar and the surrounding wooded areas. Leather items, non vegetarian food and alcoholic drinks are not allowed on the temple premises.

Chandi Devi temple, Uttrakhand, haridwar.nic.in

Chandi Devi Temple is quite popular because it is a  Siddh Peetha,  one of three such Peethas located in Haridwar, the other two being Mansa Devi Temple and Maya Devi Temple. Hence, the deity is highly revered by the ardent devotees who come from far off places. 

Chandi Devi temple, Uttrakhand, en.wikipedia.org

The  mythological origin of Chandika is  an interesting one:  Long l ago the demon kings Shumbha and Nishumbha, backed by their enormous mystical powers and boons from the gods,  abused their bestowed power and caused atrocities to the people on earth as well as to those in the upper world. Lord Indra became powerless before them.  As their cruelty became unbearable, the celestial and others prayed to Goddess Parvati.  Being  Shakti, she could not brook the evil-minded demons, so  Parvati took the guise of a bewitching woman and the demons wanted to marry her.  They sent  demon chiefs Chanda and Munda  to kill the woman when she refused to marry the demon king. Goddess Parvati  now took the form of  goddess Chamunda emerging out of Chandika's anger and killed them. When  Shumbha and Nishumbha then fought  with her fiercely  in tandem to kill her,  Chandika became more ferocious and killed both the evils. In an agitated state goddess  Chandika is said to have rested for a short while at the top of Neel Parvat and later a temple in her honor  was built.  The two  mountain peaks located in the mountain range are called Shumbha and Nishumbha. 

Chandi temple, Rope way, Uttrakhand,. en.wikipedia.com 

Devotees in thousands come to the temple on the festival days such as  Chandi Chaudas and Navaratra and the Kumbha Mela in Haridwar, There  are  small temples near by. The temple is being run by the main priest - Mahant and the temple is open between 6 am to 8 pm and the first Aarti will be at 5.30 am. 

Chandi Devi temple, Hardwar, Uttrakhand. bugyalvalley.com

Mangal Chandika, Ujjaani, Mahalaxmi Temple, Mumbai, Vaishno Devi Temple, Katra, Jammu and Kashmir,  Katak Chandi Temple, Cuttack Chandi temple, Orissa, Mangal Chandi Temple, Chanditala, West Bengal, etc are some of the famous Chandi shrines across India. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chandi_Devi_Temple,_Haridwar

https://haridwar.nic.in/tourist-place/chandi-devi-temple/
https://www.tourmyindia.com/states/uttarakhand/chandi-devi-temple-haridwar.html