Kaithal’s historical ‘Bhai ki Baoli’ in ruins

Satish Seth     

A three-storey ‘Baoli’ (a water tank with a well) built by the Bhai rulers of erstwhile Kaithal state (1767-1843AD) is lying in utter neglect. It is locally known as ‘Bhai ki Baoli’ and is made of Lakhari bricks with lime-surkhi. The Haryana Department of Archaeology has declared it as a protected monument. 

The ‘Baoli’ has about 24 steps descending into the well that is open from three sides and is covered with a domical roof. The thick walls of the well on the either side are decorated and have some covered holes made probably to provide shelter to those taking bath in the ‘Baoli’. The Bhai rulers of Kaithal had built it for public use.

According to some elderly people, locals visited this place during auspicious occasions such as marriages or religious functions in their families to seek heavenly blessings for uninterrupted solemnisation of festivities. Men and women paid obeisance at the entry of the ‘Baoli’ before starting religious ceremonies in their families.  

Locals, especially youths, used to bath in the ‘Baoli’ and compete with each other to swim to a particular point in a set time. All this happened till early 1960s and gradually the place started remaining deserted and wild growth covered the top of the withering walls of the 'Baoli'. Due to urbanisation of the surrounding areas, the underground water resources were gradually cut and the ‘Baoli’ dried up. 

The official negligence and an adjoining hospital during that period dealt a death knell to this historical monument. Garbage collected from the local area and the hospital was dumped in the ‘Baoli’. All this went on unnoticed for years. 

Meanwhile, some locals felt the need to revive the glory of the place and started cleaning it. Some bureaucrats posted in Kaithal also realised the importance of the place and motivated locals to carry on with their rehabilitation efforts. Anurag Aggarwal, who remained Deputy Commissioner long ago, had taken keen interest in the rehabilitation, renovation and maintenance of this historical place and locals still appreciate his efforts. 

However, after Aggarwal’s transfer the renovation work stopped. Local people highlighted the plight of the ‘Baoli’, following which the Haryana Department of Archaeology declared it as a protected monument. A notice board carrying instructions was also installed at the place but the monument continues to lose its shine. The department has taken no steps to restore its glory. 

The Department of Archaeology has posted a caretaker to look after the place. He says that his job is to check the entry of unscrupulous elements into the place and he sometimes also cleans it and removes wild growth. The entry gate remains closed though, according to the instructions on the notice board, the monument should remain open for general public between 10 am and 5 pm. If the government does not take steps to restore this monument, it may vanish, causing a great loss to our culture and heritage.   

BB Bhardwaj, retired head of the department of history in RKSD College, Kaithal, says that the government should take steps to maintain such historical monuments so that the coming generations can know about their importance in storing water for use during droughts.