Bakrota Hills Dalhousie — The link between Himachal Pradesh and Bengal

By Meenakshi J

Bakrota Hills, near Dalhousie, holds an unusual place in the history of Himachal Pradesh. Long before it appeared on travel itineraries, this ridge quietly served as a living link between the hill station and West Bengal—a connection shaped by colonial movement, ideas, and the lesser-documented currents of India’s freedom struggle.

Despite its historical significance, Bakrota Hills remains largely absent from mainstream narratives. During my two-year stay in Dalhousie, I walked these trails repeatedly, spending time around Bakrota and its surrounding paths, and speaking with local residents. Slowly, fragments of this Bengal–Himachal connection began to emerge with shared histories, half-remembered stories, and landscapes that once witnessed far more than leisure.

This essay draws from those walks and conversations. It traces Bakrota Hills not just as a scenic extension of Dalhousie, but as a place where history, memory, and geography quietly intersect, accompanied by a visual journey through one of Himachal’s most overlooked hillscapes.

Bakrota Hills: A Lesser-Known Historical Landscape Near Dalhousie

Set just beyond Dalhousie’s main circuit, Bakrota Hills unfolds slowly through forested trails, open skies, and a way of life that feels removed from urban urgency.

And, on first arrival, the abundance can feel overwhelming. The vastness of the skies, the clarity of the air, the indulgence of space and silence—everything appears excessive, almost unreal, like a spectacle meant to be briefly admired and then left behind.

But stay a little longer, and something shifts.

Bakrota Hills, Dalhousie — Meditative Rewrite

Life in the mountains, surrounded by towering pines, deodars, rhododendrons, spruce, and winding forest trails, unfolds like a slow, restorative ritual. For those arriving from cities, where life is measured in notifications and deadlines, this sudden immersion in green feels almost medicinal—an unexpected pause that asks you to breathe differently.

Gradually, it begins to feel less like an escape and more like a return—to a rhythm that feels honest. The artificial glare of glass-fronted malls, the constant consumption of things, the choreography of social performance, the quiet diplomacy we practice in everyday conversations—all of it starts to feel strangely distant, even unnecessary.

It is then that life in the mountains reveals itself not as an indulgence, but as a form of meditation. Bakrota Hills, in its unassuming way, offers this realisation gently. It does not announce itself as a destination; it simply allows you to arrive.

Of course, not everyone can afford to live amid such postcard-perfect landscapes. But even a short sojourn here—a few unstructured walks, a handful of unhurried hours—is enough to recalibrate the senses. In Bakrota Hills, rejuvenation does not come from doing more, but from learning how little is actually needed.

Living in Bakrota Hills: A Meditative Landscape

Living in Bakrota Hills gradually brings with it a sense of stillness. Time slows, distractions soften, and a gentle calm settles in, offering a pause from the ordinary. There is a restorative quality to these hills near Dalhousie, one that history itself seems to affirm.

This sense of renewal is not merely anecdotal. The lives of figures such as Rabindranath Tagore and Subhas Chandra Bose—both of whom spent extended periods in Dalhousie, stand as quiet testimony to the pull of this landscape. Their time here suggests that the hills offered more than respite; they offered space for reflection, recovery, and thought.

Before exploring their personal connections to Bakrota Hills, it is worth pausing to understand how Dalhousie itself came into being, and how Bakrota found its place within that history.

A Brief History of Dalhousie

More than 160 years ago, British officer Dr. Blemenger of the 49th Native Infantry travelled into the Pir Panjal ranges in search of a location suitable for a convalescent depot. The idea of such a retreat was proposed by engineer Robert Napier, who would later be associated with the events of the Lucknow Mutiny.

The plan received approval under the administration of Lord Dalhousie, though accounts differ on whether he ever personally visited the region between 1850 and 1852. Some records suggest that, as Governor of Bengal at the time, the sheer distance prevented him from making the journey.

Under the agreement that followed, five hills belonging to the princely state of Chamba—Batur, Kathlag, Potreyn, Tehra (Moti Tibba), and Bakrota—were acquired for the establishment of the sanatorium. In exchange, the annual tribute payable by the Raja of Chamba was significantly reduced. By 1854, the Imperial Government had formally sanctioned the project.

Looking back, it is difficult not to reflect on the imbalance of power that characterised such arrangements. The mechanisms of colonial expansion often masked dispossession as administrative negotiation, a reality that lingers quietly in the landscape long after empire itself has receded into history.

Dalhousie and the Shaping of Bakrota Hills

Within a decade of this acquisition, Dalhousie had taken shape as a fully functional hill station. British-style cottages, churches, and administrative buildings appeared across the slopes, designed to replicate familiar English environments while serving the needs of colonial officials and recovering troops.

Bakrota Hills became part of this larger landscape—one that offered cooler climates and temporary refuge for soldiers of the Imperial Army.

Educational institutions soon followed, including a convent run by Belgian nuns that introduced English education to the region. Today, this legacy survives in landmarks such as the Sacred Heart Convent near Subash Chowk.

Bakrota Hills and the Bengal Connection

Beyond its colonial chapter, Bakrota Hills holds a quieter, more personal significance in India’s freedom-era history. The verdant slopes and surrounding trails played a role in the lives of several Indian thinkers and leaders, most notably Rabindranath Tagore and Subhas Chandra Bose.

Both men spent over six months in Dalhousie, forging a deep connection between Bengal and Himachal Pradesh. Their presence here is part of why Dalhousie continues to draw visitors from West Bengal even today.

Walking through Bakrota Hills reveals the geographical breadth that may have drawn them here. On one side, the plains of Punjab stretch out, threaded by rivers such as the Ravi, Chakki, and Chenab. On the other hand, the valleys of Chamba unfold beneath the Dhauladhar and Pir Panjal ranges, while the historic Basohli region of present-day Jammu lies further beyond.

Tagore, Memory, and the Hills

During my walks through Dalhousie, I was often struck by the number of visitors from Bengal, many of whom made a point to stop at the statue of Subhas Chandra Bose near Subash Chowk. Conversations with locals and further reading slowly revealed the history behind this presence.

It is said that Rabindranath Tagore first visited Dalhousie as a child, accompanying his father, and stayed in the Bakrota Hills. These early experiences are believed to have left a lasting impression—one that perhaps explains his lifelong sensitivity to landscape, silence, and introspection.

For me, learning of these connections added yet another dimension to Bakrota Hills.

The trails no longer felt like mere walking paths, but corridors of memory that held stories of thought, resistance, and retreat, quietly embedded in the hills.

Bakrota Hills Through Tagore’s Words

The relationship between Bakrota Hills and Bengal finds its most lyrical expression in the writings of Rabindranath Tagore.

In My Reminiscences, Tagore reflects on his time in Dalhousie and Bakrota with a sensitivity that feels remarkably contemporary even today.

Recalling his stay at a house perched on Bakrota’s highest hilltop, he writes of lingering cold even as summer approached, of wandering freely through deodar forests, and of the deep, almost sentient presence of ancient trees. His words transform the landscape into something more than scenery. It becomes a living, breathing companion to thought and solitude.

“The house we had taken at Bakrota was on the highest hill-top…
These lordly forest trees, with their huge shadows, towering there like so many giants—what immense lives had they lived through the centuries!”

The complete passage, which firmly establishes Tagore’s connection to Bakrota Hills, can be read in My Reminiscences and continues to resonate strongly with anyone who has walked these trails.

During their stay in Dalhousie, Tagore and his father lived at a place called Snowdon on Bakrota Hills.

Today, a plaque marks this site, quietly affirming the historical bond between Bengal and Bakrota—one that has endured long after their departure.

Walking through Bakrota Hills, it is difficult not to feel that the landscape mirrors Tagore’s words. The forested paths, shifting light, and towering deodars seem to echo his descriptions, though photographs, however carefully taken, can only hint at the experience of being there.

Subhas Chandra Bose and Bakrota Hills

While Tagore encountered Bakrota Hills in childhood, Subhas Chandra Bose is believed to have visited Dalhousie during a period of illness, while deeply engaged in India’s struggle for independence.

Local belief holds that Bose recovered his health by drinking water from a natural spring located along a descending trail near Bakrota Hills. And, regular consumption of this water during his recuperation is said to have aided his recovery from tuberculosis. This spring now is known as Subhas Baoli.

During the same time, Mahatma Gandhi is believed to have sent Mirabehn to Dalhousie to check on Bose’s health, an episode that adds yet another layer to the region’s freedom-era associations.

Unfortunately, today, little remains of Subhas Baoli beyond a pipe from which the water still flows. Yet the surroundings remain serene, and the trail leading to it from the Dalhousie GPO is among the more picturesque walks in the area.

The Karelun Trail Around Bakrota Hills

The trail leading to the village of Karelun passes by Subhas Baoli and remains one of the most rewarding walks around Dalhousie. This route is framed by dense pines on one side and the varied flora of Bakrota Hills on the other.

In winter, snow settles across the meadows, transforming the path into a quiet, white expanse. These were the months we most often chose to walk the Karelun trail, returning repeatedly for its views and its sense of continuity.

Encounters with Bengali families along the way only reinforced the enduring cultural ties between Bengal and Dalhousie.

Dalhousie’s Tribute to Tagore and Bose

Dalhousie continues to acknowledge its connection with both Tagore and Bose in small but meaningful ways. An old hotel on Mall Road—Hotel Mehar, claims to have hosted Bose during his recuperation, a possibility given its age and proximity to Subhas Baoli.

The town has also commemorated both figures through its geography. Subhas Chowk and Tagore Chowk remain active intersections, quietly preserving the memory of their time in the hills.

During our own stay in Dalhousie, our home was perched on Tehra (Moti Tibba), one of the five hills alongside Bakrota—that together form the hill station. Living within this landscape lent a deeper immediacy to its layered histories.

Dalhousie and Bakrota Hills: Then and Now

Dalhousie still retains the sense of calm that once drew both colonial administrators and Indian thinkers alike. Yet this tranquillity is now most palpable during off-seasons and weekdays.

From May through August, the town experiences heavy congestion, largely due to the influx of visitors from the plains. Weekends, too, gets crowded as families visit boarding schools scattered across the hills. During such times, familiar walking routes stretch unexpectedly long, and detours become routine.

And yet, despite these changes, Dalhousie’s enduring charm remains difficult to dismiss. The hills still offer moments of pause, memory, and connection, especially when approached on foot and without haste.

For those planning a visit, the surrounding trails of Bakrota Hills remain among the most rewarding ways to understand Dalhousie beyond its surface.

Related reading on Polka Junction