Chakrata is a cantonment town that lies between the Tons and Yamuna rivers, at an elevation of 2118 m, 98 km from the state’s winter capital, Dehradun. Chakrata was originally a cantonment of the British Indian Army. To the west lies Himachal Pradesh, and to the east are Mussoorie (73 km) and Tehri Garhwal.

The area is known as Jaunsar-Bawar which has a marked presence in few surrounding villages.On the way to chakrata, visit to Kalsi town boasts the famous Archaeological Survey of India protected site, the rock edict of the Mauryan king Ashoka 2nd century BC, first discovered by John Forest, in 1860.

A cantonment of British Indian Army, was established in 1866 by Colonel Hume of the 55th Regiment, British Indian Army, the troops and officers first occupied the cantonment in April 1869.

Chakrata is an access-restricted military cantonment, and foreigners face severe restrictions in visiting. Notably, it is the permanent garrison of the secretive and elite Special Frontier Force, also known as 'Establishment 22' (called "Two-Two"), the only ethnic Tibetan unit of the Indian Army, which was raised after the Sino-India War of 1962.