This humble Post Office in Harshil Valley made famous by an old movie is still a tourist attraction

et up in a rented house in 1960, built of wood and local materials, the post office was featured in several key scenes of the hit film, released in 1985.

Located atop Uttarkashi, Harsil is an excellent mountain resort which has attracted Hindi old movie enthusiast but has managed to retain its freshness. Tucked away amidst green valleys, sleepy meadows this little hamlet of Uttarakhand is situated at an altitude of 7,860 feet. One of the most beautiful mountain resorts amidst the Kumaon Himalayas, Harsil is the perfect destination if you are looking for serenity and solitude in the lap of nature. Also adorned with apple orchards, this village elevated at a height of 2620 m above the sea level is also known for its numerous trekking trails.

With pleasant summers and chilling winters, it is situated 72 kms ahead of Uttarkashi on Uttarkashi - Gangotri Road. If you are looking for a romantic outing or simply a family vacation, Harsil is a must visit.

In one of the remote corners of Uttarakashi district is located a post office that has been the center of attraction for the tourists for over a three decades now. The forlorn spot was made famous by the Raj Kapoor-directed ‘Ram Teri Ganga Maili’. Among the few links for local residents with the outside world, it is still waiting to be upgraded and modernized. Set up in a rented house in 1960, built of wood and local materials, the post office was featured in several key scenes of the hit film, released in 1985.

 

Not just a tourist site this post office is the sole dispatcher of written communication between the outside world and villages in the Gangotri and Nelong valleys near the Indo-China border and is serving the local residents and Army men posted in these parts, the building also became an object of tourist interest.

However, neither the postal department nor the district administration has ever tried to upgrade and modernize the structure, or expand the scope of its function.

In the era of Digital India, the post office is still offline. Meanwhile, the process of getting letters from elsewhere is no less cumbersome than the process of delivering them to residents.

According to the postmaster, the last delivery point of the postal van is at Bhatwari, 45 km from Harsil. The snow makes it difficult to reach the delivery point. This in turn delays delivery of letters, including the important or urgent ones.

Nevertheless, the memories of Ram Teri Ganga Maili sit fresh in our minds and Harshil valley continue to retain its charm, beauty, and vitality


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