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| Oakover | |
|---|---|
 Entry gate of Oakover | |
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| General information | |
| Location | Bemloi |
| Town or city | Shimla |
| Country |  India |
| Current tenants | |
| Construction started | 1861 [1] |
Oakover is a historic building in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India. It is the official residence of the Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh.
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Oakover was one of the earliest houses built in Shimla, a hill station that served as the summer capital of British India. It was originally owned by the Maharajas of Patiala, a princely state that was allied with the British. However, in 1891, the Maharaja of Patiala was banned from entering Shimla by the British Viceroy, Lord Lansdowne, for allegedly eloping with the Viceroy’s daughter. To avenge this insult, the Maharaja founded Chail, a rival town to Shimla, at a higher elevation. Oakover was then sold to the British government and became the residence of various officials and dignitaries. After India’s independence in 1947, Oakover was transferred to the state government of Himachal Pradesh and became the official residence of the Chief Minister in 1971.
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Oakover is a two-storey building with a sloping roof and wooden balconies. It is built in the colonial style of architecture, with a blend of European and Indian elements. The building is surrounded by a lush garden and a stone wall. The entrance gate of Oakover has a sign that reads “Oakover, Residence of the Chief Minister, Himachal Pradesh. The building has a spacious hall, a drawing room, a dining room, a library, and several bedrooms and bathrooms. The building also has a fireplace, a heating system, and a generator. The building is well-maintained and renovated from time to time.
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Oakover has several bungalows within its premises, which are used for accommodating guests and staff. The bungalows are named after various flowers, such as Rose, Jasmine, Lily, and Orchid. The bungalows are also built in the colonial style, with wooden floors and ceilings, and have modern amenities. The bungalows have a scenic view of the mountains and the valley.
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Oakover is not only the residence of the Chief Minister, but also his workplace. The building has a separate office wing, where the Chief Minister conducts his official meetings and affairs. The office wing has a conference room, a secretariat, and a media room. The office wing is connected to the main building by a corridor. The office wing is equipped with computers, phones, fax machines, and other communication devices. The office wing also has a security system and a fire alarm. The office wing is staffed by the Chief Minister’s personal assistants, secretaries, and advisors.
British photographer Samuel Bourne travelled through India beginning in January 1863. He also visited Shimla and took photos featuring Oakover: Oakover, Simla [2] Simla, from Oakover [3] and Jakko, from Oakover. [4]
Shimla is the capital and the largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared the summer capital of British India. After independence, the city became the capital of East Punjab and was later made the capital city of Himachal Pradesh. It is the principal commercial, cultural and educational centre of the state.
The Patiala and East Punjab States Union (PEPSU) was a state of India, uniting eight princely states between 1948 and 1956. The capital and principal city was Patiala. The state covered an area of 26,208 km2. Shimla, Kasauli, Kandaghat and Chail also became part of PEPSU.
Virbhadra Singh was an Indian politician who served 6 terms and 21 years as the 4th Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh. A leader of the Indian National Congress party, he was elected 9 times as a Member of Legislative Assembly to the Himachal Pradesh Vidhan Sabha and 5 times as Member of Parliament to the Lok Sabha. Virbhadra Singh was popularly known by the honorific Raja Sahib. Singh holds the distinction of being the longest serving Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, holding the office from 1983 to 1990, from 1993 to 1998, from 2003 to 2007 and finally from 2012 to 2017, when he was succeeded by the BJP's Jai Ram Thakur. He was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1962, 1967, 1971, 1980 and 2009. Singh served as a Union Minister in the governments of Indira Gandhi and Manmohan Singh. At the time of his demise, he was serving as an MLA from Arki constituency.
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Bishop Cotton School is a private boarding school for boys aged 7-18 years old in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh. It is one of the oldest boarding schools for boys in Asia, having been founded on 28 July 1859 by Bishop George Edward Lynch Cotton. Bishop Cotton also founded the Bishop Cotton School in Nagpur. The alumni of Bishop Cotton are known as Old Cottonians. The Bishop Cotton School, Shimla celebrated 150 years of existence in 2009.
The Rashtrapati Niwas, formerly known as Viceregal Lodge, is located on the Observatory Hills of Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India. It was formerly the residence of the British Viceroy of India. It houses some of the most ancient articles and photographs going back to the times of the British rule in India.
The Punjab States Agency was an agency of the British Raj. The agency was created in 1921, on the model of the Central India Agency and Rajputana Agency, and dealt with forty princely states in northwest India formerly dealt with by the Province of Punjab.
Shimla district, known as Simla district until 1972, is one of the twelve districts of the state of Himachal Pradesh in northern India. Its headquarters is the state capital of Shimla. Neighbouring districts are Mandi and Kullu in the north, Kinnaur in the east, Uttarakhand in the southeast, Solan to the southwest and Sirmaur in the south. The elevation of the district ranges from 987 metres (3,238 ft) to 4,500 metres (14,764 ft).
Mall Road is the major hangout point and shopping center in Shimla, the capital city of Himachal Pradesh, India. Constructed during British colonial rule, the Mall road is located a level below The Ridge. The offices of municipal corporation, fire service and police headquarters are located here. Automobiles, except emergency vehicles are not allowed on this road.
Chail is a hill station in Solan district of Himachal Pradesh, India. It is 45 kilometres (28 mi) from Solan city and 44 kilometres (27 mi) from Shimla. It is known for its salubrious beauty and virgin forests. The Chail Palace is well known for its architecture: the palace was built as a summer retreat by the Maharaja of Patiala during the British Raj, on the land allotted to him by the British for the former's assistance in the Anglo-Nepalese War. The cricket ground and a polo ground which is there at an altitude of 2,444 m are owned by the erstwhile royal family of Patiala. It is the world's highest cricket ground.
Sir Bhupinder Singh was the Maharaja of Patiala and a cricket player. Singh's reign as Maharaja of the princely state of Patiala, in British India, lasted from 1900 to 1938. He was a member of the Phulkian dynasty. During his reign, Singh was most noted for his extravagance, contributions to sports, and for being an ally to the British Raj.
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Preneet Kaur is an Indian politician who served in the Government of India as a Minister of State in the Ministry of External Affairs from 2009 to 2014. She is married to Amarinder Singh, who was the 15th Chief Minister of Punjab. She joined the Congress party, to which her husband also belonged once, and contested parliamentary elections repeatedly from the Patiala constituency. In February 2023, she was suspended from the party for supporting BJP leader and her husband Amarinder Singh and campaigning for candidates of the BJP or BJP-allied parties. She won the elections of 1999, 2004 and 2009, but lost her seat in the elections of 2014 and made a comeback by winning again in 2019.
Rashtrapati Niwas, previously known as The Retreat Building is the official retreat residence of the President of India at Chharabra, Shimla, in the state of Himachal Pradesh. The President stays at the building for at least two weeks during summer and conducts official business. It is located 13 km away from the city Shimla and is a thousand feet higher than the Shimla Ridge Top, which is part of the Himalayas.
Kandaghat is a small town and tehsil (sub-district), near Solan city in the Solan district of Himachal Pradesh, India which is on the Kalka-Shimla National Highway No. 22. The road to the famous tourist destination of Chail turns from Kandaghat which is at a distance of 29 km. The capital of Himachal Pradesh, Shimla is at a distance of 30 km.
Bourne & Shepherd was an Indian photographic studio and one of the oldest established photographic businesses in the world. Established in 1863, at its peak, it was the most successful commercial firm in 19th-and early 20th-century India, with agencies all over India, and outlets in London and Paris, and also ran a mail order service. A devastating fire in 1991 destroyed much of the studio's photographic archive and resulted in a severe financial loss to the firm. The long-term impact of the fire, legal difficulties with the Indian government, which owned the studio building, and the increasing dominance of digital technology, finally forced the studio's closure in June 2016. At its closure, the studio had operated continuously for 176 years.
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The Himachal State Museum is a cultural museum located in Shimla, in the Indian Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh.
Shriniwas Joshi is a columnist, theatre artist, and retired civil servant from Himachal Pradesh, India. As a columnist, Joshi is especially known for his column 'Vignettes' in the Indian English daily The Tribune, through which he has documented people, history, places, and idiosyncratic things all across Himachal Pradesh. As a theatre figure, he has been associated for decades with Shimla's historic Gaiety Theatre, for which he has written, acted in, and directed a number of plays. As a retired civil servant, Joshi has been active in various civic causes in Shimla, including heritage conservation, environmental protection, and the promotion of arts.
31°5′40.63″N77°10′32.45″E / 31.0946194°N 77.1756806°E
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