Historic Namdhari site lying in neglect

Neeraj Bagga

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, January 30

Five Namdhari martyrs of Amritsar Saka, who were executed by the British about 147 years ago, have failed to get a memorial like 66 Malerkotla martyrs. The historic site situated next to the Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s summer palace rarely finds any mention in the list of tourist places to be visited in Amritsar in government’’s publicity literature distributed among visitors. So, hardly any tourist visits the site.

Baldev Singh, a caretaker of the site, said a record number of tourists visited the city but no effort was ever made to acquaint them with the historic place. Pointing towards a banyan tree, he states it is the same tree from where five locals — Sant Hakam Singh Patwari, Sant Fateh Singh, Sant Lehna Singh, Sant Jhanda Singh and Sant Beehla Singh Narli — were hanged in 1871. The then British government had punished them for killing several Muslims involved in cow slaughtering in the city.

As a mark of respect to the departed souls, a room opposite the tree is being used for round-the-clock “simran”. Except for the old tree, the other buildings have lost their original form. In addition, glass gates and barricades have been installed, akin to that in showrooms.

Similarly, the old well on the premises has also been plastered from inside and a modern well has been added in the “langar” section.

The government reconstructed the boundary wall to give it a heritage look sometime back. Conservation expert Balvinder Singh, who was trained at the University of York’s Center for Conservation Studies, rues that much of the place’’s identity has been lost to unguided renovation. He stresses the need to preserve the banyan tree.

He says national and international norms also call for the maintenance of the original character of historic buildings and places.

For instance, he says, the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), with its headquarters in Paris, in its guidelines issued in 1987, stated that any activity that destroys the historic character of the town and building should not be allowed. Deputy Commissioner KS Sangha says he will urge the government to highlight the historic site among the tourist sites of the city.