Vinod Bhardwaj

History. Heritage. Himachal.

Reflections & Articles

Where Maharishi Meditated and Presidents Bathed: The Lost Glory of Tattapani

Cultural Heritage & Legacy, Himachal Pradesh: Land & People

A lone crusader revives what the state forgot

Sunni, about 50 km from Shimla, was once the capital of Bhajji State and is an emerging town situated on the left bank of the Sutlej. Bhajji State was established in the 10th century by Uday Pal, the younger son of Raja Jas Pal of Kutlehr, who left his ancestral domain to found a new principality in the Shimla Hill region. The founding rulers traced their lineage to the Kaundinga Rajputs, a branch of the Pal dynasty with roots in the Kangra area, and held the title of Rana. The state was also under the control of Gurkhas and in 1815, after the Anglo-Gurkha War, it came under the control of the East India Company.

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Slaves of the Big Cities: A River and a Woman Named Yamuna

Biographies & Life Stories

Exposing the unwritten constitution that governs India’s poor

When I opened my eyes, I beheld mountains, forests, rivers, and the blue sky. I watched the Ganga, Yamuna, Satluj, and Ravi race from the mountains to the plains. Amid nature’s quiet, I have stood at the threshold of childhood, youth, and now old age. Clouds rise from the sea, bring snow and rain to the mountains, and then the water journeys back to meet the ocean again.

A mountain’s beauty lies in this: the landscape changes with every turn. The plains, by contrast, are straight and flat. The mountains are the nation’s sentinels; the plains, its breadbasket. Two generations ago, we too were tied to the plains. With the turn of time, by the mid-last century, we too moved into nature’s lap.

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How Raja Padam Singh Helped an American Missionary Embrace Hindu Dharma

Biographies & Life Stories, Himachal Pradesh: Land & People, Rural Life & Horticultural Heritage

He Came as Samuel, Lived as Satyanand, and Left Himachal Prosperous

On 14 May, we all salute a great soul who, with his dedication and determination, transformed the hills from poverty to prosperity. On this day in 1945, he took his last breath at Ripon Hospital, Shimla – now DDU Regional Hospital.

Today, the beautiful bungalows and other modern amenities nestled among the apple gardens in the hills stand as a testimony to his vision and wisdom.

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Sanjauli Cemetery in Shambles

Cultural Heritage & Legacy, Shimla: Then & Now

People proudly say, “I live in Cemetery.”

The Sanjauli Cemetery in Shimla – once part of the princely estate of Koti and leased to the Imperial British Government in 1920 – is now neglected and in a pathetic state. The decay reflects poorly on local authorities, the Church and the Tourism Department. Until the 1990s the area had only two or three dwellings, and residents feared venturing there after sunset. Over the past four decades, people bought land around the cemetery, and a new locality spread from the cemetery to Sanjauli Tunnel and below the Dhalli–Shoghi bypass toward Bhattakuffer. Today, match-box buildings crowd the hill, and locals casually call the neighbourhood “Cemetery” – “I live in Cemetery” (भाई जी मैं cemetery, में रहता हूँ, मेरे घर आना). That area, adjoining suburban Sanjauli, is now larger than central Shimla.

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MEDICAL COLLEGE AT VICEREGAL LODGE IN SIMLA – A DR. PARMAR STORY

Biographies & Life Stories, Cultural Heritage & Legacy, Himachal Pradesh: Land & People, Memories, Essays & Reflections, Shimla: Then & Now

Prof. S. Radhakrishnan the then President of India ( 1962-1967) inaugurated Indian Institute of Advanced Study (IIAS)on October 20,1965 at Simla (later Shimla). In his inaugural address, Dr. Radhakrishnan emphasised the importance of questioning established truths and not being prisoners of the status quo.

The Viceregal Lodge , built between 1880 and 1888 for Lord Duffrin served as summer residence of the British Viceroy from 1888 to 1947. After Independence Government of India inherited two very different viceregal homes in Simla Hills Viceregal Lodge ie Rashtrapati Niwas at Observatory Hill and the Retreat at Mashobra. Before 1888 Peterhoff was the residence of Viceroy. The Viceroy Lodge came to be associated with many an important events which changed the history and geography of the sub-continent. As early as 1900, the Punjab Alienation of Land Act was passed in the Governor General’s Council in the Viceregal Lodge.

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CHABA POWER HOUSE

Cultural Heritage & Legacy, Himachal Pradesh: Land & People, Memories, Essays & Reflections

A HERITAGE BURIED UNDER SAND

In the Imperial period the Europeans living in Simla ( later Shimla)and visitors coming from abroad preferred to explore the countryside. They surveyed the entire Western Himalayas, documented the history ,culture and heritage which became the base line information for future research projects. The beautiful places nearer to Simla are their favourite camping sites. During summers they preferred to visit via Naldera to Suni on to the banks of Sutlej, where the traveller can see the head-works of the electric supply station at Chaba, float down the Sutlej on ‘musacks’ or inflated buffalo skins, and bathe, in the wonderful sulphur springs on the river bank at Tattapani an ancient religious place.

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