Travel
History’s Burden - McCluskieganj
McCluskieganj is a lost town
that was once founded by the
British officials to be their summer home today it exists in stories known as a place that was
once called Mini London. Today
it tries to find its identity in history and is trying to survive in
the present.
In 1930s McCluskieganj became
one of the most prominent places that the British governance
selected and was shortly populated by many British families
now known as the Anglo Indians. The housing plan of McCluskieganj was as British as it could get.
The irony lies in the fact that the place which was once populated by the residents who worked in
offices are today forced to work as farmers and fruit sellers. The houses here will remind you of a
British village because of their design and while it should be a hub of Jharkhand tourism these buildings are slowly crumbling and will be gone in no time.
The town is named after McCluskie who was a property dealer from Calcutta. He visited some villages in the area for hunting, and even built a hutment at a place called Harhu. His friend PP Sahib
worked as the manager of Ratu Maharaja's estate. And it was PP, who convinced the maharaja of Ratu to lease out the land to McCluskie.
One can take walks in the town exploring the houses and can think of the happy and jovial place
that it once used to be. There is a small evening market in the premises of the town that residents
use to buy fruits, vegetables and other daily needs. But the most fascinating structure of this place is
their religious center that is a mosque and a church that stand side by side and look like the same
structure. I asked around to know if a part of one was destroyed to construct the other but that was
not the case.
Once this place was home to 300 families but now the houses are broken and while every other state
is busy saving their lost heritage colonies and buildings, the tourism department of Jharkhand is not
doing anything to protect it.
My trip to McCluskiekanj was short, it was raining and trains were delayed. My visit to this place was
cut short by 3 hours because of the delay and the roads were filled with mud. I explored a few houses
while soaking in rain. A homeowner even called me in and offered me tea. He told me how the coal
mafia has destroyed the surroundings of the town and how everyone is leaving this place in search of
a better life. Still there are people left who are fascinated by the fairy tale and believe that some magic shall revive this place till then they have no choice but to wait.
I didn’t get much time to explore more of this lost town so I had to bid goodbye in as the evening
approached and return to Ranchi by train.
I hoped while I left the place and its story behind, that next time around I’ll see things in much better shape.
Or maybe it will be gone forever.
Anshul Akhoury