Paonta Sahib is a town, on the banks of river Yamuna (in Himanchal Pradesh), about 65 km from Yamunanagar, about 42 km from Nahan and about 50 km from Dehradun, founded by Guru Gobind Singh Sahib. The foundation stone of the town was laid by Bhai Ram Kanwar (later Gurbakhsh Singh), fifth in direct line of Baba Buddha, on April 29, 1685. Here, Guru Sahib had built a fort. Guru Sahib stayed here for 3 years and six months. During this period, Paonta Sahib became a major centre of writers. Guru Sahib had more than fifty-two renowned poets and artists in his court. Raja Medani Parkash (the ruler of the State of Nahan) visited Guru Sahib at Paonta Sahib several times. Ram Rai, son of Guru Har Rai, who had been excommunicated from Sikh faith, too visited Guru Sahib here on May 11, 1685 and apologized for collaborating wih Aurangzeb. On September 18, 1688, Fateh Shah, the ruler of Garhwal attacked, Guru Sahib. A battle was fought at village Bhangani, about 19 km from Paonta Sahib. In this battle, Bhai Sango Shah and Bhai Jit Mall (sons of Bibi Viro, the daughter of Guru Hargobind Sahib), Bhai Udia (son of Bhai Khema Chandania), Bhai Hatthi Chand (brother of Bhai Mani Singh) and a few others embraced martyrdom. On October 28, 1688, Guru Sahib left Paonta for Anandpur Sahib. There are three main Sikh shrines in this town: main shrine Darbar Sahib, Dastar Sahib, and Kavi Darbar Asthan. At Bhangani too there are three shrines: Bhangani Sahib, Tirgarh and Shergarh (on way to Bhangani).