This story is of Jeolikot, a small village in the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand. Few of you must have heard about it, but if you look for places to see in Jeolikot on the weekend, a long list will come up. It includes wonderful activities like floriculture and learning to catch butterflies. Ordinary tourists may take it lightly but if you like to try new things, then definitely come here. This village, situated at an altitude of 1219 meters above sea level, can be visited by tourists throughout the year. Often people holidaying in towns like Nainital, Naukuchiatal and Bhimtal go via Jeolikot. But compared to all these cold places, the temperature in Jeolikot remains high. Even in winters, there is always a scorching sun here, so you can come here for holidays throughout the year. But Jeolikot is still known for its history of the British period. First of all, those English rulers settled here who wanted relief from the cold of Nainital. Due to this, it has become a favorite stop of stay. In today's way, all those houses have become hotels which still attract tourists.
Our story is also of Jeolikot during the time of British rule when the roads were not so constructed and the villagers had to choose only unpaved roads or the path of the forest to go from one place to another.
Jeolikot was a happy village. The people there were very friendly and often stood ready to welcome their guests.
The village used to have an arena whose wrestlers were well known in the neighboring villages and often came first in the annual riots. His bravery started ringing all around, due to which Balbir, the wrestler running the arena, had his head held high with pride, pride had kept his mustache, after all, there were straps in his arena.
Everything was going well that suddenly one day a rumor in Jeolikot took everyone by surprise. Some people say that a witch has camped in the black hill that falls on the way to the city and kills every passerby who comes. At first everyone thought that the work of an animal could also be done, but when the English post in-charge established in the village lost its life, then people thought that it may not be the work of the witch, that's why the English post in-charge could not fire. He had a gun too, if there was an animal, then the English officer would have killed him, but he turned out to be a witch and completed the work of the English officer.
Slowly the story of the witch of the black hill was on the child's tongue. When the people of the neighboring villages looked towards the Black hill, they stopped hearing the name even far away.
This matter reached the sarpanch of the village of Jeolikot, he thought that this is not a good thing, so many people of the village would be harmed because there is a black hill on the way to the city and from the point of view of business, then our village damage is being done. So the sarpanch made an announcement in the village that the courageous man who would bury an iron peg under that so-called old peepal tree at night on the Black hill, would be rewarded by the village and the British government.
The information reached all the people, but everyone had little interest in losing their lives at the hands of the witch. The whole village kept silence on this matter.
When Balbir came to know about this, he thought that this is a good opportunity to become a man in the eyes of the villagers, till now the people of the village used to praise only the wrestlers of his arena, but if he buried this peg, then After this, only his bravery will ring in the whole village. So he accepted the challenge of the village sarpanch and reached his house to get the peg and hammer. The sarpanch while praising him gave him both the things. Balbir had to go under the tree in the middle of the night and bury his peg, so the whole day eagerly waited for the night to come.
As soon as night fell, Balbir started towards the Kali hill. The sounds of animals and the rustle of leaves all along the way had terrified him from inside. Within moments, Balbir reached the Black hill. He first looked carefully around the hill, there was no one there. Balbir was terrified by the darkness of the night and the terrible cries of the animals of the hill. He started reciting Hanuman Chalisa and started climbing the Black hill. After a while he reached under that peepal tree, he thought that he would quickly put the peg and run straight towards his village. He buried his peg and turned and started running while reciting Hanuman Chalisa when suddenly he realized that someone had held his dhoti. He immediately realized that he may or may not be a witch.
It was morning when the village sarpanch first inquired about Balbir's house and then came to know that the wrestler had not returned in the night. So he gathered some young men and started towards Black hill. Going near the same old Peepal tree on the hill, Balbir had fallen and his dhoti was stuck in the same peg which was asked to be buried under the tree.
Balbir had a heart attack in the night itself due to which he died. The sarpanch understood everything and Balbir's death proved that there was no such thing as a witch, it was all illusion because Balbir had died of a heart attack after being trapped by his own dhoti, those passers-by and that English officer were attacked by the bandits. would have killed
Slowly this rumour spreads in the whole village and the fear of the witch of the black hill ended in everyone's mind.
© IVANMAXIMUS.
