I had last gone to Mussoorie 11 years ago, same time, mid-June. When
I came back to Delhi, I uploaded the pictures on the more accomplished Orkut,
since Facebook at that time was still a teenager, trying to fit in, searching for
its identity.
I
remember that in one of the pictures, only my hand was visible,
raised in the air, which was clicked on the Lal-Tibba track situated
at nearly 7500 feets among the Landour cantt, as the cloud, full of
mist, rushed in to engulf everything under their weightless, cold
cover. I had to wear a light woolen jacket, such was the chill in
the air.
The rows of trees, surrounding Lal Tibba trek, the legendary
Char Dukaan and the small Church near the language school that lies at the entry of the ITM
lab, were huge in number, and they were so dense that it was nearly impossible to see beyond
a few rows as to what lies behind those tree line.
This
time, when I decided to go there again, I expected something similar.
11
years later, Mussoorie has undergone a massive change, a change that
has been brought by us, an undesirable change.
The
temperature this time did not go below 24 degree. The place that I
stayed, was 100 meters away from Mussoorie lake, and despite being at
a relatively less crowded place, at the foot of small hills, we had to switch on the AC whenever
we were inside the room.
The
three hills across our resting place, had lost majority of their
green forest cover, turned brown with small cemented houses dotted
across them. What should have been green, was now brown.
Locals told me that till 7-8 years ago, they would see Guldaar (leopard) in
and around the campus. Now it it has just become a part of myth, an
ancient folklore.
 |
| 2019, after. |
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| 2008, before. |
The
situation at Kanatal and Dhanaulti was no different, the place, which
were truly ‘hill station’ till very recently, have been robbed off their ability to
keep things cool.
The
accessible roads that have surrounded each and every part of
Mussoorie and the neighboring areas have led to an all year traffic,
with thousands of SUVs entering these areas every month, each one of
them, like us, trying to spend time in a resort , a place which is in
middle of forest and surrounded by hills.
While
going towards Dhanaulti, I saw a Haryana registered SUV, with opened
sun-roof, in which a young couple, beer can in their hand,
shouting at the forests, whizzing past us. I was imedaitely transported to
Gurgaon.
Hill
stations in NCERT books have been defined as a place which are on hills, stay
cool even during summers and since they are largely inaccessible,
inhospitable, they are less crowded.
That
is not the situation any more.
Ruskin
Bond, who can be called as Mussoories’s emblem, too has changed
with the changing times.
11
years ago, my uncle and I spent a lot of time at his small but cozy
place in Landour.
At that time he rarely used to get unannounced visitors. He could walk in the Landour market without being pestered for selfies and autographs. He could gossip with the old kirana store guys and take a stroll at the Mall road.
At that time he rarely used to get unannounced visitors. He could walk in the Landour market without being pestered for selfies and autographs. He could gossip with the old kirana store guys and take a stroll at the Mall road.
He
has become more reclusive now, maybe like a Himalayan brown bear.
During
the day, people roam around his house to catch a glimpse of the 85
year old writer who had weaved dreams of many kids as they read his
books. He rarely comes down now. The only time he does is on
Saturday when he goes to Cambridge book depot at the mall road
between 3.30 and 4.40 to meet his readers and sign books for them.
The
house adjacent to him has been turned into an ‘inn’ which
reportedly has been brought by a noted Mumbai film maker. Its red
color is not something that the eyes look for in a place where you
expect green to prevail.
Landour was known for its serenity, the serenity
has been replaced with tourists who are ‘loud’ in every sense.
Old timers say that Landour, at 7500 feets, is the
“original Mussoorie”.In 1823, Captain Frederic Young, a British army
officer, came across a goat path on the hills surrounding Dehradun
while on a hunting expedition.
This road, was the first road that connected
Dehradun to the hills, that later come to known as Landour. In 1826,
Young built’s Landour’s first home, and named it “Mullingar”,
after his place of birth in Ireland. Young was the commandant of the
first Gurkha battalion that was raised by the British after
the Gurkha War or the Anglo-Nepalese war that was fought between
1814-1816.
The way things are going, soon a time will come
when people will only be able to read about what Mussoorie offered and
what it was, as I realized on this trip.
