Travel-India

Dalhousie

Set up by British in 1854 and named after the then British Viceroy, Lord Dalhousie, Dalhousie is a hill-station of its own kind. It differs from hill-stations like Shimla and Mussoorie because of its secluded charm.

A trip to Dalhousie takes you away from the hum-drum of a city and is ideal for a quiet vacation which helps you relax and rejuvenate, lets you breathe clean salubrious air and tempts you to go for leisurely long walks where you can catch glimpses of snowcapped Dhauladhars and meandering Ravi, Beas and Chenab rivers.

Spread over five hills, Kathlug, Tehra or Moti Tibba, Bakrota, Poteryn and Bhangora or Bahun, acquired by British from the ruler of Chamba state for developing the area as a sanatorium, Dalhousie has preserved its old world charm in the form of prominent colonial architecture and some beautiful old churches built during British Raj.

What were once country houses have now been converted into nice, luxurious hotels. Dalhousie once boasted of a big beer brewery which is now sadly in ruins. The British also left their imprints in the form of a cemetery spread over nine terraces.

Dalhousie is best explored on foot. And though Dalhousie is widespread, most visitors limit their Dalhousie visit to Gandhi Chowk and Subhash Chowk and a day trip to Khajjiar or a brief visit to Punjpullah. But there is more to Dalhousie than that!

Dalhousie has three beautiful malls, Poteryn Road, Bakrota and Moti Tibba. While Poteryn and Moti Tibba hills form the heart of Dalhousie and are hub of all commercial activities, Bakrota, balun and Kathlug are little far away and thus mostly uncorrupted. However, each has something or the other to offer to tourists and is worth exploring.

Dalhousie has five old but functional churches, two of which, St. Andrews Church and St. Patrick’s Church, are situated in Balun.

Lower Bakrota Hill, merely 3 km from Gandhi Chowk, is home to Tibetans who were offered this place as an asylum by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru when they were seeking refuge after fleeing from their homeland Tibet after Chinese invasion. The hill houses a school, a prayer hall and a Tibetan handicrafts centre and gives one a glimpse of Tibetan culture.

There is also a reservoir called Ahla Water Reservoir on Bakrota hill which serves as a nice picnic spot. Close by, is a small café which sells tea and snacks to add to fun.

Where Dalhousie is said to have been the inspiration behind Rabindranath Tagore’s Shantiniketan in Bengal, this quaint hill-station is believed to have provided spiritual solace to Subhash Chandra Bose who stayed here for months to meditate in its quiet and serene environment.