Ferede Village “Home Stay” ( the Ghost Story… Part 11th… The Concluding episode) …

(Recap –  When I told my experiences to the Home Stay owner, he too in response verified my facts. But, eventually it made me realized that in fact, I had been with a ‘weird kind of encounter of third kind with ghosts.’ This made me numb.)

For a considerably long period, we all remained en wrapped in a bleak air. Gradually, we came back from that lugubrious mind set and resumed our strength. No doubt, the Home stay owner was first to make the come back. He began to speak, ” Sir, our this region is surrounded by chains of mountains, one after another. A kind of natural calamity takes place here after the lapse of some years here intermittently. That “calamity” is called ” cloud bursting.” You can’t imagine, what kind of havoc it brings along with it. But by the grace of the god, it’s unpredictable, at what fixed place it will occur. It may occur on this place at this time, and at a remote place at next time. But one thing is confirmed, in every ten to thirty years, it occurs in a certitude. We all are accustomed to that, and take that as a curse of the almighty.

                                                                 The result of the cloud burst .

He took a little pause and began, ” These cloud bursts become the cause of massive land sliding. Even the major portion of a hill part, they happen to carry in shape of debris of big mass as boulders, soil, clay and vegetative habitation. This phenomenon destroys everything that comes in the way of that flow. This destruction, even changes the local topography up to a certain extant. The same kind of the havoc occurred in this locality in the year of 1941 last time.” His this statement made me spell bound. To me, it was the another phase of the story of Mr. Frederick Viole, which I had encountered last afternoon.

He said. ” In the year of 1941, ( now he pointed his hand upwardly  towards the main road side, that ran across the ledge) there in hill tops some cloud bursts in a sequence one after another took place, in a torrential night. The cloud bursts along with it carried the massive debris. At that time, this site of the Home Stay was at  a quite low gradient level. Although the rest of the village was already in an elevated location. This side of  Frederick Sahib’s landed property was turned up into a little more mound shaped structure. Not only this, a number of cloud bursts too took place downside in the little valley, where he had had his abode.”

Home Stay owner took a little pause, as if, collecting  the facts of story and continued, “Everything got obliterated in that havoc, even that changed the topography and created an abrupt precipice there. Next morning nothing was there, only a deep gorge people found there. Surprisingly, the part of the village where local people inhabited, that remained intact.  Everything and every one which belonged to Frederick Sahib got swept away in that calamity. The grand father of my this assistant, Roop Lal too was one of them. Now more than eighty years been passed and a lust green luxuriant forest had grown up there in the gorge.”

                                        How the title came to the Home stay owner

I was aghast hearing this part of the story. The Home Stay owner began, ” In the year of 1947, The India became free from the yolk of the British Empire. Later on in the year of 1952, in this province, government passed a bill related to the agriculture land. That Act known as “U P Zamindari ( Land Lord) Abolition Act.” It proclaimed, what so ever landed agricultural property that was under the tilling occupancy of a farmer, became his property. No doubt, it was subject to a limitation, a person couldn’t hold more than 12.25 Acre of such type of land. At that period of time, my forefathers had reclaimed this side debris into a plain land. By virtue of the provisions of the Act, this part of the land became the part and parcel of the personal property of my family. Now about five years ago, I built this Home Stay upon the same land.”

It astonished me, when I narrated the entire experience of my encounter with Frederick Sahib to Home Stay owner, how and why I could not dare to relate that piece of talk of his grudge. The dialogue of English man still resounded in my ears. He was asserting, more than half the village been gifted to poor natives by his father. But his threatening statement about this side of the property, where Home stay stood, ” these natives have forgotten to identify the power of we Britishers.” When he said this, indirectly, he was asserting claim over this part of the property. Again when I spoke to him, ” Sir! next time when ever I happen to come to this side, I will certainly visit your site.” In response to that, he had said, “Might be.” And then suddenly his half drowsed eyes had turned up in to a violent flash.

                                    What forced me to conceal the grudge of English man

God knows only, what made me avoid to relate this threatening statement to the Home stay owner. But answer to this was wrapped into a mysterious incidence of the future. Now, an intense desire I felt inside me, to flee off from this place at once. Without any hesitation, I expressed my desire to check out at once. In sooth, my whole being was trembling vigorously in an unknown fear. My inner man was suggesting me strongly, ” Run …. run off from this place man…”

I supplicated to the Home stay owner to arrange some vehicle, which could drop me back to metropolitan city back. Local people have had their own arrangement for such purposes. The local “pick up jeep car” got arranged for me. The jeep car dropped me at the Inter states Bus Terminal.’ From there after a six hours long ride, I was back to my abode. It took long to me from recovering this ghastly encounter with ghosts.

                                           I related my experiences to my friends

It was obvious that I was to relate my such experiences with my intimate friends. The reason behind was, I was so scared and anticipated some untoward might occur with me in near future. But nothing of that sort of happened with me, and a period of about five years lapsed without trouble. I didn’t know, what made my friends that they began to force me to visit the same place again. No doubt, they too were eager to accompany me this time. Might be, their own curiosity to have a glance of the mysterious site, behind all this.The reality was, never I intended to visit the same place again. But they assured me, “had there been an  atom of occurrence of mishap with me, that too could have taken place in between these five years of your meeting with English man. The encounter with English man was nothing but like a “journey back to the future.”

                                                           We planned to visit the place

I didn’t know, what unseen vibes prompted me to visit the side once again and I consented to the plan. At this time all we three friends toured the same place in our private car. When we reached to “Red Iron bridge,” ( The dividing land mark between Metropolitan city and the another District,) we found some changes. We inquired about the old road to the Ferede Village. We were informed now an another road was made to reach the village, though it was somewhat lengthier. It was told old road was damaged. We followed the new road and arrived on the village site. There we didn’t find any vestige of the Home stay. Although, rest of the Ferede Village existed intact in its old pattern

                                                                           The mystery 

When we inquired about the Home Stay. It was told, about five years ago ( the next proceeding months after my winter stay), in the coming Monsoon season, just on the upper side of the Home stay’s side hill, incessant cloud burst occurred. That resulted into the total annihilation of the Home Stay. Not a slight vestige of Home Stay was traced out. Now merely a mound of debris existed there. This cloud burst too had obliterated the old road, why we were suggested another road by local people to reach here.

Once again, I stood there transfixed and petrified. The wrathful statement of English man Mr. Frederick Viole resounding in my ears, ” These Natives don’t recognize power of we Britishers.” And when I promised to visit his site in near future, “whenever I plan to come here….” he had responded , “Might be.” I was aghast to the extinction and not in a position to inquire from local people about the destiny of Home Stay owner and his helper. My friends at once pushed me back into the car, and drove me back to the adjacent Metropolitan city. The city that ever been the part of my journey to the Ferede Village “Home Stay.” ( The End of the story).. Penned by Vinay Pharasi …..