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Introduction: Adolescence is a stressful period due to physical, psychological, sexual changes, and presence of disorder such as depression is a matter of concern. Objectives: To study the prevalence of depression among adolescents in urban and rural areas and its socio-demographic correlates. Materials and methods: The PSU consisted all villages (n=29) and mohallas (n=23) in field-practice area. The required number of villages and mohallas, i.e., 10 each, were chosen using the basic random procedure, wherein each village and Mohalla has been assigned a unique serial number. Results: Overall, depression was observed in 110 participants (27.5%) with similar distribution in urban and rural areas. Low maternal and paternal education was a significant risk factor. Adolescents from the upper middle socioeconomic class (42.9%) and those from the lower middle socioeconomic class (33.3%) experienced the most depression. Burden was more among adolescents with low physical activity. Conclusion: This community based study of 400 adolescents residing in the urban and rural areas of Moradabad observed significant burden of depression in adolescent with poor maternal education, living in nuclear families, leading poor lifestyle and affected by any chronic illness at the time of the interview. Positive family history of mental illness was also an important risk factor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]