Hear horse hooves on Mysore's roads

Horse-drawn carriages set to make a comeback

The Mysore maharajas had a good collection of horse-drawn carriages, from the ordinary yellow colour mail carriage to the best Victorian coaches with good suspensions.

The maharajas used them for rides through Mysore's roads and during the Dasara. For the common man, there were the tongas. A few tongas are still seen on the roads of Mysore, a dying mode of transport. It is set to get a new lease of life as a tourist attraction during Dasara.

Even today sitting in a buggy, a lightweight harse-drawn carriage, can be a romantic experience in this historical city.

A voluntary organisation, MGM Foundation Trust plans to revive the nostalgic era in Mysore. In association with Intech IBM and Centre for Social Enterprise, it has brought a fresh lease of life to the city's old and dying tradition of tongas and horse-drawn carriages.

To be initiated under the banner of the Mysore Heritage Centre Tourism Institute, the project has been approved by the tourism department, Government of Karnataka. It has shown interest to showcase the range of horse buggies from all over the world.

These shows and rides will be open to public use after the formal procession, during the 10-day Dasara celebrations, says Mysore Heritage Centre Trustee Madhukar G Appaji.

"Shah pasands," "tongas" and "jatakas" "" a contribution by the Muslim rulers to the then mode of transport "" operated in Mysore, Bangalore and Srirangapattana. With the coming of European power on Indian soil, horse-carriages made their appearance and they were mostly used by the top administrators like the British officers and the Maharajas.

These coaches, both military and privately-owned provided integral lines of services during the British expansion between Bombay, Calcutta and Madras.

Madhukar says the speed of Bangalore's traffic is down to 18 km/hr. Mysore will soon catch up, if traffic congestion does not ease and eco-friendly transport is not encouraged."

"If we do not bring back horse transport now, we will have to bring nuclear energy-powered buses and autos for the remaining part of the century. Let's make a wise choice, a better choice for this planet and the best choice for our children," he adds.