A Pre-Partition Hindu Sarai in Old Depalpur city

Sunday, 4 December 2016

In the past, Dipalpur had a strong wall around it that was 25 feet tall and had a deep trench. We don't know who built it or when exactly, but it was repaired and improved by Firoz Shah Tughluq and Abdur Rahim Khan-e-Khanan during Akbar's time. Firoz Shah Tughluq also built a big mosque and palaces in Dipalpur. He even made a canal from the nearby Sutlej River to water the gardens around the town.

As time went on and more people came to live there, Dipalpur grew outside the walls. When I visited, I saw an old building called 'Serai,' which had many similar living quarters. Each room had a plaque with the name of the person who donated it. There are two theories about these quarters. Some people think they were built for poor Hindu families, while others believe they provided housing for devotees and the poor who came to visit the nearby Lal Jas Raj Montessori and Hindu temple. Nowadays, migrant and local families live in these quarters, and the Lal Jas Raj Montessori is in bad condition.

Before the partition in 1947, Dipalpur was known for its diverse community, where people of different religions lived together peacefully. Although the city has changed a lot, you can still find remains of beautiful old Hindu buildings from before the partition. But now, most of these buildings are occupied by families who moved to Dipalpur after the partition. These remnants are a reminder of Dipalpur's rich cultural heritage and its vibrant past.