History

Lavi Fair of Himachal Pradesh is organized annually in Rampur, on the banks of the River Satluj. It is held in November and has attained international fame and renown. Lavi once served as a major trading center and a stopover point on the old trade routes that led to Kinnaur, Tibet, Ladakh, and Afghanistan. The fair is mentioned in the records of the erstwhile state of Bushair. During the reign of Raja Kesar Singh, a trade treaty was signed between Bushair and Tibet as a sign of friendliness. Horses and swords were exchanged between them. Since then, the International Lavi Fair has been celebrated in the town. Previously, traders from Tibet and Kinnaur used to set up their stalls at the fair. However, this practice stopped with the Chinese occupation of Tibet. Efforts are being made to revive the pristine glory of the fair. Traders come to the Lavi Fair to sell quilts, utensils, and other consumer goods.

Among the items available for purchase at the fair, the most popular are Pashmina wool, dry fruits, Chaumkhi horses that are surefooted and abound in the surrounding tribal areas, and various native handicrafts. Tribals trade agricultural produce, dry fruits, woolen pattoos, and kala zira here. Additionally, you can also buy Chinese products at the International Lavi Fair, such as jackets, tracksuits, and crockery.

With winter approaching in November, the age-old Lavi Fair fills Rampur with a burst of activity.

The famous 'International Lavi Trade Fair' is one of the unique examples of the glorious social, cultural, and economic history and legacy of Himachal Pradesh. It is the biggest trade fair of the greater Himalayas, held in Rampur Bushahr, about 130 km from Shimla, from November 11th to 14th every year. Rampur Bushahr, popularly known as the gateway to the tribal District Kinnaur, is situated on the left bank of the River Sutlej and is one of the oldest towns on the Hindustan Tibet road.

In ancient times, Tibet and Kinnaur had good trade relations, and the Lavi Fair is the outcome of the business interests of both sides. Even today, the tradition remains vibrant. By the churning waters of the River Sutlej, a variety of goods, including wool, dry fruits, and horses, are bartered and sold. People from various areas, especially the tribal belt, participate in this fair with horses, mules, pashminas, colts, yaks, chilgoza, namdas, pattis, woolens, raw semi-finished wool, and other dry fruits produced in the state. It is a three hundred-year-old fair and a state fair.

During the daytime, hectic trade activities occur all over the town. A large number of traders come to the fair to sell quilts, utensils, and other consumer goods. At night, folk dances and music around small bonfires are organized. The fair continues for three days. Efforts have been made to restore the old glory of the fair, which recently has been given a modern touch.

Despite the spread of education, better communication links, and the upliftment of the socio-economic conditions of the people of the area, they continue to believe firmly in strong social bonding, which is the hallmark of the rich cultural traditions of the state. Rampur is an important commercial center. During the last three decades, this fair has also gained cultural significance. The fair has already been recognized as an international fair.

With the culmination of the four-day extravaganza, people return with sweet memories to meet again next year on the occasion of Fag Mela, celebrated in April.

The principality of Bashahr (also known as Bashahar, Bushahar, Bushahr) was once among the largest of the twenty-eight Shimla Hill States under the administration of the British Raj, keen to invest in regional and transcontinental trade and exploit Himalayan resources. It bordered Spiti to the north, Tibet to the east, Garhwal to the south, and Jubbal, Kotkhai, Kumharsain, Kotgarh, and Kullu to the west. Caught in the machinations of the British imperial enterprise, it was subjected to political-cum-economic vicissitudes, acceding to the Indian Union in 1947. On March 8, 1948, along with twenty other princely hill states of Punjab and Shimla, Bashahr signed an agreement that resulted in its inclusion in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh.

Rampur, a small township situated at 1,005 meters on the left bank of the Sutlej, served as Bushahar’s winter capital. Being well connected with major trading routes that joined Indian markets with Central Asia and Tibet, it buzzed with mercantile activity, especially in November during the Lavi Fair, the largest trading event in the north Himalayas, attracting traders from Kashmir, Ladakh, Yarkand, and the Indian mainland. Concerning the origins of the Rampuri Fair, the *Census of India* (1961) reports:

"*About three hundred years ago during the regime of Raja Kehar Singh of Bushahr, a trade treaty was signed between the Bushahr State and Tibet…Horses from Tibet and swords from Bushahr were exchanged in token of this friendship. It was written in the treaty that their friendly relations would continue till this time…Since then, it is presumed that trade relations increased and eventually [the] Lavi Fair was held.*"

Rampur was also located along pilgrimage routes to sacred sites in western Tibet shared by Hindus, Bön, and Buddhists alike, i.e., Mount Kailash and Lake Mansarovar. Missionary and pilgrimage activities, intensified by trading possibilities, created the conditions for Tibetan Buddhism to take a firm stronghold in these borderland regions. Twenty-two kilometers from the village of Namgya in upper Kinnaur, lay the Shipki Pass, which linked caravan routes to and from western Tibet.

This treacherous transcontinental passage must have been in use from ancient times, for among the ruined castles reported by Francke at Shipki village, there were no living memories of the origins of mKar gog, the oldest of them built above the village in cyclopean style. Rampur also has hydroelectric projects like NJPC and the Rampur Project by SJVNL. A second castle, known as Seng ge mkhar, is said to have received its crooked ground plan “through a race round its base executed in opposite directions by a poisonous snake and a scorpion,” and was built, in all probability, during the Ladakhi occupation of mNga’ ris by orders of King Seng ge rnam rgyal (1570–1642) and called after him. It is 30 km from SAINJ.

Rampur is located at 31.45°N 77.63°E. It has an average elevation of 1,350 meters (4,429 feet). It is a very beautiful place situated on the bank of the River Satluj. The city has many popular places like Jhakri, Sarhan, Green Valley Gaura, Shraikoti, Nankhari, Gahan, Hatu Mata temple, and the cold, rainy, and snowy hill station, to name a few. The city is also home to Asia's Largest Hydro Power Project - The Nathpa Jhakri project built by Satluj Jal Vidyut Nigam Ltd. (formerly known as Nathpa Jhakri Power Corporation) at Jhakri and the world's deepest surge shaft at Shah (22 km away from Rampur).

Phag Fair after Holi Festival at Darbar Ground of Padam Palace, Rampur Bushahr, is organized by the MC Rampur after the Holi Festival in March every year.