Subathu and the charm of snail mail

Madan Gupta Spatu

In the digital era, where it takes seconds to send an email or a WhatsApp message, there is something incredibly human and personal about getting a handwritten letter or card, one of the oldest forms of communication. Warren Hastings had taken the initiative to start the postal service in the country in 1766, known as ‘Company Mail’, later modified into a service under the Crown in 1854 by Lord Dalhousie.

The oldest post office in Himachal Pradesh was built in Subathu, much before the GPO of Shimla, which was constructed in 1882. It was after defeating the feared Gurkhas that the victorious British forces laid the foundation of Subathu Cantonment in May 1815. The first Nusseree regiment to be stationed at the new cantonment comprised the defeated Gurkha soldiers. Today, it houses the Gurkha Training Centre. Lieutenant Ross, stationed at Subathu in 1818, was appointed the first political observer. Three years later, Captain Praft Kennedy, who took charge, constructed the Durbar Hall that subsequently came to be known as Kennedy House.

In those days, to reach Shimla, one had to take the bridle path that started at Kalka and passed through Kasauli, Subathu, Haripur and Sayri. From Subathu, Kennedy moved to Shimla and was responsible for laying the foundations of the town that outgrew him to become the summer capital of India. Before Shimla gained prominence, it was Subathu where a viceregal lodge and other buildings were first constructed for the imperial visit of Viceroy Lord William Bentinck in 1829.

The dak bags were transported from Calcutta to Delhi, then to Ambala and Kalka. From Kalka, the bags were taken on mules on the bridle road to Kasauli, then to Subathu. Even harkaras were employed to carry these bags, tied on a bamboo rod resting on the shoulder and exchanged after some miles.

Later, a small post office in Subathu came into being for handling British mail. When the Hindustan-Tibet Road was opened in 1856, the mail bags were transported on tongas or bullock carts from Dharampur to this cantonment.

Later, small buses started the transportation of mail bags from Kalka railway station to different cantonments of Shimla Hills. The mail from old Delhi railway station was loaded on Kalka Mail and manually sorted in the Railway Mail Service (RMS) bogie. The bags were again sorted at Kalka station before being loaded on buses.

Till the bridle path passed through it, Subathu retained its importance, but after 1856, when a new Hindustan-Tibet road was opened, this township began to fade. Commissioning of the Kalka-Shimla rail track in 1905, which was to be laid via Subathu to Shimla as per the original draft, was diverted to Kumarhatti, sealed Subathu’s fate.

Yet, Subathu can boast of having the oldest dak khana and thana in Himachal Pradesh.