155-year-old family burial vault near Mulbagal lies neglected

A family burial vault dating to the 19th century on the outskirts of the town lies neglected. The vault which bears a cross and dates back to the first war of independence, is located near Someshwarapalya tank on the Bangalore-Chennai highway in the taluk.

Though the vault is in a bad condition, the remains point to a existence of a good structure. There are indications of existences of two granite plaques on the eastern side of the vault. However, only one plaques remains as vandals have destroyed the other. The inscriptions on the plaque are in English.

Prof K R Narasimhan, an expert on Kolar history, said that the vault belonged to 1857. A woman, Choriyappa Disakka had died at the age of 25, (April 8) and her two children were buried here, he stated.

Her husband was a subedar in the army and Disakka was a member of Rebecca Organisation, said Narasimhan who added that the vault could be of historical significance. There are proof that indicates that Rebecca Organisation existed during the British Raj, he added.

Though the vault has lost much of its beauty, it still manages to pull a few eyeballs. The maximum damage has been caused by vandals and treasure hunters.

The careful analysis or study of the vault or Rebecca organisation can throw up many new facts, said Narasimhan who said that if left unnoticed it would vanish in the rapid pace of urbanisation.