The Bhakra dam in Himachal Pradesh submerged the ancient city of Bilaspur. But it takes more than a man-made dam to rid a town of its heritage, says Roshni Johar

THROWING OFF THE VEIL: The ‘lost’ temples of Bilaspur

These ancient temples are visible only six months of the year. The remaining time they just disappear under rippling waters of a lake seated amidst the hills. And this been happening for 40 years now in this ancient town of Bilaspur. Now, there’s a chance history may be corrected.

This story goes back to the construction of the Bhakra dam, one of world’s highest, in 1959-60. Ironically, this ‘modern temple of technology’ — to quote Jawarharlal Nehru — submerged the ancient town of old Bilaspur with its flat fertile land of Sandhu-ka-har containing temples, palaces, Maharaja’s airstrip, sati stones and fruit-laden trees. The only place the dam’s reservoir, the Gobind Sagar lake (the largest man-made lake), spared was Vyasgufa. Vyasgufa, a place where history and myth coincide: Rishi Ved Vyas (yes, the same one who authored the Mahabharata) did his penance here, and inspired the nomenclature of Bilaspur.

To compensate for the lost city, the new town of Bilaspur was built on the lake’s banks, on the Chandigarh-Manali National Highway. Today, few remember the temples lying under 100 feet of water, silent witnesses to a rich bygone era. At least not until the lake recedes...

With the advent of summer around April-May, the snow melts in mountains and feeds the rivers. This, coupled with the monsoons that set in around June, makes the rivers rise. Fed by Sutlej river, Bhakra dam stores excess water and releases it into the Gobind Sagar. Its level rises, drowning the temples. In winter, this phenomenon is reversed. With intense snow, scanty rain and measured release of dam water, the lake’s level recedes. And almost dramatically, the water veil slips off to reveal numerous submerged temples, exquisite seventh to 12th century structures with shikaras, characterised by curvilinear stone towers. The architecture is not a product of the hills and, in all likelihood, was brought from the plains by Gupta kings.

Among them is a unique temple, the only Indian counterpart of Chandi-Asu in Java. The ninth century Ranganath temple is dedicated to Shiva and features a lingam and an image of Nandi. Predictably built over an earlier edifice, the temple’s carvings are a pleasing blend of Pahari and Gupta art, resembling those of the Pratihara period. Also submerged is the seventh century Shanmukheshwara, a rare temple dedicated to Kartikeya, Shiva’s warrior son. And in its vicinity lie the Dhanduti and the Hanuman temples.

Though these submerged relics have received a lot of attention from archaeologists — the famous Dr H Goetz was convinced about Bilaspur’s links with the post-Harshvardhan period, when the Pratiharas held sway over Shatadru — there has been little effort to rescue the temples from the steady erosion brought on by varying temperatures and humidity conditions or the 20-feet-deep silt that has accumulated on the structures. Only some pillars and a Nandi image from the Ranganath temple were taken away in 1973 to be housed in the State Museum.

Till now. After almost 30 years, Sohan Lal Sharma, a Bilaspuri and a retired District Tourism Development Officer, is planning to transplant some more sculptures to Bilaspur’s higher slopes. ‘‘Transplanting the temples will give them a new lease of life,’’ he says excitedly. He has managed to get a large number of Bilaspuris involved in his project.

And there is so much excitement over the temples that the local Truck Operators’ Union has offered to transport the structures free of cost.

The government is also pitching in. ‘‘The project will boost the concept of religious tourism. After all, Bilaspur’s location connects it to Jwalaji, Naina Devi, Deo Sidh, Rewalsar and Manikaran temples’’, says Manoj Kumar, Deputy Director, Himachal Pradesh Tourism Department. Undoubtedly it will boost Himachal’s image as second state in India to undertake such a venture.

Of course, all this is easier said than done. ‘‘It’s not just about shifting temples but shifting the environment in totality,’’ explains Vijay Uppal, senior architect with the Himachal government.

Photographs and drawings need to be taken of every stone and sculpture, both vertically and horizontally. The task involves plugging cracks, dismantling the structures and removing them stone by stone, providing missing adornments and then constructing exact replicas.

Stones of temples were once joined by whole black gram plus lime and powdered red bricks. Now cement will have to reinforce them.
The task involves coordinated efforts of Archaeological Survey of India, Himachal’s Tourism Department, Government of India and Bilaspur’s Nagar Parishad. Fourteen temples have been identified and Rs 5 lakh has been sanctioned for each temple. More funds are awaited. The locals feel that Bhakra dam should also finance the project, apart from the limited compensation it gave to the Temple Committee years ago. The project is all set to begin, all the people of Bilaspur are waiting for is the lake to recede.