Deolali

Author:Laxman Burdak, IFS (R)

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Deolali (देवलाली), is a small hill station and a census town in Nashik district of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Now it is part of Nashik Metropolitan Region.

Variants

• Devlali (देवलाली)
• Dev Lali (देवलाली)

History

Deolali has an important army base. Deolali Camp, one of the oldest Indian military centres in the country, started the Air Force Station, the School of Artillery of the Indian Army, and other establishments in this region. Deolali has plenty of temples and tourist destinations.

Deolali was a British Army camp 100 miles north-east of Mumbai (then called Bombay). It was the original location of the Army Staff College (later the Defence Services Staff College of India and the Pakistan Command and Staff College).

It is also the source of the British slang noun doolally tap, loosely meaning "camp fever", and referring to the apparent madness of men waiting for ships back to Britain after finishing their tour of duty. By the 1940s this had been widely shortened to just "doolally", an adjective meaning "mad (insane)" or "eccentric".

In popular culture

The town was the setting for the first four series of the British sitcom It Ain't Half Hot Mum, set in 1945.

Scenes from the movie "Dolly Ki Doli" was shot in the two bungalows at Saubhagyanagar, Deolali Camp.

Deolali was home to Bollywood actor Arjun Rampal, Who finished his schooling in St Patrick high school.

Jat History

Captain Bhola Singh - Hindu Dogra Jat, first warrior of Indian Army to get Order of British India award, whose statue is there in Dev Lali Army Centre.

कैप्टन भोला सिंह - हिन्दू डोगरा जाट, जो भारतीय सेना के प्रथम योद्धा जिन्हें ओ.बी.आई. (आर्डर आफ ब्रिटिश इण्डिया) का वीरता का पदक मिला जिनकी मूर्ति देवलाली आर्मी सैन्टर में लगी है। इन्हें जम्मू क्षेत्र के जाटों को जम्मू काश्मीर लाईट इन्फैन्टरी में स्थान दिलाने का श्रेय है।

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Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon writes that his father was Sardar Takhar Singh and who was employed in 8th King George’s Own light cavalry. He was promoted to post of Veterinary surgeon and posted at Deolali, in Bombay Residency, now in Maharashtra. Here the Army Remount Depot was set up during World War I.

Deolali depot was a big establishment occupying a vast area of land spread over many miles, with long sheds, stables, horse ponds, big enclosures and riding schools with deep sawdust to break a fall. Hundreds of people were employed to look after the place, horses and mules. (p.11)

GS Dhillon's father was the head veterinary surgeon at the Deolali Depot. This depot was place where train loads of horses and mules untouched by man were brought from various parts by British Empire for training. The horse-trainers had a challenging job that demanded courage, patience, resourcefulness and great experience in horsemanship. There was a big team of veterinary surgeons, dressers, syces (stablemen, or grooms) to do this duty. (p.11)

It was Deolali that Col GS Dhillon's younger sister and brother Amrik Singh were born. Col Dhillon learnt horse riding at Deolali. A British farrier Mr Green was his instructor. (p.11)

In 1919 GS Dhillon's father left Deolali as he got appointment at home in the Army Remount Department which looked after the breeding and rearing of fresh horses and mules by farmers who were given 25 acres of land for keeping a pedigree mare approved by the department.(p.11)