Jharkhand's colonial legacy

The thanas, dak bungalows, jails, railway lines and many other such structures dating back to the 1800s that dot the landscape of Jharkhand stand testimony to the State’s colonial past and to the political and economic significance of the region.

 

Simpson’s House, now the residence of the Principal of the Police Training College, Hazaribagh, dates back to the 1850s.

The Hazaribagh Central Jail dates back to the 1830s. On November 9, 1942, at the height of the Quit India Movement, Jayaprakash Narayan and five other freedom fighters made a historic escape from this jail.

The residence of the Deputy Commissioner of Dumka dates back to the 1880s. It is said to have originally belonged to the manager of the erstwhile Grant Estate of Dumka and presented as a gift to the then DC.

The North Evangelical Lutheran Mission in Dumka was founded in 1867. In 1967, to commemorate the centenary year of the mission, a picture of the Lutheran church building of Dumka appeared on a Norwegian stamp with the inscription “Norwegian Santhal Mission”(Den Norske Santalmisjon).

The Chalet House at Netarhat, Latehar district. It is famous in local folklore as the house where a British Governor’s daughter, Magnolia, fell in love with a local tribal man who worked as a household help.

The Gossner Evangelical Lutheran (G.E.L.) church in the heart of Ranchi, the capital of Jharkhand, was established in 1855.

The Raj Bhavan in Ranchi. Built in 1930-31 by the British architect Sadlow Ballerd, it is a grand structure surrounded by 62 acres of greenery.

The official residence of the Deputy Commissioner of Ranchi dates back to the late 1890s. Sitting amidst over five acres of lush gardens in the heart of the city, it is an example of a classical colonial bungalow.

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The official residence of the Deputy Commissioner of Chaibasa, in West Singhbhum district, Jharkhand, dates back to the 1850s.