Neemuch-- a kaleidoscope of memories..
An ordinary town in many ways, *Neemuch in Madhya Pradesh still holds a very special place
in my heart. What follows is a recollection of memories associated with the town and its
history and growth over the years which have always interested me.
Neemuch Cantonment, as it was called, when we arrived there in 1935, was not really a
Cantonment. The British had established this Cantonment in 1822 by taking on lease about 8
square miles of territory from the then Gwalior State. By the side of the city now called
"Neemuch City" the Cantonment was established with Major David Ochterlony as the first
Commandant. He got built and lived for sometime in what is now CRPF Mess. Subsequently due
to some differences with the Governor General at Delhi he resigned and moved to Meerut where
he died in 1825 and is buried in the cemetery there. The Ochterlony Column at Calcutta
Maidan commemorates his name. (see Link) When the meter gauge rail track was laid in 1880,
the Cantonment lay in between Neemuch City and the Railway station. If you study the rail
alignment in the map you see how rail alignment has been steadily turned from Ratlam to
reach the present Railway Station of Neemuch.
Cantonment officials relied upon a few shops in that 8 square miles of lease area mainly to
serve their needs for groceries and provisions and allowed a few bungalows to come up with
investment from private parties. The Cantonment was disbanded in 1935 and the barracks were
left empty. So were the various bungalows built by private investors to house the army
officers. Naturally, in the 1857 uprising Neemuch must have played its part but that's
another story.
The town had no electricity or water supply in the 1930s. Water was generally transported
through bullock carts and supplied as a private arrangement while kerosene lamps provided
light in homes. At the principal intersections of roads there were installations of a few
kerosene gas lamps and as a daily ritual a lamp lighter, appointed by the town authority,
used to bicycle down to lower the lamps and raise them back after lighting them up. It was
something, we as children, used to love to watch. But there were good roads, though not tar,
and the main mode of transport was through horse drawn carriages available in the city. For
individuals, bicycle was a popular vehicle. There were only three cars in the entire town,
all belonging to one Englishman the Officer-in-Charge of the Govt. Opium Factory. With the
raising of the Crown Representative’s Police (CRP) in 1939 more cars arrived in the town and
an officer named Churcher got even a small plane! The plane crashed one day in the open
spaces but luckily he survived.
