A visit to Sidh Baba Balak Nath, Deot Sidh, Hamirpur, H.P.

Greetings!

Throughout the years of my school days, I had been listening to these Bhajans here and there, in buses or through the sound coming from one home and another. Deot Sidh(Deo-Sidh) is a village in district Hamirpur which has the mention of, in many of such songs dedicated to Baba Balak Nath. They are sung by various local singers of Kangra and Mandi districts such as, Sanjeev Dixit, Dheeraj Sharma, Sher Singh and who not?

View of Dholagiri mountain from Parking for vehicle at Deot Sidh,
Baba Balak Nath, Hamirpur - 23rd Oct 2014

" Dhaulagiri parvat par, Baba Balak da basera hai" - a line from one of the Bhajans. 

Means, Baba Balak Nath resides on the mountain named as "Dhauli-Giri". People, all the way from different parts of world visit this holy land to pay their respect to the shrine of this enlightened sage. Well, this was holiday and I had my motorcycle, and it was only at a distance of about 45 km from Hamirpur via Bhota and Barsar, so I thought it would be a good time to give a visit to the shrine. 

'Being Diwali week, people generally walk towards their home, so it would also not be much crowded and would save my time', I thought.  At around 9:30 AM, I picked up my bike and within one hour I was at the temple area. Road through Bhota up to Barsar was double lane and very much  comfortable, it was another 12 km distance from Barsar up to Deotsidh. 

Shiva temple at top and Sidh Baba Balak Nath temple at bottom, Hamirpur, H.P. - 23rd Oct 2014

 At the entry of the temple, after crossing small 3-4 Chadawa shops, 3 to 4 goats were tied with rope in the Bakra Sthal(Goat place). It was also written that the animals offered to the Baba are not slaughtered, but are raised and are sold at good prices to turn into money. It was a similar experience after visited the Baba Kamlahiya, and it filled me with a joyful and healthy spirit. 

Adjacent to it, was another hall having a beautiful view of the mountain valley and ample space for about 500 people to sit comfortably, and eat their eatables. There were two gates, one for entry and another for exit, and path was divided into two parts using the steel railing, ladies and gents separately.  As expected, there were very few people, so it took me no time to reach the shrine.

Entry to Garbh-griha, Baba Balak Nath, Hamirpur, H.P.  - 23rd Oct 2014

Just outside the entry into the Garbha-Griha there was a black board on which was written with the white chalk, the details of the daily Chadawa(Offerings of money or metals), and it startled me to see the amount that was written for the 20th October.Along with the few foreign currency amounts, INR 15,12,014 plus 2 gm Gold and 32 gram Silver. I still wonder, what they do with such an amount, except spending on the daily Langar(free food to every visitor), but all I could do was just wonder, because I was not able to ask it from anyone. 

Photography in the shrine area was not allowed, so it is all I can show you here. 

Only males are allowed to go up to the shrine cave while ladies can pay their respect from another parallel mounted platform from a certain distance. Monkeys seems to be a problem, and I think for policemen, which were present almost at every spot, if not have other things to do in such days,  were busy to hush them or to scold them away. After paying my respect to the Babaji at the cave shrine, I got out and then went to the Langar Bhavan, because I was hungry. 

Langar Bhavan, which provides free food for visitors, Deo Sidh, Hamirpur. - 23rd October 2014

It was a simple Daal-Chawal with sweat fried rice at the end, but I enjoyed it. After washing my plate and glass, I rested a while at the courtyard of the Bhavan and then at around 12:30 PM I picked my bike, and returned back. There was a Shiva temple, at the top of the mountain of Dhaulagiri, which I think has its own importance due to the legendary link between the Baba Balak Nath ji and lord Shiva. 

Thanks for your kind visit, please come and visit again!

Exploring the Forgotten Solah Singhi Fort, Una (H.P.)

A view of the adjacent Solah Singhi Fort along the same Solah Singhi Dhar ridge.

Hi there,

Hope you’re doing well!

In my last travel post, I took you to the historical Sujanpur Tira Fort of the Katoch dynasty. This time, I’m sharing my experience from 18th October, when I visited another lesser-known but historically significant fort — the Solah Singhi Fort, perched on the mighty Solah Singhi Dhar near Bangana, in District Una, Himachal Pradesh.

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Where is Solah Singhi Fort?

My travel route from Hamirpur to Solah Singhi Dhar Fort, Piplu, Una (H.P.) — marked on Google Maps with a little help from MS Paint!

Like most ancient forts, this one was built at a strategic location — right on top of the Solah Singhi Dhar, a mountain ridge that stretches from Talwara through Una and Hamirpur, extending all the way to the Sutlej River.

The fort is located about 2 km by road from Piplu, which itself is around 4 km from Dhaneta, accessible via a diversion at Rangas along NH-88 (Hamirpur to Una road).

For fort lovers, here’s a useful list of Forts in Himachal Pradesh.

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Reaching the Fort

Interestingly, there are two main forts visible along this ridge, roughly 2 km apart. I visited the one visible towards the left-hand side when facing the hill from Jhateharh village.

Note: Jhateharh doesn’t have food or lodging facilities, so it’s wise to carry your own food and water. Reaching the fort requires a steep 1 km trek through rough terrain and shrubbery.

Of the three available paths, I chose to start from Jhatehar, as it’s the shortest, though the steep incline and overgrown bushes made it quite challenging.

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My Journey from Hamirpur to Solah Singhi Dhar Fort

The journey from Hamirpur to Piplu, via Dhaneta (about 32 km), took me nearly an hour due to the winding single-lane roads. From Piplu, I caught a glimpse of the fort, standing tall on the hilltop.

After getting directions from Monu, a friendly local shopkeeper, I began the uphill trek along a faint trail partially hidden by grass and shrubs. The trail is tricky to spot, but you can use the fort itself as your visual guide.

The shrub-covered trail towards Solah Singhi Fort — the steep green hill waiting to be conquered

If you're planning a solo visit — make sure you're comfortable with heights and isolated trails, otherwise, it's better to go in a group.

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First Stop: Baba Solah Singhi Temple

Partway up the mountain slope, I came across the Baba Solah Singhi Temple, a small, concrete-structured temple dedicated to the local deity. From this spot, I could clearly see the final stretch of the climb, leading to the fort's entrance.

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Exploring the Solah Singhi Fort

The interior remains of Solah Singhi Fort — weathered by time, as captured in October 2014.

Finally, I made it to the top. Sadly, there were no signboards or historical information panels, but the location itself speaks volumes. The hilltop fort forms a natural barrier, separating two plains — one on either side of the ridge.

Though the exact geographical landmarks were hard to identify, the fort's architecture gave away its historical significance.

Constructed mainly of stone and mud, the fort also shows signs of more recent repairs, with traces of concrete and mortar visible on the walls. Historical references suggest the fort was built by the Katoch Kings between the 11th and 13th centuries AD.

It's a two-storey structure, with 1-metre-thick walls in places, and arched entrances offering panoramic views of the valleys below.

Perched by a sturdy opening in the thick stone walls of Solah Singhi Dhar Fort — a glimpse into the fort's strategic construction. Location: Near Bangana, Una (H.P.).

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Other Forts on the Ridge

From this vantage point, I spotted another fort along the ridge, though I didn’t visit it. Locals say it's in worse condition than the one I explored, adding to the sense of forgotten grandeur that surrounds this area.

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Unique Features & Challenges

One particularly impressive feature was the underground water tank, built right on top of the hill — a testament to the engineering foresight of those times.

The second storey of the main chamber looked risky to climb, so I explored the adjacent chambers along the fort's length instead. With steep slopes all around and no open space to roam freely, I decided not to linger too long — especially being alone.

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Final Thoughts & Tips

The fort, though worn by time, holds immense historical value. It's unfortunate that with proper care and promotion, it hasn’t become a more prominent tourist attraction.

If you plan to visit, I highly recommend going with friends, carrying your own food, water, and maybe a good dose of adventurous spirit!

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Reference:

Research Paper on Solah Singhi Fort

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Thanks for reading — stay curious, stay exploring!

A visit to Fort of Sujanpur Tihra

Hello!

Although my mind is always wandering, I don't consider myself that much of a wanderer. I belong to Himachal Pradesh and been feeling shameful to not have visited many of its famous places. Therefore, In the recent years, I found it interesting and mandatory to visit the holy and beautiful places in the Himachal Pradesh.

After coming over to NIT Hamirpur for my M.Tech. it had been a little difficult for me to find any time even for those past one day trips of the surrounding places, that I took while doing my job as a lecturer at JNGEC. Yesterday, I had a small talk with Tarun Sir, who is present in almost half of my earlier stories that I have posted here, and he advised me to visit the Dhanetha, a place near to Nadaun, in Hamirpur.

Dhaneta is famous for a fort, which I would visit later to find the fort at ruin. This post is not about that fort, that story is covered in my future post here:  A Visit of Solah Singi Fort of Una, Himachal Pradesh

He told me that the place is linked with the 'Abhimanyu Chakravyuh' from the 'Mahabharata', I googled for the place but didn't find any such stories, and neither any blog post kind of stuff. It seemed a little hard for me to take the risk, and then I thought of visiting the another place, which is quite nearer to NIT Hamirpur.

Reaching Sujanpur Fort from NIT Hamirpur 

Sujanpur Tihra, is a town located at a distance of about 24 km from Hamirpur, and is famous for the Katoch Fort, or popularly known as the Sujanpur Fort. I asked Naveen, my room-mate to come along, and on my bike, we started at 10:15 AM. The road was double lane, but was pot holed till half of our 24 km journey.

River Beas at the Sujanpur Tihra - Himachal Pradesh (Oct. 2014)

At 11:00 AM, we reached Sujanpur, totally refreshed by the fresh air and the view of river Beas at the entrance to the town. Watching the 1 km^2 ground, nearby to the Sainik School, made me remember my earlier visits to the place. One of them was with my brother in the year of 2010, in between the Holi fair, which is celebrated in the month of March each year, and continues for about 2 to 3 weeks at the same ground. This was the popular Himachali Singer Mr. Dheeraj Sharma, with whom my brother Sandeep Sharma had to perform in that musical night. 

That night, my brother played the octapad, an important instrument which gives the beats to the song, and therefore every orchestra has it. Dheeraj, in his melodious and powerful voice sung very enthusiastically. Among other songs, he sung Mohammad Rafi's "Aawaj mei na Dunga", and it suited very well on his voice. Naveen is from Bihar, and because he never visited the places of Himachal Pradesh, he was having a good time to know the place.

We took the single lane, 2 km long road from Sujanpur Bus Stand to reach the fort, which was located at the top of the hill, known as 'Tihra' or 'Tira' means the top of the hill. At the entrance, the presence of the board by the archaeological survey of India, tells the importance of this historical monument. Katoch dynasty is known to be the oldest in the whole world, because they say that the historical and the holy script known as "Rig Veda" has the mention of the Katoch dynasty.

Fort of Sujanpur Tihra(1) - Himachal Pradesh (October 2014)

Sujanpur Tihra - The fort we saw:

Katoch fort was built in the year 1750 AD by the Maharaja(King)  'Abhay Chandra', and got the  popularity country wide, when the Maharaja 'Sansar Chandra' of the ernest princely state Kangra formed his palace at the fort itself. Many parts of the fort got damaged in the year 1905 due to the Kangra earthquake. I observed that the construction was done with the small sized bricks and stones, and the walls were almost 1 meter thick, and in between the outer and inner walls, spaces were filled with rooms or entrances.

Fort of Sujanpur Tihra(2) - Himachal Pradesh (Oct 2014)

Roofs were almost nowhere to be found, but wherever remaining, they were also constructed with the bricks and maybe lime mortar. Fort walls extend to I guess half a kilometer long distance but, I am not sure about that.

Fort of Sujanpur Tihra(3) - Himachal Pradesh (Oct 2014)

Along with few girls and boys, who were there to have a outing on saturday, some men were busy with the stone and masonry work, which I suppose was carried out for the repairing and maintenance of the fort. One person was digging, a totally damaged wall, and a mason was placing the stone and the mortar. I located two temples within the fort area, one was Gauri-Shankar temple and another was without any sign board or notification board. One of them was perhaps the Murli-Manohar temple. They both seemed old enough, may be were built by the Raja(King) Sansar Chandra in the early 19th Century. 

A view of Chaugan from Fort of Sujanpur Tihra (Oct 2014)

There is a magnificent view at the fort of the Sujanpur town and its 'Chaugan'. The say that the grass present in this ground remains green throughout the year. In earlier times, the ground was divided into four parts, to be used by the four different casts of our earlier society, but now the times has changed, for the good. I tried my best to find the best clicks to post here. On the way back, we searched for the famous Nandikeshwar temple which is present in the market of the Sujanpur town itself. 

We visited the temple, but were not able to find any history or details about the temple, except few clicks with my camera.  It took another hour to reach back to my hostel at NIT, or may be less, because I was feeling huger for the food.

Update - 07th July 2015 : 
Later I visited the Narvdeshwar temple, and would find that the Nandikeshwar is different, and was not that much famous. Narvdeshwar temple is a historical master-piece built by the queen of Raja(king) Sansar Chand of Katoch dynasty.

Thanks for your kind visit, please come visit again!