There was once a king named Narendra. He ruled over a large kingdom, home to (among other things) the holiest shrine of the Hindu faith. Because of his lineage and as the patron of this great temple he was regarded by his subjects as divinity personified. However, despite the hallowed place accorded to him by virtue of his hereditary position, the king was dissatisfied. He wished to decisively set himself apart from the men who had occupied this particular throne before him, and who might occupy the throne after him. So our vain king built for himself and his subjects a brand new capital altogether. He called it Narendranagar.
The story I have told above is neither mythical nor ancient. It is true, and the events I have narrated occurred merely a century ago. This king was Narendra Shah of Tehri Garhwal state, whose family controlled the Badrinath temple. The construction of the new capital named after himself was completed in 1919.
As a boy growing up in the Garhwal…