The present Kaushambi district was carved out of Prayagraj district on 4^th April 1997. The District Headquarter, Manjhanpur is situated in the south-west of the Prayagraj on the north bank of the Yamuna River, about 55 km away from Prayagraj.

It is surrounded by Chitrakoot , Pratapgarh , Prayagraj & Fatehpur districts.

Kaushambi has a very glorious past. In Ancient India, Kaushambi was the capital of Chedi-Vatsa janapada, one of the prominent janapadas into which the Indo-Aryan people were divided. As some of these janapadas figure prominently in the Brahmanas and Upanishads, it is not unlikely that the antiquity of Kaushambi goes back to the period of the Brahamanas. The Satapatha Brahamana mentions a person called Proti Kaushambeya, a native of Kaushambi. This hoary antiquity of the city is confirmed by the Mahabharata and the Ramayana, the former ascribing its foundation to Kusamba, the 3rdson of the Chedi King Uparica Vasu and the later to Kusamba, the son of Kusa.

According to the Paramatthajyotika, the commentary on the Suttanipata, Kaushambi was the hermitage of the sage Kosamba, after whom it came to be known by that name. Buddhaghosa records that Kausambi was so named because in course of founding the city, a large number of Kusamba trees were uprooted. Buddhaghosa seems to echo a tradition also known to the Jainas, though in a slightly different version. According to the Jain Vividha-Tirthe-Kalpa, Kaushambi was so called because it abounded in Kusamba trees.

According to the Puranas, Nicaksu, the 6thin line from Pariksita, transferred his capital from Hastinapur to Kaushambi, as Hastinapur was ravaged by flood, invasion of locusts and upheavals in the Kuru family itself.

District Kaushambi is surrounded by Prayagraj, Pratapgarh, Chitrakoot and Fatehpur districts. The total geographical area of the district is 2012.8 sq. km.

Administrative Divisions

The district is divided into 3 Tehsils named as Manjhanpur, Sirathu & Chayal. Tehsils are divided into Development Blocks. Sarsawa, Manjhanpur & Kaushambi are the development blocks. In the Manjhanpur tehsil, Kada & Sirathu are the development blocks. In the Sirathu Tehsil, Chayal, Mooratganj, Newada are the development blocks in the Chayal Tehsil.

Rivers

The Ganges & the Yamuna are the main rivers of the district. The plain area of the district is situated in between Ganges & Yamuna, so these rivers play a very pivotal role in the agriculture of the district.

Temperature & Rain

The atmosphere of the district is Sheetoshana i.e.in the summer season the weather is too hot and in the winter the weather is very cold. But in the rainy season the weather is good and pleasant.

Crops

The Kaushambi is mainly an agricultural district wherein main crops are wheat and rice. Some area is cultivated under pulses also like Arhar, Urad and Chana. The famous Prayagraj variety of Guava is actually the speciality of Kaushambi. The principal sources of irrigation are canals and tubewells.

District Kaushambi is rich in historical places. History of all times demystifies the importance of the district. Kara, Prabhasgiri and Kaushambi are the main historical centers. The district is full of temples in which Sheetla Temple of Kara Dham and the Jain temple of Prabhosa are the main attraction.

The historical and religious importance of Kara is very old. This place is situated in the north-west of Prayagraj about 69 km away. There are so many temples in Kara, in which Sheetla Mata Temple, Chhatrapal Bhairav Temple, Hanuman Temple and Kaleshwar Mahadev Temple are famous.

The temple of Maa Sheetla is situated on the bank of river Ganges. It is known as the major Shaktipeeth from all the 51 Shaktipeeths of Goddess. In the idol, Sheetla Devi is sitting on Gardabh. Followers of all the religions worship in this temple. It is said that by the worship of Goddess Sheetla on the Ashtami of Krishna paksha of the month of chaitra they get rid of evil powers.

This place has been a religious pilgrimage since least at 1000 AD. Kara was also an important township in the kingdom of medieval kings of the northern India, and even today one can see the remains of the Fort of King Jaichand, the last hindu king of Kannauj.

Kara is also the birth-place of the famous saint Malookdas (1631-1739 AD). The Aashram and Samadhi of saint is there. He was also a follower of Goddess Kara. The famous Sikh Guru Teg Bahadur had come to Kara to discourse on various topics with Saint Malookdas.

Prabhasgiri or Prabhosa is famous as a religious historical place on the bank of Yamuna River at the Manjhanpur Tehsil about 50km away in the north of Prayagraj.

It is also said that Shri Krishna died at this place by the arrow of Jarat Kumar in the suspicion of deer.

In the earlier days,there was a grand Jain temple on a very big hill. After the demolition of this another Jain temple was constructed in 1824 AD. A cave which is 9 feet long and 7 feet wide is also there. In this cave the records are found in the Brahmi Lipi of second century before Gupta dynasty. Till now this place is the center of faith of all the followers of Jainism. This was the place where the 6th Teerthankar of Jain Bhagwan Padma Prabhu lived most of his life.

Sir Leonard Woolley in his famous report had suggested Kaushambi as one of the two important sites in the Ganga valley, the excavation of which, according to him, would unravel the early history of the Indian people. It was a memorable event in the History of Indian Archaeology when 1st of March, 1948, Sir Mortimer, authorised the University of Prayagraj to excavate Kaushambi with G.R.Sharma as Director.

The excavations have been conducted in the following areas: near the Ashokan pillar which laid bare a part of the residential area of the city; the Ghositarama monestry, the defences near the Eastern Gateway and the tower at the north-eastern corner, the Stone Fortress Palace.

This temple is situated on the bank of a pond about 10 km away in the west of Manjhanpur in the village of Gambheerapurab . According to the local tradition, Kamasin Devi fulfils all the desires of her followers. Local people have a great faith on the devine powers of this temple.

This place is situated about 30km away from Prayagraj on the Prayagraj-Kanpur road. This place resides in the Chayal Tehsil area. A huge temple of Lord Shri Ram is situated at this place. This temple was constructed around 20 years ago.

There are numerous places of interest around Kaushambi like Prayagraj, Kanpur, Varanasi, Chitrakoot and Vindhyachal.