Dark molecular clouds are sites of star formation. Accurate information <br />
about the properties of these clouds is required to understand the <br />
star formation process by testing various models. But estimation of <br />
properties like masses, densities, etc., of these clouds requires <br />
accurate determination of their distances. Distances are also needed <br />
for obtaining luminosities of any embedded young stellar objects or <br />
protostars. Establishing distances to dark clouds is difficult <br />
especially when primary indicators like ionizing star or reflection <br />
nebulae are absent. In my talk I will discuss a method to determine <br />
distance to dark clouds using only broad band optical and 2MASS photometry.