Village youths preserve temple built in memory of Mahatma Gandhi

Pankaj Sharma

Nahan, February 16

Sirmaur district is home to the state’s lone temple dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi. It is located in the Trans-Giri area at Amboya village in Paonta Sahib subdivision of the district. It observes Gandhi’s martyrdom day on January 30 every year .

During the event, flowers are offered at a statue of Gandhiji, commemorating his teachings and contribution towards the country’s freedom struggle.

According to elderly of the village, the Amboya Gandhi Temple is one of the two shines dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi in the country. The other temple is located in Karnataka.

In 1948, after the death of Mahatma Gandhi, a campaign was launched to build his temples across the country. During this period, around 75 temples were built across the country in his honour, but only two remain till this day.

Most of these temples were damaged in the years that followed. However, the Amboya Gandhi temple was preserved by many generations of the villagers and has been renovated from time to time by the efforts of the younger generation.

Jugal Kishore Sewal (90) built the temple during a campaign dedicated to Gandhiji across the country. He expressed his gratitude towards the villagers for preserving and renovating the temple, which is still inspiring generations, especially the youth, even today.

The structure, made of stones and thatch material, has a permanent building and villagers spend their money to maintain it. Every year on January 30, a fair is organised for three days at Amboya village in the honour of Mahatma Gandhi.

The fair starts with a worship ceremony at the temple, and attracts people from 20 nearby villages of this remote area, including Rajpur, Tauru, Nagheta, Banaur, Shiva, Bharli, Bhaila, Ramnagar, Klatha, Bhangani, Danda, Pagar, and Sunog and Aanjbhoj.

Amboya Panchayat Pradhan Sunita Sharma stated that the fair has been organised since 1952 and was of great significance to those who could not go to adjacent markets due to their poor financial condition. The government and the district administration have been time and again urged to take care of it and declare it a district fare, said Sharma.

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