Tanakpur: My Journey to the tiny town.....Part 2

I thank everyone for appreciating my last blog describing my entry to Tanakpur on 14th April 2017.

Those who haven't read it yet, can find it at :

http://asgthedong.blogspot.com/2020/06/tanakpur-my-journey-to-tiny-townpart-1.html

Before continuing , I sincerely thank my wife Anisha Ray for helping me a lot to make 

this story into current presentable format:

It was 14th April 2017 and here we go...

Tanakpur Barrage

After having a late breakfast, I started to look for means to reach the bridge on the river -'Sarda' (also called 'Kali') which marks the border between India and Nepal along the entire eastern limits of the state of Uttarakhand. This is the same river that originates near Lipulekh and is the cause of border dispute between India and Nepal which has cropped up again in May-June 2020.

I found a teenager boy with his e-rickshaw who agreed to drop me to the bridge for Rs 80. Soon I was out of town and travelling parallel to the downstream flow of the river. I could see that it was not a bridge, but actually a barrage. Within 10 minutes I was standing on the entry of a 500 metres long barrage where no vehicles are allowed and people travelling to Nepal were supposed to cross it by walking.

As it was getting hotter, I quickly crossed the barrage and reached the other side. I realized that I was still not in Nepal and that the border was a zigzag

affair and that the limits of Indian territory still existed for 100 mt more (filled with dense trees) at the point where the barrage ended.

Interestingly, an upstream travel parallel to the river for 1 km would make us enter Nepal and reach the village of Brahmdev. However, the territory of India doesn’t stretch for those extra 100 mt beyond the riverbank at that point. Only God can understand these border markings done by the British.

This part of Nepal is actually a no man's land except for the village of Brahmdev on the foothills of 'Kala Pahaad'. The nearest town of Nepal, Mahendranagar (Bhimdatta) is about 12 km downstream and there is another bridge from Banbasa to Mahendranagar where vehicles are allowed to cross into Nepal.

Coming back to barrage, I discovered that all the Indians crossing to Nepal were headed to the village of Brahmdev to pay visit to the famous 'Siddha Baba Temple'.

There were some teenager boys with bikes who were driving people to the village as a pillion rider for Rs 20. I hitched a ride with a Nepali boy who was driving a bike

bearing an Indian number plate and got off at Brahmdev in less than 5 minutes travelling through a rocky dirt road. Just at the entry of the village, I spotted a small pillar marking the border between India and Nepal. The village had only 2 rows of small shops and restaurants on both sides of a concrete road. Needless to say, that the existence these villagers was solely dependent on the devotees/tourists visiting the 'Siddha Baba Temple’.

I spent about 20 minutes in the temple which I found very peaceful and nicely maintained. The 'Siddha Baba' was a staunch devotee of Lord Shiva and the temple is dedicated to him, though Lord Shiva is also worshiped there. On exiting the temple and approaching the main road, I was very surprised and the source of this surprise being a shop selling chilled beer and soft drinks, only 30 mt away from the temple gate. Such a bravado is impossible near any Hindu temple in India. As I sipped a chilled can of beer in the hot afternoon, the owner told me that none of the guys from Nepal had ever objected to this beer shop near the temple, mostly it is the Indians who express their surprise on seeing the shop before helping themselves with some beer.

Siddha Baba Temple

On finishing my lunch at a small restaurant after having a can of 'Nepali' beer, the restaurant owner introduced me to another guy who asked me if I was interested in clubbing and gambling at a casino. He made me realize that the town of Mahendranagar (Bhimdatta) was actually a gambling den and a party spot for Indian guys. He turned out to be an agent whose duty was to get customers for casino/pub. He was ready to take me there on his bike without charging anything. I showed my empty wallet and politely refused all his offers and headed back to India as a pillion on bike of another Nepali boy.

Brahmdev, Nepal

Thanks to the chilled beer and lunch, I was walking leisurely, though it was past 1:00 pm and very hot. Owing to the leisurely pace, I could observe the huge difference in the water level of the river on both sides of the barrage and a thought struck my mind as a lightening. What a fool was I to overlook the fact that my father had come to Tanakpur to collect invoices for steel structures used for construction of a dam.

Now I was absolutely sure that I was walking on the same structure.99% people in India (or elsewhere) actually cannot distinguish between a 'dam' and a 'barrage' and my father was no exception. My doubts were cleared when I read the specifications of the barrage written on a pillar. It was written that the 'Tanakpur barrage ‘owned by National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) and was commissioned in March-1992. I felt like achieving something great in life just by crossing that barrage twice that day. I was very happy on locating the barrage and decided to avoid the afternoon heat and wait till the sun lost some of its anger before I visit the next point in

my itinerary - The Tanakpur Railway Station.

It was past 6:00 pm when I got out of the hotel. It was almost time for sunset, when I started walking along the new tracks from the bus stop to reach the Railway Station. Each step taken by me increased my heartbeats as I was walking to a place which I was so attached to for last 25 years without actually being there even once.

Tanakpur Station (Under Demolition)

My excitement reached a crescendo when I was standing in front of a railway platform whose shed roofs were already torn down. Only naked metal truss structures with 'Tanakpur' painted on them were standing and waiting for their turn meet the same fate.

Old Shed

New Tracks

The Professor was right. They were demolishing the whole Railway Station which had hosted the 'Meter Gauge' route for decades and didn’t fit in the development plans for upcoming 'Broad Gauge' tracks.

Standing on 'Platform 1' under fading sunlight, trying to trace anyone to talk, I realized that the 'Platform 2&3' was already gone and there was a new concrete bed being laid for new platform instead. After spending more than 10 minutes, it sadly dawned on me that there was not a single soul at the defunct Railway Station and that whatever I was seeing there that day would also get demolished in next 2-3 weeks.

My father had come and visited the 'Goods Office' at Tanakpur in 1992. As per standard design of smaller Railway Stations, a 'Goods Office' was supposed to be either at one end of 'Platform 1' or just beyond 'Platform 2&3' parallel to it. With my knowledge of Indian Railway, it took no time for me to guess that the 'Goods Office' at Tanakpur must have been beyond 'Platform 2&3' before getting demolished.

Instead of getting out to the city side, I crossed the 4-5 tracks to the other side. It was the place where my joy knew no bounds when I discovered myself standing in front of a row some old Railway Quarters.

These Quarters were certainly standing there even in 1992. Suddenly, a serious question struck my mind. 'Which was the Quarter allotted to Mr Harishankar Jaiswal?'. Mr Jaiswal was in charge of the 'Goods Office' at Tanakpur in 1992 and he was the person who spent time at office till 9:00 pm on 20th October 1992 to ensure that my father got his work done on the same day and could start his return journey on the next day. He even took my father to his Railway Quarter for dinner as there were no restaurants/canteen in Tanakpur at that time.

On trying to locate the name plates on each Railway Quarter, I realized that all of them were empty and abandoned. Tanakpur was going to get a new set of Railway Quarters along with a brand new Railway Station. Or maybe there was a plan to just do away with the concept of Railway Quarters as they have been doing in bigger cities.

With disappointment reigning heavy in my mind, I continued exploring and on reaching the last building in the row, found a new ray of hope.I was standing in front of the 'Railway Guest House’. There was no doubt that this was the same place where my father had spent a night in 1992. I thanked my lucky stars that it was not abandoned till the day of my visit. Some boys who were part of the demolition team were staying there in 2017.

Rly Guest House

Rly Guest House

Demolition Team

On seeing a big camera with me, they requested for a picture to which I happily obliged. They told me that the Quarter and Guest House were to be demolished in 2018 after the resumption of train services.

After taking some more pictures, I started walking back to the hotel along the tracks. Each footstep made me feel more like a defeated person.I was physically there, but still not there. I visited the Railway Station but could only see it getting it demolished. I could locate the 'Guest House', but the 'Goods Office was gone. I could not find a single person to talk to about Tanakpur Railway Station of 1992.Maybe, I should had visited Tanakpur a year ago. It was almost dark and walking back felt like leaving a part of myself demolished there along with the Railway Station. 

In spite of this irony, my Bollywood-infested mind didn’t forget to draw a parallel. My mind made me feel like walking back dejected and defeated like 'Kamal Hassan' at the final scene of the movie 'Sadma' though there was no 'Sridevi' at Tanakpur.

The next 2 hours were even more disappointing as I met at least 30-40 people on the streets and shops. None of them were present in Tanakpur in 1992.

According to 2011 census, the population of Tanakpur was about 17,000. It must have been just 3000 or 4000 in 1992 and none of those people were traceable to me in 2017.

That night I decided to give another chance to myself. I didn’t want to go back to New Delhi as a defeated person.I cancelled my proposed trip to 'Purnagiri Temple ‘the next day and decided to visit the Railway Station again.

It was 8:00 am on 15th April 2017 and I took the road to the main gate of the Railway Station instead of the tracks. I reached there in about 20-25 minutes and was happy to see the Railway Reservation Office. Soon I met 4-5 Railway Employees while I was clicking pictures of the main gate. After clarifying that I was not from any media group, I told them the purpose of my visit and my connection to Tanakpur. They made me realize that 25 years was a very long period as most of the Railway Employees there served for maximum 4-5 years before getting transferred.

Also, no employee stayed there after retirement. Some retired employees were living at Khatima, but they were not sure about Mr Jaiswal as they had never heard of him.

After chatting for about 30 minutes, I thanked them and walked back to the hotel after clicking pictures of the Guest House and other Quarters.

Defunct Time Table

City Side Gate

Rly Guest House

I again walked back along the tracks instead of the road taken in the morning. On passing by each of each older building/structure being in various stages of demolition, all my disappointment got vanished when a positive thought came to my mind.

It was a pleasant morning which made me realize the brighter part of the story. Soon Tanakpur was going to get a Broad Gauge track and a 'Shatabdi Express' to New Delhi. Soon there might be trains for Mumbai,Kolkata and Bangalore too. An obscure tiny town was ready to enter the mainstream on India's map and I was witnessing this transformation. Lord Shiva had decided to 'Destroy' the old Tanakpur to help it 'Transform' and welcome the   new era. 

Abandoned Rly Quarters

Though I had tear in my eyes walking back, this time my Bollywood-infested mind made me felt like 'Salman Khan' at the final scene of the movie 'Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’. Again, there was no 'Kajol' or 'SRK' there.

Fast forward to February 2018.I was again busy in my routine professional and personal life, shuttling between New Delhi(work) and Mumbai(family), with occasional flights to Raipur(hometown) when I received a call from an unknown landline number.

It was the hotel manager from Tanakpur who had called me to inform that the Broad Gauge track was completed and Tanakpur was to get its train to Delhi in a week. I asked him about how and why he remembered me and called me to give this news. He said that he had seen many tourists visiting Tanakpur for different reasons, but it was only me who visited that place just because of my love for Tanakpur.

He invited me to visit there by train and with my family next time which I accepted. Maybe, I will take this journey soon.

Also, there were 5 interesting people whom I met in those 2 days and would love to meet again apart from seeing the new Railway Station.

I will describe those 5 people some other day.

I was able to locate Mr Harishankar Jaiswal, who lives in Gorakhpur now, on Facebook in 2019. Though he hasn’t replied to any of my messages yet, one of his relatives (also found on Facebook) confirmed that he was the same person who was posted in Tanakpur in 1992. I am still waiting for his reply.

As on today, things at Tanakpur have started growing exponentially after the new Broad Gauge Railway Track. Although the movie 'Miss Tanakpur Haazir Ho' has no real connection to the place, there are numerous pictures/videos and online groups on social media which highlight the transformation and current vibrancy of the town. We can find many interesting things online today, but no search on Google tells us 'How was Tanakpur like in 1990s?’.

It seems no one has yet preserved or published anything about Tanakpur as it existed in that period of time.

Owing to my research, I can proudly proclaim that the 3 pages of my father’s diary are probably the only documented source that preserves the tiny town of Tanakpur as it was in October 1992.