India's
tourism ministry came up with the slogan, Incredible India! about a
couple of years ago to attract foreign tourists, who are pulled in by
the aura of mysticism that India offers. I never really believed in
this slogan, as any country with known 5000 year history, would
always have many unusual sites and places. However, one news item
that has appeared in media today, has made me change my thinking.
India is truly incredible.
Readers
might be wondering why I suddenly decided to change my opinion. Let
me narrate the full story. It all began, more than hundred and fifty
years ago or in the year 1857, when native Indian soldiers employed
by the British army in India, rebelled against their British
officers. The spark lit a huge fire and turned into a war of
independence, when maharajas and Nawabs, who were defeated by the
British in previous decades, decided to join the rebellion.
The
areas around the present capital 'Lucknow' of India's state of Uttar
Pradesh were under the rule of Nawab of Awadh in those days, even
though the real power was controlled by the British. There were many
small but powerful landlords controlling large tracts of lands in
this area. They usually bestowed upon themselves a title of a king or
a 'Raja' and paid yearly taxes to Nawab of Awadh, who would then let
them rule over their lands. In the Baiswada region, Rana Beni Madho
of Shankarpur was one such landlord. When 1857 rebellion broke out,
Rana Beni Madho, unlike many other small landlords siding with the
rebellion, remained loyal to British and escaped any reprisal later,
when the rebellion was quenched by the British.
Rao
Raja Ram Baksh Singh was a small landlord, who owned the lands near
present village of “Daundiya Kheda' in 'Unnao' district of Uttar
Pradesh state, on the bank of river Ganga. This place is located on
'Lucknow'- 'Kanpur' highway and is about km from Lucknow. He was a
rich landlord and owned a gold and jewelery shop in the city of
Kanpur. British historians label him as an outlaw, but truth could be
quite different. Unlike Rana Beni Madho, this small landlord joined
the rebellion and helped the warriors who fought against British.
When
the British finally quenched the rebellion and started the reprisals,
Raja Ram Baksh Singh ran away for his life. He was eventually found
and was hanged by the British. Even since then, people have been
wondering about the large horde of treasure belonging to Raja Ram
Baksh Singh, which he is supposed to have hidden at some place in his
lands.
There
is also an ancient Shiva temple in the village of Daundiya Kheda' in
'Unnao' district of Uttar Pradesh state, with a bit of macabre
history attached to it, as fleeing British army from Kanpur city had
taken a shelter here, and many soldiers, women and children were
killed later by the rebel armies.
The
legend of hidden gold that belonged to Rao Raja Ram Baksh Singh, has
been around for more than a century, but no one had taken it
seriously and was always considered as a joke. But now enters a
'Sadhu' (ascetic), Shbhan Sarkar, on the scene, who says that this
late Rao Raja Ram Baksh Singh often comes to his dreams and tells him
where the treasure is.
Shobhan
Sarkar runs an 'Ashram' or a hermitage in the Unnao town and has
considerable following there. He has done 2 years of college in his
early life and tries to help village people by helping them to get
irrigation projects like canals sanctioned by the authorities. He
says that he has no land or money or a bank account.
Sometime
back, when Shobhan Sarkar heard that the government was
contemplating taking custody of the gold in various temples because
of the crisis with the Rupee, he got worried and decided to inform
the local administration, the state government and even the Central
Government about the dream. One of the federal ministers in the
Indian Government at Delhi, Charan Das Mahant, who is minister of
state for agriculture and food processing took him seriously and
visited Sarkar's ashram on September 22 and October 7 and also
visited the spot in “Daundiya Kheda' village where the gold is
supposed to be hidden.
Mr.
Mahant, who belongs to Chhattisgarh state and not a local, says: "I
was surprised. I then wrote to the Prime Minister, finance minister,
home minister and mines minister and related departments such as the
ASI and Geological Survey of India about the reserves. I informed
Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi too about it," He set the
Government machinery to work and since then, teams of the Geological
Survey of India and the ASI have been visiting the place.
There
is mound of earth about 70 feet away from the Shiva temple in
'Daundiya Kheda' village, where the Gadh or the fort of late Rao
Raja Ram Baksh Singh, once stood. Mr. Mahant says that the mines
ministry has informed him that a survey conducted by them has
confirmed the presence of underground metal deposits there. The exact
spot happens to be near the statue of 1857 rebellion general,
Nanasaheb Peshawa.
The
site of the dig where Archaeological Survey (ASI) wants to start
digging as per Shobhan sarkar's dreams have been cordoned off and
locals are already crowding the site. However, ASI confirms that they
are not excavating the mound just because of Shobhan sarkar's dream
only. They have in hand a report from Geological Survey of India,
about presence of underground metals at the site. Pravin Kumar
Srivastava, archaeologist in charge, is camping in the district with
his team and would soon start digging. ASI officers are however
cautious and say:
"We
are still searching for the exact location and whether there is any
treasure. It is all in the future," he said. "We often just
find pottery and metal antiquities, like agricultural tools or
kitchen tools."
The
whole story is just unbelievable. Someone gets a dream or says he had
a dream of a hoard of gold. He tells about it to a central minister.
Then geological survey is carried out and now finally ASI would
excavate there. What a story!
Now
you would know, why I have started believing in tourism department's
slogan: Incredible India!
19
October 2013
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