A Travelogue on Dasghara,Hoogly

A journey to Dasghara, if made through the  Tarakeswar-Gurap route , is always pleasurable. Yesterday was a sultry day;  in fact,the whole state hasbeen under  heat wave for more than two weeks, and I was aspiring for cool  and accordingly moved through the greenery pathways of Dhaniakhali.
 I had been returning from Burdwan on the express way, stopped at Gurap and looked the road approaching Tarakeshwar. The road was lined with tall green trees and  the fields were occupied by white flowers of seasame  that lured me to follow the path. It was a nice journey covering about 15 kms from Gurap to  reache the Chowmatha, Dasghara.  I asked a passerby there  " I 'm a visitor to your place. Where do I go?"
_ " Go to Gopinath Sayar.. cool your body there, see the Gopinath temple". With his tips I stared following  a red-carpet lane and reached Biswas Para. The guide was right. A beautiful lake indeed. There are trees,  and enough space for  easing  from the cool wave flowing from the  gargantuan jhil.
Sitting under a tree I looked at the Gateway of Biswas para. A lion stood on the top of a pillar. The whole structure has been lost except the lone pillar. The ruined monument rescinds the past. The area was under the powerful Biswas-zamindars who migrated from Oddisa during Mughal era.  Then I look at the Kachari-building. It is almost in its usual model. The pattern of the building,its doors ,windows, architectural gradients all retrieve Zamindar's ruling over subjects. The first floor is now marked for Durga-puja.  The zamindars were religious persons.  The crown of Gupinath temple is visible from the lake. A marvellous, majestic temple was built in 1729 by Sadananda Biswas0the legendary   zamindar of Dasghara. Teraacotta display over the temple is a living example of Bengali art. Through the ages, the artefacts have been saved. You can read the stories of Ramayana or Mahabharata splendidly carved on the outer walls of the temple. As we reached on odd time,we could not see the Gupinath deity. However, i sensed it must be an attractive and gorgeous one. The mansion of Zamindars is still in okey position. Surrounding the lake there is Rashmancha,  and Dolmancha. These are well decorated and well designed temples .  Although they were built three centuries back but still now glazing with perfection.
A group of guys were in front of the Dolmancha. They interacted in friendly manner.one of them lamented that nobody is seriously thinking to make this place a tourist spot despite it is hardly 12 kms from Tarakeshwar and well connecte with the city and surroundings. With one of them I paid a visit to the surroundings. The Zamindars used to  live under lush green and they planted many trees adjoining their residential complex. It is picturesque to see and enjoy.
Biswas family built Shiva temple. Unification of Shivaites, Vaisnabism and  tantras  converged at Biswas para. I missed to mention here that the the  Goddess Durga has four arms and Ganesh & Kartick are placed at higher level while Laxmi & Saraswati are put in below position. This is in contrast to other places.
Dasghra had another legendary named Bishnupada Roy. He made enough fortune . Entrance to his palace witnesses his money-power. The gate is a replica of the rajbhavan gate and parallel to Curzon gate. He was a philanthropic and pioneer in establishing a charitable dispensary from his courtyard.  The famous rathajatra and famous rath of Roy family is a buzzword here.

The Triple Features: Khara, Khejur & Khasla:

On this mother earth day, I have a canvass on the situation of Paschimanchal, specifically of Bankura.  My recent visit to major parts of western Bankura retrieved drought situation that  I witnessed during my school days. It might be '66-'67 when successive droughts gripped my village and surroundings in Bankura. I could remember those skeleton-bodies with sunken eyes making queues in our door. They were crying for fan-  drained water after boiling rice. My grandmother used to prepare two-three pots containing fan-bhat.  Our three time rice meal was curtailed to one. Milo- was introduced. Initially i disagreed to it , however ,later I got taste with it in different forms, Before the drought, I knew chapati is meal for sick but gradually i understood it is a food for the drought-areas.  Charitable langor-khana(free lunch)  started. One of such longar-khana was run from the open space  in front of  ours Durga Mondir.That time there was enough space. I was a volunteer , my task was in helping the cooks in terms of bringing water or grocery materials and distribution of food. I could remember those days. There were some upper class, decaying families who did not like to come and join lonar-khana food openly but remain starve. I had to supply food to them secretly & silently.
That situation did not come, but drought comes in a periodic way. Bankura as well as Paschimanchal falls under the pray of precarious nature . Khara ( drought) is the feature of the region.
Is there any way to over come drought? Is it always good for growing rice only under rain fed? Is there any other crops? Is there any other options to combat drought?
Yea, the agricultural science is well developed. There are many. I shall not go into details of these. I shall limit to a specific plant-Khejur.
Mother earth has given a wonderful tree-crop in Paschimanchal. Date palm thrives well here. It has drought resistance power. It has wide potential,yet we have not emphasized  or exploited the plant. With minimum care,  supporting date-palm rural entrepreneurship could be made in paschimanchal.
Neera can be produced and marketed . We have emphasized on coconut neera but remain deaf to date-palm. Another tree-plant tal has multiuses. Neera can be tapped from it. Tal supplies neera during summer while date gives during winter. Thus natural neera could be collected for at least six months.Technology is there, needs only intervention.
Similaly date syrup has high demand through out the country.  Off-season would give more rewards to date syrup. Jaggery based on Khejur and tal has much scope.  Time has come to count the above orphan crops.
We talk about climate change but never make plans on those climate resilient  crops.

Now about the Khasla. It is hardy one. In most awkward situation it is grown as a second crop under rain fed condition. It provides both food and oils. I saw it growing in Khatra sub-division under stress condition.
We are emphasizing oil-seed extension program leaving khasram a traditional crop of Paschimanchal.
There are many options to combat drought. Let us draw strategic plans for the region in a perpetual context. Long run actions obviously will protect the paschimanchal.

Susunia Hill-the epicenter of Civilization

The small hill attracts me for many counts.  I have got an unbound attraction for it since my childhood. The hill is easily visible from the top of our home at Chhatna. Everday, every morning I used to look at the hill- and enjoy its serenity . In our childhood we were told  a giant elephant had been lying there. Later I understood it is an elephant shape  by its inherent nature.  In our early days we were frightened when fire flamed in the hill. Usually it was seen during summer ,on the eve of Dhara festival. The Dhara festival is an age long ritual practiced by the tribal annually. Just  day before yesterday it was in festive mood. I missed it although I had several calls to be present this time. When I was a school boy I had the opportunity to visit Susunia Hill. The memory is still afresh. I climbed at the top and searched my house from there. I could not see but never became frustrated.  The ever flowing water from the dhara  was the chief attraction in my first visit. This attraction is still with me. Anytime I visit the hill,I sip the sweet  running water . In those days there were many Segun and mehagini trees. These are not visible now.
I could recall my another visit to the place during seventies. That time I went there to meet Sahadev Karmakar- the first national awardee for his excellence in stone-craft. That time it was difficult to reach. the road was partly metallic. One or two buses used to ply.  I had to stay in Susunia village on that day. I could remember the thatched house of Sahadev. I could remember the scaled figure of the artist. I ould remember the words of the great artist:
" whom do you want"/
_" Sahadev Karmakar"
-" I am."
I looked at the pale face. However, the days have gone. Susunia stone craft got reorganization at his hands. currently, Susunia is a hub of stone crafts. It has also become a tourist spot.

On the next day, I saw the rock-inscription. I was told it is an historical inscription. The matter remained  as I felt  in my first visit.
 As I grew up I began to search more on Susunia. I got in touch with some Patuas living beneath the hill. They do not use chemical colors but paints with natural ingredients. They use different rocks/stones for extracting different colors. Splendid.  i tried to focus them. Many have visited the place.

Now I will come to the inscription. Three lines were engraved in a rock. The first two lines say" the work of the Great King ,illustrious Chandravarman, son of Simhavarman, Lord of Pushkarma-dedicated by the chief servants of lord of wheel".  A wheel is also marked along with the inscripton.
The researchers began to study who was the Chandravarma. An inscrition found at Allahabad  bore the witness that Chandravarma was a powerful king defeated by SamudraGupta. Capital of Chandravarma was Pushkarma.
The simple three lines dictates that  during 4th century the Brahminical culture was  in Susunia. This is the only record  which is a proof of that culture in Rarh .
Later, prof. Suniti Chattopadhy argued that modern Pukhunna on the bank of Damodar Valley was the capital of Chandravarma. Excavation and collection of antique materials support the vies of Sunitikumar.
I am proud that I belong to an area having heritage of culture.
Of late Prehistoric antiquities from Susunia and its surroundings have surfaced  more on the early civilization that spread from here.

Ruins of Ambikanagar Rajbari & Incognito History

My maternal grand-mother had a well designed grain-measure which she brought from Ambikanagar . This was  Chintamoni pai-  the unit of grain measure- a common instrument that had been used in Ambikanagar & its adjoining areas. Chintamoni pai has its legacy with the first King of Chintamoni Dhoba,  the Raja of Dhalbhum, headquartered at Ambikanagar. In course of time his kingdom was wrested by Jagannath Dev of Dhalpur, Rajasthan.  Oral story goes with  Dev’s ascending to the throne Dhalbhum.  The story is:

Jagannath Dev went to Puri in pilgrimage and on his way back he met the King of Orissa. Looking at the handsome look of Dev the king addressed him “Sahajada”. Sahajada connotes to Nabwab or prince.  In a quick reply to the king  Jagannath said “ Please confirm  the title”. The king was so pleased  that he handed over a  troop  soldiers and  ordered “ Go and curve out your principality any where with your battalion.”  Thereafter, Jagannath marched with his commandos and reached  Supur-Ambikanagar and overpowered Chintamoni . In memory of his conquest he named his  kingdom Dhabalbhum.    Dev dynasty ruled the Supur-Ambikanagar parganas of Khatra, and extended jurisdiction to the western part of Midnapore district and parts of eastern and south eastern Singhbhum.  After 32 generations of Supur-Ambikanagar raj,  there were internal conflicts among the family members and accordingly the kingdom was divided into two sub-parts. Tekchand became the authority of Supur parganas etc and based his  regime at Supur while Khargeswar made his kingdom at Ambikanagar. Khagreswar built his palace,forts etc at Ambikanagar. 

The ruins of the palace ,forts and temples  witness the glory of Devs.

RaiCharan Dev was the most revered king of Ambikanagar.  His generosity for poor  and  people  is heard everywhere.  Another cap is with Rai Charan- he was a freedom fighter . He used to donate large sums to the freedom fighters of twentieth century. He was involved with the Anusilon Samiti. Under his  care, Khudiram Bose, Prafulla Chaki & others used to come Ambikanagar. Hasadanga jungle was the testing zones of bombs and  strategic actions.  The matter reached to the British government. They ransacked the place and jailed Rai Charan for revolutionary activities.

Every brick of the Rajbari witnesses the bravery of Rai Charan.

The raja has gone, the kingdom has gone but RaiCharan is still in the heart of Ambikanagar.