Snippets: A Visit to Peter Hoff and IIAS, Shimla

I have been to Shimla many times, but having spent my childhood there, I kept coming back to relieve the memory of old times. However, on a recent trip, with my family, I visited some important places and discovered several facts which may have faded from public memory.

We checked into HPTDC’s Hotel Peter Hoff. Situated at Summer Hills, the original building of Peter Hoff, built in early 19th century, reminds us of the pre-independence era. A historical building, it housed seven Viceroys and Governor Generals during the British Raj. The hotel is located at a hillock with the State Museum on one side and Viceroy Regal Lodge, now lodging the Indian Institute of Advance Studies (IIAS), on the other side.

The building was rebuilt in 1992-93, as the earlier building was devastated in a huge fire in 1981 and, thereafter, it was converted into a state-run guest house-cum-hotel.

Nostalgic Visit

After partition of India, our family relocated to Shimla. My father was an Advocate at Lahore High Court, which was shifted to Shimla, - it being the capital of undivided Punjab. I have faded memories of hearing elders around us talk about the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi and that the assassinator was being tried at Shimla High Court.

Peter Hoff served as Punjab High Court after partition and it was here that the trial of Nathu Ram Godse, the assassinator of Mahatma Gandhi took place in 1948-49. I reminisce that my father used to visit High Court during those days. The stay at the building was nostalgic. Now a museum is being planned at Peter Hoff to recreate the Godse trial.

I was quite eager to know why the name of the building is Peter Hoff, which resonates of a Russian or German background. This information was not available in the hotel or in literature of the place. However, after a sustained search on the internet, I could find that the word ‘Peter’ is of Greek origin and its meaning is "rock" or ‘Stone’, and meaning of ‘Hoff’ is dweller in a courtyard or fenced-in place or a farm. That the building is situated on a fenced-in rocky hillock, the name Peter Hoff is fitting.

Historic Building

The next day we visited Indian Institute of Advanced studies (IIAS), which is located near Peter Hoff. Before we entered the building, we went around the vast grassy lawns in front of the building and gardens at the back of the building. The conducted trip to the interiors of this historical and magnificent building of colonial past was quick, short and restricted to few rooms. Before our inquest about the artefacts and historical objects placed inside got excited we were shown the way out of the building.

The Vice Regal Lodge, designed by Henry Irvine, a Scottish architect is a magnum opus of British legacy. Lord and Lady Dufferin became the first inhabitants of this building in July 1888. This Estate passed into the hands of the President of India after Independence in 1947 and later the building was formally inaugurated as Indian Institute of Advanced Studies by then President Radhakrishnan. The building now houses a library and hostel for the scholars doing advanced research.

We entered a gallery with elaborate teak wood-work. The guide told us that many historic decisions have been taken in the building during the Indian independence movement. The decision to carve out Pakistan and East Pakistan from India was initiated here in 1947. The guide showed us the table where the documents of the partition were prepared.

State-Of-The-Art Vice Regal Lodge

The thing that impressed me most was the state-of-the-art arrangements which were placed while designing the building, much ahead of that time. Guide told us that the Lodge had provision for electricity as far back as 1888, much before the rest of the town of Shimla. He showed us the original light panel still in place, with an added fuse box. The wiring channel was built-in the building structure. At later date, a steam generator specially brought from Scotland, supplied power to light the lamps.

The building also was equipped with a sophisticated fire fighting mechanism by using phase change material, i.e. special wax tipped to water ducts. The wax would melt if the temperature would rise to 60 degree centigrade providing outlet to nitrogen gas, which will extinguish the fire immediately. Before I could ask question, guide informed that fortunately, this system never got tested since building never witnessed any fire. However, he added that a routine check of maintenance is made on the readyness of this system.

The Lodge also had a sophisticated rainwater harvesting system for collecting and storing bath and rainwater, including two tanks under the front lawn. Even today, we have yet to accomplish our national buildings with such state-of-the -art arrangements.

One of the rooms shown to us had a 120 year old wall clock, still in working condition. Guide said that the clock is wound once in a week. The clock also indicated the direction of the sun during the progrress of the day. A rare bell, gifted by the Royal family of Nepal, considered to be an antique piece, was stolen from the premises of the building in April 2010.

Unfortunately, the building of IIAS is in deterioration today; cracks in stone masonry could be seen. This heritage building needs to be saved urgently.