Life in two remote villages is a flashback to the Raj

DHARAMSHALA: Himachal Pradesh celebrated its 47th statehood day on Thursday. But in the villages of Lunsu and Dhar in Kangra district, life remains a throwback to the days of the Raj. Nothing much has changed by way of facilities here since the British era.
Both villages are connected with the narrow gauge railway line established by the British in 1929 and there is no other major transportation facility here.Nitin Thakur, Pradhan of Dhar village said they have to travel at least 6KMs to get a train and 14KMs to get a bus on the road. As per official records, he said, the population of the village is 3,400. But 47 families have left the place over the last few years.
“I have the list and contacts of people who have left. It is not fake, authorities can check it with me” he said.
In the age of e-marketing and mega shopping malls, he says villagers have to travel about 40 KMs to reach main markets and hospitals in Kangra. “Ambulance can’t reach our village. We still have palki (palanquins) to ferry patients for treatment, even in emergencies,” he said.
Meena Kumari, pardhan of the neighboring Lunsu village said the population of her village, which is around 5,000, is dwindling fast with people leaving the place to secure a brighter future for their children.
“Good schools cannot be approached easily and people are not ready to get their daughters here as life is hard,” she said.
In the 2017 assembly elections, people of Dehra constituency rejected top leaders of the Congress and BJP to give a chance to a businessman who contested as an independent. Former minister Ravinder Ravi, a BJP leader and Congress’s Viplove Thakur were in the fray but they lost.
Sitting MLA Hoshiar Singh of Dehra said politicians visit these villages only for votes but no one has initiated development work here.