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| Pul Kanjari |
Heritage
site known as Pul Kanjari is located midway between Amritsar and Lahore villages of Daoka and Dhanoa Kalan near
the Wagah Border. Main attraction of this heritage
site is
-a ruined baradari,
-a temple,
-a pond
-a war memorial.
Pul Kanjri is famous a world heritage
sight declared by UNESCO.
How to Reach:-
After crossing Atari from Amritsar side, nearly 500 yards ahead,
there is a road on the right, leading to village Attalgarh. After Attalgarh,
"village Mode” the road ends at Pul Moran.
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| Pul Kanjari Pond |
History of Pul Kanjari/Pul Moran:-
It Build by Maharaja Ranjit Singh
around which are sewn many tales and legends. The Maharaja would often rest and leisure here
in the majestic Baradari while passing by along with his royal troop and
retinues. Despite a ruined fort and a baoli (a bathing pool) this heritage
sight has a temple, a Gurudwara and a mosque which bespeak of the secular concerns
of the Maharaja. The inside of the dome on the corner of the baoli enshrines a
number of scenes and sights from the Hindu scriptures and the Raj Darbar.These
frescoes are laced with floral frames.
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| Ruined Baradari |
The author of Maharaja
Ranjit Singh: Personalitas Extraordinaire says: "The character of
Moran played hide and seek with me while I was researching my book on the
maharaja." Manveen got the feeling that here was a woman who was seeking
her rightful place in history when she accompanied her son for photographic
documentation of the area where Pul Kanjari is located. Pul Kanjari (or Pul
Tawaif) is being conserved for inclusion into the heritage circuit for tourists
who visit the Wagah border. Since it was difficult for Moran and the maharaja
to meet in Lahore or Amritsar due to the opposition to their relationship,
their rendezvous shifted to a beautiful Baradari situated between Amritsar and
Lahore, near Moran’s village, Makhanpur.
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| Beautiful Painting in Temple (Pul Kanjari) |
The bridge got its name,
according to a popular story, from an incident when Moran was coming to meet
the maharaja and she lost her slipper in the Hansali canal. When she came
barefoot and complained, the king promptly got a bridge constructed and it was
named after the dancing girl. A dancing girl is called kanjari in
Punjabi (and it is almost an abuse).
"This derogatory
term in reality is a mutation of kanchani which in Persian
means dipped in gold and fully blossomed. I feel it is also insulting to a
woman who was not only learned, a great philanthropist and a true companion to
the king."
Through his marriage to
Moran, the maharaja also wanted to uplift the community of tawaifs who
were social outcasts. Marriage for social integration is often looked down upon
because of class and caste factors, unlike a matrimonial alliance for the
expansion of the kingdom for political reasons, which is between social equals.
Moran won her way into
his heart when Ranjit Singh was only 21 because she was unlike any woman he had
known. She accompanied him when he went riding. He married Moran against the wishes of the entire community and despite the conditions that were laid down by Moran’s father and the head of her community Mian Samdu. The community was rehabilitated in Sharifpura, near Amritsar.
Moran and the maharaja went to Hardwar for a dip in the Ganga after their marriage in 1802. The marriage incurred the wrath of the entire Khalsa Panth and Ranjit Singh was called to the Akal Takht for retribution. He was proclaimed guilty and condemned to public flogging. He bowed before the Akal Takht and accepted the punishment. He was exempted with one kora and a fine.
He never minted a coin in his own name but he struck one in Moran’s name. She became known as Moran Sarkar and became a window to the common people who often brought their problems to her.
BSF Border OuterPost (BOP No 50):-
There is a BSF post with Pulkanjari becouse the international border is so near and we see the pakistani check post easly
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| BSF Post |
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| International Border fencing near Pul Kanjari |
Battle of Pul Kanjari/Pul Moran:-
Pul Kanjri was
captured by the Pakistani army during the Indo-Pak wars of 1965 and 1971, and
was recaptured by the Indian Army later. A memorial column, constructed in the
memory of the jawans of Sikh regiments, who had recaptured Pul Kanjri from the
Pakistani army in 1971, stands as a testimony to the supreme sacrifices.
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| Add caption
In 1971 War, On December 17th and 18th, 2 Sikh attacked and
recaptured the Pulkanjri village. During this attack L/Naik Shangara Singh
displayed conspicuous gallantry in clearing two machinegun posts which were
holding the attack up. Shangara Singh dashed through a minefield and hurled a
grenade at one of the post. He then charged the second gun and leaping over the
loophole he snatched the gun from its occupants.
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| War Memorial |
As he stood with the gun in his hands he received a fatal burst in his abdomen and fell to the ground with the gun still in his hand. He was awarded a posthumous Maha Vir Chakra. N/ Sub. Gian Singh received a posthumous Vir Chakra. The Pakistanis tried to recapture the Pulkanjri village using a company of 43 Punjab and two companies of 15 Punjab. The Sikhs stood firm and inflicted heavy casualties on the enemy's 15 Punjab. In a local counter attack they captured 1 officer and 8 OR's of 43 Punjab and 4 OR's of 15 Punjab.
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| Green fields |
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| old Canal which is diverted to Indian side due to partition |
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