Cultural Documentation of River Ganga from Gaumukh to Ganga Sagar – Kaushambi District

This Namami Gange project is being undertaken for the Jal Shakti Ministry, Government of India, under the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) scheme. INTACH is assisting the Ministry in the capacity of a knowledge partner. Three divisions of INTACH namely; Natural Heritage (NH), Architectural Heritage (AH) and Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) divisions have been engaged in the cultural mapping project, of three aspects natural, tangible and intangible assets along Ganga.
The objective of the project is to conduct field investigation and document existing cultural assets on either side of the river Ganga (within a radius of 5Kms, starting from its source, i.e. Gangotri, down to its point of dispersal at Ganga Sagar) and to produce for the ministry a detailed, illustrated report based on the primary and secondary resources available.

Kaushambi District

At Kaushambi, the team visited several historical, religious and cultural sites, such as the ancestral house of Durgavati Devi or Durga Bhabhi at Shajadpur. She was a freedom fighter also known as ‘the iron lady’ and a member of the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association which had freedom fighters like Bhagat Singh. Also documentes was the Ghoshitarama Buddhist Monastery, Sant Malook Das Ashram, ghats such as Kubri Ghat, Vrindavan Ghat, Hanuman Ghat, Kaleshwar Ghat, Baleshwar Ghat, Sandipan Ghat, Parana Ghat, Akbarpur Ghat, and areas of Banana cultivation (which is under the ODOP Scheme).

The team also documented the Kuppi Mela of Kaushambi; as per the local belief the 100year old traditional and unique Kuppi Yudh or battle is organized during the Dussehra festival every year at Daranagar area of Kaushambi district. The ceremonial battle of Lord Rama and Ravana’s army is staged in the Kuppi war.

Check out more on the INTACH ICH Archive:
https://icharchive.intach.org/Detail/collections/81