DHARAN SAMAJ UK

Dharan Samaj UK (DSUK) is non-profitable organization. It was established in 2007 in the United Kingdom. It exists with the ethos of “Dharanes for Dharan”.

Dharan is one of the biggest cities of Nepal. This culturally diversified city is located in Sunsari District of Koshi Zone in the Eastern Nepal. Stretch of the Mahabharat Range can be seen in the North and Charkose Jhadi (jungle) in the South. Seuti river flows in the East and Sardu river in the West. Dharan links hilly and plain regions enabling ease of trades between these regions.

In 1953 British established the Gurkhas recruiting centre in Dharan, locally known as Ghopa Camp Dharan. It was the biggest recruiting centre of the Brigade of Gurkhas for many years. In 1989 the camp was closed and moved its scaled down version of recruiting centre to Pokhara in West Nepal. Shortly after its closure, Ghopa Camp became an ideal home place for the present B.P. Koirala Institute of Health Sciences (BPKIHS) and expanded its existing infrastructures by constructing additional buildings in the open area to the North.  

Brigade of Gurkhas used to recruit five to six hundred men into Brigade every year from various part of East Nepal and they were flown to Hong Kong; the main base of the Brigade of Gurkhas. Hong Kong remained the home of Gurkhas until 1997. After the British government handed Hong Kong over to China in 1997; the cut down size of Brigade of Gurkhas moved to UK.

Following the changes in the immigration rules of the United Kingdom for Ex-Gurkha soldiers and their families Gurkhas started to immigrate to UK. Dharane community in the UK has been growing since. Majority of Dharanes living in the UK have connection to the Gurkhas in one way or the other.