The Haunted History Of Himachal Pradesh's Tunnel No- 33 | Barog Station | Barog Ghost Tunnel|

 

                          

Tunnel No-#33 at barog railway station

All hill stations have their share of ghost stories. Why that is, is something of a mystery in itself. Is it because of the nature of hills and the blanket of secrecy and silence or is it because writer after writer has immortalised the hills with their own literary ghosts?

It comes as no surprise then that Shimla, considered to be the ‘Queen Of The Hills’, has its own share of haunted stories as well. Among those is the tale of Tunnel No. 33, near Barog Railway Station.

The story goes that in 1898, Railway engineer Colonel Barog was appointed with the task of constructing a tunnel in the region in a stipulated time. After several calculations and perhaps a few miscalculations, labourers started working on the plan. His idea was to get the labourers to start working from two different ends so that they would meet in the middle thus completing the tunne;.

But many boring holes and digging later, the labourers did not end up meeting in the middle. Perhaps due to Colonel Barog’s miscalculations, the task could not be completed and he was fired from the job and fined by the government. The labourers too were furious. Unable to deal with the embarrassment and humiliation, he fell into a state of depression.

On a regular night-walk with his dog, he shot himself out of his misery and bled to his demise there. To pay homage to him, his body was buried near the incomplete tunnel. If locals are to be believed, he never left the place and his spirit still haunts the place.

The ghost of Colonel Barog is said to visit the tunnel where he chats up with unaware strangers. It is also said that the government tried to lock up the incomplete tunnel but every time the lock would be found broken.

Colonel Barog’s ghost might not fit the bill of scary ghosts but the tale in itself is quite eerie. The tunnel was completed later on by chief engineer HS Herlington by moving the tunnel by a kilometre away from its initial spot. The idea of a ghost lurking, with the misery of an incomplete task, is perhaps an accurate sub-conscious manifestation of the human condition and our inability to let go of our failures.

                                             

The Ghost of Tunnel 33

Have you ever thought that the Queen of Hills, Shimla, has any haunted place?  Well, much to your surprise the answer to this is a yes. While you are busy admiring the scenic beauty of Shimla, do not be surprised if something else catch your attraction. Tunnel no. 33, the longest tunnel of length 1143.61m built on the Kalka-Shimla railway track is a famous tourist spot. But this tunnel is well known for some untold secrecy.

Colonel Barog, an English railway engineer was given the charge of building this tunnel in 1898. He was given a strict deadline for completing his assignment. In order to achieve the target in given time limit Barog ordered labours to dig both the sides of the mountain thinking that they will meet at the center and he will get the desired tunnel. Alas! There was some miscalculation in Barog’s work and his idea of digging the hills was a complete failure. The British Government was so annoyed with him that they charged him with a 1 rupee fine.

Poor Barog being a sincere engineer felt humiliated and insulted at the same time. He had no body to share his sorrow with except his little dog. One day when he was in a walk accompanied by his dog he committed suicide by firing himself. Though his dog tried to gather people by seeing his master bleeding but till then Braog breathed his last. Colonel was buried near the incomplete tunnel on the Kalka-Shimla railway track. After the completion of the tunnel it was named after Barog in order to pay him respect. Now physically there is no sign of Barog but it is believed that Barog never left that place.

Barog is often seen riding his horse. He is also seen chatting with people and answering their questions. Of course people, who do not know, who Barog was gets a chance to meet him. The local people of Shimla believe that there exists some kind of eeriness inside the tunnel. People have also seen the ghost of Colonel Barog in and out of the tunnel. It has been reported that there have been unnatural movements of a person inside the tunnel. People claim to have seen the ghost of Barog moving inside the tunnel. Government have tried to block the entrance of the tunnel but the lock has been broken each time and since then the door can be opened by anyone. Even Barog needs an open space to breath, so what if he cannot be seen, his presence can definitely be felt. Although these common myths surrounds Tunnel 33 but you should not miss the beauty of the tunnel once you visit Shimla.

Most importantly Colonel Barog is known as a friendly spirit and there has been no complain against him. So if you get a site of him during your visit do not panic, instead, return with some true facts that the world is yet to know about the sincere British railway engineer. No matter what you do he will not harm you and even if he does then it will create a new history all over. So don't be scared if you meet him..