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Mica Kings Chhottanagpur consits of three smaller plateaus of Ranchi, Hazaribagh, and Koderma. The CH Saga, the birth, growth and the emergence of the business house of Mica Kings (Chhattu Ram Horil Ram Pvt Limited, in short, CH Pvt Ltd, or simply CH), emerged in the plateau of Koderma. The Damodar river rises from Chota Nagpur Plateau and flows eastward 592 kilometeres through the West Bengal to join Hugli river, southward of Calcutta. The Damaodar Valley is a treasure trove of a variety of minerals, from vast deposits of coal and iron ore to several others. Mica, mostly with a silvery shine, but available in various other colors, is one of them. Mica slabs in Koderama plateau were found by British engineers in the later part of the 19th Century, while laying the railway tracks (Grand Chord section), linking Howrah, (Calcutta, West Bengal) to Mughalsarai (near Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh). Here, a mention about mica shall not be out of place. The mica is a mineral that can be split into very thin layer, allowing the light to pass through. It can withhold high temperature and heat and can function as an insulating material. A third of mica of the world is found in India and 90% of good quality mica, available in India, is found in Koderma Plateau. The history of mica dates back to even pre-historic times, and mica, the wonder mineral, was not unknown in ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman civilisations, and even in the Aztec civilisation of the New World. Few examples would suffice: 1) The earliest use of mica has been found in cave paintings created during the Upper Paleolithic period (40,000 BC to 10,000 BC), The first colors were red, iron oxide (hematite, a form of red ochre) and black (manganese dioxide), though black from juniper or pine carbons has also been discovered. White from kaolin or mica was used occasionally. The only other colors available to Magdalenian painters were yellow and brown. 3rd para, concluding part 2) A few kilometeres northeast of Mexico City stands the ancient site of Teotihuacan. The most striking visual and striking structure of Teotihuacan is the towering pyramid of the sun. One of the most amazing aspects pertaining to the pyramid of the sun was one-foot thick, sheet of granulated mica which had covered the entire top level of the Pyramid of the Sun. 4th para, opening part 3) Through out the ages, fine powders of mica have been used for various purposes, including decorative purposes. The colored Gulal and Abeer used by Hindus of north India during holi festival contain fine small crystals of mica. The majestic Padmanabhapuram Palace, 63 Kms from Trivandrum has colored mica windows. However, discovery of electricity, and continuous proliferation of appliances using electricity from the late 19th Century / early 20th Century, gave an unprecedented boost to mica mining and related activities. The CH Private Limited, along with certain other business houses, emerged as one of the pioneers, who spearheaded the mica movement in India, from the early part of 20th Century to next 50 years. At that time, two simple, innocent and very young Mahuri Vaisya boys, hardly having any schooling and not directly related to each other, but having a common surname / family name (Bhadani) one, Chhattu Ram Bhadani and the other, Horil Ram Bhadani joined hands with only 500 pieces of British India One Rupee Silver coins (say 5 kgs of silver, present valuation 1000 US$ / 50000 INR) and commenced building a mica mining and exporting venture. This business venture within a short span of 2 decades, from the period of the First World War (1914-1919), and the intervening period, till the Second World War (1939-1945) had emerged as a Business Empire, which, at a point of time, controlled, the largest share of mica mining and exporting activity in the World. This growth attracted attention of the-then elite business circle of India. That Business Empire, over a period of time, could not sustain growth and declined on account of several known / unknown factors, including turn down in the business cycle. But, the fact remains that such a business growth has remained a rare phenomenon in the economic history of Jharkhand state, India. It is remarkable that even after a lapse of 50 years after the Second World War, in Jhumri Telaiya town (Koderma), Jharkhand state, India, from where the CH Saga had began, two government-run educational institutions, a movie theatre, a private school and several other establishments still bear the Bhadani name. Sadanand Bhadani -(a descendant of the CH Family), who was once a member of XLRI Management Board, Jamshedpur, when it was established in 1949- had once recalled: once upon a time, teams from Indian Institute of Management and Indian Institute of Mines and other institutions used to visit CH facilities to have practical trainings. Persons having CH recommendations use to get decent jobs in all the premier companies of India. Once upon a time, The CH brought in 1920s telephone connectivity to Jhumri Telaiya. Now, almost 100 years thereafter, the town lacks even good internet connectivity.
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