Mohindra College in Patiala: A milestone of 150 years, but crumbling heritage structure ‘faces uncertain future’

However, the celebrations come with a sense of unease, as the heritage iconic structure is under threat from the vagaries of weather. Years of neglect and insufficient funding have left parts of the structure crumbling, sparking concerns among faculty, students and alumni. Despite its grandeur, the building now suffers from leaky roofs, weakening walls with peepal sapling growing out of these, and fading facades, prompting urgent calls for restoration funds and government intervention.

“I am giving a representation to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. The building should be repaired and restored and a proper mechanism should be set for its annual maintenance. The structure was painted afresh a few years ago. But it needs funds. The roofs leak, old walls of heritage importance have given away. The structure needs repairs and restoration,” Maninder Sidhu, principal of the college, said.

“Just walk around the building and one feels such a dwarf walking in the corridors. The Old Students Association of the college, set up in 1912, gave a representation in my office. I am forwarding it to the CM praying that he should immediately do something for the college,” the principal added.

She said the college authorities, before she took over, took up the matter with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI). “However, we do not want to hand over the building to ASI. It should be preserved,” Sidhu further said.

The principal’s concerns are shared by the alumni, faculty, serving and retired, alike.

“I studied here. My father was a student of the college in 1940. My wife, Dr Gurpreet Kaur Sandhu teaches Psychology here. I can give my last drop of blood for this institution. Whenever we talk about the rich legacy of the college with utmost pride, we often fear how the building faces an uncertain future,” Professor Shavinder Singh, an alumnus of the college, who also taught here for 22 years said.

“The building should be handed over to an expert committee. Renovation should be done on war footing. The encroachments alongside the college boundary wall should be removed. The CM should set up a high-powered committee to conduct a proper survey before undertaking the renovation,” he added.

Having named the 150-year-old journey of the institution, the incumbent administration of the college is now celebrating sesquicentennial by organising a series of functions under the title ‘Safar-e-Fakhr’.

According to Professor S M Verma, a historian and an alumnus of the college, the college was a result of the vision of erstwhile Maharaja Mohinder Singh (1852-76) of Patiala to his state subjects. At the time of its inception in 1875, it was the only institution of its kind in a vast area stretching from Lahore to Delhi.

The college was established to provide free education to the state subjects as this region was educationally impoverished.  Until 1931, the students did not have to pay any fee.  The Earl of Northbrook, the then Viceroy of India, laid the foundation stone of the college building on March 30, 1875. The building was completed in about nine years and the then Viceroy Lord Ripon performed the opening ceremony on March 17, 1884. At that time the college was affiliated to Calcutta University. The tradition of imparting free education for girl students up to the graduation level is still continuing.

Tarlochan Singh, former MP and former chairperson of National Minority Committee Commission, one of the oldest alumni of the college said it is “commendable how the erstwhile Maharaja, who passed away at a young age of 24, conceived the idea of setting up a college for the people of his state”.

“We are proud to be the students of this college. I was a refugee having migrated from Pakistan after the Partition when I did not have money to study here. I worked as a child labour for 18 months and after that I took admission in this college in class X. I was given a scholarship to study further and I quit the institution after completing my MA,” he said.

The former MP said that there is no college building like the one of Mohindra College in India. “I reckon that all governments are in a financial mess. But its preservation is important. I understand the financial issues but preservation of heritage should be a priority,” he added.

Shivdular Singh Dhillon, a retired IAS, who is also an alumnus of the college, described the architecture of the college as a blend of Gothic, Roman, Mughal, and Indian styles.

“The plan was originally drawn up on the lines of Oxford and Cambridge by the erstwhile Maharaja Mohinder Singh. It was to come up as a quadrangle. However, he could only see half of the building come up before he passed away at 24. He was inspired by the British system of education and the centres of excellence. But now, there are only two towers instead of four. Unfortunately, after the demise of the Maharaja, his son and heir, Maharaja Rajinder Singh was a minor. The state was run by the council of regencies. They did not carry forward that vision,” he said.

Dhillon, who served as ADC Patiala in 2003-2004, saw how the heritage structure was threatened at that time. “An open air theatre was constructed in the courtyard in front of the building. I got that demolished. Then, they wanted to construct an auditorium in the area. I did not allow that. I asked them for God’s sake not to spoil the building.”

He said he was a votary of preservation of the building but not like others, “I do not vote for handing over the building as a monument to the ASI. In that case, the building will be vacated and taken over by ASI. This building is an example of living heritage. It has survived so many years because it is being used. It sees air getting circulated. There are examples of such living heritage buildings being used — Cambridge and Oxford are the ones as those are 800-year-old buildings, but still being used. Humboldt in Berlin is also another such example. Why should we reduce our building to a monument when it is serving as a living heritage,” the former bureaucrat said.

Meanwhile, Punjab Education Minister Harjot Singh Bains said that he will get the heritage structure protected. “I will try my best to get it protected. I will take it up with ASI also,” he said.