Mashobra Explained

Mashobra
Settlement Type:town
Pushpin Map:India Himachal Pradesh#India
Pushpin Label Position:right
Pushpin Map Caption:Location in Himachal Pradesh, India
Coordinates:31.13°N 77.23°W
Subdivision Type:Country
Subdivision Name: India
Subdivision Type1:State
Subdivision Name1:Himachal Pradesh
Subdivision Type2:District
Subdivision Name2:Shimla
Unit Pref:Metric
Elevation M:2146
Population Density Km2:auto
Demographics Type1:Languages
Demographics1 Title1:Official
Demographics1 Info1:Hindi
Timezone1:IST
Utc Offset1:+5:30
Postal Code Type:PIN
Postal Code:171 007
Area Code Type:Telephone code
Area Code:0177
Registration Plate:HP HP-03, HP-51

Mashobra is a town in Shimla district of Himachal Pradesh. It is connected to the state capital Shimla (erstwhile Simla) through the historic Hindustan–Tibet Road built in 1850 by Lord Dalhousie.

Geography

Mashobra is located at 31.13°N 77.23°W.[1] It has an average elevation of 2,146 metres (7,041 feet).

Retreat

Mashobra is notable for housing one of the two Presidential retreats in India. The other retreat is Rashtrapati Nilayam in Secunderabad.

The president visits Mashobra at least once every year, and during this time his or her core office shifts to the retreat at Chharabra, in the vicinity of Mashobra. The building housing the retreat is a completely wooden structure originally constructed in 1850.[2]

In May 1948, before returning to London at the end of his mission as viceroy and then governor general of India, Lord Mountbatten and his wife Lady Edwina spent a few weeks in this retreat. The then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru paid them a visit, which is documented in the biographies of Lady Mountbatten.

Other places of interest

Mashobra is also a tourist destination.[3] [4]

Wildflower Hall at Chharabra, now a property of Oberoi Hotels, has been residence to Lord Kitchener as well as Lord Ripon during the British Raj.[5]

At 3 km from Mashobra is Carignano, a picnic spot that was a villa of Chevalier Federico Peliti,[6] an Italian photographer in India from the times of Queen Victoria, who named it in honor of his native town Carignano near Turin in Italy. The villa was transformed to a weekend resort in 1920 and is also referred to in one of the novels by Anita Desai.[7]

Pankaj Mishra is a writer/poet who lives in Mashobra.[8]

Amit Khanna, film maker, poet, writer and media guru has a cottage in Mashobra where he spends several weeks every year working on his new book.

Like Amit, Navtej Sarna, well known diplomat and author, is also a part time resident of Puranikoti village near Mashobra.

Flora and fauna

Mashobra is part of Shimla Water Catchment and Wildlife Sanctuary.[9] The natural vegetation comprises pine, oak, cedar or Himalayan deodar, and rhododendron, as well as maple and horse chestnut. The wildlife consists of monkeys, Langurs, jackals, kakkar (barking deer), and the occasional leopard, as well as numerous bird species such as the Himalayan eagle, pheasants, chikor and partridges.

Educational Institution

Himalayan International School at Chharabra is a major residential school in Mashobra.

Notes and References

  1. http://www.fallingrain.com/world/IN/11/Mashobra.html Falling Rain Genomics, Inc - Mashobra
  2. Web site: Official mention and description in Rashtrapati Bhavan site . 5 July 2006 . https://web.archive.org/web/20060702011303/http://presidentofindia.nic.in/scripts/presidentialretreats.jsp . 2 July 2006 . dead .
  3. News: Travelogue in TIME . 5 July 2006 . 8 November 2003 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20060204184653/http://www.time.com/time/asia/2003/journey/india.html . 4 February 2006 .
  4. Web site: Travelogue in Outlook magazine . 5 July 2006 . https://web.archive.org/web/20061109223834/http://www.outlooktraveller.com/aspscripts/mag_art.asp?magid=116&page=1 . 9 November 2006 . dead .
  5. Web site: Oberoi hotels website about Mashobra . 5 July 2006 .
  6. Web site: Federico Peliti's 19th Century India . 18 January 2015.
  7. Web site: Far away from crowds . 17 April 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120305211255/http://travel.hindustantimes.com/travelogues/i-never-fancied-the-crowded.php . 5 March 2012 . dead .
  8. Web site: Pankaj Mishra .
  9. Web site: Department Notification No. FFE-B-F(6)-11/2005-II/Shimla Water Catchment . 7 June 2013 . Government of Himachal Pradesh Department of Forests . 18 February 2017 .