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THE 

IMPERIAL  GAZETTEER 

OF  INDIA 


VOL.  VIII 

BERHAMPORE  to  BOMBAY 


NEW  EDITION 

PUBLISHED  UNDER  THE  AUTHORITY  OF  HIS  MAJESTY'S 
SECRETARY  OF  STATE  FOR  INDIA  IN  COUNCIL 


OXFORD 

AT   THE    CLARENDON    PRESS  A /\ 


'908  ^A\ 


'* 


HENRY  FROWDE,  M.A. 
PUBLISHER   TO   THE   UNIVERSITY   OK   OXFORD 
LONDON,   EDINBURGH 
NEW    YORK   AND   TORONTO 


INTRODUCTORY  NOTES 

Notes  on  Transliteration 

Vowel-Sounds 

a  has  the  sound  of  a  in  '  won'ian.' 

a  has  the  sound  of  a  in  '  fa' her.' 

e  has  the  vowel-sound  in  '  grey.' 

i  has  the  sound  of  i  in  '  pin.' 

i  has  the  sound  of  /  in  '  police.' 

o  has  the  sound  of  o  in  '  bone.' 

u  has  the  sound  of  u  in  '  bull.' 

u  has  the  sound  of  u  in  '  flute.' 
ai  has  the  vowel-sound  in  '  mine.' 
au  has  the  vowel-sound  in  'house.' 

It  should  be  stated  that  no  attempt  has  been  made  to  distinguish 
between  the  long  and  short  sounds  of  e  and  o  in  the  Dravidian 
languages,  which  possess  the  vowel-sounds  in  '  bet '  and  '  hot '  in 
addition  to  those  given  above.  Nor  has  it  been  thought  necessary 
to  mark  vowels  as  long  in  cases  where  mistakes  in  pronunciation 
were  not  likely  to  be  made. 

Consonants 

Most  Indian  languages  have  different  forms  for  a  number  of  con- 
sonants, such  as  d,  /,  r,  &c,  marked  in  scientific  works  by  the  use 
of  dots  or  italics.  As  the  European  ear  distinguishes  these  with 
difficulty  in  ordinary  pronunciation,  it  has  been  considered  undesir- 
able to  embarrass  the  reader  with  them  ;  and  only  two  notes  are 
required.  In  the  first  place,  the  Arabic  k,  a  strong  guttural,  has 
been  represented  by  k  instead  of  a,  which  is  often  used.  Secondly, 
it  should  be  remarked  that  aspirated  consonants  are  common  ;  and, 
in  particular,  dh  and  th  (except  in  Burma)  never  have  the  sound  of 
th  in  '  this  '  or  '  thin,'  but  should  be  pronounced  as  in  '  woodhouse  ' 
and  '  boathook.' 


iv  INTRODUCTORY  NOTES 

Burmese   Words 

Burmese  and  some  of  the  languages  on  the  frontier  of  China  have 
the  following  special  sounds  : — 

aw  has  the  vowel-sound  in  'law.; 
o  and  ii  are  pronounced  as  in  German. 
g)   is  pronounced  almost  likey  in  'jewel.' 
ky  is  pronounced  almost  like  ch  in  '  church.' 
th  is  pronounced  in  some  cases  as  in  '  this,'  in  some  cases  as  in 

'thin.' 
w  after  a  consonant  has  the  force  of  uw.     Thus,  ywa  and  pwe 
are  disyllables,  pronounced  as  if  written  yuwa  and  puwe. 

It  should  also  be  noted  that,  whereas  in  Indian  words  the  accent 
or  stress  is  distributed  almost  equally  on  each  syllable,  in  Burmese 
there  is  a  tendency  to  throw  special  stress  on  the  last  syllable. 

General 
The  names  of  some  places — e.  g.  Calcutta,  Bombay,  Lucknow, 
Cawnpore — have  obtained  a  popular  fixity  of  spelling,  while  special 
forms  have  been  officially  prescribed  for  others.  Names  of  persons 
are  often  spelt  and  pronounced  differently  in  different  parts  of  India ; 
but  the  variations  have  been  made  as  few  as  possible  by  assimilating 
forms  almost  alike,  especially  where  a  particular  spelling  has  been 
generally  adopted  in  English  books. 

Notes  on  Money,  Prices,  Weights  and  Measures 

As  the  currency  of  India  is  based  upon  the  rupee,  all  statements 
with  regard  to  money  throughout  the  Gazetteer  have  necessarily  been 
expressed  in  rupees,  nor  has  it  been  found  possible  to  add  generally 
a  conversion  into  sterling.  Down  to  about  1873  the  gold  value  of 
the  rupee  (containing  165  grains  of  pure  silver)  was  approximately 
equal  to  2s.,  or  one-tenth  of  a  £  ;  and  for  that  period  it  is  easy  to 
convert  rupees  into  sterling  by  striking  off  the  final  cipher  (Rs.  1,000 
=  £100).  But  after  1873,  owing  to  the  depreciation  of  silver  as 
compared  with  gold  throughout  the  world,  there  came  a  serious  and 
progressive  fall  in  the  exchange,  until  at  one  time  the  gold  value  of 
the  rupee  dropped  as  low  as  is.  In  order  to  provide  a  remedy  for 
the  heavy  loss  caused  to  the  Government  of  India  in  respect  of  its 
gold  payments  to  be  made  in  England,  and  also  to  relieve  foreign 
trade  and  finance  from  the  inconvenience  due  to  constant  and 
unforeseen  fluctuations  in  exchange,  it  was  resolved  in  1893  to  close 
the  mints  to  the  free  coinage  of  silver,  and  thus  force  up  the  value  of 
the  rupee  by  restricting  the  circulation.     The  intention  was  to  raise 


INTRODUCTORY  NOTES  v 

the  exchange  value  of  the  rupee  to  is.  4^.,  and  then  introduce  a  gold 
standard  (though  not  necessarily  a  gold  currency)  at  the  rate  of  Rs.  1 5 
=  £1.  This  policy  has  been  completely  successful.  From  1899  on~ 
wards  the  value  of  the  rupee  has  been  maintained,  with  insignificant 
fluctuations,  at  the  proposed  rate  of  is.  \d. ;  and  consequently  since 
that  date  three  rupees  have  been  equivalent  to  two  rupees  before  1873. 
For  the  intermediate  period,  between  1873  and  1899,  it  is  manifestly 
impossible  to  adopt  any  fixed  sterling  value  for  a  constantly  changing 
rupee.  But  since  1899,  if  it  is  desired  to  convert  rupees  into  sterling, 
not  only  must  the  final  cipher  be  struck  off  (as  before  1873),  but 
also  one-third  must  be  subtracted  from  the  result.  Thus  Rs.  1,000 
=  £100  — i  =  (about)  £67. 

Another  matter  in  connexion  with  the  expression  of  money  state- 
ments in  terms  of  rupees  requires  to  be  explained.  The  method  of 
numerical  notation  in  India  differs  from  that  which  prevails  through- 
out Europe.  Large  numbers  are  not  punctuated  in  hundreds  of  thou- 
sands and  millions,  but  in  lakhs  and  crores.  A  lakh  is  one  hundred 
thousand  (written  out  as  1,00,000),  and  a  crore  is  one  hundred  lakhs 
or  ten  millions  (written  out  as  1,00,00,000).  Consequently,  accord- 
ing to  the  exchange  value  of  the  rupee,  a  lakh  of  rupees  (Rs.  1,00,000) 
may  be  read  as  the  equivalent  of  £10,000  before  1873,  and  as  the 
equivalent  of  (about)  £6,667  after  J899  ;  while  a  crore  of  rupees 
(Rs.  1,00,00,000)  may  similarly  be  read  as  the  equivalent  of 
£1,000,000  before  1873,  and  as  the  equivalent  of  (about)  £666,667 
after  1899. 

Finally,  it  should  be  mentioned  that  the  rupee  is  divided  into 
16  annas,  a  fraction  commonly  used  for  many  purposes  by  both 
natives  and  Europeans.  The  anna  was  formerly  reckoned  as  \\d.  ; 
it  may  now  be  considered  as  exactly  corresponding  to  id.  The 
anna  is  again  subdivided  into  12  pies. 

The  various  systems  of  weights  used  in  India  combine  uniformity 
of  scale  with  immense  variations  in  the  weight  of  units.  The  scale 
used  generally  throughout  Northern  India,  and  less  commonly  in 
Madras  and  Bombay,  may  be  thus  expressed  :  one  maund  =  40  seers  ; 
one  seer  =  16  chittaks  or  80  tolas.  The  actual  weight  of  a  seer 
varies  greatly  from  District  to  District,  and  even  from  village  to 
village  ;  but  in  the  standard  system  the  tola  is  180  grains  Troy 
(the  exact  weight  of  the  rupee),  and  the  seer  thus  weighs  2-057  lb., 
and  the  maund  82-28  lb.  This  standard  is  used  in  official  reports 
and  throughout  the  Gazetteer. 

For  calculating  retail  prices,  the  universal  custom  in  India  is  to 
express  them  in  terms  of  seers  to  the  rupee.  Thus,  when  prices 
change,  what  varies  is  not  the  amount  of  money  to  be  paid  for  the 


vi  INTRODUCTORY  NOTES 

same  quantity,  hut  the  quantity  to  he  obtained  for  the  same  amount 
of  money.  In  other  words,  prices  in  India  are  quantity  prices,  not 
money  prices.  When  the  figure  of  quantity  goes  up,  this  of  course 
means  that  the  price  has  gone  down,  which  is  at  first  sight  perplexing 
to  an  English  reader.  It  may,  however,  he  mentioned  that  quantity 
prices  are  not  altogether  unknown  in  England,  especially  at  small 
shops,  where  pennyworths  of  many  groceries  can  be  bought.  Eggs, 
likewise,  are  commonly  sold  at  a  varying  number  for  the  shilling. 
If  it  be  desired  to  convert  quantity  prices  from  Indian  into  English 
denominations  without  having  recourse  to  money  prices  (which  would 
often  be  misleading),  the  following  scale  may  be  adopted  —  based 
upon  the  assumptions  that  a  seer  is  exactly  2  lb.,  and  that  the  value 
of  the  rupee  remains  constant  at  is.  ^d. :  1  seer  per  rupee  =  (about) 
3  lb.  for  2s. ;  2  seers  per  rupee  =  (about)  6  lb.  for  2.?. ;  and  so  on. 

The  name  of  the  unit  for  square  measurement  in  India  generally 
is  the  blgha,  which  varies  greatly  in  different  parts  of  the  country. 
But  areas  have  always  been  expressed  throughout  the  Gazetteer  either 
in  square  miles  or  in  acres. 


MAPS 

Northern  Bombay  | f<)  faa  ^  ^ 

Southern  Bombay   ) 

Bombay  City  )  ,       , 

I     ......  .         of  end 

Bombay  Island         ) 


IMPERIAL     GAZETTEER 
OF    INDIA 

VOLUME  VIII 

Berhampore  Subdivision. —  Head-quarters  subdivision  of  Murshid- 
abad District,  Bengal,  lying  between  230  48'  and  240  22'  N.  and  88°  11' 
and  88°  44'  E.,  with  an  area  of  752  square  miles.  A  great  portion  of 
the  subdivision  is  low-lying  and  liable  to  floods.  The  population  in 
1901  was  471,962,  compared  with  454,919  in  1891,  the  density  being 
628  persons  per  square  mile.  It  contains  one  town,  Berhampore  (popu- 
lation, 24,397),  its  head-quarters;  and  1,060  villages. 

Berhampore  Town  (Bahrampur).  —  Head-quarters  of  Murshidabad 
District,  Bengal,  situated  in  240  8'  N.  and  88°  r6'  E.,  on  the  left  bank 
of  the  Bhagirathi,  5  miles  below  the  town  of  Murshidabad.  Population 
(1901),  24,397,  of  whom  19,779  are  Hindus,  4,335  Muhammadans,  and 
255  Christians.  Berhampore  was  selected  as  a  site  for  a  cantonment  in 
1757,  shortly  after  the  battle  of  Plassey,  the  factory  house  at  Cossimbazar 
having  been  destroyed  by  Siraj-ud-daula.  The  Court  of  Directors  sanc- 
tioned the  project  to  station  troops  here  after  the  revolt  of  Mir  Kasim 
in  1763,  and  the  barracks  were  completed  in  1767  at  a  cost  of  30-23  lakhs. 
The  cantonment  will  always  be  remembered  as  the  scene  of  the  first 
overt  act  of  mutiny  in  1857,  when  the  garrison  had  dwindled  down 
to  one  battalion  of  native  infantry  and  another  of  irregular  cavalry  and 
two  guns.  The  sepoys  of  the  19th  regiment,  who  had  been  intensely 
excited  by  the  story  of  the  greased  cartridges,  rose,  on  the  night  of  Feb- 
ruary 25,  in  open  mutiny,  but  were  prevented  from  doing  any  actual  harm 
by  the  firm  and  at  the  same  time  conciliatory  behaviour  of  their  com- 
manding officer.  After  the  Mutiny  European  troops  were  again  stationed 
here,  but  they  were  finally  withdrawn  in  1870.  The  barracks  are  still 
a  prominent  feature  of  the  town,  though  they  have  now  been  appro- 
priated to  other  uses. 

Berhampore  was  constituted  a  municipality  in  1876.  The  municipal 
income  during  the  decade  ending  1901-2  averaged  Rs.  46,000,  and 
the  expenditure  Rs.  44,000.  In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  62,000,  of 
which  Rs.  16,000  was  derived  from  a  tax  on  persons  (or  property  tax), 
Rs.  15,000  from  a  water  rate,  and  Rs.  12,000  from  a  conservancy  rate. 

VOL.  VIII.  b 


BERHAMPORE   TOWN 

The  expenditure  \v;is  Rs.  71,000.  In  1894  the  late  Maharani  Sarnamayi, 
C.I.,  undertook  to  furnish  the  town  with  a  supply  of  filtered  water. 
The  works,  which  were  opened  in  1899,  are  designed  to  give  a  daily 
supply  of  200,000  gallons.  The  water  is  pumped  up  from  the  Bhaglrathi 
into  three  settling  tanks,  each  with  a  capacity  of  229,000  gallons,  whence 
it  passes  through  filters  into  the  clear-water  reservoirs.  There  are  in  all 
1 2i  miles  of  pipes  through  which  the  water  is  distributed  to  the  town. 

The  Magistrates'  courts  and  municipal  offices  are  located  in  the 
barracks.  The  Sessions  Judge's  court  is  about  a  mile  to  the  south-east. 
The  old  military  hospital  has  been  converted  into  a  District  jail,  with 
accommodation  for  340  prisoners  ;  the  chief  industries  are  oil-press- 
ing, j-«;'^/-pounding,  carpentry,  dan-weaving,  and  cane  and  bamboo 
work.  Other  public  buildings  are  the  circuit  house  and  dak  bungalow, 
college,  hospital,  and  lunatic  asylum.  There  are  several  churches  in  the 
town,  and  the  cemetery  contains  some  interesting  memorial  stones.  The 
Berhampore  College,  founded  by  Government  in  1853,  is  a  first-grade 
college  with  law  classes  and  a  hostel  for  boarders.  A  collegiate  school 
is  attached  to  it.  It  possesses  fine  buildings  and  a  library,  and  is 
managed  by  a  board  of  trustees.  The  Berhampore  Sanskrit  tol  is 
managed  by  the  estate  of  the  late  Rani  Arna  Kali  Devi  of  Cossimbazar 
at  an  annual  cost  of  Rs.  3,000.  The  hospital  has  thirty-six  beds.  The 
lunatic  asylum  has  been  recently  enlarged  at  a  cost  of  3  lakhs,  so  as  to 
provide  accommodation  for  267  male  and  152  female  patients.  Lunatics 
are  received  here  from  the  Presidency,  Burdwan,  and  Bhagalpur 
Divisions  ;  in  1903-4  the  maximum  number  of  inmates  was  263. 

Berhampur  Subdivision. — Subdivision  of  Ganjam  District,  Madras, 
consisting  of  the  taluk  of  Berhampur  and  the  zamindari  tahslls  of 

IfJHCHAPURAM  and  SOMPETA. 

Berhampur  Taluk. — Easternmost  of  the  three  Government  taluks 
in  Ganjam  District,  Madras,  lying  between  180  56'  and  190  32'  N.  and 
840  25'  and  850  5'  E.,  with  an  area  of  685  square  miles.  The  population 
in  1901  was  344,368,  compared  with  323,474  in  1891.  The  demand  for 
land  revenue  and  cesses  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  5,90,000.  Its  'wet'  lands, 
irrigated  by  the  Rushikulya  Project  and  some  streams  and  tanks,  are 
more  extensive  than  in  the  other  taluks.  It  contains  549  villages,  and 
the  three  towns  of  Berhampur  (population,  25,729),  the  head-quarters, 
Ichchapuram  (9,975),  and  Ganjam  (4,397).  Along  the  coast  the 
scenery  is  uninteresting,  but  the  low  hills  to  the  east  of  Berhampur 
render  the  inland  part  more  picturesque. 

Berhampur  Town  {Barampuram). — The  largest  place  in  Ganjam 
District,  Madras,  and  the  head-quarters  of  the  subdivision  and  taluk 
of  the  same  name,  situated  in  190  18'  N.  and  840  48'  E.,  on  the  trunk 
road  from  Madras  to  Calcutta,  and  on  the  East  Coast  Railway,  656  miles 
from  Madras  and  374  miles  from  Calcutta.     Population  (1901),  25,729, 


BERT  3 

of  whom  23,857  arc  Hindus,  1,224  Musalmans,  and  641  Christians. 
Until  quite  recently  it  was  a  cantonment,  but  the  troops  have  been 
removed.  It  is  the  head-quarters  of  the  District  Judge,  the  Executive 
Engineer,  and  the  District  Medical  and  Sanitary  officer. 

Berhampur  was  constituted  a  municipality  in  1867.  The  municipal 
receipts  and  expenditure  during  the  decade  ending  1903  averaged 
Rs.  32,000,  and  in  1903-4  amounted  to  Rs.  30,000.  The  receipts  con- 
sist chiefly  of  taxes  from  houses  and  land  and  tolls.  The  council  has 
built  a  fine  market  laid  out  on  the  standard  plan.  The  eastern  half 
of  the  town,  which  is  known  as  Bhapur,  is  clean  and  healthy  ;  but  the 
western  half,  called  Pata-Berhampur,  the  original  village  from  which  the 
present  town  has  grown,  is  overcrowded.  The  water-supply  of  Berham- 
pur from  the  canals  of  the  Rushikulya  Project  was  estimated  to  cost 
Rs.  4,02,300  for  a  complete  scheme  and  Rs.  2,97,700  for  a  partial 
scheme ;  but  the  undertaking  has  been  abandoned  owing  to  want  of 
funds.     A  cheaper  scheme  is  now  under  consideration. 

The  town  has  an  aided  second-grade  college,  endowed  with  a  lakh 
of  rupees  by  the  Raja  of  Kallikota,  to  which  is  attached  a  Victoria 
Memorial  hostel  for  boarders.  In  1903-4  it  had  an  average  daily 
attendance  of  342  students,  of  whom  28  were  reading  in  the  F.A.  classes. 
It  is  managed  by  a  committee,  over  which  the  president  of  the  District 
board  presides.  The  District  jail,  constructed  in  1863,  contains  accom- 
modation for  260  prisoners,  who  are  employed  in  weaving,  coir  manu- 
facture, carpentry,  and  oil-pressing  ;  in  an  average  year  about  4,600  yards 
of  cloth  of  various  kinds,  1,700  lb.  of  gingelly  oil,  and  100  coir  mats  are 
manufactured.  The  Jubilee  Hospital  at  Berhampur,  erected  from 
public  subscriptions  in  commemoration  of  the  Golden  Jubilee  of  Her 
Majesty  the  late  Queen-Empress,  was  opened  in  1893.  The  chief 
industry  in  the  town  is  the  weaving  of  fine  silk  and  tasar  silk  cloths  of 
different  colours.    Sugar  is  also  manufactured  in  considerable  quantities. 

Beri. — A  petty  sanad  State  in  Central  India,  under  the  Bundelkhand 
Agency,  with  an  area  of  about  32  square  miles.  Population  (1901), 
4,279.  The  holders  are  Bundela  Ponwars,  claiming  descent  from  the 
great  Agnikula  clan  of  Paramaras.  The  ancestor  of  the  Ben  jagirdars 
was  Diwan  Mahma  Rai  of  Karaiha  in  Gwalior  State,  whose  son,  Diwan 
Achharaj  Singh,  migrated  to  Sandi  (Jalaun  District)  at  the  end  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  The  latter  married  a  daughter  of  Raja  Jagat  Raj 
of  Jaitpur,  and  received  Sijdglr  worth  12  lakhs,  including  the  villages  of 
Umrl,  Dadri,  and  Chili.  When  All  Bahadur  established  his  suzerainty 
over  Bundelkhand  in  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century,  Jugal 
Prasad,  a  grandson  of  Achharaj,  who  was  in  possession  of  the  estate, 
received  a  sanad  from  All  Bahadur,  confirming  him  in  possession 
of  Umrl,  Dadri,  and  Chili.  On  the  establishment  of  British  supremacy, 
Jugal  Prasad  was,  in  1809,  confirmed  in  possession   of  the  village  of 

b  2 


4  BERI 

Umrl  only.  In  1811,  however,  his  claim  to  the  other  two  villages  was 
admitted  ;  but  as  it  was  inexpedient  that  he  should  hold  these  villages, 
other  land  of  equal  value  was  made  over  to  him,  including  the  village 
of  Ben.  The  present  holder  is  Lokendra  Singh,  who  succeeded  his 
father  Raghuraj  Singh  in  1904.  He  is  a  minor,  and  is  being  educated 
at  the  Daly  College  at  Indore,  the  jagir  being  under  superintendence. 
The  jagirdar  has  the  hereditary  title  of  Rao.  The  State  contains  7 
villages,  in  which  7  square  miles,  or  22  per  cent.,  are  cultivated,  and  the 
revenue  is  Rs.  21,000.  Ben,  the  chief  town,  is  situated  in  250  55'  N. 
and  790  54'  E.,  on  the  north  bank  of  the  Betwa  river,  18  miles  west 
of  Hamnpur,  and  20  miles  south-east  of  Kalpi.    Population  (1901),  2,387. 

Beri. — Town  in  the  District  and  tahsll  of  Rohtak,  Punjab,  situated  in 
•280  42'  N.  and  760  35'  E.,  15  miles  south  of  Rohtak  town  on  the  direct 
road  from  Delhi  to  Bhiwani.  Population  (1901),  9,723.  It  formed 
part  of  the  estate  of  George  Thomas,  who  took  it  by  storm  from  a 
garrison  of  Jats  and  Rajputs.  It  is  now  the  great  trade  centre  of  the 
neighbourhood,  and  the  residence  of  many  wealthy  merchants  and 
bankers.  Two  large  fairs  are  held  annually,  in  February  and  October. 
The  municipality  was  created  in  1867.  The  income  and  expenditure 
during  the  ten  years  ending  1902-3  averaged  Rs.  9,800  and  Rs.  10,200 
respectively.  The  income  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  6,200,  chiefly  raised  from 
octroi ;  and  the  expenditure  was  Rs.  7,300.  It  maintains  a  vernacular 
middle  school. 

Betawad. — Town  in  the  Sindkheda  taluka  of  West  Khandesh  Dis- 
trict, Bombay,  situated  in  210  13"  N.  and  740  58'  E.,  on  the  Tapti 
Valley  Railway.  Population  (1901),  4,or4.  The  town  was  constituted 
a  municipality  in  1864.  The  municipal  income  during  the  decade 
ending  1901  averaged  Rs.  2,900.  In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  2,300. 
The  town,  which  was  formerly  the  head-quarters  of  a  taluka,  contains 
a  boys'  school  attended  by  169  pupils. 

Betmangala.— Old  town  in  the  Bowringpet  taluk  of  Kolar  Dis- 
trict, Mysore,  situated  in  130  o'  N.  and  780  20'  E.,  on  the  south  bank 
of  the  Palar,  6  miles  east  of  the  Kolar  Gold  Fields.  Population  (1901), 
1,186.  The  name  is  a  contraction  of  Vijayaditya-mangala,  derived 
from  the  Bana  king,  who  was  probably  its  founder.  Two  old  inscribed 
stones,  with  dates  904  and  944,  are  worshipped  under  tli2  name  of 
Gangamma.  The  large  tank  gave  way  and  was  repaired  about  950 
under  the  Pallava  Nolamba  kings.  It  burst  again  and  was  restored 
after  a  long  time  in  1 155  under  the  Hoysala  kings.  The  embankment 
failed  in  1903;  but  the  tank  has  now  been  taken  up  for  the  water- 
supply  of  the  Kolar  Gold  Fields,  to  furnish  the  mines  with  a  million 
gallons  a  day,  capable  of  increase  by  half  a  million  if  necessary.  The 
town  lost  its  importance  on  the  opening  of  the  railway  in  1864,  which 
diverted  the  former  large  passenger  traffic  ;  and  it  declined  still  further 


BETTIAH  RAJ  5 

on  the  removal  of  the  taluk  head-quarters  to  the  newly  formed  town 
of  Bowringpet. 

Bettadpur  Hill. — Isolated  conical  hill,  4,389  feet  high,  in  the 
Hunsur  taluk  of  Mysore  District,  Mysore,  situated  in  120  27'  N.  and 
760  7'  E.  On  the  summit  is  a  temple  of  Annadani  Mallikarjuna,  the 
family  god  of  the  Changalva  kings.  At  the  foot  of  the  hill  is  Bettadpur 
village,  a  settlement  of  the  Sanketi  Brahmans. 

Bettiah  Subdivision. — Northern  subdivision  of  Champaran  Dis- 
trict, Bengal,  lying  between  260  36'  and  270  31'  N.  and  830  50'  and 
840  46'  E.,  with  an  area  of  2,013  square  miles.  The  southern  portion 
of  the  subdivision  is  a  level  alluvial  plain,  but  towards  the  north-west 
the  surface  becomes  more  undulating.  Here  a  range  of  low  hills 
extends  for  about  20  miles  ;  and  between  this  and  the  Someswar  range, 
which  stretches  along  the  whole  of  the  northern  frontier,  lies  the  Dun 
valley.  The  population  in  1901  was  749,864,  compared  with  759,865 
in  1 89 1.  The  slight  decrease  was  due  to  unhealthiness  and  a  series  of 
lean  years  culminating  in  the  famine  of  1897.  The  density  is  only  373 
persons  per  square  mile,  as  compared  with  507  for  the  whole  District. 
The  head-quarters  are  at  Bettiah  (population.  24,696),  and  there  are 
1,319  villages.  Roman  Catholic  missions  are  at  work  at  Bettiah  and  Chu- 
hari.  The  latter  owes  its  origin  to  some  Italian  missionaries  who  founded 
a  mission  at  Lhasa  in  1707.  Compelled  to  leave  Tibet  in  17 13,  they 
settled  in  Nepal  under  the  Newar  kings  ;  but  when  the  Gurkhas  came 
into  power,  they  had  to  fly  and  take  refuge  at  Chuhari,  where  some  land 
was  granted  to  them.  Many  of  the  present  flock  are  descendants  of 
the  original  fugitives  from  Nepal.  Interesting  archaeological  remains 
are  found  at  Lauriya  Nandanoarh  and  Pipariya.  The  greater  part 
of  the  subdivision  is  included  in  the  Bettiah  Raj,  much  of  which 
is  held  by  European  indigo-planters  on  permanent  leases.  Ramnagar, 
a  village  13  miles  north-west  of  Bettiah,  is  the  residence  of  the 
Raja  of  Ramnagar,  whose  title  was  conferred  by  Aurangzeb  in  1676 
and  confirmed  by  the  British  Government  in  i860.  He  owns  extensive 
forests,  which  are  leased  to  a  European  capitalist.  The  Tribeni 
Canal,  which  is  under  construction,  will  do  much  to  protect  this  sub- 
division from  famine,  to  which  it  has  always  been  acutely  liable. 

Bettiah  Raj. — A  great  estate  in  the  subdivision  of  the  same  name 
in  Champaran  District,  Bengal,  with  an  area  of  1,824  square  miles. 
The  property  was  originally  acquired  in  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth 
century  by  a  successful  military  adventurer,  Raja  Ugra  Sen  Singh,  a 
Babhan  or  Bhuinhar.  In  1765  Raja  Jugal  Kishor  Singh,  who  was 
then  in  possession,  fell  into  arrears  of  revenue  and  rebelled  against  the 
British  Government.  He  was  defeated,  and  the  estate  was  taken  under 
direct  management  ;  but  all  attempts  to  collect  the  revenue  failed,  and 
in  1 77 1  he  was  invited  to  return,  and  received  the  settlement  of  the 


6  BETTIAH  RAJ 

Majhawa  and  Simraon  parganas,  the  remainder  of  the  District  being 
given  to  his  cousin  and  forming  the  Shiuhar  Raj.  In  1 791  the  decen- 
nial settlement  of  the  Majhawa  and  Simraon  parganas  was  made  with 
Bir  Kishor,  Jugal  Kishor's  son,  and  they  now  constitute  the  Bettiah 
Raj.  The  title  of  Maharaja  Bahadur  was  conferred  on  the  next  heir, 
Anand  Kishor,  in  1830.  The  estate  has  been  under  the  management 
of  the  Court  of  Wards  since  1897.  The  land  revenue  and  cesses  due 
from  the  estate  amount  to  5  lakhs,  and  the  collections  of  rents  and  cesses 
to  nearly  18  lakhs.  A  great  portion  of  the  estate  is  held  on  permanent 
leases  by  European  indigo-planters. 

Bettiah  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  subdivision  of  the  same 
name  in  Champaran  District,  Bengal,  situated  in  260  48'  N.  and 
840  30'  E.,  on  an  old  bed  of  the  Harha  river.  Population  (1901), 
24,696,  of  whom  15,795  were  Hindus,  7,599  Musalmans,  and  1,302 
Christians.  Bettiah  was  constituted  a  municipality  in  1869.  The 
income  and  expenditure  during  the  decade  ending  190 1-2  averaged 
Rs.  16,000.  In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  23,000,  mainly  derived 
from  a  tax  on  persons  (or  "property  tax) ;  and  the  expenditure  was 
Rs.  16,000.  A  Roman  Catholic  mission  was  established  about  1740  by 
Father  Joseph  Mary,  an  Italian  missionary  of  the  Capuchin  order,  who 
was  passing  near  Bettiah  on  his  way  to  Nepal,  when  he  was  summoned 
by  Raja  Dhruva  Shah  to  attend  his  daughter,  who  was  dangerously  ill. 
He  succeeded  in  curing  her,  and  the  grateful  Raja  invited  him  to  stay 
at  Bettiah  and  gave  him  a  house  and  90  acres  of  land.  Bettiah  is  the 
head-quarters  of  the  Bettiah  Raj,  and  the  Maharaja's  palace  is  the 
most  noteworthy  building.  The  town  contains  the  usual  public  offices  ; 
a  subsidiary  jail  has  accommodation  for  26  prisoners. 

Bettur. — Village  in  the  Davangere  taluk  of  Chitaldroog  District, 
Mysore,  situated  in  140  30'  N.  and  7 6°  7'  E.,  2  miles  north  of 
Davangere  town.  Population  (190 1),  1,210.  It  appears  to  have  been 
the  old  capital  of  a  principality,  the  original  form  of  the  name  being 
Beltur.  At  the  end  of  the  thirteenth  century  it  was  taken  by  the  Seuna 
general,  and  made  the  seat  of  government  during  the  ascendancy  of  the 
Seunas  over  the  north  of  the  Hoysala  dominions. 

Betul  District. — District  in  the  Nerbudda  Division  of  the  Central 

Provinces,    lying   between    210   22'  and  220  23'  N.  and  77°  n'  and 

780  34'  E.,  with  an  area  of  3,826  square  miles.      It  is  bounded  on  the 

north  and  west  by  Hoshangabad ;  on  the  east  by  Chhindwara ;  and  on 

the  south   by  the  AmraotI  District  of  Berar.      Betul  occupies  nearly 

the  entire  width  of  the  range  between  the  valley  of  the 

Physical  Narbada  on  the  north  and  the  Berar  plains  on  the 

aspects.  .  .  . 

south;   and  with  the  exception  of  15  or  20  villages 

which  lie  below  the  ghats  (passes)  on  the  southern  border,  the  whole 

District    is    situated  on   the  plateau.     The    mean    elevation    is    about 


BETUL  DISTRICT  7 

2,000  feet ;  but  a  number  of  peaks  and  ranges  rise  above  3,000  feet, 
and  in  the  south-west  corner  the  Khamla  plateau  reaches  a  height  of 
3,789  feet.  The  District  may  be  described  generally  as  a  central 
plateau  surrounded  by  a  belt  of  hilly  and  forest-covered  country,  wide 
on  the  north  and  west,  but  narrower  on  the  east  and  south.  The 
northern  portion,  down  to  the  valleys  of  the  Bel  and  Machna  rivers, 
and  the  town  of  Badnur,  is  principally  occupied  by  the  main  chain  of 
the  Satpuras  and  its  outlying  spurs.  About  half  of  this  tract  consists 
of  forest-clad  ranges,  between  which  lies  an  undulating  country,  inter- 
sected by  innumerable  watercourses  and  covered  principally  with  a  thin 
sandy  soil  of  little  value  for  cultivation.  In  the  north-east  the  Tawa 
river  flows  along  the  border  of  the  District,  and  is  joined  east  of 
Shahpur  by  the  Machna,  which  rises  close  to  Badnur.  The  Morand 
rises  near  Chicholl,  and  flows  to  the  north-west  to  join  the  Ganjal  river 
in  Hoshangabad.  South  of  the  sandy  tract  lies  the  rich  valley  of  Betul, 
watered  by  the  Machna  and  Sampna  rivers,  almost  entirely  under 
cultivation  and  well  wooded,  while  farther  to  the  east  the  smaller 
valleys  of  the  Ambhora  and  Tapti  present  a  similar  appearance.  To 
the  south-east  lies  an  extensive  rolling  area  of  basaltic  formation, 
having  the  sacred  town  of  Multai  and  the  springs  of  the  river  Tapti  at 
its  highest  point,  and  consisting  of  alternate  ridges  of  bare  stony  hills 
and  narrow  fertile  valleys.  Along  the  southern,  eastern,  and  western 
borders  is  a  strip  of  hilly  country,  generally  narrow,  but  increas- 
ing towards  the  west  to  a  breadth  of  about  15  miles  from  south  to 
north.  The  southern  hills  form  the  ghats  of  the  Satpuras  leading  down 
to  the  Berar  plains.  In  the  west  of  the  District  the  northern  and 
southern  ranges  meet  in  the  wild  tract  of  hill  and  forest  forming  the 
parganas  of  Saullgarh  in  Betul  and  Kallbhlt  in  Nimar.  The  Tapti, 
rising  at  Multai,  flows  due  west  through  the  southern  part  of  the 
District  in  a  deep  and  rocky  bed,  flanked  on  either  side  by  hills  of 
considerable  height,  which  are  in  places  so  steep  that  they  may  more 
properly  be  described  as  cliffs.  The  Wardha  and  Bel  rivers  also  rise 
on  the  Multai  plateau. 

The  northern  portion  of  the  District  is  occupied  by  metamorphic  and 
Gondwana  rocks,  the  latter  consisting  chiefly  of  sandstones  and  shales, 
while  the  west  and  south  are  covered  by  the  Deccan  trap.  In  the  hills 
south  of  Betul  occur  sedimentary  inter-trappean  deposits  abounding  in 
fossils. 

The  extensive  forests  contain  much  teak,  associated  with  which  are 
all  the  common  trees  of  this  part  of  the  Central  Provinces.  Tinsa 
{Ougeinia  dalbergioides)  is  a  common  and  valuable  timber  tree.  Mahua 
(Bassia  latifolia)  abounds  both  in  the  forests  and  in  the  open  country. 
Among  grasses  may  be  mentioned  rusa  or  tikari  {Andropogon  Schoen- 
anthus),  from  which  a  valuable  oil  is  obtained. 


8  BETUL   DISTRICT 

The  forests  contain  tigers,  leopards,  siimbar,  spotted  deer,  'ravine  deer' 
(gazelle),  and  barking-deer.  Antelope  wander  over  the  open  country. 
There  are  bison  in  the  Sauligarh  and  Asir  ranges,  but  their  numbers 
are  decreasing.     Water  birds  are  rare,  owing  to  the  absence  of  tanks. 

The  climate  is  cool  and  healthy.  During  the  cold  season  the 
thermometer  frequently  falls  to  several  degrees  below  freezing-point ; 
the  hot  wind  is  hardly  felt  before  the  end  of  April,  and  it  ceases  after 
sunset.  The  nights  in  the  hot  season  are  invariably  cool  and  pleasant. 
Malarial  fever  is  prevalent  during  the  autumn  months,  especially  in  the 
forest  tracts. 

The  annual  rainfall  averages  46  inches.  At  Multai  it  is  a  few  inches 
less  than  at  Badnur,  the  position  of  the  latter  town  in  a  small  basin 
surrounded  by  low  hills  probably  giving  it  a  somewhat  increased  rainfall, 
while  the  absence  of  forest  on  the  Multai  plateau  exercises  a  contrary 
influence.  The  statistics  of  past  years  show  that  the  rainfall  is  on  the 
whole  more  likely  to  be  excessive  than  deficient. 

About  4  miles  from  Badnur,  and  dominating  the  fertile  valleys  of  the 
Machna  and  Sampna,  stands  the  fort  of  Kherla,  the  head-quarters  of 
one  of  the  Gond  dynasties  which  formerly  held  pos- 
session of  the  Province.  A  religious  work  called  the 
Vivek  Sindhit,  written  by  one  Mukund  Rao  Swami,  who  lived  about 
a.d.  1300,  contains  some  incidental  references  to  the  Kherla  rulers. 
The  tomb  of  Mukund  Rao  is  still  to  be  seen  within  the  precincts  of  the 
fort  ;  but  the  ruins  of  the  stronghold  itself  appear  to  be  of  Muhammadan 
origin,  and  probably  date  from  a  later  period.  According  to  tradition, 
the  Gonds  were  preceded  by  Rajput  rulers,  the  last  of  whom  was  killed 
at  Kherla  after  a  twelve  years'  siege  by  the  army  of  the  king  of  Delhi. 
The  Muhammadan  general  was  also  killed  in  the  last  assault,  and  his 
tomb  at  Umri  immediately  below  the  fort  is  still  an  object  of  pilgrimage. 
Firishta  relates  that  at  the  end  of  the  fourteenth  century  the  rulers  of 
Kherla  were  Gonds,  possessed  of  considerable  wealth  and  power,  and 
so  strong  in  arms  as  to  venture  to  try  conclusions  with  the  Muhammadan 
rulers  of  Berar  and  Malwa.  In  1433  Hoshang  Shah,  king  of  Malwa, 
conquered  Kherla,  which  remained  part  of  Malwa  till  this  was  incor- 
porated in  the  dominions  of  the  emperor  of  Delhi  towards  the  end  of 
the  sixteenth  century.  After  Kherla  fell  under  the  sway  of  the  Mughals, 
it  was  governed  by  the  Gond  Rajas  of  Deogarh  in  Chhindwara  District, 
who  had  been  converted  to  Islam  and  were  subject  to  Delhi.  In  the 
middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  it  passed,  with  the  rest  of  the  kingdom 
of  Deogarh,  to  the  Bhonslas  of  Nagpur.  In  1818  the  District  formed 
part  of  the  territory  provisionally  ceded  to  the  British,  and  in  1826  it 
was  formally  included  in  the  British  dominions  by  treaty.  From  the 
conclusion  of  the  Maratha  Wars  to  the  present  day  there  has  been  little 
to  disturb  the  peace  of  Betul.     During  the  Mutiny  the  tranquillity  of 


POPULATION 


the  District  was  scarcely  broken,  though  on  his  flight  through  Central 
India  Tantia  Topi  passed  through  Multai  and  plundered  the  treasury. 
A  military  force  was  quartered  at  Betul  until  1862. 

Bhainsdehi  has  an  old  temple  with  fine  stone  carving,  part  of  which 
is  in  good  repair.  At  Muktagiri,  near  the  southern  boundary  of  the 
District  on  the  Ellichpur  road,  a  collection  of  modern  Jain  temples  form 
a  picturesque  group  at  the  head  of  a  ravine  and  waterfall.  A  Jain  fair 
is  held  here  annually. 

The  population  at  the  last  three  enumerations  was  :  (188 1)  304,905, 
(1891)  323,196,  and  (1901)  285,363.  During  the  first  decade  the  in- 
crease was  6  per  cent.,  or  only  half  that  of  the  Province 
as  a  whole,  and  was  mainly  confined  to  the  Multai 
tahsll.  In  the  last  decade  the  decrease  was  12  per  cent.,  principally 
caused  by  famine,  but  also  partly  by  emigration  to  Berar.  The  loss  was 
most  marked  in  the  forest  tracts  of  the  District,  the  open  country  not 
suffering  seriously.  The  District  has  two  towns,  Badnur,  the  head- 
quarters, and  Betul;  and  1,194  inhabited  villages.  The  chief  statistics 
of  population  in  1901  are  shown  below  : — 


Population. 


Tahsii. 


Betul        . 
Multai    . 

District  total 


u 
01 

3     . 

ars 

■9-g 

u 
< 

Number  of 

Population. 

Population  per 
square  mile. 

w 
C 
> 

O 

H 

Villages. 

2,770 
1 ,056 

2 

777 
4i7 

170,994 
114.369 

62 

10S 

75 

3.826 

2 

1,194 

285,363 

ex  o 
.2  "  o- 
*J  c  M 

—  V-a 
3  £  c 

O  •" 


So"3* 

3    iri    V 


-  12.2        3,489 


-  1 10 


2,035 


-"•7       0,524 


About  69  per  cent,  of  the  population  are  Hindus,  29  per  cent. 
Animists,  and  1^  per  cent.  Muhammadans.  The  population  includes 
a  large  proportion  of  Gonds  and  Korkus,  and  also  immigrants  from 
Malwa  through  Hoshangabad  on  the  north  and  from  Berar  on  the 
south.  The  diversity  of  the  different  constituents  is  clearly  shown  by 
the  statistics  of  language,  for  t,t,  per  cent,  of  the  population  speak  the 
Malwi  dialect  of  Rajasthani,  23  per  cent.  Marathi,  29  per  cent.  Gondl, 
and  8  per  cent.  Korku.  The  northern  elements  of  the  population 
probably  entered  the  District  with  Hoshang  Shah,  king  of  Malwa,  in 
the  fifteenth  century,  while  the  Marathas  came  with  the  rise  of  the 
Bhonslas  in  the  eighteenth.  The  latter  are  found  principally  in  the 
Multai  tahsll,  which  borders  on  Berar. 

Brahmans  (4,000)  belong  principally  to  Malwa  and  are  called  Malwi 
Brahmans,  but  they  now  follow  Maratha  fashions.  They  are  cultivators, 
village  priests,  and  patwaris  or  village  accountants.  The  principal 
cultivating  castes  are  the  Kunbls  (31,000),  Kurmls  (14,000),  and 
Bhoyars  (18,000).     The  two  last  castes  are  better  cultivators  than  the 


io 


TRTVL    DISTRICT 


Kunbls,  and  irrigation  wells  for  sugar-cane  are  usually  constructed  by 
Bhoyars.  Kurmls  hold  the  rich  villages  round  Betul.  Alius  or  Gaohs 
number  15,000.  Many  of  them  live  in  the  open  country  and  are  culti- 
vators ;  but  there  is  a  sub-caste  of  Raniya  Gaohs  (from  ran,  '  jungle '), 
who  live  in  the  forests  of  the  north  of  the  District  and  on  the  Khamla 
plateau,  and  breed  cattle.  Gonds  (83,000)  form  nearly  29  per  cent,  of 
the  population,  and  Korkus  (24,000)  8-§  per  cent.  The  latter  suffered 
very  severely  in  the  famines.  The  Korkus  are  nearly  all  nominal 
Hindus  and  worship  Mahadeo.  Gonds,  Korkus,  and  Mehras  (28,000) 
are  generally  farm-servants  and  labourers.  Their  hardest  time  is  from 
the  middle  of  April  till  the  middle  of  August,  when  they  get  very  little 
work,  and  their  principal  resource  is  the  7>iahua  flower.  Many  labourers 
from  the  south  of  the  District  emigrate  to  Berar  to  reap  the  jowiir  and 
cotton  crops,  returning  for  the  wheat  harvest  in  the  spring.  From  the 
north  of  the  District  labourers  similarly  go  to  the  Narbada  valley  to 
cut  the  wheat.  About  70  per  cent,  of  the  population  were  returned  as 
dependent  on  agriculture  in  1901. 

Christians  number  417,  of  whom  in  belong  to  the  Anglican  com- 
munion and  288  are  Lutherans,  384  of  the  total  number  being  natives. 
There  are  stations  of  the  Evangelical  Lutheran  Mission  of  Sweden 
at  Badnur,  ChicholT,  Nimpani,  and  Bordehl ;  and  the  London  Korku 
Mission  has  recently  established  a  station  at  Bhainsdehl. 

Black  soil  of  first-rate  quality  is  rarely  found ;  and  the  best  soil  that 
occurs  in  any  quantity  is  a  friable  loam,  black  or  brown  in  colour,  and  vary- 
ing from  2  to  10  feet  in  depth.  In  the  trap  country 
it  often  contains  black  stones  and  more  rarely  flints, 
and  in  the  northern  villages  is  mixed  with  sand.  An  inferior  class 
consists  of  either  very  shallow  black  soil,  or  red  soil  which  has  been 
made  more  fertile  by  lying  in  a  depression,  while  the  poorest  variety  in 
the  trap  country  is  a  red  gravel  generally  strewn  with  brown  stones. 
This  last  extends  over  as  much  as  39  per  cent,  of  the  total  area.  The 
result  of  famine  has  been  to  throw  a  considerable  quantity  of  land 
out  of  cultivation,  but  all  the  best  land  is  occupied. 

About  32  square  miles  are  held  wholly  or  partially  free  of  revenue, 
and  135  square  miles  of  Government  forest  are  in  process  of  settlement 
on  the  ryotwari  system.  The  remaining  area  is  held  on  the  ordinary 
malguzari  tenure.  The  following  table  gives  the  principal  statistics 
of  cultivation  in   1903-4,  with  areas  in  square  miles:— 


Agriculture. 


Tahsil. 

Total. 

Cultivated. 

Irrigated. 

Cultivable 
waste 

Forests. 

Betul     . 

Multai  . 

Total 

2,770 
1,056 

786 

557 

7 
10 

795 

228 

825 
364 

3,826 

1,343 

'7 

1,023 

1,189 

AGRICULTURE  n 

The  small  millets  kodon  and  kutkl  cover  199  square  miles,  wheat 
233  square  miles,  jowar  134  square  miles,  the  oilseeds  til  and  jagnl 
(Guizotia  oleiferd)  139  square  miles,  and  gram  61  square  miles.  As 
in  other  Districts,  wheat  has  in  recent  years  been  replaced  by  less 
valuable  crops.  Gram  is  severely  affected  by  the  cold  frosty  mists 
which  are  of  frequent  occurrence  about  the  time  when  the  plant  is 
in  flower,  and  hence  it  is  much  less  grown  as  a  mixture  with  wheat 
than  in  the  Narbada  valley.  Kodon  and  kutkl  are  the  staple  food  of 
the  Gonds.  The  area  under  sugar-cane  decreased  from  9,000  acres 
in  1864  and  7,000  in  1894  to  3,000  in  1903-4.  Cotton  was  grown  on 
29  square  miles  in  1903-4.  Most  of  the  labouring  classes  have  small 
gardens,  in  which  they  sow  beans,  maize,  tobacco,  or  chillies 

Fields  are  scarcely  ever  embanked,  probably  owing  to  the  fact  that 
so  many  of  them  are  in  a  sloping  position.  The  most  frequent 
improvements  are  directed  to  prevent  erosion  by  surface  drainage 
and  the  currents  of  streams.  In  a  few  cases  this  is  effected  by 
embanking  and  straightening  the  course  of  the  stream ;  but  more 
frequently  the  surface  drainage  of  the  slopes  on  each  side  is  divided 
by  the  construction  of  protective  trenches  bordering  the  fields,  and 
embanked  on  the  inner  edge  towards  the  field.  Terraces  are  some- 
times made  by  placing  lines  of  large  stones  across  sloping  fields  at 
intervals,  with  the  result  that  in  a  few  years,  owing  to  the  action  of 
drainage,  each  line  of  stones  becomes  the  edge  of  a  terrace.  During 
the  ten  years  ending  1904,  about  Rs.  26,000  was  advanced  under  the 
Land  Improvement  Loans  Act  and  2-1  lakhs  under  the  Agriculturists' 
Loans  Act. 

Cattle  are  bred  in  the  jungles  in  the  north  of  the  District  and  also 
on  the  Khamla  plateau  in  the  south,  as  well  as  to  a  certain  extent  in  the 
open  country.  Those  of  the  local  breed  are  small,  but  hardy,  and 
have  strong  feet.  They  are  generally  red  and  white,  or  red  and  black 
in  colour.  As  a  rule  no  care  is  exercised  in  breeding,  and  immature 
bulls  are  left  in  the  herds  before  castration.  On  the  Khamla  plateau, 
however,  the  Gaolis  sometimes  select  bulls  for  breeding,  and  obtain 
calves  of  fair  size,  but  these  cattle  are  principally  sold  in  Berar.  Large 
bullocks  are  imported  from  Bhopal  and  Hoshangabad,  and  some  from 
Deogarh  in  Chhindwara.  The  Hoshangabad  cattle  are  principally  used 
in  carts  and  to  some  extent  for  cultivation  in  soft  soil,  but  their  feet  are 
too  tender  for  the  stony  soils.  Buffaloes  are  bred  in  the  District.  The 
bulls  are  used  for  drawing  water  and  carting,  but  not  for  cultivation, 
and  are  sold  in  the  rice  tracts  of  Seoni  and  Balaghat.  The  cows  are 
kept  for  the  production  of  ghl  and  are  much  more  valuable  than  the 
bulls.  Small  ponies  are  bred  to  a  slight  extent,  and  are  used  for  pack- 
carriage  and  in  some  cases  for  riding  by  landowners. 

Only  about  4,000  acres  of  spring  crop  land  are  usually  irrigated,  and 


u  BETOL  district 

then  only  because  a  well  is  available  which  was  primarily  made  for 
sugar-cane  or  opium.  Wells  can  be  constructed  very  cheaply  in  some 
parts  of  the  Multai  plateau,  where  the  subsoil  water  is  near  the  surface, 
and  the  gravel  or  rock  underlying  the  first  few  feet  of  soil  is  so  hard 
that  a  durable  shaft  can  be  driven  through  it  without  being  supported 
by  brick  or  stone  work.  Even  when  water  is  available,  wheat  is  usually 
not  irrigated,  owing  to  the  apprehension  that  it  may  suffer  from  rust  or 
frost.     There  are  about  5,000  wells  in  the  District. 

The  Government  forests  occupy  an  area  of  1,189  square  miles,  of 
which  1,181  are  'reserved'  forest.  In  addition  to  this,  135  square 
miles  have  been  set  apart  for  disforestation  and  settlement  on  the 
ryotwdri  system.  The  forests  are  situated  generally  on  the  northern, 
western,  and  southern  borders.  Teak  and  bamboos  are  found  on  the 
trap  hills,  but  not  on  the  sandstone  formation.  Tinsa  {Ougeinia  dal- 
bergioides)  is  a  common  and  valuable  timber  tree.  Saj  (Terminalia 
tomentosa)  is  found  on  flat  ground  where  the  soil  is  good,  and  satin- 
wood  is  abundant  on  the  sandy  soils,  q'he  forests  supply  a  quantity  of 
timber  to  Berar,  in  addition  to  the  local  consumption.  The  revenue 
obtained  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  71,000,  of  which  Rs.  17,000  was  realized 
from  sales  of  timber,  Rs.  16,000  from  bamboos,  and  Rs.  20,000  from 
grazing  dues  and  grass. 

No  mines  are  worked  on  a  large  scale  in  Betul.  Seams  of  coal  have 
been  found  in  different  localities,  the  largest  being  at  Mardanpur  on  the 
Machna  river,  which  is  three  feet  thick  in  parts,  and  at  Rawandeo 
on  the  Tawa  river,  where  there  are  several  outcrops  and  one  or  two 
seams  have  a  thickness  of  four  feet.  Smaller  seams  occur  about  two 
miles  east  of  Shahpur  on  the  Machna,  and  in  the  SukI  nullah.  Lime- 
stone quarries  are  worked  in  several  places.  The  lime  is  burnt  on  the 
spot  in  hand  furnaces  and  sold  for  local  consumption.  There  is 
a  stone  quarry  at  Salbardi,  from  which  stone  suitable  for  mortars  and 
cups  is  obtained.  Copper  ores  have  been  found  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
Tapti,  and  mica  in  the  Ranipur  forests  and  near  Sonaghati. 

The  local  industries  are  of  little  importance.     Several  villages  have 

colonies  of  Mahars  or  low-caste  weavers,  who  produce  coarse  cotton 

cloth ;    the    thread    is    now    all    imported    from   the 

ra  e  an  Nagpur  mills.     Brass-working  is  carried  on  at  Amla, 

communications.      _      .  b 

Ramh,  and  Jawalkheda  to  a  small  extent,  but  brass 

vessels  are  principally  imported  from  Hoshangabad   and  Chhindwara. 

Gold  and  silver  ornaments  are  made  at  ChicholT,  Betul,  Atner,  and 

Satner,  and  the  pottery  of  Betul  has  some  reputation.     Banjaras  make 

sacking  of  san-hemp  {Crotalaria  juncea). 

Wheat   and   oilseeds    are    the    principal  grains  exported,  and  also 

gram,  tiura  {Lathyrus  sativus),  and  urad  (Phaseolus  radiatus)  in  small 

quantities.    Jow'ar  has  hitherto  been  imported  from  Berar  for  local  con- 


FAMINE  13 

sumption.  Cotton  is  now  cultivated  for  export.  Gur  or  unrefined 
sugar  is  exported  principally  to  Berar,  and  to  a  small  extent  to  the  Nar- 
bada  valley,  where,  however,  it  cannot  compete  in  price  with  that  of 
Northern  India.  The  principal  exports  of  forest  produce  are  timber, 
mahua,  myrabolams,  chironjl,  the  fruit  of  the  atr/idr-tree  (Buc/iana?iia 
latifolia),  and  gulli,  or  the  oil  of  mahua  seeds.  Others  of  less  impor- 
tance are  tikari  oil  (Andropogo?i  Schoe/iant/iiis),  gum,  and  lac.  Teak 
and  tinsa  are  the  only  timbers  exported  to  any  considerable  extent. 
The  imports  consist  principally  of  thread  and  cotton  piece-goods, 
kerosene  oil,  hardware,  gold  and  silver,  salt,  groceries  and  spices. 
Betel-leaves  are  imported  from  Berar  and  Ramtek,  and  turmeric  from 
Berar.  The  wholesale  trade  is  in  the  hands  of  Marwari  Banias,  while 
the  retail  purchase  and  collection  of  grain  is  largely  made  by  Telis  and 
Kalars,  who  carry  it  on  bullocks  ;  timber  and  forest  produce  are  taken 
in  small  quantities  to  Berar  and  Hoshangabad  by  Gonds.  There  are 
numerous  weekly  markets,  but  only  retail  transactions  take  place  at 
these.  A  religious  fair  is  held  annually  at  Melajpur  near  Chicholi, 
at  which  a  considerable  amount  of  business  is  done  in  the  sale  of 
household  and  other  utensils. 

Betul  has  hitherto  been  untouched  by  the  railway,  but  a  project  for 
a  line  from  Itarsi  through  the  District  to  connect  with  the  Great  Indian 
Peninsula  Railway  in  Berar  is  under  consideration.  Most  of  the  trade 
has  hitherto  joined  the  railway  at  Itarsi  on  the  north,  the  metalled  road 
from  Badnur  to  Itarsi  being  the  principal  route.  The  roads  from 
Chicholi  to  Nimpani  and  from  Ranipur  to  Shahpur  are  feeders  to  the 
main  road.  On  the  south,  the  railway  through  Berar  runs  within 
45  miles  of  the  open  parts  of  the  Multai  plateau,  but  the  Multai-Pattan 
and  Badnur- Ellichpur  roads  have  only  recently  been  made  passable  for 
carts  down  the  slopes  of  the  Satpuras.  Two  other  routes  leading  from 
Atner  and  Masod  to  Berar  are  used  by  pack-animals.  Most  of  the 
traffic  with  the  south  passes  through  Chandur  in  Berar,  which  is  an 
important  market  town,  to  Amraoti.  There  are  altogether  Sr  miles  of 
metalled  and  203  miles  of  unmetalled  roads  in  the  District,  and  the 
annual  expenditure  on  maintenance  is  Rs.  38,000.  The  Public  Works 
department  keeps  up  239  miles  of  road  and  the  District  council  44. 
There  are  avenues  of  trees  on  32  miles. 

Except  in  the  last  decade,  it  does  not  appear  that  Betul  has  suffered 
greatly  from  famine.  There  were  bad  harvests  in  the  years  1823-5 
and  again  in  1828-30.  In  1832-3  excessive,  fol- 
lowed by  deficient,  rain  caused  a  failure  of  crops,  and 
heavy  mortality  occurred.  In  1868  the  premature  cessation  of  the 
rains  produced  a  short  crop  and  a  certain  amount  of  distress;  but  it 
was  not  severe,  and  (as  in  later  years)  the  flowers  of  the  mahua-tTQQ 
afforded  a  means  of  sustenance  to  the  poorer  classes.     After  this  there 


i4  BETUL  DISTRICT 

was  no  distress  until  1896,  when  following  three  successive  poor 
harvests  only  a  third  of  a  normal  crop  was  obtained.  Severe  famine 
prevailed  in  1897,  the  numbers  relieved  in  Oetober  reaching  26,000, 
or  8  per  cent,  of  the  population,  and  the  total  expenditure  being 
4-5  lakhs.  The  extent  of  the  distress  was  not  fully  appreciated  at  first, 
owing  to  the  reluetance  of  the  forest  tribes  to  apply  for  relief.  In 
1898-9  a  little  relief  was  again  given  in  the  hot  season.  In  1 899-1900 
the  crops  failed  altogether  from  want  of  rain,  the  out-turn  being  only 
20  per  cent,  of  normal.  Relief  was  extremely  liberal  and  efficient,  the 
numbers  rising  to  143,000  persons,  or  45  per  cent,  of  the  population,  in 
August,  1900;  and  the  total  expenditure  was  34  lakhs. 

The  Deputy-Commissioner  is  aided  by  one  Extra  Assistant  Com- 
missioner. For  administrative  purposes  the  District  is  divided  into  two 
.   .  tahsils,   each  of  which   has  a  tahsildar  and  a  naib- 

tahslldar.  The  Forest  officer  usually  belongs  to  the 
Provincial  service,  and  public  works  are  under  the  Executive  Engineer 
of  the  Hoshangabad  division,  whose  head-quarters  are  at  Hoshangabad 
town. 

The  civil  judicial  staff  consists  of  a  Subordinate  Judge  who  also  has 
the  powers  of  a  District  Judge,  and  a  Munsif  for  the  Betul  tahstl.  Of 
the  civil  litigation,  suits  on  mortgage-deeds  with  conditional  sale  and 
for  partition  of  immovable  property  are  the  most  common  classes  of 
important  cases.  The  crime  of  the  District  is  petty,  and  presents  no 
special  features. 

Under  the  Maratha  revenue  system  villages  were  farmed  out  to  the 
highest  bidder,  and  any  rights  or  consideration  which  the  village  head- 
men may  have  enjoyed  in  the  past  were  almost  entirely  effaced. 
Custom  enjoined  that  so  long  as  the  annual  rent  demanded  was  paid, 
the  tenure  of  the  older  cultivators  should  be  hereditary  and  continuous. 
During  the  more  favourable  period  of  Maratha  rule  the  revenue  of  the 
District  was  i-66  lakhs.  When  the  peace  of  Deogaon  and  the  disrup- 
tion of  the  Nagpur  territories  induced  a  policy  of  rack-renting,  it  was 
raised  to  2-47  lakhs  ;  and  on  the  British  occupation  of  the  District  the 
earliest  short-term  settlements  imposed  a  still  further  enhancement, 
the  demand  rising  at  one  time  to  2-87  lakhs.  This  was  never  collected 
and  had  to  be  continually  reduced,  owing  to  the  impoverishment  of  the 
District  from  over-assessment,  until  in  1834  a  twenty  years'  settlement 
was  made  with  a  demand  which  had  fallen  to  1-40  lakhs.  Under  this 
settlement  the  District  prospered  greatly.  On  its  expiry  revision  was 
delayed  by  the  Mutiny,  and  was  finally  completed  in  1864,  the  settle- 
ment being  made  for  thirty  years,  and  the  demand  raised  to  1-84  lakhs. 
At  this  settlement  the  village  headmen,  who  had  previously  been  in  the 
position  of  contractors  or  farmers,  receiving  a  drawback  on  the  collec- 
tions of  revenue,  obtained  proprietary  and  transferable  rights  in  their 


ADMINISTRA  TION 


i5 


villages.  The  District  continued  to  thrive  during  the  period  of  the 
settlement,  the  extension  of  cultivation  amounting  to  38  per  cent., 
while  prices  rose  by  70  to  100  per  cent.  A  new  settlement  was  begun 
in  1 894  on  completion  of  the  cadastral  survey,  but,  owing  to  the  suspen- 
sion of  work  during  the  famine  of  1897,  was  not  finished  until  1899. 
The  result  was  an  enhancement  of  the  revenue  to  2-77  lakhs,  or  by 
45  per  cent,  on  the  demand  immediately  before  revision.  The  new 
revenue  absorbs  54  per  cent,  of  the  'assets.'  The  average  incidence 
of  revenue  per  acre  is  R.  0-5-2  (maximum  R.  0-13-8,  minimum 
R.  0-2-1),  and  the  rental  incidence  R.  0-7-1  (maximum  Rs.  1-5-2, 
minimum  R.  0-2-9).  Owing  to  the  deterioration  caused  by  famine, 
some  temporary  remissions  of  revenue  have  been  made  since. 

The  collections  of  land  and  total  revenue  for  a  series  of  ten  years 
are  shown  below,  in  thousands  of  rupees  : — 


1880-1. 

1890-1. 

1 900- 1. 

'903-4- 

Land  revenue  . 
Total  revenue . 

1.99 

4-°5 

2,OD 

5," 

1.95 
4-41 

2,64 
5,78 

The  management  of  local  affairs,  outside  municipal  areas,  is  entrusted 
to  a  District  council  and  two  local  boards,  each  having  jurisdiction 
over  one  tahsil.  The  income  of  the  District  council  in  1903-4  was 
Rs.  42,000,  while  the  expenditure  included  Rs.  18,000  on  education 
and  Rs.  11,000  on  puhlic  works.  Badnur  and  Betul  are  municipal 
towns. 

The  police  force  consists  of  321  officers  and  men,  including 
3  mounted  constables,  under  a  District  Superintendent.  There  are 
1,262  village  watchmen  for  1,196  inhabited  villages.  Badnur  has 
a  District  jail,  with  accommodation  for  143  prisoners,  including 
9  female  prisoners.  The  daily  average  number  of  prisoners  in  1904 
was  51. 

In  respect  of  education  the  District  ranks  fourteenth  in  the  Province, 
only  3-9  per  cent,  of  the  male  population  and  but  118  females  being 
able  to  read  and  write  in  1901.  The  proportion  of  children  under 
instruction  to  those  of  school-going  age  is  6  per  cent.  Statistics  of  the 
number  of  pupils  are  as  follows  :  (1880-1)  1,513,  (1890-r)  2,578, 
(1900-1)  2,452,  and  (1903-4)  3,545,  including  32  girls.  The  educational 
institutions  comprise  an  English  middle  school,  three  vernacular 
middle  schools,  and  60  primary  schools.  The  only  girls'  school  in  the 
District  is  at  Betul,  and  does  not  flourish.  The  expenditure  on  educa- 
tion in  1903-4  was  Rs.  24,000,  of  which  Rs.  21,000  was  derived  from 
Provincial  and  Local  funds,  and  Rs.  2,000  from  fees. 

The  District  has   3   dispensaries,  with  accommodation    for    41    in 


1 6  BE  TV  I   DISTRICT 

patients.  In  1904  the  number  of  cases  treated  was  15,992,  of  whom 
398  were  in-patients,  and  388  operations  were  performed.  The  expen- 
diture was  Rs.  5,400,  the  greater  part  of  which  was  provided  from 
Provincial  and  Local  funds. 

Vaccination  is  compulsory  only  in  the  municipal  towns  of  Badnur 
and  Betul.  The  number  of  persons  successfully  vaccinated  in  1903-4 
was  59  per  1,000  of  the  District  population — a  very  favourable  result. 

[B.  P.  Standen,  Settlement  Report  (1901).  A  District  Gazetteer  is 
under  preparation.] 

Betul  Tahsil. — Western  tahsil  of  Betul  District,  Central  Provinces, 
lying  between  210  22'  and  220  22'  N.  and  770  n'  and  780  3'  E.,  with 
an  area  of  2,770  square  miles.  The  population  in  1901  was  170,994, 
compared  with  194,719  in  1891.  The  tahsil  has  two  towns,  Badnur 
(population,  5,766),  the  District  and  tahsil  head-quarters,  and  Betul 
(4,739);  and  777  inhabited  villages.  The  density  is  62  persons  per 
square  mile.  Excluding  825  square  miles  of  Government  forest, 
56  per  cent,  of  the  available  area  is  occupied  for  cultivation.  The 
cultivated  area  in  1903-4  was  786  square  miles.  The  demand  for  land 
revenue  in  the  same  year  was  Rs.  1,49,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  16,000. 
The  tahsil  covers  nearly  the  whole  breadth  of  the  Satpura  plateau,  and 
consists  of  a  fairly  open  and  fertile  plain  in  the  centre,  with  ranges  of 
hills  encircling  it  on  three  sides. 

Betul  Town. — Town  in  the  District  and  tahsil  of  the  same  name, 
Central  Provinces,  situated  in  210  52'  N.  and  770  56'  E.,  three  miles 
from  Badnur,  on  the  road  to  Multai  and  Nagpur.  Population  (1901), 
4,739.  Betul  is  declining  in  importance,  being  overshadowed  by  the 
neighbouring  and  newer  town  of  Badnur,  the  District  head-quarters. 
It  was  created  a  municipality  in  1867.  The  municipal  receipts  during 
the  decade  ending  1901  averaged  Rs.  4,500.  In  1903-4  the  income 
was  Rs.  3,300,  principally  derived  from  a  house  tax.  Pottery,  gold-  and 
silver-work,  and  the  manufacture  of  lac  bangles  are  the  local  handi- 
crafts, and  a  weekly  cattle  market  is  held.  Betid  contains  a  vernacular 
middle  school  and  a  girls'  school. 

Betwa  (  Vetravati,  or  '  containing  canes  '). — A  large  river  of  Northern 
India.  It  rises  in  Bhopal  State  at  the  village  of  Kumri  (220  55' N.  and 
770  43'  E.),  and  flows  in  a  generally  north-eastern  direction.  After 
a  course  of  about  50  miles  in  Bhopal,  it  enters  Gwalior  territory  near 
Bhllsa.  It  first  touches  the  United  Provinces  in  the  south-west  corner 
of  the  Lalitpur  tahsil  of  Jhansi  District,  and  flows  north  and  north-east, 
forming  the  boundary  between  that  District  and  the  Gwalior  State.  It 
then  crosses  the  District  obliquely,  traverses  part  of  the  Orchha  State, 
and  flows  for  some  distance  between  Jalaun  on  the  north  and  Jhansi 
and  Hamlrpur  on  the  south,  falling  into  the  Jumna,  after  a  course  of 
about  190  miles  in  the  United  Provinces,  close  to  the  town  of  Hamlrpur. 


BEYT  SHANKHODHAR  17 

In  the  upper  part  of  its  course  the  Betwa.  flows  over  the  Vindhya  sand- 
stone, crossed  by  veins  of  quartz  which  break  it  up  into  beautiful  cas- 
cades. At  Deogarh  it  passes  in  a  magnificent  sweep  below  a  steep 
sandstone  cliff  on  the  eastern  bank,  surmounted  by  a  ruined  fort. 
Below  Jhansi  its  bed  is  granite  for  about  16  miles  till  it  reaches  the 
alluvial  plain.  It  is  nowhere  navigable,  and  its  crossings  are  often 
dangerous.  There  are  railway  bridges  at  Barkhera  on  the  Bhopal- 
Hoshangabad  section  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula,  at  Sanchi  on  the 
Bhopal-Jhansi  section,  at  Mangaoli  on  the  Bina-Guna  line,  and  near 
Orchha  on  the  Manikpur-Jhansi  line.  Road  bridges  cross  it  at  Bhilsa 
and  at  Orchha.  At  Parlchha,  15  miles  from  Jhansi,  the  river  has  been 
dammed  to  supply  the  Betwa  Canal,  a  protective  work  which  serves  part 
of  Jhansi,  Jalaun,  and  Hamlrpur,  and  was  found  of  great  value  in 
1896-7.  Proposals  are  under  consideration  for  damming  the  river  at 
other  places,  so  as  to  increase  the  amount  of  water  available,  and  one 
dam  has  recently  been  completed.  The  chief  tributaries  are  the  Bes  in 
Central  India,  the  JamnI  and  Dhasan  in  Jhansi,  and  the  Pawan  in 
Hamlrpur.  The  Betwa,  is  mentioned  in  the  Puranas,  and  also  in  the 
Meghaduta  of  Ka.lida.sa.  According  to  tradition,  the  Pandavas  fought 
with  the  king  of  Videsa  (Bhilsa)  on  its  banks. 

Beypore  River.— River  of  Southern  India,  flowing  into  the  Arabian 
Sea  in  11°  10'  N.  and  750  50'  E.,  and  the  most  important  of  the  rivers 
in  the  south  of  Malabar  District,  Madras.  It  is  fed  by  numerous  streams 
which  drain  the  Nilambur  valley,  the  chief  of  which  are  the  Ponpula, 
or  '  gold  river,'  Cholayar,  and  Karimpula.  They  unite  above  Nilam- 
bur, and  the  river  flows  through  the  north  of  Ernad,  forming  the 
boundary  of  that  taluk.  It  is  about  90  miles  in  length,  and  navigable 
at  all  seasons  as  far  as  Mambat  at  the  foot  of  the  Vavul  range ;  in  the 
rains  small  boats  go  up  beyond  Nilambur,  and  timber  is  floated  down 
in  large  quantities  from  the  forests  above.  Near  its  mouth  the  river  is 
connected  by  narrow  channels  with  Kallayi,  the  chief  timber  depot  of 
Malabar,  and  with  Calicut  by  the  Conolly  Canal.  The  bar  at  the 
mouth  has  always  12  feet  of  water  over  it,  and  at  high  tides  from 
16  to  r8  feet. 

Beypore  Village. — Village  in  the  Calicut  taluk  of  Malabar  District, 
Madras,  situated  in  1 1°  11/  N.  and  750  49'  E.,  near  the  mouth  of  the 
river  of  the  same  name,  on  its  right  bank.  Many  attempts  have  been 
made  to  utilize  the  natural  advantages  of  the  position,  but  not  with  much 
success.  Saw-mills  were  opened  in  1797,  a  canvas  factory  in  1805, 
iron-works  in  1848,  and  later  a  shipbuilding  yard  ;  but  all  failed.  For 
some  years  it  was  the  terminus  of  the  Madras  Railway  on  the  west  coast. 
Population  (1901),  1,500.  The  value  of  trade  in  1903-4  was:  imports, 
2  lakhs  ;  exports,  9  lakhs. 

Beyt  Shankhodhar.— An   islet   in   the   Gulf  of  Cutch,    forming 

vol.  vm.  c 


iS  '/>•/■;  YT  SHANKHODHAR 

a  potty  subdivision  attached  t<>  the  Okhamandal  tdluka,  Amreli  prdnt, 
Baroda  State.  The  name  Shankhodhar  is  derived  from  the  number  of 
shankhs  or  conchs  found  there,  or  from  its  fancied  resemblance  to  this 
shell.  This  island  contains  only  one  town,  Beyt,  situated  in  220  35'  N. 
and  690  1/  E.,  the  population  of  which  in  iyor  was  4,615.  Its  area  is 
only  4  square  miles  ;  but  it  is  a  most  sacred  place  to  Hindus,  especially 
Vaishnavas,  as  according  to  their  legends  a  demon  called  Shankhasur 
lure  swallowed  the  Vedas,  which  could  not  be  recovered  until  Vishnu 
became  incarnate  as  a  fish,  and  pursued  Shankhasur  into  the  depths 
of  the  sea,  whence  he  brought  back  the  sacred  books.  The  principal 
temples  are  the  old  and  new  sacred  shrines  of  Shankh  Narayan,  and 
those  dedicated  to  Krishna's  four  wives  and  his  mother.  The  latter 
shrines  were  of  some  antiquity,  but  were  blown  up  by  a  British  force  in 
the  war  with  the  Waghers  in  1859.  They  were,  however,  rebuilt  in  the 
same  year  by  Khande  Rao  Gaikwar.  The  town  possesses  a  munici- 
pality, which  receives  an  annual  grant  from  the  State  of  Rs.  900  ; 
a  magistrate's  court,  and  a  dispensary.  The  harbour  is  deep  and 
spacious,  and  small  steamers  can  anchor  close  to  the  town  in  all  seasons. 

Bezwada  Subdivision.— Subdivision  of  Kistna  District,  Madras, 
consisting  of  the  taluks  of  Bezwada,  Nandigama,  NuzvId,  and  the 
zaminddri  tahsll  of  Tiruvur. 

Bezwada  Taluk. —  Taluk  of  Kistna  District,  Madras,  lying  between 
1 6°  1 8'  and  160  44'  N.  and  8o°  21'  and  8o°  52'  E.,  on  the  left  bank 
of  the  Kistna  river,  with  an  area  of  422  square  miles.  The  population 
in  1901  was  124,170,  compared  with  106,477  m  1891.  Bezwada 
(population,  24,224)  is  the  head-quarters,  and  there  are  107  villages. 
The  demand  on  account  of  land  revenue  and  cesses  in  1903-4 
amounted  to  Rs.  3,15,000.  The  taluk  includes  the  Kondapalli 
hills,  but  most  of  it  is  a  flat  expanse  of  black  cotton  soil.  Good 
main  roads  lead  towards  Hyderabad,  Ellore,  and  Masulipatam,  but 
communication  with  the  two  latter  places  during  nine  months  in  the 
year  is  principally  by  the  main  canals  of  the  Kistna  irrigation  system. 
The  country  is  liable  to  floods,  owing  to  the  freshes  which  come  down 
the  river.  The  highest  flood  on  record  was  that  of  1903,  when  the 
river  embankment  gave  way  and  Bezwada  town  and  part  of  the  taluk 
were  submerged. 

Bezwada  Town. — Town  in  Kistna  District,  Madras,  situated  in 
160  31'  N.  and  8o°  37'  E.,  on  the  northern  bank  of  the  Kistna  river, 
and  at  the  foot  of  a  low  range  of  hills.  It  is  the  head-quarters  of  the 
taluk  and  subdivision  of  the  same  name,  the  central  point  on  which  all 
the  communications  of  the  District  converge,  and  the  site  of  the  great 
anicut  (dam)  across  the  Kistna  river.  From  it  are  led  off  the  water- 
ways that  traverse  the  delta  and  connect  the  District  with  Nellore, 
Madras,    and    Godavari      Railways  running  to  Madras,  Calcutta,  the 


BHABAR  19 

Nizam's  Dominions,  and  the  Ceded  Districts  meet  at  Bezwada.  Through 
the  town  passes  the  high  road  from  Masulipatam  to  Hyderabad,  while 
from  the  opposite  bank  of  the  river  runs  the  great  northern  road  from 
Madras  via  Guntur.  The  East  Coast  line  of  the  Madras  Railway  enters 
the  town  over  a  girder-bridge  three-quarters  of  a  mile  long  ;  and  a 
telegraph  wire  that  crosses  the  river  from  Bezwada  to  Sltanagaram 
is  the  longest  single  span  of  such  wire  in  the  world,  being  over  5,000 
feet  in  a  straight  line  from  support  to  support. 

Bezwada  had  a  population  in  1901  of  24,224  (Hindus,  20,377  ; 
Musalmans,  3,194;  and  Christians,  605),  a  remarkable  increase  upon 
the  total  for  1881,  which  was  only  9,336.  It  was  constituted  a  muni- 
cipality in  1888.  The  municipal  revenue  and  expenditure  during  the  ten 
years  ending  1902-3  averaged  Rs.  43,000.  In  1903-4  the  revenue  and 
expenditure  was  Rs.  48,000,  the  chief  sources  of  income  being  taxes  on 
houses  and  lands  and  tolls.  A  scheme  for  supplying  the  town  with  water 
has  been  considered  and  dropped.  Bezwada  is  the  head-quarters 
of  several  of  the  engineers  of  the  Public  Works  department  in  charge  of 
the  delta  irrigation  works,  and  contains  a  high  school  managed  by  the 
Church  Missionary  Society.  It  possesses  a  considerable  internal  trade  ; 
and,  from  its  position  at  the  head  of  the  canal  system,  it  is  a  place  of 
transhipment  through  which  goods  pass  to  and  from  different  parts 
of  Godavari  District. 

From  an  antiquarian  point  of  view,  Bezwada  is  of  some  interest. 
Attempts  have  been  made  to  identify  it  with  the  place  at  which  the 
Chinese  pilgrim  Hiuen  Tsiang,  who  visited  India  in  the  seventh  century 
a.d.,  resided  for  some  months  in  a  Buddhist  monastery.  The  founda- 
tion for  this  belief  rests  on  the  view  that  the  cuttings  on  the  hills 
overhanging  the  town  on  the  west  mark  the  site  of  the  monasteries  he 
mentions.  The  authorities,  however,  are  not  agreed  on  this  point ; 
Dr.  Burgess,  who  examined  the  spot  in  1881,  holds  that  these  cuttings 
are  nothing  more  than  old  quarries.  It  is  a  significant  fact  that  Hiuen 
Tsiang  in  his  narrative  makes  no  mention  of  the  Kistna,  which  he  could 
hardly  have  failed  to  do  had  the  place  he  describes  been  on  the  site  of 
the  modern  Bezwada.  Not  far  from  the  town  on  the  south  side  of  the 
river  are  situated  the  famous  cave  shrines  of  Undavalle.  In  the 
seventeenth  century  Akanna  and  Madanna,  ministers  of  Abul  Hasan, 
the  last  of  the  Kutb  Shahi  dynasty  of  Golconda,  fixed  their  head- 
quarters at  Bezwada,  perhaps  with  a  view  to  being  as  far  as  possible  out 
of  the  reach  of  the  Mughal  emperor.  There  is  a  popular  legend  to  the 
effect  that  from  the  Telegraph  Hill  above  the  town  a  subterranean 
passage  led  to  Hyderabad,  by  which  the  ministers  could  perform  the 
journey  to  court  and  back  in  a  single  day. 

Bhabar. — A  portion  of  Nairn  Tal  District,  United  Provinces,  com- 
prising   the  parganas   of  Chhakhata    Bhabar,    Chaubhainsi     Bhabar, 

c  2 


20  BHABAR 

Kaladhungi,  Chilkiya,  and  Kota  Bhabar,  and  lying  between  280  51/and 
29°  35'  N.  and  780  57'  and  8o°  E.,  with  an  area  of  1,279  square  miles. 
Population  fell  from  100,178  in  1891  to  93,445  in  1901.  There  are 
511  villages  and  four  towns,  the  largest  being  HaldwanT  (population, 
6,624),  the  cold  season  head-quarters  of  the  District.  The  demand 
tor  land  revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  13,000,  and  no  cesses  are  levied. 
The  density  of  population,  73  persons  per  square  mile,  is  the  lowest  in 
the  District.  This  tract  consists  of  a  long  narrow  strip  immediately 
below  the  hills,  and  a  great  part  of  it  is  covered  with  thick  forest  or 
dense  jungle.  The  hill  torrents  sink  into  the  porous  mass  of  gravel, 
boulders,  and  earth  which  make  up  the  Bhabar,  and,  except  during  the 
rains,  water  can  hardly  be  obtained.  Cultivation  is  thus  entirely  depen- 
dent on  canal-irrigation,  by  means  of  which  magnificent  crops  of  oil- 
seeds are  raised.  The  population  is  largely  migratory,  and  moves  up  to 
the  hills  in  the  hot  season,  returning  in  November.  The  greater  part 
of  the  cultivated  land  is  held  directly  from  the  state  as  landlord.  In- 
cluding rents,  the  gross  income  from  the  land  is  about  1-4  lakhs.  In 
1903-4  the  area  under  cultivation  was  89  square  miles,  almost  all  of 
which  was  irrigated. 

Bhabar.  -Petty  State  under  the  Palanpur  Agency,  Bombay. 

Bhabua  Subdivision. — Western  subdivision  of  Shahabad  District, 
Bengal,  lying  between  240  32'  and  250  25'  N.  and  830  19'  and  830  54'  E., 
with  an  area  of  1,301  square  miles.  The  subdivision  consists  of  two 
sharply  defined  portions.  To  the  north  there  is  a  flat  alluvial  plain,  and 
to  the  south  the  Kaimur  range,  a  tract  of  hills  and  jungle,  sparsely 
cultivated  and  thinly  populated.  The  population  in  1901  was  306,401, 
compared  with  344,902  in  1891,  the  density  being  236  persons  per 
square  mile.  The  Kaimur  Hills  afford  little  space  for  cultivation,  and 
the  Bhabua  thana,  with  181  persons  per  square  mile,  has  the  scantiest 
population  of  any  tract  in  South  Bihar.  The  whole  of  the  subdivision 
is  very  unhealthy,  and  it  also  suffered  severely  in  the  famine  of  1896-7. 
It  contains  one  town,  Bhaiuja  (population,  5,660),  its  head-quarters ; 
and  1,427  villages.  An  old  Hindu  temple  stands  on  Mundeswarl  hill, 
and  Chainpur  also  contains  antiquities  of  some  interest. 

Bhabua  Town. —  Head-quarters  of  the  subdivision  of  the  same 
name  in  Shahabad  District,  Bengal,  situated  in  250  3'  N.  and  830  37'  E. 
Population  (1901),  5,660.  It  is  connected  by  road  with  Bhabua  Road 
station  on  the  Mughal  Sarai-Gaya  section  of  the  East  Indian  Railway. 
Bhabua  was  constituted  a  municipality  in  1869.  The  income  during 
the  decade  ending  1 901-2  averaged  Rs.  4,200,  and  the  expenditure 
Rs.  3,500.  In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  5,000,  mainly  from  a  tax  on 
persons  (or  property  tax) ;  and  the  expenditure  was  Rs.  4,000.  The 
town  contains  the  usual  public  buildings ;  the  sub-jail  has  accommoda- 
tion for  14  prisoners. 


BHADRA  21 

Bhadarva.  — Petty  State  in  Rewa  Kantha,  Bombay. 

Bhadaur. — Town  in  the  Anahadgarh  nizamat  and  taJislI,  Patiala 
State,  Punjab,  situated  in  300  28'  N.  and  750  23'  E.,  16  miles  west  of 
Barnala.  Population  (1 901),  7,710.  Founded  in  17 18  by  Sirdar  Dunna 
Singh,  brother  of  Raja  Ala  Singh  of  Patiala,  it  has  since  remained  the 
residence  of  the  chiefs  of  Bhadaur.  It  is  a  nourishing  town,  with  a 
small  manufacture  of  brass-ware. 

Bhadaura. — Mediatized  petty  chiefship  in  the  Central  India  Agency, 
under  the  Resident  at  Gwalior,  with  a  population  (1901)  of  2,275.  The 
area  is  about  50  square  miles,  and  it  comprises  16  villages.  Though 
the  Bhadaura  family  has  long  held  its  present  possessions,  the  chiefship 
itself  was  created  only  in  1820  by  a  grant  of  5  villages  from  Daulat  Rao 
Sindhia,  through  the  mediation  of  the  Resident,  the  grantee  Man  Singh 
undertaking  to  put  a  stop  to  the  depredations  of  a  marauding  girdsid, 
Sohan  Singh.  The  chief  is  a  Sesodia  Rajput  of  the  Udaipur  house, 
and  bears  the  title  of  Raja.  Jagat  Singh  Sesodia,  son  of  Himmat 
Singh  of  Umri,  originally  acquired  Bhadaura  about  1720.  The  present 
chief,  Ranjlt  Singh,  succeeded  in  1901,  and  being  a  minor,  the  State  is 
managed  by  a  Kdmdar  under  the  direct  supervision  of  the  Resident. 

About  10  square  miles,  or  20  per  cent.,  of  the  total  area  are  under 
cultivation.  The  total  revenue  is  Rs.  5,000,  and  the  expenditure  on  the 
administration  Rs.  4,000.  The  chief  place  is  Bhadaura,  situated  in 
24°48/  N.  and  770  24' E.,  on  the  Agra-Bombay  road,  11  miles  north  of 
Guna.  Population  (1901),  647.  In  former  days  some  business  used 
to  be  done  with  merchants  who  passed  up  and  down  the  road,  but  the 
opening  of  the  Guna-Baran  and  Slprl-Gwalior  railways  has  reduced  the 
traffic  to  a  very  small  amount. 

Bhadgaon. — Town  in  the  Pachora  tahtka  of  East  Khandesh  Dis- 
trict, Bombay,  situated  in  200  40'  N.  and  750  14'  E.,  on  the  leff  bank  of 
the  Girna  river,  34  miles  south-east  of  Dhulia.  Population  (1901), 
7,956.  It  has  been  a  municipality  since  1869.  The  municipal  income 
during  the  decade  ending  1901  averaged  Rs.  5,900.  In  1903-4  the  in- 
come was  Rs.  6,900.  In  the  neighbourhood  is  the  Jamda  canal.  There 
is  some  local  trade  in  cotton,  and  two  ginning  factories  are  worked. 
The  town  suffered  greatly  from  a  flood  in  September,  1872,  when  about 
750  houses  were  washed  away.  The  town  contains  a  Subordinate 
Judge's  court,  a  dispensary,  and  four  schools,  of  which  one,  for  girls, 
contains  25  pupils. 

Bhadli. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhadohi. —  Tahsll  of  Mirzapur  District,  United  Provinces.  See 
Korh. 

Bhadra. — Head-quarters  of  a  tahsil  of  the  same  name  in  the  Reni 
nizamat  of  the  State  of  Bikaner,  Rajputina,  situated  in  290  6'  N.  and 
75°  n'  E..  about   136  miles  north-east  of  Bikaner  city,  and  35   miles 


22  BHADRA 

almost  due  west  of  Hissar.  Population  (rijoi),  2,651.  The  town 
possesses  ;i  fort,  ;i  post  office,  a  vernacular  school  attended  by  78  boys, 
and  a  hospital  with  accommodation  for  7  in-patients.  The  Bhadra 
tahsil,  which  contains  109  villages  and  31,994  inhabitants,  was  formerly 
the  estate  of  one  of  the  principal  Thakurs  ;  but  he  was  in  constant 
rebellion  against  the  Darbar,  and  was  finally  dispossessed  in  1818. 
More  than  44  per  cent,  of  the  population  are  Jats.  The  soil  is  on  the 
whole  good,  a  considerable  area  is  cultivated,  and  a  few  villages  generally 
receive  a  little  water  for  irrigation  from  the  Western  Jumna  Canal. 

Bhadrachalam. — Western  subdivision  and  taluk  in  the  Agency  tract 
of  Godavari  District,  Madras,  lying  between  170  27'  and  i7°57'  N.  and 
8o°  52'  and  8ic  49'  E.,  with  an  area  of  911  square  miles.  The  taluk  is 
cut  off  from  the  rest  of  the  District  by  the  Eastern  Ghats,  and  extends 
along  the  left  bank  of  the  Godavari  river.  The  population  in  1901  was 
48,658,  compared  with  42,336  in  1891.  It  contains  320  villages, 
Bhadrachalam  being  the  head-quarters.  The  demand  on  account  of 
land  revenue  and  cesses  in  1903-4  amounted  to  Rs.  23,000.  Owing 
to  its  situation  above  the  Ghats,  the  climatic  conditions  of  this  taluk 
are  somewhat  different  from  those  of  the  remainder  of  the  District. 
Variations  in  temperature  are  greater,  and  the  rainfall  is  almost  entirely 
due  to  the  south-west  monsoon.  The  taluk  is  for  the  most  part  covered 
with  hills  and  forests,  the  Government  '  reserved '  forests  alone  extend- 
ing over  460  square  miles,  for  which  a  District  Forest  officer  has  recently 
been  stationed  at  Kunavaram.  The  Sabari,  a  large  river  which  joins 
the  Godavari  at  Kunavaram,  intersects  it.  Cholam  (Sorghum  vulgare) 
is  the  staple  crop,  though  rice  and  a  little  tobacco  are  grown  along  the 
river  banks. 

Bhadrachalam  was  formerly  part  of  an  estate  in  Hyderabad  territory. 
It  was  ceded  in  i860  and  joined  to  the  Central  Provinces.  In  1867 
the  minor  feudatories  in  it  were  made  practically  independent  of  their 
suzerain,  the  zamlndar  of  Bhadrachalam,  while  the  forests  and  104 
hill  villages  over  which  the  latter  had  never  exercised  authority  were 
declared  state  property.  In  1874  the  taluk  was  transferred  to  the 
Madras  Presidency,  and  in  1879  the  Scheduled  Districts  Act  of  1874 
was  applied  to  it. 

Bhadrakh  Subdivision. — Southern  subdivision  of  Balasore  Dis- 
trict, Bengal,  lying  between  200  44'  and  210  15'  N.  and  86°  16'  and 
86°  58'  E.,  with  an  area  of  930  square  miles.  The  subdivision  is 
a  fertile  deltaic  tract,  watered  by  numerous  streams  which  flow  from 
the  Chota  Nagpur  plateau  into  the  Bay  of  Bengal.  The  population  in 
1901  was  478,653,  compared  with  447,782  in  1891,  the  density  being 
515  persons  per  square  mile.  It  contains  one  town,  Bhadrakh 
(population,  18,518),  its  head-quarters;  and  1,246  villages.  A  large 
trade  passes  through  Chandbali  port  in  the  south  of  the  subdivision. 


BHADRESWAR  23 

Bhadrakh  Town. — Headquarters  of  the  subdivision  of  the  same 
name  in  Balasore  District,  Bengal,  situated  in  2i°3/N.  and  S6°3i/  E., 
on  the  banks  of  the  Salandi  at  the  43rd  mile  of  the  trunk  road  below 
Balasore  town.  Population  (1901),  18,518.  The  town  derived  its  name 
from  the  goddess  Bhadrakali,  whose  temple  stands  near  the  river.  It 
consists  of  a  group  of  hamlets  covering  about  3  square  miles,  and  is 
divided  into  two  quarters,  the  Nayabazar  on  the  right  bank  of  the 
Salandi  and  the  Puranabazar  on  the  left,  the  latter  being  the  chief 
centre  of  trade.  The  principal  articles  of  commerce  are  rice,  salt, 
kerosene  oil,  cotton,  cattle,  and  hides.  The  town  contains  the  usual  sub- 
divisional  offices  ;  the  sub-jail  has  accommodation  for  14  prisoners. 

Bhadran. — Town  in  the  Baroda  prant%  Baroda  State,  situated  in 
220  22'  N.  and  720  55'  E.  Population  (1901),  4,761.  It  is  the  head- 
quarters of  the  Sisva  peta,  a  sub-ma/ui/  of  the  Petlad  ta/iika,  and 
possesses  a  municipality,  magistrate's  court,  vernacular  school,  and 
local  offices.  The  inhabitants  are  chiefly  engaged  in  the  cultivation  of 
tobacco,  but  there  is  also  a  fair  trade  in  grain. 

Bhadrapur. — Village  in  the  Rampur  Hat  subdivision  of  Birbhum 
District,  Bengal,  situated  in  240  16'  N.  and  £7°  57'  E.,  4  miles  south 
of  the  Nawada  station  on  the  East  Indian  Railway.  Population 
(1901),  352.  The  village  is  interesting  as  containing  the  ruins  of 
the  palace  of  Maharaja  Nand  Kumar  (Nuncomar).  There  is  a  silk 
factory  here. 

Bhadreswar. — Town  in  the  Serampore  subdivision  of  Hooghly 
District,  Bengal,  situated  in  220  50'  N.  and  8S°  21'  E.,  near  the  bank 
of  the  Hooghly.  Population  (1901),  15,150.  It  is  a  thriving  town  and 
has  the  largest  rice-market  in  the  District.  The  Victoria  Jute  Mills 
give  employment  to  5,700  hands.  Bhadreswar  was  constituted  a 
municipality  in  1869.  The  income  during  the  decade  ending  1901-2 
averaged  Rs.  12,000,  and  the  expenditure  Rs.  11,000.  In  1903-4  the 
income  was  Rs.  16,000,  of  which  Rs.  7,000  was  derived  from  a  tax  on 
houses  and  lands  ;  and  the  expenditure  was  Rs.  14,000. 

Bhadreswar  (or  Bhadrawati). — Site  of  an  ancient  city,  now  a  petty 
village,  in  the  south-east  of  Cutch,  Bombay.  Most  of  the  architectural 
remains  have  been  removed  for  building  stone ;  but  the  place  is  still 
interesting  for  its  Jain  temple,  for  the  pillars  and  part  of  the  dome  of 
a  Saiva  shrine  with  an  interesting  wav  or  well,  and  for  two  mosques, 
one  of  the  latter  almost  buried  by  drifting  sand  from  the  shore.  It  was 
a  very  ancient  seat  of  Buddhist  worship  ;  but  the  earliest  ruins  now 
existing  belong  to  temples  erected  subsequent  to  a.d.  1125,  when  one 
Jagadeva  Sah,  a  merchant  who  had  made  a  fortune  as  a  grain-dealer  in 
a  time  of  famine,  received  a  grant  of  Bhadreswar,  and  in  repairing  the 
temple  '  removed  all  traces  of  antiquity.'  The  temple  was  a  celebrated 
place   of  pilgrimage   in   the  twelfth  and  thirteenth  centuries.     At   the 


24 


BHADRESWAR 


close  of  the  seventeenth  century  it  \v;is  plundered  by  the  Muhamma- 
dans,  and  many  of  the  images  of  the  Jain  Tlrthankars  were  broken. 
Since  then  it  has  been  neglected,  and  having  fallen  into  ruins,  the 
temple  stones,  and  those  of  the  old  city  fort,  were  used  for  the  building 
of  the  seaport  town  of  Munra  or  Mundra. 

[J.    Burgess,   Archaeological  Surrey   of    Western    India,    pp.    206-7 

(I874-5)-] 

Bhadva. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhadvana.— Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhagalpur  Division. — A  Division  of  Bengal,  bounded  on  the  north 
by  Nepal,  and  lying  between  230  48'  and  270  13'  N.  and  between 
850  36'  and  88°  53'  E.  The  Division  formerly  included  the  District  of 
Malda,  transferred  to  Eastern  Bengal  and  Assam  in  1905  ;  and  Darjee- 
ling, which  used  to  be  part  of  the  Rajshahi  Division,  was  at  the  same 
time  attached  to  this  Division.  The  head-quarters  of  the  Division  are 
at  Bhagalpur  town,  except  for  a  portion  of  the  hot  season  when  they 
are  at  Darjeeling.  It  includes  five  Districts,  with  area,  population,  and 
revenue  as  shown  below  : — 


District. 

Area  in 
square 
miles. 

Population, 
1901. 

Land  revenue 

and  cesses, 
1903-4,  in  thou- 
sands of 
rupees. 

Monghyr        ..... 

Bhagalpur 

Purnea           ..... 

Darjeeling 

Santal  Parganas     .... 

Total 

3,9  22 
4,226 

4,994 

1,164 

5,47° 

2,068,804 

2,088,953 

',874,794 

249,117 

1,809,737 

I  I  -95 

9,31 

14, 1  I 

2,09 

3,84 

19,776 

8,091,405 

41- 30 

The  population  in  1872  was  6,709,852,  in  1881  it  was  7,510,269,  and 
in  1 89 1  it  had  grown  to  7,990,464,  the  density  being  409  persons 
per  square  mile.  In  1901  Hindus  constituted  74-48  per  cent,  of  the 
population,  Muhammadans  16-82  per  cent.,  and  Animists  7-93  per  cent., 
while  other  religions  included  Christians  (16,989,  of  whom  13,363  were 
natives)  and  Jains  (723). 

The  Division  is  intersected  from  west  to  east  by  the  Ganges.  The 
country  to  the  north  is  for  the  most  part  a  flat  alluvial  formation  rising 
gradually  towards  the  foot  of  the  Himalayas,  but  the  greater  part  of 
Darjeeling  is  situated  in  the  Lower  Himalayas.  In  the  south  the  Santal 
Parganas  form  part  of  the  Chota  Nagpur  plateau,  which  also  encroaches 
upon  the  southern  portions  of  Bhagalpur  and  Monghyr  Districts,  the 
hills  extending  in  the  latter  District  as  far  as  the  Ganges.  These  parts 
are  peopled  by  the  Dravidian  tribes  of  Chota  Nagpur,  while  north  of 
the    Ganges    and    east    of   the  Mahananda   river,  in   Purnea  District, 


BHAGALPUR  DISTRICT  25 

there  is  a  strong  admixture  of  the  Koch  tribe,  the  last  of  the  invaders 
from  the  north-east,  and  in  Darjeeling  more  than  half  the  population 
are  Nepalese. 

The  Division  contains  14  towns  and  18,670  villages;  the  largest 
towns  are  Bhagalpur  (population,  75,760)  and  Monghyr  (35,880). 
Owing  to  plague  in  Monghyr  at  the  time  of  the  Census  (March, 
1 901),  the  figure  represents  less  than  its  normal  population,  and  a 
second  enumeration  held  four  months  later  disclosed  50,133  inhabitants. 
Bhagalpur  town  has  a  large  export  trade  in  agricultural  produce ;  and 
a  considerable  traffic  also  passes  through  Monghyr,  Sahibganj,  and 
Rajmahal.  Jamalpur  contains  the  largest  railway  works  in  India, 
and  Katihar  is  an  important  railway  junction  where  the  Eastern 
Bengal  and  the  Bengal  and  North- Western  Railway  systems  meet.  The 
hill  station  of  Darjeeling  is  the  summer  head-quarters  of  the  Bengal 
Government  and  a  military  cantonment ;  the  Census  held  at  the  end  of 
the  cold  season  of  1901  disclosed  a  population  of  16,924  persons,  but 
at  a  special  Census  taken  during  the  previous  rains  23,852  persons  were 
enumerated.  The  temples  of  Baidyanath  at  Deogarh  in  the  Santal 
Parganas  are  a  great  centre  of  Hindu  pilgrimage,  and  rock  sculptures 
are  found  in  Bhagalpur  District.  The  most  important  historical  event 
of  recent  times  was  the  Santal  rebellion  in  1855,  which  led  to  the 
formation  of  the  Santal  Parganas  into  a  non-regulation  District. 

Bhagalpur  District  (Bhaglipur,  meaning  the  'city  of  good  luck' 
or  '  the  city  of  refugees '). — Central  District  of  the  Division  of  the 
same  name,  lying  between  240  33'  and  260  34'  N.  and  86°  19'  and 
870  31'  E.,  with  an  area  of  4,226  square  miles.  It  is  bounded  on  the 
north  by  Nepal ;  on  the  east,  north  of  the  Ganges,  by  the  District  of 
Purnea ;  on  the  south  and  east,  south  of  the  Ganges,  by  the  Santal 
Parganas  ;  and  on  the  west  by  the  Districts  of  Darbhanga  and 
Monghyr. 

The  District  is  divided  into  two  nearly  equal  parts  by  the  Ganges. 
The  northern  half  forms  a  continuation  of  the  great  alluvial  plain  of 
Tirhut,  being  intersected  by  many  rivers  which  are 
connected  with   each  other   by  numerous  dhars  or         Physical 
watercourses.     The  southern  and  eastern  portions  of 
this  tract  are  liable  to  inundation  by  the  flooding  of  these  rivers  and  by 
the  overflow  of  the  Ganges  on  its  northern  bank.     The  north-eastern 
part  of  the  District,  which  was  formerly  one  of  the  most  fertile  regions 
in  the  sub-forai  rice  tract,  has  been  devastated  by  the  changes  in  the 
course  of  the  river  Kosi.     On  the  south  of  the  Ganges  the  land  is  low, 
but  about  20  miles  south  of  Bhagalpur  town  it  rises  gently  till  it  merges 
in  the  hilly  country  of  the  Chota  Nagpur  plateau. 

The  river  system  consists  of  a  reach  of  the  Ganges,  about  60  miles  in 
length,  with  numerous  Himalayan  affluents  on  its  north  bank  and  a  few 


26  BHAGALPUR  DISTRICT 

hill  streams  on  the  south,  which  become  in  the  rains  large  rivers,  hut 
for  the  rest  of  the  year  are  sandy  watercourses  ;  of  the  latter  the  only 
stream  worthy  of  mention  is  the  Chandan.  The  northern  rivers,  of 
which  the  most  important  are  the  Tiljuga,  BatT,  Dimra,  Talaba,  Parwan, 
Kosi,  Dhusan,  ChalaunT,  Loran  Katna,  Daus,  and  Ghugri,  run  mostly 
from  north  to  south  with  a  slightly  eastward  tendency.  The  larger  of 
them  rise  in  Nepal  at  the  foot  of  the  Himalayas  and  fall  into  the 
Ghugri,  which  in  its  turn  joins  the  Kosi  6  miles  from  the  confluence 
of  that  river  with  the  Ganges  at  Colgong.  The  two  most  important 
rivers,  the  Kosi  and  the  Ganges,  have  changed  their  courses  in  the  past 
and  are  liable  to  change  them  again  in  future.  The  channel  of  the 
Kosi  has  been  steadily  advancing  westward ;  and  the  large  trading 
village  of  Nathpur,  which  in  1850  lay  some  miles  west  of  the  river,  has 
been  swept  away  and  its  site  now  lies  many  miles  east  of  it.  There 
are  no  lakes  in  Bhagalpur,  but  shallow  marshes  are  numerous.  Large 
tracts  of  land  are  flooded  every  year  in  the  rains,  and,  as  they  dry  up, 
are  cultivated  and  are  very  fertile. 

The  geological  formations  represented  are  the  Archaean,  the  Gond- 
wana,  and  the  Gangetic  alluvium.  Throughout  the  greater  part  of  the 
District  the  older  rocks  are  almost  entirely  concealed  by  alluvium.  In 
the  south  the  Archaean  rocks  rise  above  the  level  of  the  alluvial  plain, 
and  consist  partly  of  crystalline  rocks  of  varied  constitution,  belonging 
to  the  division  designated  Bengal  gneiss,  partly  of  a  very  ancient  series 
of  altered  stratified  rocks,  not  unlike  the  Dharwar  schists  of  Southern 
India.  Along  the  southern  banks  of  the  Ganges  various  rocks  are 
exposed  in  detached  spurs  and  outlying  prolongations  of  the  Rajmahal 
hills.  Some  small  islands  of  an  exceptionally  granitoid  gneiss  occur  in 
the  Ganges  at  Colgong.  The  remaining  exposures  belong  to  the  Gond- 
wana  series.  The  hills  at  Pirpainti  consist  of  basic  volcanic  rocks  of 
the  Rajmahal  group,  which  belongs  to  the  Upper  Gondwana  ;  those  at 
Patharghata,  north-east  of  Colgong,  of  Damodar  rocks  belonging  to 
the  lower  coal-bearing  series.  The  latter  contain  siliceous  white  clays 
suitable  for  the  manufacture  of  many  articles  of  hard  pottery,  and  have 
been  unsuccessfully  explored  for  coal '. 

The  north  of  the  District  is  covered  in  places  by  deposits  of  sand 
left  by  the  Kosi,  on  which  nothing  grows  except  high  jungle  grass  ;  but 
the  greater  part  consists  of  fertile  land.  South  of  the  Ganges  the  soil 
is  rich  and  covered  with  crops,  and  mango  and  palm  groves  abound. 
The  latter,  however,  practically  cease  in  the  rising  ground  20  miles 
south  of  Bhagalpur  town,  and  mangoes  grow  only  in  scattered  groups ; 
the  ?>ia  hud-tree  (Bass/a  latifolia)  here  becomes  common,  the  red  cotton- 
tree  (Bomfiax  malaba.7-icum)  attains  a  great  size,  and  patches  of  dhak 

1  This  account  was  contributed  by  Mi.  E.  Vredenburg,  Deputy  Superintendent, 
Geological  Survey  of  India. 


HISTORY  27 

jungle  appear,  interspersed  with  large  trees,  the  most  important  being 
the  sal  (Shorea  robusta),  the  abniis  or  Indian  ebon)',  and  Terminalia. 

The  sloth  or  Indian  bear  {Melursus  ursinus)  occurs  in  the  south 
of  the  District ;  it  is  usually  harmless  unless  attacked.  Tigers  are 
found  occasionally  in  the  high  grass  jungles  of  the  Kosi  in  the 
north-east,  and  leopards  in  the  hilly  country  to  the  extreme  south 
of  the  District,  while  several  species  of  wild  cat  are  met  with,  including 
the  palm  civet  or  '  toddy  cat '  {Paradoxurus  niger),  so  called  from  its 
alleged  habit  of  drinking  the  juice  of  the  palmyra  palm.  Wild  hog  are 
found  in  all  parts  of  the  District,  but  are  most  common  north  of  the 
Ganges,  where  they  do  considerable  damage  to  the  crops  and  are  used 
by  the  lower  castes  for  food. 

The  climate  is  pleasant  and  healthy.  In  the  south  the  summer 
months  are  very  hot,  but  in  the  extreme  north  the  climate  is  cool 
throughout  the  year.  Mean  temperature  varies  from  620  in  January  to 
890  in  May.  The  highest  average  maximum  is  970  in  April.  The 
annual  rainfall  averages  51  inches,  of  which  8-5  inches  fall  in  June, 
13-1  in  July,  11-7  in  August,  and  9-3  in  September.  Rainfall  is  fairly 
evenly  distributed  over  the  whole  area,  but  the  average  is  rather  higher 
towards  the  north. 

The  earthquake  of  1897  caused  considerable  damage  in  Bhagalpur 
town,  but  only  one  life  was  lost.  In  September,  1899,  the  eastern  part 
of  South  Bhagalpur,  including  the  country  about  Colgong,  suffered  very 
severely  from  a  heavy  flood.  Owing  to  a  cyclonic  cloud-burst,  the  river 
Chandan  rose  in  flood,  broke  its  embankments,  and  flooded  all  the 
country  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Ghoga,  while  the  railway  bridge  near 
Ghoga  was  washed  away;  altogether  about  1,800  lives  were  lost  and 
25,000  houses  destroyed.  In  1906  serious  distress  was  caused  by 
floods  in  the  extreme  west  of  the  Madhipura  and  Supaul  subdivisions, 
the  crops  being  entirely  destroyed  in  parts  of  the  former  ;  and  there 
was  also  some  distress  in  the  head-quarters  subdivision  between  the 
Ganges  and  Tiljuga. 

Historically  there  is  little  of  interest  in  the  annals  of  Bhagalpur  until 
the  later  Musalman  times.  The  town  of  Bhagalpur  is  occasionally 
referred  to  in  the  Akbarnama,  and  in  the  Ain-i- 
Akbarl  it  is  mentioned  as  the  chief  town  of  mahal 
or  pargana  Bhagalpur,  which  was  assessed  at  Rs.  1,17,403.  Akbar's 
troops  are  known  to  have  marched  through  it  when  invading  Bengal 
in  1573  and  1575;  and  in  the  second  war  against  the  Afghans,  Man 
Singh  made  Bhagalpur  the  rendezvous  of  all  the  Bihar  contingents 
which  in  1591  were  dispatched  thence  to  Burdwan  before  the  invasion 
of  Orissa.  The  town  was  subsequently  made  the  seat  of  an  imperial 
faujdar  or  military  governor. 

When    the   East    India   Company  assumed   the    Dlwani    of   Bengal 


28  BHAGALPUR  DISTRICT 

(1765),  Bhagalpur  District  formed  the  eastern  part  of  the  Muham- 
madan  sarkar  of  Monghyr,  and  lay,  with  the  exception  of  one  flargana, 

to  the  south  of  the  Ganges.  At  that  time  the  country  to  the  south  and 
west  was  so  unsettled,  owing  to  the  inroads  of  hill  tribes,  that  the 
exact  boundaries  of  the  District  in  those  directions  cannot  be  deter- 
mined ;  and  it  was  not  until  1774  that  an  officer  was  specially  deputed 
to  ascertain  its  limits.  Till  1769  the  revenue  and  criminal  jurisdiction 
continued  in  native  hands  ;  but  at  the  end  of  that  year  an  English 
Supervisor  was  appointed,  who  lived  at  Rajmahal  and  whose  duties 
were  'to  obtain  a  summary  history  of  the  provinces,  the  state,  produce, 
and  capacity  of  the  lands,  the  amount  of  the  revenues,  the  cesses,  and 
all  demands  whatsoever  which  are  made  on  the  cultivators,  the  manner 
of  collecting  them,  and  the  gradual  rise  of  every  new  import,  the  regula- 
tion of  commerce,  and  the  administration  of  justice.'  In  1772,  when 
the  Company  took  the  management  of  the  revenue  into  its  own  hands, 
it  was  found  that  during  the  past  seven  years  more  than  5  lakhs  of  land 
revenue  had  been  embezzled  annually.  Measures  were  at  once  taken 
to  put  the  collections  on  a  more  satisfactory  footing,  and  the  zamindars 
were  ordered  to  live  on  their  estates  and  attend  to  the  collection  of 
their  rents,  and  were  imprisoned  if  they  fell  into  arrears.  The  Collector 
next  turned  his  attention  to  the  administration  of  criminal  justice. 
The  ravages  of  the  marauding  hill  tribes  in  the  south  had  become  so 
serious  that,  in  December,  1777,  and  January,  1778,  44  villages  were 
plundered  and  burned,  and  in  May,  1778,  the  hillmen  actually  carried 
off  some  of  the  Collector's  tents  within  a  few  miles  of  Bhagalpur  town. 
Property  and  life  were  insecure,  and  it  became  a  matter  of  supreme 
importance  to  pacify  these  hill  tribes.  In  conjunction  with  Captain 
James  Brown  of  Rajmahal,  Augustus  Clevland,  at  that  time  Collector 
of  the  District,  carried  out  a  scheme  which  resulted  in  1780  in  the 
pensioning  of  the  hill  chiefs.  From  this  time  matters  improved ;  and 
though  the  ravages  of  the  hillmen  did  not  at  once  cease,  the  prompt 
measures  which  followed  upon  each  inroad  at  length  produced  the 
desired  effect,  and  the  country  became  finally  free  from  attack. 

There  have  been  many  changes  of  jurisdiction  in  the  District,  and 
it  has  lost  little  by  little  the  character  of  a  South  Gangetic  tract 
which  it  had  when  it  first  came  into  British  possession.  A  stretch  of 
700  square  miles  on  the  north  of  the  river  was  added  to  it  in  1864,  and 
a  further  important  transfer  was  made  in  1874,  when  the  Kharagpur 
pargana  was  separated  from  Bhagalpur  and  added  to  Monghyr 
District. 

The  most  interesting  archaeological  remains  are  at  Mandargiri  ; 
there  are  rock  sculptures  at  JahangIra  and  Patharghata,  a  rock 
temple  at  Colgong,  and  the  remains  of  Buddhist  monasteries  at 
Sultanganj.     The  Blrbandh,  an   embankment  running  for   20  miles 


POPULA  PION 


29 


along  the  west  bank  of  the  Daus  river  in  the  north,  is  usually  repre- 
sented as  being  a  fortification  erected  by  a  prince  named  Blr — a 
supposition  favoured  by  the  fact  that  the  Daus  is  at  present  an 
insignificant  stream  which  does  not  need  embanking.  At  one  time, 
however,  the  river  was  possibly  much  larger,  and  it  may  be  that  the 
Birbandh  was  raised  to  restrain  its  overflow.  At  Champanagar  near 
Bhagalpur  town  there  are  two  remarkable  places  of  worship  belonging 
to  the  Jain  sect  of  Oswals,  one  of  them  erected  by  the  great  banker 
of  the  eighteenth  century,  Jagat  Seth  ;  and  also  the  mausoleum  of 
a  Muhammadan  saint,  Makhdum  Shah,  the  inscription  on  which 
states  that  it  was  erected  in  16 15  by  Khwaja  Ahmad  Samarkandi, 
faujdar  of  sarkar  Monghyr.  Other  objects  of  interest  near  the  town 
are  the  Karangarh  plateau,  which  formerly  contained  the  lines  of  the 
Hill  Rangers  (a  regiment  embodied  by  Clevland  about  1780),  and 
a  monument  erected  to  the  memory  of  Clevland  by  the  landholders 
of  the  District. 

The  population  of  the  present  area  increased  from  1,826,038  in  1872 
to  1,967,635  in  1881,  to  2,032,696  in  1891,  and  to  2,088,953  in  1901. 
The  District  is  generally  healthy,  but  the  Kishanganj 
thana  and  parts  of  Madhipura  bordering  on  the  Kosi 
are  notoriously  malarious.  Cholera  usually  occurs  in  localized  epi- 
demics from  April  to  June  and  August  to  October  ;  it  was  very  severe 
and  widespread  in  1900.  Deaf-mutism  is  prevalent  in  the  Colgong, 
Bihpur,  and  Bhagalpur  thanas  which  adjoin  the  Ganges,  and  in  the 
Supaul  subdivision  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Kosi.  Details  of  the 
population  in  each  subdivision  in   1901   are  given  below  : — 


Population. 


Subdivision. 

V 

u 

3 

CT  «i 
(/)    1; 
C~ 

V 

u 

< 

Nuir 

ber  of 

c 
.0 

3 
O 

1- 

0  E 
3  2 
"32 

CU 

627 

367 
476 

547 

Percentage  of 
variation  in 

population  be- 
tween 1891 
and  iqoi. 

Number  of 

persons  able  to 

read  and 

write. 

V) 

c 

0 

H 

tr'i 

V 

.2 
> 

830 

994 

757 
482 

Bhagalpur 
Banka 
Madhipura 
Supaul 

District  total 

934 
1,182 
1,176 

934 

2 

585,244 

433,499 
559-3'Q 
510,900 

+  6-o 
+    2-4 
+     2-8 

-  6.1 

30,675 

J  3,i  17 
12,791 

12,677 

4,226 

2 

3,°63 

2,088,953 

494 

+   2.8 

69,260 

The  two  towns  are  Bhagalpur,  the  head-quarters,  and  Colgong. 
The  population  is  not  so  dense  as  in  the  Districts  to  the  west,  a  fact 
which  may  be  ascribed  to  a  less  fertile  soil  and  less  healthy  climate, 
combined  in  the  Madhipura  subdivision,  where  there  has  been  an 
actual  loss  of  population,  with  occasional  floods  from  the  Kosi  which 
leave  behind  them  a  barren  sediment  of  sand.  There  is  a  considerable 
gain  by  immigration  from  the  Districts  on  the  west  and  the  United 
Provinces,  which   is    more  than  counterbalanced  by  large  emigration 


30  BHAGALPUR  DISTRICT 

to  Purnea  and  the  Santal  Parganas.  The  vernacular  spoken  is 
the  Maithili  dialect  of  Bihar! ;  in  the  south  a  sub-dialect  known  as 
Chhika  ChhikI  bolt  is  used.  Hindus  number  1,875,309,  or  89-8 
per  cent,  of  the  total  population,  and  Muhammadans  209,311,  or  10 
per  cent. 

Among  the  Hindus  the  most  numerous  castes  are  the  Ahlrs  and 
Goalas  (367,000),  Dhanuks  (103,000),  Musahars  (94,000),  Chamars 
(90,000),  Koiris  (89,000),  Tantis  (80,000),  and  Dosadhs  (79,000), 
while  other  functional  castes  are  also  well  represented.  Being  bounded 
by  the  Nepal  tarai  on  the  north  and  the  Santal  Parganas  on  the  south, 
the  District  contains  a  large  aboriginal  element,  and  the  Musahars, 
Chamars,  and  Dosadhs  consist  almost  entirely  of  semi-Hinduized 
aborigines.  Gangautas  (56,000,  chiefly  in  the  head-quarters  sub- 
division) and  Gonrhis  (49,000,  chiefly  in  the  Supaul  subdivision)  are 
more  common  here  than  elsewhere  ;  and  there  are  27,000  Santals, 
mostly  in  the  thanas  bordering  on  the  Santal  Parganas.  Of  the 
Muhammadans  92,000  are  Shaikhs,  but  Jolahas  and  Kunjras  are  also 
numerous.  Agriculture  supports  68-6  per  cent,  of  the  population, 
industries  107  per  cent.,  commerce  1-2  per  cent.,  and  the  professions 
0-9  per  cent. 

Two  missionaries  of  the  Church  Missionary  Society,  stationed  at 
Champanagar,  a  few  miles  from  Bhagalpur  town,  work  in  Bhagalpur, 
Purnea,  and  Monghyr  Districts.  There  is  also  an  independent  mission 
at  Jaypur  in  the  south  of  the  District,  and  Bhagalpur  is  a  station  of  the 
Church  of  England  Zanana  Missionary  Society.  In  the  latter  town 
a  fine  church  for  the  native  congregation,  a  high  school,  an  orphanage, 
and  a  leper  asylum  are  superintended  by  missionaries.  In  1901  the 
number  of  native  Christians  was  514. 

The  soils  on  the  two  sides  of  the  Ganges  are  very  different.  On  the 
north  the  soil,  like  that  of  Lower  Bengal,  consists  chiefly  of  good  clays 
intermixed  with  sand,  which  are  ordinarily  very  friable. 
On  the  south  of  the  river  five  different  kinds  are 
found.  Along  the  south-eastern  boundary  is  a  high  belt  of  land  some 
6  to  10  miles  wide,  containing  gravel,  granite,  jasper,  and  basalt;  this 
is  the  least  productive  soil,  but  grows  rahar  and  is  well  wooded. 
Of  less  elevation,  but  still  above  flood-level,  is  bari  land,  which  yields 
rich  cold-season  crops,  such  as  wheat,  barley,  oats,  mustard,  and  sugar- 
cane, and  is  classed  as  either  sail  or  dosal  according  as  it  gives  one  or 
two  crops  in  the  year.  Land  fit  for  growing  rice  is  known  as  kheyari 
land,  which  is  also  divided  into  the  same  two  classes  according  to  the 
number  of  crops  it  produces ;  some  of  this  land,  however,  loses  much 
of  its  value  from  the  presence  of  calcareous  nodules  or  from  efflores- 
cence of  soda.  Chaur  is  very  low  marsh  land,  which  cannot  be  culti- 
vated till  after  the  rainy  season  is  passed.     Diara  is  land  lying  on  the 


AGRICULTURE  31 

bank  of  the  Ganges  which  is  subject  to  yearly  inundation  ;  it  produces 
good  cold-season  crops  and  is  very  suitable  for  the  cultivation  of 
indigo.  When  covered  with  a  layer  of  sand,  it  is  called  balubandh; 
and  if  the  sand  is  not  more  than  18  inches  deep,  the  long  tap-root 
of  the  indigo  plant  reaches  to  the  good  soil  below  and  the  plant 
flourishes. 

In  1903-4  the  cultivated  area  was  estimated  at  3,320  square  miles 
and  the  cultivable  waste  at  312  square  miles,  details  by  subdivisions 
not  being  available.  About  35  per  cent,  of  the  cultivated  area  is  twice 
cropped. 

Rice  is  the  staple  food-grain.  The  principal  crop  is  the  aghani  or 
winter  rice,  which  is  sown  in  May  and  reaped  in  December  or  January, 
and  covers  1,707  square  miles  ;  while  the  bhadoi  or  early  crop,  which 
is  also  sown  in  May  but  reaped  in  August,  covers  495  square  miles. 
Other  staple  crops  are  maize  (391  square  miles)  and  mania  (192),  while 
important  food-grains  are  wheat  (353),  barley,  jowdr,  and  gram.  Oil- 
seeds include  linseed,  rapeseed,  mustard,  castor-oil,  and  til;  cotton  and 
jute  are  the  chief  fibres,  but  a  new  fibre,  rhea,  is  now  being  grown  at 
Bangaon  and  may  possibly  become  important.  Sugar-cane  (100  square 
miles)  is  more  extensively  grown  than  in  any  other  District  of  Bengal ; 
on  the  other  hand  indigo  with  12,000  acres,  though  still  an  important 
crop,  has  been  affected  by  the  fall  in  prices  in  recent  years. 

Improvements  have  been  effected  in  the  cultivation  of  sugar-cane, 
and  the  Nairn  Tal  potato  has  also  been  introduced  with  success. 
Loans  under  the  Agriculturists'  Loans  Act  have  been  granted  freely 
in  times  of  distress;  Rs.  36,000  was  advanced  in  1892-3  on  account 
of  the  failure  of  the  crops,  Rs.  30,000  in  1897-8,  another  year  of 
scarcity,  and  Rs.  16,000  in  1899- 1900  in  consequence  of  disastrous 
floods. 

As  elsewhere  in  Bihar,  the  cattle  are  of  a  better  and  stronger  breed 
than  those  of  Bengal  proper.  There  is  no  lack  of  pasturage  ;  the 
gkoghras  of  Katuria  in  the  south  and  the  chaur  lands  of  the  Dharampur 
pargana  in  the  north  provide  abundance  of  grazing  land,  and  scarcity 
of  fodder  is  seldom  experienced  even  in  periods  of  drought  or 
famine.  The  only  cattle  fair  of  importance  is  held  at  Singheswar  in 
Madhipura. 

There  are  no  canals  ;  irrigation  is  carried  on  principally  by  means 
of  reservoirs  and  the  system  of  ahars  and  pains  which  is  common 
throughout  Bihar.  A  reservoir  is  made  on  the  side  of  a  hill  near 
a  river  as  high  up  as  is  feasible  ;  and  when  the  river  comes  down  in 
flood,  water  is  diverted  into  the  reservoir  and  is  subsequently  carried 
where  required  over  a  series  of  terraces.  This  scheme  of  irrigation 
removes  the  need  for  canals,  and  produces  excellent  crops  upon  most 
unpromising  land.     It  fails  only  when  the  opportunity  of  filling  the 


32  BHAGALPUR  DISTRICT 

reservoirs  is  missed,  and  the  last  flood  of  the  river  comes  down  without 
advantage  being  taken  of  it.  The  area  of  land  irrigated  by  means  of 
tanks  and  wells  is  estimated  at  1,121  square  miles. 

Lead  ores  (principally  argentiferous  galena)  occur  at  Gaurlpur  or 
Phaga,  Dahijar,  Khanda,  Gamharia,  Khajuria,  and  Karikhar.  At 
Phaga  103  oz.  2  dwt.  12  grs.  of  silver  and  at  Khajuria  46  oz.  4  dwt. 
3  grs.  have  been  obtained  per  ton  of  lead  from  galena  ;  but  two  attempts 
made  to  work  galena  in  1878-9  and  in  1900  were  soon  abandoned. 
Other  minerals  existing  in  the  District  are  sulphide  of  lead,  sulphuret 
of  antimony,  malachite,  talc,  chlorite,  and  jasper.  Iron  ore  is  also 
distributed  over  the  whole  of  the  hilly  country,  but  is  not  much  worked. 
Close  to  Colgong  there  are  several  small  hills  consisting  of  piled 
masses  of  a  very  compact  grey  granite,  which  appears  at  one  time 
to  have  been  quarried  for  the  construction  of  temples. 

The  principal  manufactures  are  tasar  silk  and  bafta  cloths,  indigo, 

ghi,  iron  and  brass  utensils,  cloth,  and  lac  bracelets.     Gur  (molasses) 

is  made  at  Banka  and  exported  to  Lower  Bengal ; 

ra  ean  coarse  coloured  glass    used  for  bracelets   is    manu- 

communications.  ° 

factured  at  Bhagalpur ;  and  carpets  and  blankets  are 

made  in  the  Central  jail.  The  manufacture  of  tasar  is  carried  on  by 
means  of  hand-looms  of  a  primitive  kind.  The  silk  is  woven  with 
a  mixture  of  cotton  in  various  proportions,  and  the  pieces  of  cloth 
produced  are  called  by  different  names  according  to  the  proportion  of 
cotton  in  warp  or  woof.  The  indigo  industry  is  declining  owing  to 
the  competition  of  the  artificial  dye;  and  in  1903-4  the  out-turn  was 
only  75  tons.  In  Bhagalpur  town  there  are  a  few  small  factories  of 
aerated  water. 

The  chief  imports  are  coal  and  coke,  salt,  cotton  piece-goods,  gunny- 
bags,  gram  and  pulses,  silk  (raw),  and  tobacco  (raw) ;  the  chief  exports 
are  rice  and  paddy,  wheat,  gram  and  pulses,  linseed,  mustard  seed,  and 
indigo.  The  imports  are  received  by  rail  or  steamer  from  Eastern 
Bengal  or  come  down  by  road  from  Nepal.  In  order  to  gauge  the 
extent  of  trade  with  Nepal,  three  registration  posts  have  been  established 
on  the  three  main  routes  from  the  north  ;  but  a  part  of  the  trade  comes 
by  intermediate  routes  and  so  escapes  observation.  The  export  trade, 
like  the  import  trade,  is  largely  with  Nepal  and  Eastern  Bengal.  The 
important  trade  centres  are :  in  the  south,  Sultanganj,  Bhagalpur, 
Colgong,  Plrpainti,  Belhar,  Amarpur,  Barahat,  Jaypur,  and  Banka ;  and 
in  the  north,  Madhipura,  Kishanganj,  Bangaon,  Pratapganj,  Bihpur, 
and  Supaul.  In  the  south  most  of  the  trade  is  carried  by  the  East 
Indian  Railway  loop-line  and  by  the  Steam  Navigation  Company, 
whose  boats  facilitate  the  carriage  of  grain  from  the  Gangetic  tracts. 
New  trade  facilities  have  been  afforded  by  the  opening  of  the  railway 
connecting  Sonpur  with  Katihar  and  the  branch  line  from  Bihpur  to 


FAMINE  33 

Barari,  which   have  diverted   a   large  amount  of  the  trade  of  North 
Bhagalpur,  but  have  hardly  affected  traffic  in  the  south. 

Three  main  railway  lines  run  east  and  west  almost  parallel  through 
the  District.  The  loop-line  of  the  East  Indian  Railway  (broad  gauge) 
passes  along  the  south  bank  of  the  Ganges,  with  a  branch  line  from 
Sultanganj  station  to  Sultanganj  Ghat  for  goods  only.  On  the  north 
bank  runs  the  Hajlpur-Katihar  extension  of  the  Bengal  and  North- 
western Railway  (metre  gauge).  In  connexion  with  it  is  a  branch  line 
from  Bihpur  to  Barari  Ghat,  from  which  a  steam  ferry  plies  across  the 
river  to  Bhagalpur ;  it  is  proposed  to  construct  a  line  from  the  south 
bank  of  the  river  to  Bhagalpur  railway  station.  The  Tirhut  State 
Railway  (metre  gauge),  worked  as  part  of  the  Bengal  and  North-Western 
Railway  system,  passes  through  the  north  of  the  District,  terminating 
on  the  east  at  Khanwa  Ghat  on  the  Kosi,  where  it  is  connected  by 
a  ferry  with  the  line  from  Anchra  Ghat  to  Katihar.  A  new  line 
running  from  Mansi  in  Monghyr  north  to  Bhaptiahl  to  connect  the 
Hajlpur-Katihar  Railway  with  the  Tirhut  State  Railway  is  under  con- 
struction, and  from  this  line  a  branch  will  run  to  Madhipura.  A 
proposal  has  also  been  made  to  construct  a  branch  from  Bhagalpur 
via  Bausi  to  Deogarh  in  the  Santal  Parganas. 

Including  39^  miles  of  village  tracks,  the  District  contains  1,763 
miles  of  road,  of  which  63^  are  metalled.  The  principal  metalled 
road  leads  from  Bhagalpur  town  to  the  Santal  Parganas  via  Jagdispur 
and  Bausi.  Other  important  roads  run  west  to  Monghyr,  east  to 
Sahibganj,  and  north  to  Madhipura  and  Supaul. 

The  principal  waterway  is  the  river  Ganges,  on  which  traffic  is  carried 
on  by  the  Steam  Navigation  Company.  Most  of  the  rivers  in  the  north 
of  the  District  are  navigable  for  part  of  the  year.  The  Tiljiiga  is 
navigable  by  boats  of  70  tons  as  far  as  Tilakeswar,  and  the  lower 
reaches  of  the  Dimra.  and  Talaba  are  navigable  by  boats  of  9  tons. 
The  Kosi  is  very  dangerous  for  navigation,  owing  to  the  frequent 
changes  in  its  course  and  its  strong  current  during  the  rains.  In 
addition  to  the  ferries  across  the  Kosi  at  Khanwa  Ghat  and  across  the 
Ganges  at  Bhagalpur,  there  are  important  ferries  at  Colgong  and 
Sultanganj. 

Bhagalpur  has  suffered  from  time  to  time  from  scarcity,  and  there 
are  records  of  famines  in  1770,  1775,  r779>  and  1783-  From  that 
date  there  seems  to  have  been  no  year  of  great 
distress  till  1866,  the  year  of  the  Orissa  famine,  when 
Bhagalpur  suffered  considerably,  the  price  of  rice  in  July,  1866, 
rising  to  8^  seers  for  a  rupee.  In  the  famine  of  1874  elaborate 
measures  were  taken  to  relieve  distress.  The  total  expenditure  exceeded 
9  lakhs,  but  a  part  of  this  consisted  of  advances  to  cultivators  which 
were  afterwards  partially  realized.     In  the  famine  of  1896-7  a  portion 

VOL.  VIII.  D 


34  BHAGALPUR   DISTRICT 

of  the  District,  300  square  miles  in  area,  was  affected  and  required 
a  limited  amount  of  relief.  Test  works  were  opened  early  in  1897, 
hul  they  failed  to  show  any  great  demand  for  labour,  the  number 
of  persons  in  receipt  of  relief  never  exceeding  25,000. 

For  administrative  purposes  the  District  is  divided  into  four  subdivi- 
sions, with  head-quarters  at  Bhagalpur,  Banka,  Madhipura,  and 
Supaul.  The  District  Magistrate-Collector  is  assisted  at  head-quarters 
.  .  .  by  a  staff  consisting  of  five  Deputy-Magistrate- 
Collectors  and  two  Sub-Deputy  Collectors,  and  also 
occasionally  by  a  Joint  or  Assistant  Magistrate.  The  outlying  sub- 
divisions are  in  charge  of  Deputy-Magistrate-Collectors,  the  subdivi- 
sional  officers  of  Supaul  and  Madhipura  being  usually  assisted  by 
a  Sub-Deputy-Collector. 

The  civil  courts  subordinate  to  the  District  and  Sessions  Judge,  who 
is  also  Judge  of  Monghyr,  are  those  of  three  Sub-Judges  at  head- 
quarters and  of  five  Munsifs,  of  whom  two  are  stationed  at  Bhagalpur 
and  one  each  at  Banka  and  Madhipura,  while  the  fifth  is  an  additional 
Munsif  for  Madhipura  and  Begusarai  in  Monghyr.  The  criminal 
courts  include  those  of  the  Sessions  Judge,  an  Assistant  Sessions  Judge, 
the  District  Magistrate,  and  the  above-mentioned  magistrates.  The  com- 
monest  cases  are  those  arising  out  of  disputes  about  land  ;  in  T-ecent 
years  there  has  been  an  outbreak  of  dacoity  in  the  north  of  the  District. 

As  already  stated,  Bhagalpur  formed  under  Muhammadan  rule  part 
of  the  sarkdr  of  Monghyr,  and  the  amount  of  land  revenue  for  which 
it  was  liable  cannot  be  separately  determined ;  it  is,  however,  known 
that  the  zam'indars  in  the  hilly  parts  of  the  Banka  subdivision  enjoyed 
a  semi-independence  and  seldom  paid  any  revenue  at  all.  In  con- 
sequence of  the  embezzlements  which  followed  the  Permanent  Settle- 
ment, the  land  revenue  in  1799  amounted  to  only  3-10  lakhs;  and 
owing  to  the  backward  condition  of  the  District  at  the  time  of  the 
settlement  and  to  the  imperfect  assessments  originally  made,  the  inci- 
dence of  land  revenue  is  extraordinarily  low,  amounting  for  the  whole 
District  to  R.  0-4-6  per  cultivated  acre  and  to  less  than  1 1  per 
cent,  of  the  rental.  In  many  places,  especially  in  the  Banka  sub- 
division, there  has  been  a  great  development  of  estates  in  recent  years, 
and  villages  with  a  rental  of  more  than  Rs.  1,000  are  paying  a  nominal 
revenue  of  Rs.  8  a  year.  In  the  north  the  westward  advance  of  the 
river  Kosi  has  washed  away  a  number  of  estates,  and  the  proprietors 
have  allowed  them  to  be  sold  for  arrears  of  revenue.  In  this  way  the 
number  of  khds  mahals  is  increasing.  In  all,  however,  only  70  estates 
with  a  current  demand  of  Rs.  38,000  are  held  direct  by  Government, 
the  remainder  of  the  District,  with  the  exception  of  10  temporarily 
settled  estates  paying  Rs.  2,000,  being  permanently  settled.  During 
the  last  century  the  subdivision  of  estates  has  been  remarkable,  the 


A  D MINIS TR.  I TION 


35 


number  of  estates  increasing  thirty-fold  and  the  number  of  proprietors 
eighty-fold  in  that  time.  In  the  south  the  rent  of  low  land  suitable  for 
rice  cultivation  varies  from  i  2  annas  to  Rs.  6  per  acre  and  of  bhith  or 
high  land  from  Rs.  3  to  Rs.  9  per  acre,  while  high  jungle  lands  fetch 
only  from  6  annas  to  Rs.  1-8-0.  In  the  north,  rice  land  varies  from 
12  annas  to  Rs.  4-1,  and  bhith  land  from  12  annas  to  Rs.  3-8  per  acre. 
The  average  area  of  a  ryot's  holding  in  the  south  is  from  8  to  15  acres, 
but  in  the  north  it  is  less.  A  ryot  with  a  holding  of  20  acres  is  con- 
sidered to  be  well-to-do,  and  holdings  of  more  than  40  acres  are  almost 
confined  to  the  mahajan  class,  who  lend  money  and  grain  at  interest. 

The  following  table  shows  the  collections  of  land   revenue  and  of 
total  revenue  (principal  heads  only),  in  thousands  of  rupees  :-- 


18F0-1. 

1890-1.        1900-1. 

1903-4. 

Land  revenue  . 
Total  revenue . 

5,7' 

14,15 

6,02 
15.07 

5.97 
17,46 

5,96 

17,28 

Outside  the  municipalities  of  Bhagalpur  and  Colgong,  local  affairs 
are  managed  by  the  District  board,  to  which  subdivisional  local  boards 
are  subordinate.  In  1903-4  its  income  was  Rs.  2,31,000,  including 
Rs.  1,38,000  from  rates  ;  and  the  expenditure  was  Rs.  2,30,000,  the 
chief  item  being  Rs.  1,57,000  spent  on  public  works. 

The  only  important  work  constructed  by  the  Public  Works  depart- 
ment is  the  Chandan  embankment.  This  extends  for  3^  miles  along 
the  left  bank  of  the  Chandan  river,  and  protects  an  area  of  about 
\\  square  miles,  including  the  village  of  Banka  and  some  low-lying 
land  in  the  vicinity.  Other  smaller  embankments  have  been  con- 
structed by  zamindars. 

The  District  contains  21  thanas  or  police  stations  and  10  outposts. 
The  force  subordinate  to  the  District  Superintendent  in  1903  consisted 
of  4  inspectors,  2>Z  sub-inspectors,  38  head-constables,  and  399  con- 
stables ;  there  was  also  a  rural  police  force  of  1 94  daffadars  and 
3,782  chaukldars.  A  company  of  military  police  is  stationed  at 
Bhagalpur  town.  The  training-school  for  officers  of  the  Bengal  police 
service  is  at  Bhagalpur,  and  during  the  year  1 70  cadets  and  9  proba- 
tionary Assistant  Superintendents  were  trained  there.  A  Central  jail  at 
Bhagalpur  has  accommodation  for  1,964  prisoners,  and  subsidiary 
jails  at  Banka,  Madhipura,  and  Supaul  for  45. 

Education  is  backward,  only  yi  per  cent,  of  the  population 
(6-6  males  and  o-i  females)  being  able  to  read  and  write  in  1901.  An 
advance  has,  however,  been  made  in  recent  years  ;  for  though  the 
number  of  pupils  under  instruction  fell  from  21,286  in  1880-1  to 
17,306  in  1892-3,  it  increased  again  to  25,387  in  1900-1.  In  1903-4, 
27,996  boys' and  2,492  girls  were  at  school,  being  respectively  i8-i  and 

D  2 


36  BHAGALPUR    DISTRICT 

i«5  per  cent,  of  those  of  school-going  age.  The  number  of  educational 
institutions,  public  and  private,  in  that  year  was  1,319,  including 
one  Arts  college,  19  secondary,  962  primary,  and  337  special  schools. 
The  expenditure  on  education  was  Rs.  1,60,000,  of  which  Rs.  15,000 
was  met  from  Provincial  funds,  Rs.  35,000  from  District  funds, 
Rs.  2,000  from  municipal  funds,  and  Rs.  74,000  from  fees.  The  chief 
educational  institution  is  the  Tejnarayan  Jubilee  College  in  Bhagal- 
pur  town  ;  the  only  other  notable  school  is  the  Sanskrit  tol  at  Karan- 
garh.  A  Santal  boys'  school  and  a  Santal  girls'  school  near  the 
eastern  border  have  a  large  attendance,  while  all  the  primary  schools  in 
the  south  of  the  District  are  attended  by  boys  of  aboriginal  races. 

In  1903  the  District  contained  13  dispensaries,  of  which  6  had 
accommodation  for  70  in-patients.  At  these  the  cases  of  71,000  out- 
patients and  954  in-patients  were  treated  during  the  year,  and  4,206 
operations  were  performed.  The  expenditure  was  Rs.  24,000,  of 
which  Rs.  1,800  was  met  from  Government  contributions,  Rs.  8,000 
from  Local  and  Rs.  4,000  from  municipal  funds,  and  Rs.  8,000  from 
subscriptions. 

Vaccination  is  compulsory  only  in  municipal  areas.  In  1903-4  the 
number  of  persons  successfully  vaccinated  was  72,000,  representing 
35-8  per  1,000  of  the  population. 

[M.  Martin  (Buchanan  Hamilton),  Eastern  India,  vol.  ii  (1838); 
Sir  W.  W.  Hunter,  Statistical  Account  of  Bengal,  vol.  xiv  (1877).] 

Bhagalpur  Subdivision. — Head-quarters  subdivision  of  Bhagalpur 
District,  Bengal,  lying  between  250  4'  and  250  30'  N.  and  86°  39'  and 
8 70  31'  E.,  with  an  area  of  934  square  miles.  The  subdivision  consists 
of  an  alluvial  tract  of  great  natural  fertility,  bounded  on  the  north  by 
the  Ghugri  and  intersected  by  the  Ganges.  The  population  in  1901 
was  585,244,  compared  with  552,279  in  1891,  the  density  being 
627  persons  per  square  mile.  It  contains  two  towns,  Bhagalpur 
(population,  75,760),  the  head-quarters,  and  Colgong  (5,738);  and 
830  villages.  Bhagalpur,  Sultanganj,  and  Colgong  are  important 
marts  on  the  banks  of  the  Ganges.  There  are  archaeological  remains 
of  interest  at  these  places,  as  well  as  at  Jahangira,  Karangarh, 
and  Patharghata. 

Bhagalpur  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  Division  and  District  of 
the  same  name  in  Bengal,  situated  in  250  15'  N.  and  870  o'  E.,  on  the 
right  bank  of  the  Ganges  and  on  the  East  Indian  Railway,  distant 
from  Calcutta  265  miles  by  rail  and  326  by  river.  Bhagalpur  figures 
more  than  once  in  Muhammadan  chronicles  of  the  sixteenth  century. 
Akbar's  troops  marched  through  the  town  when  invading  Bengal  in 
1573  and  1575.  In  Akbar's  second  war  against  the  Afghan  king  of 
Bengal,  his  Hindu  general  Man  Singh  made  Bhagalpur  the  rendezvous 
of  all  the  Bihar  contingents,   which  in   1592  were  sent   thence  over 


BHAGALPUR   TOWN  37 

Chota  Nagpur  to  Burdwan,  where  they  met  the  Bengal  levies,  and  the 
united  army  invaded  Orissa.  The  town  was  subsequently  made  the 
seat  of  an  imperial  faujdar  or  military  governor.  The  town  contains 
two  monuments  to  the  memory  of  Augustus  Clevland,  Collector 
of  Bhagalpur  towards  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century,  one  of 
brick,  erected  by  the  landholders  of  the  District,  the  other  of  stone 
sent  out  by  the  Directors  of  the  East  India  Company  from  England. 
Within  the  town  and  its  neighbourhood  (at  Champanagar)  are  some 
interesting  Muhammadan  shrines,  and  two  remarkable  places  ot 
worship,  belonging  to  the  Jain  sect  of  Oswals,  one  of  them  erected  by 
the  great  banker  of  the  eighteenth  century,  Jagat  Seth.  The  Karan- 
garh  plateau  near  the  town  formerly  contained  the  lines  of  the  Bhagal- 
pur Hill  Rangers  organized  by  Clevland  in  1780. 

The  population  increased  from  65,377  in  1872  to  68,238  in  1881,  to 
69,106  in  1 89 1,  and  to  75,760  in  1901,  of  whom  70  per  cent,  were 
Hindus  and  29  per  cent.  Musalmans,  while  there  were  333  Christians 
and  118  Jains.  The  town  is  thriving,  its  growth  being  due  mainly  to 
a  great  development  in  the  export  trade  in  agricultural  produce,  which 
has  led  to  the  opening  of  a  second  railway  station.  It  contains  the 
usual  criminal,  revenue,  and  civil  courts,  a  police  training  school, 
Central  jail,  Arts  college,  dispensary  with  32  beds,  and  a  Lady  Dufferin 
hospital.  The  jail  has  accommodation  for  1,964  prisoners,  who  are 
employed  in  the  manufacture  of  blankets  and  carpets,  canework,  furni- 
ture-making, carving,  oil-pressing,  grain-grinding,  and  rope-making. 
Cerebro-spinal  fever  has  been  practically  endemic  in  the  jail  since 
1897,  outbursts  occurring  at  varying  intervals;  the  disease  appears  to 
be  commonest  among  prisoners  employed  on  dusty  forms  of  labour,  in 
the  garden  and  on  road-making.  The  Jubilee  College,  built  by  Babu 
Tejnarayan  Singh,  a  zaminddr  of  the  town,  in  1887,  was  raised  to  the 
first  grade  in  1890,  when  law  classes  were  opened.  The  college  has 
a  fine  building  and  a  strong  staff  of  professors  ;  a  hostel  for  boarders  is 
attached  to  it. 

Bhagalpur  was  constituted  a  municipality  in  1864.  The  income 
during  the  decade  ending  190 1-2  averaged  1-36  lakhs,  and  the  expen- 
diture 1-15  lakhs.  In  1903-4  the  income  was  1-29  lakhs,  including 
Rs.  32,000  derived  from  a  tax  on  houses  and  lands,  Rs.  21,000  from 
a  water  rate,  Rs.  11,000  from  tolls,  Rs.  12,000  from  a  conservancy  rate, 
and  Rs.  10,000  from  a  tax  on  vehicles.  The  incidence  of  taxation  was 
Rs.  1-2-4  Per  head  of  the  population.  In  the  same  year  the  expendi- 
ture was  1 -12  lakhs,  the  chief  items  being  Rs.  3,000  spent  on  drainage, 
Rs.  20,000  on  conservancy,  Rs.  9,000  on  medical  relief,  Rs.  17,000 
on  roads,  and  Rs.  1,900  on  education.  The  town  is  a  very  healthy 
one,  with  a  natural  system  of  drainage  and  a  filtered  water-supply, 
which   was    extended   in    1S96-7    to  the    suburbs    of  Nathnagar    and 


38  BHAGALPUR  town 

Champanagar,  a  loan  of  3  lakhs  being  advanced  by  Government  for  the 
purpose. 

Bhaglrathi. — River  of  Bengal,  being  an  offshoot  of  the  Ganges, 
which  it  leaves  in  Murshidabad  District  in  240  35'  N.  and  88°  5'  E.  ; 
it  is  also  fed  by  tributaries  from  the  eastern  fringe  of  the  Chota  Nagpur 
plateau.  After  flowing  through  Murshidabad,  it  constitutes  the  boun- 
dary between  Burdwan  and  Nadia  Districts,  till,  after  a  total  course  of 
140  miles,  it  unites  with  the  Jalangi  in  230  25'  N.  and  88°  24'  E.,  to 
form  the  Hooghly.  From  the  dawn  of  history  till  probably  some  time 
in  the  sixteenth  century,  the  Bhaglrathi  formed  the  main  stream  of  the 
Ganges  ;  and  in  the  eyes  of  Hindus  this,  and  not  the  Padma,  is  still  the 
sacred  stream.  The  Hindu  traditional  account  of  its  origin  is  as 
follows  :  King  Sagar  was  an  ancestor  of  Rama,  and  had  ninety-nine 
times  performed  the  Aswamedha  jajna  or  'great  horse  sacrifice,'  which 
consisted  in  sending  a  horse  round  the  world,  with  a  defiance  to  any 
one  to  arrest  its  progress.  If  the  horse  returned  unopposed,  it  was 
understood  to  be  an  acquiescence  in  the  supremacy  of  the  challenger, 
and  the  animal  was  then  solemnly  sacrificed  to  the  gods.  King  Sagar 
made  preparations  for  the  hundredth  performance  of  this  ceremony  ; 
but  the  god  Indra,  having  himself  performed  the  sacrifice  a  hundred 
times,  was  jealous  of  being  displaced  by  a  rival,  and  therefore  stole  the 
horse  and  concealed  it  in  a  subterranean  cell,  where  a  holy  sage  was 
absorbed  in  heavenly  meditation.  The  60,000  sons  of  Sagar  traced  the 
horse  to  its  hiding-place,  and,  believing  the  sage  to  be  the  author  of  the 
theft,  assaulted  him.  The  holy  man,  thus  aroused  from  his  meditation, 
cursed  his  assailants,  who  were  immediately  reduced  to  ashes  and 
sentenced  to  hell.  A  grandson  of  Sagar,  in  search  of  his  father  and 
uncles,  at  last  found  out  the  sage,  and  begged  him  to  redeem  the  souls 
of  the  dead.  The  holy  man  replied  that  this  could  only  be  effected  if 
the  waters  of  the  Ganga  (the  aqueous  form  of  Vishnu  and  Lakshml) 
could  be  brought  to  the  spot  to  touch  the  ashes.  Now  Ganga  was 
residing  in  heaven  under  the  care  of  Brahma,  the  Creator ;  and  the 
grandson  of  Sagar  prayed,  but  unsuccessfully,  that  the  goddess  might 
be  sent  to  the  earth.  He  died  without  issue,  but  a  son,  Bhaglrath,  was 
miraculously  born  of  his  widow,  and  through  his  prayers  Brahma 
allowed  Ganga  to  visit  the  earth.  Bhaglrath  led  the  way  till  near  the 
sea,  and  then  declared  that  he  could  not  show  the  rest  of  the  road, 
whereupon  Ganga,  in  order  to  make  sure  of  reaching  the  bones  of  the 
dead,  divided  herself  into  a  hundred  mouths,  thus  forming  the  delta  of 
the  Ganges.  One  of  these  mouths  arrived  at  the  cell,  and  by  washing  the 
ashes  completed  the  atonement  for  the  sin  of  the  sons  of  king  Sagar. 

In  the  past  the  great  capitals  of  Gaur  (Lakhnauti),  Pandua,  Raj- 
mahal,  Nabadwip,  and  Satgaon  were  situated  on  the  banks  of  the 
Bhagirathi.      Its  earliest  bed,  known  as  the  SaraswatI,  left  the  modern 


BHAINSRORGARH  39 

Hooghly  at  Satgaon,  and  pursued  a  more  westerly  course  to  a  point 
near  the  place  where  the  Damodar  now  joins  the  Hooghly.  Large 
vessels  sailed  up  this  river  in  the  sixteenth  century,  and  its  silting  up 
led  to  the  establishment  of  the  port  and  town  of  Hooghly  by  the  Portu- 
guese in  1637.  Local  traditions  have  preserved  no  record  of  the 
supplanting  of  the  Bhaglrathi  by  the  present  main  channel  of  the 
Ganges,  and  it  was  probably  effected  very  gradually.  Changes  on 
a  great  scale  still  take  place  in  the  bed  of  the  Bhaglrathi.  Thus  Nadia 
was  originally  situated  on  the  right  bank,  but  the  river,  after  rending 
in  twain  the  ancient  city,  now  leaves  the  modern  Nadia  on  its  left  bank. 
The  Bhaglrathi  has  also  eaten  away  a  portion  of  the  battle-field  of 
Plassey.  In  the  present  day  its  course  frequently  changes,  and  sand- 
banks and  other  obstructions  are  constantly  being  formed.  The  bed 
has  largely  silted  up,  and  in  the  hot  weather  it  degenerates  into  a  string 
of  pools  connected  by  shoals  which  are  seldom  navigable  during  this 
season.  It  forms  a  part  of  the  Nadia  Rivers  system,  and  a  series  of 
efforts  have  been  made  by  Government  to  keep  its  channel  clear  for 
navigation,  but  without  very  satisfactory  results  ;  a  new  dredging  scheme 
has  now  been  formulated.  The  chief  tributaries  of  the  Bhaglrathi  are : 
in  Murshidabad,  the  united  waters  of  the  Bansloi  and  Pagla,  and  the 
Chora  Dekra ;  and,  in  Burdwan,  the  Ajay  and  Kharl,  all  on  the  right 
bank.  The  principal  towns  on  its  banks  are  :  in  Murshidabad, 
Jangipur,  Jiaganj,  Murshidabad,  and  Berhampore  ;  in  Burdwan, 
Katwa  ;   and  in  Nadia,  Nabadwip. 

The  name  of  Bhaglrathi  is  also  given  to  the  main  source  of  the 
Ganges  in  the  Himalayas. 

Bhagwangola. — River  mart  in  the  Lalbagh  subdivision  of  Murshid- 
abad District,  Bengal,  situated  in  24°  20'  N.  and  88°  18'  E.,  on  the 
Ganges.  Population  (1901),  989.  There  are  in  reality  two  villages  of 
the  name,  5  miles  from  each  other,  called  New  and  Old  Bhagwangola. 
The  latter  was  under  Muhammadan  rule  the  port  of  Murshidabad  and 
an  important  commercial  town.  In  1743  it  was  attacked  four  times  by 
the  Marathas  without  success;  but  subsequently,  in  1750,  it  was  taken, 
plundered,  and  burned  by  them.  Siraj-ud-daula  rested  here  in  his 
flight  to  Rajmahal.  The  river  no  longer  flows  by  Old  Bhagwangola, 
and  the  traffic  is  confined  to  the  new  town. 

Bhainsrorgarh.— Village  and  fort  in  the  State  of  Udaipur,  Rajput- 
ana,  picturesquely  situated  in  24°  58'  N.  and  750  34'  E.,  at  the  con- 
fluence of  the  Bamani  and  Chambal  rivers,  about  120  miles  east-by- 
north-east  of  Udaipur  city.  The  place  is  included  in  an  estate  of  the 
same  name,  held  by  one  of  the  first-class  nobles  of  Mewar,  who  is  styled 
Rawat  and  belongs  to  the  Chondawat  family  of  the  Sesodia  Raj- 
puts. The  estate  consists  of  127  villages,  yielding  an  income  of  about 
Rs.  80,000,  and  pays  Rs.  6,000  as  tribute  to  the  Darbar.     The  fort, 


4o  lUfAINSRORGARH 

which  is  said  to  have  been  built  by,  and  named  after,  a  Mahajan  called 
Bhainsa  Sah,  possibly  a  servant  of  the  Chauhan  kings  who  ruled  over 
Sambhar  and  Ajmer,  overlooks  the  sole  passage  which  exists  for  many 
miles  across  the  Chambal.  The  place  was  taken  by  Ala-ud-din  about 
1303,  and  its  palaces  and  temples  were  destroyed.  At  Barolli,  about 
3  miles  north-east  of  Bhainsrorgarh,  is  a  group  of  Hindu  temples  which 
Fergusson  considered  the  most  perfect  of  their  age  that  he  had  met 
with  in  that  part  of  the  country  and,  '  in  their  own  peculiar  style, 
perhaps  as  beautiful  as  anything  in  India.'  The  principal  temple, 
dedicated  to  Ghateshwar,  stands  in  a  walled  enclosure  which  is  full  of 
other  interesting  buildings  and  remains,  the  most  important  being  the 
Singar  Chaorl  or  '  nuptial  hall '  of  Raja  Hun  ;  the  shrines  of  Ganesh  and 
Narad  ;  two  columns,  one  erect  and  the  other  prostrate,  probably 
intended  as  a  toran  or  trilithon  ;  the  shrine  of  Asht  Mata ;  and  the 
shrine  of  the  Tri-murti  or  Hindu  triad — Brahma,  Vishnu,  and  Siva. 
Outside  the  enclosure  is  a  fountain  or  kiind  with  a  miniature  temple  in 
the  middle,  and  surrounded  by  small  shrines,  in  one  of  which  is  a 
figure  of  Vishnu,  reposing  on  the  Sesh  Shayya  or  '  bed  of  the  serpent,' 
which  Fergusson  thought  the  most  beautiful  piece  of  purely  Hindu 
sculpture  he  had  seen.  These  buildings  are  said  to  belong  to  the 
ninth,  or  possibly  the  tenth,  century  ;  and  in  carving  and  artistic  con- 
ception there  is  nothing  in  Mewar  to  equal  them,  except  perhaps  the 
Sas  Bahu  temple  at  Nagda  near  Udaipur  City. 

[J.  Tod,  Annals  and  Antiquities  of  Rajasthan,  vol.  ii  (1832); 
J.  Fergusson,  Picturesque  Illustrations  of  Ancient  Architecture  (1848).] 

Bhairab. — Old  river  of  Bengal.  The  Bhairab  has  long  been  a 
partly  deserted  channel,  and  only  sections  of  it  can  now  be  traced  ; 
but  its  name  Bhairab  ('  the  terrible  ')  bears  witness  to  the  estimation  in 
which  it  was  once  held,  and  in  its  prime  it  must  have  been  of  great 
hydrographic  importance.  The  Bhairab  takes  off  from  the  Ganges 
almost  opposite  to  where  the  Mahananda  flows  into  it ;  and  it  is 
suggested  that  it  originally  formed  a  continuation  of  the  Mahananda, 
and  that  that  river  was  cut  into  half  by  the  Ganges  as  it  worked  its  way 
eastwards.  The  Bhairab  at  one  time  flowed  across  the  present  Districts 
of  Murshidabad,  Nadia,  Jessore,  and  IChulna  into  the  Bay  of  Bengal, 
but  was  intersected  and  cut  into  three  pieces  by  the  Jalangi  and 
Matabhanga.  In  its  upper  course  it  at  first  silted  up,  but  was  sub- 
sequently forced  open  again  by  floods  in  1874  at  its  intake  from  the 
Ganges,  and  expanded  into  an  important  distributary  which  poured  its 
waters  into  the  Jalangi  40  miles  farther  south.  The  result  was  that  the 
channel  of  the  Jalangi  above  the  point  of  junction  began  to  close  up, 
and  the  Bhairab  is  now  the  channel  by  which  the  Jalangi  proper 
derives  its  main  water-supply  from  the  Ganges.  Lower  down  the 
Bhairab  flowed  for  a  short  distance  through  the  channels  now  occupied 


BHAISAUNDA  41 

by  the  Matabhanga-Churni,  leaving  them  at  Matiari,  whence  it  passed 
on  towards  Jessore.  The  main  current  was  subsequently  diverted 
down  the  Kabadak,  which  was  apparently  originally  only  an  offshoot 
from  the  Bhairab  at  Tahirpur.  The  Bhairab  itself  has  silted  up  below 
Tahirpur  to  such  an  extent  that  its  bed  above  Jessore  town  is  now 
little  more  than  a  line  of  marshes.  From  Basantia  south  of  Jessore 
town  the  Bhairab  is  still  a  navigable  stream  and  a  portion  of  its  waters 
join  the  Madhumati  river,  while  the  remainder  pass  by  the  Rupsa 
river  through  a  separate  estuary  to  the  sea. 

Bhairab  Bazar. — Village  in  the  Kishorganj  subdivision  of  Mymen- 
singh  District,  Eastern  Bengal  and  Assam,  situated  in  240  2'  N.  and 
900  59'  E.,  where  the  old  Brahmaputra  enters  the  Meghna  at  the 
boundary  junction  of  the  three  Districts  of  Dacca,  Tippera,  and 
Mymensingh.  Population  (1901),  618.  It  is  the  most  important  com- 
mercial mart  of  the  District,  possessing  a  large  trade  in  jute  and  also  in 
salt  imported  under  bond.     A  large  cattle  market  is  held  here. 

Bhairabi. — River  in  Darrang  District,  Eastern  Bengal  and  Assam. 
See  Bhareli. 

Bhairagnia. — Village  in  Muzaffarpur  District,  Bengal.  See  Bair- 
agnia. 

Bhaironghati. — Temple  and  pass  in  the  State  of  Tehri,  United 
Provinces,  situated  in  310  2'  N.  and  780  53'  E.,  at  the  confluence  of  the 
Bhagirathi  with  the  Jadhganga  or  Jahnavi.  Both  rivers  flow  in  deep 
gorges  confined  by  perpendicular  walls  of  granite,  and  the  scenery  is 
wild  in  the  extreme.  One  traveller  has  described  the  rocks  as 
resembling  the  massive  towers,  spires,  and  buttresses  of  some  Gothic 
cathedral  reft  asunder  by  an  earthquake.  A  light  iron-wire  suspension 
bridge,  250  feet  long,  crosses  the  Jahnavi  at  a  height  of  350  feet  above 
the  torrent.  The  place  is  considered  sacred  to  Bhairon  (Siva),  and  is 
visited  by  many  pilgrims. 

Bhaisa  Taluk. — A  former  taluk  in  the  east  of  Nander  District, 
Hyderabad  State,  incorporated  in  Mudhol  in  1905. 

Bhaisa  Town. — Former  head-quarters  of  the  taluk  of  the  same 
name,  and  now  a  town  in  the  Mudhol  taluk  of  Nander  District,  Hyder- 
abad State,  situated  in  190  f  N.  and  770  58'  E.,  on  the  northern  bank 
of  the  Siddha  river.  Population  (1901),  7,126.  It  contains  the  offices 
of  the  Second  and  Third  Talukdars  and  of  a  police  inspector,  a 
Munsif's  court,  a  post  office,  a  dispensary,  two  schools,  and  a  ginning 
factory.  A  weekly  bazar  is  held,  at  which  a  large  business  is  done  in 
cattle,  grain,  and  cotton.  In  the  town  are  situated  an  old  Jama  Masjid 
and  the  shrines  of  three  Musalman  saints. 

Bhaisakho. — Thakurdt  in  the  Bhopawar  Agencv,  Central  India  ; 
also  known  as  Garhl. 

Bhaisaunda. — One    of    the   Chaube   Jagirs    in     Central    India, 


42  BHAISAUNDA 

under  the  Political  Agent  in  Baghelkhand,  with  an  area  of  about 
32  square  miles,  and  a  population  (1901)  of  4,168.  The  jdgir  was 
created  by  a  readjustment  of  shares  which  took  place  in  1817.  The 
present  holder,  Pandit  Sri  Chhatarsal  Prasad  Ju,  succeeded  in  1885. 
He  was  educated  at  the  Raj ku mar  College,  Nowgong,  and  was  entrusted 
with  the  management  of  hisj'dgfr  in  1903.  The  jdgir  contains  20  vil- 
lages. Of  the  total  area,  10  square  miles,  or  31  per  cent,  are  cultivated. 
The  revenue  is  Rs.  9,000.  Bhaisaunda,  the  chief  place  in  the  j'agfr, 
is  situated  in  250  18'  N.  and  8o°  48'  E.,  8  miles  from  Karwi  station  on 
the  Jhansi-Manikpur  section  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway. 
Population  (1901),  1,386. 

Bhaisola. — Thakurat  in  the  Bhopawar  Agency,  Central  India  ;  also 
known  as  Dhotria. 

Bhaja. — Village  in  the  Maval  tdluka  of  Poona  District,  Bombay, 
situated  in  180  44'  N.  and  730  29'  E.,  about  7  miles  south-west  of 
Khadkala,  and  about  2  miles  south  of  Karli  railway  station.  Popula- 
tion (1901),  366.  It  contains  a  group  of  eighteen  early  Buddhist  caves 
of  about  the  second  and  first  century  b.  c,  in  the  west  face  of  the  steep 
hill,  some  400  feet  above  the  village.  Beginning  from  the  north,  the 
first  is  apparently  a  natural  cavern  30  feet  long  and  slightly  enlarged. 
The  next  ten  are  plain  cells.  The  twelfth  cave  forms  a  chaitya  or 
chapel,  and  is,  according  to  Dr.  Burgess,  of  the  greatest  importance  for 
the  history  of  cave  architecture.  The  cave  is  59  feet  long  by  about 
29  feet  wide,  with  a  semicircular  apse  at  the  back,  and  an  aisle  3  feet 
5  inches  wide  separated  from  the  nave  by  twenty-seven  plain  octa- 
gonal shafts  1 1  feet  4  inches  high.  The  pillars  rake  inwards  about 
5  inches  on  each  side,  so  that  the  nave  is  15  feet  6  inches  wide  at  the 
tops  of  the  pillars  and  16  feet  4  inches  at  their  bases.  The  dagoba  or 
relic  shrine  is  1 1  feet  in  diameter  at  the  floor,  and  the  cylinder  or  drum 
is  4  feet  high.  The  dome  is  6  feet  high  and  the  box  upon  it  is  two- 
storeyed,  the  upper  box  being  hewn  out  1  foot  7  inches  square  inside 
with  a  hole  in  the  bottom  1  foot  8  inches  deep  and  7  inches  in  diameter. 
The  upper  part  of  the  box  or  capital  is  of  a  separate  stone  and  hollowed, 
showing  clearly  that  it  held  some  relic.  On  four  of  the  pillars  are 
carved  in  low  relief  seven  ornaments  of  Buddhist  symbols.  On  the 
left  of  the  seventh  pillar  is  a  symbol  formed  of  four  tridents  round  a 
centre,  which  perhaps  contained  a  fan  with  buds  and  leaves  at  the 
corners.  On  the  eighth  pillar  on  the  right  side  are  two  flowers  and  what 
looks  like  a  fan,  and  on  the  left  side  a  posy  of  holy  flowers.  The  roof 
is  arched,  the  arch  rising  from  a  narrow  ledge  over  the  triforium  7  feet 
5  inches  above  the  tops  of  the  pillars  and  26  feet  5  inches  high  from  the 
floor.  The  roof  is  ribbed  inside  with  teak  girders,  the  first  four  of 
which,  and  parts  of  some  of  the  others,  have  given  way  or  been  pulled 
down.     The  front  must  have  been  entirely  of  wood,  and  four  holes  in 


BHAKKAR   TAHSIL  43 

the  floor  show  the  position  of  the  chief  uprights.  There  are  also  mor- 
tices cut  in  the  rock  showing  where  one  of  the  chief  cross-beams  must 
have  been  placed,  probably  to  secure  the  lattice-work  in  the  upper  part 
of  the  window.  The  front  of  the  great  arch  is  full  of  pin-holes  in  three 
rows,  about  170  in  all,  showing  beyond  doubt  that  some  wooden  facing 
covered  the  whole  of  the  front.  The  figures  on  the  arch  include  that 
of  a  female — high  up  on  the  left,  much  weather-worn,  with  a  beaded 
belt  about  the  waist ;  two  half  figures  looking  out  of  a  window  in  the 
projecting  side  to  the  right  of  the  great  arch,  and  on  the  same  side 
the  heads  of  two  others  in  two  small  compartments  on  a  level  with  the 
top  of  the  arch. 

For  a  full  description  of  the  remaining  caves,  which  are  also  interest- 
ing, see  the  Bombay  Gazetteer,  vol.  xviii.  There  are  several  inscriptions, 
but  they  contain  no  information  of  special  interest. 

Bhajji.— One  of  the  Simla  Hill  States,  Punjab,  lying  between  31°  7' 
and  310  17'  N.  and  770  2' and  77°  23'  E.,  with  an  area  of  96  square  miles. 
Population  (1901),  13,309.  The  State  lies  on  the  south  bank  of  the 
Sutlej,  and  culminates  in  the  Shali  peak,  9,623  feet  above  sea-level. 
The  Ranas  of  Bhajji  are  Rajputs  who  came  from  Kangra  and  con- 
quered the  State  many  years  ago.  It  was  overrun  by  the  Gurkhas 
between  1803  and  18 15,  but  on  their  expulsion  in  the  latter  year  the 
Rana  was  confirmed  in  his  possessions  by  the  British  Government. 
The  present  chief,  Rana  Durga  Singh,  succeeded  in  1875.  The  State 
has  a  revenue  of  Rs.  23,000,  out  of  which  Rs.  1,440  is  paid  as  tribute. 
Its  principal  product  is  opium  of  exceptional  purity.  Seoni,  the 
capital,  lies  on  the  Sutlej,  and  is  celebrated  for  its  sulphur  hot  springs 
and  a  suspension  bridge  across  the  river. 

Bhakar. — Native  State  in  the  Central  Provinces.  See  Chang 
Bhakar. 

Bhakkar. — Fortified  island  in  the  river  Indus,  Sukkur  District, 
Sind,  Bombay.     See  Bukkuk. 

Bhakkar  Subdivision. — Subdivision  of  Mianwali  District,  Punjab, 
consisting  of  the  Bhakkar  and  Leiah  Tahsils. 

Bhakkar  Tahsil. — Central  cis-Indus  tahsll  of  Mianwali  District, 
Punjab,  lying  between  31°  io'  and  320  22'  N.  and  700  47'  and  720  E., 
with  an  area  of  3,134  square  miles.  Most  of  it  lies  in  the  desolate  plain 
of  the  Thal,  but  the  Kachhi  or  strip  of  riverain  land  along  the  Indus  is 
of  great  fertility.  The  population  in  1901  was  125,803,  compared  with 
119,219  in  1891.  The  tahsll  contains  the  town  of  Bhakkar  (popula- 
tion, 5,312),  the  head-quarters,  and  196  villages.  The  land  revenue 
and  cesses  amounted  in  1903-4  to  1-7  lakhs.  Places  of  interest  in 
the  tahsll  are  Mankera  and  Muhammad  Rajan,  at  the  latter  of 
which  is  the  shrine  of  Pir  Muhammad  Rajan,  who  died  there  on 
a  pilgrimage. 


44  BHAKKAR   TOWN 

Bhakkar  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  tahsil  of  the  same  name 
in  Mianwali  District,  Punjab,  situated  in  310  37'  N.  and  710  4'  E.,  on 
the  left  bank  of  the  Indus  and  on  the  North-Western  Railway.  Popula- 
tion (1901),  5,312.  It  stands  on  the  edge  of  the  Thai  or  sandy  plain 
overlooking  the  low-lying  alluvial  lands  along  the  river,  a  channel  of 
which  is  navigable  as  far  as  Bhakkar  during  the  floods.  To  the  west  of 
the  town  the  land  is  low,  well  cultivated,  and  subject  to  inundation, 
while  to  the  east  the  country  is  high  and  dry,  treeless,  and  sandy.  A  rich 
extent  of  land  irrigated  from  wells  lies  below  the  town,  protected  by 
embankments  from  inundations  of  the  Indus,  and  produces  two  or 
three  crops  in  the  year.  The  neighbouring  riverain  is  full  of  date 
groves  and  fruit  gardens  ;  and  in  it  stands  a  famous  mango-tree,  the 
fruit  of  which  used  to  be  sent  to  Kabul  in  the  old  days  of  Afghan  rule. 
Bhakkar  was  founded  probably  towards  the  close  of  the  fifteenth 
century  by  a  body  of  colonists  from  Dera  Ismail  Khan,  led  by  a  Baloch 
adventurer,  whose  descendants  held  the  surrounding  country  till  ousted 
by  the  grantees  of  Ahmad  Shah  Durrani.  The  municipality  was 
created  in  1874.  Its  income  and  expenditure  during  the  ten  years 
ending  1902-3  averaged  Rs.  7,700.  The  income  in  1903-4  was 
Rs.  7,500,  chiefly  derived  from  octroi  ;  and  the  expenditure  was 
Rs.  8,600.  The  town  contains  a  dispensary  and  a  municipal  vernacular 
middle  school. 

Bhalala. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhalgam  Baldhoi. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhalgamda. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhalki. — Head-quarters  of  the  paigah  taluk  of  the  same  name  in 
Bidar  District,  Hyderabad  State,  situated  in  180  3'  N.  and  770  12'  E., 
about  9  miles  east  of  the  confluence  of  the  Karanja  with  the  Manjra. 
Population  (1901),  5,788. 

Bhalsand  (or  Bharsand). — Town  in  the  District  and  tahsil  of  Ballia, 
United  Provinces,  situated  in  250  43'  N.  and  840  16'  E.,  6  miles  east  of 
Ballia  town.  Population  (1905),  5,777.  The  place  is  said  to  be  of 
great  antiquity,  having  been  founded  by  a  Raja  of  Haldl  early  in  the 
twelfth  century.  There  is  a  small  manufacture  of  coarse  cloth.  The 
school  has  128  pupils. 

Bhalusna.— Petty  State  in  Mahi  Kantha,  Bombay. 

Bhambore  (Bamburd). — -Ruined  city  near  the  village  of  Gharo,  in 
the  Mlrpur  Sakro  taluka  of  Karachi  District,  Sind,  Bombay,  situated 
in  240  40'  N.  and  67°4i/  E.  Population  (1901),  127.  It  was  stormed 
by  the  Muhammadans  on  their  first  invasion  in  a.  d.  711.  Tradition 
preserves  its  old  name  as  Debal,  Dewal,  or  Dawal,  '  the  temple  ' ;  but 
it  is  believed  that  before  the  Musalman  invasion  it  was  known  under 
the  name  of  the  Maharaor  Mansawar.  The  ruins,  as  also  the  numerous 
coins  found  on  the  site,  attest  its  former  population  and  importance. 


BHAMO  DISTRICT  45 

Bhamo  District  (Burmese,  Bamaw). — Frontier  District  in  the  north 
of  the  Mandalay  Division  of  Upper  Burma,  lying  between  230  37'  and 
240  52'  N.  and  960  34'  and  970  46'  E.,  with  an  area  of  4,146  square 
miles.  It  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Myitkyina  District ;  on  the  east  by 
the  China  frontier  ;  on  the  south  by  the  Shan  State  of  Mongmit ;  and  on 
the  west  by  Katha  District.  Down  the  centre  of  the 
District  from  north  to  south  runs  the  Bhamo  plain,  Physical 

2ST)GCtS 

about  100  miles  long  and  25  miles  wide,  shut  in  on 
every  side  by  mountains,  once  forest-clad,  but  now  sadly  marred  by  the 
improvident  tau ngy a-cutter.  On  the  east  the  uplands  extend  in  a  suc- 
cession of  ranges,  forming  a  sea  of  mountains,  and  extending  far  into 
the  great  plateau  of  South-western  China,  with  peaks  near  the  frontier 
rising  to  8,000  feet.  On  the  west  the  hills  bounding  the  plain  are 
similarly  arranged  in  parallel  chains,  running  north  and  south  and 
occasionally  reaching  an  altitude  of  4,000  feet,  until  another  plain  is 
reached,  watered  by  the  Kaukkwe  stream  running  southwards  into  the 
Irrawaddy,  and  the  Sitkala  running  northwards  into  it,  the  two  rivers 
bounding  the  District  on  the  west.  The  Irrawaddy,  flowing  down  from 
the  north,  enters  the  District  in  a  narrow  defile  between  the  two  eastern- 
most of  these  ranges,  and  debouches  on  to  the  Bhamo  plain  about 
28  miles  farther  down.  Here  it  turns  south-east  and  bends  round  in 
one  great  sweep  past  the  town  of  Bhamo,  to  pierce  the  highlands  again 
about  30  miles  lower  down,  running  in  another  narrow  defile  to  a  little 
way  above  Shwegu,  where  it  once  more  spreads  out  into  a  wide  island- 
strewn  channel,  quitting  the  District  after  a  farther  course  of  30  miles. 
The  two  defiles  referred  to  are  usually  known  as  the  third  and  second 
defiles.  They  are  both  beautiful,  but  are  unlike  in  character.  The 
former  (the  northern  one)  is  wild  and  rugged  ;  in  the  dry  season  the 
river  wanders  through  a  wilderness  of  fantastic  rocks  which  in  the  rains 
break  up  the  water  into  foaming  impassable  rapids.  The  latter  is 
almost  as  imposing,  the  hills  on  the  northern  side  ending  in  a  magni- 
ficent wall,  rising  in  one  place  to  about  400  feet  sheer  out  of  the  water. 
The  river  here  presents  an  unruffled  surface,  sliding  between  the  rocky 
walls  in  scenery  unsurpassed  in  its  contrast  of  deep-blue  water  and 
luxuriant  forest.  Above  and  below  these  two  clefts  the  river  spreads 
out  near  Bhamo  to  a  width  of  2  miles,  containing  numerous  islands. 
Into  the  Irrawaddy  on  its  left  bank  flow  various  streams  from  the  north, 
south,  and  east,  which  spread  out  fanwise  and  drain  the  whole  Bhamo 
plain  to  the  east  and  south  of  the  river.  The  sources  of  some  of  these 
are  more  than  100  miles  apart,  while  a  distance  of  only  20  miles 
separates  their  points  of  junction  with  the  Irrawaddy.  Proceeding  from 
north  to  south  the  first  of  these  rivers  is  the  Mole,  which  rises  in  the 
Chinese  hills  and,  after  running  a  tortuous  track  southwards  and  west- 
wards for  100  miles  across  a  now  almost  deserted  plain,  empties  itself 


46  BHAMO  DISTRICT 

into  the  main  stream  at  Hngetpyawdaw  about  8  miles  above  Bhamo. 
Next  below  it  is  the  Taping,  an  ungovernable  waterway  which  quits  the 
hills  at  Myothit  in  the  north-east  of  the  District,  and  flows  more  or  less 
parallel  to  the  Mole  into  the  Irrawaddy  almost  immediately  above 
Bhamo.  Numerous  villages  stand  on  its  banks,  but  its  course  is 
described  by  the  people  themselves  as  like  that  of  a  drunken  man  ;  and 
some  years  ago  it  destroyed  nearly  all  of  these  hamlets.  South  of  the 
Taping  are  shorter  streams,  flowing  more  or  less  westwards — the  Nansari 
and  the  Thinlin,  along  whose  banks  are  dotted  small  Shan-Burmese 
villages.  South  of  these  again  is  the  Moyu ;  and  lastly,  flowing  in 
a  north-westerly  direction  to  join  the  Irrawaddy  just  above  the  second 
defile,  is  the  Sinkan,  which  drains  all  the  southern  part  of  the  plain. 
Deserted  paddy-fields  on  its  banks  show  that  they  must  have  been  culti- 
vated before  the  inhabitants  were  driven  out  by  the  Kachins,  and  it  may 
yet,  like  the  Taping,  flow  past  prosperous  villages ;  but  at  present  the 
riches  of  the  Sinkan  valley  lie  in  its  forests.  The  plain  between  these 
several  streams  is  mostly  uncultivable,  for  it  is  high-lying  and  cut  up  in 
all  directions  by  nullahs,  and  will  long  remain  under  thick  tree-jungle 
or  forest.  The  rivers  entering  the  Irrawaddy  on  its  right  bank  are  less 
numerous  than  those  on  its  left.  A  considerable  portion  of  the  western 
border  is  marked  by  the  Kaukkwe,  flowing  southwards  into  the  main 
stream  a  few  miles  west  of  Shwegu.  The  only  other  important  water- 
way on  this  side  is  the  Mosit,  which  empties  itself  into  the  Irrawaddy 
a  little  to  the  east  of  Shwegu. 

A  large  portion  of  the  District  is  covered  by  the  alluvium  of  the 
Irrawaddy  and  its  tributaries.  The  mountains  on  the  east  are  formed 
of  crystalline  rocks,  gneisses,  schists,  and  crystalline  limestones,  with 
intrusive  dikes  of  basic  igneous  rocks.  Patches  of  Tertiary  sandstones 
occur  here  and  there,  surrounded  by  the  alluvium.  The  country  has 
not  yet,  however,  been  examined  carefully  from  a  geological  point  of 
view. 

The  botany  has  not  been  studied  as  a  whole,  but  the  vegetation  is 
rich  and  the  flora  varied.  Bamboos  and  canes  abound,  and  in  the  hills 
orchids  are  common.  Large  stretches  of  the  plain  land  near  the  rivers 
are  covered  with  thick  elephant-grass. 

The  elephant,  tiger,  and  sdmbar  are  met  with  in  the  wilder  parts  of 
the  District,  while  hog  deer  and  barking-deer  abound  everywhere.  The 
leopard  is  ubiquitous,  and  at  the  foot  of  the  hills  wild  hog  are  common. 
It  is  doubtful  whether  there  are  any  real  wild  buffaloes,  those  met  with 
being  probably  the  progeny  of  the  domestic  animal.  Snipe  are  com- 
paratively scarce,  but  duck  can  be  shot  in  many  places,  and  partridge 
and  jungle-fowl  everywhere. 

In  the  plains  the  cold-season  months  are  cool,  though  near  the  rivers 
thick  mists  lie  well  into  the  morning,  impeding  traffic,  and  making  the 


HISTORY  47 

air  raw  and  disagreeable.  On  the  hills  in  January  it  is  very  cold,  frost 
occurring  occasionally  at  as  low  an  elevation  as  500  feet  above  the  plain. 
The  hot  months  are  close  ;  the  mountains  shut  off  the  plain  from  cool 
breezes  in  the  rains,  and  towards  the  end  of  the  monsoon  the  atmosphere 
becomes  steamy  and  enervating.  The  District  had  a  bad  reputation  for 
sickness  till  lately ;  but  the  conversion  of  a  number  of  malarious  back- 
waters in  the  neighbourhood  of  Bhamo  town  into  permanent  lakes  has 
diminished  the  prevalence  of  fever  among  Europeans.  Burmans  from 
the  dry  zone,  however,  are  still  apt  to  sicken  and  die  during  the  rainy 
season.  The  lowest  temperature  recorded  at  Bhamo  town  was  380  in 
1891,  and  the  highest  1060  in. 1890.  The  average  maximum  and  mini- 
mum are  about  870  and  6o°  respectively.  The  rainfall  is  fairly  copious 
and  regular.     Since  1887  it  has  averaged  about  72  inches  per  annum. 

The  name  of  the  District  {Banmaw  or  Manmaw,  converted  by  the 
Burmans  into  Bamaui)  is  Shan,  and  signifies  '  the  village  of  pots  or 
potters.'  The  early  history  of  Bhamo  is  legendary, 
but  it  is  clear  that  at  one  time  a  powerful  Shan  State 
was  more  or  less  conterminous  with  the  present  District.  It  had  its 
capital  at  Sampenago,  the  ruins  of  which  are  still  to  be  seen  at  the 
northern  end  of  the  town  of  Bhamo,  and  became  a  Burmese  dependency 
(with  the  Mongmit  State)  in  the  latter  part  of  the  sixteenth  century.  In 
1668,  according  to  Mr.  Ney  Elias,  the  Sawbwa,  Sao  Ngawk  Hpa,  insti- 
gated a  Chinese  attack  upon  Burma,  but  failing  in  his  design,  fled  the 
country  and  was  replaced  by  Min  Gon,  a  Burmese  general.  In  1742 
the  Sawbwa  freed  himself  from  the  Burmese  yoke.  Shortly  afterwards, 
however,  the  Burmans,  after  repelling  a  Chinese  invasion,  which  centred 
round  Bhamo,  permanently  assumed  control  and  appointed  governors  ; 
but  their  hold  on  Bhamo  was  loose,  and  up  to  the  time  of  the  British 
occupation  the  witn  in  charge  was  often  to  all  intents  and  purposes  an 
independent  ruler.  A  mission  sent  to  inquire  into  the  China-Burma 
trade,  which  had  almost  ceased  owing  to  the  Panthay  rebellion  in 
Yunnan,  led  to  the  appointment  of  a  British  Resident  at  Bhamo  in  1869. 
Though  British  commerce  benefited  but  little  directly  from  this  arrange- 
ment, trade  in  general  increased  rapidly,  and  the  Irrawaddy  Flotilla 
Company  in  1874  carried  30  lakhs'  worth  of  merchandise  to  and  from 
Bhamo.  On  the  re-establishment  of  the  authority  of  the  Chinese 
Government  in  1875  a  mission  under  Colonel  Horace  Browne  was  sent 
into  Yunnan,  by  way  of  Bhamo,  but  failed  to  achieve  its  object,  one  of 
the  party,  Mr.  Margary,  who  went  ahead  by  himself,  being  murdered 
at  Manwaing  beyond  the  frontier. 

The  villages  on  the  plains  were  at  this  time  always  being  harried  by 
the  wild  Kachins  and  Chinese.  The  Burmese  government  was  quite 
unable  to  cope  with  the  situation  ;  and  in  1885  a  quarrel  between  the 
Bhamo  wun  and  one  Set  Kyin,  an  adventurer  who  had  raised  a  body  of 


48  BHAMO   DISTRICT 

Chinamen  to  put  down  a  rising  in  Mogaung,  led  to  an  attack  by  the 
latter  on  Bhamo,  when  he  drove  out  the  ?vun  and  burnt  almost  the 
entire  town. 

The  District  was  occupied  by  the  British  without  opposition  in 
December,  1885,  but  considerable  difficulty  was  met  with  in  controlling 
the  Kachins  and  the  outlaws  they  screened.  The  Hpunkan  Kachins  in 
particular,  a  tribe  settled  about  30  miles  south-east  of  Bhamo,  were  ex- 
traordinarily bold,  levying  tribute  in  the  villages  of  the  Sinkan  valley  and 
attacking  Sawadi  on  the  Irrawaddy  early  in  1886.  The  Bhamo  plain 
was  raided  more  than  once  during  that  year,  and  on  one  occasion  the 
hillmen  effected  an  entry  into  Bhamo,  killing  three  sepoys  and  burning 
the  barracks.  The  raids  continued  throughout  1887,  but  no  attempts 
were  made  to  visit  the  Kachins  in  their  hills.  Early  in  1889  a  band  of 
Chinese  marauders  harried  the  Mole  valley,  but  were  dispersed  with  a 
loss  of  fifty  men.  The  Sinkan  valley  continued  to  swarm  with  dacoits, 
who  were  assisted  by  Kachins  in  the  surrounding  hills  and  in  Mongmit, 
and  were  led  by  one  Hkam  Leng.  A  police  attack  on  this  outlaw  at 
Malin  was  repulsed,  and  later  on  a  British  officer  (Lieut.  Stoddart)  was 
killed  by  the  gang,  which  invested  Sikaw  and  for  some  time  occupied 
Si-u.  In  the  meanwhile  the  Hpunkan  Kachins  had  again  begun  to 
cause  trouble,  and  an  expedition  under  General  Wolseley  marched 
through  their  tract,  fined  them,  and  proceeded  to  Namhkam.  In 
December,  1889,  a  column  was  again  sent  through  their  country,  acting 
in  concert  with  columns  from  Mongmit  and  Hsenwi,  but  Hkam  Leng 
managed  to  escape.  During  1 890-1  an  expedition  was  organized  to 
punish  the  Kachins  settled  on  the  hills  east  of  Bhamo  for  their  frequent 
raids  on  caravans;  and  in  1891-2  a  force  was  dispatched  into  the 
Kaukkwe  valley  to  obtain  the  submission  of  the  Kachins  of  the  western 
hill  tracts,  while  a  column  marched  along  the  whole  eastern  frontier 
from  Namhkam  to  Sadon,  in  the  present  Myitkyina  District.  During 
the  rains  of  1892  the  Mole  valley  was  disturbed  by  a  pretender,  known 
as  the  Setkyawadi  Min,  who  was,  however,  killed  before  long.  A  post 
was  established  at  Namhkam  in  1893;  and  in  1893-4  the  District  was 
quiet,  except  on  the  hills  east  of  Bhamo,  where  the  Kachins  attacked 
a  column  and  killed  three  sepoys.  The  villages  concerned  were 
punished,  and  there  have  been  no  serious  disturbances  since. 
Myitkyina  District  was  cut  off  from  Bhamo  in  1895. 

In  the  angle  formed  by  the  Taping  and  Irrawaddy  at  the  extreme 
north  end  of  Bhamo  town  are  the  ruins  of  the  ancient  capital  of  the 
kingdom,  Sampenago,  which  tradition  places  as  contemporary  with  the 
Buddha  Gautama.  The  moat  and  massive  wall  can  still  be  traced.  It 
is  apparently  coeval  with  the  ancient  city  of  Tagaung,  farther  south  on 
the  Irrawaddy.  The  beautiful  pagoda  at  Shwekyina,  on  the  left  bank 
of  the  Taping  a  little  distance  north   of  Sampenago,  is  attributed  to 


POPULA  TION 


49 


Asoka,  as  also  are  the  Myazedi  pagoda  at  Hakan,  opposite  Bhamo 
town,  and  the  Shwezedi  at  Bhamo.  Ruins  of  former  cities  stand  near 
Shwekyina  and  at  the  foot  of  the  Kachin  Hills  east  of  Bhamo,  while 
near  Myothit  are  the  remains  of  an  old  English  or  Dutch  factory  pre- 
sumably built  in  the  eighteenth  century.  In  the  Irrawaddy,  just  above 
Shwegu,  is  an  island  known  as  the  Royal  Island,  remarkable  for  the 
number  of  religious  buildings  that  have  been  crowded  on  it.  It  is  said 
to  have  gained  its  reputation  as  a  place  of  pilgrimage  owing  to  a  vision 
seen  by  a  Sawbwa  of  old,  which  he  commemorated  in  the  usual 
Buddhist  fashion  ;  and  it  is  now  packed  with  pagodas  and  zayats  (rest- 
houses).  The  main  shrine,  60  feet  in  height,  contains  a  curious 
full-length  recumbent  Buddha. 

The    population  of    the    District   in    1891,   according  to   a    partial 
Census,  was  41,939.     In  1901  it  amounted  to  79,5X5-       population. 
Its  distribution    in  the  latter  year  is  shown    in    the 
following  table  : — • 


Township. 

V 

«B 

V 

u 

Number  of 

c 
0 

jZ 

a 
a. 

0 

Population  per 
square  mile. 

Number  of 

persons  able  to 

read  and 

write. 

0 

H 
I 

I 

Villages. 

Bhamo         .... 
Shwegu       .... 

District  total 

1,723 
2,423 

598 

185 

57,572 
2i,943 

33 
9 

5.689 
4.332 

4,146 

783 

79.5 '5 

'9 

10,021 

Bhamo,  the  head-quarters,  is  the  only  town.  The  average  density  is 
low,  for  the  population  is  confined  to  the  valleys.  It  must  have  been 
even  lower  in  1891,  but  the  figures  of  that  Census  are  too  meagre  to  be 
of  any  value  for  purposes  of  comparison.  Buddhism  is  the  prevailing 
religion,  but  Animism  is  strongly  represented.  Shan,  Burmese,  and 
Kachin  are  all  spoken,  and  are  the  vernaculars  of  three-quarters  of  the 
population. 

About  one-third  of  the  population  is  composed  of  Kachins.  The 
actual  figure  given  in  the  census  returns  is  25,800  ;  but  practically  all 
the  inhabitants  of  the  '  estimated '  areas  (regarding  whom  no  race  data 
were  collected  in  1901,  and  who  were  computed  to  be  about  1,500  in 
number)  are  Kachins,  and  the  total  may  be  taken  as  27,000,  inhabiting 
the  hilly  areas  of  the  District.  Burmans  numbered  20,300,  and  Shans 
20,900.  It  should  be  noted,  however,  that  pure  Burmans  are  to  be 
found  only  in  Bhamo  town,  and  in  the  Shwegu  subdivision  along  the 
Irrawaddy,  and  that  pure  Shans  reside  nowhere  but  in  the  villages 
lying  east  and  south  of  Bhamo  along  the  Sinkan  valley.  In  point 
of  fact,  the  majority  of  the  non-Kachin  population  are  composed  ot 

VOL.  vm.  E 


So  BHAMO  DISTRICT 


j 


a  mixture  of  the  two  races,  and  should  properly  be  called  Shan- 
Burmans.  Along  the  Taping  valley  and  in  other  places  are  to  be 
found  Chinese-Shan  settlers  from  the  Chinese  provinces  of  Mengla  and 
Santa;  they  numbered  1,800  in  1901  and  are  increasing  annually. 
There  are  nearly  3,000  pure  Chinese,  a  fair  proportion  being  Cantonese 
Chinamen  who  have  come  through  Rangoon  to  settle  and  trade  in 
Burma.  The  total  number  of  immigrants  from  China  numbered  4,100 
in  1 90 1,  while  natives  of  India  numbered  4,200,  including  sepoys 
and  military  policemen.  Of  the  total  Indian  population,  2,300  were 
Musalmans,  1,400  Hindus,  and  770  Sikhs.  Bhamo  contains  a  few 
Panthays  (Chinese  Muhammadans),  who  are  engaged  in  the  trans- 
frontier trade. 

Altogether  54,216  persons,  or  68  per  cent,  of  the  total  population, 
are  dependent  upon  agriculture,  including  28,569  who  support  them- 
selves by  tau ngya-cutting  ;  but  these  figures  do  not  include  the  popu- 
lation of  the  '  estimated '  areas. 

Native  Christians  in  1901  numbered  683,  of  whom  300  were  Baptists 
and  112  Roman  Catholics.  The  American  Baptist  Mission  started 
work  before  the  annexation  ;  they  have  large  schools  for  Kachin  boys 
and  girls  at  Bhamo,  where  there  is  also  a  church  and  a  school  for 
Burmans  and  Shans.  The  Roman  Catholics  have  fifteen  nominally 
Christian  villages  containing  ten  churches,  and  have  started  a  secondary 
school  at  Nahlaing,  a  village  on  the  Taping.  They  work  among  both 
Shans  and  Kachins. 

Cultivation  is  practically  confined  to  the  borders  of  the  streams,  and 

to  the  hill-slopes  where  taungya-cuttmg  is  practised.     The  Sinkan  valley 

.     ,„  possesses    great   agricultural    possibilities,   but    it    is 

Agriculture.      ^  °  f      ,         •  ,       ,  ,     •  c 

now  sparsely  populated,  owing  to  the  depredations  of 

the  Kachins.  The  Mole  valley  has  been  similarly  denuded  of  inhabi- 
tants, and  the  river  banks  are  clad  with  forest  and  jungle.  Taungya 
(shifting)  cultivation  is  confined  to  the  Kachins,  who,  however,  also 
occasionally  work  ingeniously  irrigated  rice  areas  at  the  foot  of  the  hills, 
and  in  some  cases  village  paddy-fields.  In  the  plains  rice  is  grown  in 
nurseries  and  transplanted,  the  ground  being  prepared  by  ploughing  and 
harrowing.  The  fields  irrigated  by  the  Taping  are  frequently  destroyed 
by  its  sudden  floods  and  shiftings  of  channel.  Mayin  rice  is  grown  in 
the  backwaters  near  Bhamo,  and  along  the  Taping.  Vegetables  are  to 
be  found  in  nearly  all  Shan  villages  ;  but  the  river  banks  and  islands 
are  not  ordinarily  planted  with  tobacco,  as  is  the  case  elsewhere 
in  Burma,  only  a  little  being  grown  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Irra- 
waddy.  Plantains  are  plentiful,  and  English  vegetables  and  fruits, 
notably  strawberries,  are  successfully  cultivated  in  Bhamo.  Vegetables 
also  thrive  well  in  the  experimental  garden  at  Sinlumkaba  started 
in  1897. 


AGRICULTURE 


5i 


The  main  agricultural  statistics  for  1903-4  are  shown  below,  in  square 
miles  : — 


Township. 

Total  area. 

Cultivated. 

Irrigated. 

Forests. 

Bhamo 
Shwegu 

Total 

IJ23 
2,423 

-1,146 

23 

I  2 

...            1) 

g            \    4,°oo 

O   - 

OS 

6                4,000 

Out  of  the  total  area  cultivated  in  1903-4  (exclusive  of  the  very 
extensive  taungya  cultivation),  32  square  miles  were  under  rice, 
including  2,000  acres  of  mayin.  Gardens,  which  are  practically  all 
plantains,  covered  1,600  acres,  almost  all  being  in  the  Bhamo 
township.  Kaing  (alluvial)  crops  are  hardly  grown  at  all,  and  tobacco 
covers  only  180  acres.  A  coffee  plantation  (60  acres)  is  situated  close 
to  Bhamo. 

Various  species  of  non-indigenous  fruit  trees  have  been  tried  in  the 
District,  but  otherwise  very  little  has  been  done  in  the  way  of  intro- 
ducing new  varieties  of  produce.  Agricultura'  loans  to  the  extent  of 
Rs.  6,000  were  advanced  in  1903-4. 

Buffaloes,  locally  bred,  are  much  more  used  by  the  people  of  Bhamo 
than  kine.  There  are,  in  fact,  less  than  600  bullocks  in  the  whole 
District,  and  most  of  these  are  used  for  draught  purposes  only.  A 
few  goats  are  kept  by  natives  of  India.  Ponies  are  brought  in  by 
the  caravans  from  China  and  the  Shan  States,  most  of  them  for  the 
Rangoon  market ;  and  sheep  are  imported  to  a  small  extent  from  China. 

No  large  irrigation  works  have  been  constructed.  Attempts  have 
been  made  to  regulate  the  course  of  the  Taping,  but  they  have  not  met 
with  success.  More  than  3,600  acres  in  the  Shwegu  township  are 
irrigated  by  small  canals,  branching  from  the  rivers  and  carried  some- 
times for  a  considerable  distance.  The  fisheries  of  the  District  have 
not  yet  been  surveyed.  They  are  let  for  the  year  to  lessees,  who 
generally  sublet  their  rights  over  small  areas  for  a  few  rupees  a  year. 
The  fisheries  are  commonest  in  the  Shwegu  subdivision,  the  largest 
being  the  Indaw,  opposite  to  Shwegu.  This  is  a  chain  of  lakes 
7  square  miles  in  extent,  fed  by  a  single  narrow  inlet,  through  which 
the  fish  crowd  at  the  first  rise  of  the  river.  Preparations  for  closing 
the  inlet  begin  in  October  or  November.  Yins,  or  screens  of  split 
bamboos  lashed  on  to  a  frame  of  jungle- wood,  are  stretched  across  the 
channel,  and  large  quantities  of  fish  are  caught  in  their  attempt  to  leave 
the  fishery  when  the  river  falls.  The  remnant  left  in  the  lakes  are  then 
taken  in  nets  and  traps,  or  rendered  more  or  less  unconscious  by  the 
fishermen,  who  poison  the  water  with  a  root  known  as  makaga  and 
capture  their  victims  on  the  surface.  The  fishery  revenue  amounted 
in  1903-4  to  Rs.  28,000. 

E  2 


52  BHAMO  DISTRICT 

Forest  lands  are  estimated  to  cover  about  4,000  square  miles,  bul 

only  311  square  miles  of  this  total  are  'reserved'  at  present,  and  there 
are  no  protected  forests.  Unfortunately  two-thirds 
at  least  of  the  area  is  adversely  affected  by  the 
Kachin  system  of  cultivation,  the  wasteful  taungya.  The  loss  due  to 
taungya-cnXXmg  in  the  Kachin  tracts  is  incalculable  from  the  forest 
revenue  point  of  view.  The  timber  that  comes  from  the  forests  in  the 
north  of  the  District  is  floated  down  to  a  revenue  station  at  Shwegu, 
where  it  is  examined  and  measured,  while  that  extracted  below  Shwegu 
is  taken  to  a  station  farther  south.  The  forests  are  of  various  kinds  : 
swamp,  tropical,  hill,  dry,  and  mixed.  A  peculiar  feature  of  the  mixed 
forests  is  the  disappearance  in  this  latitude  of  the  pyingado  {Xylia 
dolabriformis)  and  the  kokko  {Albizzia  Lebbek).  Among  many  species 
that  are  met  with  are  the  thabye  {Eugenia  sp.),  the  s/iaw  (Sterculia  sj>.), 
the  thadi  {Bursera  serrata),  the  taukgyan  and  thitsein  {Terminalia  sp.), 
the  pyinma  {Lagerstroemia  Flos  Reginae),  the  thitkado  (Cedre/a 
Toona),  the  kanyinbu  (Dipterocarpus  a/aius),  the  kanyinni  (T>.  laevis), 
and  several  species  of  Ficus.  In  the  induing  forests  the  ingvin  (Pentacme 
siamensis)  and  common  in  {Dipterocarpus  tuberculatus)  are  frequent. 
Ingyin  timber  leaves  the  District  in  large  quantities.  Teak  is  found  in 
all  the  principal  forests  and  is  exported  freely.  During  the  twelve  years 
ending  1902-3  about  110,000  logs  were  extracted,  of  which  38,000 
came  from  the  Mosit  drainage,  and  more  than  20,000  each  from  the 
Sinkan  and  Kaukkwe  drainage  areas.  Many  kinds  of  bamboos  and 
canes  are  exported  in  considerable  quantities,  and  the  revenue  from 
this  source  averages  Rs.  15,000  annually.  Other  items  of  minor 
forest  produce  are  s/iazv  fibre  and  the  thin  reed  from  which  Danubyu 
mats  are  made.  The  total  forest  receipts  amounted  in  1903-4  to 
Rs.  7,45,000. 

At  present  no  minerals  are  found  in  sufficient  quantity  to  be  of  com- 
mercial importance.  Gold  occurs  in  the  form  of  fine  grains  and  leaflets 
in  recent  deposits  of  the  Irrawaddy,  and  in  a  much-decomposed  gneiss 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Myothit ;  and  rubies  and  spinels,  probably 
derived  from  the  crystalline  limestones,  have  been  discovered  in  the 
river  gravels.  The  Burma  Gold-Dredging  Company  holds  the  right  of 
dredging  for  gold  in  the  bed  of  the  Irrawaddy,  from  the  confluence 
above  Myitkyina  to  the  mouth  of  the  Taping  river. 

The  District    is   not    noted   for   any  particular   industrial    product. 

Cotton-weaving  is  carried  on  as  a  subsidiary  occupation.     Silver-work 

and  iron-work  are  produced  in  fair  quantities ;.    the 

communications.  former  is  also  imported  from  the  Shan  States,  and 

is   often   of    excellent    design.      Pottery,    somewhat 

archaic  in  pattern,  is  made  at  Shwegu.      The  cotton-weaving  carried 

on  by  the  Kachins  is  of  special  interest.     The  articles  made  are  for 


TRADE  AND  COMMUNICATIONS  53 

domestic  use  only,  and  are  woven  from  imported  yarn  or  from  a  home- 
grown cotton  of  pure  white  colour  and  glossy  texture. 

Bhamo  has  been  a  commercial  centre  of  some  importance  for  years. 
Two  trade  routes  to  China  converge  on  it,  one  from  Tengyiieh  via  Man- 
waing  and  Myothit,  and  one  from  Namhkam  ;  and  it  is  the  northern 
terminus  of  the  Irrawaddy  Flotilla  Company,  which  has  sent  steamers 
up  to  the  town  since  1869.  Bhamo  once  had  a  rival  in  the  now 
practically  unknown  village  of  Kaungton,  at  the  entrance  of  the  second 
defile  of  the  Irrawaddy  ;  but  the  caravans  had  to  take  what  routes  were 
open  to  them,  and  to  modify  them  according  to  the  vicissitudes  of  the 
petty  wars  that  continued  till  the  British  occupation.  After  that  date 
what  trade  would  have  gone  to  Kaungton  and  did  actually  go  for  some 
years  to  Sawadi,  9  miles  below  Bhamo,  became  diverted  to  Bhamo  by 
the  improvements  in  the  Bhamo-Namhkam  road.  Consequently  all  the 
China-Burma  trade  coming  into  the  District  now  passes  through  Bhamo. 
This  trade,  rudely  disturbed  by  the  Panthay  rebellion,  recovered  but 
slightly  on  the  re-establishment  of  the  Chinese  Imperial  power  in  1874, 
and  owing  to  the  likin  oppressions  of  the  Chinese  authorities  and  the 
raids  of  the  Kachins  the  traders  have  till  recently  undertaken  heavy 
risks ;  so  that,  although  the  British  occupation  has  stopped  the  latter 
and  the  establishment  of  customs  stations  in  Chinese  territory  has  been 
an  attempt  to  introduce  some  kind  of  system  into  the  former,  business 
through  Bhamo  shows  no  signs  of  increasing  largely  in  the  immediate 
future.  It  is  hoped,  however,  that  the  rebate  of  seven-eighths  of  the 
maritime  customs  duty  on  goods  imported  and  re-exported  to  China 
will  improve  the  frontier  trade  prospects.  For  the  convenience  of  this 
re-export  trade,  a  bonded  warehouse  has  been  built  at  Bhamo. 

The  principal  overland  imports  from  China  into  Bhamo,  with  their 
values  in  1903-4,  are  as  follows  :  raw  silk  (3^  lakhs),  orpiment  (2  lakhs), 
ponies  and  mules  (1^  lakhs),  other  animals  (1^  lakhs),  and  hides 
(1  lakh).  The  value  of  specie  imported  amounted  in  1903-4  to 
14^  lakhs,  and  the  total  value  of  imports  of  all  kinds  was  23^  lakhs. 
Of  this  aggregate  only  Rs.  13,000  worth  came  via  Myothit,  and  the  rest 
passed  over  the  Namhkam  route.  The  main  exports  to  China,  with 
their  values  in  1903-4,  are  as  follows  :  Indian  twist  and  yarn  (24^  lakhs), 
raw  cotton  (3  lakhs),  European  piece-goods  (1^  lakhs),  specie  (2^  lakhs), 
a  total  value  of  34!  lakhs,  of  which  only  Rs.  9,000  pertain  to  the 
Myothit  route.  The  balance  of  trade  is  to  some  extent  made  up  by 
smuggled  opium. 

Considerable  trade  is  carried  on  with  the  Northern  Shan  States  and 
with  the  Kachin  tracts,  as  well  as  with  China,  the  values  of  the  principal 
imports  and  exports  in  1903-4  being  as  follows:  imports,  ponies  and 
mules  (Rs.  17,000),  rice  (Rs.  31,000),  gram  and  pulse  (Rs.  35,000), 
hides    (Rs.    53,000),  specie  (4    lakhs),    total    5|   lakhs;    exports,    salt 


54  H II A  MO  DISTRICT 

(l\s.  87,000),   Indian  twist  and  yarn  (Rs.  1,21,000),   European   piece- 
goods  (Rs.  74,000),  total  5  lakhs. 

Bhamo  itself  is  only  a  place  of  transhipment ;  there  are  no  merchants 
of  any  standing,  and  their  agents  merely  see  that  goods  pass  from 
Mandalay  and  Rangoon  to  China  and  vice  versa.  The  imports  from 
China  go  down  by  the  river  steamers  and  large  native  boats,  which 
bring  up  the  goods  for  re-export. 

The  Irrawaddy  is  navigable  by  large  steamers  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Taping,  2  miles  above  Bhamo,  and  by  smaller  steamers  in  the  cold 
season  up  through  the  District  to  Myitkyina.  Two  weekly  steamers 
ply  weekly  to  Mandalay  and  other  stations,  and  a  daily  steamer  runs 
70  miles  to  the  railway  terminus  at  Katha.  The  Taping  is  navigable 
by  country  boats  at  all  times,  and  in  the  rains  by  large  launches  up  to 
Myothit,  where  the  river  debouches  from  the  gorge.  The  Mole  also 
is  navigable  by  large  boats  up  to  near  Nalong,  five  days'  journey  from 
Bhamo,  but  navigation  is  rendered  difficult  by  snags  and  sharp  bends 
of  the  stream.  The  Kaukkwe  can  be  used  by  country  boats  as  far 
as  Myitkyina  District  in  the  rains,  and  the  Sinkan  up  to  Sikaw,  20  miles 
from  its  mouth.  The  District  is  well  provided  with  roads.  East  of 
the  river  four  main  tracks  radiate  from  Bhamo  town,  the  first  via 
Myothit,  where  the  Taping  river  is  crossed  by  a  bamboo  bridge  in  the 
open  season  and  by  a  ferry  in  the  rains,  to  Nalong  in  the  Upper  Mole 
valley,  close  to  the  junction  of  Bhamo  and  Myitkyina  Districts  with 
Chinese  territory.  The  second,  the  main  road  to  Tengyiieh  (Momein), 
the  principal  Chinese  frontier  customs  station,  strikes  eastwards 
across  the  plain  to  the  foot  of  the  hills,  and  thence  along  the  south  bank 
of  the  Taping  river  to  the  frontier  near  Kalihka  (51  miles).  The 
first  17^  miles  are  metalled;  the  remainder  is  a  mule-track,  graded 
so  that  it  can  be  opened  for  carts  in  due  course.  The  third  main  road 
is  the  Namhkam  road,  south-eastwards  to  the  Northern  Shan  States. 
As  far  as  Mansi  (13  miles)  it  is  opened  for  carts;  thence  to  Panghkam 
(39  miles),  close  to  the  Northern  Shan  States  border,  it  is  a  mule-track 
over  the  hills.  It  is  freely  used  by  caravans  from  the  Northern  Shan 
States  and  the  neighbouring  Chinese  Shan  States.  The  fourth  road 
runs  via  Sikaw  to  Si-u  on  the  Mongmit  border.  It  is  a  cart-road  as  far 
south  as  Sikaw  (37  miles);  thence  to  Si-u  (18  miles)  along  the  valley 
of  the  Sinkan  stream  it  is  open  for  carts  only  in  the  dry  season.  Along 
the  whole  frontier  from  Nalong  to  Panghkam  a  mule-track  has  been 
constructed  connecting  the  frontier  posts,  and  crossing  the  Taping  river 
between  Nampaung  and  Kalongkha  by  an  iron  suspension  bridge  with 
masonry  abutments,  which  was  constructed  during  the  open  season 
of  1904.  These  roads  are  maintained  mainly  from  Provincial  funds. 
In  addition,  numerous  inter-village  tracks  are  kept  up  by  the  District 
fund,   including  cart-roads  in    the   Shwegu  subdivision,  both  east  and 


AD  MINIS  TRA  TION  5  5 

west  of  the  Irrawaddy,  and  mule-tracks  in  the  Kachin  hills.  During 
the  rainy  season,  the  smaller  streams  in  the  hills,  and  floods  in  the 
low  country,  frequently  render  all  but  the  main  banked  roads  impass- 
able for  traffic.  The  construction  of  a  light  railway  from  Bhamo  to 
Tengyiieh  is  at  present  under  consideration.  Its  estimated  cost  is 
about  176  lakhs,  and  it  will  practically  follow  the  road  now  under 
construction  along  the  Taping  valley. 

For  purposes  of  administration  the  District  is  divided  into  two  sub- 
divisions, Bhamo  and  Shwegu,  each  conterminous  with  a  single  town- 
ship.      Under    the    two    subdivisional    officers    are    .  „    .   .  x    L. 

1     ...        .       .  _.      ....  .   ,  .      Administration. 

215  village  headmen.  I  he  hill  areas  of  the  two  sub- 
divisions are  administered  by  civil  officers  in  accordance  with  the 
provisions  of  the  Kachin  Hill  Tribes  Regulation,  1895.  The  civil 
officer  in  charge  of  the  Bhamo  subdivision  hill  tracts  has  his  head- 
quarters at  Sinlumkaba,  26  miles  east  of  Bhamo.  The  subdivisional 
police  officer,  Shwegu,  is  civil  officer  for  the  Kachin  hill  tracts  of  that 
subdivision,  with  head-quarters  at  Shwegu.  Bhamo  is  the  head- 
quarters of  the  Bhamo  Forest  division  and  of  the  Bhamo  military  police 
battalion.  The  Public  Works  department  is  represented  by  an 
Executive  Engineer  in  charge  of  the  Bhamo  division,  which  is  conter- 
minous with  the  District. 

The  two  township  officers  are  judges  in  their  respective  courts,  and 
the  akunwun  at  Bhamo  is  additional  judge  of  the  Bhamo  township 
court.  The  Deputy-Commissioner,  besides  being  District  Magistrate 
and  District  Judge,  has  the  powers  of  a  Sessions  court  for  the  trial  of 
crimes  committed  in  the  Kachin  hill  tracts,  and  the  Commissioner 
confirms  death  sentences  in  such  cases.  The  civil  officers  administer 
criminal  justice  according  to  the  Kachin  Hill  Tribes  Regulation,  and 
decide  all  civil  cases  within  their  jurisdictions.  There  are  two  additional 
magistrates  in  Bhamo,  the  akunwun  and  the  treasury  officer.  Crime  is 
extremely  light  ;  violent  crime  is  almost  unknown,  but  excise  and  opium 
cases  are  fairly  numerous.  The  Shan-Burmans,  who  inhabit  the  greater 
part  of  the  District,  are  peculiarly  law-abiding,  and  compare  very 
favourably  in  this  respect  with  the  pure  Burmans. 

Under  Burmese  rule  the  main  source  of  revenue  was  thathameda, 
supplemented  by  a  tax  on  state  rice  lands  and  on  fisheries.  Tolls  were 
levied  on  imports  and  various  commodities,  and  on  boats  according  to 
their  capacity.  At  present  the  revenue  is  raised  differently  in  the 
plains  and  in  the  Kachin  hill  tracts.  In  the  latter,  the  civil  officers 
personally  collect  the  revenue  while  on  tour  with  an  escort  in  the  open 
season.  This  revenue  consists  only  of  tribute,  in  the  form  of  a  house 
tax  at  Rs.  2-8-0  per  house.  In  the  plains  the  greater  part  of  the 
revenue  is  made  up  of  thathameda,  the  assessment  varying  from  a 
maximum  of  Rs.  10  in  the  accessible  parts  of  the  District  to  Rs.  5  and 


56 


mi  A  MO   n  I  STRICT 


Rs.  2-8-0  in  remoter  areas.  The  I  >istrict  has  never  been  settled,  and 
only  a  fraction  of  the  rice  land  has  been  surveyed,  on  which  a  uni- 
form rate  of  Rs.  i-8-o  per  acre  is  levied.  On  unsurveyed  lands  a  tax 
on  the  out-turn  is  collected,  its  amount  being  regulated  by  the  Deputy- 
Commissioner  according  to  the  market  price  of  rice.  The  following 
table  shows  the  revenue  since  1 890-1,  in  thousands  of  rupees  :— 


1800-1. 

1900-1. 

1903-4. 

Land  revenue 
Total  revenue     . 

12  * 
1,91  * 

20 
i,39 

27 
1,53 

"  Including  revenue  of  Myitkyina. 

Land  revenue  is  a  comparatively  small  item  in  Bhamo.  Thathameda 
is  the  main  source  of  revenue.  It  brought  in  Rs.  96,000  in  1 900-1, 
and  a  little  over  a  lakh  in  1903-4  (including  the  tribute  from  the 
Kachin  hill  tracts). 

Bhamo  is  the  only  municipality.  The  District  fund  is  administered 
by  the  Deputy-Commissioner.  Its  income  in  1903-4  amounted  to 
Rs.  10,500,  the  chief  object  of  expenditure  being  public  works 
(Rs.  6,300). 

Bhamo  has  been  a  military  station  since  1885.  The  garrison  occu- 
pies Fort  C,  on  the  highest  ground  in  the  town.  At  present  it  consists 
of  three  companies  of  a  British  regiment,  a  battalion  of  native  infantry, 
and  a  mountain  battery.  The  frontier  outposts  are  manned  by  the 
military  police. 

Besides  the  District  Superintendent  of  police,  two  Assistant  Superin- 
tendents are  in  charge  of  the  subdivisions.  The  force  consists  of  one 
inspector  (at  head-quarters),  5  head  constables,  8  sergeants,  and  180 
constables,  including  49  village  police.  There  are  2  police  stations  and 
12  outposts.  Bhamo  is  the  head-quarters  of  the  Bhamo  battalion  of 
military  police.  Of  this  force,  768  (including  all  ranks)  are  stationed  at 
Bhamo  itself,  in  Fort  A  on  the  bank  of  the  river.  The  remainder  of 
the  military  police  garrison,  numbering  475  of  all  ranks,  occupy  five 
frontier  outposts — Alawpum  and  Nampaung  north  of  the  Taping,  and 
Warabum,  Lwejebum,  and  Panghkam  south  of  that  river — as  well  as 
posts  at  Sinlumkaba  and  Shwegu.  These  outposts  are  in  heliographic 
communication  with  each  other  and,  directly  or  indirectly,  with  Bhamo, 
and  are  connected  by  a  frontier  road.  There  are  five  British  officers, 
one  of  whom  has  his  head-quarters  at  Sinlumkaba. 

The  District  jail  at  Bhamo  has  accommodation  for  97  prisoners, 
who  find  occupation  in  grinding  wheat  for  the  military  police  and  in 
doing  cane  and  bamboo  work. 

In  1 90 1  the  proportion  of  literate  persons  was  returned  at  22  per 
cent,  in  the  case  of  males  and  2\  per  cent,  in  the  case  of  females,  or 


BHAMO  TOWN  57 

\2\  per  cent,  for  both  sexes  together.  The  figures  do  not,  however, 
include  the  population  of  the  '  estimated '  areas,  the  great  majority  of 
whom  are  unable  to  read  and  write.  Bhamo  possesses  a  number  of 
schools  belonging  to  missionary  agencies.  The  American  Baptist 
Kachin  Mission  has  opened  a  school  in  Bhamo  for  boys  and  girls, 
teaching  up  to  the  eighth  standard,  and  has  ten  other  schools  in  the 
District.  The  same  Agency's  mission  to  Burmans  and  Shans  has 
a  school  with  primary  and  middle  departments,  and  the  Roman 
Catholics  have  started  teaching  in  the  Christian  village  of  Mahlaing  on 
the  Taping.  A  Government  Anglo-Chinese  school  at  Bhamo  has  more 
than  30  scholars.  In  1903-4  the  District  contained  5  advanced  schools 
(private),  70  primary,  and  73  elementary  (private,  and  mostly  monastic) 
schools,  with  a  total  attendance  of  2,634  boys  and  309  girls.  The 
expenditure  on  education  was  Rs.  12,400,  of  which  Rs.  10,300  was  met 
from  Provincial  funds  and  Rs.  2,100  from  fees. 

The  two  civil  hospitals  have  accommodation  for  59  in-patients.  In 
1903  the  number  of  cases  treated  was  16,506,  including  950  in-patients, 
and  241  operations  were  performed.  The  total  income  was  made  up 
of  Rs.  4,500  from  Provincial  funds,  Rs.  3,600  from  municipal  funds, 
and  Rs.  600  from  subscriptions.  About  4,817  patients  attended  the 
military  police  hospitals  at  Sinlumkaba,  Warabum,  Panghkam,  and 
Lwejebum  during  the  same  year. 

In  1903-4  the  number  of  persons  successfully  vaccinated  was  2,306, 
representing  29  per  1,000  of  population.  Vaccination  is  compulsory 
only  within  the  limits  of  the  Bhamo  municipality. 

[J.  Anderson,  Report  on  Expedition  to  Western  Yunnan,  via  Bhamo 
( 1 8  7 1 ) ;  E.  B.  Sladen,  Narrative  of  the  Expedition  to  explore  the  Trade 
Routes  to  China  via  Bhamo  (1869).] 

Bhamo  Subdivision. — Eastern  subdivision  and  township  of  Bhamo 
District,  Upper  Burma,  lying  between  230  46'  and  240  52'  N.  and 
970  I'and  970  46' E.,  with  an  area  of  1,723  square  miles.  The  popu- 
lation in  1901  was  57,572,  of  whom  about  21,000  were  Kachins,  nearly 
8,000  Burmans,  and  about  20,000  Shans  or  Shan-Chinese.  There  are 
598  villages,  including  very  small  groups  of  huts  in  the  Kachin  tracts  ; 
and  the  head-quarters  are  at  Bhamo  Town  (population,  10,734),  while 
the  civil  officer  in  charge  of  the  Kachin  hill  tracts  has  his  head-quarters 
at  Sinlumkaba,  a  station  in  the  hills  26  miles  east  of  Bhamo  and  6,000 
feet  above  the  sea.  The  township  is  nearly  all  covered  with  forest, 
cultivation  being  confined  to  the  ground  near  the  rivers,  and  to  the 
shifting  taungyas  on  the  hill  slopes,  which  occupy  two-thirds  of  the  town- 
ship, north  and  east.  Approximately  23  square  miles  were  cultivated 
in  1903-4,  and  the  land  revenue  and  thathameda  amounted  to 
Rs.  86,000. 

Bhamo  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  District  of  the  same  name  in 


58  BHAMO    TOWN 

Upper  Burma;  situated  in  240  15'  N.  and  970  15'  E.,  on  the  left  bank 
of  the  Irrawaddy,  687  miles  from  the  sea.  The  town  extends  along  the 
edge  of  the  river  for  nearly  4  miles,  the  ground  behind  it  being  so  inter- 
sected with  deep  nullahs  that  the  urban  area  cannot  spread  inland,  and 
has  now  reached  its  limits.  The  Shan  quarter  lies  to  the  south,  stretch- 
ing for  2\  miles  from  beyond  the  steamer  ghat  in  the  south  to  the  much 
higher  ground  on  which  the  other  part  of  the  town  is  built.  The  houses 
are  all  ranged  on  two  long  roads  parallel  to  the  river,  and  behind  is  the 
maidan,  a  polo  ground  in  the  cold  season  and  a  fishery  during  the  rains, 
when  it  is  covered  15  to  20  feet  deep  by  the  Irrawaddy.  The  greater 
part  of  the  Shan  quarter  is  liable  to  inundation,  the  river  rushing  to  flood 
the  maidan  over  the  narrow  isthmus  on  which  it  is  built.  The  higher 
ground  extends  along  the  river  bank  for  about  a  mile  and  a  half.  On  its 
southern  edge,  running  east  from  the  river,  are  built  the  hospital  and 
the  District,  postal,  and  telegraph  offices.  Along  the  river  is  the  quaint 
Chinese  quarter,  with  its  houses  overhanging  the  swirling  stream  beneath. 
Behind,  separated  by  a  deep  nullah,  is  the  bazar  and  another  nullah, 
along  the  eastern  edge  of  which  is  the  civil  station.  North  of  the  Chinese 
quarter  stretches  the  Burmese  village,  up  to  the  military  police  barracks 
(or  Fort  A),  which,  with  the  jail,  mark  the  end  of  the  high  ground,  the 
bank  farther  north  being  low-lying  and  in  places  liable  to  floods.  The 
cantonment  is  built  behind  the  maidan  at  its  north-east  corner,  and 
is  connected  with  the  station  by  a  high  embankment.  The  barracks  are 
all  within  the  walls  of  Fort  C.  On  the  China  Road,  running  eastwards 
from  the  bazar,  are  the  police  station  and  the  ugly  white  Shwezedi 
pagoda,  where  an  annual  festival  is  held  at  the  close  of  the  Buddhist 
Lent. 

The  malarious  backwaters  that  gave  Bhamo  such  an  unenviable 
reputation  for  fever  have  of  late  been  converted  into  lakes  or  drained 
altogether.  The  main  streets  are  metalled,  and  the  steamer  ghat  at  the 
southern  end  of  the  town  is  now  connected  with  the  bazar  and  civil 
station  by  the  Viceroy's  Road,  skirting  the  western  side  of  the  maidan. 
A  metalled  track  takes  off  from  the  China  Road  and,  bending  round 
towards  the  military  police  lines,  makes  a  circular  road  about  5  miles  in 
length. 

Bhamo  has  long  been  the  gate  of  the  Chinese  trade,  and  as  early  as 
the  fifteenth  century  we  find  it  on  an  old  map  made  by  Fra  Mauro  from 
the  wanderings  of  Nicolo  de'  Conti.  From  the  first  it  has  been  an 
important  commercial  centre,  but  its  business  has  declined  a  great  deal 
during  the  past  century.  Prior  to  annexation  it  was  the  head-quarters 
of  a  zvitn  appointed  by  the  Burmese  government,  and  was  then  a 
stockaded  town.  It  was  occupied  without  opposition  by  the  British 
in  December,  1885.  The  population,  including  that  of  the  cantonment, 
was  8,048   in   1891   and    10,734   in   1901  ;    the   latter   total    included 


BHANDARA  DISTRICT  59 

1,971  Musalmans  and  1,087  Hindus,  about  2,000  Shans,  and  3,700 
Burmans  and  Shan-Burmans.  The  inhabitants  are  chiefly  petty  rice- 
traders,  workers  in  silver  or  precious  stones,  and  small  shopkeepers. 

Bhamo  was  constituted  a  municipality  in  1888.  During  the  ten 
years  ending  1901  the  income  and  expenditure  of  the  municipal  fund 
averaged  about  Rs.  25,000.  In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  34,000, 
of  which  Rs.  12,600  was  derived  from  dues  on  markets  and  slaughter- 
houses, and  Rs.  3,900  from  house  and  land  tax ;  and  the  expenditure 
was  Rs.  33,000,  the  chief  items  being  conservancy  (Rs.  11,500),  hos- 
pitals (Rs.  6,200),  and  lighting  (Rs.  3,600).  The  cantonment  fund  had 
a  revenue  of  Rs.  6,200  in  1903-4,  the  chief  source  of  income  being 
grazing  fees  (Rs.  2,500).  The  municipality  supports  the  civil  hospital, 
which  has  accommodation  for  51  in-patients.  The  work  of  the  civil 
hospital  is  supplemented  by  that  of  the  dispensary  belonging  to  the 
American  Baptist  Mission. 

Bhandak. — Village  in  the  Warora  tahsil  of  Chanda  District,  Central 
Provinces,  situated  in  200  7'  N.  and  790  7'  E.,  12  miles  from  Warora 
station  on  the  Chanda  road.  It  has  been  suggested  that  Bhandak  was 
the  capital  of  the  old  Hindu  kingdom  of  Vakataka  or  Berar,  but  the 
names  are  not  connected,  and  no  inscriptions  of  the  Vakataka  rulers 
have  been  found  here.  The  numerous  ruined  temples  and  fragments 
of  sculpture  and  squared  stones  show  that  it  must  at  one  time  have  been 
a  great  city.  The  most  famous  temple  at  present  is  that  of  Badari  Nag, 
or  the  'snake  temple,'  the  object  of  worship  being  a  nag  or  cobra,  which 
is  said  to  make  its  appearance  on  all  public  occasions.  The  temple 
itself  is  modern  and  has  been  reconstructed  from  older  materials,  many 
old  sculptures  being  built  into  the  walls.  To  the  east  of  the  village 
near  the  main  road  is  a  tank  containing  an  island,  which  is  connected 
with  the  mainland  by  an  old  Hindu  bridge  constructed  of  massive 
columns  in  two  rows,  with  heavy  beams  laid  along  their  tops  to  form 
a  roadway.  The  bridge  is  136  feet  long  and  7  feet  broad.  About 
a  mile  and  a  half  to  the  south-west  of  Bhandak,  in  the  hill  of  Bljasan, 
is  a  very  curiously  planned  Buddhist  cave.  A  long  gallery  is  driven 
straight  into  the  hill  to  a  distance  of  7 1  feet,  and  at  the  end  of  it  is  a 
shrine  containing  a  colossal  Buddha  seated  on  a  bench.  Two  galleries 
lead  off  at  right  angles  to  the  first,  and  each  of  these  has  also  its  shrine 
and  statue.  From  traces  of  inscriptions  on  the  walls  the  date  of  the 
original  excavations  may  be  inferred  to  have  been  as  early  as  the  second 
or  third  century  a.d.  In  Gaorara,  a  mile  and  a  half  to  the  south  of 
Bhandak,  are  the  remains  of  several  temples,  and  caves  and  niches 
hollowed  out  in  the  rock  for  the  reception  of  statues.  The  principal 
temple  is  called  Jobnasa's  palace,  and  the  two  chief  caves  are  called  his 
big  and  little  fowl-houses. 

Bhandara  District.— District  in  the  Nagpur  Division  of  the  Central 


oo  BHANDARA   DISTRICT 

Provinces,  lying  between  2o°4o'and  2i°47'N.  and  71/  2 7'  and  8o°4o'  E., 
in  the  eastern  portion  of  the  Nagpur  plain,  with  an  area  of  3,965  square 
miles.  It  is  separated  from  Chhattisgarh  by  the  Satpura  range  on  the 
north,  and  by  a  line  of  broken  hill  and  forest  country  farther  south. 
Through  a  narrow  gap  of  plain  between  the  hills  on  the  north  and  south 
pass  the  Bengal-Nagpur  Railway  and  the  great  eastern  road.  Bhandara 
is  bounded  on  the  north  by  Balaghat  and  SeonI  Districts ;  on  the  west 
by  Nagpur ;  on  the  south  by  Chanda  ;  and  on  the  east  by  the  Feudatory 
States  of  Chhulkhadan,  Khairagarh,  and  Nandgaon.  The  surface  is 
generally  open  and  level,  being  broken  only  in  a  few 
Physical  places  by  isolated  ranges  of  hills.  The  lowest  and 
most  northerly  of  these  is  the  Ambagarh  range,  an 
outlier  of  the  Satpuras,  which  enters  from  the  west  and,  trending  in 
a  north-easterly  direction,  cuts  off  the  valley  of  the  Bawanthari  river  from 
the  rest  of  the  District.  Soon  after  entering  Bhandara  the  ridge  is 
crowned  by  the  fortress  of  Ambagarh.  In  the  centre,  running  from  the 
east  of  Bhandara  town  to  the  railway  near  Gondia,  is  the  Gaikhurl  range, 
a  cluster  of  low  peaks  surrounded  by  irregular  forest  country.  The 
points  of  Lendejharl  (1,499  ^eet)  and  Jamri  (1,712  feet)  are  the  highest. 
Just  west  of  Bhandara  the  Ballahi  range,  consisting  of  a  few  sandstone 
hills  capped  with  granite  and  overhanging  the  eastern  road,  forms  a 
prominent  feature  in  the  landscape.  Lastly,  in  the  south-east  lie  the 
Nawegaon  or  Partabgarh  hills,  the  highest  part  of  the  District.  Among 
them,  under  a  seven-peaked  mass,  locally  known  as  the  '  hill  of  the 
seven  sisters,'  is  the  Nawegaon  lake,  and  on  an  outlying  bluff  of  this 
cluster  stood  the  old  fortress  of  Partabgarh  (1,842  feet).  The  peak  of 
Nishani  is  2,314  feet  high.  In  the  extreme  south-west  near  Pauni  there 
is  an  isolated  clump  of  hills,  and  in  the  north-east  the  Satpura  range 
takes  in  the  corner  of  the  District  formed  by  the  Salekasa  and  Darekasa 
zam'indaris.  The  main  river  is  the  Wainganga,  and  practically  all  the 
others  are  its  tributaries.  The  Wainganga  enters  the  District  on  the 
north-east,  and  flows  diagonally  across  until  it  passes  within  a  mile 
of  Bhandara  town  on  the  south-west,  its  valley  lying  between  the 
Ambagarh  and  Gaikhurl  ranges.  After  this  it  flows  to  the  south, 
forming  for  a  short  distance  the  boundary  between  Bhandara  and  Nag- 
pur, and  then  turning  again  south-east  cuts  off  the  small  and  fertile 
strip  of  Pauni  from  the  rest  of  the  District.  Its  width  in  Bhandara 
is  generally  500  yards,  but  opposite  Pauni  it  broadens  to  half  a  mile. 
During  the  open  season  it  consists  only  of  a  small  and  sluggish  stream 
everywhere  fordable,  and  containing  at  intervals  deep  pools  full  of  fine 
fish.  The  principal  affluent  of  the  Wainganga  is  the  Bagh,  which  rises 
in  the  Chlchgarh  zamlnddri,  south-east  of  the  Partabgarh  range,  and 
flows  almost  due  north  for  a  course  of  70  miles,  forming  for  some 
distance  the  boundary  between  Bhandara  and  Balaghat.     It  joins  the 


PHYSICAL  ASPECTS  61 

Wainganga  near  BenT,  being  crossed  l)y  the  new  Satpura  Railway 
just  before  its  junction.  Another  tributary  on  the  left  bank  is  the 
Chulband,  which  rises  in  the  Gaikhurl  range  and  flows  south,  crossing 
the  great  eastern  road  at  SaongI,  where  it  is  spanned  by  a  large  bridge. 
The  Pangoli  rises  near  Tumsar,  and  joins  the  Bagh  near  Kamtha  on 
the  border  of  the  District.  On  the  right  bank  the  tributaries  are  the 
Chandan,  which  flows  past  Waraseoni  and  Rampaili  and  meets  the 
Wainganga  near  SaonrI,  the  Bawanthari  flowing  down  from  SeonI 
and  joining  it  at  Mowar,  and  the  Stir  coming  east  from  Nagpur  to 
a  junction  not  far  from  Bhandara  town.  The  valleys  of  the  Wainganga, 
and  Bagh  have  been  called  the  '  lake  region '  of  Nagpur,  from  the 
number  of  large  artificial  tanks  constructed  for  irrigation  which  form 
a  distinctive  feature  of  the  country.  The  most  important  are  those 
of  Nawegaon,  with  an  area  of  5  square  miles,  and  SeonI,  with  a  circum- 
ference of  more  than  7  miles,  while  smaller  tanks  are  counted  by 
thousands.  These  large  tanks  have  been  constructed  by  members  of 
the  Kohli  caste,  and,  though  built  without  technical  engineering  know- 
ledge, form  an  enduring  monument  to  the  natural  ability  and  industry 
of  these  enterprising  cultivators.  The  larger  tanks  are  irregular  lakes, 
their  banks  formed  by  rugged  hills,  covered  with  low  forest  that  fringes 
the  waters,  while  dikes  connecting  the  projecting  spurs  from  the  hills 
are  thrown  athwart  the  hollows.  The  Sakoli  tahsil,  or  southern  portion 
of  the  District,  consists  largely  of  hill  and  forest.  Elsewhere  the  country 
is  for  the  most  part  open  and  closely  cultivated,  and  the  expanses  of  rice 
and  wheat-fields  thickly  studded  with  fruit-bearing  trees  and  broken  by 
low,  flat-topped  hills  present  a  pleasant  and  prosperous  appearance. 

The  main  formation  in  the  valley  of  the  Wainganga  consists  of 
basalt  and  other  igneous  rocks,  while  in  the  eastern  and  southern  part 
of  the  District  it  changes  to  metamorphic  sandstone.  Beds  of  laterite 
are  common  in  all  parts.  In  the  isolated  ridges  and  hills  round 
Bhandara  town  a  close-grained  sandstone  is  found,  which  makes  a 
good  building  stone. 

The  forests  generally  cover  and  surround  the  hill  ranges ;  but  beyond 
the  Partabgarh  range  a  broad  belt  of  jungle  extends  from  Owara  and 
Amgaon  in  the  north,  round  the  eastern  and  southern  border  of  the 
District,  to  the  Chulband.  Teak  is  found  on  the  higher  hills,  and 
bamboos  abound.  The  other  timber  trees  are  saj  {Terminalia  tomen- 
fosa),  lendia  (Lager stroemia  parviflora),  and  bijasal  or  beula  (Pierocarpus 
Marsupium).  Much  of  the  zamindari  forest  consists  ofsa/ai  (Boswellia 
serrafa),  a  tree  of  very  little  value.  Mahua  (Bassia  latifolia)  is  abundant 
in  the  open  country,  and  the  usual  fruit-bearing  and  sacred  trees  surround 
the  villages.  The  grasses  called  kusal  and  ghonar  are  principally  used 
for  thatching,  and  musydl  for  fodder.  Kdns  [Saccharum  spontaneurn) 
sometimes  invades  the  wheat-fields. 


62  nHANDARA  DISTRICT 

Bison  occur  in  the  Gaikhuri  and  Partabgarh  ranges,  and  instances 
have  been  known  of  wild  buffalo  entering  the  District  from  the  south. 
Tigers  and  leopards  are  found  in  most  of  the  forests.  Snipe  and  duck 
are  fairly  plentiful,  and  large  fish  are  obtained  in  the  deeper  reaches 
of  the  Wainganga  and  in  the  Nawegaon  lake. 

The  climate  is  slightly  cooler  than  that  of  Nagpur,  and  the  highest 
temperature  in  the  hot  season  is  usually  not  more  than  1120.  The 
nights,  if  the  sky  is  clear,  are  nearly  always  cool.  In  winter  the  nights 
are  cold,  though  it  never  actually  freezes.  Malarial  fever  is  prevalent 
from  August  to  the  end  of  the  year,  especially  in  the  south  and  east. 
Severe  epidemics  of  cholera  usually  follow  years  of  scanty  rainfall. 

The  annual  rainfall  averages  55  inches  ;  the  Tirora  tahsil,  situated  in 
the  open  country  to  the  north,  gets  a  smaller  rainfall  than  Bhandara 
and  suffers  most  in  years  of  drought. 

Nothing  is  known   of  the  early  history  of  the  District,  except  for 
a  vague  tradition  that  at  one  period  it  was  held  by  Gaoli  kings.     In 
the  seventeenth  century   the   open   country   in    the 
north  was  included  in  the  territories  of  the  Deogarh 
Gond  dynasty,  and  the  fort  at  Ambagarh  seems  to  have  been  built  by 
the  Pathan  governor  who  held  the  Dongartal  estate  in  SeonI  under  the 
Gond  Raja,  Bakht  Buland.     The  eastern  and  southern  portions  of  the 
District  were  at  this  time  covered  with  continuous  forest ;  but  the  fact 
that  some  of  the  zaminddrs  formerly  held  deeds  granted  by  the  Garha- 
Mandla  dynasty  shows  that  these  territories  were  nominally  under  their 
jurisdiction,  while  the  present  zaminddr  of  Chlchgarh  holds  a  patent 
from  the  Chanda  kings.      In    1743   Bhandara,   with    the  rest   of  the 
Deogarh  territories,  became  part  of  the  Maratha  kingdom  of  Nagpur, 
but   was  at    first   governed    by  kamaishdars   or   subordinate   revenue 
officials  who  were  controlled  from  Nagpur,  and  whose  charges,  ten  in 
number,  were  assigned  as  apanages  of  different  officers  of  the  court. 
The  present   town   of   Bhandara  was   constituted   the    District  head- 
quarters in    1820,  when  a  European   officer  was  appointed  as  Super- 
intendent under  the  temporary  administration  of  Sir  Richard  Jenkins. 
Soon  after  the  Maratha  accession,  a  Kunbl  pdtel,  who  had  rendered 
some  services  to    Chimnaji    Bhonsla   on   his   expedition   to  Cuttack, 
received  as  a  reward  a  grant  of  authority  over  the  eastern  part  of  the 
District,  with  instructions  to  clear  the  forest  and  bring  it  under  culti- 
vation.    This  grant  led  to  the  rise  of  the  zamlndari  family  of  Kamtha, 
which  by  1818  had  extended  its  jurisdiction  over  1,000  square  miles 
of  territory,  comprising  about  fourteen  of  what  are  now  the  zamlndari 
estates  of  Bhandara  and  Balaghat,  the  ancestors  of  the  present  zamin- 
ddrs having  held  their  estates  in  subordination  to  the  Kamtha  house. 
In  1818  Chimna  Patel,  the  zamlnddr,  rose  in  support  of  Appa  Sahib, 
captured    the  Maratha  governor  of   Lanji,  and    garrisoned  a  number 


POPULATION  63 

of  the  existing  forts  with  his  retainers.  A  small  expedition  was  dis- 
patched against  him  from  Nagpur  under  Captain  Gordon,  which, 
after  a  successful  engagement  with  400  of  the  zamlndar's  levies  at 
the  village  of  Nowargaon,  stormed  Kamtha  and  took  Chimna  Patel 
prisoner.  The  Kamtha  territories  were  made  over  to  the  LodhI  zamln- 
dar  of  Warad,  who  had  afforded  assistance  to  the  British  and  whose 
descendants  still  hold  the  zaminddri.  Some  years  afterwards  the 
zamhiddri  of  Kimapur,  now  in  Balaghat,  was  conferred  on  the  deposed 
Kamtha  family.  The  subsequent  history  of  Bhandara  has  been  the 
same  as  that  of  the  Nagpur  kingdom,  and  on  the  death  of  RaghujI  III, 
the  last  Raja,  in  1853,  it  became  British  territory.  During  the  Mutiny 
the  peace  of  the  District  was  undisturbed.  In  1867  the  Lanji  tract 
and  several  of  the  zamtndaris  were  taken  from  Bhandara  to  form  part 
of  the  new  Balaghat  District. 

An  old  cromlech  and  stone  pillars  are  to  be  seen  at  Tillota.  Khairi, 
and  some  remains  of  massive  stone  buildings  at  Padmapur  near 
Amgaon.  Old  temples,  most  of  them  of  the  kind  called  Hemadpanti, 
built  without  mortar,  are  found  at  Adyal,  Chakahetl,  KorambI,  and 
Pinglai,  a  suburb  of  Bhandara  town.  There  are  a  number  of  forts,  the 
principal  being  Ambagarh,  constructed  by  the  Muhammadan  governor 
of  SeonI ;  Chandpur  and  Bhandara,  traditionally  ascribed  to  the  Gaolls  ; 
Sangarhl  and  Partabgarh,  built  by  the  Gonds ;  and  PaunI,  constructed 
by  the  Marathas.  The  fort  of  Ambagarh  was  used  as  a  prison  by  the 
Marathas,  and  it  is  said  that  criminals  were  sent  there  to  be  poisoned 
by  being  compelled  to  drink  the  stagnant  water  of  the  inner  well. 
This  fort  and  also  that  of  PaunI  were  held  against  the  British  in  Appa 
Sahib's  rebellion  of  18 18,  and  were  carried  by  storm. 

The  population  of  the  District  at  the  last  three  enumerations  was 
as  follows:  (1881)  683,779,  (1891)  742,850,  and  (1901)  663,062. 
Between  1881  and  1891  the  increase  was  somewhat 
smaller  than  the  Provincial  average,  partly  owing  to 
emigration  to  Nagpur  and  Berar.  During  the  last  decade,  there  was 
some  emigration  to  Wardha  and  Berar,  and  the  District  suffered  from 
partial  failures  of  crops  in  1895  and  1896,  being  very  severely  affected 
by  famine  in  both  1897  and  1900.  The  density  of  population  is 
167  persons  per  square  mile.  Under  favourable  circumstances  the 
District  could  probably  support  with  ease  a  density  of  more  than  200. 
There  are  three  towns— Bhandara,  PaunI,  and  Tumsar — and  1,635 
inhabited  villages.  Villages  in  Bhandara  are  generally  of  a  compara- 
tively large  size,  the  proportion  with  500  inhabitants  or  more  being  the 
highest  in  the  Province.  The  principal  statistics  of  population  in  1901 
are  shown  in  the  table  on  the  next  page. 

The  statistics  of  language  show  that  77^  per  cent,  of  the  population 
speak  MarathI,  and  13!  per  cent.  Hindi  and  Urdu;  of  the  remainder, 


64 


r.UANDARA  DISTRICT 


56,000  persons,  or  79  per  cent,  of  the  total  number  of  Gonds,  speak 
Gondl.  According  to  religion,  about  88  per  cent,  of  the  population  are 
Hindus,  and  10  per  cent.  Animists.  Muhammadans  number  nearly 
13,000,  of  whom  3,000  live  in  towns.  Until  recently  there  were  a 
considerable  number  of  Muhammadan  cotton-cleaners,  but  with  the 
introduction  of  mill-spun  thread  this  industry  has  declined. 


Tahsil. 

V 
u 
CS 

3 

V 

< 

Number  of 

Population. 

1* 

<u    . 

O.JU 

0  E 
tf  1- 
II 

187 
220 
108 

Percentage  of 
variation  in 

population  be- 
tween 1 891 
and  igoi. 

Number  of 

persons  able  to 

read  and 

write. 

c 
> 
0 

H 

u 
W 

> 

Bhandara 

Tirora    . 
Sakoli    . 

District  total 

1,088 
1,328 
1,549 

3 

5°  7 
57i 

557 

204,153 
291,514 

l67,395 

—  II-O 
-12.9 

-  6.5 

6,254 
6,256 

4,236 

3,965 

3 

1,635 

663,062 

167 

—  10-7 

16,746 

The  principal  castes  of  landholders  are  Maratha  Brahmans  (6,000), 
who  possess  340  out  of  1,917  revenue  villages,  Ponwars  (63,000)  with 
nearly  300,  Kunbls  (79,000)  with  about  200,  Lodhis  (18,000)  with  166, 
and  Kohlls  (11,000)  with  136  villages.  The  Maratha  Brahmans 
obtained  their  villages  under  the  Bhonsla  dynasty,  when  they  were  em- 
ployed as  revenue  officials,  and  either  assumed  the  management  of  vil- 
lages or  made  them  over  to  their  relations.  The  three  great  cultivating 
castes  are  Ponwars,  Kunbls,  and  Kohlls,  the  Ponwars  being  traditionally 
skilful  in  growing  rice,  Kunbls  with  spring  crops,  and  Kohlls  with 
sugar-cane.  The  skill  of  the  Ponwars  at  irrigation  is  proverbial,  and 
it  is  said  of  them  that  they  can  cause  water  to  flow  up  a  hill.  The 
Kunbls  are  dull  and  heavy,  with  no  thought  beyond  their  wheat  and 
their  bullocks.  The  Kohlls  live  chiefly  in  the  Chandpur  tract  of 
Bhandara  and  the  Sakoli  tahsil.  They  are  not  so  prosperous  as  they 
formerly  were,  when  Kohli  patels  built  the  great  tanks  already  men- 
tioned. The  Lodhis  (18,000)  are  not  important  numerically,  but  they 
hold  some  fine  estates,  notably  the  zamindari  of  Kamtha  with  an 
income  of  over  a  lakh  of  rupees.  Gonds  number  70,000,  or  about 
io|  per  cent,  of  the  population,  and  Halbas  17,000.  Several  of  the 
zamlnddrs  belong  to  each  of  these  castes,  the  Gonds  being  generally 
seriously  involved,  and  the  Halbas  somewhat  less  so,  though  they  are 
not  often  prosperous.  The  Gonds  suffered  severely  in  the  famines. 
The  menial  labouring  and  weaving  caste  of  Mehras  is  represented  by 
118,000  persons,  or  nearly  18  per  cent,  of  the  population.  About 
72  per  cent,  of  the  whole  population  are  shown  as  dependent  on 
agriculture. 

Christians  number  319,  including  286  natives,  of  whom  the  majority 
belong  to  the  United   Free  Church  of  Scotland  Mission,   which   has 


AGRICULTURE 


65 


Agriculture. 


been  established  in  Bhandara  since  1882,  and  maintains  a  hospital, 
an  orphanage,  and  schools  for  boys  and  girls.  A  branch  of  the 
American  Pentecostal  Baptist  Mission  has  recently  been  opened  at 
Gondia. 

About  53  per  cent,  of  the  soil  of  the  District  is  that  called  morand, 
or  black  and  nearly  black  soil  mixed  with  limestone  pebbles  or  sand. 
The  best  black  soil  or  kankar  occupies  4^  per  cent, 
and  is  alluvial,  being  found  in  the  tracts  bordering 
on  the  Wainganga,  especially  round  PaunI,  where  the  Wainganga  takes 
a  sudden  turn,  and  the  deposit  of  detritus  has  increased.  Farther  east, 
yellow  sandy  soil,  which  gives  a  large  return  to  irrigation,  generally 
predominates,  covering  31  per  cent,  of  the  whole  cultivated  area.  The 
quantity  of  inferior  land  is  therefore  comparatively  small. 

Of  the  total  area,  1,479  square  miles,  or  37  per  cent.,  are  comprised 
in  the  28  zaminddri  estates,  to  which  it  has  been  held  that  the  custom 
of  primogeniture  does  not  apply,  while  95  square  miles  are  held  wholly 
or  partially  free  of  revenue  by  members  of  the  Bhonsla  family,  and 
3,000  acres  have  been  sold  outright  under  the  Waste  Land  Rules. 
The  balance  is  held  on  the  ordinary  malguzari  tenure.  The  chief 
statistics  of  cultivation  in  1903-4  are  as  follows,  areas  being  in  square 
miles  : — 


Tahsil. 

Total. 

Cultivated. 

Irrigated.      Cultivable 
6                   waste. 

Forests. 

Bhandara 
Tirora    . 
Sakoli    . 

Total 

1,088 
1,328 
',549 

483 
657 
356 

35                29S 
4°                475 
53                749 

204 

ss 

240 

3,96o 

1,496 

128             1,522 

532 

A  large  quantity  of  waste  land  therefore  still  remains,  and  as  very 
little  inferior  soil  has  been  brought  under  the  plough,  it  would  appear 
that  there  must  be  considerable  scope  for  extension  of  cultivation. 
Rice  occupies  628  square  miles,  joivar  158,  wheat  135,  gram  70, 
linseed  116,  and  pulses  254.  In  recent  years  wheat  has  to  some 
extent  been  supplanted  by  Jowdr,  and  while  the  area  under  rice  has 
considerably  fallen  off,  this  has  only  to  a  small  extent  been  counter- 
balanced by  an  increase  in  kodon.  About  four-fifths  of  all  the  rice 
grown  is  transplanted,  and  the  balance  is  sown  broadcast.  Wheat 
is  grown  principally  in  the  PaunI,  Tumsar,  and  Rampaili  tracts,  and 
small  embankments  are  often  constructed  for  wheat-fields,  especially 
when  rice  is  grown  as  a  rotation  crop  with  wheat.  Jozvdr  is  frequently 
sown  as  a  spring  crop,  as  the  rains  are  too  heavy  to  allow  it  to 
succeed  as  an  autumn  crop.  Linseed,  gram,  and  the  pulse  tiurd 
{Lat/iyrus  sativus)  are  grown  as  second  crops  in  rice-fields.  Sugar- 
cane  was   formerly    an    important   crop,   but   the   area  under    it   has 

VOL.  VIII.  F 


66  BHANDARA   DISTRICT 

decreased  in  recent  years,  and  is  now  only  about  1,500  acres,  or  less 
than  a  third  of  the  former  total.  Ginger,  oranges,  and  plantains  are 
grown  in  the  villages  of  Jam  and  Andhargaon,  and  sent  to  Nagpur. 

The  practice  of  growing  second  crops  in  rice-fields  and  of  irrigating 
rice  has  arisen  since  1864.  In  a  favourable  year  second  crops  are 
grown  on  as  large  an  area  as  341  square  miles.  A  variety  of  sugar-cane 
called  kathai,  which  gives  only  half  the  usual  out-turn  of  sugar  but  is 
easier  to  cultivate  and  less  liable  to  damage  from  wild  animals,  has  been 
generally  adopted  in  preference  to  the  superior  canes.  During  the 
decade  ending  1904  more  than  i\  lakhs  was  advanced  under  the  Land 
Improvement  Loans  Act,  principally  for  the  construction  of  irrigation 
tanks,  and  nearly  6  lakhs  under  the  Agriculturists'  Loans  Act,  of  which 
3  lakhs  was  given  out  during  the  scarcity  of  1902-3.  A  considerable 
proportion  of  this  latter  sum  was  expended  in  agricultural  improvements. 

No  good  cattle  are  bred  in  the  District,  except  in  the  small  forest 
tract  to  the  north  of  the  Ambagarh  range  where  there  are  professional 
breeders  of  the  Golar  caste.  The  herds  from  here  are  taken  to  Baihar 
for  grazing  during  six  months  of  the  year.  Elsewhere  no  care  is 
exercised  in  breeding,  and  the  type  produced  is  poor.  Bullocks  are 
imported  from  the  Ranker  and  Bastar  States  and  from  the  Satpura 
Districts  of  Chhindwara  and  SeonI  for  rice  cultivation,  and  from  Berar 
in  the  spring-crop  area.  Buffaloes  are  used  for  rice  cultivation  and  also 
for  draught.  They  are  not  largely  bred  locally,  the  young  bulls  being 
imported  from  the  northern  Districts.  They  are  slightly  more  expensive 
than  bullocks,  and  are  usually  kept  in  combination  with  them,  and  are 
used  for  the  heavy  work  of  transplantation  and  harvesting.  There  are 
very  few  sheep,  but  numbers  of  goats  are  bred  by  ordinary  agricul- 
turists both  for  food  and  for  sacrifice. 

The  District  of  Bhandara  has  a  larger  irrigated  area  than  any  other 
in  the  Province,  as  much  as  370  square  miles  receiving  an  artificial 
supply  of  water  in  a  normal  year.  This  represents  nearly  a  quarter  of 
the  net  area  under  crop,  and  nearly  half  of  that  under  rice,  which,  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  thousand  acres  of  sugar-cane  and  vegetables, 
is  the  only  crop  to  which  irrigation  is  applied.  In  1903-4  the  irrigated 
area  was  128  square  miles.  The  water  for  irrigation  is  accumulated  in 
village  tanks  of  the  ordinary  kind,  and  either  percolates  through  the 
embankment  or  is  drawn  off  to  the  fields  by  channels  constructed  of 
earth,  from  outlets  cut  in  the  centre  or  side  of  the  embankment.  A 
few  of  the  large  reservoirs,  such  as  Nawegaon,  SeonI,  and  Siregaon, 
have  rough  masonry  sluices.  A  system  is  also  practised  of  constructing 
small  embankments  to  hold  up  water  temporarily  during  the  monsoon 
months  ;  in  September  and  October  these  are  cut,  and  the  water  taken 
on  to  the  rice-fields,  while  wheat  is  sown  in  the  bed  of  the  tank.  Irriga- 
tion is  at  present  almost  entirely  dependent  on  a  sufficient  supply  of 


TRADE  AND  COMMUNICATIONS  67 

rain  to  fill  the  tanks  at  some  period  during  the  monsoon  ;  and  in  1899, 
when  there  was  a  complete  failure  of  the  rainfall,  only  about  4  per  cent. 
of  the  normal  cropped  area  could  be  supplied  with  water.  The  con- 
figuration of  the  country,  and  the  hill  ranges  traversing  the  District, 
afford  a  number  of  favourable  sites  for  large  storage  reservoirs  similar 
to  those  already  constructed  by  the  people,  and  several  projects  of  this 
nature  have  been  prepared  by  the  Irrigation  department.  The  con- 
struction of  the  Khairbanda  tank  to  protect  4,000  acres  is  nearly 
completed. 

Government  forests  cover  532  square  miles,  of  which  all  but  8  are 
'  reserved '  forests.  The  chief  areas  are  on  the  Ambagarh,  GaikhurT, 
and  Partabgarh  ranges,  and  there  is  a  small  block  to  the  west  of  Paunl. 
The  higher  levels  of  the  Gaikhurl  and  Partabgarh  hills  contain  a 
certain  amount  of  teak.  Elsewhere  the  ordinary  mixed  species  are 
found.  Bamboos  are  abundant.  Most  of  the  revenue  comes  from 
timber  and  bamboos,  and  the  rest  from  the  usual  minor  forest  produce. 
The  total  value  of  forest  produce  sold  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  45,000. 
Besides  the  Government  Reserves,  the  District  contains  946  square 
miles  of  tree  forest,  principally  in  the  zamlndaris.  Some  teak  forest  is 
found  in  Darekasa  and  Salekasa. 

The  manganese  ores  in  the  District  are  now  being  worked  by  a 
European  firm,  the  principal  deposits  being  near  Tumsar.  About 
150  labourers  are  employed,  and  the  output  in  1904  was  8,558  tons. 
Deposits  of  iron  ore  of  a  superior  quality  exist  in  several  villages  in 
the  Tirora  tahsil,  and  are  worked  to  a  small  extent  by  native  artificers. 
A  little  gold  is  obtained  by  washing  in  the  Sonjharl  Dudhi  river. 

The  weaving   of  silk-bordered   cloths   is   a  substantial    industry  in 

Bhandara,  and  has  not  yet  been  seriously  affected  by  the  competition  of 

the  mills.     The  principal  centres  are  Bhandara  town, 

Paunl,    Mohari,    and    Andhargaon,    and    the    total  „ I^6^.- „ 

'  .  .       communications. 

number  of  persons  employed  is  about  6,000.  Fine 
cotton  cloths  are  woven  with  coloured  silk  borders,  usually  red,  and  the 
weavers  in  PaunT  use  counts  as  fine  as  8o's.  The  silk  thread  comes 
from  Assam  through  Nagpur  ready  dyed.  Ordinary  country  cotton 
cloth  is  also  produced  in  considerable  quantities  by  Mehras,  who  live 
in  large  numbers  in  Tumsar  and  the  surrounding  villages.  Cotton 
cloths  are  dyed  with  imported  materials  in  a  number  of  villages,  about 
500  persons  being  employed  in  this  industry  at  Beni.  At  Bhandara  all 
kinds  of  brass  vessels  are  made.  Stone  jars  are  turned  out  at  Kanerl 
and  cart-wheels  at  Tumsar.  Soft  grass  matting  for  bedding  is  manufac- 
tured from  a  grass  called  sakhivasa,  and  bamboo  baskets  and  matting 
are  made  in  a  number  of  villages. 

Rice  is  the  staple  export,  being  sent  to  Bombay  for  the  foreign  trade, 
and  also  to  Nagpur  and  Berar.     Wheat,  gram,  the  pulse  urad,  and  oil- 

F  2 


68  BHANDARA  DISTRICT 

seeds  are  also  exported,  these  being  generally  taken  by  cart  from  Paunl 
to  Nagpur.  Of  the  forest  produce,  teak  and  beuld  (Pterocarpus  Mar- 
sufiium),  timber  and  bamboos,  and  mahud,  myrabolams,  hides,  and  wax 
are  generally  exported  ;  and  various  articles  of  local  manufacture,  as 
brass-ware,  silk-bordered  cloths,  and  stone  jars,  are  sent  to  neighbour- 
ing Districts.  In  the  last  few  years  there  have  been  considerable 
exports  of  manganese.  Cotton  piece-goods  are  imported  from  the 
Nagpur  and  Bombay  mills,  and  English  cloth  from  both  Bombay  and 
Calcutta.  Yarn  is  obtained  from  the  Nagpur  and  Hinganghat  mills. 
Kerosene  oil  is  brought  from  Bombay,  and  is  now  solely  used  for  light- 
ing. Sea-salt  also  comes  from  Bombay.  Mauritius  sugar  is  principally 
used.  Gur  or  unrefined  sugar  is  both  produced  locally  and  imported 
from  Bombay  and  the  United  Provinces.  A  certain  amount  of  jowar 
and  the  pulse  arhar  is  brought  into  the  District  for  consumption  from 
Berar  and  Nagpur.  The  principal  trading  stations  are  Gondia  and 
Tumsar,  and  after  them  Tirora  and  Amgaon.  Tumsar  is  the  centre 
for  the  part  of  the  District  north-west  of  the  Wainganga,  and  for  the 
adjoining  tracts  of  Seoni  and  Balaghat.  South  of  the  Wainganga  the 
trade  of  the  Tirora  tahsil  on  both  sides  of  the  railway  goes  to  Tirora, 
Gondia,  or  Amgaon  according  to  their  relative  proximity. 

The  Bengal-Nagpur  Railway  passes  through  the  northern  portion  of 
the  District,  rwith  a  length  of  78  miles  and  ten  stations,  including 
Bhandara,  within  its  borders.  The  Satpura  narrow-gauge  extension 
starts  north  from  Gondia  junction,  and  has  a  length  of  1 1  miles  and 
one  station  in  the  District.  The  most  important  roads  are  the  great 
eastern  road  running  through  the  south  of  the  District,  and  the  roads 
from  Tumsar  to  Rampaill  and  Katangi,  from  Gondia  to  Balaghat, 
and  from  Tirora  to  Khairlanji.  The  length  of  metalled  roads  is  136 
miles,  and  of  unmetalled  roads  259  miles,  all  of  which,  except  21  miles 
of  the  latter  class  maintained  by  the  District  council,  are  in  charge 
of  the  Public  Works  department,  the  expenditure  on  upkeep  being 
Rs.  58,000.     There  are  avenues  of  trees  on  26  miles. 

The  years  1822,  1832,  and  1869  are  remembered  as  having  been 
marked  by  famine  from  failure  of  rainfall.  After  1869,  the  year  of  the 
Bundelkhand  famine,  the  District  prospered  until  the 
cycle  of  bad  seasons  commencing  in  1894.  Two 
years  of  poor  crops  were  followed  by  a  harvest  of  less  than  half  the 
normal  in  1895-6,  and  of  one-third  of  the  normal  in  1896-7.  Severe 
distress  occurred  in  the  latter  year,  the  numbers  on  relief  rising  to 
43,000  persons,  or  6  per  cent,  of  the  population,  in  June,  1897,  and  the 
total  expenditure  being  10  lakhs.  Again  in  1899- 1900  both  the  rice 
and  wheat  harvests  were  complete  failures  and  famine  ensued.  About 
140,000  persons,  or  nearly  19  per  cent,  of  the  population,  were  on 
relief  in  July,  1900,  and  the  total  expenditure  was  26  lakhs.     In  both 


ADMINISTRATION  69 

these  famines,  besides  improvements  to  communications,  large  numbers 

of  tanks  were  constructed  and  repaired.     In    1902   there  was  again  a 

very  poor  rice  crop  and  some  local  relief  was  given,  tank  works  also 

being  undertaken  by  the  Irrigation  department. 

The  Deputy-Commissioner  usually  has  a  staff  of  three  Assistant  or 

Extra-Assistant     Commissioners.       For    administrative    purposes    the 

District  is  divided  into  three  tahs'ils,  each  of  which     .  ,    .  .  ,     ,. 
,  ,  .,7-  ,  ....,_        r„.       „  Administration, 

has  a  tahsildar  and   a    naib-tahsildar.      Ihe   forest 

officer  is  generally  a  member  of  the  Provincial  service.     The  executive 

Engineer  of  the  Bhandara  Public  Works  division,  comprising  Bhandara 

and  Balaghat  Districts,  is  stationed  at  Bhandara  town. 

The  civil  judicial  staff  consists  of  a  District  and  a  Subordinate  Judge, 
and  a  Munsif  at  each  tahsll.  The  Divisional  and  Sessions  Judge  of 
the  Nagpur  Division  has  jurisdiction  in  Bhandara.  There  are  benches 
of  honorary  magistrates  at  Bhandara  town,  Rampaill,  and  Amgaon. 
Suits  brought  for  the  use  of  water  for  irrigation  are  a  noticeable  feature 
of  the  civil  litigation.  Heinous  crimes  are  somewhat  numerous, 
murders  committed  with  an  axe  being  a  comparatively  common  offence. 
Cattle-thefts  also  are  frequent. 

Owing  to  large  changes  in  the  area  of  the  District,  the  old  figures 
of  the  revenue  demand  cannot  usefully  be  compared  with  the  present 
ones.  Under  Maratha  administration  short-term  settlements  were  the 
rule.  The  farm  of  a  certain  area  was  given  to  an  official  called  a 
mamlatdar,  generally  a  court  favourite,  who  made  himself  responsible 
for  the  revenue.  Each  village  had  a  patel  or  headman,  who  acted  as 
its  representative  and  engaged  for  the  revenue  demand,  which  rose  and 
fell  according  to  the  circumstances  of  the  year.  The  demand  was 
distributed  over  the  fields  of  the  village,  each  of  which  had  a  number 
representing  its  proportionate  value.  The  patel  had  no  proprietary 
right,  but  his  office  was  generally  hereditary,  descending  not  necessarily 
to  the  eldest  son,  but  to  the  most  capable  member  of  the  family.  The 
tenants  also  had  no  legal  status,  but  were  seldom  ejected  so  long  as 
they  paid  their  rents,  more  especially  as  the  land  available  was  in 
excess  of  the  number  of  cultivators  to  till  it.  The  result  of  the  system 
was,  however,  that  the  mdmlatdars,  who  were  usually  Maratha  Brah- 
mans,  managed  to  get  a  large  number  of  villages  into  their  own  hands 
and  those  of  their  relations  ;  and  when  proprietary  rights  were  conferred, 
by  the  British  Government,  they  thus  became  hereditary  landowners. 
After  the  acquisition  of  the  District  in  1853,  short-term  settlements 
were  continued  for  a  few  years.  Preparations  for  the  first  regular 
survey  were  commenced  in  1858,  and  a  thirty  years'  settlement  was 
completed  in  1867,  the  demand  then  fixed  being  4-57  lakhs  on  the 
area  now  constituting  Bhandara.  During  the  currency  of  this  settle- 
ment the   District  prospered,   the  price   of  agricultural   produce  rose 


7o 


BHANDARA  DISTRICT 


greatly  on  the  construction  of  the  railway,  and  cultivation  expanded. 
The  District  was  resettled  in  the  years  1894-9,  and  the  revenue  was 
raised  to  6-04  lakhs,  being  equivalent  to  an  increase  of  38  per  cent. 
in  the  khdlsa  and  69  per  cent,  in  the  zamlndari  estates.  The  average 
revenue  incidence  per  cultivated  acre  is  R.  0-10-n  (maximum 
Rs.  1-3-T,  minimum  R.  0-5-4),  while  the  corresponding  rental  inci- 
dence is  R.  0-15-4  (maximum  Rs.  1-3-9,  minimum  R.  0-5-5). 

The  collections  of  land  and  total  revenue  in  recent  years  are  shown 
below,  in  thousands  of  rupees  : — 


1 880- 1. 

i^go-i. 

1 900- 1. 

1903-4. 

Land  revenue 
Total  revenue    . 

4,02 
7.59 

4,08 
8,41 

2,77 
5,57 

5,66 

8,87 

The  management  of  local  affairs,  outside  municipal  areas,  is  entrusted 
to  a  District  council  and  three  local  boards,  each  of  the  latter  having 
jurisdiction  over  one  tahsll.  The  income  of  the  District  council  in 
1903-4  was  Rs.  61,000,  while  the  expenditure  on  education  was 
Rs.  24,000  and  on  public  works  Rs.  17,000.  Bhandara,  Tumsar, 
and  Pauni  are  municipalities. 

The  force  under  the  District  Superintendent  of  police  consists  of 
352  officers  and  men,  including  3  mounted  constables,  besides  2,116 
village  watchmen  for  1,638  inhabited  villages.  There  is  a  District  jail 
with  accommodation  for  126  prisoners,  including  11  females.  The 
daily  average  number  of  prisoners  in  1904  was  70. 

In  respect  of  education  Bhandara  is  neither  particularly  advanced 
nor  backward,  2-5  per  cent,  of  the  population  (5-2  males  and  o-i 
females)  being  able  to  read  and  write.  Statistics  of  the  number  of 
pupils  under  instruction  are  as  follows:  (1880-1)  3,899,  (1890-1) 
7,630,  (1900-1)  7,682,  and  (1903-4)  8,226,  including  275  girls.  The 
schools  comprise  2  English  middle  schools  at  Bhandara,  with  5  verna- 
cular middle  schools  and  129  primary  schools,  besides  2  private  schools. 
One  of  the  Bhandara  English  schools  is  managed  by  the  Free  Church 
Mission.  Two  high  school  classes  have  been  opened  at  the  expense 
of  a  private  resident  in  the  other  English  school,  but  have  not  yet  been 
recognized  by  the  Allahabad  University.  There  are  six  girls'  schools — 
three  in  Bhandara,  and  one  each  at  Pauni,  Sanlchari,  and  Tumsar.  A 
separate  school  for  low-caste  Dher  boys  is  maintained  at  Pauni.  The 
expenditure  on  education  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  46,000,  the  income  from 
fees  being  Rs.  4,500. 

The  District  has  8  dispensaries,  with  accommodation  for  59  in-patients. 
In  1904  the  number  of  cases  treated  was  93,106,  of  whom  323  were 
in-patients,  and   2,111    operations  were  performed.     The  expenditure 


BHANDARA   TOWN  71 

was  Rs.  12,000,  of  which  the  greater  part  was  provided  from  Provincial 
and  Local  funds. 

Vaccination  is  compulsory  only  in  the  municipalities  of  Bhandara, 
Tumsar,  and  Pauni.  The  proportion  of  successful  vaccinations  in 
1903-4  was  45  per  1,000  of  the  population,  being  above  the  Provincial 
average. 

[A.  B.  Napier,  Settlement  Report  (1902).  A  District  Gazetteer  is 
being  prepared.] 

Bhandara  Tahsil. — Western  tahsil  of  the  District  of  the  same 
name,  Central  Provinces,  lying  between  200  40'  and  210  43'  N.  and 
790  27'  and  790  55'  E.,  with  an  area  of  1,088  square  miles.  The 
population  in  1901  was  204,153,  compared  with  229,287  in  1891.  The 
density  is  187  persons  per  square  mile.  The  tahsil  contains  three 
towns — Bhandara  (population,  14,023),  the  District  and  tahsil  head- 
quarters, Pauni  (9,366),  and  Tumsar  (8,116) — and  507  inhabited 
villages.  Excluding  204  square  miles  of  Government  forest,  63  per 
cent,  of  the  available  area  is  occupied  for  cultivation.  The  demand 
for  land  revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  2,09,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  20,000. 
The  tahsil  occupies  a  narrow  strip  of  land  along  the  west  of  the  Dis- 
trict, consisting  mainly  of  open  level  country  bordering  the  Wainganga, 
a  considerable  area  being  covered  with  fertile  black  soil.  The  cultivated 
area  in  1903-4  was  483  square  miles,  of  which  35  were  irrigated. 

Bhandara  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  District  and  tahsil  of  the 
same  name,  Central  Provinces,  situated  in  210  io'  N.  and  790  40'  E., 
on  the  Wainganga  river,  7  miles  from  a  station  on  the  Bengal-Niigpur 
Railway.  Population  (1901),  14,023.  The  town  contains  an  old  fort 
said  to  have  been  built  by  the  Gaolis,  which  is  now  used  as  a  jail. 
Bhandara  was  constituted  a  municipality  in  1867.  The  municipal 
receipts  during  the  decade  ending  190 1  averaged  Rs.  15,000.  By 
1903-4  the  income  had  more  than  doubled  and  amounted'to  Rs.  35,000, 
the  chief  sources  being  octroi  and  water  rate.  The  water-supply  is 
obtained  from  the  Wainganga.  Three  filtration  wells  have  been  con- 
structed in  the  bed  of  the  river,  and  water  is  raised  from  them  to 
a  service  reservoir  near  the  jail.  The  works  were  opened  in  1900, 
the  cost  of  the  scheme  being  1-84  lakhs  and  the  annual  maintenance 
charges  about  Rs.  6,000.  The  principal  industry  of  Bhandara  is  brass- 
working,  and  its  name  is  said  to  be  derived  from  bhdna,  '  a  brass  dish.' 
Cotton  cloth  is  also  woven,  but  the  trade  of  the  place  is  not  considerable. 
The  educational  institutions  comprise  a  private  high  school  supported 
by  contributions  from  the  residents,  an  English  middle  school,  and 
several  other  boys'  and  girls'  schools.  Three  dispensaries  are  maintained, 
including  mission  and  police  hospitals.  The  United  Free  Church  of 
Scotland  established  a  mission  station  here  in  1882,  and  now  supports 
an  orphanage,  a  dispensary,  and  several  schools. 


72  BHANDARIA 

Bhandaria. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhander. —  Head-quarters  of  a  pargana  in  the    Bhind   district   of 

Gwalior  State,  Central  India,  situated  in  250  44'  N.  and  780  45'  E. 
Population  (1901),  5,133.  The  town  is  picturesquely  placed  between 
the  Pahuj  river  and  a  lake  formed  by  damming  one  of  its  tributaries. 
The  site  is  said  to  be  an  old  one,  the  ancient  city  having  been  swal- 
lowed up  in  an  earthquake.  The  remains  of  a  few  old  temples  stand 
on  a  neighbouring  hill.  In  the  fifteenth  century  the  town  was  included 
in  the  State  of  Orchha,  but  in  the  eighteenth  century  it  fell  to  Sindhia. 
After  the  Mutiny  in  1S57  it  remained  a  British  possession  until  1886, 
when  it  was  restored  to  Sindhia  in  part  exchange  for  Jhansi.  A  con- 
siderable trade  in  grain,  spun  and  raw  cotton,  and  country  cloth  is 
carried  on.  A  State  post  office,  a  dispensary,  schools  for  boys  and 
girls,  and  an  inspection  bungalow  are  situated  in  the  town. 

Bhanpura. — Head-quarters  of  a  naib-subah  in  the  Rampura-Bhan- 
pura  district  of  Indore  State,  Central  India,  situated  in  240  31'  N.  and 
750  45'  E.,  1,344  feet  above  sea-level,  below  the  arm  of  the  Vindhyan 
range  which  strikes  east  from  Chitor.  Population  (1901),  4,639.  The 
foundation  is  ascribed  to  one  Bhana,  a  Bhil.  In  the  fifteenth  century 
it  passed  to  the  Chandrawats  of  Rampura.  The  town  was  long  held 
by  Udaipur,  passing  from  that  State  to  Jaipur,  and  finally,  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  to  Malhar  Rao  Holkar  I.  Bhanpura  was  one  of 
Jaswant  Rao  Holkar's  favourite  places  of  residence.  During  the  period 
of  his  insanity,  he  was  removed  to  Garot,  as  it  was  supposed  that  his 
madness  was  caused  or  augmented  by  the  evil  influence  of  a  local 
demon,  but  he  was  taken  back  and  died  at  Bhanpura  in  October,  181  r. 
His  cenotaph. stands  near  the  town,  a  substantial  building  of  no  archi- 
tectural merit,  surrounded  by  a  castellated  wall.  In  the  town  are  a 
palace  containing  a  marble  statue  of  Jaswant  Rao,  and  an  unfinished 
fort  commenced  by  the  same  chief,  and  also  the  offices  of  the  naib- 
subah,  a  school,  a  jail,  a  dispensary,  and  an  inspection  bungalow.  In 
former  days  iron  smelting  was  carried  on  to  a  considerable  extent  at 
Navali  village,  10  miles  north-east  of  the  town.  Jaswant  Rao  took 
advantage  of  this  to  establish  a  gun  foundry  at  Bhanpura.  Oranges 
grown  in  Jaswant  Rao's  garden  are  well-known  in  Malwa.  A  munici- 
pality was  constituted  in  1905. 

Bharamurio. — Hill  in  the  Jashpur  State,  Central  Provinces,  situated 
in  22°  55'  N.  and  830  32'  E.,  and  rising  to  a  height  of  3,390  feet  above 
sea-level. 

Bharatpur  State. — State  in  the  east  of  Rajputana,  lying  between 
260  43'  and  2 70  50'  N.  and  760  53'  and  770  46'  E.,  with  an  area  of 
about  1,982  square  miles.  It  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  Gurgaon 
District  of  the  Punjab  ;  on  the  west  by  Alwar ;  on  the  south-west 
by  Jaipur;   on  the  south  by  Jaipur,  Karauli,  and   Dholpur ;  and  on 


BHARATPUR  STATE  73 

the  east  by  the  Agra  and  Muttra  Districts  of  the  United  Provinces. 
In  shape  Bharatpur  is  an  irregular  quadrilateral,  nar- 
rowing from  south  to  north,  with  spurs  projecting  asnects 
into  Alwar,  Dholpur,  and  Agra.  The  central  tahsils 
are  level,  while  the  northern  are  to  some  extent,  and  the  southern 
considerably,  diversified  by  hills.  The  general  aspect  is  that  of  an 
immense  alluvial  plain,  fairly  well  wooded  and  cultivated,  with  detached 
hills  in  the  north,  a  hilly  and  broken  district  (called  the  Dang)  in 
the  south,  and  low  narrow  ranges  on  parts  of  the  western  and  north- 
eastern frontiers.  The  highest  hill  in  the  State  is  in  the  west  near 
Alipur,  1,357  feet  above  the  sea.  The  principal  rivers  are  the  Ban- 
ganga or  Utangan,  the  Gambhlr,  Kakand,  and  Ruparel ;  they 
usually  cease  to  flow  about  two  months  after  the  rainy  season  is  over. 
The  Banganga  enters  the  State  on  the  west  and  flows  for  about  55  miles 
due  east  to  the  Agra  border.  Its  floods  were  formerly,  owing  to  the 
neglect  of  the  old  irrigation  works  by  Maharaja  Jaswant  Singh,  the 
cause  of  widespread  ruin  and  agricultural  depression  not  only  along 
the  course  of  the  stream  in  Bharatpur,  but  also  farther  east  in  Agra ; 
and  the  remonstrances  of  the  United  Provinces  Government  led  to 
the  appointment  in  1895  of  an  Executive  Engineer  with  the  primary 
object  of  controlling  them.  Since  then  there  have  been  no  further 
complaints  of  damage  in  Agra,  chiefly  because  the  irrigation  works 
undertaken  for  the  proper  distribution  of  the  floods  have  caused  them 
to  be  freely  utilized  in  Bharatpur,  and  have  converted  them  from  a 
curse  into  a  blessing.  The  Gambhlr  enters  the  State  at  the  south- 
western corner,  and  flows  for  about  35  miles,  first  east  and  next  north- 
east, to  Kurka,  where  it  joins  the  Banganga.  The  Kakand  is,  or  rather 
was,  the  chief  affluent  of  the  Gambhlr  ;  it  is  now  most  effectively 
dammed  by  the  great  Bareta  band.  The  Ruparel  comes  from  the 
Thana  Ghazi  hills  in  Alwar,  where  it  is  sometimes  called  the  Laswari, 
from  the  site  of  the  famous  battle-field  of  that  name  on  its  banks,  and 
on  entering  Bharatpur  near  Gopalgarh  is  immediately  held  up  by  the 
Slkri  band. 

Almost  the  whole  of  the  northern  portion  of  the  State  is  covered 
with  alluvium,  from  which  rise  a  few  isolated  hills  of  schist  and  quartz- 
ite  belonging  to  the  Aravalli  and  Delhi  systems  respectively.  The 
quartzites  are  well  exposed  in  the  Bayana  hills  in  the  south,  where 
they  have  been  divided  into  five  groups  :  namely,  Wer,  Damdama, 
Bayana,  Badalgarh,  and  Nithahar.  To  the  south-east,  sandstones  of 
Upper  Vindhyan  age  are  faulted  down  against  the  quartzites,  and 
form  horizontal  plateaux  overlooking  the  alluvium  of  the  Chambal 
river. 

Besides  the  usual  small  game,  wild  hog,  nilgai  (Boselaphus  trago- 
(■anie/us),  and    occasionally    wolves    are  found   in   the  forest  preserves 


74  BHARATPUR  STATE 

(g/ia/i/ias),  and  tigers  and  leopards  in  the  Bayana  and  Wer  hills.  The 
so-called  wild  cattle,  which  used  to  be  notorious  for  their  ravages  on 
the  crops,  have  almost  all  been  impounded,  and  a  good  many  of  them 
have  been  tamed,  trained,  and  sold.  Wild  duck  are  extraordinarily 
plentiful  in  the  cold  season. 

The  climate  is  on  the  whole  dry  and  fairly  healthy,  but  there  is  a 
good  deal  of  malarial  fever  and  rheumatism  during  the  rainy  months, 
owing  to  the  large  area  of  land  under  water.  In  the  hot  months  a 
strong  west  wind  blows,  often  night  and  day,  and  the  thermometer 
stands  very  high.  The  mean  temperature  at  the  capital  is  about 
8i°  ;  in  1904  the  maximum  was  1150  in  May  and  the  minimum  440 
in  December. 

The  annual  rainfall  for  the  whole  State  averages  about  24  inches, 
of  which  21  inches  are  received  in  July,  August,  and  September. 
Speaking  generally,  the  eastern  tahslls  have  a  greater  rainfall  than 
the  western.  The  annual  fall  at  the  capital  averages  between  26  and 
27  inches.  The  year  of  heaviest  rainfall  was  1873,  when  nearly  45 
inches  were  registered  at  the  capital,  while  in  1896,  at  Bayana,  only 
about  8  inches  fell.  In  July,  1873,  the  rainfall  was  excessive  (nearly 
19  inches  in  the  month).  The  canals  and  rivers  overflowed  their 
banks  and  inundated  the  country  for  miles  round.  Villages  are  said 
to  have  been  literally  swept  away  by  the  floods,  and  the  capital  itself 
was  saved  with  great  difficulty.  In  August  and  September,  1884,  more 
than  25  inches  of  rain  fell ;  large  tracts  were  submerged  for  weeks, 
and  the  bands  of  tanks  and  public  roads  were  breached  all  over  the 
territory.  Again,  in  August,  1885,  the  Banganga  rose  in  high  flood 
and  the  Ajan  band  burst  in  eighteen  different  places.  About  400  square 
miles  of  Bharatpur  and  adjacent  British  territory  were  flooded,  and 
much  damage  was  done.  Since  1895,  when,  as  already  stated,  the 
control  of  the  Banganga  floods  was  taken  in  hand,  there  has  been 
little  or  no  further  trouble,  except  in  1902,  when  considerable  anxiety 
was  caused  by  the  Gambhlr  overflowing  its  northern  bank. 

The  northern  part  of  the  State  was  held  by  the  Tonwar  (Tomara) 
Rajputs,  who  ruled  at  Delhi,  and  the  southern  by  the  Jadon  Rajputs, 
who  had  their  capital  at  Bayana.  The  latter  were 
first  ousted  by  Mahmiid  of  Ghazni  in  the  eleventh 
century,  but  soon  regained  possession.  The  entire  territory  passed 
into  the  hands  of  Muhammad  Ghori  at  the  end  of  the  twelfth  century, 
and  for  500  years  was  held  by  whatever  dynasty  ruled  in  Delhi. 
In  the  time  of  the  Mughals  the  State  generally  formed  part  of  the 
Sitbah  or  province  of  Agra,  but  the  northern  tahslls,  with  the  rest  of 
the  turbulent  Mew  at  country,  were  often  placed  under  a  special  officer. 

The  present  rulers  of  Bharatpur  are  Jats  of  the  Sinsinwar  clan,  and 
claim  descent  from  Madan  Pal,  a  Jadon  Rajput  and  the  third  son  of 


HISTORY  75 

Tahan  Pal,  who,  in  the  eleventh  century,  was  ruling  at  Bayana,  and 
who  subsequently  possessed  himself  of  almost  all  the  State  now  called 
Karauli.  It  is  said  that  one  of  Madan  Pal's  descendants,  Bal  Chand, 
kept  a  Jat  woman  as  his  concubine,  and  by  her  had  two  sons  (Bijai  and 
Sijai)  who  were  not  admitted  into  the  Rajput  brotherhood,  but  were 
regarded  as  Jats.  Having  no  got  or  clan  of  their  own,  they  took  the 
name  of  Sinsinwar  from  their  paternal  village,  Sinsini  (8  miles  south  of 
Dig),  and  from  them  are  descended  the  chiefs  of  Bharatpur.  These 
early  Jats  were  the  Ishmaelites  of  the  jungles,  and  their  sole  occupation 
was  plunder.  The  first  to  attain  notoriety  was  Brijh,  a  contemporary 
of  Aurangzeb ;  he  is  considered  the  founder  of  the  State,  and  was  killed 
in  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century,  defending  his  little  capital 
of  Sinsini  against  the  attack  of  an  imperial  army  which  had  been  sent 
to  punish  him.  About  the  same  time  another  member  of  the  family 
established  himself  in  Thun  (12  miles  west  of  Sinsini),  and  became 
master  of  40  villages.  Churaman,  the  seventh  son  of  Brijh,  became  the 
acknowledged  leader  of  the  Jats  of  Sinsini  and  Thun,  built  forts  there, 
and  possessed  himself  of  I  Kg,  Kumher,  and  other  places  of  importance. 
He  also  joined  forces  with  another  Jat  of  the  Sogariya  clan,  named 
Khem  Karan,  and  so  ravaged  the  country  that  the  roads  to  Delhi  and 
Agra  were  completely  closed.  Farrukh  Siyar  in  17 14  endeavoured  to 
conciliate  them  by  giving  them  titles  and  several  districts  in  jaglr,  and 
they  ceased  from  plundering  for  a  time ;  but  hereditary  inclinations 
were  too  strong  and  opportunities  too  tempting,  and  they  soon  resumed 
their  former  avocations.  In  17 18  the  Jaipur  chief,  Sawai  Jai  Singh, 
was  sent  with  a  strong  force  to  expel  Churaman  from  the  country,  and 
Thun  and  Sinsini  were  invested.  The  Jats,  after  a  gallant  defence, 
were  about  to  capitulate,  when  the  Saiyid  brothers,  who  then  controlled 
the  government,  and  were  at  the  head  of  a  faction  opposed  to  the 
Jaipur  chief,  made  peace  direct  with  the  Jat  envoy  in  Delhi,  and  Jai 
Singh  retired  in  disgust.  Two  years  later  Churaman  supported  the 
Saiyids  against  Muhammad  Shah,  but  soon  after  he  quarrelled  with  his 
son,  and  in  1722  'took  poison  by  swallowing  a  diamond.'  The  Cincin- 
natus  of  the  Jats,  as  Tod  calls  him,  was  succeeded  by  his  son,  Mohkam 
Singh,  who  ruled  for  a  very  short  time.  His  first  step  was  to  imprison 
his  cousin,  Badan  Singh,  whom  he  feared  as  a  rival,  but  the  Jats  insisted 
on  his  release.  Badan  Singh  invited  Maharaja  Sawai  Jai  Singh  of 
Jaipur  to  attack  Thun,  and  the  place  was  captured  after  a  six  months' 
siege,  Mohkam  Singh  escaping  with  his  life.  Badan  Singh  was  there- 
upon proclaimed  Raja  of  Dig,  on  condition  of  paying  tribute  to  Delhi, 
and  this  year  (1722)  marks  the  recognition  of  Bharatpur  as  a  separate 
State. 

Badan  Singh  lived  till  about  1755,  but  soon  after  his  accession  left 
the  administration  to  his  capable  and  successful  son,  Suraj  Mai,  who 


76  BHARATPUR  STATE 

raised  the  Jat  power  to  its  zenith.  In  1733  ne  captured  the  old  fort  of 
Bharatpur  from  Khem  Karan,  the  rival  Jat  chief,  whom  he  killed,  and 
laid  the  foundations  of  the  present  capital.  In  1753  he  sacked  Delhi, 
and  in  the  following  year  successfully  repelled  the  combined  attack  of 
the  imperial  forces  aided  by  Holkar  and  Jaipur,  and  later  on  signally 
defeated  Holkar  at  Kumher.  His  crowning  achievement  was  the 
capture  in  1761  of  Agra  (which  the  Jats  held  till  1774),  together  with 
the  sovereignty  of  Agra  and  Muttra  Districts,  most  of  the  territory  now 
called  Alwar,  and  parts  of  Gurgaon  and  Rohtak.  Siiraj  Mai  met  his 
death  in  1763  at  the  hands  of  a  squadron  of  Mughal  horse  while 
making  a  foolhardy  attempt  to  hunt  in  the  imperial  domains,  and  was 
succeeded  by  his  eldest  son,  Jawahir  Singh.  The  latter  possessed  the 
valour  without  the  capacity  of  his  father,  but,  nevertheless,  during  his 
short  rule,  extended  the  Jat  possessions  to  their  utmost  limit.  He  lived 
chiefly  in  the  Agra  palace,  where  it  was  his  whim  to  sit  on  the  black 
marble  throne  of  Jahanglr ;  and  it  was  here  that  he  was  murdered  in 
June,  1768. 

From  the  death  of  Jawahir  Singh  the  power  of  the  Jats  began  to 
decay  and  their  dominions  to  contract.  The  process  was  hastened  by 
family  dissensions,  the  increasing  influence  of  the  Marathas,  and  the 
rise  of  a  powerful  rival  in  the  chief  of  the  new-born  Rajput  State  of 
Alwar,  to  whom  the  Alwar  fort  was  surrendered  by  the  Bharatpur  forces 
in  1775,  and  who  by  the  end  of  the  century  succeeded  in  expelling  the 
Jats  from  all  the  northern  parganas  of  Alwar.  Jawahir  Singh's  imme- 
diate successor,  Ratan  Singh,  ruled  for  only  nine  months,  and  was 
followed  by  his  son,  Kesri  Singh,  a  minor.  Nawal  Singh  was  appointed 
regent,  but  his  brother,  Ranjlt  Singh,  intrigued  against  him,  and 
a  period  of  great  confusion  ensued.  In  1771  the  Marathas,  taking 
advantage  of  the  discord,  expelled  the  Jats  from  all  their  conquests  east 
of  the  Jumna ;  while  Najaf  Khan,  who  espoused  the  cause  of  Ranjlt, 
recovered  Agra  in  1774,  and  by  defeating  Nawal  Singh  at  Barsana,  and 
capturing  Dig  in  1776,  broke  the  power  of  the  Jats,  and  reannexed  all 
their  territory  except  the  Bharatpur  pargana,  which  was  left  to  Kesri 
Singh.  The  death  of  Nawal  Singh  at  Dig  was  shortly  followed  by  that 
of  Kesri  Singh,  and  Ranjlt  Singh  succeeded  in  1776.  The  fortunes  of 
the  Jats,  now  at  their  lowest  ebb,  were  partially  restored  through  the 
intercession  of  the  Rani  Kishori,  widow  of  the  great  Suraj  Mai,  who, 
by  her  personal  appeal  to  Najaf  Khan,  obtained  the  restoration  of  ten 
districts.  These  were,  however,  resumed  on  Najaf  Khan's  death  in 
1782  by  his  successor,  Mirza  Shafi,  but  the  latter  was  murdered  at  Dig 
in  the  following  year,  and  Ranjlt  Singh  recovered  possession.  In  1784 
Sindhia,  acting  nominally  on  behalf  of  Shah  Alam  II,  again  confiscated 
the  Bharatpur  territories ;  but,  once  more  on  the  petition  of  the  aged 
Rani,  they  were  restored  (in  1785)  with  the  addition  of  Dig.     Thence- 


HISTORY  77 

forward  Ranjlt  Singh  attached  himself  faithfully  to  the  cause  of  Sindhia, 
and  was  rewarded  in  1795  with  the  grant  of  three  more  districts. 
These  fourteen  parganas  now  form  the  State  of  Bharatpur,  but  they 
have  been  rearranged  into  ten  tahsih. 

The  early  years  of  the  nineteenth  century  were  marked  by  the 
struggles  of  the  Marathas  and  British  for  the  supremacy  of  India.  In 
September,  1803,  the  vakils  of  Ranjlt  Singh  met  Lord  Lake  with 
friendly  overtures  at  Ballabgarh,  with  the  result  that  an  offensive  and 
defensive  alliance  was  concluded  on  the  29th  of  that  month.  A  con- 
tingent of  Bharatpur  troops  assisted  in  the  capture  of  Agra,  and  took 
part  in  the  battle  of  Laswari  (in  Alwar) ;  and  for  these  services  Ranjlt 
Singh  was  rewarded  by  the  grant  of  five  additional  districts.  In  1804 
war  broke  out  between  the  British  and  Jaswant  Rao  Holkar,  to  whom 
Ranjlt  Singh,  in  defiance  of  his  engagements,  and  unfortunately  for 
himself  and  his  State,  allied  himself.  In  November,  1804,  the  routed 
troops  of  Holkar  were  pursued  to  the  fort  of  Dig,  and  the  British  army 
had  advanced  on  to  the  glacis  when  a  destructive  fire  of  cannon  and 
musketry  was  opened  on  it  by  the  garrison,  which  consisted  entirely  of 
the  troops  of  Bharatpur.  The  place  was  accordingly  besieged,  and 
carried  by  storm  on  December  23,  1804,  when  the  Marathas  and  Tats 
fell  back  on  Bharatpur.  Then  followed  the  memorable  siege  of  Bharat- 
pur (January  3  to  February  22,  1805).  Lord  Lake's  force  consisted  of 
800  European  and  1,600  native  cavalry ;  1,000  effective  European 
infantry  and  4,400  sepoys ;  65  pieces  of  field  artillery,  and  a  siege-train 
of  six  18-pounders  and  8  mortars.  The  engineer  department  included 
only  three  officers  and  three  companies  of  pioneers.  Thus  5,400 
infantry  had  to  carry  on  the  duties  of  the  trenches  against  a  garrison 
which,  in  point  of  numbers,  was  at  least  ten,  if  not  twenty,  times 
superior  to  themselves.  The  whole  force  of  Ranjlt  Singh  (8,000  men) 
and  as  many  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  surrounding  country  as  were 
considered  fit  to  engage  in  the  defence  were  thrown  into  the  place, 
while  the  broken  battalions  of  Holkar's  infantry  had  entrenched  them- 
selves under  its  walls.  The  British  army  took  up  a  position  south-west 
of  the  town,  and  the  batteries  were  opened  on  January  7.  Four  assaults 
were  delivered,  the  first  on  January  9,  the  second  on  January  21,  the 
third  on  February  20,  and  the  fourth  on  February  21;  and  all  failed, 
the  British  losing  3,203  men  in  killed  and  wounded.  The  besieging 
guns  had,  from  incessant  firing,  become  for  the  most  part  unservice- 
able ;  the  whole  of  the  artillery  stores  were  expended  ;  supplies  were 
exhausted ;  the  sick  and  wounded  were  numerous ;  and  it  became 
necessary  to  raise  the  siege  temporarily.  By  April  Lord  Lake  was 
prepared  for  a  renewal  of  operations,  when  Ranjlt  Singh  sued  for  peace, 
and  a  treaty  was  concluded  on  April  17,  1805.  Under  it,  the  five 
districts  granted  to  him  in  1803  were  resumed,  and  he  was  made  to  pay 


78  BHARATPUR  STATE 

an  indemnity  of  20  lakhs  (7  lakhs  of  which  were  subsequently  remitted), 
but  was  confirmed  in  the  possession  of  the  rest  of  his  territory. 

Ranjlt  Singh  died  in  1805,  and  his  successors  were  his  sons  Randhlr 
Singh  (1805-23)  and  Baldeo  Singh  (1823-5).     Tne  lattcr  left  a  minor 
son,  Balwant  Singh,  whose  succession  was  recognized  by  the  British 
Government,  but  who  was  opposed  and  cast  into  prison  by  his  cousin, 
Durjan  Sal.     The  Resident  at  Delhi  moved  out  a  force  for  the  support 
of  the  rightful  heir  ;  but  the  operations  were  stopped  by  Government, 
who  did  not  consider  that  their  recognition  of  the  heir  apparent  during 
the  life  of  his  father  imposed  any  obligation  to  maintain  him  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  wishes  of  the  chiefs  and  people.    While  Durjan  Sal  professed 
to  leave  the  decision  of  his  claims  to  the  British  Government,  he  made 
preparations  to  maintain  them  by  force,  and  was  secretly  supported  by 
the  neighbouring  Rajput  and  Maratha  States.     The  excitement  threat- 
ened to  end  in  a  protracted  war;  and  accordingly,  with  a  view  to  the 
preservation  of  the  public  peace,  it  was  ultimately  decided  to  oppose 
the  usurper  and  place  Balwant  Singh  in  power.     Lord  Combermere, 
the  Commander-in-Chief,  invested  the  capital  in  December,  1825,  with 
an  army  of  20,000  men,  well  provided  with  artillery.     Recourse  was 
had  to  mining,  and  the  place  was  stormed  and  taken,  after  a  desperate 
resistance,  on  January  18,  1826.     Durjan  Sal  was  made  prisoner,  and 
deported   to  Allahabad.     The   ordnance   captured   amounted    to  133 
serviceable  and  two  broken  and  dismounted  pieces,  the  prize  money 
(£481,100)  was  distributed  among  the  victorious  army,  and  the  charges 
of  the  war  (25A  lakhs)  were  made  payable  by  the  Bharatpur  State. 
Balwant    Singh  was  installed  as   Maharaja  under  the  regency  of  his 
mother  and  the  superintendence  of  a  Political  Agent ;  but  in  September, 
1826,  the  Rani,  who  had  shown  a  disposition  to  intrigue,  was  removed, 
and  a  council  of  regency  was  formed. 

Balwant  Singh  was  put  in  charge  of  the  administration  in  1835  and 
died  in  1853,  leaving  an  infant  son,  Jaswant  Singh.  The  Agency 
(abolished  in  1835)  was  re-established  and  a  council  formed.  In  1862 
the  chief  received  the  usual  sanad  guaranteeing  to  him  the  right  of 
adoption,  and  in  March,  1871,  he  obtained  full  powers.  Maharaja 
Jaswant  Singh,  who  was  created  a  G.C.S.I.  in  1877,  and  whose  per- 
sonal salute  was  raised  in  1890  from  17  to  19  guns,  died  in  1893.  The 
principal  events  of  his  time  were  the  opening  of  the  railway  in  1873-4  ; 
the  famine  of  1877  ;  the  agreement  of  1879  for  the  suppression  of  the 
manufacture  of  salt;  the  abolition  in  1884  of  all  transit  duties  save 
those  on  liquor,  opium,  and  other  intoxicating  drugs  ;  and  the  raising  in 
1889-90  of  an  infantry  and  a  cavalry  regiment,  the  latter  since  replaced 
by  a  transport  corps,  for  the  defence  of  the  empire.  Jaswant  Singh  was 
succeeded  by  his  eldest  son,  Ram  Singh,  who  was  installed  in  1893,  but, 
in  consequence  of  his  intemperate  habits,  was  deprived  of  all  powers  in 


POPULATION 


79 


1895.  The  administration  was  conducted,  first  by  a  Dlwan  and  con- 
sultative council,  and  next  by  a  council  only,  under  the  general  control 
of  the  Political  Agent.  In  June,  1900,  Ram  Singh  in  a  fit  of  passion 
killed  one  of  his  private  servants  at  Abu,  and  for  this  wanton  murder  he 
was  deposed.  His  son,  Kishan  Singh,  the  present  Maharaja,  was  born 
in  1899. 

The  principal  places  of  archaeological  interest  are  Bayana,  Kaman, 
and  Rupbas.  There  are  also  some  fine  specimens  of  Jat  architecture 
of  the  eighteenth  century  at  Dig. 

The  number  of  towns  and  villages  in  the  State  is  1,302,  and  the 
population  at  each  of  the  three  enumerations  was:  (1881)  645,540, 
(1891)  640,303,  and  (1901)  626,665.  These  figures 
show  a  decline  of  nearly  3  per  cent,  since  i88r,  which 
was  due  almost  entirely  to  maladministration  in  the  time  of  Jaswant 
Singh.  There  is  some  reason  for  suspecting  that  the  figures  for  1891 
were  intentionally  exaggerated  in  order  to  conceal  the  decrease  in 
population.  The  State  is  divided  into  the  two  districts  or  nizamats 
of  Bharatpur  and  Dig,  each  containing  five  tahslls :  namely,  Bayana, 
Bharatpur,  Nadbai,  Rupbas,  and  Wer  in  the  former  ;  and  Dig,  Kaman, 
Kumher,  Nagar,  and  Pahari  in  the  latter. 

The  following  table  gives  the  chief  statistics  of  population  in  1901  :  — 


Population. 


Ni=amat. 

Number  of 

Population. 

Percentage  of 

variation  in 

population 

between 

1891  and  1 901. 

Number  of 

persons  able 

to  read  and 

write. 

c 

0 

H 

V 

be 
> 

Bharatpur 

Dig.         .        .        . 

State  total 

4 
3 

692 
603 

366,532 
260,133 

626,665 

Not  available. 
Not  available. 

",497 
6,265 

7 

J,295 

—  2-1 

17,762 

There  are  seven  towns,  the  principal  being  Bharatpur  City,  Dig, 
and  Kaman.  At  the  Census  of  1901,  Hindus  numbered  510,508,  or 
more  than  81  per  cent.,  and  Musalmans  112,621,  or  nearly  18  per  cent. 
The  languages  mainly  spoken  are  Braj  Bhasha,  one  of  the  principal 
dialects  of  Western  Hindi,  and  MewatT,  one  of  the  four  main  groups  of 
Rajastha.nl. 

The  most  numerous  caste  is  that  of  the  Chamars.  They  number 
101,000,  or  about  16  per  cent,  of  the  total,  and  are  workers  in  leather, 
cultivators,  and  field-labourers.  Next  come  the  Jats  (93,000,  or  nearly 
15  per  cent.).  There  are  several  clans,  the  chief  being  that  known  as 
Sinsinwar.  The  Jats  possess  fine  physique,  a  sturdy  independence  of 
character,  and  are  for  the  most  part  agriculturists.  The  Brahmans  num- 
ber 65,000,  or  about   10  per  cent,  of  the  population.     Some  perform 


80  BHARATPUR  STATE 

priestly  duties,  others  are  in  service  (military,  civil,  or  private),  and 
a  good  many  earn  their  livelihood  by  cultivation.  There  are  several 
classes,  but  the  Gaurs  are  said  to  predominate.  The  Meos  (51,500,  or 
about  8  per  cent.)  are  found  in  every  tahsll  except  Bayana  and  Riipbas, 
but  are  most  numerous  in  Kaman,  Nagar,  and  Pahari.  A  full  account 
of  them  will  be  found  in  the  article  on  Mewat.  They  were  formerly 
notorious  for  their  predatory  habits,  but  have  now  settled  down  to  agri- 
culture, in  which  they  receive  great  assistance  from  their  women,  and 
run  the  Jats  close  for  industry.  The  Giijars  number  44,900,  or  about 
7  per  cent.  They  are  mostly  agriculturists,  but  some  are  cattle-dealers 
and  breeders,  and  a  few  are  in  the  service  of  the  State.  The  Gujars 
may  be  divided  into  two  main  classes,  Khari  and  Laur  ;  the  latter  is 
socially  far  superior  to  the  former,  and  has  the  privilege  of  furnishing 
nurses  for  the  ruling  family.  The  main  occupation  of  the  people  is 
agriculture,  more  than  58  per  cent,  living  by  the  land,  and  another 
2  per  cent,  being  partially  agriculturists.  Over  1 5  per  cent,  are  engaged 
in  such  industries  as  cotton-weaving  and  spinning,  leather-work,  pottery, 
carpentry,  &c. 

Out  of  62  native  Christians  in  1901,  32  were  Roman  Catholics  (all 
in  the  Dig  district),  14  Methodists,  and  14  belonged  to  the  Church  of 
England.  The  Church  Missionary  Society  established  a  branch  at  the 
capital  in  1902,  while  the  American  Methodist  Mission  at  Agra  has 
sent  native  Christian  workers  to  two  or  three  places  in  the  State 
since  1901. 

The  soils  are  locally  divided,  with  reference  to  irrigation,  into  chahi, 

watered  from  wells  ;  sairaba,  watered  from  canals  or  bands,  or  benefited 

by  drainage  from  hill-sides ;  and  bardni,  dependent 

gncu  ure.       on  rajnfayi  .  an(j  ^.j^  regard  to  quality,  into  chiknot,  a 

stiffish  clay  or  clayey  loam — black  in  colour— the  richest  natural  soil, 
and  rarely  manured ;  mattiyar,  the  ordinary  loam,  which  has  a  mixture 
of  sand,  and  is  lighter  in  colour  and  more  easily  worked  than  chiknot — 
it  is  the  common  soil  of  the  level  plains  and  is  much  improved  by 
manure ;  and  bhur,  the  inferior  sandy  soil  found  at  the  foot  of  hills,  on 
high  uplands,  and  along  the  banks  of  streams,  which  is  most  common 
in  Wer  and  Bayana  in  the  south,  and  is  suited  only  for  the  lighter  crops, 
but  its  area  is  not  considerable,  being  only  about  60  square  miles.  The 
soil  of  Bharatpur,  taken  as  a  whole,  is  probably  superior  to  that  of 
almost  any  other  State  in  Rajputana ;  the  territory  has  further  the 
advantages  of  a  good  rainfall,  and  of  having  more  than  two-fifths  of  its 
area  protected  by  wells  or  benefited  by  the  annual  inundations. 

The  area  of  the  State  is  1,982  square  miles,  of  which  about  384 
square  miles,  or  nearly  one-fifth,  are  uncultivable,  consisting  chiefly  of 
forests,  hills,  grass  preserves,  rivers,  roads,  and  the  sites  of  towns  and 
villages.    The  area  available  for  cultivation  is  consequently  1,598  square 


AGRICULTURE  81 

miles;  and  the  net  area  cropped  in  1903-4  was  1,278  square  miles,  or 
more  than  64  per  cent,  of  the  total  area  of  the  State,  and  80  per  cent, 
of  the  area  available  for  cultivation.  Turning  to  individual  crops,  bajra 
occupied  314  square  miles,  or  24  percent,  of  the  net  area  cropped; 
jowar,  247  square  miles,  or  19  per  cent.;  gram,  over  15  per  cent.; 
barley  over  8,  wheat  about  6,  and  cotton  5  per  cent. 

The  local  cattle  are  small  and  hardy,  but  of  inferior  breed  ;  the  best 
plough-oxen  are  usually  imported  from  Alwar  and  the  Punjab.  To 
encourage  horse  and  mule-breeding,  stallions  are  maintained  at  several 
places.  Sheep  and  goats  of  the  ordinary  variety  are  kept  in  large  num- 
bers. Fairs  are  held  yearly  at  Bharatpur  city  and  Dig,  usually  in 
September  or  October. 

Of  the  net  area  cropped,  294  square  miles  (or  23  per  cent.)  are  irri- 
gated, chiefly  from  wells.  There  are  said  to  be  more  than  22,000  wells 
in  the  State,  of  which  nearly  14,000  are  masonry  and  the  rest  unbricked. 
A  masonry  well  costs  from  Rs.  300  to  Rs.  1,200,  according  to  depth 
and  nature  of  subsoil,  and  irrigates  about  6  acres,  while  an  unbricked 
well  costs  from  Rs.  30  to  Rs.  roo,  may  last  for  from  two  to  twenty 
years,  and  irrigates  about  3  acres.  Leathern  buckets  drawn  up  with  a 
rope  and  pulley  by  bullocks  moving  down  an  inclined  plane  are  used 
for  lifting  the  water,  save  in  shallow  wells,  where  a  contrivance  called 
dhenkli,  consisting  of  a  wooden  pole  with  an  earthen  pot  at  one  end 
and  a  weight  at  the  other,  is  more  popular.  There  are  164  irrigation 
works  (bands  and  canals)  maintained  by  the  Public  Works  department, 
of  which  the  following  are  the  most  important.  The  Bareta  band  across 
the  Kakand  river  was  commenced  in  1866  but  abandoned  in  1869, 
after  Rs.  70,000  had  been  spent,  and  the  dam  carried  half-way  across. 
Work  was  resumed  in  1895  and  the  dam  was  completed  in  1897.  This 
is  the  only  large  storage  reservoir  in  the  State ;  the  sheet  of  water  is 
about  4  square  miles  in  area,  with  a  capacity  below  escape-level  of 
1,500  million  cubic  feet.  There  are  three  distributary  channels,  and  the 
area  annually  irrigated  is  about  5,000  acres.  The  total  expenditure 
since  1895  has  been  nearly  3  lakhs.  Another  old  irrigation  work  is  the 
Ajan  band,  which  holds  up  the  greater  part  of  the  inundations  of  the 
Banganga  and  Gambhlr  rivers  and  distributes  them.  It  was  originally 
constructed  about  100  years  ago  by  Maharaja  Ranjlt  Singh,  but  subse- 
quently fell  into  disrepair.  It  has  been  steadily  improved  since  1895  at 
a  cost  of  about  i-6  lakhs,  and  is  now  12  miles  long  with  23  sluices, 
and  supplies  water  to  77  villages,  the  protected  area  in  normal  years 
being  about  31,000  acres.  The  Sikri  band  across  the  Rtiparel  river  is 
also  an  old  work,  having  been  constructed  by  Maharaja  Balwant  Singh 
about  1840.  It  has  recently  been  extended  and  improved  at  a  cost  of 
about  1-7  lakhs,  and  is  now  14  miles  in  length  with  a  number  of  dis- 
tributary channels.   The  maximum  area  protected  is  about  28,000  acres. 

VOL.  VIII.  G 


82  BHARATPUR  STATE 

Numerous  other  irrigation  works,  large  and  small,  have  been  con- 
structed or  restored  since  1895  at  a  total  cost  of  about  8-5  lakhs. 

There  are  no  real  forests,  but  about  38  square  miles  are  occupied  by 
fuel  and  fodder  reserves  (locally  called  ghannas  and  rundhs),  and  the 
following  trees  are  common  :  babul  {Acacia  arabica),  fards  (Tamarix 
orientalis),  kandl  (Trosopis  spic/gera),  karel  (Capparis  aphylld),  nlm 
(Melia  Azadirachta),  Ike.  Grass  and  wood  are  supplied  for  State 
animals  ;  and,  after  the  first  crop  of  grass  has  been  cut,  the  village 
cattle  are  allowed  to  graze  on  payment  of  a  small  fee. 

The  State  is  poor  in  mineral  products.  Copper  and  iron  are  found 
in  the  hills  in  the  south,  but  the  mines  have  not  been  worked  for  many 
years.  The  famous  sandstone  quarries  at  Bansi  Paharpur  furnished 
materials  for  the  most  celebrated  monuments  of  the  Mughal  dynasty 
at  Agra,  Delhi,  and  Fatehpur  Sikri,  as  well  as  for  the  beautiful  palaces 
at  Dig.  The  stone  is  of  two  varieties  :  namely,  dark  red,  generally 
speckled  with  yellowish  white  spots  or  patches  ;  and  a  yellowish  white, 
homogeneous  in  colour  and  texture,  and  very  fine-grained.  The  red 
variety  is  inferior  for  architectural  purposes  to  the  white,  but  is 
remarkable  for  perfect  parallel  lamination  ;  and,  as  it  readily  splits  into 
suitable  flags,  it  is  much  used  for  roofs  and  floors.  The  annual  out-turn 
is  about  14,000  tons,  of  which  about  two-thirds  is  sold  to  the  public 
en  payment  of  royalty,  and  the  balance  is  utilized  for  State  works. 
These  quarries  give  employment  to  some  450  labourers,  who  are  mostly 
Ujhas  (or  carpenters)  residing  in  the  neighbourhood,  and  whose 
monthly  earnings  average  Rs.  6  to  Rs.  10  per  head. 

The  manufactures  consist  of  coarse  cotton  cloth  woven  in  all  parts  of 

the  State,  iron  household  utensils  made  at  Dig,  glass  and  lac  bangles  in 

various  places,  and  pipe-bowls  and  clay  pipes  (gaddas) 

communications.  at  NaSar'  and  the  caPital  respectively.  The  most 
interesting  manufactures  are  the  chauris  (or  fly-whisks) 
and  the  fans  made  at  Bharatpur  city  of  ivory  or  sandal-wood. 

The  chief  exports  are  cereals,  oilseeds,  cotton,  ghi,  sandstone,  and 
cattle  to  Agra,  Muttra,  and  Hathras,  and  to  some  extent  to  adjacent 
villages  of  Alwar,  Dholpur,  Jaipur,  and  Karauli.  The  main  imports 
include  rice,  sugar,  and  molasses  from  Bareilly,  Pilibhit,  and  Shahjahan- 
pur ;  salt  from  Sambhar ;  English  piece-goods  from  Delhi  ;  metals 
from  Hathras  ;  and  country  cloth  from  some  of  the  villages  of  Agra. 

The  Rajputana-Mahva  Railway  runs  for  about  t>2>  miles  through  the 
centre  of  the  State,  from  east  to  west,  with  four  stations  on  this  length. 
The  Cawnpore-Achhnera  branch  of  the  same  railway  passes  through 
an  outlying  portion  of  the  State  in  Muttra  District,  with  a  station  at 
the  village  of  Bhainsa. 

The  total  length  of  metalled  roads  is  165  miles,  and  of  unmetalled 
roads  323  miles.     All  are  maintained  by  the  State,  at  an  annual  cost  of 


ADMINISTRATION  8 


.-> 


about  Rs.  97,000,  and  all  were  constructed  by  the  State,  except  the 
Agra-Ahmadabad  road  (45  miles  within  Bharatpur  limits),  which  was 
constructed  by  the  British  Government  between  1865  and  1867. 

Imperial  postal  unity  was  accepted  by  the  Darbar  in  1896,  and  there 
are  now  twenty  post  offices  in  the  State,  four  of  these  being  also 
telegraph  offices. 

Bharatpur  enjoys  a  good  and  fairly  regular  rainfall,  which  renders  it 
more  secure  against  famine  and  scarcity  than  most  parts  of  Rajputana. 
In  1877  there  was  very  little  rain  between  June  and  ., 

September,  and  the  kharif  crops  in  some  parts  failed 
altogether,  and  in  others  were  about  one-fifth  of  the  average.  Numbers 
are  said  to  have  died  from  starvation,  and  about  100,000  people 
emigrated.  There  was  great  delay  in  starting  poorhouses  and  relief 
works,  and  the  advances  to  agriculturists  (about  Rs.  80,000  in  cash  and 
90  tons  of  grain)  were  quite  inadequate  to  the  necessities  of  the  case. 
In  1895-6  and  1896-7  there  was  severe  drought  and  scarcity,  almost 
amounting  to  famine,  in  the  southern  tahslls.  Both  crops  failed  largely, 
and  many  cattle  died.  Relief  works  were  started  in  November,  1896, 
which  gave  employment  to  3,400  units  daily  till  August,  1897,  the 
expenditure  being  about  Rs.  1,40,000.  Very  little  was  done  in  the  way 
of  suspensions  of  land  revenue,  and  pressure  led  to  wholesale  desertions. 
In  1 899-1 900  the  State  enjoyed  comparative  immunity,  but  there  was 
a  certain  amount  of  distress,  as  the  rainfall  (19  inches)  was  badly 
distributed.  Relief  works  and  poorhouses  were  started,  advances  were 
given  to  agriculturists,  and  suspensions  and  remissions  of  land  revenue 
sanctioned.  The  cattle  suffered  from  want  of  fodder,  which,  in  spite  of 
the  prohibition  of  its  export,  was  exhausted  by  May,  1900,  and  nearly 
203,000  head  are  said  to  have  died.  More  than  2,000,000  units 
were  relieved  on  works,  and  over  83,000  gratuitously,  and  the  direct 
expenditure  was  2-8  lakhs. 

The  Maharaja  being   a  minor,  the  administration  is  carried  on  by 

a  council  of  four  members  under  the  supervision  and  general  control 

of  the  Political  Agent,  all  important  matters  being    .  ,    ...    x. 

,     r»  ^  f,    «  •     ^    •  Administration, 

referred  to  the  Governor-General  s  Agent  in  Rajputana. 

Each  member  of  council  is  in  immediate  charge  of  a  number  of  depart- 
ments, and,  subject  to  certain  rules,  disposes  of  all  the  work  connected 
therewith.  Each  of  the  two  districts  into  which  the  State  is  divided  is 
for  judicial  purposes  under  a  nazim,  and  for  revenue  purposes  under 
a  Deputy-Collector,  while  in  each  of  the  tahslls  is  a  tahsildar,  assisted 
by  a  naib-tahsildar. 

In  the  administration  of  justice,  British  procedure  and  laws  are 
followed  generally.  The  lowest  courts  are  those  of  the  naib-tahslldars, 
who  are  third-class  magistrates  and  can  try  civil  suits  not  exceeding 
Rs.  50  in  value.     The  tahsildars  have  second-class  powers  as  magistrates, 

G  2 


84  BIT  A  RAT  PUR  STATE 

and  decide  civil  suits  for  sums  not  exceeding  Rs.  200.  Appeals  against 
the  decisions  of  these  courts  lie  to  the  tidzim  of  the  district,  who  has 
the  ordinary  powers  of  a  District  Magistrate  and  can  try  civil  suits 
without  limit.  Over  the  nazims  is  the  Civil  and  Sessions  Judge.  On 
the  civil  side,  his  work  is  appellate  only,  while  on  the  criminal  side  he 
tries  original  Sessions  cases,  and  can  sentence  up  to  ten  years'  imprison- 
ment and  fine  to  any  extent.  The  highest  court  is  the  council,  which, 
besides  hearing  first  appeals  from  the  Civil  and  Sessions  Judge,  and 
second  appeals  from  the  nazims,  gives  judgement  in  murder  cases, 
though  a  sentence  of  death  requires  the  confirmation  of  the  Governor- 
General's  Agent.  Revenue  suits  are  heard  by  the  tahsilddrs  and  the 
Deputy-Collectors,  subject  to  the  supervision  of  the  council. 

The  normal  revenue  of  the  State  is  about  31  lakhs,  and  the  ordinary 
expenditure  about  28  lakhs.  The  chief  sources  of  revenue  are  :  land 
(including  cesses),  21-7  lakhs  ;  customs,  3-3  lakhs;  payment  under  the 
Salt  agreement  of  1879,  1-5  lakhs  ;  and  stamps,  about  Rs.  34,000.  The 
main  items  of  expenditure  are  :  public  works,  6-5  lakhs ;  army, 
5-7  lakhs  ;  cost  of  council,  courts,  and  revenue  staff,  3-3  lakhs  ;  stables, 
elephants,  &c,  2-2  lakhs  ;  allowances  to  ex-Maharaja,  Sardars,  &c, 
i-i  lakhs;  and  police,  charities,  and  pensions,  about  a  lakh  each. 
These  figures  do  not  include  the  income  and  expenditure  (approximately 
2-1  lakhs)  of  the  Deorhi  tahsil,  from  which  the  expenses  of  the  palace 
are  defrayed.  The  financial  position  of  the  .State  is  very  satisfactory  ; 
the  assets  in  1905,  including  a  cash  balance  of  8-9  lakhs  and  a  sum  of 
25  lakhs  in  Government  securities,  amounted  to  about  38  lakhs,  and 
there  were  no  liabilities. 

British  currency  is  the  sole  legal  tender  in  the  State.  Formerly  two 
mints  were  at  work,  namely,  at  Dig  and  the  capital,  but  the  former  is 
said  to  have  been  closed  in  1878  and  the  latter  in  1883.  The  old  local 
rupee,  called  /id/i,  used  to  be  much  the  same  in  value  as  the  British, 
but  now  exchanges  for  about  ten  British  annas. 

The  land  tenures  may  be  divided  into  k/id/sa,  mudji,  and  istimrari ; 
and  the  areas  under  these  tenures  are  respectively  87-6,  n-8,  and 
o-6  per  cent,  of  the  total  area  of  the  State.  In  the  khalsa  villages  the 
superior  and  final  right  of  ownership  is  vested  in  the  State,  but  the 
zamhiddrs  also  hold  a  subordinate  proprietary  right  as  long  as  they 
pay  the  demand.  This  right  is  heritable  by  their  heirs,  but  cannot  be 
alienated  without  the  consent  of  the  Darbar,  and,  even  with  that  consent, 
cannot  be  alienated  to  non-agriculturists.  The  mudji  tenure  is  of  several 
kinds.  Land  may  be  given  rent-free  in  charity  (pandrth),  or  for  religious 
purposes  to  temples,  Brahmans,  purokits,  &rc.  Other  land  is  held  in 
indm,  or  on  the  chauth  tenure.  Formerly  these  were  identical.  Estates 
were  granted  rent-free  by  the  earlier  rulers  to  their  brethren  in  arms,  as 
a  reward  for  past,  or  a  guarantee  for  future,  military  services ;  and  these 


ADMINISTRATION  85 

services  were  defined  in  each  case  as  so  many  guns,  i.e.  so  many 
matchlock-men.  After  Najaf  Khan  had  seized  Dig  and  Kumher  in 
1776,  some  of  these  inamis  admitted  the  Mughal  supremacy  and  were 
made  to  pay  chauth  or  one-fourth  of  the  revenue  ;  and  when  these 
districts  were  restored  to  Bharatpur,  this  payment  was  continued.  This 
is  said  to  be  the  origin  of  the  chauth  tenure  generally  ;  but  another 
form  of  it  is  in  force  in  a  few  villages,  under  which  one-fourth  of  the 
assessment  is  remitted,  and  three-fourths  are  taken  by  the  State,  military 
service  being  still  rendered.  Lastly,  the  Thakurs,  Sardars,  and  relatives 
of  the  chief  neither  pay  revenue  nor  perform  service.  There  are  only 
four  istimrari  villages,  which  are  held  on  a  fixed  and  permanent 
quit-rent. 

In  the  khdha  area,  prior  to  1855,  the  State  in  theory  took  one-third 
of  the  produce,  a  relic  of  Akbar's  land  revenue  system,  which  was  levied 
either  by  actual  division  of  the  crop  {batai),  or  more  frequently  by 
appraisement  of  the  yield  of  the  standing  crop  (kankut),  which  was 
converted  into  a  cash  demand  at  current  rates.  A  further  development 
led  to  the  contract  system,  by  which  the  zambidar  or  the  middleman 
(thekadar)  contracted  to  pay  a  fixed  sum  for  a  year  or  term  of  years. 
In  practice,  however,  the  State  took  all  it  could  exact  from  the 
people,  and  much  of  the  residue  was  swallowed  up  by  rapacious  and 
corrupt  officials.  The  first  summary  settlement,  for  three  years,  was 
made  in  1855,  and  the  demand,  based  on  the  average  collections  of  the 
previous  ten  years,  was  14-2  lakhs.  This  was  followed  by  a  series  of 
summary  settlements,  till  in  1900  the  first  regular  settlement  was  com- 
pleted for  a  term  of  twenty  years.  The  initial  demand  then  fixed  was 
20-6  lakhs,  and  the  final  demand,  owing  to  progressive  assessment,  rose 
to  2i«4  lakhs  in  1905-6.  This  settlement  followed  the  Punjab  lines, 
the  net  '  assets  ;  being  calculated  from  a  valuation  of  the  produce.  The 
assessment  of  '  wet '  land  varies  from  Rs.  2  to  Rs.  8-2-0  per  acre,  and 
of  '  dry '  land  from  Rs.  1-4-0  to  Rs.  2-8-0  ;  and  the  incidence  of  land 
revenue  per  head  of  the  rural  population  is  Rs.  4-6-0. 

The  State  maintains  an  Imperial  Service  infantry  regiment  of  652  of 
all  ranks,  excluding  followers,  and  a  transport  corps  consisting  of  350 
carts,  600  mules,  and  368  men  and  followers.  The  infantry  regiment 
was  raised  in  1889,  and  the  transport  corps  in  1899,  the  latter  taking 
the  place  of  a  cavalry  regiment.  The  local  irregular  force  numbers 
about  2,200  men,  of  whom  513  are  cavalry  and  132  are  gunners. 
There  are  82  guns,  of  which  40  are  said  to  be  serviceable.  The 
Imperial  Service  regiment  and  the  transport  corps  cost  usually  about 
3  lakhs,  and  the  rest  of  the  army  3!  lakhs  a  year ;  but  both  are  at 
present  under  sanctioned  strength. 

The  police  force  is  under  a  Superintendent,  and  numbers  760  of  all 
ranks,  of  whom   25  are   mounted.     There  are  also  more  than    1,000 


86  BHARATPUR  STATE 

chaukidars,  who  keep  watch  and  ward  in  their  villages ;  they  receive  no 
pay,  but  hold  land  at  favoured  rates,  or  get  certain  perquisites  from  the 
zaminddrs.  Till  quite  recently  two  jails  were  maintained  in  the  State  : 
namely,  a  Central  jail  near  the  capital  and  a  District  jail  at  Dig,  which 
together  had  accommodation  for  about  220  prisoners,  and  cost  about 
Rs.  25,000  a  year  ;  but  the  jail  at  Dig  has  lately  been  abolished. 

In  the  literacy  of  its  population  Bharatpur  stands  eleventh  among 
the  twenty  States  and  chiefships  of  Rajputana,  with  2-8  per  cent. 
(5-2  males  and  o-i  females)  able  to  read  and  write.  Excluding  elemen- 
tary indigenous  schools  {jnaktabs  and  pathsalas),  there  are  now 
99  educational  institutions  in  the  State,  of  which  96  are  maintained  by 
the  Darbar  and  the  remaining  3  by  the  Church  Missionary  Society. 
The  number  on  the  rolls  of  these  schools  in  1904-5  was  about  4,400, 
and  the  daily  average  attendance  about  3,100.  The  more  important 
institutions  are  the  high  school,  the  Sanskrit  school,  and  an  Anglo- 
vernacular  school  for  the  upper  classes  at  the  capital,  and  an  Anglo- 
vernacular  school  at  Dig.  Elsewhere  the  vernacular  alone  is  taught. 
There  are  4  girls'  schools,  attended  on  the  average  by  100  girls.  The 
State  expenditure  on  education,  including  stipends  and  scholarships, 
is  about  Rs.  48,000  yearly.  Eees  are  charged  in  some  cases,  and  in 
1904-5  yielded  about  Rs.  1,000. 

Including  the  Imperial  Service  and  jail  hospitals,  there  are  7  hospitals 
and  10  dispensaries,  with  accommodation  for  165  in-patients.  In  1904 
the  number  of  cases  treated  was  145,165  (1,950  being  in-patients),  and 
3,904  operations  were  performed.  The  total  expenditure  was  about 
Rs.  37,000. 

A  staff  of  1 5  vaccinators  under  a  native  superintendent  is  employed, 
which  in  1904-5  successfully  vaccinated  27,641  persons,  or  44  per  1,000 
of  the  population,  against  an  average  during  the  previous  five  years  of 
nearly  67  per  1,000. 

[C.  K.  M.  Walter,  Gazetteer  of  Bhurtpore  State  (Agra,  1868); 
Rajputana  Gazetteer,  vol.  i  (1879,  under  revision) ;  M.  F.  O'Dwyer, 
Settlement  Reports  (1 898-1 901)  ;  H.  E.  Drake-Brockman,  Gazetteer  of 
Eastern  Rajputana  States  (Ajmer,  1905);  Administration  Reports  of 
Bharatpur  (annually  from  1895-6).  For  an  account  of  the  first  siege 
of  Bharatpur,  see  J.  Grant  Duff,  History  of  the  Mahrattas  (1826)  ;  J.  N. 
Creighton,  Narrative  of  the  Siege  and  Capture  of  Bhurtpore  (1830)  ; 
and  C.  R.  Low,  Life  and  Correspondence  of  Sir  George  Pollock  (1873).] 

Bharatpur  City. — Capital  of  the  State  of  the  same  name,  in 
Rajputana,  situated  in  270  13'  N.  and  770  30'  E.,  on  the  Rajputana- 
Malwa  Railway,  34  miles  west  of  Agra,  875  north-west  of  Calcutta,  and 
815  miles  north-east  of  Bombay.  It  is  the  sixth  largest  city  in  Rajput- 
ana, having  a  population  in  1901  of  43,601,  compared  with  66,163  m 
1881  and  67,555  in  1891.     The  large  decrease  of  more  than  35  per  cent. 


BHARATPUR    VILLAGE  87 

is  said  to  be  due  partly  to  exaggerated  enumeration  in  1891,  and  partly 
to  the  fact  that,  in  the  year  last  mentioned,  several  suburbs  were  con- 
sidered as  part  of  the  city,  while  in  1901  they  were  treated  as  separate 
villages.     According  to  the  latest  Census,  Hindus  number  30,784,  or 
70  per  cent,  of  the  total;  Musalmans,  11,964,  or  over  27  per  cent.; 
and  Jains,  722.     The  city  and  fort  are  said  to  have  been  founded  about 
1733,  and  to  have  been  named  after  Bharat,  a  legendary  character  of 
great  fame  in  Hindu  mythology.     The  fort  of  Bharatpur  is  celebrated 
for  having  baffled  the  attacks  of  Lord  Lake  in  1805,  and  for  its  capture 
by  Lord  Combermere  on  January  18,  1826.     An  account  of  both  these 
sieges  will  be  found  in  the  article  on  the  Bharatpur  State.     The 
famous  mud  walls  still  stand,  though  a  good  deal  out  of  repair.     The 
only  important  manufactures  are  the  chauris  or  fly-whisks  made  of  ivory 
or  sandal-wood.     The  art  is  said  to  be  confined  to  a  few  families,  who 
keep  the  process  a  profound  secret.     The  tail  of  the  fly-whisks  is  com- 
posed of  long,  straight  fibres  of  either  of  the  materials  above  mentioned, 
which  in  good  specimens  are  almost  as    fine   as  ordinary    horse-hair. 
These  families  also  make  fans  of  the  same  fibres  beautifully  interwoven. 
A  municipal  board  of  thirteen  members  is  responsible  for  the  sanitation 
and  lighting  of  the  city,  the  State  providing  the  necessary  funds,  about 
Rs.  24,000  a  year.     The  Central  jail  is  at  Sewar,  about  3  miles  to  the 
south-west,  and,  though   much  improved  during   recent  years,   is  not 
altogether  satisfactory  as  a  prison,  and  is  often  overcrowded.     The  jail 
manufactures,    such   as    rugs,    carpets,   blankets,    matting,    &c,    yield 
a  yearly  profit  of  about  Rs.  1,500.     The  educational  institutions,  eight 
in  number  (omitting  indigenous  schools  such  as  maktabs  and  pdthsalas), 
are  attended  by  890  boys  and  90  girls.     Of  these,  five  are  maintained 
by  the  State  and  three  by  the  Church  Missionary  Society.     The  only 
school  of  any  note  is  the  Darbar  high  school,  which  teaches  up  to  the 
entrance  standard  of  the  Allahabad  University,  and  which,  since  1894, 
has  passed  twenty-two  students  for  that  examination.     Including  the 
two  Imperial  Service  regimental  hospitals  and  that  attached  to  the  jail, 
there  are  five  hospitals  and  a  dispensary  at  Bharatpur,  with  accommo- 
dation for  148  in-patients.     In  the  Victoria  Hospital,  one  wing  of  which 
is  solely  for  females,  the  Bharatpur  State  possesses  what  has  been  pro- 
nounced by  experts  to  be  the   best   equipped   and    most   thoroughly 
up-to-date  institution,  as  regards  medical  and  scientific  details,  in  India 
at  the  present  time. 

Bharatpur  Village. — Head-quarters  of  the  Chang  Bhakar  State, 
Central  Provinces,  situated  in  230  44'  N.  and  Si°  49"  E.,  2  miles  north- 
west of  Janakpur  on  the  Banas  river.  Population  (1901),  635.  On 
three  sides  the  village  is  surrounded  by  forest-clad  hills,  but  on 
the  north  the  country  slopes  down  to  the  valley  of  the  Banas.  The 
river  itself,  though  distant  only  a  mile,  is  concealed  from  view  by  an 


88  BHARATPUR    VILLAGE 

intervening  stretch  of  jungle.     The  village  contains  the  house  of  the 
Bhaiya,  as  the  chief  is  called. 

Bharauli. — Pargana   in   the    iuh-takM   of    Simla-£#«-Bharauli, 

Simla  1  )istrict,  Punjab. 

Bharejda. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhareli. — A  river  of  Assam,  which  rises  in  the  Himalayas  in  the 
territory  occupied  by  the  Aka  and  Dana  tribes,  and  enters  Darrang 
District  through  a  gorge  of  great  beauty.  After  debouching  on  the 
plains  it  flows  In  an  easterly  direction  round  a  range  of  low  hills,  and 
then  pursues  a  tortuous  course  with  a  generally  southern  direction  to  the 
Brahmaputra,  which  it  joins  about  8  miles  above  Tezpur,  after  a  total 
course  of  160  miles.  This,  however,  is  a  new  channel  ;  the  old  course 
ran  from  Bamgaon  to  a  point  about  one  mile  east  of  Tezpur.  The 
principal  tributaries  are :  on  the  right  hank,  the  upper  Sonai  and 
Mansiri ;  and  on  the  left  bank,  the  Diji,  Namiri,  upper  Khari,  Bar, 
and  Dikrai.  During  the  rains  the  Bhareli  often  overflows  its  banks, 
and  the  result  is  that  for  the  greater  part  of  its  course  through  the 
plains  it  flows  by  tree  forest  or  uncultivated  land.  There  are  no  places 
of  importance  on  its  banks,  and  this  fact,  coupled  with  the  swiftness  of 
the  current,  renders  it  of  little  use  as  a  trade  route.  A  ferry  on  the 
trunk  road  crosses  the  river,  which,  during  the  rains,  is  about  250 
yards  in  width  at  this  point. 

Bharhut. — Ancient  site  in  Nagod  State,  Central  India. 

Bharthana. — Central  tahsil  of  Etawah  District,  United  Provinces, 
conterminous  with  the  pargana  of  the  same  name,  lying  between 
260  30'  and  260  59/  N.  and  780  59/  and  790  21'  E.,  with  an  area  of 
416  square  miles.  Population  increased  from  169,979  m  ^91  to 
191,141  in  1 901.  There  are  300  villages  and  two  small  towns  :  Lakhna 
(population,  3,771)  and  Aherlpur  (3,144).  The  demand  for  land 
revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  3,07,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  51,000.  The 
density  of  population,  459  persons  per  square  mile,  is  slightly  below  the 
District  average.  The  tahsil  is  divided  by  the  rivers  Sengar,  Jumna, 
and  Chambal  into  four  tracts.  North  of  the  Sengar  lies  a  fertile  area 
called  pachdr,  intersected  by  two  smaller  streams,  and  containing  some 
large  areas  of  barren  land  and  marshes.  Irrigation  is  provided  by  the 
Etawah  branch  of  the  Lower  Ganges  Canal.  South  of  this  river  the 
soil  is  red  in  colour  and  sandy  in  nature.  Owing  to  the  depth  of  the 
spring-level,  irrigation  was  formerly  difficult  ;  but  the  Bhognlpur  branch 
of  the  Lower  Ganges  Canal  now  serves  this  area,  which  is  called  ghar. 
The  tract  bordering  on  the  Jumna,  called  karkha,  and  the  area  south 
of  it,  known  as  p ir,  are  intersected  by  ravines,  but  have  a  fair  area  of 
alluvial  soil,  or  kachhar,  on  the  banks  of  the  river.  In  1903-4  the  area 
under  cultivation  was  213  square  miles,  of  which  103  were  irrigated. 
( "anals  supply  six-sevenths  of  the  irrigated  area,  and  wells  most  of  the  rest. 


BHATINDA    TOWN  89 

Bhartpur. — State  and  capital  thereof  in  Rajputana.  See  Bharat- 
pur. 

Bharuch. — District,  tahika,  and  town  in  Bombay.     See  Broach. 

Bharudpura. —  Thakurdt  in  the  Bhopawar  Agency,  Central 
India. 

Bharwain.  —  Hill  sanitarium  in  the  Una  tahs'il  of  Hoshiarpur 
District,  Punjab,  situated  in  310  48'  N.  and  760  10'  E.  Population 
(March,  1901),  17.  It  lies  on  the  Jullundur-Dharmsala  road,  28  miles 
from  Hoshiarpur  town,  near  the  borders  of  Hoshiarpur  and  Kangra 
Districts,  on  the  summit  of  the  Sola  Singhi  range,  at  an  elevation  of 
3,896  feet  above  the  sea. 

Bhasawar. — Town  in  the  Wer  tahsil  of  the  State  of  Bharatpur, 
Rajputana,  situated  in  270  2'  N.  and  770  3'  E.,  close  to  the  Jaipur 
border,  and  about  30  miles  west-by-south-west  of  Bharatpur  city.  Popu- 
lation (1901),  6,690.  The  town  is  the  head-quarters  of  a  naib-tahslldar, 
and  possesses  a  post  office,  a  vernacular  school  attended  by  about 
180  boys,  and  a  dispensary.  It  is  supposed  to  have  been  founded  by, 
and  named  after,  Bhasawar  Khan,  an  officer  of  Mahmud  of  Ghazni 
(1001-30). 

Bhatgaon. — Town  in  Nepal,  about  8  miles  from  Katmandu,  the 
capital  of  the  State  (270  42'  N.,  850  26'  E.).  Estimated  population, 
30,000,  chiefly  Newars.  From  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century 
Bhatgaon  was  one  of  the  petty  Newar  States  in  the  Valley  of  Nepal, 
and  in  the  eighteenth  century  its  quarrels  with  its  neighbours  at 
Katmandu  and  Patan  paved  the  way  for  its  conquest  by  the  Gurkhas 
in  1768-9.  Bhatgaon  is  now  garrisoned  by  the  Gurkha  government. 
A  hospital  was  opened  here  in  June,  1904. 

Bhathan. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhatinda  Tahsil.—  Tahsil  in  the  Anahadgarh  nizdmat,  Patiala 
State,  Punjab.     See  Govindgarh. 

Bhatinda  Town  (also  known  as  Govindgarh).— Head-quarters  of 
the  Govindgarh  tahsil,  Anahadgarh  nizdmat,  Patiala  State,  Punjab, 
situated  in  300  13'  N.  and  750  E.  Population  (1901),  13,185.  The 
history  of  Bhatinda  is  obscure.  In  the  pre-Muhammadan  period  it  was 
called  Vikramagarh,  and  it  appears  in  the  early  Muhammadan  historians 
as  Batrinda,  often  incorrectly  transposed  into  Tabarhind.  The  Hindu 
chronicles  of  Kashmir  describe  it  as  JaipaPs  capital,  and  say  that 
Mahmud  of  Ghazni  captured  it.  Tradition  ascribes  its  foundation  to 
one  Bhati  Rao,  who  also  founded  Bhatner  in  the  Bikaner  State  ;  and 
it  undoubtedly  formed  part  of  the  territory  held  by  the  Bhati  chief 
Hemhel,  from  whom  the  Phulkian  houses  of  Patiala,  Jlnd,  and  Nabha 
claim  descent.  In  the  early  Muhammadan  period  the  country  round 
formed  an  important  fief  of  the  Delhi  empire,  and  under  Altamsh  was 
a  crown  province.     For  a  long  period,  however,  it  fell  into  decay,  pro- 


90  BHATINDA    TOWN 

bably  owing  to  the  drying  up  of  the  Ghaggar  and  other  streams  which 
watered  its  territory.  About  1754  it  was  conquered  by  Maharaja  Ala 
Singh  of  Patiala,  and  has  since  been  held  by  that  State.  Bhatinda  is  now 
a  thriving  town,  lying  in  the  centre  of  the  great  grain-producing  tract 
called  the  Jangal,  and  has  a  large  grain  mart.  It  is  also  an  important 
railway  junction,  at  which  the  Southern  Punjab,  Jodhpur-Bikaner, 
Rajputana-Malwa,  and  branches  of  the  North  Western  Railways  meet. 
It  imports  sugar,  rice,  and  cotton-seed,  exporting  wheat,  gram,  and  oil- 
seeds. The  great  fort,  about  118  feet  high,  which  dominates  the  town, 
is  conspicuous  for  many  miles  round,  and  has  thirty-six  bastions. 
The  town  possesses  a  high  school,  a  hospital,  and  numerous  railway 
and  canal  offices. 

Bhatkal  (or  Susagadi;  Sanskrit,  Manipura). — Town  in  the  Honavar 
taluka  of  North  Kanara  District,  Bombay,  situated  in  130  59/  N.  and 
740  32'  E.,  near  the  mouth  of  a  small  stream  that  falls  into  the  Arabian 
Sea,  about  64  miles  south-east  of  Karwar.  Population  (1901),  6,964. 
The  town  contains  two  small  and  two  large  mosques  ;  and  the 
Musalman  population  has  the  special  name  Navayat,  said  to  mean 
'  newly  arrived,'  owing  to  their  being  Sunni  Persians,  driven  from  the 
Persian  Gulf  by  the  persecution  of  their  Shiah  brethren  in  the  eighth 
century.  Many  of  these  Navayats  are  wealthy  traders,  and  visit 
different  parts  of  the  country  for  business  purposes,  leaving  their 
families  at  Bhatkal.  From  the  fourteenth  to  the  sixteenth  century, 
under  the  names  of  Batticala  (Jordanus,  132 1),  Battecala  (Barbosa, 
1510),  and  Baticala  (De  Barros),  Bhatkal  was  a  flourishing  centre 
of  trade,  where  ships  from  Ormuz  and  Goa  came  to  load  sugar  and 
rice.  In  1505  the  Portuguese  established  a  factory  here,  but  a  few 
years  later  the  capture  of  Goa  (1511)  deprived  the  place  of  its  im- 
portance. Two  attempts  were  made  by  the  British  to  establish  an 
agency  at  Bhatkal — the  first  in  1638  by  a  country  association,  the 
second  in  1668  by  the  Company,  but  both  failed.  According  to 
Captain  Hamilton  (1690-17 20),  the  remains  of  a  large  city  and  many 
Jain  and  Brahman  temples  were  still  to  be  seen  in  the  beginning  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  The  chief  articles  of  trade  are  rice,  betel-nuts, 
coco-nuts,  and  cotton  cloth,  the  imports  being  valued  at  1*22  lakhs 
a  year  and  the  exports  at  Rs.  62,000.  Bhatkal  was  constituted  a  muni- 
cipality in  1890,  its  income  during  the  decade  ending  1901  averaging 
Rs.  4,600.  In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  6,500.  Among  the  objects 
of  interest  at  Bhatkal  are  the  following  temples  :  Khetapai  Narayan 
Devasthan,  built  of  black  stone  with  some  fine  sculptures ;  Shantappa 
Naik  Tirumal  Devasthan,  built  entirely  of  black  basalt ;  Raghunath 
Devasthan,  a  small  ornate  temple  in  the  Dravidian  style;  Jattapa 
Naikana  Chandranatheshwar  basti,  a  large  Jain  temple.  About  half 
a  mile  south-west  of  Bhatkal  is  an  old  stone  bridge  said  to  have  been 


BHA  TTIANA  9 1 

built  by  the  Jain  princess  Channabhaira  Devi  (1450).  On  the  summit 
of  the  hill  forming  the  northern  boundary  of  the  bay  is  a  lighthouse 
visible  for  8  miles.  The  town  contains  a  dispensary  and  three  schools, 
of  which  one  is  a  middle  school  and  one  is  for  girls. 

Bhatkheri. —  Thakurat  in  the  Malwa  Agency,  Central  India. 

Bhatkuli. — Village  in  the  District  and  taluk  of  AmraotI,  Berar, 
situated  in  200  54'  N.  and  770  39'  E.,  10  miles  from  AmraotI  town. 
Population  (1901),  2,767.  Raja  Rukmin  of  Vidarbha  is  said  to  have 
retired  to  this  place  after  the  abduction  of  his  sister  Rukmini  by 
Krishna. 

Bhatnair  {Bhatner). — Town  and  fort  in  Blkaner  State,  Rajputana. 
See  Hanumangarh. 

Bhatpara. — Town  in  the  Barrackpore  subdivision  of  the  District 
of  the  Twenty-four  Parganas,  Bengal,  situated  in  220  52'  N.  and 
88°  25'  E.,  on  the  left  bank  of  the  Hooghly  river.  Population  (1901), 
21,540.  Bhatpara  has  long  been  famous  as  a  seat  of  Sanskrit  learning, 
and  contains  several  ioh  where  pupils  are  educated  and  fed  free  of  charge. 
It  is  also  a  busy  industrial  place,  possessing  jute-mills  and  a  paper- 
mill,  situated  chiefly  in  the  villages  of  Jagatdal  and  Kanklnara.  Bhat- 
para was  formerly  included  in  the  Naihati  municipality,  but  in  1899 
a  separate  municipality  was  constituted.  The  income  during  the  five 
years  since  its  constitution  averaged  Rs.  25,000,  and  the  expendi- 
ture Rs.  17,000.  In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  51,000,  including 
a  loan  from  Government  of  Rs.  20,000  and  Rs.  11,000  derived  from 
a  tax  on  persons  ;  and  the  expenditure  was  Rs.  31,000. 

Bhattiana. — A  tract  of  country  in  the  Punjab,  lying  between 
290  15'  and  300  15'  N.  and  740  o'  and  750  45'  E.,  and  comprising 
the  valley  of  the  Ghaggar  from  Eatehabad  in  Hissar  District  to  Bhatnair 
in  the  State  of  Blkaner,  together  with  an  undefined  portion  of  the  dry 
country  stretching  north-west  of  the  Ghaggar  towards  the  old  bank  of 
the  Sutlej.  For  its  physical  aspects  see  Hissar  District.  Roughly 
speaking,  the  tract  is  bounded  on  the  east  by  Hariana,  on  the  south 
and  west  by  the  Blkaner  desert,  while  on  the  north  its  boundary 
includes  Bhatinda  in  Patiala,  and  may  be  taken  as  roughly  corre- 
sponding to  the  line  of  the  Southern  Punjab  Railway.  Bhattiana 
derives  its  name  from  the  Bhattis,  a  collection  of  Muhammadan  tribes 
claiming  Rajput  origin,  who  also  gave  their  name  to  Bhatnair. 

Early  in  the  fourteenth  century  the  wild  country  held  by  the  Bhattis 
and  Mains  (Minas)  was  attached  to  Abohar,  a  dependency  of  Dipal- 
pur ;  and  the  daughter  of  Rana  Mai,  the  Bhatti  chief,  was  married  to 
Sipah  Salar  Rajab,  and  in  1309  became  the  mother  of  Firoz  Shah  III. 
The  Bhatti  chiefs  seem  to  have  maintained  a  position  of  semi-indepen- 
dence for  a  considerable  time.  Rai  Hansu  Bhatti,  son  of  Khul  Chain, 
was  employed  under  Mubarak  Shah   II  against  Pulad  in   1430   and 


92  BHATTIANA 

1431.  Later,  the  Bhatti  chief,  Ahmad  Khan,  who  had  risen  to  great 
power  and  had  20,000  horse  under  him,  defied  prince  Bayazkl  in  the 
reign  of  Bahlol  Lodf,  and,  though  at  first  victorious,  was  eventually 
defeated  and  killed.  Mirza  Kamran  was  employed  against  the  Bhattis 
in  1527  ;  and  they  seem  to  have  been  reduced  to  complete  subjection 
by  the  Mughals,  for  nothing  is  heard  of  them  until  the  decay  of  the 
Delhi  empire.  For  twenty-four  years  after  1750  Bhattiana  was  harassed 
by  the  Sikhs  and  Bhattis  in  turn,  until  in  1774  Amar  Singh,  the  Raja  of 
Patiala,  conquered  it.  But  Patiala  was  unable  to  hold  the  tract,  and 
lost  the  whole  of  it  (Rania  in  1780-3,  Fatehabad  in  1784),  the  Bhatti 
reconquest  being  facilitated  by  the  great  famine  of  1783  which  deso- 
lated the  country.  Sirsa  fell  to  George  Thomas  in  1795-9  ;  and  on  his 
fall  in  1 80 1  the  Marathas  acquired  Bhattiana,  only  to  lose  it  in  1803  to 
the  British,  who  took  no  steps  to  establish  a  strong  government.  At 
that  time  Bhattiana  was  divided  between  the  chiefs  Bahadur  Khan  and 
Zabita  Khan,  of  whom  the  former  held  the  country  in  the  neighbour- 
hood of  Fatehabad,  while  the  latter  owned  Rania  and  Sirsa.  In  i8to 
the  raids  of  Bahadur  Khan  had  become  intolerable,  and  an  expedition 
sent  against  him  annexed  Fatehabad,  while  in  1818  the  territories  of 
Zabita  Khan  were  acquired.  The  country  thus  obtained  formed  the 
subject  of  a  long  dispute  with  the  Patiala  chief,  who  had  encroached 
on  it  between  1818  and  1837.  It  was  finally  awarded  to  the  British 
Government,  and  made  into  a  separate  District  of  Bhattiana,  which  was 
transferred  to  the  Punjab  under  the  name  of  Sirsa  District  after  1857. 
See  Hissar. 

Bhattiprolu. — Village  in  the  Tenali  taluk  of  Guntur  District, 
Madras,  situated  in  160  6'  N.  and  8o°  47'  E.,  to  the  north  of  Repalle. 
Population  (1901),  3,568.  Its  interest  lies  in  the  Buddhist  stupa  which 
it  contains.  This  was  much  damaged  in  the  last  century  by  subordi- 
nates of  the  Public  Works  department,  who  utilized  its  marbles  for 
making  a  sluice  and  other  constructions,  and  little  of  it  now  remains. 
The  stupa  was  132  feet  in  diameter,  and  excavations  made  in  1892 
revealed  three  caskets  containing  relics  and  jewels,  which  are  now  in 
the  Madras  Museum.  On  them  are  nine  inscriptions  in  the  Pali 
language,  and  in  characters  resembling  those  of  Asoka's  inscriptions, 
stating  that  they  were  made  to  hold  relics  of  Buddha.  The  stupa  and 
these  caskets  are  described  in  vol.  xv  of  the  Reports  of  the  Archaeological 
Survey  of  India. 

Bhaun. — Town  in  the  Chakwal  tahsll  of  Jhelum  District,  Punjab, 
situated  in  320  52'  N.  and  720  40'  E.,  on  the  southern  extremity  of 
the  Dhanni  plain.  Population  (1901),  5,340.  The  town  possesses 
a  vernacular  middle  school,  maintained  by  the  District  board. 

Bhaunagar  State  (Rhavnagar). — State  in  the  Kathiawar  Political 
Agency,  Bombay,  lying  between  200  and  220  18'  N.  and  710  15'  and 


BHAUNAGAR  STATE  93 

720  18'  E.,  with  an  area  of  2,860  square  miles.     It  is  bounded  on 

the  north  by  Ranpur,  Ahmadabad  District,  and  the  Panchal  ;  on  the 

east  by  the  Gulf  of  Cambay  and  the  Dhandhuka  taluka  of  Ahmadabad  ; 

on  the  south  by  the  Arabian  Sea ;   and  on  the  west  by  Sorath  and 

Halar. 

The  country  has  a  very  varied  aspect,  being  in  some  parts  a  mere 

salt  flat,  in  others  a  rich  plain  of  black  soil,  while  portions  of  the  Sihor 

range  and  the  hills  in  the  Kundla  subdivision  lend 

a  mountainous  appearance  to  other  parts.     The  prin- 

y  .,  .    ,  aspects. 

cipal  ranges  of  hills  are  those  of  Sihor,  Khokra,  Und, 

the  Babriadhar,  and  the  outlying  hills  of  the  Gir  on  the  western  border, 
the  highest  hill  being  Mitiala  (over  1,000  feet).  They  are  all  volcanic, 
and  consist  of  trap  and  basalt,  piercing,  and  in  some  places  elevating, 
a  course  of  sandy  limestone.  In  places  laterite  of  good  quality  for 
building  and  a  conglomerate  abounding  in  fossils  are  found.  The 
principal  rivers  are  the  Shetrunji,  Bagad,  and  Malan,  the  waters  of 
which  are  used  for  irrigation.  The  State  contains  a  fine  artificial 
lake  about  5  miles  in  circumference  near  the  capital,  formed  by  an 
embankment  across  the  bed  of  the  Gadechi  river.  The  climate  on 
the  sea-coast  is  good,  but  hot  and  dry  inland.  The  annual  rainfall 
averages  25  inches. 

The  Gohel  Rajputs,  to  which  tribe  the  chief  of  Bhatinagar  belongs, 
are  said  to  have  settled  in  the  country  about  the  year  1260  under 
Sajakji,  from  whose  three  sons— Ranoji,  Saranji,  and 
Shahji — are  descended  respectively  the  chiefs  of 
Bhaunagar,  Lathi,  and  Pa.lita.na.  The  Vala  State  also  is  an  offshoot 
from  Bhaunagar.  The  town  of  Bhaunagar  was  founded  in  1723  by  Bhau- 
singhji,  grandfather  of  Wakhat  Singh,  who  succeeded  to  the  chiefship 
in  1772.  Bhausinghji,  his  son  Rawal  Akherajji,  and  his  grandson 
Wakhat  Singh,  took  pains  to  improve  the  trade  of  their  country  and  to 
destroy  the  pirates  who  infested  the  neighbouring  seas.  An  intimate  con- 
nexion was  thus  formed  between  Bhaunagar  and  the  Bombay  Government. 
In  1759  the  British  acquired  the  right  to  a  fourth  share  in  the  customs 
of  the  port  of  Bhaunagar  from  the  Sldl  of  Surat,  to  whom  it  had  been 
granted  by  Bhausinghji  as  the  price  of  protection  from  the  Nawab 
of  Cambay.  In  1771  Rawal  Akherajji  assisted  the  Bombay  Govern- 
ment in  reducing  Talaja  and  Mahuva,  which  were  occupied  by  piratical 
Kolls.  After  the  conquest  of  Talaja,  the  fort  was  offered  to  Akherajji 
by  the  Bombay  Government  ;  but  he  refused  to  accept  it,  and  it  was  in 
consequence  made  over  to  the  Nawab  of  Cambay.  Wakhat  Singh, 
however,  after  his  accession,  dispossessed  the  Nawab  of  the  fort,  which, 
under  an  engagement  arranged  by  the  British  Government  in  1773, 
he  was  allowed  to  retain  on  paying  a  sum  of  Rs.  75,000.  The  boun- 
daries of  the  Bhaunagar  State  were  largely  increased  by  various  other 


94  BHAUNAGAR  STATE 

acquisitions   made  by  Wakhat    Singh    previous    to    the   settlement  of 
Kathiawar. 

When  Gujarat  and  Kathiawar  were  divided  between  the  Peshwa  and 
the  Gaikwar,  the  western  and  larger  portion  of  the  Bhaunagar  posses- 
sions were  included  in  the  Gaikwar's  share  ;  while  the  eastern  and 
smaller  portion,  including  Bhaunagar  itself  and  the  original  estates  of 
the  family  in  Sihor,  fell  to  the  Peshwa,  and  formed  part  of  the  districts 
of  Dhandhuka  and  Gogha,  which  the  Peshwa  ceded  to  the  British 
Government  under  the  Treaty  of  Bassein.  At  the  time  of  the  settle- 
ment of  Kathiawar,  therefore,  part  of  the  Bhaunagar  possessions  had 
already  become  British  territory,  while  part  remained  under  the 
Gaikwar.  The  revenue  (jama)  demanded  from  the  British  portion 
was  Rs.  11,650,  and  that  payable  to  the  Gaikwar  was  fixed  at 
Rs.  74,500.  But  as  it  was  expedient  to  consolidate  in  the  hands  of 
the  British  Government  the  various  claims  over  Bhaunagar,  an  agree- 
ment was  made  with  the  Thakur's  consent  for  the  transfer  of  the 
Gaikwar's  tribute  in  Bhaunagar  to  the  British  Government,  which  was 
accordingly  included  in  the  cessions  made  in  1807  by  the  Gaikwar  for 
the  support  of  a  contingent  force.  In  1840  the  British  abolished  the 
mint  at  Bhaunagar,  where  copper  money  had  been  previously  coined. 
As  compensation  for  this,  a  sum  of  Rs.  2,800  a  year  was  granted  to  the 
Thakur.  A  further  sum  of  Rs.  4,000  was  given  to  him,  in  considera- 
tion of  his  resigning  all  claims  to  a  share  in  the  land  or  sea  customs 
of  Gogha.  The  Thakur  also  subscribed  the  usual  engagements, 
exempting  from  duty  vessels  putting  into  his  port  under  stress  ot 
weather. 

After  the  cession  of  Dhandhuka  and  Gogha,  the  chief  of  Bhaunagar 
was  tacitly  permitted  to  exercise  the  same  powers  as  before  in  the 
portion  of  his  land  which  fell  within  those  districts.  But  in  conse- 
quence of  a  serious  abuse  of  power,  the  estates  were  in  1816  placed 
under  the  jurisdiction  of  the  English  courts.  The  Thakur  never 
ceased  to  complain  of  this  change  ;  and  eventually,  after  full  investiga- 
tion, an  agreement  was  concluded,  by  which  the  Thakur's  revenue  in 
his  British  estates  was  fixed  at  Rs.  52,000  in  perpetuity.  In  1866 
certain  villages  in  this  portion  of  the  State  were  removed  from  the 
jurisdiction  of  the  revenue,  civil,  and  criminal  courts  of  the  Bombay 
Presidency,  and  transferred  to  the  supervision  of  the  Agent  to  the 
Governor  in  Kathiawar.  In  1873  the  Bhaunagar  State  made  an  agree- 
ment with  the  British  Government  for  the  construction  of  a  telegraph 
line  between  Bhaunagar  and  Dholera. 

The  Thakur  Sahib  of  Bhaunagar  is  entitled  to  a  salute  of  1 1  guns, 
and  was  created  a  K.C.S.L  in  1904.  He  has  received  a  sanad  author- 
izing adoption,  and  the  succession  follows  the  rule  of  primogeniture. 

The  population  of  Bhaunagar  at  the  last  four  enumerations  was  : 


ADMINISTRATION  95 

(1872)  428,500,  (1881)  400,323,  (1891)  467,282,  and  (1901)  412,664, 

showing  a  decrease  of  12  per  cent,  during  the  last       _,       .  .. 

,  *  °  Population. 

decade    owing   to  the   famine  of   1899- 1900.      I  he 

density  of  population  is  144  persons  per  square  mile.     In  1901  Hindus 

numbered  350,886;    Musalmans,    40,323;    and   Jains,    20,761.     The 

State  contains  11  towns  and  655  villages.     The  capital  is  Bhaunagar 

Town. 

More  than  one-half  of  the  total  area  consists  of  regar  or  black  cotton 
soil,  the  remainder  being  light  and  sandy.  Of  the  total  cultivable 
area  of  1,092  square  miles,  983^  were  cultivated  in  . 

1903-4,  of  which  108  square  miles  were  irrigated. 
Water  is  obtained  from  wells  and  rivers.  Two  experimental  planta- 
tions, containing  44,000  trees  of  various  kinds,  are  maintained  at 
Mahuva  and  Sihor.  The  chief  products  are  grain,  cotton,  and  salt ; 
and  the  chief  manufactures  are  oil,  copper  and  brass  vessels,  and  cloth. 
The  State  contains  1 1  cotton-presses,  9  ginning  factories,  and  one 
spinning  and  weaving  mill.  The  quantity  of  cotton  produced  is  very 
considerable,  and  forms  one  of  the  chief  sources  of  wealth  of  the 
State.  The  exports  from  its  various  ports  in  1903-4  were  returned 
at  a  total  value  of  130  lakhs  ;  imports  at  91  lakhs.  The  only  impor- 
tant forests  are  the  Sihor  forests,  chiefly  of  thorny  acacias,  with  a  few 
tamarind  and  nlm  trees.  Horse-breeding  is  carried  on  with  ten  stal- 
lions, and  mule-breeding  with  one  Italian  donkey  stallion.  At  the 
veterinary  hospital  1,211  animals  were  treated  in  1903-4.  Roads  have 
been  constructed  from  Bhaunagar  to  Vartej  and  Gogha,  and  to  Dhasa. 
About  120  miles  of  the  Bhavnagar-Gondal  Railway  runs  through  the 
State,  the  net  earnings  since  the  line  was  opened  being  1 1  lakhs  in  excess 
of  capital  outlay.  The  chief  has  proposed  to  construct  a  metre-gauge 
line  between  Ranpur  and  Dholka  via  Dhandhuka. 

Bhaunagar  ranks  as  a  first-class  Tributary  State  in  Kathiawar.     The 

chief  exercises  powers  of  life  and  death  over  all  persons,  the  trial  of 

British  subjects  for  capital  offences  requiring  the  pre-     .  ,    .  . 

.    .  r    ,       .  ?,  ,     Administration. 

vious  permission  of  the  Agent  to  the  Governor  ;  and 

he  pays  a  tribute  of  i-|  lakhs  jointly  to  the  British  Government,  the 
Gaikwar,  and  the  Nawab  of  Junagarh.  The  income  of  the  State  in 
1903-4  was  31  lakhs,  excluding  the  earnings  of  the  Bhavnagar  Railway, 
which  amounted  to  8  lakhs.  The  expenditure  was  35  lakhs,  of  which 
more  than  4  lakhs  represents  expenditure  on  railways.  The  State  does 
not  levy  transit  dues.  A  revenue  survey  is  being  carried  out  in  161  vil- 
lages. A  State  savings  bank  was  established  in  1902,  which  has 
a  current  deposit  of  more  than  2  lakhs,  and  which  lent  and  recovered 
4  lakhs  in  1903-4.  There  are  ten  municipalities,  the  largest  of  which 
is  Bhaunagar  town,  with  a  total  income  of  Rs.  47,000  in  1903-4.  The 
State  maintains  a  regiment  of  Imperial  Service  Lancers,  256  strong, 


96  BHAUNAGAR  STATE 

51  cavalry,  and  285  infantry,  as  well  as  a  police;  force  of  551,  of  whom 
47  are  mounted.  Including  an  Arts  college  attended  by  74  students  and 
a  high  school,  there  were  in  1903-4  148  educational  establishments, 
attended  by  12,462  pupils,  of  whom  2,311  were  girls.  Besides  these, 
indigenous  schools  contain  2,166  pupils.  The  State  has  founded 
57  scholarships  of  the  aggregate  monthly  value  of  Rs.  457.  The  two 
hospitals,  one  of  which  is  for  plague  patients,  and  17  dispensaries  in 
the  State,  were  attended  in  1903-4  by  125,898  patients,  of  whom 
1,103  were  in-patients.  In  the  same  year  7,000  persons  were  vac- 
cinated. 

Bhaunagar  Town  {BhCwnagar). — Town  and  port  in  the  Gulf  of 
Cambay,  and  capital  of  the  State  of  the  same  name  in  Kathiawar, 
Bombay,  situated  in  21°  45'  N.  and  720  12'  E.  Population  (1901), 
56,442  :  namely,  40,677  Hindus,  4,463  Musalmans,  10,681  Jains,  248 
Christians,  and  373  Parsis.  The  town  was  founded  in  1723  by  Bhau- 
singhji,  and  rapidly  rose  to  influence  under  a  line  of  princes  who 
encouraged  commerce  and  suppressed  the  piratical  communities  that 
infested  the  Gulf  of  Cambay.  It  has  a  good  and  safe  harbour  for 
shipping  of  light  draught,  and  carries  on  an  extensive  trade  as  one 
of  the  principal  markets  and  harbours  of  export  for  cotton  in  Kathia- 
war. It  possesses  a  spinning  and  weaving  mill  with  14,288  spindles 
and  240  looms,  and  several  steam  presses.  The  harbour  is  difficult 
of  access,  being  approached  by  a  winding  creek.  The  total  sea-borne 
trade  in  1903-4  was  valued  at  221  lakhs:  namely,  exports  130  lakhs 
and  imports  91  lakhs.  Besides  manufactures  of  several  kinds,  such 
as  cloth,  sugar-candy,  boxes  bound  in  brass  and  iron,  carriages,  tur- 
bans, &c,  there  are  a  Mangalore  tile  and  brick  factory,  a  saw-mill, 
an  ice  factory,  and  iron  foundry.  The  town  is  administered  by  a 
municipality,  with  an  income  exceeding  Rs.  44,000  in  1903-4.  The 
Gauri  Shankar  lake,  or  the  Ganga  Talao,  constructed  at  a  cost  of 
nearly  6  lakhs,  is  the  chief  source  of  water-supply  for  the  town  and 
shipping.  Besides  numerous  temples  and  mosques  the  town  has  two 
churches,  a  Christian  burial-ground,  and  a  '  tower  of  silence.'  Of  the 
several  public  buildings,  the  Victoria  Jubilee  water-works,  the  Percival 
market  and  the  Percival  fountain,  the  Peile  gardens  and  the  Victoria 
Park,  the  Court  of  Justice,  and  the  high  school  are  prominent.  The 
town  contains  two  hospitals,  one  of  which  is  for  plague  patients  only. 

Bhavani  River. — A  picturesque  perennial  river  of  Southern  India, 
rising  in  the  Attapadi  valley  in  Malabar  District,  in  n°  14'  N.  and 
760  32'  E.,  and  traversing  from  west  to  east  for  105  miles  the  taluks 
of  Satyamangalam  and  Bhavani  in  Coimbatore  till  it  falls  into  the 
Cauvery  near  Bhavani  town.  The  confluence  is  considered  very  holy 
and  is  frequented  by  pilgrims.  Deriving  its  supplies  principally  from 
the  south-west  monsoon,   the  Bhavani  receives  its  first  freshes  about 


BHAVANI  TALUK  97 

the  end  of  May,  is  at  its  highest  flood  from  June  to  August,  and  thence- 
forward, with  occasional  floods  in  the  north-east  monsoon,  gradually 
subsides.  It  is  fed  by  a  number  of  small  tributaries  from  the  slopes 
of  the  Nilgiris  on  the  north  and  the  more  open  country  to  the  south. 
The  most  considerable  of  these  is  the  Moyar,  which  drains  the  northern 
side  of  the  Nllgiri  plateau,  and  joins  the  Bhavani  near  Kottamangalam. 
The  Bhavani  is  crossed  by  the  ghat  road  and  the  metre-gauge  rack 
railway  to  the  Nilgiris  at  Mettupalaiyam,  and  by  road  bridges  at  Satya- 
mangalam  and  Bhavani.  Twice  recently  it  has  come  down  in  consider- 
able floods:  in  1882  great  damage  was  done  along  its  banks,  and  in 
1902  the  road  bridge  at  Mettupalaiyam  was  carried  away.  Otters  are 
found  in  it,  and  it  is  famous  for  its  mahseer  and  other  fish.  It  affords 
the  best  irrigation  in  Coimbatore  District  by  the  Tadampalli,  Arakkan 
kottai,  and  Kalingarayan  channels,  which  together  water  39,000  acres  ; 
and  it  has  given  its  name  to  a  considerable  irrigation  project  which  has 
been  much  discussed.  This  consists  in  forming  a  reservoir  about 
4  miles  above  Satyamangalam  to  contain  27,000  million  cubic  feet 
of  water.  Opinion  is  divided  as  to  how  this  water  should  be  used  ; 
but  the  project  in  its  present  form  does  not  contemplate  any  extension 
of  irrigation  in  Coimbatore  District,  but  provides  for  the  water  being 
utilized  to  supplement  the  Cauvery  irrigation  in  Tanjore  during 
September  and  October.  The  question  has  arisen  whether  a  reservoir 
could  not  be  more  advantageously  constructed  lower  down  on  the  Cau- 
very itself,  and  this  is  still  under  investigation.  The  forests  which 
protect  the  head-waters  of  the  Bhavani  are  largely  owned  by  private 
individuals ;  and  unless  they  are  carefully  preserved,  the  effect  on  the 
water-supply  for  irrigation  from  the  river  may  in  time  be  very  serious. 

Bhavani  Taluk.  —  North-eastern  taluk  of  Coimbatore  District, 
Madras,  lying  between  n°  23'  and  1 1°  57'  N.  and  770  25'  and  770 
51'  E.,  with  an  area  of  715  square  miles.  It  is  bounded  on  the  east 
and  south  by  the  Cauvery  and  Bhavani  rivers,  which  unite  at  its 
south-east  corner.  In  the  north  and  west  large  portions  are  covered 
by  the  Bargur  hills,  and  consequently  the  taluk  is  poorly  supplied 
with  roads.  It  lies  off  the  railway,  and  has  only  one  considerable 
town,  Bhavani  (population,  8,637),  the  head-quarters,  and  62  villages. 
The  population  rose  from  119,869  in  1891  to  i45>982  m  19°1'  showing 
an  increase  of  nearly  22  per  cent.,  which  is  greater  than  in  any  other 
taluk  in  the  District.  The  proportion  of  Christians  is  above  the 
District  average,  being  between  2  and  3  per  cent,  of  the  total  popu- 
lation. Muhammadans  are  much  fewer.  The  number  of  persons 
able  to  read  and  write  is  small  as  compared  with  other  taluks.  The 
demand  for  land  revenue  and  cesses  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  1,55,000. 
More  than  half  the  taluk  is  covered  with  forest.  Of  the  cultivable  area 
about  a,  tenth  is  usually  irrigated  and  a  fourth  is  unoccupied.     Cambu 

VOL.  VIII.  H 


98  BHAVANI  TALUK 

is  much  more  widely  grown  than  any  other  crop,  and  cholam  and  ragi 
are  also  raised  in  fair  quantities.  The  rainfall  averages  29  inches 
annually  at  Bhavani  town,  but  is  less  in  the  west  of  the  taluk.  A 
hard  and  valuable  iron  is  smelted  in  small  quantities,  and  corundum 
is  worked  irregularly  at  Salangaippalaiyam  ;  there  is  also  a  brisk  trade 
in  cloths  and  forest  produce  at  Bhavani  ;  but  otherwise  there  are  no 
industries  worth  mentioning.  The  Bargur  cattle,  bred  in  the  hills  of 
the  same  name,  are  of  medium  size,  and,  though  rather  intractable, 
are  attractive  in  appearance,  fast,  and  strong. 

Bhavani  Town. —  Head-quarters  of  the  taluk  of  the  same  name 
in  Coimbatore  District,  Madras,  situated  in  n°  27'  N.  and  770  40'  E.> 
9  miles  north  of  Erode,  at  the  confluence  of  the  Bhavani  and  Cauvery 
rivers.  Population  (1901),  8,637.  It  was  for  a  short  time  at  the 
beginning  of  last  century  the  head-quarters  of  the  northern  portion 
of  the  District,  but  is  now  important  only  as  a  place  of  pilgrimage, 
its  sanctity  being  due  to  its  position  at  the  junction  of  the  two  rivers. 
Both  of  these  are  crossed  here  by  fine  masonry  bridges,  as  the  main 
road  from  Madras  to  Calicut  once  passed  this  way.  That  over  the 
Cauvery  was  originally  built  in  1847,  but  was  washed  away  almost 
at  once,  and  was  reconstructed  in  1851.  The  temple  of  Sangama 
Iswara  ('the  god  of  the  confluence')  is  well  sculptured  and  is  much 
revered.  The  old  fort  is  said  to  have  been  built  by  a  local  chieftain 
who  held  it  under  the  kings  of  Madura.  The  town  contains  a  large 
number  of  Brahmans  and  other  persons  attached  to  the  temple,  and 
is  notorious  for  petty  intrigues.  Good  cotton  cloth  and  carpets  are 
made  here  ;  the  latter  took  a  first  prize  at  the  Madras  Exhibition  in 
1883.    The  place  is  said  to  have  once  been  famous  for  its  dyes. 

Bhavnagar. — Native  State  and  town  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay.     See 
Bhaunagar. 

Bhavsari  {JBhosari,  also  known  as  Bhojpur). — Village  in  the  Haveli 
idluka  of  Poona  District,  Bombay,  situated  in  180  37'  N.  and  730  53'  E., 
at  the  first  stage  on  the  Nasik  road,  about  8  miles  north  of  Poona  city. 
Population  (1901),  1,697.  The  place  is  remarkable  for  a  number  of 
large  rude  stones  forming  enclosures  to  the  east,  south,  and  west  of  the 
village,  and  numerous  stone  slabs  bearing  roughly  carved  figures  of  men 
fighting,  cattle  raids,  dead  men,  and  heavenly  damsels.  As  far  as  they 
have  been  examined,  none  of  these  stones,  whether  found  in  mounds, 
lines,  or  walls,  has  any  writing.  The  discovery  of  pieces  of  bones  in 
one  of  the  mounds  supports  the  view  that  the  circles  and  heaps  of 
stones  and  the  solitary  standing  stones  are  funeral  monuments.  With- 
out inscription  or  the  discovery  of  further  relics  it  is  impossible  to  fix 
the  age  of  these  monuments,  even  within  wide  limits.  There  seems  no 
reason  to  doubt  that  they  are  old,  certainly  older  than  the  Mu  sal  mans, 
and  probably  older  than  the  Silaharas  or  the  Yadavas  (850-1310).    The 


BHERA    TAHSIL  99 

absence  of  any  signs  of  a  mound,  in  many  cases,  and  the  absence  of 
relics  in  several  of  the  mounds,  suggest  that  some  of  these  monuments 
are  cenotaphs  raised  to  people  whose  bodies  were  buried  or  burnt 
in  some  other  place.  The  carved  battle-stones  show  that,  till  Musal- 
man  times,  Bhavsari  continued  a  favourite  place  for  commemorating 
the  dead  ;  and  the  number  of  shrines  to  Satvai,  Khandoba,  Mhasoba, 
Chedoba,  Vir,  and  other  spirits,  seems  to  show  that  the  village  is  still 
considered  to  be  haunted  by  the  dead.  An  inscription  on  a  rough 
stone  attached  to  a  wide  burial-mound  in  Sopara  near  Bassein  proved 
that  it  was  raised  about  200  b.c.  in  honour  of  a  person  of  the  Khond 
tribe.  Khond  is  the  same  as  Ghond  and  apparently  as  Kol.  It  sur- 
vives as  Kod,  a  surname  among  Kunbis  in  Thana  and  elsewhere,  and 
Marathas.  So  far  as  is  known,  the  name  does  not  occur  in  the  Northern 
Deccan.  The  mention  of  Khonds  on  the  Sopara  stone,  and  the  rever- 
ence for  the  dead  which  is  so  marked  a  characteristic  of  the  Bengal 
Kols  and  the  Godavari  Kolis,  suggest  that  these  rude  monuments 
belong  to  the  Kol  or  Kolarian  under  layer  or  base  of  the  Deccan 
population.  Stone  monuments  like  those  at  Bhavsari  have  not  yet 
been  made  the  subject  of  special  search.  They  are  found  scattered 
over  most  of  the  Deccan. 

Bhawalpur. — Native  State  and  town  in  the  Punjab.  See  Baha- 
walpur  State. 

Bhawani. —  Tahsil  and  town  in  Hissar  District,  Punjab.  See 
Bhiwani. 

Bhawanigarh  (or  Dhodan). — North-western  tahsil  of  the  Karm- 
garh  nizamat,  Patiala  State,  Punjab,  lying  between  29°  48'  and  300 
24'  N.  and  750  57'  and  7 6°  18'  E.,  with  an  area  of  499  square  miles. 
The  population  in  1901  was  140,309,  compared  with  140,607  in  1891. 
It  contains  one  town,  Samana  (population,  10,209),  and  213  villages. 
The  head-quarters  are  at  the  village  of  Bhawanigarh  or  Dhodan.  The 
land  revenue  and  cesses  amounted  in  1903-4  to  3  lakhs. 

Bhayavadar. — Town  in  the  State  of  Gondal,  Kathiawar,  Bombay, 
situated  in  210  51'  N.  and  700  17'  E.,  about  15  miles  north-west  of 
Dhoraji,  a  station  on  the  Bhavnagar-Gondal-Junagarh-Porbandar 
Railway.  Population  (1901),  5,918.  At  the  collapse  of  the  Mughal 
empire  it  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  Desais,  who  about  1753  sold  it 
to  the  Jadeja  Haloji  of  Gondal. 

Bheels. — Tribe  in  Western  India.     See  Bhtls. 

Bhelsa. — Zila  and  town  in  Gwalior  State,  Central  India.  See 
Bhilsa. 

Bhelsarh. — Town  in  the  District  of  Ballia,  United  Provinces.  See 
Bhalsand. 

Bhera  Tahsil. —  Tahsil  of  Shahpur  District,  Punjab,  lying  between 
310  55'  and  320  37'  N.  and   720  43'  and  730  23'  E.,  with  an  area  of 

h  2 


ioo  BHERA    TAHSIL 

1,178  square  miles.  It  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  Jhelum  river, 
which  divides  it  from  Jhelum  District,  and  on  the  south-east  by  the 
Chenab.  The  country  between  the  riverain  lowlands  on  either  side 
lies  at  a  higher  level,  but  the  rich  soil  of  the  Jhelum  valley  is  in 
marked  contrast  to  the  light  sandy  loam  of  the  Chenab.  The  soil  of 
the  intervening  Bar  tract  is  a  good  strong  loam.  The  population  in 
1 90 1  was  194,469,  compared  with  195,585  in  1891.  The  tahsll  con- 
tains the  towns  of  Bheka  (population,  18,680),  the  head-quarters,  and 
Miani  (7,220);  and  294  villages.  The  land  revenue  and  cesses 
amounted  in  1903-4  to  4-7  lakhs. 

Bhera  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  tahsll  of  the  same  name  in 
Shahpur  District,  Punjab,  situated  in  320  28'  N.  and  720  56'  E.,  on 
the  left  bank  of  the  Jhelum,  at  the  terminus  of  the  Bhera  branch  of 
the  North-YVestern  Railway.  Population  (1901),  18,680.  The  original 
city,  which  lay  on  the  right  bank,  was  identified  by  Sir  Alexander 
Cunningham  with  the  capital  of  Sophytes,  contemporary  of  Alexander 
the  Great ;  but  recent  authorities  have  shared  the  doubts  he  afterwards 
entertained  as  to  the  correctness  of  this  theory.  Bhera  was  sacked  by 
Mahmud  of  Ghazni,  and  two  centuries  later  by  the  armies  of  Chingiz 
Khan.  The  history  of  the  old  town  closes  in  15 19,  when  it  was  held 
to  ransom  by  Babar.  Its  importance  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  the 
ransom  was  fixed  at  2  lakhs,  and  tradition  avers  that  shortly  afterwards 
it  was  destroyed  by  the  hill  tribes.  The  new  town  was  founded  in  or 
about  1540  round  the  fine  mosque  and  tomb  of  a  Muhammadan  saint. 
The  mosque  has  lately  been  restored.  Bhera  was  the  centre  of  a  mahal 
under  Akbar,  and  was  plundered  and  laid  waste  by  Ahmad  Shah's 
general,  Nur-ud-din,  in  1757.  It  was  repopulated  by  the  Sikh  chief- 
tains of  the  BhangI  confederacy,  and  has  greatly  improved  under  British 
rule.  It  is  the  largest  and  most  prosperous  commercial  town  in  this 
part  of  the  Province,  having  a  direct  export  trade  to  Kabul,  the 
Derajat,  and  Sukkur.  and  importing  European  goods  from  Karachi  and 
Amritsar.  Ornamental  knives  and  daggers  are  made  in  the  town,  and 
its  jade-work  and  wood-carving  are  widely  known.  It  has  also  a  long- 
established  felt  industry.  The  municipality  was  created  in  1867.  The 
income  during  the  ten  years  ending  1902-3  averaged  Rs.  22,400,  and 
the  expenditure  Rs.  22,900.  In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  28,500, 
chiefly  from  octroi  ;  and  the  expenditure  was  Rs.  26,100.  The  town 
possesses  an  Anglo-vernacular  high  school,  managed  by  the  Educational 
department,  and  an  unaided  Anglo-Sanskrit  high  school,  besides  a 
Government  dispensary.  A  vernacular  newspaper,  the  Dost-i-Hind,  is 
published  in  the  town. 

Bheraghat. — Site  of  the  Marble  Rocks  on  the  Narbada  in  Jubbul- 
pore  District,  Central  Provinces. 

Bhikhi. — Southern  tahsll  of  the  Anahadgarh  nizamat,  Patiala  State, 


THE  BHIL    TRIBES  101 

Punjab,  lying  between  290  45'  and  300  14/  N.  and  750  15"  and 
750  50'  E.,  with  an  area  of  622  square  miles.  The  population  in  1901 
was  128,965,  compared  with  119,354  in  1891.  The  tahsil contains  172 
villages,  of  which  Bhlkhi  is  the  head-quarters.  The  land  revenue  and 
cesses  amounted  in  1903-4  to  2-7  lakhs. 

Bhil  Tribes,  The. — The  name  Bhilla  seems  to  occur  for  the  first 
time  about  a.  d.  600.  It  is  supposed  to  be  derived  from  the  Dravidian 
word  for  a  bow,  which  is  the  characteristic  weapon  of  the  tribe  known 
as  Bhil.  The  Bhils  seem  to  be  the  'Pygmies'  of  Ctesias  (400  B.C.), 
and  the  Poulindai  and  Phyllitae  of  Ptolemy  (a.d.  i  50) ;  but  the  name  by 
which  they  are  at  present  known  cannot  be  traced  far  back  in  Sanskrit 
literature.  The  Pulinda  tribe  is  mentioned  in  the  Aitareya  Brahmana 
and  in  the  edicts  of  Asoka,  but  its  identification  with  the  Bhils  rests  on 
much  later  authorities.  The  Bhils  are  often  mentioned  as  foes  or  allies 
in  the  history  of  Anhilvada,  and  they  preceded  the  Musalmans,  both  at 
Ahmadabad  and  Champaner.  To  this  day  it  is  necessary  to  the  recog- 
nition of  certain  Rajput  chiefs  that  they  should  be  marked  on  the  brow 
with  a  Brill's  blood.  In  unsettled  times  the  Bhils  were  bold  and  crafty 
robbers,  and  the  Marathas  treated  them  with  great  harshness.  The 
first  step  to  their  reclamation  was  the  formation  of  the  Bhil  Agencies  in 
the  Khandesh  District  of  the  Bombay  Presidency  in  1825. 

The  home  of  the  Bhils  is  the  hilly  country  between  Abu  and  Asir- 
garh,  from  which  they  have  spread  westward  and  southward  into  the 
plains  of  Gujarat  and  the  Northern  Deccan,  and  lately,  under  pressure 
of  famine,  even  to  Sind.  The  Bhils  have  been  settled  in  this  part  of 
India  from  time  immemorial.  They  are  found  in  considerable  numbers 
only  in  the  Bombay  Presidency,  Rajputana,  and  Central  India.  At 
the  Census  of  190 1  the  Bhils  numbered  1,198,843,  distributed  as 
follows : — 

Bombay  569,842 

Rajputana 339,786 

Central  India    ......      206,934 

Elsewhere  ......        82,281 

Some  of  the  Bhil  clans  have  advanced  a  claim  to  be  considered  as 
Rajputs,  but  it  is  only  within  the  last  eighty  years  that  the  settlement 
and  opening  up  of  the  country  has  tended  strongly  to  merge  them  in 
the  general  Hindu  population.  It  is  not  easy  to  describe  a  tribe  that 
includes  every  stage  of  civilization,  from  the  wild  hunter  of  the  hills  to 
the  orderly  and  hard-working  peasant  of  the  lowlands.  A  further 
difficulty  arises  from  the  fact  that  the  name  Bhil  is  often  given  to  half- 
wild  tribes,  such  as  Chodhras,  Dhankas,  Dhodias,  Kathodis,  Konknas, 
and  Varlis,  who  do  not  seem  to  be  true  Bhils.  The  typical  Bhil  is 
small,  dark,  broad-nosed,  and  ugly,  but  well  built  and  active.  The 
men  wear  a  cloth  round  their  long  hair,  another  round  their  waist,  and 


io2  THE   BfflL    TRIBES 

a  third  as  a  wrap,  and  carry  a  how  and  arrows  or  an  axe.  The  women 
dress  like  low-class  Hindus,  hut  plait  their  hair  in  three  tails,  and  wear 
large  numbers  of  brass  or  tin  rings  on  their  arms  and  legs.  They  live 
in  huts  of  wattle-and-daub  surrounded  by  a  bamboo  fence,  each  stand- 
ing by  itself  on  high  ground.  Each  settlement  has  a  hereditary  head- 
man (gamti),  who  is  under  the  chief  {naik)  of  the  district,  to  whom  all 
owe  military  service.  When  necessity  arises,  they  are  gathered  by  a 
peculiar  shrill  cry  known  as  kulki.  Scattered  over  all  these  local 
divisions  are  more  than  40  kills  or  exogamous  clans,  each  of  which  has 
a  totem  tree  or  animal.  The  true  Bhlls  do  not  appear  to  have  any 
endogamous  sub-tribes,  though  such  seem  to  have  arisen  in  Khandesh 
owing  to  differences  of  dialect,  the  adoption  of  Hindu  customs  in  the 
matter  of  food,  or  conversion  to  Islam.  Whether  the  Bhlls  ever 
possessed  any  language  of  their  own  is  unknown.  At  present  they  all 
speak  a  mixed  dialect  of  Gujarat!  and  Rajasthani,  with  some  borrowing 
from  Marathi,  and  a  slight  admixture  of  Munda  words. 

The  Bhlls  are  hunters  and  woodmen  ;  but  most  now  grow  a  little  rice 
or  maize  to  eke  out  their  diet  of  game,  roots,  and  fruits,  and  keep  goats 
and  fowls  for  feasts  and  sacrifices.  In  times  of  difficulty,  they  will  eat 
beef,  but  not  the  horse,  rat,  snake,  or  monkey.  They  are  truthful  and 
honest,  but  thriftless,  excitable,  and  given  to  drink.  They  pay  no 
respect  to  Brahmans  or  to  the  Hindu  gods,  except  Devi,  nor  do  they  build 
temples.  They  reverence  and  swear  by  the  moon  (Barbij),  but  chiefly 
worship  Vaghdeo  the  '  tiger-god '  and  ghosts,  for  which  every  settle- 
ment has  its  devasthan  or  god-yard  with  wooden  benches  for  the  ghosts 
to  perch  on.  Here  they  offer  goats  and  cocks  with  much  feasting  and 
drinking,  and  dedicate  earthen  horses  and  tigers  in  fulfilment  of  a  vow. 
They  have  mediums  called  badva,  of  their  own  tribe,  whose  business  it 
is  to  find  the  spirit  or  the  witch  that  has  caused  any  calamity.  Witches 
are  detected  by  swinging  the  suspected  woman  from  a  tree  or  by  throw- 
ing her  into  a  stream.  Each  group  of  villages  has  a  dholi  or  bard,  who 
supplies  music  at  weddings  and  funerals,  and  keeps  the  genealogies  of 
the  leading  Bhlls.  Each  village  also  has  a  raval,  whose  chief  duty  is  to 
officiate  at  a  funeral  feast  (kaita).  They  celebrate  the  Holl  at  the 
spring  equinox  with  feasting  and  drinking,  at  which  every  man  of  the 
village  must  be  present.  At  this  festival  fire-walking  is  practised  in 
fulfilment  of  vows,  and  a  sort  of  mock  fight  takes  place  between  men 
and  women.  The  Dasahra  or  autumn  equinox  and  the  Divali  are  kept 
with  dance,  song,  and  feasting.  In  the  month  of  Shravan  a  stone 
representing  the  small-pox  goddess  is  worshipped,  and  the  first  of  the 
young  grass  is  cut,  with  feasting  in  the  god-yard.  The  harvest  (October- 
November)  is  marked  by  a  feast  in  honour  of  Babadeo,  the  '  father- 
god,'  who  has  a  special  seat  at  Deogarh  Bariya  in  the  Rewa  Kantha 
Agency,  where  the  badvas  resort  for  a  month   in  every  twelfth  year. 


THE  BHIL   TRIBES  103 

Occasional  sacrifices  known  as  in  or  jatar  are  offered  to  stay  an 
epidemic.  Another  method  is  to  pass  on  a  scapegoat  and  a  toy  cart, 
into  which  the  disease  has  been  charmed,  from  village  to  village.  The 
women  steal  and  kill  a  buffalo  from  the  next  village  as  a  charm  for  rain. 
The  chief  domestic  rites  take  place  at  marriage  and  death.  Marriage 
is  commonly  between  adults,  and  may  be  arranged  either  by  themselves 
or  by  the  parents.  There  is  a  sort  of  Gretna  Green  at  Posina  in  Mahl 
Kantha.  Betrothal  is  sealed  with  draughts  of  liquor.  A  bride  price  is 
usual,  but  may  be  paid  off  by  personal  service  for  a  term  of  years, 
during  which  husband  and  wife  are  allowed  to  live  together.  Sexual 
licence  before  marriage  is  connived  at,  and  the  marriage  tie  is  loose ; 
not  only  is  divorce  or  second  marriage  easy  for  the  husband,  but  a  wife 
may  live  with  any  other  man  who  is  willing  to  keep  her  and  to  repay 
to  her  husband  his  marriage  expenses.  Widow  marriage  is  common, 
especially  with  the  husband's  younger  brother.  The  dead  are  disposed 
of  either  by  burning  or  by  burial.  The  former  method  is  the  com- 
moner, but  the  latter  seems  the  more  primitive,  and  is  always  employed 
in  the  case  of  young  children  or  those  who  have  died  of  small-pox. 
Cooked  food  is  placed  on  the  bier  and  left  half-way  to  the  burning  or 
burial-ground.  In  case  of  burial  the  head  is  laid  to  the  south  and  food 
put  in  the  mouth.  The  grave  of  a  chief  is  opened  after  two  months 
and  the  face  of  the  dead  man  painted  with  red  lead,  after  which  the 
grave  is  again  closed.  A  stone  carved  with  a  human  figure  on  horse- 
back is  set  up  in  the  god-yard  to  the  memory  of  any  leading  Bhll. 
A  death-dinner  (kaitd)  takes  place  as  soon  after  the  death  as  the  family 
can  afford  it,  the  guests  sometimes  numbering  two  or  three  thousand. 
Throughout  the  feast  the  raval  sings  songs,  and  offerings  are  made  to 
a  small  brazen  horse  which  is  held  on  a  salver  by  the  chief  mourner, 
and  is  the  vehicle  for  the  ghost  of  the  dead  man.  The  Bhils  believe 
firmly  in  omens,  witchcraft,  and  the  evil  eye,  to  which  last  they  trace 
most  cases  of  sickness. 

In  Central  India  there  are  more  than  100  exogamous  divisions  of 
the  Bhils.  They  may  in  theory  marry  freely  outside  the  exogamous 
section,  but  in  practice  the  Manpur  and  Satpura  Bhils  rarely  inter- 
marry. Tattooing  is  common,  but  the  sept  totem  may  not  be  repre- 
sented. The  hereditary  headman  is  known  as  tarvi.  When  perform- 
ing the  death  ceremony,  he  wears  a  janeo,  made  of  coarse  thread. 
This  is  the  only  occasion  on  which  the  sacred  thread  is  worn.  The 
Bhils  here  seldom  eat  beef. 

In  Rajputana  the  Bhils  differ  little  from  the  main  body  of  the  tribe 
found  within  the  limits  of  the  Bombay  Presidency.  They  are  most 
numerous  in  the  south  and  south-west,  but  are  found  everywhere  except 
in  the  eastern  States.  In  1901  two-thirds  of  them  were  in  the 
two  States   of  Mewar   and   Banswara.     The  practice  of  marking  the 


io4  THE  BHIL   TRIBES 


brow  of  a  new  Rajput  chief,  alluded  to  above,  was  formerly  followed 
in  Mewar,  1  )ungarpur,  and  Banswara,  but  fell  into  desuetude  in  the 
fifteenth  century.  The  reclamation  of  the  Rajputana  Bhils  was  con- 
temporaneous with  the  formation  of  the  Khandesh  Bhil  Agencies,  and 
was  followed  sixteen  years  later  by  the  establishment  of  the  Mewar  Bhil 
Corps,  which  was  one  of  the  few  native  regiments  in  Rajputana  that 
stood  by  their  British  officers  during  the  Mutiny.  Service  in  the 
Mewar  Bhil  Corps  is  now  so  popular  that  the  supply  of  recruits  largely 
exceeds  the  demand.  The  Mewar  Bhils  consider  themselves  superior 
to  the  Central  Indian  Bhils,  and  will  neither  eat  nor  intermarry  with 
them.  With  the  Gujarat  Bhils,  on  the  other  hand,  intermarriage  is 
permitted. 

The  Bhilalas,  or  mixed  Bhil  and  Rajput  tribes,  numbered  144,423  in 
1 901,  being  found  for  the  most  part  within  the  limits  of  Central  India, 
in  the  States  of  the  Bhopawar  Agency.  The  higher  classes  of  Bhilalas 
differ  in  no  essential  points  from  Hindus  of  the  lower  orders,  on 
whom,  however,  they  profess  to  look  down.  They  have  neither  the 
simplicity  nor  the  truthfulness  of  the  pure  Bhil.  They  are  the  local 
aristocracy  of  the  Vindhyas,  and  the  so-called  Bhumia  landowners  in 
Bhopawar  are  all  of  this  class,  the  Raja  of  Onkar  Mandhata  in  the 
Central  Provinces  being  regarded  as  their  leading  representative.  In 
Central  India  the  Bhilalas  consist  of  two  main  groups,  the  Badi  and 
Chhoti,  which  do  not  intermarry,  but  are  divided  into  numerous  exo- 
gamous  septs.  They  eat  flesh,  except  beef,  but  their  usual  food  is 
millet  bread  and  jungle  produce,  with  rabri  or  maize  boiled  in 
buttermilk.  Like  the  Bhils,  they  are  firm  believers  in  omens  and 
witchcraft.  Their  most  sacred  oath  is  by  Rewa  mata,  the  tutelary 
goddess  of  the  Narbada  river. 

Bhilavdi  (Bhil audi). — Village  in  the  Tasgaon  tdluka  of  Satara 
District,  Bombay,  situated  in  160  59'  N.  and  740  28'  E.,  on  the  left 
bank  of  the  Kistna,  facing  the  village  of  Akalkhop,  9  miles  west  of 
Tasgaon.  Population  (1901),  7,651.  There  is  a  large  export  trade 
in  ghi,  and  the  inhabitants  are  in  comfortable  circumstances.  Near 
by  is  a  temple  of  Bhavaneshwari,  which  is  reputed  to  work  miraculous 
cures.     The  village  contains  a  good  primary  school. 

Bhilodia  Chhatrasinghji. — Petty  State  in  Rewa  Kantha,  Bombay. 

Bhilodia  Motisinghji. — Petty  State  in  Rewa  Kantha,  Bombay. 

Bhilolpur. — Town  in  the  Samrala  tahstloi  Ludhiana  District,  Punjab. 
See  Bahlolpur. 

Bhilsa  Zila. — A  district  of  Gwalior  State,  Central  India,  lying 
between  230  21/  and  240  4'  N.  and  770  25'  and  780  21'  E.,  with  an  area 
of  1,625  square  miles.  This  tract  was  of  some  importance  in  early 
days,  and  it  contains  considerable  remains  of  archaeological  and 
historical    interest,    especially    at    Bhilsa,    Gyaraspur,    Udayapur, 


BHILSA    TOWN  105 

Udayagiri,  and  Baro.  In  the  time  of  Akbar  it  was  one  of  the  mahah 
of  the  sarkar  of  Raisen  in  the  Subah  of  Malwa.  The  population  in 
1 90 1  was  120,189,  giving  a  density  of  74  persons  per  square  mile.  The 
district  contains  one  town,  Bhilsa  (population,  7,481),  the  head-quarters  ; 
and  708  villages.  It  is  divided  into  two  parganas,  with  head-quarters  at 
Bhilsa  and  Basoda.  The  land  revenue  is  Rs.  3,32,000.  The  district, 
which  lies  on  the  Malwa  plateau,  is  well  drained  by  the  Betwa  and  its 
numerous  tributaries.  It  is  for  the  most  part  covered  with  fertile  black 
soil,  producing  excellent  wheat  and  tobacco  ;  but  on  the  eastern  border 
an  arm  of  the  Vindhyas  runs  from  north  to  south,  in  which  the  sand- 
stones are  well  exposed.  The  forest  along  this  range  is  'reserved.'  The 
mediatized  holding  of  Agra-Barkhera  {see  Gwalior  Residency)  is  in 
this  district. 

Bhilsa  Town  {Bhelsa). — Head-quarters  of  the  district  of  the  same 
name  in  Gwalior  State,  Central  India,  situated  in  230  31'  N.  and  770 
49'  E.,  on  the  Midland  section  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway, 
535  miles  from  Bombay.  Population  (1901),  7,481.  The  town  stands 
on  the  east  bank  of  the  Betwa  river,  1,546  feet  above  the  level  of  the 
sea.  The  existing  buildings  are  entirely  Muhammadan  in  character, 
though  numerous  remains  of  an  earlier  period  have  been  used  in  con- 
structing the  city  wall,  mosques,  houses,  and  wells.  The  houses  are 
usually  built  of  the  local  sandstone,  and  are  substantial  in  appearance  ; 
but  many  are  empty,  and  the  whole  town  has  an  air  of  departed  grandeur. 
The  wall  is  pierced  by  three  gates :  the  Raisen  Gate  on  the  south,  the 
Besh  Gate  on  the  west,  and  the  Gandhi  Gate  on  the  north-east.  The 
only  buildings  of  importance  are  the  Vijaya  Mandir  and  a  modern 
temple  erected  in  1833  by  a  former  Subah.  The  Vijaya  Mandir,  though 
still  known  by  this  name,  is  in  fact  a  mosque,  which  was  erected  on  the 
site  of  the  former  temple  by  Aurangzeb  in  1682.  There  is  still,  how- 
ever, enough  left  of  the  fine  platform  and  general  plan  of  the  temple  to 
show  that  it  must  originally  have  been  a  building  of  considerable  merit. 
On  the  Lohangi  rock  which  overlooks  the  town  stand  several  buildings, 
a  tomb  to  Lohangi  Plr,  and  a  small  mosque  with  two  inscriptions, 
erected  respectively  by  Mahmud  Khiljl  I  of  Malwa,  dated  1460, 
and  by  Akbar,  dated   1583. 

The  remains  in  the  neighbourhood  are  more  than  ordinarily  interesting. 
The  earliest  consist  of  a  series  of  sixty  Buddhist  stitpas  or  monumental 
tumuli,  many  of  which  contained  relic  caskets.  These  buildings  date 
from  the  third  century  b.c.  to  the  first  century  a.  d.,  the  most  important 
being  that  at  Sanchi,  while  others  have  been  found  at  the  adjacent 
villages  of  Andheri,  Bhojpur,  Satdhara,  and  Sonarl  in  Bhopal  State,  all 
lying  within  a  radius  of  12  miles  of  Bhilsa.     Fergusson  remarks  that — 

'  We  are  not  justified  in  assuming  from  the  greater  extent  of  this  group, 
as  now  existing,  that  it  possessed  the  same  pre-eminence  in  Buddhist 


106  BHILSA    TOWN 

days.  It  may  only  be  that,  situated  in  a  remote  and  thinly  peopled 
part  of  India,  they  have  not  hern  exposed  to  the  destructive  energy 
of  opposing  sects  of  the  Hindu  religion.' 

It  is  possible,  however,  that  the  central  position  of  Bhilsa  added  to  its 
importance.  It  lies  where  the  old  route  from  SravastI  to  Paithana 
crossed  that  from  Magadha  to  Sovlra  ;  and,  as  other  examples  show, 
such  places  were  always  favourite  sites  for  the  erection  of  stupas. 

North-west  of  Bhilsa,  in  the  fork  formed  by  the  Betwa  and  Besh 
rivers,  is  the  site  of  the  old  city  of  Beshnagar,  identified  with  the 
Vessanagara  or  Chaityagiri  of  the  Pali  records.  The  city  appears  to 
have  existed  in  the  time  of  Asoka,  if  not  earlier.  Coins  of  the  Ujjain 
type,  of  the  Western  Satraps,  the  Nagas  of  Narwar,  and  the  Guptas  have 
been  found  here.  Tradition  connects  the  place  with  Raja  Rukmangada, 
who,  neglecting  his  own  wife  for  the  Apsara  Visva,  named  the  city 
Visvanagar  after  her.  A  festival  called  the  Rukmangada  Ekadasi  is 
held  here  yearly  in  Kartik  (October).  Fragments  of  Buddhist  railings 
and  other  remains  are  still  lying  on  the  site,  though  many  carved 
stones  appear  to  have  been  taken  to  Bhilsa  for  building  purposes. 
One  railing  is  inscribed  in  characters  of  the  Asoka  period. 

By  Hindus  the  town  is  always  called  Bhelsa.  A  fragmentary  inscrip- 
tion inserted  in  the  city  wall  records  the  erection  on  the  VetravatI 
(Betwa)  river  of  a  temple  to  the  Sun  as  Bhaillesha,  from  which  title  both 
forms  of  the  name  are  derived.  In  Brahmanical  religious  observances 
the  place  is  called  Bhadravati,  and  is  identified  with  the  residence  of 
Yuvanashva,  who  supplied  the  famous  horse  sacrificed  by  Yudhishthira. 
The  Jain  scriptures  use  the  form  Bhadalpur,  and  regard  it  as  the  birth- 
place of  Sital  Nath,  the  tenth  Tirthankar,  whose  birthday  is  still  com- 
memorated here  by  a  yearly  feast. 

In  historical  times  Bhilsa,  or  more  probably  the  older  city  of  Beshnagar 
or  Vessanagara,  was  a  place  of  importance  as  early  as  the  days  of  Asoka 
(third  century  B.C.),  when  the  numerous  Buddhist  monuments  in  the 
neighbourhood  were  erected.  If  the  identification  with  Vidisha  be 
correct,  it  subsequently  became  the  capital  of  Eastern  Malwa,  and  was 
the  head-quarters  of  the  Sunga  prince  Agnimitra.  Bhilsa  first  appears 
in  Muhammadan  writings  as  Mahabalistan  in  Alberunl's  description 
of  India,  where  it  is  said  to  be  in  Malwa,  10  parasangs  distant  from 
Ujjain.  In  1235  Bhilsa  was  attacked  and  sacked  by  Altamsh,  and  in 
1290  Ala-ud-dln  captured  the  town.  In  1532  it  was  plundered  by 
Bahadur  Shah  of  Gujarat.  Under  Akbar  it  formed  the  head-quarters 
of  one  of  the  mahals  of  the  sarkar  of  Raisen  in  the  Subah  of  Malwa. 
The  religious  intolerance  of  Aurangzeb  led  to  the  destruction  of  the 
fine  Vijaya  Mandir  and  many  other  temples  in  1682.  At  the  same  time 
the  town  was  renamed  Alamglrpur,  but  the  new  name  never  came  into 
general  use.     In  the  eighteenth  century  it  was  granted  by  Sawai  Jai 


BHIMA  107 

Singh  of  Jaipur,  then  governor  of  Malwa,  to  the  Nawab  of  Bhopal,  but 
passed  soon  after  into  the  possession  of  the  Peshwa.  It  came  into 
Sindhia's  hands  in  1775,  and  has  since  formed  part  of  Gwalior  State. 
A  combined  British  post  and  telegraph  office,  a  State  post  office,  a 
school,  a  sarai,  and  a  dispensary  are  situated  in  the  town. 

[A.  Cunningham,  Archaeological Survey  Reports,  vol.  x,  p.  34  ;  Journal 
of  the  Bombay  Asiatic  Society,  vol.  xxxi,  p.  1 1 1  ;  and  J.  Fergusson, 
Indian  and  Eastern  Architecture.  ] 

Bhilwara. — Head-quarters  of  a  zila  or  district  of  the  same  name  in 
the  State  of  Udaipur,  Rajputana,  situated  in  250  21'  N.  and  740  39'  E., 
about  80  miles  north-east  of  Udaipur  city.  Half  a  mile  to  the  west 
is  the  station  of  Bhilwara  on  the  Rajputana-Malwa  Railway.  The  town 
is  the  second  largest  in  the  State,  having  a  population  (1901)  of  10,346, 
of  whom  nearly  75  per  cent,  are  Hindus  and  16  per  cent.  Musalmans. 
It  is  noted  for  the  excellence  and  durability  of  its  tinned  utensils,  which 
are  largely  exported.  There  was  formerly  a  mint  here,  the  coins  being 
called  Bhilari ;  they  are  still  current  in  parts  of  Mewar  and,  till  quite 
recently,  circulated  largely  in  the  Sirohi  State.  A  ginning  factory  and 
cotton-press,  belonging  to  the  Darbar,  gives  employment  to  about  600 
hands  daily  during  the  working  season.  On  an  average  12,000  to 
13,000  bales  (of  400  lb.  each)  of  cotton  and  wool  are  pressed  yearly, 
but  in  1904  the  number  was  only  3,297.  An  Anglo-vernacular  middle 
school  maintained  by  the  Darbar  is  attended  by  92  boys,  while  a  primary 
girls'  school,  kept  up  by  the  United  Free  Church  Mission,  has  about 
20  pupils.  There  are  also  a  combined  post  and  telegraph  office  and 
a  hospital.  In  several  places  in  the  district  garnets  and  carbuncles 
are  found. 

Bhima  (Sanskrit,  'The  Terrible,'  one  of  the  names  of  Parvatl). — 
A  river  of  Southern  India.  It  rises  at  the  well-known  shrine  of  BhTma- 
shankar  (190  4'  N.  and  730  32'  E.)  in  the  Western  Ghats,  and  flows 
south-eastwards,  with  many  windings,  through  or  along  the  boundary 
of  the  Bombay  Districts  of  Poona,  Sholapur,  and  Bijapur,  for  about 
340  miles,  till  it  enters  the  Nizam's  Dominions,  w-here  after  a  farther 
course  of  176  miles  it  eventually  falls  into  the  Kistna,  about  16  miles 
north  of  Raichur.  The  first  40  miles  of  its  course  lie  in  a  narrow  and 
rugged  valley,  but  farther  east  the  banks  are  low  and  alluvial,  though 
broken  here  and  there  by  dikes  of  rock.  In  the  dry  season  the  stream 
is  narrow  and  sluggish.  At  Ranjangaon  the  Bhima  receives  on  the 
right  the  combined  waters  of  the  Mula  and  Mutha  from  Poona,  and 
about  15  miles  farther,  on  the  left  bank,  the  Ghod  river  from  the 
northern  side  of  the  Bhlmashankar  hills.  Not  far  from  Tembhurni  it  is 
joined  on  the  right  bank  by  the  Nlra  from  the  Bhor  State,  and,  after 
passing  the  holy  city  of  Pandharpur,  receives  on  the  right  bank  the  Man 
from  the   Mahadeo   hills,  and   on  the  left  the  Sina,  which  rises  near 


10S  BHIMA 

Ahmadnagar.  There  are  important  irrigation  works  on  the  Mutha, 
Nira,  and  Sina.  Near  Wadi  junction  (Hyderabad  State)  the  Bhima 
is  joined  on  the  left  by  the  Kagna  river. 

Bhimashankar. — Fort  in  the  village  of  Bhovargiri  in  the  Khed 
taluka  of  Poona  District,  Bombay,  situated  in  190  4'  N.  and  730  32'  E., 
at  the  source  of  the  Bhima  river,  about  30  miles  north-west  of  Khed, 
possessing  a  famous  temple  of  Mahadeo,  said  to  be  one  of  the  twelve 
great  lingams  of  India.  Bhimashankar  is  at  the  crest  of  the  Western 
Ghats,  3,448  feet  above  sea-level.  Here,  in  a  dip  in  the  hill-top,  sur- 
rounded by  three  or  four  wooded  heights,  is  the  holy  source  from 
which  the  Bhima  flows  in  a  tiny  stream  into  a  cistern.  Close  to  the 
cistern  are  two  temples  of  Mahadeo,  one  old  and  out  of  repair  and 
the  other  modern,  commenced  by  the  famous  Poona  minister  Nana 
Farnavls  (1 764-1800)  and  finished  by  his  widow.  The  old  temple  is 
a  plain,  solid  structure  built  of  dark  stone,  with  a  vaulted  roof  much  like 
the  Norman  crypts  often  found  under  English  cathedrals  and  abbeys. 
In  the  hall  or  mandapa  is  a  rough  stone  bull,  while  in  the  shrine  a 
metal  figure  with  five  heads  represents  the  god  Bhimashankar.  Hung 
on  an  iron  bar  supported  between  two  strong  stone  pillars,  to  the  east 
of  the  old  temple,  is  a  large  bell  weighing  three  to  four  hundredweight. 
Embossed  on  the  face  of  the  bell  is  a  minute  human  figure,  perhaps 
the  Virgin  Mary,  with  a  Maltese  cross  above  and  the  figures  1729  below, 
showing  the  year  in  which  the  bell  was  cast.  The  bell  is  worshipped 
by  the  people,  and  the  cross,  the  human  figure,  and  the  date  are  painted 
with  red  pigment.  According  to  tradition,  the  bell  was  brought  from 
Vasind  near  Kalyan  in  Thana,  probably  from  some  Portuguese  church 
or  convent,  about  1739,  when  Bassein  was  taken  by  the  Marathas.  The 
old  temple  was  originally  much  larger  than  it  now  is,  as  its  size  was 
greatly  reduced  to  make  room  for  the  new  temple  of  Nana  Farnavls. 
The  latter  is  also  built  of  dark  stone,  and  the  spire  rises  in  the  form  of 
a  cone  surmounted  by  a  pinnacle.  All  round  the  outer  wall  of  the 
lower  part  of  the  temple  runs  a  row  of  small  figures  and  gods  in  niches. 
The  east  front  of  the  temple  has  much  ornamental  work.  The  rain 
dripping  from  the  cement  over  the  door  has  formed  fringes  of  stalactites 
which  harmonize  with  the  fretwork,  effectively  combining  nature  and 
art  in  the  decoration  of  the  temple  front.  A  yearly  fair,  attended 
by  about  25,000  pilgrims  from  all  parts  of  the  Deccan  and  the  Konkan, 
is  held  on  Mahasivratri  in  February-March  and  lasts  for  two  or 
three  days. 

Two  legends  explain  the  origin  of  the  holiness  of  Bhimashankar. 
According  to  one,  while  Mahadeo  was  resting  after  a  successful  but 
fatiguing  contest  with  a  demon  named  Tripurasur,  Bhlmak,  a  mythic 
king  of  Oudh  of  the  Solar  line,  came  to  do  penance  before  the  god  and 
ask  forgiveness  for  wounding,  during  a  hunt,  two  sages  in  the  form  of 


BHIMTHADI  109 

a  deer.  Siva  pardoned  Bhlmak  and  offered  to  grant  him  any  boon  he 
desired.  Bhlmak  asked  that  the  sweat  which  was  still  fresh  on  Siva's 
brow  might  be  changed  into  a  river  for  the  good  of  mankind.  Accord- 
ing to  the  other  legend,  the  place  first  came  into  repute  about  the  middle 
of  the  fourteenth  century  after  Christ.  When  cutting  timber  in  the 
BhTmashankar  valley  one  Bhati  Rao  found  blood  gushing  out  of  one  of 
the  trees.  Bhati  Rao  brought  his  cow  to  the  tree  and  dropped  her  milk 
on  the  stump  and  the  wound  healed  in  one  night.  A  lingam  of  Maha- 
deo  came  out  of  the  tree  and  Bhati  Rao  built  a  shrine  on  the  spot. 

Bhimavaram  Taluk. — Inland  taluk  of  Kistna  District,  Madras, 
lying  between  160  25'  and  160  47'  N.  and  8i°  19'  and  8i°  43'  E.,  in  the 
delta  of  the  Godavari.  Area,  325  square  miles;  population  (1901), 
144,615,  compared  with  121,994  in  1891.  It  contains  134  villages,  of 
which  Bhimavaram  is  the  head-quarters.  The  demand  on  account  of 
land  revenue  and  cesses  in  1903-4  amounted  to  Rs.  7,69,000.  At 
Undi,  in  the  centre  of  the  taluk,  coarse  woollen  blankets  are  woven. 
Rice  is  almost  the  only  crop. 

Bhimbar. — Torrent  in  Gujrat  District,  Punjab.  Rising  in  the 
Outer  Himalayan  range,  it  drains  a  considerable  valley  within  the 
mountain  region,  passes  round  the  Pabbi  hills,  runs  due  south  for 
25  miles,  and  fertilizes  a  low  fringe  of  land  upon  its  banks.  Four  miles 
north-west  of  Gujrat  town  it  loses  itself  in  the  surface  of  the  country, 
moistening  and  enriching  the  surrounding  plain ;  it  collects  again  near 
the  village  of  Harialwala,  and  runs  north-west  until  it  reaches  the  Jalalia 
nullah,  a  branch  of  the  Chenab.  The  Bhimbar  is  an  unmanageable 
stream  during  the  rains,  but  completely  dry  in  the  winter  months, 
leaving  its  bed  a  broad  waste  of  sand.  It  is  fordable  at  all  points, 
except  for  some  hours  after  heavy  rains  in  the  hills. 

Bhimkund. — A  large  earthen  basin  formed  by  a  waterfall  of  the 
Khan  river  about  70  feet  high  in  the  tdluka  of  Dohad,  Panch  Mahals 
District,  Bombay,  situated  in  220  45'  N.  and  740  19'  E.,  5  miles 
south  of  Dohad.  Here,  four  days  before  the  Holi  festival  (March), 
come  thousands  of  Bhlls,  some  of  them  from  considerable  distances. 
Those  who  have  during  the  year  lost  friends,  relations,  or  parents,  bring 
their  ashes  with  them  and  throw  them  into  the  pool.  Then  they  wash, 
and,  going  to  Brahmans,  who  are  always  present  in  great  numbers,  have 
a  red  spot  marked  on  the  brow,  and  in  return  give  some  small  present 
in  money  or  grain.  Then  drinking  begins,  and,  if  money  lasts  so  long, 
is  kept  up  for  about  a  fortnight. 

Bhimora. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhimsena. — River  in  Sylhet  District,  Assam.     See  Surma. 

Bhimthadi. —  Tdluka  ofPoona  District,  Bombay,  including  the  petty 
subdivision  (petha)  of  Dhond,  lying  between  180  2'  and  180  40'  N.  and 
74°  9'  and  740  51'  E.,  with  an  area  of  1,036  square  miles.     It  contains 


no  BHIMTHADI 

one  town,  Baramati  (population,  9,407),  the  head-quarters;  and  128 
villages,  including  Pandare  (5,254).  The  population  in  1901  was 
123,568,  compared  with  140,281  in  1891.  The  density,  119  persons 
per  square  mile,  is  much  below  the  District  average.  The  demand  for 
land  revenue  in  1903-4  was  2-5  lakhs  and  for  cesses  Rs.  17,500.  The 
only  hill  of  note  is  that  occupied  by  the  ancient  temple  of  Bhuleshwar. 
The  flat  hill-tops  have  usually  a  surface  of  shallow  black  soil  strewn 
with  stones.  Many  villages  near  the  Bhlma  and  Nira  rivers  possess 
deep  rich  black  soil.  The  Mutha  canals  water  a  considerable  area  of 
the  taluka.  The  climate  is  dry  and  airy.  The  annual  rainfall  varies 
from  19  inches  at  Dhond  to  23  in  Baramati. 

Bhind  Zila. — North-eastern  district  of  the  Gwalior  State,  Central 
India,  lying  between  230  33'  and  260  48'  N.  and  780  33' and  79°8/  E., 
with  an  area  of  1,554  square  miles.  It  is  bounded  on  the  north  and 
north-east  by  the  Chambal  river,  which  separates  it  from  the  British 
Districts  of  Agra  and  Etawah  ;  on  the  east  by  the  Pahuj  river,  which 
separates  it  from  Jalaun  and  Jhansi  Districts  ;  on  the  south  by  the 
Datia  State  and  Jhansi  District ;  and  on  the  west  by  the  Gwalior  Gird 
district.  The  population  in  1901  was  394,461,  giving  a  density  of 
254  persons  per  square  mile.  The  district  contains  two  towns,  Bhind 
(population,  8,032),  the  head-quarters,  and  Bhander  (5,133) ;  and  819 
villages.  It  is  divided  into  four  parganas,  with  head-quarters  at  Bhind, 
Mahgawan,  Lahar,  and  Bhander.  The  land  revenue  is  Rs.  11,65,000. 
The  soil  is  fertile,  and  the  district  is  well  drained  by  the  Chambal  and 
Sind  rivers  and  the  tributary  streams  of  the  Kunwari  and  Pahuj. 

Bhind  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  district  of  the  same  name  in 
Gwalior  State,  Central  India,  situated  in  2 6°  33'  N.  and  7  8°  48'  E.,, 
at  the  terminus  of  the  Gwalior-Bhind  branch  of  the  State  Railway. 
Population  (1931),  8,032.  Bhind  is  locally  known  as  Bhind- Bhadawar, 
having  been  originally  the  chief  seat  of  the  Bhadauria  Rajputs,  a  branch 
of  the  Chauhan  clan,  who  claim  to  have  held  it  for  twenty-two  genera- 
tions. In  the  eighteenth  century  it  fell  to  Sindhia.  The  town  contains 
several  buildings  of  interest  and  a  lake,  the  Gauri  Tal,  surrounded  by 
fine  g/idts,  on  the  bank  of  which  stands  the  temple  of  Vyankateshwar 
Mahadeo.  A  dispensary,  a  jail,  a  school,  an  inspection  bungalow,  a 
State  post  office,  and  the  usual  offices  are  also  situated  here.  There 
are  two  ginning  factories  and  a  cotton-press  in  the  town.  The  export 
of  cotton  and  the  manufacture  of  brass-ware  form  the  staple  industries. 
Local  affairs  are  managed  by  a  municipality  constituted  in  1902,  the 
income  being  about  Rs.  800. 

Bhindar. — Chief  town  of  an  estate  of  the  same  name  in  the  State 
of  Udaipur,  Rajputana,  situated  in  240  30'  N.  and  740  n'  E.,  about 
32  miles  east-by-south-east  of  Udaipur  city.  The  town,  which  is 
walled  and  surrounded  by  a  ditch,  contains  (1901)  5,172  inhabitants, 


BHINMAL  1 1 1 

of  whom  over  67  per  cent,  are  Hindus  and  about  19  per  cent.  Jains. 
The  estate  includes  the  town  and  101  villages,  and  is  held  by  one  of 
the  first-class  nobles  of  Mewar,  who  is  styled  Maharaj,  and  is  the  head 
of  the  Shaktawat  family  of  the  Sesodia  clan  of  Rajputs.  The  income 
of  Bhindar  is  Rs.  48,000,  and  a  tribute  of  about  Rs.  3,200  is  paid 
to  the  Darbar. 

Bhinga. — Town  in  the  District  and  tahsil  of  Bahraich,  United 
Provinces,  situated  in  27°  42'  N.  and  8i°  56'  E.,  near  the  Rapti.  Popu- 
lation (1901),  5,972.  It  is  said  to  have  been  founded  in  the  sixteenth 
century,  but  was  an  unimportant  village  until  acquired  by  Bhawani 
Singh  Bisen,  a  brother  of  the  Raja,  of  Gonda,  about  1720.  An  old 
fort  is  the  ancestral  home  of  the  talukdar,  who  owns  a  large  estate 
in  the  neighbourhood ;  but  the  present  talukdar,  the  Raja  of  Bhinga, 
lives  in  retirement  at  Benares.  The  town  contains  a  dispensary  and 
a  branch  of  the  American  Methodist  Mission.  It  was  administered  as 
a  municipality  from  1883  to  1904,  when  its  constitution  was  changed 
to  that  of  a  '  notified  area.'  During  the  ten  years  ending  1901  the 
income  and  expenditure  averaged  Rs.  3,000.  In  1903-4  the  income 
was  Rs.  6,500,  including  a  grant  of  Rs.  2,500  from  Provincial  revenues  ; 
and  the  expenditure  was  Rs.  5,000.  The  principal  trade  is  in  grain, 
which  is  sent  by  road  to  Bahraich.  An  increasing  amount  of  timber 
is  exported,  chiefly  down  the  Rapti.  There  are  two  schools  with 
200  pupils. 

Bhingar. — Town  in  the  District  and  taluka  of  Ahmadnagar,  Bombay, 
situated  in  190  6'  N.  and  740  45'  E.,  adjoining  the  cantonment  of 
Ahmadnagar.  Population  (1901),  5,722,  including  a  hamlet  of  697. 
Bhingar  has  a  considerable  weaving  industry,  a  large  proportion  of  the 
inhabitants  being  skilled  weavers.  The  municipality,  ounded  in  1857, 
had  an  average  revenue  during  the  decade  ending  1901  of  Rs.  5,500. 
In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  8,500,  including  a  loan  of  Rs.  2,500 
from  Government. 

Bhinmal. — Town  in  the  Jaswantpura  district  of  the  State  of 
Jodhpur,  Rajputana,  situated  in  250  N.  and  760  160  E.,  about 
105  miles  south-west  of  Jodhpur  city.  Population  (1901),  4,545. 
The  town  contains  a  post  office  and  a  vernacular  school,  and  the 
principal  manufactures  are  utensils  of  bell-metal.  The  place  was  the 
old  capital  of  the  Gujars  between  the  sixth  and  ninth  centuries,  but 
very  few  traces  now  remain.  A  dozen  old  tanks  and  wells,  the  stone 
image  of  a  king  seated  on  a  sinhdsan  (lion-supported  throne),  and  a 
number  of  temples,  are  of  some  antiquarian  interest.  Sanskrit  inscrip- 
tions have  been  found,  referring  mostly  to  the  time  of  the  Paramara 
and  Chauhan  rulers.  About  14  miles  to  the  south-east  is  the  Sunda 
hill,  presided  over  by  the  goddess  Chamunda  in  a  rock-cut  cave-like 
temple,  having  a  large  domed  and  marble-paved  hall,  built  in  1262,  and 


ii2  BHINMAL 

containing  several  inscriptions,  the  oldest  of  which  (of  the  same  date 
as  the  temple)  is  important  as  enumerating  nineteen  generations  and 
the  principal  events  of  the  Sonigara  (Chauhan)  rule. 

Bhir  District  (Blr). — District  in  the  Aurangabad  Division,  Hyder- 
abad State,  lying  between  i8°  28'  and  19°  27'  N.  and  740  54'  and 
760  57'  E.,  with  a  total  area  of  4,460  square  miles.  It  is  bounded 
on  the  west  and  north  by  the  Bombay  District  of  Ahmadnagar 
and  Aurangabad ;  on  the  north-east  by  Parbhani  ;  on  the  east  by 
Nander  and  Bldar ;  and  on  the  south  by  Osmanabad.  The  area  of  the 
khalsa  and  sarf-i-khas  ('crown')  lands  is  3,926  square  miles,  the  rest 
being  jaglr.  The  1  )istrict  is  divided  into  two  portions  :  the  Balaghat 
or  highlands  forming  the  south  and  east,  and  the  Payanghat  or 
lowlands.  The  taluks  of  Kaij,  Amba,  Bhir,  and  Patoda  lie  partly  on 
the  Balaghat,  while  the  remaining  taluks  are  all  situated  on  the  low- 
lands. A  low  spur  of  the  Western  Ghats  traverses  the  district  from 
Ahmadnagar  to  Amba. 

The  largest  river  is  the  Godavari,  which  forms  the  northern  boundary, 

separating   Bhir  from  Aurangabad.      Other  streams 

Physical  which   cross   the   District  are  the   Manjra,  the  Sind- 

phana    and    its    tributary  the     Bendsura,    and    the 

Vijarta.     The  first  two  rise  in  the  Patoda  taluk,  and  are  tributaries  of 

the  Godavari. 

The  District  is  situated  within  the  Deccan  trap  area.  In  the  valleys 
of  the  Godavari  and  some  of  its  tributaries  the  trap  is  overlaid  by 
gravels  and  clay  beds  of  upper  pliocene  or  pleistocene  age,  containing 
fossil  bones  of  extinct  mammalia. 

Owing  to  the  small  extent  of  jungles  large  game  is  rare,  though  tigers 
are  occasionally  met  with  in  some  of  the  wooded  hills.  Antelope, 
hyenas,   wild  hog,  wolves,  bears,  and  leopards  are  common. 

The  climate  is  generally  healthy  and  temperate.  Patoda,  on  the 
Balaghat,  is  the  highest  part  and  is  cool  even  in  the  hot  season. 
The  climate  of  Bhir,  Mazalgaon,  and  Gevrai,  on  the  lowlands,  is  warm 
and  humid. 

The  annual  rainfall  averages  30  inches.  The  amount  received  in 
1899  (15  inches)  and  1900  (20  inches)  was  exceedingly  deficient  and 
resulted  in  the  great  famine  of  1900. 

According  to  tradition,  Bhir  was  called  Durgavati  during  the  time  of 
the  Pandavas  and  Kurus,  and  its  name  was  subsequently  changed 
to  Balni ;  but  Champavati,  Vikramaditya's  sister, 
after  capturing  it,  called  it  Champavatinagar.  Nothing 
definite  is  known  of  its  history,  but  it  must  have  been  included  succes- 
sively in  the  kingdoms  of  the  Andhras,  the  Chalukyas,  the  Rashtra- 
kutas,  and  the  Yadavas  of  Deogiri,  from  whom  it  passed  to  the 
Muhammadan  kings  of  Delhi.     About  1326  Muhammad  bin  Tughlak 


BHIR  DISTRICT 


113 


changed  the  name  of  Champavatinagar  to  Bhir.  After  the  death  of 
Muhammad  bin  Tughlak,  the  town  fell  successively  to  the  Bahmani, 
the  Nizam  Shahi,  and  the  Adil  Shahi  kingdoms.  The  Mughals 
eventually  captured  Bhir  in  1635,  and  annexed  the  country  to  Delhi, 
but  it  was  again  separated  on  the  foundation  of  the  Hyderabad  State 
early  in  the  eighteenth  century. 

The  chief  places  of  archaeological  interest  are  the  forts  and  buildings 
at  Bhir.  At  Dharur  there  is  a  fort  built  by  the  Ahmadnagar  kings, 
and  a  mosque  built  in  the  Hindu  style  of  architecture  by  one  of 
Muhammad  bin  Tughlak's  generals.  Amba  contains  a  temple 
dedicated  to  Jogai.  The  temple  of  Baijnath  at  Parli  is  a  celebrated 
place  of  Hindu  pilgrimage. 

The  number  of  towns  and  villages,  including  jagirs,  is  1,004.  The 
population  at  each  Census  was:  (1881)  558,345,  (1891)  642,722,  and 
(1901)  492,258,  the  decrease  during  the  last  decade 
being  due  to  the  famine  of  1900.  The  towns  are 
Bhir,  Amba,  Parli,  and  Mazalgaon.  More  than  90  per  cent,  of 
the  population  are  Hindus,  and  87  per  cent,  speak  Marathl.  The 
following  table  shows  the  chief  statistics  of  population  in  1901  : — 


Population. 


Taluk. 

Area  in  square 
miles. 

Number  of 

Population. 

Population  per 
square  mile. 

Percentage  of 
variation  in 
population  be- 
tween 1891 
and  1901. 

■— 

0 

V 

ui 
c 

0 
H 

I 

I 

2 

c/5 

ID 

be 
J3 

> 

Number  c 
persons  ab 
read  ant 
write. 

Bhir 

Gevrai 

Mazalgaon 

Amba 

Kaij. 

Ashti 

Patoda 

Jagirs,  &c. 

Total 

801 
456 
622 
667 

445 
594 
34i 
534 

J55 
119 

172 

114 

104 

i  22 

7' 

M3 

71,608 
50,672 
96,929 

72,017 
46,560 

5 '.999 
29,116 

73,357 

89 
I  I  I 
156 
I08 
104 

88 

85 

r37 

-  27.3 

-  2S.I 

-  7-9 

-  25.0 

-  34-4 

-  22.7 

-  28.7 

-  24-9 

_rt 

'3 
■  > 

rt 
+-» 
O 

4,460 

4 

1,000 

492,25s 

1 10 

-  23-4 

'4,852 

In  1905  the  Kaij  taluk  was  amalgamated  with  Amba,  the  latter  name 
being  retained. 

The  most  numerous  caste  is  the  Maratha  Kunbi,  numbering 
196,000,  or  more  than  39  per  cent,  of  the  total  population.  Other 
important  agricultural  castes  are  the  Banjaras  (36,400)  and  Kolls 
(2,600).  Next  in  point  of  numbers  are  the  Mahars  or  village  menials 
(41,300),  the  Dhangars  or  shepherds  (26,000),  the  Mangs  and  Chamars 
or  leather-workers  (25,400),  the  Brahmans  (21,600),  and  the  Malls  or 
gardeners  (12,700).  Of  the  trading  castes,  Vanis  number  6,960  and 
Marwaris  6,100.     The  population  supported  by  agriculture  is  265,200, 

VOL.  VIII.  1 


Agriculture. 


114  BllIR   DISTRICT 

or  54  per  cent,  of  the  total.     Christians  numbered  91  in  1901,  of  whom 
75  were  natives. 

The  entire  District  is  situated  in  the  trap  region,  and  its  soils  are 
mostly  the  fertile  regar  or  black  cotton  soil,  especially  in  the  taluks  of 
Bhlr,  Gevrai,  Mazalgaon,  and  Kaij ;  while  in  the 
remaining  taluks  masab  and  kharab  soils  are  inter- 
spersed with  regar.  The  rabi  or  cold-season  crops,  such  as  cotton, 
white  jozvar,  gram,  gingelly,  and  wheat,  are  grown  on  regar,  while  the 
kharlf  or  rainy  season  crops,  such  as  bajra  and  cotton,  are  sown  on 
the  masab,  and  yellow  jowar,  bajra,  pulses,  and  oilseeds  on  the  kharab 
or  chalka  lands.  Cotton  and  linseed  are  produced  very  largely  in  the 
District. 

The  tenure  of  lands  is  mainly  ryotwari.  In  1901  the  khalsa  area 
and  'crown'  lands  occupied  3,926  square  miles,  of  which  2,430 
were  cultivated,  614  were  cultivable  waste  and  fallows,  and  882 
were  not  available  for  cultivation.  By  1903  the  cultivated  area  had 
risen  to  3,044  square  miles.  The  staple  food-crops  are  jozvar  and 
bajra,  grown  on  23  and  14  per  cent,  of  the  net  area  cropped.  Wheat 
and  rice  are  next  in  importance,  the  area  under  these  being  53  and 
98  square  miles.  Cotton,  which  is  grown  in  all  the  taluks,  occupied 
as  much  as  31 S  square  miles,  and  oilseeds  118  square  miles. 

Since  the  last  settlement,  in  1883,  all  the  available  land  has  been 
taken  up,  and  no  extension  of  the  holdings  is  possible,  while  the  last 
famine  caused  a  great  decrease  in  the  cultivated  area,  owing  to  the 
mortality  among  the  agricultural  classes.  The  ryots  have  shown  no 
inclination  to  introduce  new  varieties  of  seed  or  improved  agricultural 
implements. 

No  particular  breed  of  cattle  is  characteristic  of  the  District ;  but  the 
bullocks  are  strong  animals,  suitable  for  ploughing  the  heavy  regar. 
Sheep  and  goats  are  of  the  ordinary  kind.  Ponies  of  very  fair  breed 
are  obtainable  for  from  Rs.  50  to  Rs.  75  ;  horses  and  ponies  from  Arab 
sires  are  of  a  better  class,  and  fetch  from  Rs.  100  to  Rs.  400  per  head. 
At  all  the  taluk  head-quarters  stallions  are  maintained  for  the  purpose 
of  improving  the  local  breed  of  horses,  and  the  ryots  have  not  been 
slow  to  avail  themselves  of  the  advantages  thus  held  out. 

The  irrigated  area  covers  only  86  square  miles,  supplied  by  8,537 
wells  in  good  repair.  Rivers  are  utilized  to  a  very  small  extent,  as 
their  beds  are  too  low  to  allow  of  water  being  largely  used  for  irrigation. 
Three  miles  west  of  Bhlr  is  a  large  well,  called  the  Khazana  baoli,  a 
wonderful  work  of  engineering,  which  was  constructed  about  1582  by 
the  jagirdar  of  Bhlr.     It  irrigates  529  acres  by  means  of  channels. 

No  minerals  of  any  economic  value  are  found  in  the  District. 
Granite,  basalt,  and  nodular  limestone  occur  everywhere  and  are  used 
for  building. 


ADMINISTRATION  115 

Hand    industries    are  of  little    importance.     Chhagals,  or  leathern 
water-bottles,   and  sword-sticks  of  superior  quality  are  made.     Coarse 
cloth  and  sans,  of  both  cotton  and  silk,  are  manufac- 
tured;   but,    owing   to   the    cheapness   of  imported  communications. 
articles,    the     manufacture    is    declining.     Ordinary 
black  blankets  are  made  by  the  Dhangars  and  sold  for  Rs.  2  or  Rs.  3 
each.     There  are  two  ginning  mills,  one  at  Parli  in  the  Amba  taluk 
and  the  other  at  Varoni  in  Mazalgaon.     In  1901  the  former  employed 
50  hands,   but  work  in  the  latter   was  stopped  owing  to  the  famine 
of  1900. 

The  principal  exports  are  jowar,  wheat,  other  cereals  and  pulses, 
cotton,  linseed,  sheep,  bones,  and  jaggery.  The  chief  imports  are  salt, 
opium,  sugar,  silver  and  gold,  copper,  brass,  iron,  kerosene  oil,  silk, 
cotton,  and  woollen  cloth. 

The  most  important  centres  of  trade  are  Bhir,  Mazalgaon,  Parli, 
and  Gevrai,  where  a  large  business  is  done  in  cotton  and  food-grains. 
Articles  imported  from  Jalna  and  Barsi  are  distributed  from  these 
centres  to  distant  parts  of  the  District,  where  they  are  sold  at  weekly 
markets. 

There  are  no  railways  in  the  District.  The  total  length  of  roads  is 
280  miles.  The  principal  roads  are  :  Bhir  to  Barsi,  24  miles ;  Amba  to 
Parli,  15  miles  ;  and  the  Ahmadnagar-Jamkhed  road,  27  miles.  Only  the 
last  is  metalled.  Besides  these,  there  are  fair-weather  roads  from  Bhir 
to  Satara  (28),  to  Ashti  (26),  to  Mazalgaon  (50),  to  Gevrai  (27),  and  the 
Amba  road  (47  miles),  all  of  which  were  made  during  the  famine  of  1900. 

In  1899  the  rainfall  was  less  than  half  the  average  (15  inches),  and 
the  District  was  one  of  the  most  seriously  affected  in  the  famine  area. 
Both  the  kharif  and  rain  crops  failed,  and  at  one 
time  about  one-seventh  of  the  total  population  was  on 
relief.  At  this  time  cholera  made  its  appearance,  and  the  Census  of 
1901  showed  a  decrease  in  the  population  of  150,464  persons.  The 
cultivators  lost  32  per  cent  of  their  cattle,  and  the  total  cost  of  the 
famine  to  the  State  exceeded  12  lakhs. 

The  District  is  divided  into  three  subdivisions  :  one  comprising 
the  taluks  of  Amba  and  Mazalgaon,  under  a  Second  Talukdar  ;  and 
another  comprising  the  taluks  of  Gevrai,  Patoda,  and  .   . 

Ashti,  under  a  Third  Talukdar  ;  while  the  taluk  of 
Bhir   is    under   the   direct   control  of  the    First  Talukdar,   who  also 
exercises    general    supervision    over   the    work   of    his    subordinates. 
Each  taluk  is  under  a  tahslldar. 

The  Nazim-i-Dlivani  or  Civil  Judge  is  also  a  joint  magistrate,  and 
exercises  powers  as  such  in  the  absence  of  the  First  Talukdar  from 
head-quarters.  There  are  three  subordinate  civil  courts,  each  under  a 
Munsif.     The  First  Talukdar  is  the  chief  magistrate,  while  the  Second 

1  2 


n6 


BHIR   DISTRICT 


and  Third  Talukdars  and  the  tahsildars  exercise  second  and  third-class 
magisterial  powers.     There  is  very  little  serious  crime  in  the  District. 

It  appears  that  in  early  times  revenue  was  assessed  by  holdings. 
This  system  continued  to  the  time  of  Malik  Ambar,  who  measured  the 
land  and  fixed  the  state  dues  at  one-third  the  produce,  which  was 
subsequently  commuted  to  cash  payments.  He  dealt  directly  with  the 
ryots  and  gave  them  a  proprietary  right  in  the  land  they  tilled.  In 
1866  Districts  were  formed  and  the  revenue  was  revised.  In  18S3 
Bhlr  District  was  formally  settled.  The  survey  then  carried  out  showed 
an  excess  of  178,815  acres,  or  n  percent,  over  the  area  returned 
in  the  accounts,  while  the  revenue  was  enhanced  by  1-5  lakhs,  or 
13  per  cent.  The  average  assessment  on  'dry'  land  is  Rs.  1-8  (maxi- 
mum Rs.  1-14,  minimum  R.  1),  and  on  'wet'  land  Rs.  5  (maximum 
Rs.  6,  minimum  Rs.  4). 

The  land  revenue  and  the  total  revenue  for  a  series  of  years  are  shown 
below,  in  thousands  of  rupees  : — 


1881. 

1891. 

1901. 

1903. 

Land  revenue 
Total  revenue 

",3i 
11,67 

12,84 
i3,3r> 

13,38 
14.44 

13,42 

In  1888  the  one  anna  cess  was  first  levied  to  meet  local  requirements, 
five-twelfths  being  set  apart  for  municipal  and  local  works.  Taluk 
boards  were  formed  at  each  taluk  head-quarters,  with  the  tahsildars  as 
chairmen,  except  at  Bhlr,  where  a  District  board  was  established  under 
the  presidency  of  the  First  Talukdar,  which  supervises  the  working  of 
the  taluk  boards  and  also  of  the  municipality  of  Bhlr. 

The  First  Talukdar  is  the  head  of  the  police,  with  the  Superin- 
tendent (Mohtamim)  as  his  executive  deputy.  Under  him  are  8  inspec- 
tors, 69  subordinate  officers,  510  constables,  and  25  mounted  police, 
distributed  in  20  police  stations  and  15  outposts.  There  is  a  jail 
at  Bhlr  town  with  accommodation  for  200  prisoners,  but  convicts  with 
sentences  exceeding  six  months  are  sent  to  the  Central  jail  at 
Aurangabad.     A  lock-up  is  maintained  at  each  tahsll  office. 

In  1 90 1  the  proportion  of  persons  able  to  read  and  write  was 
3  per  cent.  (5-9  males  and  0-05  females).  The  number  of  pupils  under 
instruction  in  1881,  1891,  1901,  and  1903  was  436,  2,000,  3,247,  and 
3,383  respectively.  In  1903  there  were  3  middle  and  54  primary 
schools,  with  44  girls  under  instruction.  The  first  State  school  was 
opened  in  1866,  and  Local  fund  schools  date  from  1888.  The  total 
expenditure  on  education  in  1901  was  Rs.  23,500,  of  which  Rs.  10,600 
was  contributed  by  the  State  and  the  remainder  by  local  boards. 
The  receipts  from  fees  amounted  to  Rs.  2,211. 

The  District  contains  one  hospital  and  two  dispensaries,  with  accom- 


BHITRI  117 

modation  for  11  in-patients.  The  total  number  of  cases  treated  in  1901 
was  17,663,  of  whom  90  were  in-patients,  and  512  operations  were 
performed.  The  expenditure  amounted  to  Rs.  11,000,  of  which 
Rs.  1,272  was  paid  from  Local  funds  and  the  remainder  by  the  State. 
The  total  number  of  persons  successfully  vaccinated  in  1901  was  2,083, 
or  4-3  per  1,000  of  population. 

Bhir  Taluk. — Central  taluk  of  Bhir  District,  Hyderabad  State,  with 
an  area  of  870  square  miles.  The  population  in  1901,  including  jagirs, 
was  88,160,  compared  with  121,262  in  1891,  the  decrease  being  due  to 
the  famines  of  1897  and  1899-1900.  The  taluk  contains  one  town, 
Bhir  (population,  17,671),  the  head-quarters  of  the  District  and  taluk  ; 
and  172  villages,  of  which  17  axejagir.  The  land  revenue  in  1901  was 
2-4  lakhs.  The  taluk  is  situated  partly  on  the  plateau  and  partly  on 
the  plain,  and  is  composed  of  black  cotton  soil. 

Bhir  Town. — Head-quarters  of  Bhir  District,  Hyderabad  State, 
situated  in  18°  59'  N.  and  750  46'  E.,  on  the  Bendsura  river.  Popula- 
tion (1901),  17,671,  of  whom  12,307  were  Hindus,  4,993  Musalmans, 
and  68  Christians.  Prior  to  the  Muhammadan  invasion  it  belonged  to 
the  Chalukyas  and  subsequently  to  the  Yadavas  of  Deogiri ;  but  it  was 
taken  by  Muhammad  bin  Tughlak,  and  became  the  head-quarters  of 
one  of  his  Deccan  provinces.  Muhammad  bin  Tughlak's  tooth  is 
buried  in  a  tomb  near  the  town.  Early  in  Shah  Jahan's  reign  several 
battles  were  fought  near  this  place  between  the  imperial  troops  and 
those  of  Bijapur  and  Ahmadnagar.  Bhir  is  noted  for  several  kinds  of 
leathern  work,  especially  water-bottles  called  chkagals,  and  also  for 
sword-sticks. 

Bhitargarh. — Ruins  of  an  ancient  city  in  the  head-quarters  subdivi- 
sion of  Jalpaigurl  District,  Eastern  Bengal  and  Assam,  situated  in 
260  27'  N.  and  88°  37'  E.  The  city  is  supposed  to  have  been  founded 
by  one  Prithu  Raja,  whose  date  is  unknown,  but  who  probably  pre- 
ceded the  Pal  dynasty  of  the  ninth  century.  It  apparently  comprised 
four  separate  enclosures,  the  innermost  being  the  palace.  It  was 
4§  miles  in  length  by  2  or  2\  in  breadth.  It  is  surrounded  by  several 
moats,  there  being  on  one  side  no  less  than  six  ;  and  it  contains  a  large 
tank,  known  as  the  PrithwI-sul  dighi,  with  the  remains  of  ten  masonry 
ghats.  Prithu  Raja  is  said  to  have  eventually  drowned  himself  in  this 
tank,  in  order  to  avoid  pollution  from  the  touch  of  the  Kichaks,  who 
had  invaded  his  country  from  the  north.  The  Talma  river  on  the  west 
was  utilized  to  fill  one  of  the  moats.  These  ruins  are  described  by 
Buchanan  Hamilton  in  Martin's  Eastern  India,  vol.  iii,  pp.  433-46. 

Bhitrl. — Village  in  the  Saidpur  tahs'il  of  Ghazlpur  District,  United 
Provinces,  situated  in  25°  34'  N.  and  830  17'  E.,  3  miles  north-east  of 
Saidpur-Bhitrl  station  on  the  Bengal  and  North- Western  Railway.  The 
place  is  important  for  the  archaeological  remains  that  have  been  found. 


nS  BHITRI 

A  red  sandstone  pillar,  consisting  of  a  single  block  28^  feet  in  height, 
stands  near  a  large  mound  and  bears  an  undated  inscription  of  Skanda 
Gupta  of  Magadha.  A  still  more  important  inscription  was  found  on 
a  seal  at  the  same  place,  which  gives  the  genealogy  of  nine  generations 
of  Gupta  kings.  A  modern  mosque  has  been  largely  built  from 
fragments  of  ancient  sculptures  found  in  the  neighbourhood.  A  fine 
bridge  over  the  GangI  was  built  by  one  of  the  kings  of  Jaunpur  in  the 
fifteenth  century.    Bhitrl  contains  an  aided  primary  school  with  79  pupils. 

[J.  F.  Fleet,  Gupta  Inscriptions,  p.  52  ;  Journal,  Asiatic  Society  of 
Bengal,  1889,  pp.  84,  88.] 

Bhittanni. — A  tribe  inhabiting  the  borders  of  Dera  Ismail  Khan 
and  Bannu  Districts,  North-West  Frontier  Province,  dwelling  partly  in 
independent  territory  and  partly  in  British  India.  The  Bhittanni 
country  lies  between  the  Derajat  and  Mahsud  territory.  The  area 
occupied  by  independent  Bhittannis  is  about  15  miles  wide  and 
25  miles  long,  extending  from  Spinghar  and  Jandola  on  the  west  to  the 
foot  of  the  hills  at  the  Bain  pass  on  the  east,  and  from  the  Gabarghar 
on  the  north  to  Girni  Sar  on  the  south.  Three-fourths  of  the  tribe, 
which  numbers  between  5,000  and  6,000  fighting  men,  are  at  present 
revenue-paying  British  subjects. 

The  independent  Bhittannis  are  politically  controlled  by  the  Deputy- 
Commissioner  of  Dera  Ismail  Khan.  They  are  the  hereditary  enemies 
of  the  Mahsuds,  although  they  have  more  than  once  forgone  their 
time-honoured  feud,  and  either  combined  with,  or  aided  and  abetted, 
their  more  rapacious  neighbours  in  attacks  and  raids  in  British  territory. 
Now,  however,  they  have  practically  become  identified  as  a  tribe 
with  British  interests,  and  they  furnish  valuable  material  for  a  company 
of  the  South  Wazlristan  militia  corps. 

In  appearance  the  Bhittannis  are  not  so  rough  as  the  Mahsuds, 
though  in  physique  they  closely  resemble  them  ;  they  have  discarded  the 
dress  of  their  neighbours  of  the  Wazlristan  highlands  for  the  more 
civilized  apparel  of  the  Daman,  and  present  a  much  cleaner  appearance. 
Their  pronunciation  resembles  that  of  the  Mahsuds,  but  they  have 
a  curious  trick  of  misplacing  aspirates,  which  are  in  general  correctly 
sounded  by  their  neighbours. 

Their  country  consists,  beyond  the  administrative  border,  of  rough 
stony  hills  scored  by  deep  valleys,  along  which  there  is  a  little  cultiva- 
tion here  and  there,  where  the  inhabitants  have  been  able  to  lead  the 
rather  intermittent  water-supply  of  the  nullahs  on  to  the  cultivable  low- 
land by  irrigation  channels.  The  Bhittanni  hills  are  extremely  rough 
and  almost  devoid  of  verdure,  their  rugged  and  barren  character  being 
probably  due  to  the  denuding  action  of  rain  and  sun  on  the  friable  soil 
of  these  outer  ranges. 

Bhiwandi  Taluka. — Central  tdluka  of  Thana   District,   Bombay, 


BHIWANI  TOWN  u9 

lying  between  190  12'  and  190  32'  N.  and  720  58'  and  730  15'  E.,  with 
an  area  of  249  square  miles.  It  contains  one  town,  Bhiwandi  (popula- 
tion, 10,354),  the  head-quarters;  and  196  villages.  The  population  in 
1901  was  77,440,  compared  with  87,490  in  1891.  The  density,  311 
persons  per  square  mile,  exceeds  the  District  average.  The  land  revenue 
and  cesses  amounted  in  1903-4  to  2-1  lakhs.  The  centre  of  the  taluka 
is  well  peopled  and  richly  tilled,  but  in  the  west  the  country  is  hilly. 
Except  in  the  south  it  is  surrounded  by  the  hills  which  form  the  water- 
shed of  the  river  Kamvadi,  which  runs  through  the  taluka  from  north 
to  south.  In  the  west,  after  the  rains,  the  climate  is  malarious,  but  in 
the  other  parts  it  is  generally  healthy.  Water-supply  is  fairly  abundant, 
but  far  from  wholesome.     Rice  is  the  chief  product. 

Bhiwandi  Town. —  Head-quarters  of  the  taluka  of  the  same  name 
in  Thana  District,  Bombay,  situated  in  190  18'  N.  and  730  3'  E., 
29  miles  north-east  of  Bombay.  Population  (190 1),  10,354.  Together 
with  the  neighbouring  village  of  Nizampur,  Bhiwandi  forms  a  munici- 
pality, constituted  in  1865,  with  an  income  (1903-4)  of  Rs.  20,700. 
It  is  supplied  with  water  by  means  of  an  aqueduct  constructed  by  the 
inhabitants  with  the  aid  of  a  Government  contribution.  The  population 
and  mercantile  importance  of  this  place  are  on  the  increase.  The 
chief  industries  are  weaving  and  rice-cleaning,  and  the  principal  articles 
of  trade  are  rice,  dried  fish,  cloth,  grass,  and  wood.  The  largest  steam 
rice-husking  mill  in  the  Presidency  is  situated  here.  The  town  contains 
a  Sub-Judge's  court,  a  dispensary,  and  four  vernacular  schools  for  boys 
with  444  pupils,  and  two  for  girls  with  146. 

Bhiwani  Tahsil  (Bhawani). —  Tahsil  of  Hissar  District,  Punjab, 
lying  between  280  36'  and  280  59'  N.  and  750  29'  and  760  18'  E.,  with 
an  area  of  750  square  miles.  The  population  in  1901  was  124,429, 
compared  with  127,794  in  1891.  The  head-quarters  are  at  the  town 
of  Bhiwani  (population,  35,917);  and  it  also  contains  131  villages, 
among  which  Tosham  is  a  place  of  historical  importance.  The  land 
revenue  and  cesses  amounted  in  1903-4  to  1-2  lakhs.  The  northern 
part  of  the  tahsil  lies  in  Hariana.  South  of  Bhiwani  town,  rolling  sand- 
hills and  low  rocky  eminences  are  the  main  features  of  the  landscape. 

Bhiwani  Town  {Bhawani). — Head-quarters  of  the  tahsil  of  the 
same  name  in  Hissar  District,  Punjab,  situated  in  280  48'  N.  and 
7 6°  8'  E.,  on  the  Rewari-Bhatinda  branch  of  the  Rajputana-Malwa 
Railway;  distant  by  rail  from  Calcutta  1,059  miles,  from  Bombay  890, 
and  from  Karachi  857.  Population  (1901),  35,917.  The  town  is 
practically  a  creation  of  British  rule,  having  been  an  insignificant  village 
when  it  was  selected  in  1817  as  the  site  of  a  free  market.  It  rapidly 
rose  to  importance ;  and  though  its  trade  suffered  greatly  from  the 
opening  of  the  Rajputana-Malwa.  Railway,  the  construction  of  the 
Rewari-Ferozepore   line  has  restored  its  former  position.     Bhiwani  is 


no  Bill  WAN  I  TOWN 

commercially  the  most  important  town  in  Hissar  District.  It  is  one 
of  the  great  centres  of  trade  with  Rajputana,  the  chief  articles  of  com- 
merce being  wheat,  flour,  salt,  sugar,  cotton  goods,  and  iron.  It 
possesses  three  cotton-ginning  factories,  and  one  cotton-press,  which 
give  employment  to  379  hands.  The  principal  manufactures  are  brass 
vessels,  tin  boxes,  and  small  wooden  tables.  The  municipality  was 
created  in  1867.  The  municipal  receipts  during  the  ten  years  ending 
1902-3  averaged  Rs.  54,900,  and  the  expenditure  Rs.  56,700.  The 
income  and  expenditure  in  1903-4  were  Rs.  49,700  and  Rs.  47,700 
respectively  ;  the  chief  source  of  income  was  octroi  (Rs.  42,700),  while 
the  main  items  of  outlay  were  conservancy  (Rs.  7,000),  education 
(Rs.  7,700),  medical  (Rs.  6,900),  public  safety  (Rs.  13,300),  and 
administration  (Rs.  4,800).  The  town  has  an  Anglo-vernacular  middle 
school  and  a  dispensary. 

Bhogdai.— A  river  of  Assam,  which  rises  in  the  Naga  Hills,  and 
falls  into  the  Brahmaputra  after  a  north-westerly  course  through 
Sibsagar  District.  In  the  upper  part  of  its  course  it  is  styled  the  Disai ; 
and  the  name  Bhogdai  is  said  to  have  first  come  into  use  at  the  end 
of  the  eighteenth  century,  in  memory  of  a  feast  given  to  the  labourers 
employed  on  the  deepening  of  the  lower  channel.  Mariani,  a  con- 
siderable tea  centre,  and  Jorhat  are  situated  on  the  left  bank  of  the 
river,  but  there  is  not  enough  water  in  the  channel  to  allow  of  its  being 
used  as  a  trade  route.  In  the  lower  part  of  its  course  floods  do  some 
damage,  and  small  protective  works  have  been  constructed.  The  silt 
is,  however,  said  to  have  a  fertilizing  effect.  The  river  is  spanned  both 
by  railway  and  road  bridges  at  Mariani  and  Jorhat,  and  is  81  miles 
in  length. 

Bhognipur  Tahsil  (or  Pukhrayan). — South-western  tahsil  of  Cawn- 
pore  District,  United  Provinces,  conterminous  with  the  pargana  of  the 
same  name,  lying  between  260  5'  and  260  25'  N.  and  790  31/  and 
8o°  2'  E.,  with  an  area  of  368  square  miles.  Population  increased 
from  120,806  in  1891  to  141,346  in  1901.  There  are  308  villages  and 
one  town,  Musanagar  (population,  1,575).  The  demand  for  land 
revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  2,68,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  43,000.  The 
density  of  population,  384  persons  per  square  mile,  is  considerably 
below  the  District  average.  On  the  south  flows  the  Jumna,  while  the 
Sengar  forms  part  of  the  northern  boundary  and  then  turns  abruptly 
south  to  meet  the  Jumna.  Both  rivers  are  fringed  by  deep  ravines, 
and  the  soils  resemble  those  in  Bundelkhand.  Water  is  found 
only  at  an  immense  depth,  and  irrigation  is  supplied  almost  entirely 
by  the  Bhognipur  branch  of  the  Lower  Ganges  Canal.  In  1903-4 
the  area  under  cultivation  was  225  square  miles,  of  which  67  were 
irrigated. 

Bhoika. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 


BHOJPUR  121 

Bhoj. — Village  in  the  Chikodi  taluka  of  Belgaum  District,  Bombay, 
situated  in  i6°  32'  N.  and  74°  30'  E.,  about  13  miles  north-west  of 
Chikodi  town.  Population  (1901),  5,450.  The  village  has  a  copper- 
plate grant,  dated  1208,  of  Kartavirya  IV  and  Mallikarjun  (1200-18), 
brothers  and  joint-rulers  belonging  to  the  Ratta  dynasty  of  Saundatti 
and  Belgaum  (875-1250).  In  1773  Bhoj  was  the  scene  of  the  defeat 
by  Yesaji  Sindhia,  the  Kolhapur  minister,  of  Konher  Rao  Trimbak 
Patvardhan  of  Kurandvad,  who  was  raiding  into  the  heart  of  the  Kol- 
hapur country.     The  village  contains  a  boys'  school  with  22  pupils. 

Bhojakheri. — Thakurat  in  the  Malwa  Agency,  Central  India. 

Bhojavadar. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bhojpur. — Village  in  the  Bhopal  State,  Central  India,  situated 
in  2  30  6'  N.  and  70°  38'  E.,  celebrated  for  the  remains  of  a  magni- 
ficent temple  and  cyclopean  dam.  Population  (1901),  237.  The  great 
Saivite  temple  is  in  plan  a  simple  square,  with  an  exterior  dimen- 
sion of  66  feet,  and  is  devoid  of  the  re-entrant  angles  usual  in  such 
buildings.  Inside  are  four  massive  pillars,  40  feet  high,  supporting 
an  incomplete  but  magnificent  dome,  covered  with  rich  carving.  The 
pillars,  though  very  massive,  have  a  tapering  appearance,  as  they  are 
made  in  three  sections,  the  lowest,  an  octagon  with  facets  of  z\  feet, 
surmounted  by  a  second  octagon  with  facets  of  2|-  feet,  from  which 
springs  a  24-faced  section.  The  doorway  is  richly  carved  above,  but 
plain  below,  while  two  sculptured  figures  of  unusual  merit  stand  on 
either  hand.  On  the  other  three  sides  of  the  building  are  balconies, 
each  supported  by  massive  brackets  and  four  richly  carved  pillars.  The 
temple  was  never  completed,  and  the  earthen  ramp  used  to  raise  stones 
to  the  level  of  the  dome  is  still  standing.  The  lingam  inside  is  of  great 
size  and  unusual  elegance,  being  7 \  feet  high  and  17  feet  8  inches 
in  circumference.  It  stands  on  a  massive  platform  21^  feet  square, 
made  of  three  superimposed  blocks  of  sandstone ;  and,  in  spite  of  its 
great  size,  the  lingam  and  its  pedestal  are  so  well  proportioned  as  to 
produce  a  general  effect  of  solidity  and  lightness  truly  remarkable. 
The  temple  probably  belongs  to  the  twelfth  or  thirteenth  century. 
Had  it  been  completed,  it  would  have  had  few  rivals. 

Close  to  this  temple  stands  a  Jain  shrine  containing  three  figures 
of  Tirthankars,  one  being  a  colossal  statue  of  Mahavira  20  feet  high, 
and  the  other  two  of  Parasnath.  This  temple  is  also  rectangular  in 
plan  and  was  possibly  erected  at  the  same  time  ;  but,  like  the  Hindu 
temple,  it  was  left  unfinished,  and  bears  a  similar  ramp  for  raising 
stones. 

West  of  Bhojpur  once  lay  a  vast  lake,  but  nothing  remains  except 
the  ruins  of  the  magnificent  old  dams  by  which  its  waters  were  held 
up.  The  site  was  chosen  with  great  skill,  as  a  natural  wall  of  hills 
enclosed  the  whole  area  except  for  two  gaps,  in  width   100  yards  and 


122  IiHOjrUR 

500  yards  respectively.  These  were  closed  by  gigantic  dams  made 
of  earth  faced  on  both  sides  with  enormous  blocks  of  sandstone,  many 
being  4  feet  long  by  3  feet  broad  and  2\  feet  thick,  set  without  mortar. 
The  smaller  dam  is  44  feet  high  and  300  feet  thick  at  the  base,  the 
larger  dam  24  feet  high  with  a  flat  top  100  feet  broad.  These  embank- 
ments held  up  an  expanse  of  water  of  about  250  square  miles,  its 
southernmost  point  lying  just  south  of  Kaliakheri  town,  which  stands 
in  what  was  formerly  the  bed  of  the  lake,  and  its  northernmost  point 
at  Dumkhera  village  near  Bhopal  city.  Tradition  ascribes  this  great 
work  to  Raja  Bhoj  of  Dhar  (1010-53),  but  it  may  possibly  be  of  earlier 
date.  The  Betwa  river  being  insufficient  to  fill  the  area  enclosed,  the 
great  dam  between  the  lakes  at  Bhopal  city  was  built,  by  which  the 
stream  of  the  Kaliasot  was  turned  from  its  natural  course  so  as  to  feed 
this  lake.  Close  to  Bhojpur  and  east  of  the  great  dam  is  a  waste  weir, 
cut  out  of  the  solid  rock  of  one  of  the  lower  hills. 

The  lake  was  destroyed  by  Hoshang  Shah  of  Malwa  (1405-34),  who 
cut  through  the  lesser  dam,  and  thus,  either  intentionally  or  in  a  fit  of 
destructive  passion,  added  an  enormous  area  of  the  highest  fertility 
to  his  possessions.  The  Gonds  have  a  tradition  that  it  took  an  army 
of  them  three  months  to  cut  through  the  dam,  and  that  the  lake  took 
three  years  to  empty,  while  its  bed  was  not  habitable  for  thirty  years 
afterwards.  The  climate  of  Malwa  is  said  to  have  been  materially 
altered  by  the  removal  of  this  vast  sheet  of  water. 

{Journal,  Royal  Asiatic  Society,  Bombay,  vol.  viii  (ii),  p.  805 ; 
vol.  xvi  (ii),  p.  739  ;  Indian  Antiquary,  vol.  xvii,  p.  348]- 

Bhokar.— Native  State  in  the  Central  Provinces.  See  Chang 
Bhakar. 

Bhokardan. — North-eastern  taluk  of  Aurangabad  District,  Hyder- 
abad State,  with  an  area  of  938  square  miles.  The  population  in  1901, 
including  jaglrs,  was  81,276,  compared  with  115,657  in  1891,  the 
decrease  being  due  to  the  famines  of  1897  and  1 899-1 900.  The 
taluk  contains  307  villages,  of  which  165  are  jagzr;  and  Bhokardan 
(population,  2,082)  is  the  head-quarters.  The  land  revenue  in  1901 
was  1-7  lakhs.     The  country  is  composed  of  black  cotton  soil. 

Bhola. — Head-quarters  of  the  Dakhin  Shahbazpur  subdivision, 
Backergunge  District,  Eastern  Bengal  and  Assam,  situated  in  2  2°  41'  N. 
and  900  40'  E.  Bhola  consists  of  portions  of  three  villages,  the 
aggregate  population  of  which  in  1901  was  6,263.  It  contains  the  usual 
public  offices  ;  the  sub-jail  has  accommodation  for  18  prisoners. 

Bholath  Tahsil.— Tahsil  of  the  Kapurthala  State,  Punjab,  lying 
between  310  32'  and  310  34'  N.  and  750  26' and  750  56'  E.,  with  an  area 
of  127  square  miles.  The  population  increased  from  61,806  in  1891  to 
62,270  in  1901.  It  contains  126  villages.  The  land  revenue  and  cesses 
amounted  in  1903-4  to  1-9  lakhs.     The  tahsil  is  generally  fertile,  and 


BHONGIR    TALUK  123 

lies  for  the  most  part  in  the  Beas  lowlands.  The  Bhunga  ildka  is 
especially  remarkable  for  its  salubrity  and  fertility. 

Bhomoraguri  Hill. — Place  of  archaeological  interest  in  Darrang 
District,  Eastern  Bengal  and  Assam.     See  Tezpur. 

Bhongaon  Tahsil.— Eastern  tahsil  of  Mainpuri  District,  United 
Provinces,  comprising  the  parganas  of  Bhongaon,  Bevvar,  Allpur  PattI, 
and  KishnI  Nablganj,  and  lying  between  260  58' and  270  26'  N.  and 
790  1/  and  790  26/  E.,  with  an  area  of  459  square  miles.  Population 
increased  from  195,368  in  1S91  to  226,940  in  1901.  There  are  390 
villages  and  only  one  town,  Bhongaon  (population,  5,582),  the 
tahsil  head-quarters.  The  demand  for  land  revenue  in  1903-4  was 
Rs.  2,86,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  46,000.  These  figures  have  been 
raised  in  the  new  settlement  to  Rs.  3,19,000  for  revenue  and  Rs.  51,000 
for  cesses.  The  density  of  population,  494  persons  per  square  mile,  is 
above  the  District  average.  On  the  north  the  tahsil  is  bounded  by  the 
Kali  NadI,  while  the  rivers  Isan  and  Arind  cross  it  from  north-west  to 
south-east.  It  contains  a  large  proportion  of  sandy  soil  or  bhur, 
especially  near  the  Kali  NadI,  while  the  loam  area  south  of  the  Isan 
includes  considerable  areas  of  barren  soil  or  F/sar  and  large  swamps. 
During  the  cycle  of  wet  years,  beginning  in  1883,  the  tract  near  the 
Kali  Nadi  suffered  from  flooding,  and  kans  spread  in  the  affected  area. 
Ample  irrigation  is  provided  by  three  branches  of  the  Lower  Ganges 
Canal,  which  supply  more  than  half  the  irrigated  area,  and  by  wells, 
which  supply  about  one-third.  In  1 900-1  the  area  under  cultivation 
was  260  square  miles,  of  which  205  were  irrigated.  Tanks  and  streams 
irrigate  about  20  square  miles,  a  larger  area  than  in  any  other  tahsil  in 
the  District. 

Bhongaon  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  tahsil  of  the  same  name 
in  Mainpurl  District,  United  Provinces,  situated  in  270  16'  N.  and 
790  11/E.,  on  a  branch  of  the  East  Indian  Railway,  and  on  the  grand 
trunk  road.  Population  (1901),  5,582.  According  to  tradition,  the 
town  was  founded  by  a  mythical  Raja  Bhlm,  who  was  cured  of  leprosy 
by  bathing  in  a  pond  here.  It  was  the  head-quarters  of  a  pargana 
under  Akbar,  and  a  high  mound  marks  the  residence  of  the  amil  or 
governor.  Bhongaon  is  administered  under  Act  XX  of  1586,  with  an 
income  of  about  Rs.  1,300.  It  has  very  little  trade.  The  tahslli 
school  has  about  70  pupils. 

Bhonglr  Taluk. — North-western  taluk  of  Nalgonda  District,  Hyder- 
abad State,  with  an  area  of  1,054  square  miles.  Including  jdgfrs,  the 
population  in  1901  was  194,606,  compared  with  144,546  in  1891.  The 
taluk  contains  one  town,  BhongIr  (population,  5,806),  the  head- 
quarters; and  235  villages,  of  which  143  are  jaglr.  The  Nizam's  State 
Railway  passes  through  the  taluk  from  west-south-west  to  east-north- 
east.    The  land  revenue  in   1901    was   1-4    lakhs.      Rice,    castor-seed, 


i24  BHONGIR   TALUK 

plantains,  and   betel-leaves  are  extensively  grown,  and   irrigated  from 
wells,  tanks,  and  channels. 

Bhongir  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  taluk  of  the  same  name  in 
Nalgonda  District,  Hyderabad  State,  situated  in  i7°3i'N.  and  78°53' 
E.  Population  (1901),  5,806.  The  town  is  situated  at  the  foot  of 
a  fortified  rock,  2,000  feet  above  sea-level.  In  1709  a  freebooter, 
Pap  Rai,  raised  a  large  body  of  followers  and  committed  depredations 
in  the  Deccan  by  plundering  Warangal  and  Bhongir,  but  was  eventually 
captured  and  executed.  Bhongir  is  an  important  centre  of  trade  and 
is  celebrated  for  its  pottery.  It  contains  the  offices  of  the  Second 
Talukdar,  engineer,  and  tahsildar,  and  also  a  post  office,  a  dispensary, 
and  a  vernacular  school.  The  fort  is  built  on  an  isolated  rock,  the 
eastern  and  southern  sides  of  which  are  quite  unscalable  ;  from  the 
baldhisar  or  citadel  on  the  top  a  good  view  over  the  surrounding 
country  may  be  obtained  for  long  distances. 

Bhopal  Agency. — A  collection  of  Native  States  in  charge  of  a  Poli- 
tical Agent  under  the  Agent  to  the  Governor-General  in  Central  India, 
lying  between  220  19'  and  24°  21'  N.  and  760  13'  and  780  51'  E.  It  is 
bounded  on  the  south  and  east  by  the  Central  Provinces ;  on  the  north 
by  the  Rajputana  Agency  and  Gwalior  State  ;  and  on  the  west  by  the 
Kali  Sind,  which  separates  it  from  the  Malwa  Agency.  The  Bhopal 
Agency  has  an  area  of  11,653  square  miles,  and  a  population  (1901) 
of  1,157,697,  giving  a  density  of  99  persons  per  square  mile.  Hindus 
number  912,111,  or  79  per  cent. ;  Musalmans,  124,425,  or  10  percent.; 
Animists,  110,018,  or  9  per  cent,  (chiefly  Gonds) ;  and  Jains,  10,171. 
The  principal  tcuvns  are  Bhopal  (population,  77,023),  Sehore,  includ- 
ing military  station  (16,864),  Narsinghgarh  (8,778),  Sarangpur 
(6,339),  Rajgarh  (5,399),  Khilchipur  (5,121),  and  Berasia  (4,276). 

This  charge  was  created  in  181 8,  when  a  Political  officer  was 
accredited  to  the  Bhopal  Darbar  with  collateral  charge  over  other 
States  in  the  vicinity.  He  ranked  as  an  Agent  to  the  Governor-General 
till  1842,  when  the  charge  was  made  into  a  Political  Agency.  It  now 
includes  the  treaty  State  of  Bhopal,  and  the  mediatized  States  of 
Rajgarh,  Narsinghgarh,  Korwai,  Khilchipur,  Maksudangarh, 
Muhammadgarh,  Basoda,  and  Pathari,  with  sixteen  petty  holdings. 
The  Sironj  pargana  of  the  Tonk  State  in  Rajputana  and  portions 
of  Gwalior,  Indore,  Dhar,  and  Dewas  also  fall  within  its  limits. 

The  Agra-Bombay  high  road  and  the  Itarsi-Jhansi  and  Bhopal- 
Ujjain  sections  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway  traverse  the 
charge.  The  Political  Agent,  who  has  his  head-quarters  at  Sehore, 
exercises  general  supervision  over  the  affairs  of  the  States,  and,  in  the 
case  of  all  but  Bhopal,  personally  deals  with  criminal  cases  of  a  heinous 
character.  He  is  a  Sessions  Judge,  and  hears  appeals  from  the  Super- 
intendent   of    Sehore,   and    also    exercises   the    powers  of  a    District 


B  HO  PAL  STATE 


"5 


Magistrate  and  District  and  Sessions  Judge  over  that  portion  of  the 
Itarsi-Jhansi  section  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway  which  lies 
in  the  Bhopal  and  Korwai  States,  and  over  the  whole  of  the  Bhopal- 
Ujjain  Railway. 

The  following  table  shows  the  States,  estates,  and  portions  of  States 
comprised  in  the  Agency  : — 


Name. 

Title. 

Caste  or  clan. 

Area  in 

square 
miles. 

Population 
(1 901). 

Total 
revenue. 

Bhopal 

JH.H.Nawabj 

1.      Begam       j 

Pathan  Musalman 

6,902 

665,961 

Rs. 

25,00,000 

Rajgarh 

H.  H.  Raja      . 

Uinat  Rajput 

940 

88. .3  76 

4,50,000 

Narsinghgarh     . 

H.  H.  Raja      . 

Umat  Rajput 

741 

92,093 

5,00,000 

Korwai 

Nawab    . 

Pathan  Musalman 

III 

i3»634 

37,000 

Khilchipxir 

Rao  Bahadur  . 

Khichi  Rajput 

273 

3!,i43 

1,14,000 

Maksudangarh   . 

Raja 

Khichl  Rajput 

8l 

14,284 

37,000 

Muhammadgarh 

Nawab    . 

Pathan  Musalman 

29 

2,944 

7,000 

Basoda 

Nawab    . 

Pathan  Musalman 

40 

4,897 

19,000 

Pathari 

Nawab    . 

Pathan  Musalman 

22 

2,704 

9,000 

Daria  Kherl 

Thakur    . 

Bargujar  Rajput    . 

6 

442 

7-500 

Dhabla  DhTr      . 

Thakur    . 

Bargujar  Rajput    . 

12 

1,788 

10,000 

Dhabla  Ghosi    . 

Thakur    . 

Bargujar  Rajput    . 

6 

668 

9>5°o 

Dugri 

Mian 

Pindara  Musalman 

3 

144 

1,500 

Hirapur    . 

Rao 

Korku . 

6 

448 

7,OOD 

Jabria  Bhil 

Mian 

Pindara  Musalman 

5 

903 

5 ,000 

Jhalera 

Rao 

Rathor  Rajput 

* 

1,300 

Kamalpur . 

Thakur    . 

Bargujar  Rajput    . 

8 

589 

1 1 ,000 

Khajuri 

Mian 

Pindara  Musalman 

1 

520 

2,400 

Kharsi 

Rao 

Rathor  Rajput 

* 

* 

1,700 

Patharia    . 

Thakur    . 

Chauhan  Rajput  . 

7 

441 

2,000 

Piplianagar 
Ramgarh  . 

Mian 
Rao 

Pindara  Musalman 
Chauhan  Rajput    . 

* 

701 
* 

2,000 
8,600 

Sadankheri 

Thakur  . 

Bargujar  Rajput    . 

2 

630 

2,000 

Suthalia     . 

Thakur   . 

Umat  Rajput 

20 

4,623 

20,000 

Tappa 

Thakur    . 

Sendhu  Rajput 

15 

882 

3,400 

Portions  of 

Dewas     State, 

Senior  Branch 

,  ,  ,                           (  . 

...             ... 

61 

10,604 

63,000 

Dewas     State, 

Junior  Branch 

•  .  .                       •  •  . 

...              ... 

61 

io,454 

55.300 

Dhar 

*  .  .                        •  >  • 

...              ... 

10 

Mr5 

S,000 

Gwalior  . 

... 

...             ... 

1,386 

118,542 

7,75,ooo 

Indore     . 

...              ... 

25 

5,979 

23,000 

Tonk         (Raj- 

putana) 

...                       ... 

...             ... 

879 

68,539 

1,30,000 

Railways       and 

cantonments    . 

Total 

13,349 

... 

11,653 

i,i57,697 

48,19,200 

No  village. 


Bhopal  State  (Bhupal).-h  State  in  Central  India,  under  the 
Bhopal  Agency,  and  next  to  Hyderabad  the  most  important  Muham- 
madan  State  in  India,  lying  between  220  29'  and  230  54/  N.  and  760  2%' 
and  7 8°  51/  E.,  with  an  area  of  6,902  square  miles.     It  stands  on  the 


i26  B HO  PAL  STATE 

eastern  confines  of  Malwa,  its  most  eastern  districts  bordering  on 
Bundelkhand,  and  its  southern  districts  being  in  the  Gondwana  tract. 
Unlike  the  other  large  States  of  the  Agency,  its  territory  is  comprised 
in  one  compact  block,  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  States  of  Gwalior, 
Basoda,  Korwai,  Maksudangarh,  and  Narsinghgarh,  the  Sironj  pargana 
of  Tonk  State,  and  the  Saugor  District  of  the  Central  Provinces  ;  on 
the  south  by  the  Narbada  river,  which  separates  it  from  the  Hoshang- 
abad  District  of  the  Central  Provinces  ;  on  the  east  by  the  Saugor  and 
Narsinghpur  Districts  of  the  Central  Provinces ;  and  on  the  west  by 
the  Gwalior  and  Narsinghgarh  States.  The  name  is  popularly  derived 
from  Bhojpal,  or  '  Bhoj's  dam,'  the  great  dam  which  now  holds  up  the 
Bhopal  city  lakes,  and  is  said  to  have  been  built  by  a  minister  of  Raja 
Bhoj,  the  Paramara  ruler  of  Dhar,  the  still  greater  work  which  formerly 
held  up  the  Tal  lake  being  attributed  to  this  monarch  himself  (see 
Bhojpur).  The  name  is,  however,  invariably  pronounced  Bhupal,  and 
Dr.  Fleet  considers  it  to  be  derived  simply  from  Bhupala,  a  king,  the 
popular  derivation  being  an  instance  of  the  striving  after  a  meaning 
so  common  in  such  cases. 

The  country  varies  markedly  in  different  parts.  Most  of  the  State 
lies  on  the  Malwa  plateau,  and  presents  the  familiar  aspect  of  that 

region,  rolling  downs  of  yellow  grass,  interspersed 
Physical  w;th  rich  fields  of  Dlack  cotton  soj]i     -p0  the  south- 

aspects.  ,  .     .  ,    ,  , 

east,    however,    it    is    traversed    by  a   succession   of 

sandstone  hills,  forming  an  arm  of  the  great  Vindhya  range,  while 
another  branch  of  the  same  range  strikes  northwards,  to  the  west  of 
Bhopal  city.  South  of  the  State  lies  the  main  line  of  the  Vindhyas, 
with  the  fertile  valley  of  the  Narbada  beyond. 

Numerous  streams  flow  from  the  Vindhyan  barrier  northwards,  of 
which  the  Betwa  and  Parbati  are  the  largest,  their  tributaries,  the 
Kaliasot,  Ajnar,  Papras,  and  Paru,  and  many  smaller  affluents  con- 
tributing to  the  water  supply.  The  Narbada  and  its  tributaries  water 
the  valley  south  of  the  great  range.  Two  large  lakes  afford  an  ample 
supply  of  water  to  the  city  and  surrounding  country  (see  Bhopal 
City).  In  former  days  the  enormous  Bhojpur  lake  occupied  what 
is  now  the  fertile  tahsil  of  Tal. 

The  geology  of  the  State  possesses  unusual  interest,  but  unfortunately 
has  not  as  yet  been  fully  worked  out,  only  the  southern  portion  having 
been  examined  in  detail.  The  most  important  rocks  belong  to  the 
Vindhyan  series,  of  which  the  Rewah,  Bandair  (Bhander),  and  Kaimur 
sandstones,  the  Kaimur  conglomerate,  and  the  Sirbu,  Jhirl,  and  Ginnur- 
garh  shales  are  represented.  Up  to  the  Ginnurgarh  fort  (220  49'  N. 
and  770  36'  E.),  the  Vindhyas  maintain  the  characteristics  they  possess 
from  the  bend  of  the  Son  river  westwards ;  but  at  this  point  they 
change  suddenly,  being  replaced  by  basalts  of  the  Deccan  trap,  though 


PHYSICAL  ASPECTS  127 

they  still  maintain  their  former  physical  conformation.  A  north-westerly 
arm  reaches  up  to  Bhopal  city,  but  is  concealed  by  basalt,  except  in 
the  region  lying  immediately  east  and  south-east  of  the  city,  where  its 
highest  beds,  of  upper  Bandair  sandstone,  are  well  exposed  along  the 
axis  of  the  synclinal  fold,  the  original  cover  of  basalt  having  here  been 
removed  by  subaerial  denudation.  East  and  west  of  the  main  outcrop 
the  denudation  is  less  complete,  and  the  table-land  is  often  crowned 
with  a  highly  ferruginous  laterite.  The  basalts  met  with  are  petrologi- 
cally  of  great  interest,  varying  considerably  in  constitution,  coarse,  fine- 
grained, compact,  and  vesicular  varieties  being  all  met  with.  The 
vesicular  basalts  often  contain  geodes  2  to  3  feet  in  diameter,  full  of 
crystals  of  zeolite,  and  intertrappean  fresh-water  beds,  with  fossil  spores 
of  aquatic  plants  of  the  genus  Chara. 

Many  of  the  stones  are  of  great  economic  value.  The  Kaimur  sand- 
stone has  been  extensively  quarried,  and  yields  an  admirable  stone  for 
building  and  ornamental  purposes ;  the  upper  Rewah  formation,  which 
furnishes  flagstones  of  great  size,  and  the  Bandairs  are  also  much 
used.  The  lower  Bandairs  are  here  of  a  very  fine  and  even  grain,  quite 
unlike  the  coarse  gritty  stone  of  this  formation  met  with  in  Bundel- 
khand  and  Baghelkhand,  and  are  thus  a  most  valuable  source  of 
building  material.  A  dark  purple-red  stone  of  fine  grain  found  in  the 
upper  Bandairs  has  been  used  in  many  buildings. 

Another  deposit,  of  which,  however,  adequate  commercial  advantage 
has  not  as  yet  been  taken,  is  the  limestone  rock  at  Ginnurgarh,  which 
is  over  100  feet  thick  and  admirably  suited  for  burning  for  lime. 

The  flora  of  the  sandstone  region  differs  markedly  from  that  on  the 
Deccan  trap  area.  In  the  former  the  jungle  is  much  closer,  trees  are 
more  abundant  and  of  a  much  greater  variety.  On  the  trap  area  the 
trees  consist  mainly  of  acacias  and  dhak  (Butea  frondosa),  the  change  to 
a  sandstone  soil  being  at  once  signalled  by  the  presence  of  teak,  tend/1 
(Diospyros  tomentosa),  sal  (S/iorea  robusta),  and  salai  (Boswe//ia  serrata). 
Other  species  met  with  are  Terminatia,  Anogeissus,  Stephegyne,  and 
Buchanania,  often  interspersed  with  stretches  of  Dendrocalamus  strictus. 
The  undergrowth  contains  Zizyphus,  Capparis,  Greivia,  Casearta, 
PhyUanthiis,  Antidesma,   Carissa,  and  other  species. 

The  jungle  in  the  sandstone  area  affords  ample  cover  to  wild  animals, 
tigers,  leopards,  sambar  (Cervits  unicolor),  and  ch'ital  (Cervi/s  axis) 
being  common.  Formerly  bison  {Bos  gait r us)  were  found  in  the  south 
of  the  State,  but  they  are  now  almost,  if  not  entirely,  extinct  in  this 
region.  All  the  ordinary  wild-fowl  are  found,  duck  and  snipe  in  large 
numbers  frequenting  the  big  tank  to  the  west  of  the  city. 

The  climate  in  most  of  the  State  is  the  same  as  that  of  Malwa,  but 
in  the  hilly  region  to  the  south  greater  extremes  of  heat  and  cold  are 
encountered.     The  rainfall  recorded  at  Bhopal  city  gives  an  average  of 


128  BHOPAL  STATE 

42  inches,  a  maximum  of  65  being  recorded  in  1875  and  a  minimum 
of  25  in  1897.  The  destruction  of  the  great  Bhojpur  lake  in  the 
fifteenth  century  appears  to  have  modified  the  climate  considerably. 
The  winds  which  blew  over  this  expanse  of  water,  exceeding  200  square 
miles  in  extent,  must  have  had  a  marked  effect  on  the  climate  of  the 
surrounding  country. 

The  founder  of  the  Bhopal  family  was  Dost  Muhammad  Khan,  an 
Afghan  from  Tlrah,  belonging  to  the  Mirzai  Khel  of  the  Barakzais. 
He  came  to  Delhi  during  the  first  years  of  Bahadur 
Shah's  reign  (170S)  in  search  of  employment.  In 
1709  he  obtained  a  lease  of  the  Berasia  pargafia  and,  rapidly  extend- 
ing his  dominions,  founded  the  towns  of  Islamnagar  and  Bhopal, 
making  the  latter  place  his  head-quarters,  and  building  the  Fatehgarh 
fort.  Later  on  Dost  Muhammad  assumed  independence  and  adopted 
the  title  of  Nawab.  In  1720  he  incurred  the  enmity  of  the  Nizam,  but 
made  terms,  sending  his  illegitimate  son  Yar  Muhammad  Khan  as 
a  hostage.  Dost  Muhammad  was  a  man  of  strong  character  and  was 
considered,  even  in  a  tribe  where  valour  is  a  common  quality,  to 
possess  remarkable  courage.  His  memory  is  still  fondly  cherished  by 
the  family  of  which  he  was  the  founder.  He  died  about  1 740,  at  the 
age  of  sixty-six,  and  the  chief  nobles  of  the  State  placed  Muhammad 
Khan,  a  child  of  eight,  on  the  masnad.  The  latter  was,  however, 
ousted  soon  after  by  Yar  Muhammad  Khan,  who  returned  from 
Hyderabad,  and  whose  succession  was  supported  by  the  Nizam.  The 
Nizam  at  the  same  time  conferred  on  him  the  Mahi  Maratib  or  insignia 
of  the  Fish,  one  of  the  highest  honours  of  the  Mughal  empire.  Owing, 
however,  to  his  illegitimacy,  Yar  Muhammad  was  never  formally 
installed  as  Nawab.  His  rule  was  uneventful.  He  died  in  1754,  and 
was  succeeded  by  his  son  Faiz  Muhammad  Khan,  then  eleven  years 
of  age.  An  unsuccessful  attempt  to  push  his  claim  by  arms  was  made 
by  his  uncle  Muhammad  Khan,  who  was  defeated  and  retired  to 
Rahatgarh,  which  was  granted  him  in  jdg'ir  on  the  intercession  of 
Yar  Muhammad's  widow. 

Faiz  Muhammad  was  a  religious  recluse,  quite  unfit  to  rule  a  large 
State,  though  in  personal  appearance  he  was  a  giant,  being  only  just 
under  7  feet  in  height.  The  State  was  administered  by  a  Hindu,  Baiji 
Ram,  who  was  an  energetic  and  excellent  administrator,  and  extended 
the  dominions  considerably.  Later  on,  however,  he  was  obliged  to 
surrender  half  the  Bhopal  possessions  to  the  Peshwa  BajT  Rao.  Faiz 
Muhammad  died  childless  in  1777,  and  was  succeeded  by  his  brother 
Hayat  Muhammad  Khan,  who  was  also  a  religious  recluse  and  a  weak 
and  incapable  ruler.  He  adopted  as  a  meritorious  act  four  boys  as  his 
chelas,  one  a  Gond,  one  the  son  of  a  Gosain,  and  two  Brahmans,  whom 
he  brought  up  as  Muhammadans. 


HISTORY  129 

In  1778  the  Gond  Faulad  Khan  was  minister,  and  was  instrumental 
in  assisting  Colonel  Goddard  on  his  famous  march  from  Bengal  to 
Bombay  to  support  the  claims  of  Raghuba  to  the  Peshwaship.  While 
many  obstacles  were  put  in  the  way  of  the  force  by  the  Marathas,  the 
Bhopal  officials  treated  the  British  with  the  greatest  confidence  and 
hospitality,  furnishing  them  with  supplies  and  giving  every  possible 
assistance,  though  they  suffered  severely  in  consequence  from  Maratha 
depredations.  Faulad  Khan's  rule  was,  however,  oppressive ;  and  on 
his  death  in  1779,  Mamullah,  the  widow  of  Yar  Muhammad  Khan, 
appointed  Chhote  Khan,  one  of  the  two  Brahman  proteges  of  Hayat 
Muhammad,  as  minister.  This  lady  was  a  woman  of  remarkable  power, 
who  deserves  to  rank  with  her  contemporary  Ahalya  Bai  of  Indore. 
She  lived  to  the  great  age  of  eighty,  and  for  fifty  years  entirely  con- 
trolled the  councils  of  the  State.  After  the  death  of  Chhote  Khan,  in 
1798,  a  succession  of  weak  ministers  rapidly  brought  the  State  into 
imminent  danger  of  total  destruction  at  the  hands  of  the  Pindari  hordes 
and  great  Maratha  chiefs.  Providentially  a  saviour  appeared  in  Wazlr 
Muhammad  Khan,  a  cousin  of  the  Nawab,  who  assumed  the  sole 
direction  of  affairs,  and  by  his  bold  and  energetic  policy  rapidly 
retrieved  the  fallen  fortunes  of  the  State.  Hayat  Muhammad  would 
have  appointed  him  minister,  but  for  the  strenuous  opposition  of  his 
son  Ghaus  Muhammad  Khan  and  his  mother,  who  obtained  this 
position  for  Murid  Muhammad  Khan  of  Rahatgarh.  Murid  was  an 
unprincipled  scoundrel,  whose  acts  of  tyranny  soon  disgusted  the 
Afghan  nobles.  Failing  in  his  repeated  attempts  to  destroy  the  power 
of  Wazlr  Muhammad  Khan,  he  appealed  to  Sindhia.  The  Fatehgarh 
fort  in  Bhopal  was  handed  over  to  Amir  Khan  (see  Tonk),  then  in 
Sindhia's  service,  and  Wazlr  was  forced  to  leave  the  country.  Disturb- 
ances at  Gwalior,  however,  caused  Sindhia  to  recall  his  troops,  and 
Wazlr,  returning  at  the  head  of  a  considerable  force,  expelled  the 
Marathas  from  the  fort.  Murid  was  taken  away  as  a  hostage  by  the 
Maratha  general,  and  shortly  after  died.  Wazlr  then  assumed  charge 
of  the  State;  and,  though  the  revenues  were  reduced  to  only  Rs.  50,000, 
he  managed  to  raise  an  army  and  recapture  the  lost  districts  on  the 
Narbada.  Ghaus  Muhammad's  jealousy  was  roused  by  this  increasing 
power,  and  he  intrigued  with  the  Pindari  leader  Karim  Khan,  who  was 
in  the  pay  of  Bhopal,  to  destroy  him.  Wazlr  was  again  obliged  to 
retire,  but  returned  soon  after  and  drove  out  the  Pindaris.  Ghaus 
Muhammad  then  again  turned  to  Sindhia,  agreeing  to  give  up  the 
Islamnagar  fort  and  pay  a  large  sum  of  money  if  Wazlr  were  expelled. 
This  year  (1807)  Nawab  Hayat  Muhammad,  who  had  long  withdrawn 
from  all  active  participation  in  public  life,  died. 

In  1807  the  Nagpur  forces  under  Sadik  All  seized  several  outlying 
districts,  and   at    Ghaus   Muhammad's   special   request   advanced   to 

VOL.  VIII.  K 


r3o  B  HO  PAL  STATE 

Bhopal  itself.  Wazlr  retired  in  disgust  to  the  Ginnurgarh  fort,  and 
Sadik  All  after  staying  six  weeks  returned  to  Nagpur,  taking  Ghaus 
Muhammad's  son  as  a  hostage.  Wazlr  at  once  came  back  and  took 
possession  of  the  Fatehgarh  fort.  Ghaus  Muhammad  now  admitted 
that  he  had  been  led  astray  by  evil  counsels ;  and  Wazlr  with  his  usual 
vigour  rapidly  recovered  the  territory  taken  by  Sadik  Ali,  and  made 
a  strenuous  effort  to  conclude  a  treaty  with  the  British,  sending  Inayat 
Maslh,  alias  Salvador  Bourbon,  one  of  the  Bhopal  Bourhon  family, 
descended  from  the  royal  house  of  Navarre  (see  Ichhawar),  to 
represent  him.  The  appeal  was,  however,  rejected,  and  Wazlr  was  left 
to  cope  single-handed  with  his  powerful  enemies.  In  1813  the  com- 
bined forces  of  Gwalior  and  Nagpur  advanced  against  Bhopal,  which 
was  defended  for  eight  months  with  consummate  courage  and  skill. 
A  fresh  siege  was  averted  only  by  quarrels  between  Sindhia's  generals 
and  the  intervention  of  the  British  Government.  In  18 16  Wazlr  died 
at  the  age  of  fifty-one,  after  ruling  Bhopal  for  nine  years.  He  was 
a  man  of  remarkable  character  and  of  unrivalled  valour.  His  manners 
were  mild  and  pleasing,  but  his  look  and  stature  were  alike  command- 
ing, and  the  sternness  and  determination  of  purpose  in  his  disposition 
inspired  awe. 

He  was  succeeded  by  his  second  son  Nazar  Muhammad  Khan,  who 
had  married  Ghaus  Muhammad's  daughter,  Kudsia  Begam.  His  first 
action  was  to  renew  his  father's  appeal  to  the  British  Government.  The 
request  was  complied  with;  and  an  agreement  was  made  in  181 7,  by 
which  Nazar  Muhammad  undertook  to  assist  the  British  with  a  contin- 
gent force  and  to  co-operate  to  his  utmost  in  suppressing  the  Pindari 
bands.  '  No  obligations,'  says  Malcolm,  '  were  ever  more  faithfully 
fulfilled.'  In  1 818  the  terms  of  this  agreement  were  embodied  in 
a  formal  treaty ;  and  the  five  parganas  of  Devipura,  Ashta,  Sehore, 
Duraha,  and  Ichhawar  were  made  over,  together  with  the  fort  of  Islam- 
nagar,  recovered  from  Sindhia.  Nazar  Muhammad  was  killed  soon 
after  by  the  accidental  discharge  of  a  pistol.  Though  out  of  deference 
to  Ghaus  Muhammad  he  had  never  assumed  the  title  of  Nawab,  he 
was  always  so  addressed  by  the  British  Government,  and  was  in  fact 
the  real  ruler.     He  left  one  child,  an  infant  daughter,  Sikandar  Begam. 

It  was  arranged,  with  the  consent  of  the  nobles  of  the  State  and  the 
sanction  of  the  British  Government,  that  Nazar  Muhammad's  nephew, 
Munlr  Muhammad  Khan,  should  succeed  under  the  regency  of  Kudsia 
Begam,  and  that  Munlr  should  marry  Sikandar  Begam,  thus  securing 
the  rule  in  Wazir's  family.  To  this  arrangement  neither  Ghaus 
Muhammad  nor  any  members  of  his  immediate  family  raised  any 
objections.  In  1827,  however,  Munlr  attempted  to  assert  his  authority, 
but,  being  unsupported  by  Kudsia  Begam,  resigned  in  favour  of  his 
younger  brother  Jahanglr  Muhammad  Khan,  and  received  a  jagir  of 


HISTORY  131 

Rs.  40,000  a  year  as  compensation.  Kudsia  Begam,  anxious  to  retain 
the  power  in  her  own  hands,  delayed  the  marriage  of  Jahanglr  with  her 
daughter  until  1835.  Dissensions  soon  arose,  as  both  Jahanglr  and 
Sikandar  Begam  wished  to  hold  the  reins  of  power.  A  plot  was 
devised  by  Jahanglr  in  1837  to  seize  Kudsia  Begam,  but  was  detected 
and  Jahanglr  had  to  fly  from  the  State.  The  British  Government 
finally  mediated  between  them,  and  the  management  of  affairs  was 
entrusted  to  the  Nawab,  Kudsia  Begam  retiring  on  a  life  pension 
of  5  lakhs  (Bhopal  currency). 

In  1844  Nawab  Jahanglr  died,  leaving  a  will  by  which  he  desired 
that  his  illegitimate  son,  DastgTr  Muhammad  Khan,  should  succeed. 
This  will  was  set  aside,  and  the  claims  of  his  daughter  Shah  Jahan 
Begam  were  recognized,  Faujdar  Muhammad  Khan,  maternal  uncle 
of  Sikandar  Begam,  being  appointed  regent.  In  1847  ne  resigned 
owing  to  the  difficulties  of  his  position,  and  Sikandar  Begam  became 
regent.  She  was  an  admirable  administrator  and  effected  many 
salutary  reforms,  including  the  abolition  of  the  farming  of  revenues 
and  trade  monopolies,  the  reorganization  of  the  police  and  mints,  and 
the  liquidation  of  debt.  In  1855  her  daughter  Shah  Jahan  married 
BakhshI  Baki  Muhammad  Khan.  As  he  did  not  belong  to  the  ruling 
house  his  status  was  that  of  Nawab-Consort,  Shah  Jahan  being 
recognized  as  chief  of  the  State,  and  Sikandar  Begam  continuing  to 
act  as  regent  till  Shah  Jahan  was  of  age.  To  this  arrangement  Sikandar 
Begam  objected,  on  the  ground  that  she  was  a  chief  in  her  own  right 
as  much  as  her  daughter,  who  should  not  have  been  recognized  as 
ruler  during  her  life.  A  compromise  was  effected  by  Shah  Jahan,  who 
voluntarily  resigned  all  claim  to  rule  during  her  mother's  lifetime. 
Sikandar  Begam  was  a  woman  of  strong  character,  and  during  the 
disturbances  of  1857  rendered  signal  service  to  the  British  Government. 
Even  in  the  darkest  hours  of  misfortune  she  never  swerved  for  a 
moment  from  her  loyalty.  This  was  recognized  by  the  grant  in  i860 
of  the  district  of  Berasia,  originally  a  part  of  Bhopal  State,  which  had 
been  confiscated  from  the  Dhar  Darbar,  and  the  award  of  the  G. C.S.I, 
in  1 86 1.  In  1862  a  sa/iad  was  granted  permitting  succession,  on 
failure  of  natural  heirs,  in  accordance  with  Muhammadan  law.  Sikandar 
Begam  died  in  1868,  and  Shah  Jahan  was  formally  installed  as  the 
ruling  chief,  her  daughter  and  only  child  Sultan  Jahan  being  recognized 
as  her  heir.  BakhshI  Baki  Muhammad  Khan  had  died  in  1867  ;  and 
in  1 87 1  the  Begam  married  Maulvi  Siddlk  Hasan,  who  received  the 
honorary  title  of  Nawab.  Shah  Jahan,  like  her  mother,  was  a  woman 
of  great  administrative  ability.  She  came  out  of  parda  after  the  death 
of  her  first  husband,  but  retired  again  on  her  second  marriage.  In 
1880  she  agreed  to  defray  the  cost  of  the  railway  from  Hoshangabad 
to  Bhopal,  and  in  1881  to  abolish  all  transit  duties  on  salt.     In  1891 

K  2 


1 32  BHOPAL   STATE 

land  for  the  Bhopal-Ujjain  line  was  ceded,  and  a  contribution  made 
towards  its  construction.  After  her  second  marriage  dissensions  arose 
between  Shah  Jahan  and  her  daughter,  fomented  by  the  Nawab.  By 
1884  a  regular  impasse  had  been  reached,  and  the  Government  of  India 
was  obliged  to  intervene  and  deprive  the  Nawab  of  all  his  honours,  titles, 
and  salute.  He  died  of  dropsy  in  1890.  The  State  was  thenceforward 
managed  by  the  Begam  herself,  assisted  by  a  minister.  Shah  Jahan 
died  in  1901,  and  was  succeeded  by  Sultan  Jahan  Begam,  the  present 
ruler,  who  personally  directs  the  administration  of  her  State,  assisted 
by  Nawab  Muhammad  Naslr-ullah  Khan,  her  eldest  son.  Her  two 
other  sons  are  Sahibzada  Ubaid-ullah  Khan,  who  commands  the 
Imperial  Service  Lancers,  and  Hamld-ullah  Khan.  The  titles  of  the 
ruling  chief  are  Her  Highness  and  Nawab  Begam,  and  she  receives 
a  salute  of  19  guns  (21  within  Bhopal  territory).  The  present  Begam 
received  the  G.C.I. E.  in  1904. 

The  principal  objects  of  archaeological  importance  in  Bhopal  are 
the  great  stupa  at  SanchI  erected  in  the  third  century  B.C.,  with  its 
magnificent  monolithic  railing  and  finely  carved  gateways,  and  the  fine 
old  temple  and  dam  at  Bhojpur.  Numerous  forts  are  scattered 
throughout  the  State,  those  at  Raisen,  Ginnurgarh  (see  Nizamat-i- 
Janub),  Siwans,  and  Chaukigarh  being  of  some  interest.  Besides 
these  places,  remains  of  lesser  importance  are  numerous.  A  colossal 
figure,  which  appears  to  have  been  once  surrounded  by  a  temple,  is 
still  standing  at  Mahilpur  (230  16'  N.  and  780  6'  E.).  The  carving 
is  fine,  and  the  Kaimur  sandstone  from  which  it  was  cut  must  have 
been  brought  from  some  distance.  At  Samasgarh  (230  8'  N.  and 
770  23''  E.),  ro  miles  from  Bhopal,  is  a  small  temple  in  a  more  or  less 
ruined  state,  which  must  have  been  almost  a  replica  of  the  square 
shrine  at  Bhojpur.  Three  images,  one  colossal,  are  still  standing,  and 
the  fragments  of  a  very  fine  ceiling  and  richly  carved  lintel  lie  close  by. 
Narwar  (230  19'  N.  and  780  o'  E.)  is  practically  built  from  the  remains 
of  temples,  brought,  it  is  said,  from  Sacher,  4  miles  north-north-west, 
which  was  destroyed  about  200  years  ago.  Jamgarh  (230  6'  N.  and 
780  20'  E.)  contains  a  deserted  twelfth-century  temple  in  a  fair  state 
of  preservation. 

Of  modern  buildings  there  are  none  of  great  note.  The  palaces  are 
irregular  piles,  built  from  time  to  time  by  different  rulers  without  any 
special  attention  to  architectural  beauty  or  fitness. 

The  Jama  Masjid  of  Kudsia  Begam  is  constructed  in  modern 
Muhammadan  style,  and  derives  its  beauty  entirely  from  the  fine 
coloured  stone  of  which  it  is  built. 

It  was  the  desire  of  Shah  Jahan  Begam  that  Bhopal  should  possess 
one  mosque  of  surpassing  grandeur.  She,  therefore,  commenced  the 
great  Taj-ul-Masajid,  which  is  modelled  generally  on  the  plan  of  the 


POPULATION 


*33 


Population. 


great  mosque  at  Delhi.  If  it  is  ever  completed,  it  will  be  the  dominat- 
ing feature  of  the  city,  visible  from  all  sides.  The  main  hall  with  its 
interarching  roof,  broad  facade,  and  great  courtyard  presents  an  impos- 
ing appearance;  but  the  foundations  unfortunately  are  said  to  be  too 
weak  to  admit  of  the  erection  of  all  three  domes. 

The  population  at  the  last  three  enumerations  was  :  (1881)  952,486, 
(1891)  954,901,  and  (1901)  665,961,  giving  a  density  of  96  persons 
per  square  mile.  During  the  last  decade,  the  popula- 
tion decreased  by  no  less  than  30  per  cent.  This 
diminution  was  undoubtedly  caused  by  the  famines  of  1896-7  and 
1 899-1900,  of  which  the  effects  are  even  now  only  too  patent,  in  the 
numerous  ruined  houses  to  be  seen  in  every  village.  The  State  con- 
tains five  towns:  Biiopal  City  (population,  77,023),  the  capital; 
Sehore  (16,864,  including  the  military  station);  Ashta  (5,534)5 
Ichhawar  (4,352),  and  Berasia  (4,276).  Except  the  city,  Sehore, 
and  Ashta,  the  population  has  in  each  case  fallen  since  1891  to  below 
5,000.  The  villages,  of  which  there  are  3,073,  belong  mainly  to  the 
class  with  a  population  of  under  500  persons,  the  average  village 
containing  180. 

The    following   table  gives    the   chief  statistics   of  population   and 
revenue  by  nizdmats  (districts) :  — 


District. 

u. 

rt 
3     , 

C  m 

'a2 

u 
< 

l,  4i  7 
1 ,69 1 

2,191 

1,603 

Number  of 

Population. 

O 

8"a 

■IS 

0   <o 
Ph 

0 

Land  revenue 

and  cesses 

of  khalsa 

(1902-3). 

1 

3 

u5 

V 

be 

> 

Number 

persons  al 

read  a 

write 

Nizamat-i-Shimal  . 
Nizamat-i-Mashrik 
Nizamat-i-Janub    . 
Nizamat-i-Maghrib 

Total 

842 
8ll 
798 
622 

204,445 

198,104 
132,042 

144 

7§ 

91 

82 

) 

Details  not 
available. 

Rs. 
3,57,000 
3, 7  5, coo 
8, 1 1 ,000 
4,65,000 

6,902 

5 

3,073 

665,961 

96 

29,483 

20,08,000 

Classified  by  religion,  Hindus  number  483,611,  or  73  per  cent.; 
Animists,  91,441,  or  14  per  cent,  (chiefly  Gonds) ;  Musalmans,  83,988, 
or  13  per  cent.;  and  Jains,  6,397.  In  Bhopal  city  the  Muhammadan 
element  largely  predominates.  The  languages  prevalent  in  the  State 
are  Western  Hindi,  MalwT,  and  Urdu,  43  per  cent,  of  those  speaking 
the  last  language  residing  in  the  city. 

The  chief  castes  and  tribes  are :  among  Hindus,  Chamars  (leather- 
workers  and  labourers),  53,783;  Thakurs,  Chhatris,  and  Rajputs, 
43,711;  Brahmans,  29,076;  Lodhis  (cultivators),  26,534;  Balais 
(village  servants  and  labourers),  24,165;  Khatis  (cultivators),  19,839; 
Kachhis  (cultivators,  gardeners,  and  vegetable  growers),  18,882  ;    Ahlrs 


*34 


B  HO  PAL  STATE 


(cowherds)  and  Kunnis  (cultivators),  14,000  each.  Among  Musalmans, 
Pathans  (21,863)  and  Shaikhs  (26,876),  and  among  the  animistic  tribes, 
Gonds  (31,809),  Kirars  (22,106),  and  Minas  (15,065),  are  the  most 
numerous.  The  fall  in  the  number  of  Gonds  returned  since  1881 
indicates  the  growing  reluctance  of  the  members  of  that  tribe  to 
acknowledge  their  connexion  with  it.  As  many  as  43  per  cent,  of  the 
population  are  supported  by  agriculture,  14  per  cent,  by  general  labour, 
and  2  per  cent,  by  personal  service.  Brahmans  and  Rajputs  are  the 
principal  landholders,  and  Lodhis,  Khatis,  Kachhis,  and  Kurmls  are 
the  principal  cultivators. 

In  1901  there  were  210  Christians  in  the  State,  of  whom  189  resided 
in  Bhopal  city.  A  branch  of  the  Friends  Mission  of  Sehore  is  located 
at  Bhopal. 

The  crops  in  Bhopal  depend  almost  entirely  on  the  rainfall,  irrigation 
being  but  little  resorted  to.  The  most  fertile  soil  in  the  State  is  found 
in  the  Nizamat-i-Maghrib,  or  '  western  district,'  round 
Ashta.  The  soil  is  classed  locally  on  two  systems, 
either  by  its  colour  and  consistency  or  by  its  position.  The  two 
principal  classes  are  known  as  kala  mati  or  '  black  soil,'  of  which  there 
are  several  varieties,  and  bhanwar.  The  former  is  the  well-known 
black  cotton  soil,  and  is  used  chiefly  for  growing  wheat,  masur,  and 
gram.  Bhanwar  is  a  grey  soil  of  light  sandy  nature,  not  so  retentive 
of  moisture  as  the  other,  and  chiefly  produces  joivdr  and  maize,  or, 
if  irrigable,  sugar-cane.  Either  soil  is  capable  of  bearing  both  autumn 
(kharif)  and  spring  (rabi)  crops.  Other  lighter  soils  are  chiefly  devoted 
to  the  cultivation  of  jowar,  maize,  kutkl,  rameli,  til,  and  the  less 
important  crops  generally. 

The  chief  statistics  of  cultivation  in  1902-3  are  given  below,  in 
square  miles  : — 


Agriculture. 


Districts.                        Total.          Cultivated. 

Irrigated. 

Cultivable 
waste. 

Nizamat-i-Shimal 
Nizamat-i-Mashrik 
Nizamat-i-Janiib 
Nizamat-i-Maghrib 

i,4i7 
1,691 
2,191 
1,603 

33° 
43° 
625 
348 

1 5 

2 

I 

25 

462 

5°3 
477 
525 

Total 

6,902 

i,733 

43 

1,967 

The  system  of  cultivation  is  the  same  as  that  followed  elsewhere 
in  Central  India.  The  chief  khar'if  crops  are  jowar,  maize,  urd,  iuar, 
mung,  kodo/i,  and  bdjra,  with  supernumerary  crops  of  rameli,  cotton, 
and  til.  In  the  rabi,  wheat,  gram,  and  barley,  with  poppy,  linseed,  and 
sugar-cane,  are  grown.  The  staple  food-grains  for  the  common  people 
are   maize   in  the   rainy  season,  and  joivdr  and  bdjra  at  other  times. 


AGRICULTURE  135 

The  rich  use  wheat  and  rice,  and  the  jungle  tribes  kodon  and  kutkl 
(Panicum  miliare).  The  usual  spices  and  vegetables  are  grown  in 
gardens. 

The  average  area  cultivated  was  2,751  square  miles  between  1881 
and  1890,  and  2,009  during  the  next  decade.  In  1901  the  area 
decreased  to  1,737  square  miles.  The  large  contraction  is  in  part  due 
to  bad  years,  but  mainly  to  the  greatly  reduced  population,  which  has 
resulted  in  the  abandonment  of  fields  lying  far  from  villages.  In  1902-3 
wheat  occupied  671  square  miles,  or  39  per  cent. ;  jowar,  302  square 
miles,  or  18  per  cent.  j>  gram,  230  square  miles,  maize  32,  poppy  25, 
and  cotton  66.  Attempts  have  been  made  to  introduce  new  varieties 
of  seed,  but  without  success.  Advances  or  loans  are  freely  given  to 
cultivators,  and  suspensions  are  made  in  bad  years.  In  1894,  7  lakhs 
were  suspended,  and  8  lakhs  in  iooo. 

Irrigation  and  manuring  are  usually  practised  only  in  fields  close 
to  villages  or  towns,  and  then  only  in  the  case  of  crops  of  importance, 
such  as  poppy  and  sugar-cane  or  vegetables.  Water  is  supplied  from 
wells  worked  by  water-lifts. 

There  are  no  special  breeds  of  cattle  in  the  State,  though  the  grass 
supply  is  ample  and  large  herds  are  kept  by  the  villagers. 

The  principal  fairs  are  those  at  Sehore,  held  in  the  month  of  Baisakh 
(April) ;  the  Kalu-bhan  fair  in  the  Udaipura  tahsll  in  Paus  or  Magh 
(January  or  February) ;  and  the  Jhagoria  fair  in  the  Bilklsganj  tahsll 
in  Chaitra  (March). 

Generally  speaking,  wages  throughout  the  State  have  risen  of  late 
years,  the  rates  having  increased  with  the  diminution  of  the  supply 
of  labour.  Wages  fur  agricultural  operations  are  still  paid  in  kind 
in  the  country.  For  reaping  joivdr  or  maize,  2  seers  of  the  grain  are 
given  per  diem ;  in  the  case  of  wheat,  one  gawd  or  bundle  is  given  out 
of  20  gawds  made  up,  a  gawd  weighing  about  z\  seers.  When  the 
price  of  grain  is  low,  more  bundles  are  given.  Labour  required  in  the 
cultivation  of  poppy  is  usually  paid  in  cash,  from  2  to  2\  annas,  and 
of  late  years  even  3  or  4  annas,  being  given  per  diem  for  the  chirai  or 
incising  operation.  The  crop  is  so  valuable,  and  it  is  so  essential  that 
the  different  processes  should  be  done  exactly  at  the  proper  moment, 
that  high  rates  have  to  be  paid  by  the  owners  of  poppy-fields.  Wages 
for  skilled  labour  are  considerably  higher  in  the  city  than  in  the  country, 
blacksmiths  receiving  4  annas  a  day  in  the  former  and  2  annas  in 
the  latter. 

The  prices  of  grain  have  also  risen  considerably  in  the  vicinity  of 
metalled  roads  or  railways  and  in  large  places  such  as  Bhopal  city. 
Thus,  when  wheat  sells  in  the  city  at  15  seers  to  the  rupee,  the  price 
at  Siwans,  64  miles  from  Bhopal  and  off  the  road,  is  22  seers;  gram 
sells  in  Bhopal  city  at  18  and  at  Deori  at  26  seers;  joivdr  in  the  city 


r36  B  HO  PAL  STATE 

at  27  and  at  Bilkisganj  at  35  seers;  and  maize  in  the  city  at  27  and 
in  Bareli  at  32  seers. 

The  standard  of  luxury  is  rising  among  the  better-educated  classes, 
and  is  to  a  certain  extent  permeating  even  the  agricultural  community. 
Many  now  possess  holiday  garments  who  formerly  never  even  desired 
to  have  them.  The  mercantile  classes  have  benefited  most,  and  the 
class  which  serves  as  clerks  least.  The  latter  are  almost  always  heavily 
indebted,  being  obliged  to  maintain  an  appearance  beyond  their 
means,  while  living  in  a  style  considerably  above  that  in  which  their 
forefathers  lived. 

The  forests,  which  cover  1,714  square  miles,  are  divided  into  three 
classes  :  '  reserved,'  protected,  and  village-protected.  The  '  reserved  ' 
forests  are  closed  to  the  cutting  of  timber.  In  the 
protected  area  the  removal  of  certain  trees  is  pro- 
hibited :  namely,  teak,  saj  {Termindlia  tomentosa),  tendu  {Diospyros 
tomentosa),  shisham  {Dalbergia  Sissoo),  blja  (Pterocarpus  Marsupiuni), 
sandal  [Santalum  album),  and  koha  {Terminalia  Arjuna),  on  account 
of  their  timber  ;  and  mango  (Mangifera  indica),  achar  (Buchanania 
/afifolia),  mahua  (Bassia  latifolia),  khirnl  {Mimusops  hexandra),  and 
the  date-palm  {Phoenix  sylvestris),  on  account  of  their  fruit. 

There  are  two  forest  officers,  with  an  establishment  for  watch  and 
ward,  consisting  of  a  daroga  or  overseer  with  a  patrol,  and  the  rawana 
nigar  or  collector  of  dues.  The  inhabitants  of  villages  on  the  forest 
border  are  allowed  to  have  wood  free,  on  the  understanding  that  they 
protect  the  forest  and  report  acts  committed  against  forest  rules.  In 
other  places  villagers  are  allowed  to  cut  wood  free  to  a  value  of  5  per 
cent,  of  their  assessed  revenue.  Firing  grass  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  a  forest  is  a  criminal  offence.  The  forest  work  is  done  by  the 
Gonds,  Kols,  Korkus,  Dhanuks,  and  other  jungle  tribes,  who  receive 
Rs.  3  to  Rs.  4  a  month  for  their  services.  A  revenue  of  Rs.  7,800  per 
annum  is  derived  from  the  sale  of  forest  produce ;  the  expenditure  is 
Rs.  10,600. 

The  chief  mineral  products  are  the  magnificent  sandstones  met  with 
in  many  places,  which  have  been  extensively  used  in  construction  from 
.  the  building  of  the  Sanchi  stupa  (25  B.C.),  up  to  the 

present  day.  At  Ginnurgarh  lime  is  worked  to 
a  small  extent  by  the  State  public  works  department,  but  it  is 
ordinarily  obtained  from  the  kankar  or  nodular  limestone  of  the 
Narbada  valley.  Ironstone  is  also  found  in  some  parts,  and  the  metal 
is  still  worked.  Jamar  village  (230  18'  N.  and  780  12'  E.)  has  long  been 
famous,  and  the  iron  made  here  is  even  now  preferred  to  that  from 
Europe  for  some  purposes.  The  stone  used  is  a  rich  hematite,  which  is 
smelted  with  charcoal.  The  industry  has,  however,  declined  since  the 
famine  of  1 899-1 900.     Till  then  Rs.  2,000  a  year  used  to  be  advanced 


TRADE   AND    COMMUNICATIONS  137 

by  Bhopal  traders  to  the  workmen,  and  the  State  levied  a  duty   of 
Rs.  4  per  furnace  and  one  anna  per  maund  of  iron  produced. 

The  jewellery  of  Bhopal  and  the  cloth  of  Sehore  and  Ashta  have 
always  had  a  high  reputation.     The  usual  coarse  country  cloth,  blankets, 
and  dans  or  cotton  rugs  are  made  in  the  city  and 
large  towns.      A   combined   cotton-ginning   factory,  co  J^nSfions. 
saw-mill,  grass-press,  and  flour-mill  is  worked  by  the 
State    at    Bhopal,   employing  about  200  hands,  paid  at   the   rate   of 
Rs.  4  to  Rs.  7  a  month. 

Trade,  especially  that  of  the  city,  has  increased  enormously  since  the 
opening  of  the  Indian  Midland  and  Bhopal-Ujjain  Railways.  The 
metalled  feeder-roads  constructed  in  the  last  twenty  years  have  also 
increased  the  export  trade  from  the  country.  The  chief  articles 
exported  are  grain,  til  seed,  poppy  seed,  opium,  and  cotton  to  Bombay, 
lac  and  gum  to  Mirzapur,  and  hides  and  horns  to  Cawnpore.  The 
chief  imports  are  salt  from  Pachbhadra  in  Rajputana,  sugar,  European 
hardware,  English  boots  and  shoes,  and  kerosene  oil.  Some  fine  cloth 
is  imported  from  Chanderi  in  Gwalior.  White  metal  utensils  are 
brought  from  Bombay,  Moradabad,  and  Bhllwara  in  Rajputana. 
Bhopal  city,  Sehore,  Dip,  Barkhera,  and  Diwanganj  are  the  principal 
markets.  A  bulk  oil  depot  has  been  established  by  a  European  firm 
at  Bhopal.  The  chief  trade  routes  are  the  two  railways  and  the 
metalled  road  from  Bhopal  to  Dewas  and  Indore  via  Ashta. 

The  principal  means  of  communication  are  the  Great  Indian  Penin- 
sula Railway,  of  which  the  main  line  between  Bombay  and  Agra  passes 
through  Bhopal  city,  and  the  Bhopal-Ujjain  Railway  connecting  Bhopal 
with  the  Rajputana-Malwa  Railway  running  to  Indore  and  Ajmer.  The 
State  contributed  50  lakhs  towards  the  construction  of  the  Itarsi-Bhopal 
section  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula,  which  is  known  as  the  Bhopal 
State  Railway.  It  is  managed  by  the  company,  the  State  receiving 
dividends  on  the  capital  supplied.  A  similar  arrangement  has  been 
made  regarding  the  Bhopal-Ujjain  line. 

The  chief  metalled  roads  are  the  Bhopal-Sehore  and  Ashta  road 
(47  miles),  passing  on  to  Dewas  and  Indore,  and  the  feeder-roads  from 
Bhopal  to  Siampur  and  HingonI  (26  miles),  where  there  is  an  inspection 
bungalow,  to  Narsinghgarh  (17  miles),  and  the  Bhopal-Hoshangabad 
road  (45  miles),  now  little  used  on  account  of  the  railway.  Other 
feeder-roads  lead  from  Salamatpur  station  to  Raisen  (n-|  miles),  from 
Bhopal  to  Islamnagar  (5  miles),  and  on  to  Berasia  (21  miles),  besides 
those  immediately  round  the  city.  Altogether  173  miles  of  metalled 
roads  are  maintained,  exclusive  of  those  round  the  city.  The  value  of 
improved  communications  was  immediately  apparent  in  the  famine  of 
1 899-1 900,  grain  pouring  in  and  removing  all  danger  of  actual 
starvation. 


138  BHOPAL  STATE 

A  postal  system  was  first  introduced  in  1862  ;  but  no  charge  was 
made  for  the  carriage  of  letters  till  1869,  when  the  system  was  modified 
and  that  in  British  India  was  adopted,  stamps  and  subsequently  post- 
cards being  sold.  Four  local  issues  of  stamps  have  been  made,  but  all 
are  now  obsolete.  In  1901,  47,680  private  letters,  951  newspapers, 
513  packets,  165  parcels,  and  7,268  value-payable  parcels  were  carried. 
The  revenue  amounted  to  Rs.  1,900  and  the  expenditure  to  Rs.  13,000. 
The  loss  is  accounted  for  by  the  free  carriage  of  all  service  correspon- 
dence, amounting  to  600,000  letters  and  packages  of  all  sorts.  The 
length  of  postal  lines  covered  by  the  system  in  1862  was  108  miles,  and 
by  1 90 1  had  risen  to  619  miles.  There  are  combined  post  and  telegraph 
offices  at  Bhopal  and  Sehore,  and  telegraph  offices  at  all  railway  stations. 

Crop  failures  in  Bhopal  have  ordinarily  been  due  to  excessive  rainfall 

in  the  eastern  and  southern  districts,  a  fact  which  may  possibly   be 

„      .  accounted  for  by  the  large  extent  of  forest  in  those 

Famine.  . 

regions.      In  1899- 1900,  however,  the  great  drought 

which  attacked  all  Malwa  affected  this  region  also,  and  caused  a  very 

serious  diminution  of  the  population,  from  which  the  country  has  not  yet 

recovered.     In  every  village  many  houses  are  to  be  seen  roofless  and  in 

a  state  of  decay.     In  1905  great  damage  was  wrought  to  spring  crops, 

especially  poppy  and  gram,  by  hail  and  frost.     This  produced  some 

distress  and    much  pecuniary   loss  to   the    State   and  the   individual 

cultivator,    but   did   not   cause   famine,    as   the   autumn    crops    were 

excellent. 

For  administrative  purposes  the  State  is  divided  into  four1  districts 

(nizamats) :  the  Nizamat-i-Shimal,  or  '  northern  district '  ;  Nizamat-i- 

.,    .  .  Tanub,     or     'southern':    Nizamat-i-Mashrik,    or 

Administration.   J,  '  ,    ,      .  _    _  ' 

'eastern  ;  and  the  Nizamat-i-Maghrib,  or  'western 

district,'  which   are   subdivided  into  tahsi/s.     There  is  also  a  special 
district  for  the  city,  called  the  Sihkrohi^  or  '  6  miles  radius.' 

Bhopal  being  a  first-class  State,  the  chief  has  full  powers  in  all 
administrative  matters,  both  judicial  and  general,  including  the  power 
to  pass  sentence  of  death.  Two  ministers  assist  in  the  administration  : 
the  Muln-id-Muhdtn,  who  is  in  charge  of  revenue  affairs ;  and  the 
Nasir-ul-Muhdm,  who  has  charge  of  police  and  judicial  matters.  There 
are  also  three  councils  :  the  Ijlas-i-Kamil,  of  four  members,  which 
advises  the  chief  and  inquires  into  matters  specially  referred  to  it ;  the 
Kamiti-i-Mdl,  of  eight  members,  which  frames  rules  for  financial 
matters  ;  and  the  Kamiti-i-Faujddri,  which  deals  with  legislative  work. 
The  other  important  branches  of  administration  are  :  the  Deorhl-i-Khds, 
or  chief's  private  offices  ;  the  office  of  the  State  Mufti ;  the  Kdzl,  who 
announces  fatwas  or  rulings  according  to  the  Koran  ;  the  Majlis-i- 
Ulama,  consisting  of  four  members,  which  decides  in  cases  of  difference 
1  Since  this  account  was  written  the  nizamats  have  been  reduced  to  three. 


ADMINISTRATION  139 

of  opinion  between  the  Kdzi  and  the  Mufti ;  the  Muntazim,  or  inspector- 
general  of  police  ;  the  public  works  department ;  the  forest  depart- 
ment ;  the  Vakll-i-Riasat,  through  whom  pass  all  communications 
between  the  chief  and  the  Political  Agent ;  the  Daftar-i-Nazir,  or 
office  of  accountant-general ;  the  Khazana,  or  treasury  ;  the  Bakhshigiri- 
hisdb,  or  paymaster's  office  ;  and  the  Bakhshigiri-Fauj,  or  office  of  the 
commander-in-chief. 

The  first  attempt  to  introduce  a  proper  system  into  the  judicial  work 
of  the  State  was  made  by  Sikandar  Begam.  In  1884  her  system  was 
revised  and  regular  courts  were  constituted  on  the  British  model.  The 
lowest  courts  are  those  of  the  tahsilddrs,  who  are  magistrates  of  the 
first  or  second  class,  appeals  from  them  lying  to  the  Ndzi/ns  in  charge 
of  nizdmats,  and  from  them  to  the  court  of  the  Sadr-us-Sadur  and 
Naslr-ul-Muhdm  at  Bhopal,  and  finally  to  the  chief  through  the 
council.  The  city  forms  a  unit,  in  which  the  jurisdiction  is  separate 
from  that  of  the  districts.  The  total  cost  of  the  judicial  staff  is 
Rs.  70,000  per  annum.  All  matters  of  a  religious  nature  and  civil  cases 
requiring  the  issue  of  afatwcz,  or  opinion  on  a  point  of  Muhammadan 
law,  are  referred  to  the  State  Kazl,  from  him  to  the  Mufti,  and  in  case 
of  a  difference  of  opinion  between  the  Kdzi  and  Mufti  are  finally 
disposed  of  by  the  Majlis-i-  Ulama. 

Up  to  the  year  1818  the  financial  resources  of  the  State  were  of 
a  highly  unstable  character,  depending  on  the  power  of  the  ruler  of  the 
day  to  repel  the  inroads  of  Maratha  and  Pindari  raiders.  At  Hayat 
Muhammad's  accession  in  1777  the  revenue  was  about  20  lakhs  of 
rupees;  and  it  was  customary  to  devote  one  quarter  to  the  personal 
expenses  of  the  Nawab,  who  was  held  to  have  no  interest  or  concern 
with  State  revenues  over  and  above  this  assignment,  other  revenues  being 
under  the  control  of  the  minister  for  general  administrative  purposes. 
In  1800  the  revenues  fell  as  low  as  Rs.  50,000.  By  1818,  as  a  result  of 
the  energetic  rule  of  Wazlr  Muhammad  and  his  son  Nazar,  and  the 
alliance  with  the  British  Government,  the  income  rose  to  9  lakhs. 
Sikandar  Begam  divided  the  country  into  three  regular  districts  for  land 
revenue  purposes,  and  in  1872  Shah  Jahan  Begam  effected  a  regular 
settlement  for  a  term  of  twenty  years  and  redistributed  the  State  into 
four  districts.  The  total  normal  revenue  of  the  State  is  25  lakhs,  the 
principal  sources  being  land  (20-1  lakhs),  customs  (3-1  lakhs),  tribute 
( 1 -6  lakhs),  excise  (Rs.  40,000),  and  stamps  (Rs.  31,000).  The  chief 
items  of  expenditure  are :  general  administration  (4  lakhs),  chief's 
establishment  (3  lakhs),  police  (i-6  lakhs),  Bhopal  Infantry  (2  lakhs), 
Imperial  Service  Lancers  (2  lakhs),  State  army  (3-4  lakhs).  The  income 
of  alienated  lands  is  5-6  lakhs.  Since  1897  the  British  rupee  has  been 
the  only  legal  tender. 

Until  1832  the  revenue  was  collected  after  an  appraisement  of  the 


i4o  BHOPAL   STATE 

standing  crops,  and  leases  were  granted  for  the  year  only.  Since  that 
date,  however,  the  rates  have  been  settled  for  terms  of  years.  During 
the  time  of  Sikandar  Begam  the  farming  of  the  revenue  was  abolished. 
It  is  now  collected  through  farmers  (mustdjirs),  but  the  rates  are  fixed 
by  the  State  revenue  department.  The  ordinary  rates  for  irrigated 
land  of  good  quality  are  Rs.  17  to  Rs.  9  per  acre,  and  for  irrigated  land 
of  poorer  classes  Rs.  3  to  Rs.  2.  Unirrigated  land  pays  from  Rs.  4  to 
R.  1  per  acre  for  kdld  matt,  Rs.  4  to  13  annas  for  bhanivar,  and  R.  1 
to  3  annas  for  the  poorest  soils.  When  poppy  or  sugar-cane  is  grown, 
the  rates  vary  from  Rs.  1 7  to  Rs.  1 1  per  acre,  and  for  cotton  from  Rs.  5 
to  R.  1.  Some  highly  fertile  land  immediately  round  the  city,  called 
nau  frahdr,  where  special  facilities  exist  for  manuring  and  watering, 
is  let  for  Rs.  32  per  acre  and  produces  poppy  and  garden  crops. 

Revenue  is  collected  by  the  State  in  cash,  but  cultivators  occasion- 
ally pay  the  farmers  in  kind.  In  1837  the  first  settlement  was  made, 
for  three  years,  the  demand  being  10  lakhs.  Revisions  were  made 
from  time  to  time,  and  the  revenue  fixed  in  1855  for  fifteen  years 
amounted  to  20  lakhs.  The  last  settlement  was  made  in  1903,  for 
five  years,  with  a  demand  of  20-8  lakhs,  which  gives  an  incidence  of 
Rs.  1-13-4  per  acre  of  cultivated  land,  and  7  annas  per  acre  on  the 
total  area  of  the  State.  The  farmers  receive  a  commission  of  10  per 
cent,  on  the  revenue  collected,  and  are  unable  to  alter  the  assessed 
rates,  but  have  power  to  eject  a  tenant  who  refuses  to  pay.  The 
revenue  is  collected  in  four  instalments. 

An  important  source  of  miscellaneous  revenue  is  opium.  A  duty  of 
Rs.  2  was  levied  on  each  maund  of  ch'ik  or  crude  opium  till  1904,  when 
it  was  raised  to  Rs.  6.  A  further  duty  of  Rs.  12  (Rs.  16  since  1904)  is 
levied  by  the  State  on  each  chest  (140  lb.)  of  manufactured  opium 
taken  to  the  Government  scales.  From  1881  to  1890  this  duty 
averaged  about  Rs.  19,000  per  annum.  During  the  next  decade  the 
duty  averaged  Rs.  16,000.  In  1901  only  613^  chests  passed  the 
scales,  while  5  maunds  were  sold  retail,  the  duty  being  Rs.  7,000.  All 
opium  grown  for  export  is  sent  to  the  Government  scales  in  the  city. 
The  fall  in  the  out-turn  is  due  to  a  series  of  deficient  rains,  and  the 
decrease  in  the  village  population,  which  have  made  it  impossible  to 
cultivate  a  crop  requiring  so  much  irrigation  and  attention. 

Excise  is  levied  on  country  liquor  and  drugs.  The  country  liquor, 
made  from  the  flowers  of  the  i/iahud-txeQ  (Bassia  latifolia),  is  all 
distilled  at  the  central  warehouse  in  Bhopal  city,  whence  it  is  issued 
to  the  holders  of  contracts  for  its  sale.  The  revenue  from  liquor 
averages  about  Rs.  31,000,  and  from  drugs  Rs.  9,000,  giving  an 
incidence  of  about  one  anna  per  head  of  population.  In  1901, 
27,553  gallons  were  made,  bringing  in  Rs.  43,400  duty;  and  in  1903, 
22,044  gallons,  bringing  in  Rs.  35,808.     The  use  of  European  liquors 


ADMINISTRA  TION  1 4  r 

is  becoming  common  among  the  wealthy  inhabitants  of  the  city,  but 
is  quite  unknown  to  the  villagers.  A  duty  was  formerly  levied  on 
salt  passing  into  the  State  ;  but  this  was  abandoned  in  1881,  the 
British  Government  paying  Rs.  10,000  yearly  as  compensation  in 
lieu  of  it. 

The  public  works  department  is  divided  into  five  sections.  The 
first  is  under  the  State  Engineer  (a  European),  and  is  concerned  with 
all  roads  (except  those  of  the  city),  water-works,  bridges,  staging  bun- 
galows, and  '  major '  district  works  generally.  The  second  section  is 
under  the  Muhtamim-i-ta»urat,  and  is  concerned  with  palaces,  barracks, 
and  public  offices.  The  third  section,  under  another  official,  deals 
with  'minor'  works  in  the  districts.  The  fourth  is  under  the  muni- 
cipal engineer,  and  deals  with  works  in  the  city.  The  last  section  is 
concerned  only  with  the  Deorhi-i-khas,  or  private  residences  of  the 
chief.  The  department  has  done  much  excellent  work.  Among  the 
principal  constructions  during  the  last  ten  years  are  the  water-works 
which  supply  the  whole  city  and  its  suburbs  (costing  18  lakhs),  the 
large  tent  and  furniture  storehouse  in  Jahangirabad  (2-3  lakhs),  the 
Lady  Lansdowne  Hospital  for  women  (Rs.  28,000),  the  Imperial  Service 
cavalry  lines  (5  lakhs),  the  new  Central  jail  (1-5  lakhs),  and  metalled 
roads  (18  lakhs). 

A  regiment  of  Imperial  Service  cavalry,  consisting  of  three  squad- 
rons of  400  of  all  ranks,  is  maintained.  It  is  called  the  Victoria 
Lancers,  and  is  commanded  by  Colonel  Sahibzada  Ubaid-ullah  Khan, 
second  son  of  the  present  ruler.  The  regiment  is  composed  of  five 
troops  of  Muhammadans  and  one  of  Sikhs,  and  costs  2  lakhs  a  year. 
The  State  troops  are  divided  into  two  classes,  regular  and  irregular. 
The  former  act  as  a  personal  guard  to  the  chief,  and  are  equipped  more 
or  less  like  native  cavalry  regiments.  They  number  190  of  all  ranks. 
A  regiment  of  regular  infantry,  536  strong,  provides  palace  guards. 
The  irregulars,  who  consist  of  396  cavalry  and  500  foot,  are  equipped 
in  native  style,  and  act  as  orderlies,  and  assist  the  police  and  district 
officials.  Besides  these,  122  artillerymen,  with  24  guns  and  50  horses, 
are  also  maintained.  The  total  strength  of  the  State  army  is  1,744  men, 
and  its  annual  cost  about  3-4  lakhs. 

A  regular  police  force  was  started  in  1857,  and  now  consists  of  1,700 
of  all  ranks,  giving  one  policeman  to  every  4  square  miles  and  to  every 
SS3  persons.  Constables  are  paid  Rs.  5  to  Rs.  6  a  month.  They 
carry  muzzle-loading  rifles  in  the  country  and  truncheons  in  the  city. 
A  mounted  police  force  is  drawn  from  the  intizamia  (irregular)  cavalry. 
The  registration  of  finger-prints  of  convicted  criminals  has  been  com- 
menced. The  rural  police  (chaukidars)  perform  the  duties  of  watch  and 
ward  in  the  villages.  They  also  present  a  weekly  report  to  the  nearest 
police  station  in  their   district,  making  special  reports  of  suspicious 


142  BHOPAL   STATE 

deaths,  murders,  cases  of  plague,  cholera,  or  small-pox ;  and  they  assist 
the  regular  police  in  detecting  crime. 

A  Central  jail  has  been  built  in  Bhopal  city,  and  there  are  four  sub- 
ordinate district  jails  in  the  nizamats.  The  total  number  of  prisoners  in 
1902-3  was  722.     The  annual  expenditure  is  about  Rs.  30,000. 

A  regular  system  of  education  was  set  on  foot  by  Sikandar  Begam  in 
i860.  Shah  Jahan  Begam,  in  order  to  increase  the  numbers  attending 
school,  forbade  the  employment  in  any  State  department  of  persons 
who  had  not  obtained  an  educational  certificate.  The  number  of 
schools  has  risen  from  93  in  1881  to  253  in  1902-3,  the  number  of 
pupils  in  the  latter  year  being  29,232,  of  whom  295  were  girls.  The 
chief  institution  is  the  Sulaimania  high  school  at  Bhopal  city.  A 
special  school  is  maintained  in  which  the  State  medical  officer  trains 
students  in  the  practice  of  medicine,  on  European  methods.  It  usually 
contains  about  30  students.  A  girls'  school  was  started  in  1891  where 
sewing  and  embroidery  are  taught,  but  an  attempt  to  teach  English  met 
with  no  support.  No  fees  whatever  are  levied  for  education  in  the 
State.  The  annual  expenditure  is  about  Rs.  47,000.  In  1901,  4-5  per 
cent,  of  the  people  (7-9  males  and  0-9  females)  were  able  to  read 
and  write. 

A  State  Gazette  called  the  Jarida-i-Bhopal  is  published,  which  is 
purely  official  in  character. 

The  medical  department  was  organized  by  Sikandar  Begam  in  1854, 
and  a  qualified  medical  officer  was  appointed.  In  1902-3  there  were 
two  hospitals  and  six  dispensaries,  costing  Rs.  16,000,  with  a  daily 
average  attendance  of  486  patients.  The  Lady  Lansdowne  Hospital, 
which  was  opened  in  1891,  provides  attendance  for  parda  women,  and 
a  midwifery  school  is  attached  to  this  institution.  A  leper  asylum  was 
opened  at  Sehore  in  1891.  Medical  treatment  after  the  native  system 
was  provided  in  1902-3  at  32  institutions,  with  a  daily  attendance  of 
1,380  patients,  at  a  cost  of  Rs.  19,000. 

Vaccination  is  growing  in  popularity,  and  the  total  number  of 
persons  vaccinated  in  1902-3  was  25,048,  giving  a  proportion  of  38 
per  1,000  of  population. 

There  have  been  three  surveys  of  the  State.  Nawab  Sikandar  Begam 
first  undertook  a  survey  for  revenue  purposes,  land  under  cultivation 
being  measured  by  the  Mughal  chain.  Shah  Jahan  Begam  instituted 
a  plane-table  survey,  and  in  1872  the  State  was  surveyed  trigonometri- 
cally  by  the  Survey  of  India  Department.  A  regular  revenue  survey  is 
now  in  progress. 

Bhopal  City  (Bhupal).—  Capital  of  the  State  of  the  same  name  in 
Central  India,  situated  in  230  16'  N.  and  770  25'  E.,  on  a  sandstone 
ridge  1,652  feet  above  sea-level,  and  occupying  together  with  its 
suburbs  an  area  of  8  square  miles.     Bhopal  is  the  junction  of  the 


B  HO  PAL   CITY  143 

Midland  section  of  the  Great   Indian    Peninsula   and   Bhopal-Ujjain 
Railways,  521  miles  from  Bombay. 

The  city  stands  on  the  edge  of  a  great  lake,  the  Pukhta-Pul  Talao 
('  lake  of  the  bridge  of  stone '),  with  a  larger  one,  the  Bara  Talao  ('  great 
lake '),  lying  to  the  west.  Few  places  can  boast  so  picturesque  a  situa- 
tion as  Bhopal.  From  the  borders  of  the  great  lakes  to  the  summit  of 
the  ridge  500  feet  above  it,  the  city  rises  tier  on  tier,  an  irregular  mass 
of  houses,  large  and  small,  interspersed  with  gardens  full  of  big  and 
shady  trees,  while  in  the  centre  the  tall,  dark-red  minarets  of  the  Jama 
Masjid  of  Kudsia  Begam,  crowned  with  glittering  golden  spikes,  tower 
above  the  city.  Near  the  dam  which  separates  the  two  lakes  is  a  great 
pile  of  white  palaces,  from  which  a  broad  flight  of  steps  leads,  through 
a  lofty  gateway,  to  the  water's  edge,  while  upon  the  heights,  to  the  west, 
stands  Dost  Muhammad's  fort  of  Fatehgarh.  Two  lines  of  fortification 
embrace  the  city,  the  inner  ring  enclosing  the  old  town,  the  Shahr-i-khas 
or  '  city  proper,'  and  the  outer  the  more  modern  quarters  and  suburbs. 
The  two  great  lakes  which  lie  at  the  foot  of  the  town  are  a  notable 
feature.  The  larger  is  held  up  by  the  dam  which  now  separates  the  two 
lakes,  built,  it  is  said,  by  a  minister  of  Raja  Bhoj  of  Dhar.  The  second 
dam,  which  retains  the  lower  lake,  was  built  about  1 794  by  Chhote  Khan, 
when  minister  to  Nawab  Hayat  Muhammad.  The  area  of  the  great 
lake  is  2\  square  miles,  and  that  of  the  lower  lake  \  square  mile.  The 
two  are  connected  by  an  aqueduct,  admitting  of  the  control  of  the  flow 
and  the  regulation  of  the  water-supply  of  the  city,  which  is  drawn  from 
the  lakes.  Water  is  pumped  up  from  the  upper  lake  by  an  engine,  and 
from  the  lower  by  a  water-wheel  worked  from  the  overflow. 

Tradition  relates  that  the  city  stands  on  the  site  of  an  old  town 
founded  by  Raja  Bhoj  of  Dhar  (1010-53),  who  is  credited  with  the 
erection  of  the  old  fort,  near  the  quarter  of  the  town  still  known  as 
Bhojpura,  and  till  lately  used  as  a  jail.     A  Rani  of  Raja  Udayaditya 
Paramara  (1059-80),  grandson  of  Bhoj,  is  said  to  have  founded  a  temple 
known  as  the  Sabha-mandala,  which  was  completed  in  1184,  and  occu- 
pied the  site  on  which  the  Jama  Masjid  of  Kudsia  Begam  now  stands. 
It  appears,  however,  that  no  town  of  any  size  existed  here,  though 
possibly  one  was  in  contemplation  or  even  commenced.      This  is  easily 
accounted  for  by  the  declining  power  of  the  Paramara  chiefs  of  Dhar  at 
the  period.     In  1728  Dost  Muhammad  built  the  Fatehgarh  fort,  and 
connected  it  with  the  old  fort  of  Raja  Bhoj  by  a  wall,  which  he  carried 
on  till  it  enclosed  a  site  large  enough  for  the  city ;  the  area  so  enclosed 
is  that  still  known  as  the  Shahr-i-khds,  or  '  city  proper.' 

In  Nawab  Yar  Muhammad's  time  the  capital  was  situated  at  Islam- 
nagar  (230  22'  N.,  and  770  25'  E.) ;  but  Faiz  Muhammad  returned  to 
Bhopal,  which  has  since  been  the  chief  town.  In  181 2-3,  during  the 
attacks  by  the  Nagpur  and  Gwalior  forces,  the  whole  town  outside  the 


144  BHO TAT.    CITY 

great  wall  was  laid  in  ruins,  and  it  was  not  till  Nazar  Muhammad's  rule 
in  the  nineteenth  century  that  it  commenced  to  recover.  Times  were, 
however,  still  unsettled,  and  the  houses  erected  even  then  were  poor 
structures  with  thatched  roofs.  Up  to  the  end  of  Kudsia  Begam's  rule, 
indeed,  the  population  consisted  mainly  of  Afghan  adventurers  seeking 
military  service,  who  had  no  intention  of  settling  down.  Nawab  Jahangir, 
however,  tried  to  induce  people  to  settle  permanently  and  build  good 
houses.  As  a  preliminary  step  he  himself  removed  the  troops,  a  some- 
what disturbing  element,  out  of  the  city  limits  to  Jahangirabad  on 
the  south  side  of  the  lake.  Sikandar  Begam  on  her  accession,  with 
the  characteristic  energy  which  distinguished  her  rule  in  every  branch, 
at  once  set  to  work  to  improve  the  city  by  making  proper  roads  and 
lighting  them  with  lamps.  Shah  Jahan  Begam  added  many  buildings, 
of  which  the  Taj  Mahal  and  Bara  Mahal  palaces,  the  great  Taj-ul-Masajid 
mosque  as  yet  incomplete,  the  Lai  KothI,  the  new  Central  or  Prince  of 
Wales's  Hospital,  the  Lady  Lansdowne  Hospital  for  women,  and  the 
new  jail  are  the  most  important.  Many  buildings  are  being  added 
by  the  present  chief,  who  is  founding  the  new  suburb  of  Ahmadabad 
some  distance  west  of  the  city. 

There  are  no  buildings  of  antiquarian  interest  and  few  of  architectural 
merit  in  the  city.  Many  of  the  streets,  however,  are  by  no  means 
devoid  of  beauty,  the  irregularity  of  the  houses  which  form  them, 
the  sudden  turns,  and  the  great  gateways  which  pierce  the  walls  of 
bigger  dwellings  adding  much  to  the  picturesqueness.  Of  individual 
buildings,  the  great  unfinished  mosque  of  Shah  Jahan  Begam  is  the  only 
one  with  any  pretensions  to  architectural  merit,  though  the  Jama  Masjid 
of  Kudsia  Begam,  built  of  a  fine  purple-red  sandstone,  and  the  Moti 
Masjid  are  not  unpleasing.  The  palaces,  an  irregular  pile  of  buildings 
added  to  by  each  successive  ruler  and  constructed  without  any  definite 
plan,  have  little  to  recommend  them.  The  influence  of  European 
architecture  is  noticeable  everywhere,  and  markedly  so  in  the  buildings 
now  under  construction. 

The  Fatehgarh  fort,  built  in  the  usual  style,  can  never  have  been 
a  very  formidable  stronghold  as  regards  either  its  position  or  structure. 
It  now  contains  a  State  granary,  an  arsenal  of  old  arms,  and  nine 
old  guns  on  the  ramparts.  A  finely  illuminated  copy  of  the  Koran, 
5  feet  2\  inches  long,  is  also  kept  here. 

Since  the  opening  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway  line  in  1885, 
and  the  Bhopal-Ujjain  branch  in  1895,  the  trade  of  the  city  has  expanded 
rapidly  and  with  it  the  population,  which  has  been:  (1881)  55,402, 
(1891)  70,338,  and  (1901)  77,023.  Hindus  number  33,052,  or  43  per 
cent. ;  Musalmans,  41,888,  or  54  per  cent. ;  and  Jains,  1,327. 

The  principal  articles  exported  are  grain,  cotton,  poppy  seeds,  ///, 
opium,  ghi,  hides,  and  horns  ;  the  imports  are  salt,  sugar,  hardware,  and 


B  HOP  A  WAR  AGENCY  145 

piece-goods.  The  chief  industries  are  weaving  and  printing  of  cotton 
cloth,  the  making  of  jewellery,  and  the  preparation  of  gittkd,  a  mixture 
of  saffron,  lime,  and  other  ingredients  eaten  with  betel-leaf,  of  which  the 
Bhopal  variety  is  famous  all  over  India.  A  combined  cotton-ginning 
factory,  saw-mill,  grass-press,  and  fiour-mill  is  worked  by  the  State,  and 
a  bulk  oil  depot  has  been  established  here  by  a  European  firm. 

The  city  is  managed  by  a  municipality,  which  was  constituted  in  1903. 
The  members  of  the  committee  are  nominated  by  the  State  and  number 
39,  of  whom  5  are  officials  appointed  ex  officio,  including  the  State 
engineer  and  medical  officer ;  of  the  rest,  1 1  are  selected  from  among 
officials,  and  23  from  non-officials.  The  municipal  income  is  Rs.  50,000 
a  year,  allotted  from  State  revenues.  The  conservancy,  lighting,  and 
maintenance  of  roads,  demolition  of  dangerous  buildings,  and  control  of 
cemeteries  are  the  most  important  functions  of  the  committee.  There 
is  a  police  force  of  416  men  under  a  special  officer.  Bhopal  contains 
a  school  for  the  sons  of  State  Sardars  under  a  European  principal,  and 
three  other  State  schools  with  about  600  pupils,  besides  numerous 
private  institutions.  Special  schools  for  instruction  in  medicine  and 
midwifery  are  attached  to  the  Prince  of  Wales's  and  Lady  Lansdowne 
Hospitals ;  there  are  also  two  girls'  schools,  and  an  industrial  school  for 
females.  Seven  hospitals  and  dispensaries  are  maintained  in  the  city, 
besides  three  institutions  for  medical  treatment  after  native  methods. 

Bhopawar  Agency. — A  Political  Charge  under  the  Central  India 
Agency,  lying  between  210  22'  and  230  14'  N.  and  74'  20  and  76°  31'  E., 
with  an  area  of  about  7,684  square  miles.  It  is  bounded  on  the  north 
by  Ratlam,  the  Indore  Residency,  Dewas,  and  Gwalior ;  on  the  south 
by  the  Khandesh  District  of  Bombay ;  on  the  east  by  British  Nimar 
and  the  Bhopal  State  ;  and  on  the  west  by  the  Rewa  Kantha  Agency. 

The  physical  aspects  of  the  Agency  vary  markedly  in  different  parts. 
The  two  great  ranges  of  the  Vindhyas  and  Satpuras  traverse  it  from 
east  to  west,  enfolding  between  them  the  broad  and  fertile  valley  of 
the  Narbada.  To  the  north,  beyond  the  Vindhyas,  the  greater  part 
of  the  Dhar  State  and  the  Amjhera  district  lie  on  the  open  Malwa 
plateau.  Below  is  the  Narbada  valley,  and  farther  south  the  moun- 
tainous forest-clad  region,  in  which  the  All-Rajpur,  BarwanI,  and  Jobat 
States  lie,  known  as  Bhllwara  or  the  '  Bhll  country,'  a  wild  and  sparsely 
inhabited  tract.  The  famous  stronghold  of  Mandu,  the  Buddhist 
caves  of  Bagh,  and  the  sacred  hill  of  Bawangaja  near  BarwanI,  are 
situated  in  this  charge,  while  numerous  ruined  forts,  mosques,  and 
palaces,  now  buried  deep  in  jungle,  testify  to  its  prosperity  and  impor- 
tance in  Mughal  days,  when  it  formed  a  part  of  the  Bijagarh  sarkdr 
of  the  Subah  of  Malwa. 

The  population  in  1901   was  547,546,  of  whom  Hindus  numbered 
257,408,  or  47  per  cent.;  Animists,  250,042,  or  46  per  cent.;  Musal- 

VOL.  VHI.  L 


i46  B HO T A  WAR  AGENCY 

mans,  29,895,  or  5  per  cent.  ;  and  Jains,  9,721.  The  density  is  75 
persons  per  square  mile.  The  Agency  contains  three  towns,  Dhar 
(population,  17,792),  Barwani  (6,277),  and  Kukshi  (5,402);  and 
3,031  villages. 

The  charge  was  originally  divided  into  two  sections,  known  as  the 
Bhll  and  Deputy  Bhll  Agencies,  with  head-quarters  at  Bhopawar  and 
Manpur  respectively.  In  1857,  after  the  Political  officer's  residence 
at  Bhopawar  was  destroyed  by  the  mutineers,  the  head-quarters  were 
removed  to  Sardarpur,  when  the  officer  commanding  the  Bhll  Corps 
was  entrusted  with  the  political  control  of  the  Agency.  The  civil  work 
later  on  proved  too  heavy,  and  a  separate  Political  officer  was  con- 
sidered necessary.  In  1882,  therefore,  the  Bhll  and  Deputy  Bhll 
Agencies  were  amalgamated,  and  a  regular  Agency  was  constituted 
with  head-quarters  at  Sardarpur.  Following  the  creation,  in  1899, 
of  the  Indore  Residency,  all  but  three  of  the  Indore  State  parganas, 
formerly  included  in  this  charge,  were  transferred  to  the  Resident 
in  1904.  In  1 90 1  the  Bagaud  pargana  of  Dewas,  made  over  to  the 
British  Government  for  administrative  purposes  in  1828,  was  trans- 
ferred to  the  Indore  Agency.  The  charge  now  comprises  the  treaty 
State  of  Dhar  ;  the  mediatized  States  of  Jhabua,  Barwani,  AlI- 
Rajpur,  and  Jobat  ;  eighteen  guaranteed  thakarats  and  bhumidts, 
the  latter  holding  chiefly  from  the  Dhar  State ;  the  three  Indore 
parganas  of  Chikalda,  Lawa.nl  (see  Nimar  Zila),  and  Petlawad  (see 
Indore  Zila)  ;  the  Gwalior  district  of  Amjhera  ;  and  the  British 
district  of  Manpur.  None  of  the  guaranteed  estates  receives  any 
allowance  from,  or  pays  any  tribute  to,  the  British  Government. 

The  Political  Agent  exercises  the  powers  of  a  District  Magistrate 
and  a  Court  of  Sessions  within  the  limits  of  his  charge,  except  in 
States  where  such  powers  are  exercised  by  the  chiefs,  and  also  on 
that  portion  of  the  Godhra-Ratlam  branch  of  the  Bombay,  Baroda, 
and  Central  India  Railway  which  passes  through  the  Jhabua  State 
east  of  the  Mahi  river. 

The  Agra-Bombay  and  Mhow-Nlmach  high  roads  and  the  Ratlam- 
Godhra  branch  of  the  Bombay,  Baroda,  and  Central  India  Railway 
traverse  the  charge. 

The  Agency  comprises  the  States,  portions  of  States,  and  estates 
shown  on  the  opposite  page. 

Bhor  State. — State  in  the  Poona  Political  Agency,  Bombay,  lying 
between  180  and  180  45'  N.  and  730  14"  and  730  15'  E.,  with  an  area 
of  925  square  miles.  From  the  Mahadeo  Hills  in  Satara  District 
Bhor  stretches  north-west  over  the  Western  Ghats  in  the  south-west 
of  Poona  and  east  of  Kolaba,  with  a  breadth  varying  from  35  miles 
in  the  south  to  15  miles  in  the  north.  Above  the  Western  Ghats, 
the  Mutha  flows  in  the  north  and  the  Nira  in  the  south,  and  below 


BHOR  STATE 


i47 


the  hills  the  Amba  flows  south-west.  The  State  is  occupied  by  basaltic 
rocks  of  the  Deccan  formation.  The  climate  of  that  part  which  is  above 
the  Ghats  resembles  that  of  Poona,  and  the  climate  of  the  portion  below 
that  of  Kolaba.  The  rainfall  varies  from  26  inches  at  Vichitragarh 
to  139  inches  at  Sudhagarh.  The  annual  fall  at  Bhor  averages  37 
inches. 


Name. 

Title. 

Caste,  clan,  Sic. 

Area  in 
square 
miles. 

Popula- 
tion, 

IQOI. 

Total 
revenue. 

Rs. 

i.  Dhar  (portion)     . 

H.  H.  Raja . 

Ponwar  Maratha 

i,765 

140,700 

9,00,000 

2.  Jhabua 

H.  H.  Raja. 

Rathor  Rajput  . 

I.-336 

8o,8S9 

1,10,000 

3.  Barwani 

Rana.  . 

Sesodia  Rajput  . 

1. 178 

76,13^ 

4,00,000 

4.  Ali-Rajpur  . 

Rana  . 

Rathor  Rajput    . 

S36 

5°,l85 

1,00,000 

5.  Jobat  . 

Rana  . 

Rathor  Rajput    . 

140 

9,443 

2  1 ,000 

6.  Bakhtgarh  . 

Thakur 

Ponwar  Rajput  . 

65 

6,774 

60,000 

7.  Bharudpura 

Bhumia 

Bhilala       . 

22 

1,259 

6,000 

8.  Barkhera  (chhotd) 

Bhumia 

Bhilala      . 

23 

1,929 

5,000 

9.  Barkhera  (mota) . 

Bhumia 

Bhilala      . 

44 

6,027 

35,000 

10.  Chiktiabar  . 

Bhumia 

Bhilala 

2 

283 

825 

it.  Dhotria  (or  Bhai- 

sola) 

Thakur 

Rathor  Rajput   . 

16 

3,°4° 

12,000 

12.  Garhl    (or    Bhai- 

sakho)     . 

Bhumia 

Bhilala      . 

6 

564 

3,000 

13.  Jamnia 

Bhumia 

Bhilala       . 

4° 

2,877 

24,000 

14.  Kachhi-Baroda    . 

Thakur 

Rathor  Rajput  . 

44 

2,783 

30,000 

15.  Kali  Baori  . 

Bhumia 

Bhilala      . 

12 

1,646 

6,000 

16.  Kathiwara  . 

Thakur 

Jadon  Rajput     . 

69 

3,425 

4,000 

17.  Kathoria 

Bhumia 

Bhilala      . 

•  .  • 

2,000 

18.  Kothideh     . 

Bhumia 

Bhilala      . 

10 

328 

1,400 

19.  Mathwar     . 

Rana.  . 

Ponwar  Rajput  . 

65 

1,022 

4,000 

20.  Multhan 

Thakur 

Rathor  Rajput    . 

91 

7,644 

60,000 

21.  Nlmkhera         (or 

Tirla) 

Bhumia 

Bhilala      . 

91 

4,641 

[8,000 

22.  Rajgarh 

Bhumia 

Bhilala      . 

20 

682 

5,000 

23.  Ratanmal    . 

Thakur 

Ponwar  Rajput  . 

3^ 

1,200 

5,000 

24.  Manpur  (British; 



...              ... 

60 

4,890 

19,800 

25.  Gwalior  (portion) 

...       ... 

...              ... 

1,275 

96,426 

58,000 

26.  Indore  (portion)  . 

...       ... 

...             ... 

442 

39 » 343 

1 ,56,600 

Railways         and 

military  station 

Total 

... 

3,4io 

... 

7,684 

547,546 

20,36,625 

Note. — The  areas  of  Nos.  6-15,  17,18,  20,  21,  and  22  have  also  been  included  in  their  parent 
States  of  Dhar,  Gwalior,  and  Indore. 

Bhor  is  one  of  the  feudatories  of  the  Satara  State,  having  been 
bestowed  upon  Shankraji  Narayan,  Pant  Sachiv,  in  1697  by  Raja 
Ram,  the  son  of  Sivaji,  for  his  services.  The  family  of  the  chief  are 
Brahmans,  and  hold  a  sanad  authorizing  adoption.  They  follow  the 
rule  of  primogeniture,  and  the  succession  has  been  maintained  by 
several  adoptions.  The  State  was  allied  with  the  British  Government 
by  a  treaty  of  1820,  and  became  a  feudatory  like  other  Satara  jagirs 
on  the  lapse  of  the  Satara  State  in  1849.    From  that  year  to  1887.  it 

L  2 


14?  BHOR  STATE 

was  under  the  political  control  of  the  Collector  of  Satara,  but  was 
then  transferred  to  Poona.  The  chief  has  the  title  of  Pandit  of  Bhor 
and  Pant  Sachiv,  and  ranks  as  a  first-class  Sardar  of  the  Deccan. 
A  tribute  of  Rs.  10,000,  being  the  commuted  value  of  an  elephant 
subsidy  once  annually  furnished  by  the  chief,  is  paid  to  the  British 
Government.  The  present  chief  has  enjoyed  a  personal  salute  of 
9  guns  since  the  Delhi  Darbar  of  1903,  in  recognition  of  his  loyalty 
and  efficient  administration. 

The  population  was  137,268  in  1901,  compared  with  155,699  in 
1 89 1,  inhabiting  one  town  (Bhor)  and  483  villages.  Shirwal,  a 
municipal  village,  contains  a  series  of  Buddhistic  caves  of  the  same 
plain  type  as  Karad  in  Satara  District.  Hindus  number  135,000 
and  Musalmans  1,700.  The  principal  castes  are  Brahmans  (5,000), 
Marathas  (75,000),  Kunbis  (14,000),  Dhangars  (5,000),  and  Mahars 
(14,000).  Except  a  few  cotton-weavers,  the  great  majority  of  the 
people  are  supported  by  agriculture. 

The  prevailing  type  of  soil  is  red.  About  404  square  miles  are 
occupied  for  cultivation.  The  principal  crops  are  rice  and  nagli.  A 
small  area  of  land  is  irrigated  from  wells  and  fair-season  dams.  The 
area  of  forests  is  104  square  miles.  Iron-smelting,  formerly  of  some 
importance,  has  been  abandoned,  and  the  State  is  poor  in  industries. 
The  chief  roads  are  the  Mahad-Pandharpur  (cart-road),  Poona-Belgaum 
(mail-road),  and  the  Poona-Panvel  road  down  the  Bhor  ghat.  Bhor 
contains  seven  post  offices  managed  by  the  State,  and  is  one  of  the 
States  in  Bombay  which  have  postal  arrangements  of  their  own. 

The  State  suffered  severely  from  famine  in  1896-7  and  again  in 
1 899-1 900.  Relief  measures  were  necessary  on  both  occasions.  In 
the  latter  famine  the  maximum  number  of  workers  was  2,000,  and 
nearly  Rs.  63,000  was  spent  on  famine  relief.  The  State  has  also 
suffered  from  plague. 

Bhor  is  under  the  political  supervision  of  the  Collector  of  Poona, 
and  the  administration  is  conducted  in  close  accordance  with  British 
laws.  Criminal  and  civil  justice  are  administered  by  the  chief  him- 
self, with  the  aid  of  subordinate  courts.  Except  that  the  trial  of  all 
persons  for  capital  offences  requires  the  Political  Agent's  sanction, 
the  Pant  Sachiv  exercises  full  criminal  and  civil  powers,  and  his 
decision  in  such  cases  is  not  subject  to  appeal  to  the  Political  Agent. 
The  revenue  is  3^  lakhs,  chiefly  derived  from  land  (2^  lakhs),  excise 
(Rs.  20,000),  and  forests  (Rs.  11,000).  The  State  has  recently  (1896-9) 
been  surveyed  and  the  rates  of  assessment  vary  from  Rs.  12  to  one 
anna  per  acre.  This  settlement  enhanced  the  revenue  by  Rs.  24,500. 
The  State  contains  two  municipalities,  Bhor  and  Shirwal,  with  an 
aggregate  income  in  1903-4  of  Rs.  5,240.  The  police  force  consists 
of   215  men.     There  are  43  schools   with    1,545   pupils.     The   Bhor 


BHUBANESWAR  149 

dispensary  treated   19,256  patients  in   1903-4  at  a  cost  of  Rs.  2,000. 
In  the  same  year  3,716  persons  were  vaccinated. 

Bhor  Town. — Chief  town  of  the  State  of  Bhor,  Bombay,  situated 
in  180  9'  N.  and  730  53"  E.,  25  miles  south  of  Poona.  Population 
(1901),  4,178.  It  is  administered  as  a  municipality,  with  an  income  of 
Rs.  4,190  in  1903-4. 

Bhor  Ghat. — Pass  across  the  Western  Ghats,  in  Poona  District, 
Bombay.     See  Borghat. 

Bhosari. — Village  in  Poona  District,  Bombay.     See  Bhavsari. 

Bhowal. — Petty  State  in  the  Khasi  Hills,  Assam.  The  population 
in  1 90 1  was  865,  and  the  gross  revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  900.  The 
principal  products  are  rice,  millet,  bay-leaves,  black  pepper,  and  lime. 

Bhowani. — River  in  Coimbatore  District,  Madras.     See  Bhavani. 

Bhuban  Hills. — A  range  of  hills  projecting  from  the  Lushai  system 
into  the  south  of  Cachar  District,  Eastern  Bengal  and  Assam.  They 
run  north  and  south  between  240  15'  and  240  45'  N.  and  920  52'  and 
930  5'  E.,  on  the  eastern  border  of  the  District,  forming  the  watershed 
between  the  Barak  and  Sonai  rivers.  Their  height  varies  from  700  feet 
to  3,000  feet,  and  their  slopes  are  very  precipitous.  They  are  formed 
of  sandstones  and  shales  of  Tertiary  origin,  thrown  into  long  folds.  A 
temple  sacred  to  Bhuban  Baba,  a  local  name  for  Siva,  stands  on  the 
summit  of  a  hill  about  30  miles  south-east  of  Silchar.  Manipuris, 
up-country  men,  and  garden  coolies  resort  to  this  place  on  the  occasion 
of  the  Sivaratri,  the  Srlpanchami,  and  the  Barunisnan  festivals,  when 
they  bathe  in  a  tank  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  temple,  and  make 
offerings  at  the  shrine. 

Bhuban  Town. — Town  in  Dhenkanal,  one  of  the  Orissa  Tributary 
States,  Bengal,  situated  in  200  53'  N.  and  850  50'  E.,  on  the  north 
bank  of  the  Brahman!  river,  about  14  miles  from  Jenapur  station  on 
the  Bengal-Nagpur  Railway.  Population  (1901),  6,788.  Bhuban  has 
a  local  reputation  for  its  manufacture  of  bell-metal  ware. 

Bhubaneswar. — Temple  city  of  Siva  in  the  Khurda  subdivision  of 
Purl  District,  Bengal,  situated  in  200  15'  N.  and  850  50'  E.,  3  miles 
from  the  Bengal-Nagpur  Railway.  Population  (1901),  3,053.  Its 
traditions  date  from  remote  antiquity,  when  it  was  distinguished 
for  nothing  more  than  a  single  mango-tree  (ekamravana),  whence  the 
name  EkamratTrtha. 

Bhubaneswar  was  the  great  seat  of  Saivism  in  Orissa,  and  all  the 
great  temples  here  are  consecrated  to  the  lingam,  the  emblem  of  the 
'  great  god '  Mahadeo.  It  is  said  that  it  was  originally  intended  as 
a  rival  of  Benares,  and  that  no  details  were  omitted  to  make  it  an  exact 
counterpart  of  its  prototype.  Tradition  attributes  the  foundation  of  the 
various  temples  at  Bhubaneswar  to  the  kings  of  the  Kesari  dynasty, 
who  are  supposed  to  have  ruled  over  Orissa  from  the  sixth  to  the 


1 50  BHU BANES  WAR 

twelfth  century  a.  d.  ;  but  the  existence  of  this  dynasty  is  doubtful,  and 
the  only  true  dates  known  with  some  certainty  are  those  of  the  temples 
of  Brahmeswar,  Megheswar,  and  Ananta  Basudeva,  all  of  which  were 
built  towards  the  end  of  the  twelfth  century.  "With  regard  to  the 
remainder,  we  are  left  entirely  in  the  dark  ;  but  it  may  well  be  sur- 
mised that  the  sanctity  of  the  place  and  of  many  of  its  holy 
shrines  goes  back  to  much  earlier  ages.  According  to  popular  belief, 
7,000  shrines  once  clustered  round  the  sacred  lake  of  Bhubaneswar  ; 
but  at  present  scarcely  more  than  100  remain.  They  exhibit  a  variety 
of  architectural  types,  some  being  plain  single  towers,  others  having 
porches  and  halls  in  front  with  elaborate  mouldings. 

The  best  and  most  interesting  specimens  among  the  vast  number  of 
ancient  temples  at  this  famous  place  are  the  following :  the  great 
Lingaraj  temple,  with  the  temple  of  BhagavatI  within  its  compound, 
the  temple  of  Ananta  Basudeva,  the  temple  of  Mukteswar,  the  Raja-Rani 
temple,  the  temple  of  Brahmeswar,  the  temple  of  Bhaskareswar,  the  Vai- 
tala  deul,  and  the  temple  of  Parasu  Rameswar.  The  Lingaraj  temple 
stands  within  a  large  courtyard  surrounded  by  a  high  wall.  The 
temple  includes  a  suite  of  four  buildings  standing  in  file,  called  the  deul 
or  temple  proper,  the  mohan  or  porch,  the  bhogmandir  or  refectory,  and 
the  ndtmandir  or  dancing  hall.  Of  these  the  first  two  were  built  at  the 
same  time  and  in  a  style  quite  different  from  the  others,  which  were 
built  long  after  at  different  times  and  on  different  plans.  The  form  in 
which  Bhubaneswar  (Lord  of  the  Universe)  is  represented  in  the  sanc- 
tuary is  that  of  a  huge  uncarved  block  of  granite  called  the  litigam, 
about  8  feet  in  diameter  and  rising  8  inches  above  the  level  of  the 
floor.  It  is  half  buried  in  the  centre  of  the  room,  and  is  surrounded 
by  a  raised  rim  of  block  chlorite  ending  on  the  north  side  in  a  point. 
This  rim  is  called  the  yoni  or  the  female  emblem.  All  these  temples 
have  recently  been  repaired  by  Government  and  are  now  in  a  fair 
state  of  preservation.  The  temple  of  Bhaskareswar  is  a  unique  struc- 
ture, with  a  huge  stone  lingam  inside  reaching  from  the  ground  to  the 
upper  storey  of  the  temple.  The  town  also  contains  three  sacred  tanks  : 
the  Bindu  Sagar  or  Gosagar,  measuring  1,400  by  1,100  feet,  the 
Sahasra  lingam,  and  the  Papanasini. 

[List  of Ancient  Monuments  in  Bengal  (Calcutta,  1896),  and  Report 
of  the  Archaeological  Survey  of  India  for  1902-3  (Calcutta,  1904).] 

Bhuiya  (or  Bhuinhar). — An  aboriginal  tribe  of  Bengal,  numbering 
in  1901  nearly  two-thirds  of  a  million,  most  of  whom  were  found  in  the 
Chota  Nagpur  plateau,  the  Santal  Parganas  alone  containing  119,000. 
The  word  Bhuiya  is  a  Sanskrit  derivative,  and  in  some  parts  of  Bengal 
it  is  merely  a  titular  designation  adopted  by  various  castes.  In  some 
places,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  unequivocally  recognized  as  a  tribal 
designation ;  and  it  is  a  plausible  conjecture  that  the  tribal  Bhuiyas 


BHUKAR  FIERI     -  151 

properly  so  called  came  originally  from  the  Tributary  States  of  Orissa 
and  Chota  Nagpur,  where  the  organization  of  the  tribe  is  at  the  present 
day  more  complete  than  elsewhere.  They  seem  to  have  been  dis- 
placed in  Singhbhum  by  the  Hos,  in  Ranch!  by  the  Mundas  and 
Oraons,  and  in  Manbhum  by  the  Bhumijs  ;  but  in  Hazaribagh  the 
tribe  again  gathers  strength,  and  in  South  Bihar  we  meet  with  them  in 
large  numbers  bearing  the  opprobrious  name  of  Musahar  or  ( rat-eater,' 
but  invariably  calling  themselves  by  their  original  tribal  designation. 
The  physical  characteristics  and  the  traditions  of  the  Bhuiyas  vary  con- 
siderably in  different  places  ;  but  they  all  affect  great  reverence  for 
the  memory  of  Rikhmun  or  Rikhiasan,  whom  they  regard,  some  as 
a  patron  deity,  and  others  as  a  mythical  ancestor,  whose  name  dis- 
tinguishes one  of  the  divisions  of  the  tribe.  It  seems  probable  that  in 
the  earliest  stage  of  belief  Rikhmun  was  the  bear-totem  of  a  sept  of  the 
tribe,  and  that  later  on  he  was  transformed  into  an  ancestral  hero,  and 
finally  promoted  to  the  rank  of  a  tribal  god.  However  this  may  be, 
his  cult  is  peculiar  to  the  Bhuiyas,  and  serves  to  link  together  the 
scattered  branches  of  the  tribe. 

Bhuj. — Capital  of  the  State  of  Cutch,  Bombay,  situated  in  230  15'  N. 
and  690  48'  E.,  at  the  base  of  a  fortified  hill.  Population  (1901), 
26,362,  including  995  in  cantonments.  Bhuj  is  a  municipal  town,  and 
has  a  post  office,  a  Central  jail,  a  high  school,  a  school  of  art,  a  library, 
a  hospital,  and  a  dispensary.  It  also  contains  a  forest  nursery,  with 
about  1,600  plants.  The  municipal  income  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  11,600. 
The  income  of  the  cantonment  fund  was  Rs.  1,776  and  the  expenditure 
Rs.  1,775.  The  dispensary  in  the  same  year  treated  28,000  patients, 
while  619  in-  and  12,677  out-patients  were  treated  in  the  Bhuj 
hospital.  A  lunatic  asylum  contained  nine  inmates  in  1903-4.  The 
place  is  chiefly  interesting  for  its  archaeological  monuments,  and  as 
having  been  at  an  early  period  dedicated  to  the  snake  divinity  Bhu- 
janga  or  Bhujiya.  None  of  the  buildings  in  the  town  is  of  earlier  date 
than  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century.  The  mosque  inside  the  city 
gate  is  remarkable  for  the  thickness  of  its  piers  and  their  closeness  to 
one  another — an  arrangement  by  which  only  a  few  of  the  worshippers 
can  ever  be  within  sight  of  the  rest.  The  town  contains  the  tomb 
of  a  plr,  and  in  its  neighbourhood  are  a  number  of  shrines  and 
Muhammadan  dargdhs  of  no  special  importance. 

Bhukarherl. — Town  in  the  Jansath  tahsil  of  Muzaffarnagar  Dis- 
trict, United  Provinces,  situated  in  290  30'  N.  and  710  57'  E.,  15  miles 
from  Muzaffarnagar  town.  Population  (1901),  6,316.  The  inhabitants 
are  chiefly  Jats,  whose  ancestors  attained  considerable  power  in  the 
days  of  Pathan  supremacy.  There  is  an  old  tomb  of  a  saint  who  is 
reverenced  throughout  Northern  India  by  the  Hindus  as  Gharlb  Nath, 
and  by  the  Muhammadans  as  Gharlb  Shah. 


15^  BHULUA 

Bhulua  (or  Bhullooah). — Old  name  of  Noakhau  District,  Eastern 
Bengal  and  Assam. 

Bhumij. — An  aboriginal  tribe  found  mainly  in  the  Chota  Nagpur 
Division  of  Bengal  and  very  closely  allied  to  the  Mundas,  of  whom  they 
may  perhaps  be  regarded  as  an  offshoot  that  has  lost  some  of  its  tribal 
peculiarities  by  contact  with  the  people  of  the  plains.  The  tribe 
numbered  328,000  in  1901,  and  a  third  of  them  are  inhabitants  of 
Manbhum,  the  remainder  being  distributed  over  the  Orissa  Tributary 
States,  Singhbhum,  and  Midnapore.  Nearly  all  call  themselves  Hindus, 
and  in  this  respect  they  present  a  marked  contrast  to  the  Mundas, 
Hos,  and  Santals,  the  majority  of  whose  members  are  Animists.  About 
a  third  still  speak  a  form  of  Mundarl,  mainly  in  Singhbhum  and 
Midnapore  and  in  the  Orissa  States  ;  elsewhere  Bengali  is  commonly 
spoken.  The  Bhumijs  were  in  former  days  very  turbulent,  and  under 
the  nickname  of  chors  ('robbers')  were  the  terror  of  the  surrounding 
Districts.  The  last  disturbance  occurred  in  1832,  when  a  quarrel  arose 
about  the  succession  to  the  Barabhtim  estate,  and  one  Ganga  Narayan, 
at  the  head  of  a  body  of  Bhumij  insurgents,  plundered  the  whole 
country.  The  officials  and  police  fell  back  on  Burdwan,  and  a  strong 
military  force  had  to  take  the  field.  Ganga  Narayan  was  killed  in  an 
attempt  to  storm  the  fort  of  the  Thakur  of  Kharsawan,  and  the  insur- 
gents then  submitted. 

Bhupal. — State  and  city  in  Central  India.     See  Bhopal. 

Bhurtpore. — State  and  city  in  Rajputana.     See  Bharatpur. 

Bhusawal  Taluka. — Taluka  of  East  Khandesh  District,  Bombay, 
including  the  petty  subdivision  or  peth'i  of  Edalabad,  and  lying 
between  200  47'  and  210  14/  N.  and  750  41' and  760  24'  E.,  with  an 
area  of  570  square  miles.  There  are  three  towns,  Bhusawal  (popu- 
lation, 16,363),  the  head-quarters,  Bodvad  (5,670),  and  Varangaon 
5,822);  and  180  villages.  The  population  in  1901  was  109,315, 
compared  with  114,011  in  1891.  The  density,  192  persons  per  square 
mile,  exceeds  the  District  average.  The  demand  for  land  revenue  in 
1903-4  was  3-5  lakhs,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  24,000.  To  the  north-west 
and  along  the  Tapti  the  country  is  flat  and  monotonous.  The  north- 
east of  the  taluka,  though  flat,  is  here  and  there  broken  by  babul  groves, 
especially  along  the  banks  of  the  Prima.  The  rest  is  more  or  less 
undulating,  with  straggling  hillocks  covered  with  loose  stones  and 
boulders.  Along  the  north-east  boundary  runs  a  bold  range  of  hills. 
The  taluka  is  scantily  wooded,  and  without  the  mango  groves  so 
abundant  in  other  parts  of  the  District.  The  tract  between  the  Puma 
river  and  the  hills  from  the  Suki  river  to  the  eastern  frontier  is  ruined 
by  its  deadly  climate,  and  repeated  attempts  to  recolonize  deserted 
villages  have  failed.  Elsewhere,  the  taluka  is  fairly  healthy.  There  is 
plenty  of  surface  water.     Besides  the  Tapti  river  in  the  north,  with  its 


B  HUS A  WAT.   TOWN  153 

tributaries  the  Purna  and  Vaghur,  and  the  minor  streams  the  Sur  and 
Bhogavatl,  there  are  more  than  2,500  irrigation  wells.  The  Hartala 
lake,  with  a  catchment  area  of  6  square  miles  and  a  capacity  of 
140,000,000  cubic  feet  of  water,  lies  on  a  small  tributary  of  the  Tapti 
and  commands  584  acres.  As  an  irrigation  work  it  has  not  proved 
altogether  a  success.  Of  the  two  kinds  of  black  soil,  the  rich  alluvial 
clay  found  north  of  Edalabad  cannot  be  surpassed.  In  the  east  of 
Kurha,  where  it  gives  place  to  a  rich  black  loam,  it  yields  the  finest 
crops.  The  other  soils  are  mostly  mixed  red  and  brown.  In  the 
north-east  the  soil  is  poor,  and  the  waste  lands  are  generally  dry  and 
rocky.  Along  the  river-banks  are  small  alluvial  plots  called  dehli.  The 
annual  rainfall  at  Bhusawal  town  averages  26  inches. 

Bhusawal  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  tahika  of  the  same  name 
in  East  Khandesh  District,  Bombay,  situated  in  210  3'  N.  and 
750  47'  E.,  64  miles  east  of  Dhulia,  at  the  junction  of  the  Nagpur 
branch  with  the  main  line  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway- 
Population  (1901),  16,363.  Until  the  opening  of  the  railway,  Bhusawal 
was  a  petty  village.  It  has  since  become  an  important  centre,  with 
large  railway  works,  and  a  considerable  European  population,  and  is 
the  head-quarters  of  a  subdivisional  officer.  A  branch  of  the  American 
Alliance  Mission  is  at  work,  and  maintains  two  schools.  About  1,500 
workmen  are  regularly  employed  here,  of  whom  100  are  European  or 
Eurasian  engine-drivers  and  mechanics.  The  requirements  of  so  many 
railway  employes  have  attracted  shopkeepers  of  all  descriptions,  but 
their  business  is  confined  to  the  supply  of  local  wants.  The  railway 
premises  consist  of  a  handsome  station,  large  locomotive  workshops, 
and  houses  for  the  employes.  The  water-supply  is  brought  from  the 
Tapti  by  means  of  a  steam  pump  and  pipe.  The  water  is  driven  up  to 
a  large  tank  on  the  top  of  a  handsome  two-storeyed  building,  the 
lower  storey  being  used  as  a  billiard-room  and  the  upper  as  a  library. 
Gardens  have  been  laid  out,  and  tree-planting  encouraged  to  such  an 
extent  that  the  site,  formerly  an  open  field,  is  now  somewhat  overgrown 
with  trees.  The  village  of  Bhusawal  is  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  line 
to  the  railway  buildings.  There  is  a  large  resthouse  outside  the  railway 
gate  for  natives.  Two  ginning  factories  and  two  cotton-presses  are 
busily  employed  during  the  season.  Bhusawal  was  acquired  by  the 
British  Government  with  the  rest  of  the  Varangaon  (now  Bhusawal) 
taluka  in  1861.  It  was  constituted  a  municipality  in  1882,  and  had  an 
average  income  during  the  decade  ending  1901  of  Rs.  16,000.  In 
1903-4  the  income  was  nearly  Rs.  20,000,  chiefly  derived  from  a  tax 
on  houses  and  lands  (Rs.  8,400)  and  grants  for  education  (Rs.  5,000). 
The  town  contains  a  Subordinate  Judge's  court,  three  English  schools, 
two  vernacular  schools,  and  two  dispensaries,  including  one  belonging 
to  the  railway  company. 


154 


BHUTAN 


Bhutan. — Independent  State  in  the  Eastern  Himalayas,  lying 
between  260  41'  and  280  f  N.  and  88°  54'  and  910  54'  E.  It  is 
bounded  on  the  north  by  Tibet ;  on  the  east  by  the  Towang  country, 
a  narrow  outlying  dependency  of  Tibet  that  stretches  southwards  to  the 
confines  of  Assam  ;  on  the  south  by  Goalpara,  Kamrup,  and  Jalpaigurl 
Districts  ;  and  on  the  west  by  the  Chumbi  Valley,  the  State  of  Sikkim, 
and  Darjeeling  District. 

The  lofty  peaks  and  ranges  of  the  Himalayas  extend  along  the  whole 
of  the  northern  boundary  of  Bhutan,  and  great  spurs  stretching  south- 
wards from  the  main  chain  along  its  eastern  and 
Physical  western  boundaries.  Within  these  mighty  natural 
barriers  is  a  succession  of  hill  ranges,  the  general 
direction  of  which  in  Western  Bhutan  is  from  north-west  to  south-east 
and  in  Eastern  Bhutan  from  north-east  to  south-west.  The  ridges  are 
mostly  steep,  and  separated  from  each  other  by  deep  valleys  running 
far  back  into  the  mountains.  The  Dongkya  range,  which  divides 
Sikkim  from  the  Chumbi  Valley,  bifurcates  at  Gipmochi  (on  the  western 
shoulder  of  which  is  the  trijunction  point  of  the  Sikkim-Bhutan- 
Tibet  boundary)  into  two  great  spurs,  one  running  to  the  south-east 
and  the  other  to  the  south-west,  including  between  them  the  valley  of 
the  Di-chu1  or  Jaldhaka  river.  From  Chumalhari  on  the  Tibetan 
boundary  at  the  north-west  corner  of  Bhutan  another  ridge  strikes 
southwards  between  the  basins  of  the  Torsa.  (the  Chumbi  Valley)  and 
Raidak  rivers,  and  terminates  in  the  Sinchula  hills  which  form  the 
boundary  between  Jalpaigurl  District  and  Bhutan.  Farther  east  very 
little  is  known  of  the  main  chain,  but  it  has  been  ascertained  that  its 
chief  offshoots  trend  southwards  :  these  include  the  Black  mountain 
range,  with  ramifications  south-west  and  south-east  in  the  Tongsa 
division  ;  the  Yato  La,  from  peak  B  (24,737  feet)  north  of  Tongsa  ;  the 
Rudu  La  range;  the  Donga  range,  from  a  peak  north  of  Donga  La 
(20,965  feet);  the  Kollong  range,  from  the  Daud  peak  (20,576  feet); 
and,  in  the  extreme  east,  a  range  springing  from  the  three  peaks  E 
(21,278  feet),  F  (23,066  feet),  and  H  (22,422  feet),  with  ramifications 
in  a  south-east  direction,  on  one  of  which  Dewangiri  is  situated.  The 
last-mentioned  range  probably  forms  the  true  boundary  between  Bhutan 
and  Towang.  This  mountainous  region  sends  out  numerous  rivers  in 
a  more  or  less  southerly  direction,  all  of  which  eventually  find  their  way 
into  the  Brahmaputra.  Their  courses  in  Bhutan  are  confined  between 
high  rocky  mountains ;  and  as  the  gradients  of  their  beds  have  a  very 
steep  fall,  they  are  furious  torrents  in  the  rains,  and  hardly  any  of  them 
are  fordable  at  this  period  of  the  year.  Proceeding  from  west  to  east,  the 
chief  rivers  are  the  Di-chu,  Amo-chu  or  Torsa,  Chin-chu,  Ma-chu,  Mati- 
chu,  and  Dangme-chu.  The  Di-chu,  which  rises  in  a  lake  near  Gipmochi, 
1  Di  is  the  Bodo  and  dm  the  Tibetan  word  for  '  water  '  or  '  river,' 


PHYSICAL  ASPECTS 


155 


forms  the  boundary  between  Bhutan  and  Darjeeling  District  during  the 
last  twelve  miles  of  its  course  in  the  mountains.  The  Amo-chu  rises 
below  the  Tang  pass,  which  forms  the  connecting  link  across  the 
Tibetan  table-land  of  the  main  range  of  the  Himalayas  and  also  the 
watershed  between  the  streams  running  northwards  and  southwards, 
and  after  flowing  through  the  Chumbi  Valley  for  about  6  miles  enters 
Bhutan.  Soon  after  it  runs  through  a  steep  and  narrow  gorge,  and 
below  this  through  a  valley  which  is  believed  to  have  an  easy  gradient, 
and  which  has  been  prospected  for  a  road  connecting  Tibet  with  Ben- 
gal. The  Chin-chu  rises  in  the  eastern  and  southern  slopes  of  the  Chu- 
malhari  range,  and,  after  flowing  in  a  south-easterly  direction  for  about 
200  miles  through  Bhutan,  enters  the  Duars  not  far  from  the  eastern 
border  of  Jalpaigurl,  where  it  is  known  as  the  Ninagaon  river.  The 
Ma-chu  rises  in  Tibet,  and,  after  a  course  in  Bhutan  of  about  180  miles 
past  Punaka,  debouches  on  the  borders  of  Jalpaigurl  and  Goalpara, 
where  it  is  called  the  Sankosh.  The  Dangme-chu,  which  is  believed  to 
rise  in  Tibet,  flows  in  a  south-westerly  direciion  through  Bhutan,  and 
on  emerging  into  the  plains,  where  it  is  known  as  the  Manas,  once  formed 
the  boundary  between  the  Kamrup  and  Goalpara  Districts  of  Assam. 

As  far  as  is  known,  the  lower  mountain  ranges  are  composed  chiefly 
of  a  coarse  and  decomposing  granite  sandstone.  Gneiss,  hornblendic 
slate,  micaceous  slate,  and  brown  and  ochre-coloured  sandstones  form 
the  boulders  in  the  beds  of  the  streams  in  the  ascent  from  the  plains. 
The  rocks  at  the  highest  elevation  consist  of  gneiss,  rising  through 
upheaved  strata  of  mica  and  talcose  slate.  At  an  elevation  of  8,000  or 
9,000  feet  a  talcose  slate  has  been  observed,  thickly  disseminated  with 
garnets  and  in  some  cases  threaded  with  large  grains  of  titaniferous  iron 
ore.  Limestone  formations  on  a  large  scale  extend  from  Chingi  to 
Santso,  and  another  limestone  formation  from  Pomekpu  to  Tassisudra 
and  thence  to  the  plains  at  Buxa. 

Above  5,000  feet  the  mountain  slopes  are  generally  covered  with 
forest  abounding  in  many  varieties  of  stately  trees,  including  the  beech, 
ash,  birch,  maple,  cypress,  and  yew.  At  an  elevation  of  8,000  or  9,000 
feet  is  a  zone  of  vegetation  consisting  principally  of  oaks  and  rhodo- 
dendrons, and  above  this  again  is  a  profusion  of  firs  and  pines. 

The  lower  ranges  of  the  hills  teem  with  animal  life.  Tigers  are  not 
common,  except  near  the  river  Tlsta,  but  elephants  are  so  numerous  as 
to  be  dangerous  to  travellers.  Leopards  abound  in  the  valleys  and  deer 
everywhere,  some  of  them  of  a  very  large  species.  The  musk  deer 
(Mosckus  moschiferus)  is  found  in  the  snows,  and  the  barking-deer 
(Cervit/us  muntjac)  on  every  hill-side.  Wild  hog  are  met  with  even 
at  great  elevations.  Bears  and  rhinoceros  are  also  found.  Large 
squirrels  are  common,  and  pheasants,  partridges,  jungle-fowl,  pigeons, 
and  other  small  game  abound. 


156  BHUTAN 

The  climate  of  Bhutan  varies  with  the  elevation  :  the  cold  of  Siberia, 
the  heat  of  Africa,  and  the  pleasant  warmth  of  Italy  may  all  be  experi- 
enced in  the  course  of  a  single  day's  journey.  At  the  time  when  the 
inhabitants  of  Punaka  are  afraid  of  exposing  themselves  to  the  blazing 
sun,  those  of  Ghasa  experience  all  the  rigour  of  winter  and  are  chilled 
by  perpetual  snows.  Yet  these  two  places  are  within  sight  of  each 
other.  The  rains  descend  in  floods  upon  the  heights,  but  in  the 
vicinity  of  Trashichodzong  and  Punaka  they  are  moderate ;  there  are 
frequent  showers,  but  nothing  that  can  be  compared  to  the  tropical 
rains  of  Bengal.  Owing  to  the  great  elevation  and  steepness  of  the 
mountains,  terrible  storms  arise  among  the  hollows,  which  are  often 
attended  with  fatal  results. 

Bhutan  has  not  long  been  in  the  possession  of  its  present  rulers.  It 
formerly  belonged  to  a  tribe  called  by  the  Bhotias  Tephu,  who  are 
believed  to  have  been  of  the  same  race  as  the 
Kacharis  and  Koch  of  the  adjoining  plains,  and  who 
were  subjugated  about  two  centuries  ago  by  a  band  of  Tibetan  soldiers. 
The  latter  settled  down  in  the  country  and  intermarried  with  the 
aborigines,  and  from  them  have  sprung  the  people  now  called  Bhotias. 
There  are  still  various  servile  tribes  in  the  country  regarding  whom  very 
little  is  yet  known,  but  we  may  surmise  that  they  are  descended  from 
more  or  less  pure  remnants  of  the  earlier  inhabitants.  The  relations  of 
the  British  with  Bhutan  commenced  in  1772,  when  the  Bhotias  invaded 
the  principality  of  Cooch  Behar.  The  ruler  of  that  State  invoked 
British  aid,  and  a  force  was  dispatched  to  his  assistance  under  Captain 
James,  who  expelled  the  invaders  and  pursued  them  into  their  own 
territory.  Peace  was  concluded  in  1774  through  the  mediation  of  the 
Tashi  Lama,  then  regent  of  Tibet.  In  1783  Captain  Turner  was 
deputed  to  Bhutan,  with  a  view  to  promoting  commercial  intercourse, 
but  his  mission  proved  unsuccessful.  From  this  period  few  dealings 
took  place  with  Bhutan  until  the  occupation  of  Assam  by  the  British  in 
1826.  It  was  then  discovered  that  the  Bhotias  had  usurped  the  strip  of 
lowland  lying  along  the  foot  of  the  mountains,  called  the  Duars  or 
passes,  and  for  these  they  agreed  to  pay  a  small  tribute.  They  failed 
to  do  so,  however,  and  availed  themselves  of  the  command  of  the 
passes  to  commit  depredations  in  British  territory.  Captain  Pemberton 
was  deputed  to  Bhutan  to  adjust  the  points  of  difference,  but  his  nego- 
tiations yielded  no  result ;  and  every  other  means  of  obtaining  redress 
and  security  having  proved  unsuccessful,  the  Assam  Duars  were  taken 
from  the  Bhotias,  and,  in  lieu  of  them,  an  annual  payment  of  Rs.  10,000 
was  promised  to  the  hillmen  so  long  as  they  behaved  themselves. 
They  continued,  however,  to  commit  acts  of  outrage  and  aggression; 
and  in  spite  of  repeated  remonstrances  and  threats,  scarcely  a  year 
passed  without  the  occurrence  of  several  raids,  often  headed  by  Bhutanese 


POPULATION  157 

officials,  in  which  they  plundered  the  inhabitants,  massacred  them,  or 
carried  them  away  as  slaves. 

In  1863  the  Hon.  Ashley  Eden  was  sent  as  an  envoy  to  Bhutan  to 
demand  reparation  for  these  outrages.  He  was  there  subjected  to 
the  grossest  insults,  and  under  compulsion  signed  a  treaty  surrender- 
ing the  Duars  to  Bhutan  and  making  many  other  concessions.  On 
his  return  the  Governor-General  at  once  disavowed  the  treaty,  stopped 
the  allowance  previously  given  for  the  Assam  Duars,  and  demanded 
the  immediate  restoration  of  all  British  subjects  kidnapped  during  the 
previous  five  years.  As  this  demand  was  not  complied  with,  the  Gover- 
nor-General issued  a  proclamation,  dated  November  12,  1864,  annexing 
the  Western  Duars.  No  resistance  was  at  first  offered  to  the  annexa- 
tion ;  but  in  January,  1865,  the  Bhotias  made  an  unexpected  attack  on 
Dewangiri,  and  the  small  British  garrison  abandoned  the  post  with 
the  loss  of  two  mountain  guns.  This  disaster  was  soon  retrieved  by 
General  Tombs,  and  the  Bhutan  government  was  compelled  to  sue 
for  peace,  which  was  concluded  on  November  n,  1865.  In  the  year 
following,  it  formally  ceded  all  the  eighteen  Duars  of  Eastern  Bengal 
and  Assam,  and  agreed  to  liberate  all  kidnapped  British  subjects. 
As  the  revenues  of  Bhutan  mainly  depended  on  these  Duars,  the 
British  Government,  in  return  for  these  concessions,  undertook  to  pay 
an  allowance  beginning  at  Rs.  25,000  a  year  and  rising  in  three  years 
to  a  maximum  of  twice  that  amount,  provided  that  the  Bhotias 
abstained  from  fresh  breaches  of  peace.  Since  then  relations  with 
Bhutan  have  been  almost  uninterruptedly  satisfactory.  On  the  occasion 
of  the  Tibet  Mission  of  1904,  the  Bhotias  gave  strong  proof  of  their 
friendly  attitude.  Not  only  did  they  consent  to  the  survey  of  a  road 
through  their  country  to  Chumbi,  but  their  ruler,  the  Tongsa  Penlop, 
accompanied  the  British  troops  to  Lhasa,  and  assisted  in  the  negotia- 
tions with  the  Tibetan  authorities.  Eor  these  services  he  was  made  a 
K.C.I.E.,  and  he  has  since  entertained  the  British  Agent  hospitably  at 
his  capital. 

Previous  to  the  British  annexation  of  the  Duars,  the  area  of  the  State 
was  reckoned  at  about  20,000  square  miles.  The  population  in  1864 
was  estimated  to  be  about  20,000.  Later  information, 
however,  points  to  a  larger  figure,  and  it  is  believed 
that  the  tract  west  of  the  Amo-chu  alone  contains  about  15,000  per- 
sons. The  chief  towns  are  Punaka  or  Dosen,  the  winter  capital,  on  the 
left  bank  of  the  Bugni  river,  96  miles  east-north-east  from  Darjeeling, 
Trashichodzong,  the  summer  head-quarters,  Paro,  Wangdii  Pot- 
rang,  and  Tongsa  on  the  road  from  Assam  to  Lhasa.  The  other  towns 
are  Wandipur,  Ghasa,  and  Murichom.  The  population  west  of  the 
Amo-chu  consists  almost  entirely  of  Nepalese,  who  have  been  driven 
out  of  their  own  country  by  the  pressure  of  the  population  on  the  soil 


158  BHUTAN 

and  have  flocked  into  Bhutan,  as  well  as  into  Darjeeling  District  and 
Sikkim,  for  many  years  past.  Now  that  the  best  lands  in  Darjeeling 
District  and  much  of  the  good  land  in  Sikkim  are  filled  up,  the  move- 
ment towards  Bhutan,  where  there  is  still  plenty  of  waste,  is  stronger 
than  ever.  These  immigrants  are  not  well  treated  by  the  Bhotias, 
but  their  condition  is  better  than  it  used  to  be,  now  that  the  Bhutanese 
officials  have  begun  to  realize  the  extent  to  which  they  increase  the 
revenue  ;  and  for  a  few  years  at  any  rate,  until  the  colonist  is  settled 
and  has  made  money,  he  is  left  in  comparative  peace  by  his  rulers. 
East  of  the  Amo-chu,  the  Bhutanese  ryots  have  successfully  objected  to 
the  Nepalese  being  allowed  to  take  up  land,  on  the  ground  that  once 
admitted  they  would  swamp  the  old  inhabitants.  The  objection  seems 
a  reasonable  one,  since  the  Nepalese,  if  once  admitted,  would  cultivate 
many  of  the  Bhutanese  grazing-grounds  that  are  below  7,000  feet 
elevation,  and  would  confine  the  cultivation  of  the  latter  within  much 
narrower  limits  than  at  present. 

The  population  of  Bhutan  consists  of  three  classes :  the  priests,  the 
chiefs  or  Penlops,  including  the  governing  class,  and  the  cultivators. 
The  Bhotias  are  most  at  home  among  their  cattle  and  mules,  and  are 
generally  apathetic  and  backward  in  agriculture.  Physically  they  are  a 
fine  race,  hardy  and  vigorous,  with  dark  skins,  ruddy  complexions,  and 
high  cheek-bones ;  but  they  are  dirty  in  their  habits  and  persons.  They 
are  courageous,  but  truculent  and  prone  to  sudden  bursts  of  anger  and 
murder.  Robbery  and  other  kinds  of  violence  are  common.  Their 
food  consists  of  meat,  chiefly  pork,  mutton,  and  yak's  flesh,  turnips, 
rice,  barley-meal,  and  tea  made  from  the  brick-tea  of  China.  Their 
favourite  drink  is  chang  distilled  from  rice  or  barley  and  millet,  and 
mania  beer  made  from  fermented  millet ;  all  classes  are  very  much 
addicted  to  the  use  of  these  liquors.  Priests  and  laymen,  men  and 
women,  all  wear  close-cropped  hair,  a  feature  which  distinguishes  the 
Bhotias  of  Bhutan  from  their  cousins  in  Tibet  and  Sikkim,  among 
whom,  except  by  priests,  the  pigtail  is  universally  worn.  A  loose 
woollen  coat  reaching  to  the  knees,  and  bound  round  the  waist  by  a 
thick  fold  of  cotton  cloth  or  a  leather  belt,  forms  the  costume  of  the 
men.  A  legging  of  broadcloth  is  attached  to  a  shoe  made  generally  of 
buffalo  hide,  and  no  Bhotia.  ever  travels  during  the  winter  without  pro- 
tecting his  legs  and  feet  against  the  effects  of  the  snow.  A  cap  made  of 
fur  or  coarse  woollen  cloth  completes  the  outfit.  The  women's  dress  is 
a  long  cloak  with  loose  sleeves.  The  houses  in  appearance  resemble 
Swiss  chalets,  and  are  picturesque  and  comfortable,  but  outside  the 
towns  they  are  seldom  more  than  two  storeys  high.  The  Bhotias  are 
neat  joiners,  and  their  doors,  windows,  and  panelling  are  excellent. 
No  ironwork  is  used  ;  the  doors  open  on  ingenious  wooden  hinges,  and 
all  the  floors  are  neatly  boarded  with  deal.     On  two  sides  of  the  house 


AGRICULTURE  159 

is  a  veranda,  painted  and  ornamented  with  carved  work.  The  only 
defect  is  the  absence  of  chimneys,  which  the  Bhotias  do  not  know 
how  to  construct. 

The  Bhutanese  spoken  language  is  a  dialect  of  Tibetan,  but  it  is 
subject  to  great  local  variations,  owing  to  the  mountain  barriers  which 
impede  free  communication  between  different  parts.  In  the  west  the 
dialect  is  closely  akin  to  that  of  Sikkim  and  Kalimpong,  but  the  pro- 
nunciation is  sharper  and  more  abrupt.  The  Tibetans  and  Sikkimese 
say  that  the  Bhutanese  speech  resembles  that  of  a  man  talking  in  anger, 
and  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  temper  of  the  people  is  reflected  in  their 
mode  of  talk.  The  written  language  of  books  is  the  same  as  that  of 
Tibet ;  and  by  means  of  it  the  native  of  Bhutan  can  communicate  with 
the  Kam-pa  Tibetan  living  on  the  confines  of  China,  and  with  the 
Ladakhi  on  the  borders  of  Kashmir. 

The  people  profess  to  be  Buddhists ;  but  their  religion,  as  is  the 
case  in  Tibet  also,  partakes  largely  of  the  old  Bom-po  or  the  religion 
which  preceded  Buddhism.  This  consists  chiefly  of  devil-worship, 
and  of  propitiatory  sacrifices  in  which  animal  life  is  freely  taken, 
a  proceeding  abhorrent  to  the  true  followers  of  Buddha.  The  sacred 
books  of  the  Buddhist,  or  rather  of  the  Lamaist  religion,  are  brought 
from  Tibet ;  they  are  frequently  recited  but  seldom  understood.  The 
local  priests  excel  in  the  painting  of  religious  pictures,  and  many  of 
the  best  pictures  in  the  Sikkim  monasteries  are  the  work  of  Lamas 
from  Bhutan. 

From  the  configuration  of  the  country,  regular  husbandry  is  limited 
to  a  comparatively  few  spots.  The  chief  crop  is  maize,  which  grows  up 
to  7,000  feet ;  wheat,  mania,  buckwheat,  and  mustard  . 

are  also  grown.  Cultivation  is  in  a  backward  state, 
even  in  those  places  where  it  has  existed  longest.  The  most  paying 
crops  in  the  country  are  cardamoms  and  terraced  rice,  but  both  these 
require  irrigable  land  and  so  involve  a  large  outlay  on  the  part  of  the 
cultivator.  Large  areas  of  suitable  land  are  to  be  found  in  which  the 
means  of  irrigation  are  abundant,  but  property  is  very  insecure  and 
the  cultivator  hesitates  to  incur  the  necessary  expenditure. 

The  forests  have  a  certain  value  as  grazing-grounds,  and  many  of  the 
graziers  who  supply  Darjeeling  town  with  milk  send  their  cows  when 
off  milk  to  the  forests  at  the  head  of  the  Di-chu.  A  species  of  pony, 
called  tangan  from  Tangasthan,  the  general  appellation  of  that 
assemblage  of  mountains  which  constitutes  the  territory  of  Bhutan, 
is  found  in  this  tract,  the  same  name  being  applied  to  similar  ponies 
in  parts  of  Nepal.  The  tangan  pony  usually  stands  about  13  hands 
high,  and  is  short-bodied,  clean  limbed,  deep  in  the  chest,  and 
extremely  active. 

Bhutan  is  a  fairly  good  country  for  an  ordinary  cultivator,  so  long 


160  BHUTAN 

as  he  does  not  grow  rich.     There  is,  however,  no  security  of  property ; 

and  if  cultivators  amass  wealth,  they  are  afraid  to  show  any  signs  of  it, 

for  fear  lest  they  should  be  mulcted  on  trivial   pretexts,  such  as    the 

wearing  of  clothes   beyond  their  station,  or  the  possession  of  ponies 

which    they  have   not  sent    to   carry  the    Kazi's   loads.     Among   the 

reasons  which  induce  the  Nepalese  to  migrate  into  Western  Bhutan 

in  the  face  of  these  disadvantages,  may  be  mentioned   the  plentiful 

supply  of  land,  and  the  absence  of  all  restrictions  on  taking  it  up  and 

clearing  it,  on  burning  down  or  cutting  trees,  and  on  brewing  and 

selling  all  kinds  of  liquor.     The  promiscuous  burning  of  jungle  and 

felling  of  timber  will,  however,  before  long  leave  them  much  worse  off 

than  if  they  had  been  subjected  to  the  restrictions  which  the  British 

administration  imposes  in  these  respects. 

In  so  rude   a   country,  the   manufactures   of  the   people   are  very 

primitive,   and  the  few  articles  produced  are  all   destined   for   home 

consumption.     Coarse  blankets  and  cotton  cloth  are 

ra  e  an  made  by  the  villagers  inhabiting  the  southern  tract. 

communications.  J  °      .  ° 

Leather,    from    the    hide   of   a    buflalo,    imperfectly 

tanned,  furnishes  the  soles  of  snow-boots.  Bowls  are  neatly  turned 
from  various  woods.  A  small  quantity  of  paper  is  made  from  a  plant 
described  as  the  Daphne  papyrifera.  Swords  and  daggers,  and  sheaths 
made  of  copper,  brass  or  silver,  iron  spears,  arrow-heads,  charm  boxes 
and  pan  boxes,  cauldrons,  and  agricultural  implements  complete  the 
list  of  manufactures. 

In  1775  Mr.  Bogle  obtained  the  consent  of  the  Deb  Raja  to  free 
trade  between  Bhutan  and  the  territories  of  the  East  India  Company ; 
and  by  Article  IX  of  the  Sinchula  Treaty  of  1865  it  was  agreed  that 
there  should  be  free  trade  and  commerce  between  the  two  Govern- 
ments. Except,  however,  for  a  few  years  during  the  administration 
of  Warren  Hastings,  Bhutan  has  practically  remained  closed  to  British 
traders.  The  Bhotias,  on  the  other  hand,  have  been  permitted  to 
come  freely  into  British  territory  ;  and  fairs  to  promote  trade  have  been 
established  and  subsidized  at  Kalimpong  in  Darjeeling,  and  Falakata 
and  AlIpur  in  Eastern  Bengal,  and  at  Dewangiri  and  Udalguri  in 
Assam.  In  1902-3  the  value  of  the  exports  from  Bhutan  into  Bengal 
was  4-17  lakhs,  and  of  the  imports  1-16  lakhs.  The  chief  exports  are 
timber  and  oranges,  and  the  chief  imports  are  European  piece-goods, 
manufactured  silk,  betel-nuts,  and  tobacco.  Other  exports  are  ponies 
and  mules,  cattle,  sheep,  musk,  ghi,  silk,  tea,  wax,  manufactured  piece- 
goods,  yaks'  tails,  madder,  hides,  ivory,  lac,  and  rubber. 

Practically  the  only  means  of  communication  are  a  few  rough  tracks 
on  which  ponies  can  be  ridden.  Under  a  recent  arrangement  with  the 
Bhutan  government,  the  country  between  the  valleys  of  the  Amo-chu 
(Torsa)  and  the  Di-chu   (Jaldhaka)  has  been  prospected  for  a  road 


ADMINISTRA  TION  1 6 1 

or  mule  track,  the  construction  of  which  is  now  under  consideration. 

A  survey  has  been  completed  from  Nagrakata  on  the  Bengal-Duars 

Railway  to  Chumbi ;   and  the  road,  if  sanctioned,  will  connect  Tibet 

with  the  plains  of  Bengal,  leaving  Chumbi  above  the  gorge  in  Bhutan 

through  which  the  Amo-chu  flows,  crossing  the  intervening  range  at  an 

elevation  of  under  10,000  feet,  and  reaching  the  plains  at  the  point 

where  the  Di-chu  enters  Jalpaigurl  District. 

At  the  head  of  the  Bhutan  government  there  are  nominally  two 

supreme  authorities  :  the  Dharma  Raja,  known  as  Shaptrung  RenTpoche, 

the  spiritual  head  ;  and  the  Deb  or  Depa  Raja,  the       ,    .  . 

11         t-u     t-.u  t>---  ■  a  a  Administration, 

temporal  ruler.    The  Dharma  Raja  is  regarded  as  a 

very  high  incarnation  of  Buddha,  far  higher  than  the  ordinary  incar- 
nations in  Tibet,  of  which  there  are  several  hundreds.  On  the  death 
of  a  Dharma  Raja  a  year  or  two  is  allowed  to  elapse,  and  his  reincarna- 
tion then  takes  place,  always  in  the  Choje,  or  royal  family  of  Bhutan. 
It  is  believed  that  on  the  day  of  his  rebirth  a  slight  shower  of  rain  falls 
from  a  clear  sky,  and  a  rainbow  appears  abeve  the  house  in  which  he 
is  born.  The  parents  report  his  birth  to  the  local  chief.  When  he  is 
about  three  years  old  and  able  to  speak  a  little,  he  is  expected  to  give 
particulars  as  to  the  property  of  his  monastery,  the  Talo  gb'm-pa  near 
Punaka,  and  to  identify  the  rosary,  books,  and  other  articles  used  by 
him  in  religious  ceremonies  in  his  former  life  from  among  similar 
articles  used  by  other  monks. 

The  chief  council,  called  the  shung  Ihengye,  is  composed  of  the 
Dharma  Raja  and  the  Deb  Raja,  the  Penlops  of  Tongsa,  Paro,  and 
Tagapa,  and  the  Jongpens  of  Timpu  and  Punaka ;  it  assembles  only 
for  questions  of  national  importance,  such  as  the  levying  of  war  or 
other  grave  matters.  A  subordinate  council  for  the  disposal  of  less 
important  matters  is,  when  sitting  at  Punaka,  constituted  from  the 
Deb's  zimpon,  who  is  a  sort  of  private  secretary  to  the  Deb  Raja, 
the  shung  dronyer,  and  either  the  Punaka  or  the  Timpu  Jongpen  ;  in 
the  case  of  meetings  held  at  Trashichodzong,  the  summer  capital,  an 
official  known  as  the  kalapa  takes  the  place  of  the  Punaka  Jongpen. 

The  Deb  Raja  is  in  theory  elected  by  the  council,  but  in  practice 
he  is  merely  the  nominee  of  whichever  of  the  two  governors  of  West 
or  East  Bhutan  (the  Penlops  of  Paro  and  Tongsa)  happens  for  the 
time  to  be  the  more  powerful.  At  present  the  Tongsa  Penlop  controls 
all  public  affairs  in  the  name  of  the  Deb  Raja.  The  chief  officials  at 
Tongsa  subordinate  to  him  are  the  dronyer,  who  remains  in  charge 
of  the  Jong  in  his  absence,  his  zimpon  or  private  secretary,  and  the 
depb'n  or  dapb'n,  who  commands  the  soldiers  and  police  (zi/nkap).  The 
subordinate  officers  in  Western  Bhutan  consist,  in  addition  to  a  number 
of  officials  at  Paro,  of  KazTs  who  are  Bhotias  and  of  thikaddrs  who 
are  Nepalese ;    these  live  in  the  interior  and  are  responsible  for  the 

vol.  yiu,  M 


t62  BHUTAN 

collection  of  revenue.  The  KazTs  have  power  to  dispose  of  cases  and 
to  impose  fines,  and  only  serious  cases  are  sent  to  Paro  for  trial. 
Though  there  is  thus  an  outward  show  of  government,  the  local  officials 
are  but  imperfectly  controlled  by  the  central  power ;  and  murder, 
robbery,  and  other  crimes  of  violence  are  common.  The  State  is  in 
direct  relations  with  the  Government  of  India,  through  the  medium 
of  the  Political  officer  in  Sikkim. 

The  Bhotias  in  Western  Bhutan  pay  a  cultivation  tax  in  grain 
and  also  a  tax  in  butter  on  their  cattle  farms.  The  Nepalese  and 
Lepcha  ryots  pay  a  poll  tax  of  Rs.  6-8  per  annum  for  each  house, 
in  addition  to  a  labour  tax  of  Rs.  3  per  annum  for  each  house,  if  loads 
are  not  carried  free  of  charge  according  to  the  Kazl's  requisitions,  and 
a  grazing  charge  of  about  R.  1  per  annum  for  each  15  to  20  head 
of  cattle  grazed  in  the  forests  near  the  villages.  This  last  tax  is  paid 
by  the  Nepalese  headmen  to  the  Bhutanese  inhabitants  as  a  fee  for 
grazing  in  the  jungles  originally  occupied  by  the  latter  alone.  In 
addition,  there  are  various  irregular  charges,  chiefly  fines  levied  by  the 
officials  on  the  most  trivial  pretexts,  which  often  swell  the  expenses, 
especially  of  rich  ryots,  to  a  very  high  figure. 

Local  levies  under  the  control  of  the  different  chiefs  can  nominally 
be  called  out  by  the  Deb  Raja ;  but  it  is  estimated  that  the  total 
number  of  fighting  men  does  not  exceed  9,500,  and  that  the  number 
that  can  be  concentrated  at  one  place  does  not  exceed  4,000  or  5,000 
men.  As  a  militia  these  levies  are  of  a  worthless  description  ;  they 
are  seldom  mustered  for  drill  and  are  lacking  in  discipline,  while  the 
officers  have  no  knowledge  of  strategy  or  tactics.  Their  arms  consist 
of  matchlocks,  bows  and  arrows,  slings,  and  daos,  with  a  few  breech- 
loading  rifles. 

The  population  is  generally  illiterate.  Facilities  have  been  given  by 
the  Government  of  Bengal  for  a  few  young  Lamas  to  attend  the  Bhotia 
boarding-school  at  Darjeeling,  but  no  advantage  has  been  taken  of 
these  by  Bhotias  from  Bhutan. 

[S.  Turner,  Account  of  an  Embassy  to  the  Court  of  the  Tashi  Lama 
in  Tibet  (1880) ;  R.  B.  Pemberton,  Report  on  Bhutan  (Calcutta,  1839) ; 
Ashley  Eden,  Report  on  the  State  of  Bhutan  (Calcutta,  1864),  and 
Political  Missions  to  Bhutan  (Calcutta,  1865);  C.  R.  Markham, 
Mission  of  Bogle  to  Tibet  and  Journey  of  Manning  to  Lhasa  (1879).] 

Bhuvaneswar. — Temple  city  in  Purl  District,  Bengal.  See 
Bhubaneswar. 

Biana.  —  Tahsll  and  town  in  Bharatpur  State,  Rajputana.  See 
Bayana. 

Bians. — A  pattl  or  division  of  pargana  Darma,  in  the  Champawat 
tahsil  of  Almora  District,  United  Provinces,  situated  in  the  extreme 
north-east  corner  of  the  District.     The  trade  route  from  Tanaktur  to 


BlDAR  DIVISIOX 


163 


Tibet  along  the  Kali  river  crosses  the  frontier  in  this  tract  by  three 
passes:  the  Lampiya  Dhura  (18,000  feet),  the  Mangsha  Dhura,  and 
the  Lipu  Lekh  (16,750).  The  last-mentioned  is  the  easiest  route,  and 
leads  directly  to  the  Tibetan  mart  of  Taklakot,  and  to  the  Manasarowar 
Lake  and  Mount  Kailas,  the  sacred  places  visited  by  Hindus. 

Biaora. — Town  in  the  Rajgarh  State,  Central  India,  situated  in 
23°  55'  N.  and  760  57'  E.,  on  the  Agra-Bombay  high  road.  Population 
(1901),  5,607.  It  is  an  old  town,  and  has  long  been  a  trade  centre; 
but  since  the  opening  of  railways  and  the  consequent  decrease  in  im- 
portance of  the  Agra-Bombay  road  as  a  trade  route,  its  prosperity  has 
declined.  A  large  fair  is  held  here  every  Monday  for  the  sale  of  grain, 
while  most  of  the  opium  passes  through  the  hands  of  the  Biaora  mer- 
chants. The  town  contains  a  residence  for  the  chief,  a  dispensary,  a 
sarai,  British  combined  post  and  telegraph  offices,  and  a  dak-hungaXovf . 

Bias. — One  of  the  five  rivers  of  the  Punjab.     See  Beas. 

Bibiyana. — River  in  Sylhet  District,  Assam.     See  Surma. 

Bichrand.— Name  of  two  thakurats  in  the  Malwa  Agency,  Central 
India. 

Bickaneer. — State  and  capital  thereof  in  Rajputana.     See  Bikanef. 

Bldar  Division. — Formerly  a  Division,  occupying  almost  the 
centre  of  the  Hyderabad  State,  and  extending  from  the  Yeotmal  District 
of  Berar  in  the  north  as  far  as  the  Kistna  river  in  the  south.  It  lay 
between  160  5'  and  190  55'  N.  and  770  9'  and  8o°  E.  The  head- 
quarters of  the  Commissioner  [Subahdar)  were  at  Patancheru,  a  village 
in  the  Kalabgur  taluk  of  Medak.  The  population  of  the  Division 
increased  from  2,455,179  in  1881  to  2,812,720  in  1S91,  but  declined  to 
2,745,979  in  1901.  The  total  area  was  22,567  square  miles,  and  the 
density  of  population  122  persons  per  square  mile,  compared  with  135 
for  the  whole  State,  of  which  the  Division  was  the  largest  both  in 
area  and  population.  Of  the  total  population  in  1901,  88-2  per  cent, 
were  Hindus  and  9-6  per  cent.  Musalmans,  while  Christians  numbered 
816  (of  whom  719  were  natives),  Jains  1,320,  Parsis  4,  Sikhs  493,  and 
Animists  54,357.  The  Division  included  five  Districts,  as  shown 
below  : — ■ 


District. 

Area  in  square 
miles. 

Population, 
1 901. 

Land  revenue  and 

cesses,  iooi, 

in  thousands 

of  rupees. 

Bldar      . 

Indur 

Mahbubnagar 
Medak 
Sirpur  Tandur 

Total 

4,168 

4,S22 

6,543 

2,005 

5,029 

766,129 
634,588 

705,725 
366,722 
272,815 

11,64 
19,60 
IO,I5 

12,88 
2,66 

22,567 

2,745,979 

56,93 

In  1905  Bldar  District  was  transferred  to  the  Gulbarga  Division,  and 

M  2 


164  BIDAR  DIVISION 

Sirpur  Tandur  (now  known   as   Adilabad)    to     Warangal,    while    the 

Division  was  increased  by  the  addition  of  Nalgonda  from  Warangal,  and 

is  now  called  Mkoak  Gui.shanai:ai>.     Other  changes  were  made  in  the 

areas  of  the  remaining  Districts,  and   the  name  of  Indur   District  has 

been  changed  to  Nizamabad. 

Bidar  District. — District  in  the  Gulbarga  Division  of  the  Hyderabad 

State,  bounded  by  Nander  District  and  the  paigah  estates  of  Nawab 

Sir  Vikar-ul-Umara,  on  the  north  ;  by  the  paigah  estates  of  Nawab  Sir 

Khurshed  Jah,  on  the  east  and  south  ;  and  by  the  Districts  of  Bhlr  and 

Osmanabad  and  the  paigah  and  Kalyani/^7r.r,  on    the   west.     It  lies 

between  170  30'  and  180  51'  N.  and  760  30'  and  770  51'  E.,  with  a  total 

area  of  4,168  square  miles,   of  which   2,120  square  miles  are  Jagir1. 

From  Khanapur,  8  miles  west  of  Bidar,  a  range  of 

ysica  jQw  iajerite  hills,  forming  a  plateau  which  terminates 

aspects  11, 

towards  the  north  above  the  valley  of  the  Manjra, 

extends  due  east  as  far  as  Sadaseopet  in  Medak  District  ;  otherwise 

the  country  is  almost  flat,  with  a  gentle  slope  towards  the  east. 

Besides  the  Manjra,  the  largest  river  in  the  District,  which  enters 
it  from  Osmanabad,  and  runs  almost  due  east,  there  are  ten  minor 
streams  :  the  Ghirni  and  the  Bahnar,  both  tributaries  of  the  Manjra  ;  the 
Tiru,  Urgi,  Reondi,  Manmuri,  Lendi,  Tirna,  Madhura,  and  Karanja. 
The  Manjra  is  the  only  perennial  river,  all  the  others  running  dry 
during  the  summer  months.  None  of  these  rivers  is  utilized  for 
irrigation  purposes. 

The  District  is  occupied  almost  entirely  by  the  Deccan  trap,  the 
underlying  gneiss  appearing  along  its  eastern  border. 

Bidar  is  noted  for  its  healthy  climate.  The  waters  of  the  lateritic 
region  are  chalybeate,  and  possess  tonic  properties.  The  southern 
half  of  the  District  being  a  high  plateau  about  2,350  feet  above  the  sea, 
and  well  drained,  the  climate  is  very  dry  and  healthy.  The  temperature 
is  much  lower  here  and  in  the  west  than  towards  the  east.  The  western 
and  northern  taluks  are  generally  more  favoured  as  regards  rain  than  the 
southern  and  eastern.  The  annual  rainfall  averages  about  37  inches. 
In  1899  and  1900  it  was  scanty,  the  latter  being  a  famine  year. 

The  history  of  the  District  commences  with  the  capture  of  the  capital 
by  Muhammad  bin  Tughlak  in  1321.  In  1347  Bahman  Shah  Gangu, 
the  first  Bahmani  king  of  Gulbarga,  took  Bidar.  In 
1430  Ahmad  Shah  Wali  Bahmani  founded  the  modern 
town,  built  the  fort,  and  removed  his  capital  here  from  Gulbarga.  On 
the  dissolution  of  the  Bahmani  kingdom,  the  District  fell  to  the  Barid 
Shahis  of  Bidar,  who  reigned  from  1492  to  1609;  afterwards  it  was 
included  in  the  Adil  Shahi  kingdom  of  Bijapur.     The  city  was  plundered 

1  These  dimensions  relate  to  the  District  before  the  alterations  maile  in  1905  ;  see 
below,  under  Population. 


BIDAR  DISTRICT 


165 


by  Malik  Am  bar,  the  Nizam  Shahi  minister  of  Ahmadnagar  in  1624,  but 
was  recovered  by  the  king  of  Bijapur,  and  remained  part  of  his  realm 
till  about  1656,  when  Aurangzeb  took  it.  The  District  was  included  in 
the  Hyderabad  State  on  its  foundation  early  in  the  eighteenth  century. 

The  District  contains  numerous  relics  of  its  palmy  days,  prominent 
among  them  being  the  fort  of  Bldar,  which  is  surrounded  by  a  wall  and 
ditch.  Though  the  fortifications  and  battlemented  walls  are  very  strong 
and  are  still  well  preserved,  the  old  palaces  are  more  or  less  decayed. 
It  contains  many  ruined  palaces  and  mosques,  among  the  latter  being 
two  large  mosques  known  as  the  Jama  Masjid,  a  handsome  building, 
and  the  '  sixteen-pillared  '  mosque.  On  the  bastions  are  a  number  of 
guns,  formed  of  bars  of  metal  welded  together  and  bound  by  hoops. 
Outside  the  town  and  to  the  west  of  it  are  the  tombs  of  the  Band  Shahi 
dynasty.  The  tombs  of  twelve  Bahmani  kings  lie  to  the  north-east  of 
the  town.  Numerous  ruins  of  temples,  caves,  and  mosques  are  to  be 
found  near  Kalyani,  the  capital  of  the  Chalukyas,  and  at  the  villages  of 
Nilanga,  Karusa,  Kaulas,  Narayanpur,  Sakol,  Siruri,  Sltapur,  and  Tiprath. 

The  number  of  towns  and  villages  in  the  District,  including  large 
ilakas  and  jdgirs,  is  1,464.  The  population  at  the  last  three  enumera- 
tions was  :  (1881)  788,827,  (1891)  901,984,  and 
(1901)  766,129.  The  decrease  during  the  last  decade 
was  due  chiefly  to  famine,  but  partly  to  the  transfer  of  the  Jukal  taluk f 
with  a  population  of  15,789,  to  the  Atraf-i-balda  District.  The  head- 
quarters are  at  BIdar,  the  other  towns  being  Kalyani,  Homnabad, 
Kohir,  Uugir,  Bhalki,  and  Alikher.  More  than  86  per  cent,  of  the 
population  are  Hindus,  14  per  cent,  being  Musalmans,  with  only 
15  Christians.  The  District  lies  at  the  junction  of  three  linguistic 
divisions,  and  about  34  per  cent,  of  the  people  speak  MarathT,  35  per 
cent.  Kanarese,  more  than  16  per  cent.  Telugu,  and  about  15  per  cent. 
Urdu.  The  following  table  gives  the  chief  statistics  of  population 
in  1 90 1  : — 


Population. 


Tahtk. 


Bidai 

Karamungi 

Aurad 

Kohir 
Nilanga 
Udglr        . 
Varval  Rajura 

Jdglrs,  &c. 


Total 


Area  in  square 
miles. 

Number  of 

c 
0 

"3 
c 

u 

0  - 
re  u 

2  3 

?"~ 

O   in 

C 
0 

H 

be 

114 

I 

46 

29.005 

254 

150 

57 

3i,412 

209 

»58 

54 

16,330 

103 

147 
248 

I 

4-! 
63 

32,041 
39,830 

2'7 

160 

544 

6S7 

2,120 

I 

4 

7 

'53 

21 1 

831 

78,642 

74/>37 
464,232 

144 

109 
219 

181 

4,168 

',457 

766,129 

=  5   re   c^, 


- 


re  a.  i- 

>  o  *-> 
o. 


-  7-3 

-  240 

-  0.3 

-  '7-5 

-  167 

-  41.2 

-  J  5-3 

-  15-1 


■    c^    > 

1  o  ^  •* 
.  <r.  y 

OJ 


a 
> 

r. 


£ 


J4>564 


1 66  BIDAR  DISTRICT 

In  1905  Kohlr  was  merged  in  Bldar,  and  Aurad  in  Karamungi,  While 
minor  changes  have  been   made    in    the    Udgir,  Nilanga,  and  Varval 
Rajura  taluks.     The  District  in  its  present  form  comprises  five  taluks— 
Bihar,  Karamungi,  Nilanga,  UdgIr,  and  Varval  Rajura.      It  was 
formerly  part  of  the  Bldar  I  )ivision. 

The  most  numerous  caste  is  that  of  the  agriculturist  Kapus  or  Kunbis, 
113,800,  besides  other  agricultural  castes,  numbering  71,000,  including 
28,000  Murmurs.  The  Banias,  or  the  trading  and  money-lending  caste, 
number  13,000.  Next  come  the  Dhangars  or  shepherds,  52,000.  The 
Mahars  and  Mangs  number,  respectively,  68,000  and  60,000 ;  the 
former  work  as  agricultural  labourers  and  the  latter  in  leather.  The 
Velmas  number  32,000.  The  population  supported  by  agriculture  is 
417,000,  or  54  per  cent,  of  the  total.  There  were  only  four  native 
Christians  in  1901. 

The  soils  of  the  District  consist  of  regar  or  black  cotton  soil,  and 

masab  or  red  soil.     The  regar  is  generally  met  with  in  basins,  valleys, 

and    hollows,  while  the  masab  or  red  soil  is   found 

in  high  country.    The  regar  is  derived  from  schistose 

and  gneissose  rock  (trap),  and  the  red   soil  from  laterite,  both  being 

very  fertile. 

The  tenure  of  lands  is  entirely  ryotwari.  Khalsa  and  crown  lands 
covered  2,048  square  miles  in  1901,  of  which  1,788  were  cultivated, 
while  51  were  occupied  by  fallows  and  cultivable  waste,  20  by  forests, 
and  189  were  not  available  for  cultivation.  The  staple  food-crop 
consists  of  the  various  kinds  oijowar,  grown  on  44  per  cent,  of  the  net 
area  cropped.  Next  come  wheat,  rice,  and  bdjra,  the  areas  under 
which  were  91,  50,  and  2  square  miles  respectively.  Rice  is  grown  in 
all  the  taluks  except  Kohlr.  The  area  under  pulses  of  different  kinds 
was  159  square  miles,  while  cotton  and  oilseeds  occupied  232  and 
170  square  miles. 

There  is  no  special  breed  of  cattle,  but  those  reared  locally  are 
sufficient  for  the  needs  of  the  cultivators.  Maratha  ponies  are  sold  for 
from  Rs.  40  to  Rs.  200,  and  the  State  has  kept  two  Arab  stallions  at 
Bldar  for  the  purpose  of  improving  the  breed.  Sheep  and  goats  of 
the  ordinary  kind  are  reared. 

The  area  irrigated  is  only  about  34  square  miles,  distributed  as 
follows  :  canals  and  channels  supply  4  square  miles,  wells  28,  and  other 
sources  2.  Though  there  are  eight  tanks  and  ponds,  they  are  used, 
with  one  exception,  for  drinking  purposes  only.  The  chief  supply  of 
water  is  derived  from  wells,  of  which  there  are  2,980. 

The  District  contains  no  'reserved'  or  protected  forests,  but  has  20 
square  miles  of  unprotected  forests. 

The  minerals  found  are  soapstone,  red  ochre,  and  a  gypsum-like 
mineral,   the  last  being  used   for  plastering   flat   roofs  to    make   them 


FAMINE  167 

water-proof.  Blocks  of  red  and  yellow  laterite  and  black  basalt  are 
generally  used  for  building  purposes.  The  latter  is  largely  utilized  for 
tombstones  and  takes  a  very  good  polish. 

The  District  is  celebrated  for  its  bidri  ware,  to  which  it  has  given  its 
name.  This  consists  of  an  alloy  of  copper,  lead,  tin,  and  zinc,  inlaid 
with  silver  and  occasionally  gold.  Hukkas,  pandans 
(betel-boxes),  tumblers  and  goblets,  washing  basins  communications. 
and  ewers,  and  other  vessels  are  made  of  this  ware. 
Unfortunately  the  industry  is  dying  out,  owing  to  want  of  support.  Some 
fine  specimens  of  this  work  were  made  for  presentation  to  His  Royal 
Highness  the  Prince  of  Wales  (His  present  Majesty)  in  1875,  and 
others  have  been  sent  to  various  exhibitions  from  time  to  time.  Some 
embroidery  and  needlework  is  also  prepared.  Ordinary  coarse  cotton 
cloth  and  saris,  &c,  formerly  manufactured  to  a  considerable  extent,  are 
being  gradually  displaced  by  the  importation  of  cheaper  mill-made 
cloths.  Black  blankets  made  by  the  Dhangars  (shepherds)  fetch  from 
Rs.  1-8-0  to  Rs.  6  apiece.  Formerly  several  sugar  refineries  existed  in 
the  District,  but  the  importation  of  cheap  refined  sugar  has  ruined  the 
local  manufacture. 

The  principal  exports  are  jowar  and  other  food-grains,  cotton,  oil, 
chillies,  oilseeds,  sheep,  jaggery,  tobacco,  and  horns.  The  chief  imports 
consist  of  hardware,  salt,  salted  fish,  opium,  silver,  gold,  copper,  brass 
and  copper  vessels,  refined  sugar,  iron,  mineral  oil,  sulphur,  raw 
silk,  and  all  kinds  of  woollen,  silk,  and  cotton  fabrics.  The  centre  of 
trade  is  the  town  of  BTdar.  Homnabad,  which  was  once  the  chief 
market,  has  lost  its  importance  since  the  opening  of  the  Nizam's 
State  Railway.  The  principal  trading  castes  are  the  VanJs,  Komatis, 
and  Baljawars,  who  are  also  money-lenders.  Weekly  markets  are  held 
in  different  parts  of  the  District.  A  great  horse  and  cattle  fair  used  to 
be  held  annually  at  Malegaon,  in  November  and  December,  which 
lasted  for  a  whole  month.  Upwards  of  4,000  horses  and  ponies  were 
sold  at  the  last  fair  in  1897,  but  it  has  not  been  held  since  the 
outbreak  of  plague. 

There  is  no  line  of  railway  in  Bklar,  The  metalled  road  from 
Osmanabad  to  Hyderabad  passes  through  the  District  and  is  lined 
on  both  sides  with  avenues  of  acacia. 

The  famine  of  1876-8  affected  Bidar  only  slightly,  but  the  District 
suffered  severely  from  that  of  1899- 1900.  The  rainfall  in  1899  was 
only  15  inches,  while  prior  to  that  year  there  had 
also  been  droughts.  Six  relief  works  were  opened  in 
the  taluks  of  Varval  Rajiira,  Udgir,  and  Nilanga,  which  suffered  the 
most,  the  highest  daily  attendance  being  29,262.  The  out-turn  of  the 
kharlf  and  rabi  crops  was  about  28  per  cent.,  while  the  early  rice  crop 
yielded  37  per  cent.,  and  the  late  or  tdbi  crop  was  a  total  failure.     The 


[68 


BlDAR  DISTRICT 


Administration. 


population  at  the  Census  of  1901  showed  a  decrease  of  15  per  cent., 
largely  due  to  famine,  while  the  loss  of  cattle  was  estimated  at  more  than 
one-half.     The  total  cost  of  the  famine  amounted  to  nearly  3  lakhs. 

There  are  two  subdivisions  in  the  District.  One,  consisting  of  the 
taluks  of  Udgir,  Varval  Rajura,  and  Nilanga,  is  placed  in  charge  of 
the  Second  Talukdar ;  and  the  other,  comprising  the 
tallies  of  Bidar  and  Karamungi,  is  under  the  Third 
Talukdar,  the  First  Talukdar  exercising  a  general  supervision  over  their 
work.     Each  taluk  is  under  a  tahslldar. 

The  District  civil  court  is  under  a  Civil  Judge  styled  the  Nazim-i- 
Dlwani.  There  are  seven  subordinate  civil  courts,  each  under  a 
tahslldar.  The  First  Talukdar  is  the  chief  magistrate  of  the  District, 
and  the  Civil  Judge  is  also  a  joint  magistrate,  who  exercises  powers 
during  the  absence  of  the  First  Talukdar  from  head-quarters.  The 
Second  and  Third  Talukdars  and  the  tahsildars  exercise  second-  and 
third-class  magisterial  powers.  There  is  not  much  serious  crime  in 
ordinary  years ;  dacoities  vary  according  to  the  state  of  the  season. 

No  information  is  available  regarding  the  revenue  history  of  the 
District.  According  to  the  old  system,  villages  were  farmed  out  to 
contractors  who  received  \\  annas  per  rupee  for  collection.  In  1S66 
this  system  was  abolished  throughout  the  Nizam's  Dominions,  and 
administration  by  District  officials  was  introduced.  In  1885  the  Dis- 
trict was  surveyed  and  settled  for  fifteen  years.  The  average  assessment 
on  'dry'  land  is  Rs.  2  (maximum  Rs.  3,  minimum  Rs.  1-4),  and  on 
'wet'  land  Rs.  8  (maximum  Rs.  15,  minimum  Rs.  2-8). 

The  land  revenue  and  the  total  revenue  of  the  District  are  given 
below,  in  thousands  of  rupees  : — 


1881. 

189 1. 

1901.           1903. 

Land  revenue    . 
Total  revenue    . 

10,04 
13,24 

10,96 
J5,54 

10,94 
i5>30 

10,22 
I3,§9 

A  local  cess  of  one  anna  per  rupee  is  levied  on  the  land  revenue, 
three  pies  of  which  are  set  apart  for  local  purposes.  There  is  a  Dis- 
trict board  at  Bidar,  and  six  taluk  boards  have  also  been  formed.  The 
District  board  supervises  the  working  of  the  taluk  boards  as  well  as  that 
of  the  municipality  of  Bidar.  The  total  expenditure  of  these  boards 
in  1 90 1  was  Rs.  12,200.  There  is  a  small  conservancy  establishment 
at  each  of  the  taluk  head-quarters. 

The  First  Talukdar  is  the  head  of  the  District  police,  with  a  Super- 
intendent {Mohtatnini)  as  his  executive  deputy.  There  are  27  police 
stations  in  the  District,  and  the  force  consists  of  446  constables,  75 
subordinate  officers,  and  52  mounted  police  under  7  inspectors.  There 
is  also  a  small  special  police  force  called  Rakhwali.     The  District  jail 


BlDAR    TOWN  169 

at  Bidar  has  accommodation  for  100  prisoners,  but  those  with 
sentences  of  upwards  of  six  months  were  until  recently  transferred  to 
the  Central  jail  at  Nizamabad. 

The  District  takes  a  low  position  as  regards  literacy,  only  1-9  percent. 
(3-7  males  and  o-6  females)  of  the  population  being  able  to  read  and 
write  in  1901.  The  total  number  of  pupils  under  instruction  in  1881, 
1891,  1901,  and  1903  was  655,  2,849,  2>1A2,  ar>d  2,559  respectively. 
In  1903  there  were  30  primary  and  2  middle  schools  and  one  high 
school,  with  304  girls  under  instruction.  The  total"  expenditure  on 
education  in  that  year  amounted  to  Rs.  25,800,  of  which  Rs.  4,365  was 
contributed  by  the  local  boards,  Rs.  12,875  by  the  State,  and  Rs.  1,560 
from  school  fees. 

There  are  four  dispensaries,  including  one  Yuuani,  in  the  District, 
with  accommodation  for  12  in-patients.  In  1901  the  number  of  cases 
treated  in  all  these  dispensaries  was  34,900,  of  whom  194  were  in- 
patients. The  number  of  operations  performed  was  503,  and  the  total 
expenditure  was  Rs.  11,248. 

In  1 90 1  only  1,773  persons  were  successfully  vaccinated,  represent- 
ing 2-3  per  1,000  of  the  population. 

Bidar  Taluk.  —  Taluk  in  Bidar  District,  Hyderabad  State.  The 
population  in  1901,  including  jagirs,  was  105,392,  and  the  area  was 
487  square  miles.  In  1891  the  population  was  105,781.  These  figures 
include  the  totals  for  the  Kohlr  taluk,  which  was  merged  in  Bidar  in 
1905,  and  had  an  area  of  236  square  miles  in  1901  and  a  population  of 
52,558.  The  taluk  contains  two  towns,  Bidar  (population,  11,367),  the 
head-quarters  of  the  District  and  taluk,  and  Kohir  (6,379),  besides 
177  villages,  of  which  89  are  jagir.  The  land  revenue  in  1901  was 
i-6  lakhs.  The  taluk  is  situated  on  a  plateau,  composed  mainly  of 
lateritic  soil,  and  is  crossed  by  the  Manjra  river.  The  paigdh  taluks 
of  Chincholi (population,  42,971  ;  villages,  47),  Ekeli  (population,  24,324; 
villages,  53),  and  Chitgopa  (population,  80,929  ;  villages,  93),  and  the 
jagir  of  Kalyani  (population,  36,205  ;  villages,  72)  adjoin  this  taluk. 
Kalyani  (population,  11,191),  Homnabad  (7,136),  and  Alikher 
(5)74°)  afe  the  chief  towns  in  the  Kalyani  jagir  and  Chincholi  taluk. 

Bidar  Town. — Head-quarters  of  Bidar  District,  Hyderabad  State, 
situated  in  170  55'  N.  and  77°  32'  E.,  on  an  elevated  and  healthy 
plateau  2,330  feet  above  the  sea.  Its  population  has  increased  during 
the  last  twenty  years:  (1881)  9,730,  (1891)  11,315,  and  (1901)  11,367. 
According  to  local  tradition,  the  Kakatiya  Rajas  of  VVarangal  endowed 
a  temple  of  Mahadeo  which  existed  here,  and  a  town  sprang  up  in  its 
vicinity  in  the  middle  of  the  thirteenth  century,  which  became  the  capital 
of  a  large  province.  Ulugh  Khan,  afterwards  Muhammad  bin  Tughlak, 
besieged  and  took  it  in  1321  ;  but  subsequently,  when  the  governors  of 
the  Deccan  rebelled,  Ala-ud-din  Hasan,  the  founder  of  the   Bahman: 


i7o  BIDAR   TOWN 

dynasty,  annexed  the  town  to  his  new  kingdom  in  r 347.  Ahmad  Shall 
Wali,  the  tenth  Bahmani  king,  founded  the  modern  city  and  built  the 
fort,  removing  his  court  here  from  Gulbarga  in  1430.  Bidar  continued 
to  be  the  capital  of  the  Bahmani  kings  until  the  extinction  of  that 
dynasty,  when  Amir  Band  founded  an  independent  State  in  1492. 
Amir  Band  ruled  over  Bidar  and  the  surrounding  country,  and  was 
succeeded  by  his  son  All  Barld,  in  1538,  who  was  the  first  to  assume 
the  title  of  Shah  and  died  in  1582.  Three  other  kings,  Ibrahim, 
Kasim  Barld,  and  Mirza  All  Band,  followed,  the  last  of  whom  assumed 
the  title  of  Amir  Barld  II.  This  short-lived  dynasty  became  extinct 
when  Amir  Barld  II  was  made  a  prisoner  and  sent  to  Bijapur  by 
Ibrahim  Adil  Shah.  In  1624  the  Nizam  Shahi  troops  under  Malik 
Ambar  attacked  and  plundered  Bidar,  but  it  was  retaken  by  the 
Bijapur  king.  In  1656  Aurangzeb  besieged  and  took  Bidar,  changing 
its  name  to  Zafarabad.  The  town  remained  in  the  possession  of  the 
Mughals  till  the  first  of  the  Nizams  declared  his  independence,  early 
in  the  eighteenth  century. 

The  town  of  Bidar  must  have  been  of  great  extent  in  its  prosperous 
days,  as  appears  from  its  palaces,  mosques,  and  other  buildings.  Among 
these  may  be  mentioned  the  great  madrasa  or  college  built  by  Mahmud 
Gavan,  the  Bahmani  minister,  which  is  now  in  ruins,  the  Jama  Masjid, 
and  the  Sola  Khamba  or  '  sixteen-pillared '  mosque.  The  last  of  these 
is  in  the  citadel,  which  also  contains  the  ruined  Rang  Mahal  or  '  coloured 
palace,'  the  remains  of  a  mint,  a  Turkish  bath,  an  arsenal,  and  several 
powder  magazines.  The  fortifications  and  battlemented  walls  of  this 
place  are  very  strong,  and  are  still  well  preserved.  On  its  numerous 
bastions  pieces  of  ordnance  are  mounted,  some  of  very  large  size  ;  one 
of  them  is  specially  remarkable  as  having  been  brought  here  from 
Bijapur.  West  of  the  town  are  the  tombs  of  All  Barld,  Kasim  Barld, 
and  others  of  the  same  dynasty,  while  twelve  tombs  of  the  Bahmani 
kings  are  situated  to  the  north-east  in  the  village  of  Ashtur.  Most 
of  the  old  buildings  in  the  fort  are  now  used  as  offices.  Bidar  is  the 
chief  trade  centre  of  the  District,  and  has  given  its  name  to  a  class 
of  metal-work  made  of  an  alloy  of  copper,  lead,  tin,  and  zinc,  inlaid 
with  silver  or  gold.     This  industry  is,  however,  not  very  flourishing. 

Bidhuna. — North-eastern  tahsiloi Etawah  District,  United  Provinces, 
conterminous  with  the pargana  of  the  same  name,  lying  between  260  38' 
and  26°  57'  N.  and  790  20'  and  790  45'  E.,  with  an  area  of  433  square 
miles.  Population  increased  from  187,530  in  1891  to  206,182  in  1901. 
There  are  413  villages,  but  no  town.  The  demand  for  land  revenue  in 
1903-4  was  Rs.  3,68,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  60,000.  The  density  of 
population,  476  persons  per  square  mile,  is  almost  exactly  equal  to  the 
District  average.  The  tahsll  lies  north  of  the  river  Sengar,  and  consists 
of  a  fertile  area  of  rich  soil,  interrupted  only  by  marshes  and  patches  of 


BIHAR  171 

barren  land.  On  the  north  it  is  crossed  by  the  Pandu  ;  and  two  small 
streams,  the  Puraha  and  Ahneya,  unite  and  then  join  the  Arind,  which 
also  flows  across  it.  This  is  the  most  fertile  tahs'il  in  the  District.  In 
1903-4  the  area  under  cultivation  was  204  square  miles,  of  which  116 
were  irrigated.  A  distributary  of  the  Cawnpore  branch  of  the  Lower 
Ganges  Canal  supplies  the  north  of  the  tahsil,  and  the  Etawah  branch 
of  the  same  canal  the  southern  portion.  Canals  serve  nearly  half  the 
irrigated  area,  and  wells  most  of  the  remainder. 

Bihar.  — Historic  name  of  one  of  the  four  sub-provinces  which  make 
up  the  Lieutenant-Governorship  of  Bengal,  the  remaining  three  being 
Bengal  proper,  Orissa,  and  Chota  Nagpur.  It  lies  between  230  48'  and 
2 70  31'  N.  and  830  20'  and  88°  32'  E.,  and  includes  the  Divisions  of 
Patna  and  Bhagalpur.  The  area  is  44,259  square  miles  and  the 
population  (1901)  24,241,305.  Bihar  occupies  the  north-west  corner  of 
Bengal,  and  is  bounded  on  the  north'  by  Nepal,  on  the  west  by  the 
United  Provinces  of  Agra  and  Oudh,  on  the  south  by  the  Chota  Nagpur 
plateau  and  the  Burdwan  Division,  and  on  the  east  by  the  Rajshahi 
Division.  It  is  divided  into  North  and  South  Bihar  by  the  broad  stream 
of  the  Ganges,  and  consists  for  the  most  part  of  an  alluvial  plain,  though 
in  the  south  detached  outliers  of  the  Chota  Nagpur  plateau  encroach 
upon  the  level,  extending  at  Monghyr  as  far  north  as  the  Ganges  itself. 
The  south-Ganges  Districts  of  Patna,  Gaya,  and  Shahabad  comprised 
the  ancient  kingdom  of  Magadha,  the  capital  of  which  was  first  at 
Rajgfr,  30  miles  north-east  of  Gaya,  and  subsequently  at  Pataliputra 
(Patna),  and  which  is  best  known  in  connexion  with  the  great  Maurya 
kings  Chandragupta  and  Asoka.  North  of  the  Ganges  was  Mithila, 
which  was  a  great  seat  of  Sanskrit  learning  as  early  as  1000  B.C.,  and 
included  the  modern  Districts  of  Darbhanga,  Champaran,  and  North 
Muzaffarpur ;  the  south  of  the  latter  District  comprised  the  small  king- 
dom of  Vaisali.  Saran  District  formed  at  this  time  part  of  the  great 
kingdom  of  the  Kosalas  of  Oudh,  while  the  eastern  Districts  of  Monghyr, 
Bhagalpur,  and  Purnea  as  far  as  the  Mahananda  river  belonged  to  the 
kingdom  of  Anga.  It  was  in  Magadha  that  Buddha  developed  his 
religion,  and  the  sub-province  derives  its  name  from  the  town  of  Bihar, 
which  means  a  Buddhist  monastery  (yihara).  It  was  here  also  that 
Mahavira  founded  the  cognate  creed  of  the  Jains.  The  early  history  of 
Bihar  is  detailed  in  the  article  on  Bengal.  The  sub-province  did  not 
become  a  separate  unit  of  administration  until  early  in  the  thirteenth 
century,  when  it  came  into  the  hands  of  the  Muhammadans,  and  was 
by  them  formed  into  a  Subah.  In  Todar  Mai's  settlement  of  1582 
it  was  divided  into  eight  sarkars,  corresponding  with  the  modern  Patna 
Division  and  the  Districts  of  Monghyr  and  Bhagalpur;  the  remainder 
of  the  Bhagalpur  Division  was  included  in  the  Subah  of  Bengal. 

Bihar  differs   from   Bengal   proper   in  almost  every  respect.       The 


172  BIHAR 

extremes  of  temperature  are  far  greater,  so  that  it  is  colder  in  the  winter 
and  hotter  in  the  summer,  and  the  climate  is  drier  than  in  Bengal.  The 
soil  is  for  the  most  part  old  alluvium  and  is  not  fertilized  by  annual 
deposits  of  silt  from  the  great  rivers,  as  in  Bengal ;  it  is  lighter  and  more 
friable,  and  grows  a  greater  variety  of  crops.  The  rainfall  is  lighter, 
starts  later,  and  is  more  capricious,  and  the  crops  are  more  liable  to 
suffer  from  drought.  The  population  is  denser  than  in  Bengal  generally, 
and  the  people  are  hardier  and  healthier,  though  not  so  prosperous. 
No  less  than  82  per  cent,  of  the  people  are  Hindus,  as  compared  with 
46  per  cent,  in  Bengal ;  and,  especially  in  the  west  of  the  sub-province, 
the  inhabitants  are  far  more  largely  of  Aryan  stock  than  in  Bengal 
proper.  The  language  spoken  is  Hindi.  The  most  important  places 
are  the  ancient  cities  of  Patna,  Gaya,  Bihar,  and  Monghvr;  the 
towTns  of  Muzaffarpur,  Chapra,  Darbhanga,  and  Bhagalpur  ;  and 
Sonpur,  the  scene  of  a  great  annual  bathing  festival. 

Bihar  Subdivision. — Southern  subdivision  of  Patna  District, 
Bengal,  lying  between  240  57'  and  250  26'  N.  and  850  9'  and  850  44'  E., 
with  an  area  of  791  square  miles.  Owing  to  plague  its  population  in 
1901  was  only  602,907,  compared  with  608,672  in  1891,  the  density 
being  762  persons  per  square  mile.  The  greater  part  of  the  subdivision 
is  a  low-lying  alluvial  plain,  which  is  broken  to  the  south  by  the  Rajgir 
hills.  It  contains  one  town,  Bihar  (population,  45,063),  its  head- 
quarters; and  2,111  villages.  Bihar  town  is  supposed  to  have  been 
the  capital  of  the  ancient  kingdom  of  Magadha.  The  neighbourhood 
contains  interesting  Buddhist  remains,  chiefly  at  Baragaon,  where 
numerous  mounds  bury  the  ruins  of  Nalanda  (a  famous  seat  of 
learning  in  the  days  of  the  Pal  kings),  Giriak,  and  RajgIr.  Pawa- 
puri  contains  three  Jain  temples.  Hilsa,  near  Patna  station  on  the 
East  Indian  Railway,  is  an  important  market. 

Bihar  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  subdivision  of  the  same  name 
in  Patna  District,  Bengal,  situated  in  250  n'  N.  and  S50  31'  E.,  on  the 
Panchana  river.  It  is  supposed  to  have  been  the  capital  of  the  ancient 
kingdom  of  Magadha,  but  its  early  history  is  involved  in  obscurity.  The 
remains  of  an  old  fort  covering  312  acres  of  ground  contain  a  profusion 
of  ruined  Buddhist  and  Brahmanical  buildings,  which  prove  the  site  to 
be  a  very  old  one.  Among  these  may  be  mentioned  the  remains  of  the 
great  vihara  or  college  of  Buddhist  learning,  from  which  the  town  has 
derived  its  name.  Many  ancient  Muhammadan  mosques  and  tombs 
are  also  found  in  the  city,  the  most  important  of  which  is  the  tomb 
of  Shah  Sharif-ud-din  Makhdum.  The  population,  which  was  44,295 
in  1872,  increased  to  48,968  in  1881,  but  fell  again  to  47,723  in  1891, 
and  to  45,063  in  1901  ;  of  the  last  number  29,892  were  Hindus  and 
15,119  Musalmans.  Bihar  is  connected  by  a  light  railway  with 
Bakhtiyarpur  on  the  East  Indian  Railway.     It  was  constituted  a  muni- 


BIJAPUR  AGENCY  173 

cipality  in  1869.  The  income  during  the  decade  ending  1901-2 
averaged  Rs.  23,000  and  the  expenditure  Rs.  22,000.  In  1903-4  the 
income  was  Rs.  32,000,  including  Rs.  19,000  derived  from  a  tax  on 
persons  (or  property  tax)  and  Rs.  6,000  from  a  conservancy  rate  ;  and 
the  expenditure  was  Rs.  31,000.  Bihar  contains  the  usual  public 
buildings  ;  the  sub-jail  has  accommodation  for  25  prisoners. 

\Epigraphia  Indica  ;  Archaeological  Survey  of  India,  vol.  ii,  pp.  291-4  ; 
Journal  of  the  Asiatic  Society  of  Bengal,  vol.  xxxvii,  p.  7,  and  vol.  xii, 
p.  300.] 

Bihat. — Petty  sanad  State  in  Central  India,  under  the  Bundelkhand 
Agency,  with  an  area  of  about  16  square  miles.  It  lies  between  the 
Jhansi  and  Hamirpur  Districts  of  the  United  Provinces.  Population 
(1901),  3,984.  The  jagirdar  is  a  Bundela  Rajput,  whose  ances- 
tors originally  received  a  grant  of  seven  villages  from  Hirde  Sah, 
son  of  Maharaja  Chhatarsal  of  Panna,  the  grant  being  continued 
during  the  government  of  All  Bahadur  of  Banda.  When  the  British 
supremacy  was  established,  Dlwan  Aparbal  Singh  was  found  in  possession 
of  seven  villages,  and  Dlwan  Chhatri  Singh  in  possession  of  Lohargaon 
(which  together  now  make  up  the  eight  villages  of  the  holding),  and 
sanads  continuing  these  grants  were  conferred  on  them  in  1862.  The 
present  jagirdar,  Rao  Mahum  Singh,  succeeded  in  1872.  Of  the  total 
area,  7  square  miles  are  cultivated  ;  and  the  revenue  is  Rs.  13,000. 
The  chief  town,  Bihat,  is  situated  in  250  25'  N.  and  790  21'  E.,  on  the 
east  bank  of  the  Dhasan,  10  miles  by  country  track  from  Haralpur  on 
the  Jhansi-Manikpur  section  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway. 

Bihiya. — Village  in  the  head-quarters  subdivision  of  Shahabad 
District,  Bengal,  situated  in  250  33'  N.  and  840  28'  E.,  on  the  East 
Indian  Railway,  382  miles  from  Calcutta.  Population  (1901),  764. 
Bihiya  is  best  known  for  the  manufacture  of  iron  sugar-cane  mills, 
which  are  now  in  general  use  throughout  Northern  India. 

Bihora. — Petty  State  in  Rewa  Kantha,  Bombay. 

Bija  (Beja). — One  of  the  Simla  Hill  States,  Punjab,  lying  between 
300  53'  and  300  55'  N.  and  760  59'  and  770  1/  E.,  with  an  area  of 
4  square  miles.  Population  (1901),  1,131.  The  present  chief,  Thakur 
Puran  Chand,  is  a  minor,  and  the  administration  is  conducted  by  a 
council.  The  State  has  a  revenue  of  Rs.  500,  out  of  which  Rs.  124 
is  paid  as  tribute. 

Bijapttr  Agency. — An  Agency  in  the  Southern  Maratha  Country, 
Bombay,  under  the  supervision  of  the  Collector  of  Bijapur  District, 
who  is  ex-officio  Political  Agent.  It  comprises  the  Satara  jagir  of 
Jath  and  the  small  State  of  Daphlapur.  The  latter,  which  has  an  area 
of  96  square  miles,  is  an  integral  part  of  the  State  of  Jath,  to  which 
it  will  lapse  on  the  demise  of  the  widow  of  the  late  chief.  The 
Agency  lies  between  160  50'  and  17°  iS'  N.  and  750  i'  and   750  31'  E., 


T74  BIJAPUR  AGEXCY 

to  the  west  of  Bijapur  District,  the  total  area,  including  Daphlapur, 
being  980  square  miles.  Except  for  a  number  of  small  hills  near 
the  town  of  lath,  the  country  is  flat.  Small  feeders  of  the  Man  and 
Bhima  flow  through  the  Jath  State.  The  climate  closely  resembles 
that  of  Bijapur. 

The  ruling  family  claim  descent  from  Lakhmaji,  headman  of  the 
village  of  Daphlapur.  In  1680  Satvaji  Rao,  his  son,  was  appointed 
deshmukh  of  the  subdivisions  of  Jath,  Karajgi,  Bardol,  and  Vanad, 
and  was  one  of  the  leading  Bijapur  nobles.  Temporarily  independent 
after  the  overthrow  of  the  Bijapur  kingdom,  the  deshmukh  finally  sub- 
mitted to  Aurangzeb.  In  1820  the  British  Government  entered  into 
an  engagement  with  the  ancestors  of  the  present  chief  of  Jath,  con- 
firming them  in  the  estates  they  then  held.  In  1827  the  Jath  estate 
was  attached  by  the  Raja  of  Satara  to  pay  off  the  chiefs  debts,  and 
restored  in  1841.  On  the  annexation  of  Satara  in  1849,  Jath  and 
Daphlapur,  like  other  Satara  Jagirs,  became  feudatories  of  the  British 
Government.  The  latter  has  more  than  once  interfered  to  adjust  the 
pecuniary  affairs  of  the  Jath  jdg'ir,  and,  in  consequence  of  numerous 
acts  of  oppression  on  the  part  of  the  ruler,  was  compelled  to  assume 
direct  management  from  1874  to  1885.  The  chief  of  Jath,  who  belongs 
to  the  Maratha  caste,  is  styled  Deshmukh  and  ranks  as  a  first-class 
Sardar.  He  holds  a  sa/iad  of  adoption,  and  the  succession  follows 
the  rule  of  primogeniture.  The  small  State  of  Daphlapur  is  managed 
by  a  Rani,  aided  by  her  karbhari. 

The  population  (Jath  and  Daphlapur)  fell  from  79,786  in  1891  to 
68,665  m  I9°I)  residing  in  two  towns,  Jath  (population,  5,404)  and 
Daphlapur  (1,475),  and  IT7  villages,  the  decrease  during  the  decade 
being  due  to  famine.  The  only  place  of  importance  is  Jath  town. 
Hindus  number  64,052  and  Musalmans  4,357.  The  chief  castes 
are  Brahmans,  Lingayats,  Marathas,  Ramoshis,  Vaddars,  Berads, 
Mahars,  and   Chamars. 

The  soil  is  black  and  red,  but  for  the  most  part  mixed  with  gravel. 
It  is  poor  in  the  west,  but  improves  as  the  Bor  river  is  approached. 
The  area  of  arable  land  in  Jath  and  Daphlapur  is  respectively  797  and 
90  square  miles  ;  and  the  area  cultivated  in  1903-4  was  respectively 
779  and  89  square  miles.  The  staple  crops  are  bajra  and  jowar. 
Cotton,  wheat,  gram,  and  safflower  are  also  grown.  The  land  is 
specially  suited  for  cattle-breeding.  Forest  Reserves  cover  56  square 
miles,  of  which  all  but  2^  square  miles  are  assigned  for  grazing.  The 
road  from  Karad  to  Bijapur  serves  both  States.  There  are  no  indus- 
tries of  importance.  The  States  suffered  in  the  famines  of  1896-7 
and  1899-1902,  which  involved  both  of  them  in  debt  and  brought 
cholera  in  their  train.  In  1902  plague  broke  out  in  Daphlapur,  and 
in  1903  in  Jath. 


BIJAPUR  DISTRICT  175 

The  Collector  of  Bijapur  is  Political  Agent  for  both  States.  There 
are  four  criminal  and  two  civil  courts  in  Jath  and  one  in  Daphlapur, 
where  the  Rani  exercises  the  powers  of  a  magistrate  of  the  first  class, 
and,  in  civil  matters,  of  a  first-class  Subordinate  Judge.  Appeals  lie 
to  the  Political  Agent,  and  original  cases  beyond  their  ordinary  powers 
are  referred  to  him  by  both  States.  The  revenue  of  the  Agency  in 
1903-4  was  about  t»\  lakhs  of  rupees  :  namely,  more  than  3A  lakhs 
.in  Jath  and  Rs.  22,500  in  Daphlapur,  chiefly  derived  from  land  revenue 
(2  lakhs).  The  Jath  State  pays  to  the  British  Government  Rs.  6,400 
per  annum  in  lieu  of  the  service  of  50  horsemen,  and  a  tribute  of 
Rs.  4,840.  A  survey  settlement  was  first  introduced  in  Jath  in  1S78 
and  in  Daphlapur  in  1870.  It  has  been  of  great  benefit  to  the  people  in 
sweeping  away  a  number  of  arbitrary  cesses.  The  rates  are  moderate. 
There  is  no  military  force  ;  but  a  force  of  police  is  maintained,  number- 
ing 81  in  Jath  and  17  in  Daphlapur.  In  1903-4  there  were  24  schools 
in  the  Agency  with  622  pupils;  the  dispensary  at  Jath  treated  about 
4,600  patients;  and  the  persons  vaccinated  numbered  nearly  2,000. 

Bijapur  District. — District  in  the  Southern  Division  of  Bombay, 
lying  between  150  49'  and  170  29'  N.  and  750  19'  and  760  32'  E., 
with  an  area  of  5,669  square  miles.  On  the  north  it  is  separated 
by  the  river  Bhima  from  the  District  of  Sholapur  and  the  State  of 
Akalkot ;  on  the  east  and  south-east  it  is  bounded  by  the  Nizam's 
Dominions  ;  on  the  south  the  Malprabha  river  divides  it  from  the 
District  of  Dharwar  and  the  State  of  Ramdurg;  and  on  the  west  it 
is  bounded  by  the  States  of  Mudhol,  Jamkhandi,  and  Jath.  The 
name  of  the  District  was  changed  from  Kaladgi  to  that  of  Bijapur  in 
1885.  At  the  same  time  the  head-quarters  were  transferred  from 
Kaladgi  to  Bijapur  town. 

Though  alike  in  many  respects,  the  lands  of  the  District  may  con- 
veniently be  divided  into  two  main  sections.      The  river  Kistna  divides 
the  two  tracts  for  some  distance,  but  they  meet  and 
run  into  one  another  lower  down  in  the  Muddebihal  asoect^ 

taluka.  Here  also  is  found  a  third  type  of  country, 
the  Don  valley,  a  well-defined  tract.  The  40  miles  north  of  Bijapur 
town  and  the  greater  part  of  the  Sindgi  taluka  form  a  succession  of 
low  billowy  uplands,  bare  of  trees,  gently  rounded,  and  falling  into 
intermediate  narrow  valleys.  On  the  uplands,  the  soil,  where  there 
is  any,  is  very  shallow  ;  tillage  is  confined  to  the  valleys  ;  from  every 
third  or  fourth  upland  issues  a  stream  fringed  with  wild  date-trees. 
Among  the  trees  are  gardens,  and  beside  the  gardens  stands  the  village  ; 
a  little  farther  on  a  grove  of  trees  shades  the  village  temple.  The 
barrenness  of  the  country  and  the  dreariness  of  upland  after  upland 
and  valley  after  valley,  each  like  the  last,  are  depressing.  During 
the  rainy  season,  when  the  uplands  are  green  and  the  valleys  waving 


r76  BIJAPUR  DISTRICT 

with  millet,  the  effect  though  tame  is  not   unpleasing.      In  spite  of 
its  barrenness  the  country  has  excellent  water. 

The  Don  valley  begins  close  to  the  old  city  of  Bijapur,  and  crosses 
the  District  from  west  to  east.  This  tract  is  of  rich  deep  black  soil  ; 
the  rocky  trap  uplands  disappear,  the  undulations  are  much  longer 
and  more  gradual,  and  in  many  parts  there  is  a  true  plain.  The  villages 
lie  close  to  the  Don  river.  This  valley  is  badly  off  for  water.  In 
February,  when  the  whole  is  a  sheet  of  magnificent  millet,  wheat,  and 
golden  kusumbi  (Carthamus  iinctorius),  the  prospect  is  extremely  fine. 

South  of  the  Kistna,  towards  the  west,  the  level  of  the  rich  plain  is 
broken  by  two  lines  of  hills.  These  are  for  the  most  part  rounded 
and  sloping,  but  the  steep  and  quaintly-shaped  sandstone  cliffs  of 
Badami  form  an  exception  to  the  rule.  Between  the  hills  lie  wide 
barren  tracts  covered  with  loose  stones  ;  but  there  are  also  many 
stretches  of  light  land,  well  wooded  and  bright  with  patches  of  red 
and  white  soil.  To  the  east  extends  a  black  plain,  as  treeless  and 
dull  as  that  north  of  the  Kistna. 

The  District  is  well  supplied  with  rivers  and  watercourses.  Of 
these,  the  most  important  are,  beginning  from  the  north,  the  Bhlma, 
Don,  Kistna,  Ghatprabha,  and  Malprabha,  all  large  rivers  flowing 
throughout  the  year,  and  excepting  the  Don,  impassable  in  the  rainy 
season  except  by  boats.  There  are  also  many  small  streams.  The 
water  of  the  Don  is  too  salt  to  drink,  but  the  other  large  streams 
supply  drinking-water  of  fairly  good  quality. 

The  whole  northern  half  of  the  District  is  occupied  by  the  Deccan 
trap  formation.  The  south-east  portion  is  occupied  by  Archaean  rocks, 
both  gneissose  and  schistose,  the  latter  belonging  partly  to  the  aurifer- 
ous Dharwar  series.  In  the  south-west  the  Archaean  rocks  are  overlaid 
by  ancient  unfossiliferous  strata  known  as  the  Kaladgi  beds,  corre- 
sponding in  age  with  some  of  the  Cuddapah  rocks  of  Madras,  of  which 
a  portion  is  contemporaneous  with  the  Bijawar  of  Central  India.  The 
Kaladgi  rocks  are  mainly  sandstones,  associated  with  slates  and  lime- 
stones. The  latter  are  often  siliceous,  and  pass  into  banded  and 
brecciated  jaspers  coloured  bright  red  by  hematite,  constituting  a  very 
characteristic  rock  in  these  ancient  sediments.  To  the  north  of 
Muddebihal  there  are  limestone,  quartzite,  and  shale  beds  and  inliers 
younger  than  the  Kaladgi  rocks  and  known  as  the  Bhima  series, 
identical  with  the  Kurnool  beds,  which  themselves  are  related  to  the 
Vindhyans. 

The  flora  is  of  a  distinctly  Deccan  type.  There  is  a  sprinkling  of 
coco-nut  and  palmyra  palms,  but  the  chief  liquor-yielding  tree  is  the 
wild  date.  Other  trees  found  in  the  District  are  the  mango,  tamarind, 
jambul,  jujube,  plantain,  wood-apple,  sour  lime,  guava,  myrabolam, 
papai,   and   sandal- wood  ;   also   the   African   baobab  or  monkey-bread 


HISTORY  177 

tree.  Among  flowering  plants  are  Cleome,  Capparis,  Hibiscus,  Fagonia, 
Crotalaria,  Indigqfera,  Cassia,  Woodfordia,  Caesulia,  Echinops,  Ipomoea, 
and  Leucas. 

Of  wild  animals  the  hog  is  very  common.  The  only  large  game  are 
a  few  leopards,  which  find  shelter  in  almost  all  the  ranges  south  of 
the  Kistna.  The  wolf  and  the  hyena  are  generally  distributed.  The 
jackal  is  common  everywhere,  and  the  fox  in  the  open  undulating 
plains  of  Bagevadi  and  Muddebihal.  Porcupines  abound  near  Bijapur, 
and  monkeys,  deer,  gazelle,  and  the  common  Indian  hare  occur  over 
most  of  the  District.  Of  birds,  peafowl,  the  painted  partridge,  the  grey 
quail,  and  the  rain  quail  are  found  in  large  numbers.  The  green 
pigeon  is  found  in  Bagalkot.  The  common  snipe  and  the  jack-snipe 
are  cold-season  visitants ;  the  painted  snipe  appears  at  times  and 
breeds  in  the  District.  The  large  rivers,  except  the  Don,  are  fairly 
stocked  with  fish. 

Excluding  Badami,  where  there  is  much  low  bushy  vegetation,  and 
Muddebihal,  where  the  ground  is  marshy,  the  climate .  is  dry  and 
healthy.  March  and  April  are  the  hottest  months,  when  the  thermo- 
meter sometimes  rises  to  1090.  In  May  the  intensity  of  the  heat  is 
slightly  relieved  by  occasional  thunderstorms  and  days  of  cloudy 
weather.  The  lowest  temperature  registered  at  Bijapur  town  is  480 
in  January,  the  average  being  770. 

The  rainfall  is  extremely  irregular,  varying  greatly  in  both  amount 
and  distribution.  It  is  comparatively  more  regular  and  certain  in  Hun- 
gund  than  in  other  talukas,  Bagalkot  and  Badami  fare  well  as  a  rule. 
The  maximum  fall  is  in  Muddebihal  with  27  inches,  and  the  minimum 
in  Hungund  with  22  inches.  The  average  at  Bijapur  town  is 
24  inches.  At  almost  all  times  of  the  year  most  parts  of  the  District, 
the  Don  valley  perhaps  more  than  others,  are  exposed  to  strong 
blighting  winds. 

Seven  places  within  the  limits  of  the  District — Aivalli  in  Hungund, 
Badami,  Bagalkot,  and  Dhulkhed  in  Indi,  Galgali  in  Bagalkot,  Hippargi 
in  Sindgi,  and  Mahakuta  in  Badami—  are  connected 
with  legends  of  sages  and  demons,  perhaps  in  memory 
of  early  fights  between  northern  invaders  and  local  chiefs.  The 
legends  describe  these  places  as  within  the  Daridakaranya  or  Dandaka 
forest.  The  District  in  the  second  century  a.d.  seems  to  have  con- 
tained at  least  three  places  of  sufficient  consequence  to  be  noted  in 
the  place  lists  of  Ptolemy  :  namely,  Badami,  Indi,  and  Kalkeri.  So  far 
as  is  known,  the  oldest  of  these  is  Badami,  a  Pallava  stronghold. 
About  the  middle  of  the  sixth  century  the  Chalukya  Pulikesin  I  wrested 
Badami  from  the  Pallavas.  From  the  Chalukya  conquest  of  Badami 
to  the  Muhammadan  invasion,  the  history  of  the  District  includes  four 
periods — an  Early    Chalukya   and    Western    Chalukya   period   lasting 

VOL.  VIII.  N 


i?»  BIJAPUR  DISTRICT 

to  about  a.  i).  760;  a  Rashtrakuta  period  from  760  to  9733  a  Western 
Chalukya,  Kalachuri,  and  Hoysala  Ballala  period  from  973  to  11 90, 
with  Sinda  underlords  in  South  Bijapur  from  1120  to  1180;  and  a 
Deogiri  Yadava  period  from  1190  to  the  Muhammadan  invasion  of 
the  Deccan  at  the  close  of  the  thirteenth  century.  In  1294  a  Muham- 
madan army,  led  by  Ala-ud-din,  the  nephew  of  Jalal-ud-din  Khilji, 
emperor  of  Delhi,  appeared  in  the  Deccan,  sacked  1  )eogiri  (the 
modern  Daulatabad  in  the  Nizam's  Dominions,  to  which  place  the  seat 
of  Government  had  been  removed  from  Bijapur  during  the  Yadava 
period),  stripped  Ramchandra  (the  sixth  king  of  the  Yadava  line)  of  his 
wealth,  and  forced  him  to  acknowledge  the  supremacy  of  the  Delhi 
king.  In  the  middle  of  the  fifteenth  century  Yusuf  Adil  Shah  founded 
an  independent  Muhammadan  state  with  Bijapur  for  his  capital.  From 
this  time  the  history  of  the  District  is  that  of  the  town  of  Bijapur. 
In  1 818,  on  the  overthrow  of  the  Peshwa,  the  District  was  granted  to 
the  Raja  of  Satara,  and  on  the  lapse  of  that  State  in  184S  it  passed 
to  the  British.  At  first  part  of  Sholapur  and  Belgaum  Districts,  it 
was  made  into  a  separate  District  in  1864. 

In  the  seventh  century,  the  Chinese  pilgrim  Hiuen  Tsiang  visited 
Badami,  then  the  seat  of  the  Chalukya  dynasty.  He  described  the 
people  as  tall,  proud,  simple,  honest,  grateful,  brave,  and  exceedingly 
chivalrous ;  the  king  as  proud  of  his  army  and  his  hundreds  of 
elephants,  despising  and  slighting  the  neighbouring  kingdoms ;  the 
capital  full  of  convents  and  temples  with  relic  mounds  or  stupas  made 
by  Asoka,  where  the  four  past  Buddhas  had  sat,  and,  in  performing 
their  exercises,  had  left  the  marks  of  their  feet ;  heretics  of  various 
sects  were  numerous ;  the  men  loved  study,  and  followed  the  teachings 
of  both  heresy  and  truth.  He  estimated  the  kingdom  as  nearly 
1,200  miles  (6,000  It)  in  circumference. 

Many  inscriptions  are  found  in  the  District,  the  principal  being  at 
Arasibidi  (two  large  Chalukya  and  Kalachuri  inscriptions  in  Old 
Kanarese),  Aivalli  (a.  d.  634),  and  Badami  (varying  from  the  sixth  to 
the  sixteenth  century.  The  most  noteworthy  temples  are  at  Aivalli 
and  Pattadkal.  The  Meguti  temple  of  Aivalli  is  remarkable  for  its 
simple  massiveness,  and  that  dedicated  to  Galagnath  has  a  handsomely 
sculptured  gateway.  The  Pattadkal  temples  are  examples  of  the 
Dravidian  and  Northern  Chalukyan  styles.  The  temple  of  Sangam- 
eshwar  at  Sangam  in  the  Hungund  taluka  is  of  great  age.  Bijapur 
town  is  rich  in  Musalman  buildings  of  architectural  merit.  The 
first  building  of  any  size  undertaken  was  the  Jama  Masjid  (about  1537), 
which  for  simplicity  of  design,  impressive  grandeur,  and  the  solemn 
stillness  of  its  corridors,  stands  unrivalled.  The  pile  of  the  Ibrahim 
Rauza  is  most  picturesque,  and  the  dome  of  the  tomb  known  as  the 
Gol-Gumbaz  is   one    of  the  largest  in  the   world,   having  an  external 


POPULATION 


179 


diameter  of  144  feet.     It  has  a  most  remarkable  echo  or  whispering 
gallery. 

The  Census  of  1872  returned  the  population  at  805,834  persons; 
the  next  Census  of  1881  at  626,889,  showing  a  decrease  of  178,945, 
attributable  to  the  famine  of  1876-8.  In  1891 
the  population  rose  to  796,339,  but  again  fell  in 
1901  to  735,435.  This  decrease  is  attributed  to  the  famine  of  1900 
and  to  emigration.  The  following  table  shows  the  distribution  of  the 
population  by  lalukas  in  1901  :  — 


u 

0 

Number  of 

OC^H. 

0 

Taluk. 

GTS 

"3 
a, 

3* 

centage 
nation  i 
ulation 
een  189 
nd  1901 

limber  c 
ons  able 
ead  and 
write. 

CO 

C 

(U 

be 

< 

0 

H 

> 

Ph 

91 

j-  cd  D.S  rt 
P-i      a. 

Indi  . 

838 

121 

75>96t 

-iS 

2,554 

Sinclgi 

810 

• .  • 

x44 

86,238 

106 

-    8 

2,524 

Bijapur 

869 

1 

94 

102,416 

118 

—    1 

4,72i 

Bagevadi    . 

764 

117 

83,620 

109 

-18 

3,106 

Muddebihal 

569 

1 

150 

69,842 

123 

-H 

2,963 

Bagalkot * 

683 

I 

160 

123,456 

181 

+    4 

6,209 

Hungund   . 

521 

1 

160 

83,615 

160 

-19 

5,9s6 

Badami 

District  total 

615 

1 

7 

167 

110,287 

735,435 

]79 

+  10 

5,524 

5,669 

i,"3 

130 

-   8 

33,587 

*  Includes  Bilgi  petha. 

The  chief  towns  are  Bijapur,  Bagalkot,  and  Talikota.  Kanarese 
is  the  prevailing  vernacular,  being  used  by  84  per  cent,  of  the  popula- 
tion. Hindustani  and  Tamil  speakers  are  also  found.  Marathi  is  only 
spoken  by  a  few  persons  in  the  northern  talukas.  Classified  according 
to  religion,  Hindus  form  88  per  cent,  of  the  total,  and  Musalmans 
11  per  cent. 

The  Hindus  may  be  classified  as  Brahmanical  and  Lingayat. 
The  former  class  comprises  Brahmans  (23,000),  nearly  all  Deshasths ; 
Marathas  (20,000),  settlers  from  the  Deccan  ;  Berads  or  Bedars  (27,000), 
mostly  fowlers  and  hunters;  Kurubas  (107,000),  shepherds  and  culti- 
vators; Kabligars  (24,000),  ferrymen  ;  Panchals  (14,000),  general  crafts- 
men ;  and  Vaddars  (12,000),  professional  diggers.  The  Lingayat  class, 
numbering  over  276,000,  includes  chiefly  Ayyas  or  Jangams  (29,000), 
who  are  Lingayat  priests  ;  Banjigs  (50,000),  traders  ;  and  Pancham- 
salis  (58,000),  an  intelligent  class  of  cultivators.  These  three  with 
their  subdivisions  represent  roughly  the  original  converts  to  the  sect, 
and  form  the  Lingayat  aristocracy.  Among  more  recent  converts, 
divided  into  endogamous  groups,  are  Ganigs  (42,000),  oil-pressers ; 
Reddis  (22,000),  traders  and  cultivators  ;  and  Hollas  (28,000),  scaven- 
gers and  labourers.  The  Musalmans  are  chiefly  Shaikhs  (61,000)  and 
Arabs  (17,000).     The  population  is  mainly  dependent  on  agriculture, 

N   2 


iSo 


BIJAPUR  district 


which  supports  65  per  cent,  of  the  total.  About  18  per  cent,  are 
engaged  in  crafts  and  industries.  They  are  chiefly  weavers,  and  are 
distributed  all  over  the  District.  The  weavers  include  various  classes 
and  castes,  but  the  principal  are  Hatkars,  Koshtis,  and  Padsalis. 

Of  S66  native  Christians  in  1901,  396  were  Roman  Catholics  and 
394  Lutherans.  The  Basel  German  Evangelical  or  Lutheran  Mission 
has  stations  at  Bijapur  and  Guledgarh,  and  maintains  a  girls'  orphanage 
with  70  inmates,  an  Anglo-vernacular  school,  and  ten  primary  schools 
with  a  total  attendance  of  605  boys  and  157  girls.  The  Roman 
Catholic  Mission  also  has  its  head-quarters  at  Guledgarh,  with 
branches  at  Bijapur,  Asangi,  and  Pattadkal. 

The  soil  belongs  to  two  main  classes,  black  and  red.  By  far  the 
greater  part  of  the  open  country  consists  of  black  soil  which  retains 
moisture.  With  manure  and  a  proper  system  of 
tillage  the  red  sandy  mould,  which  is  chiefly  found 
near  the  sandstone  hills  of  Badami,  Bagalkot,  and  Hungund,  though 
generally  poor,  yields  fair  crops.  In  some  parts  of  the  District  a  care- 
less system  of  tillage  is  followed,  portions  of  many  fields  being  allowed 
to  lie  waste  and  become  choked  with  grass.  With  the  growth  of  the 
population  up  to  1876,  the  area  under  cultivation  steadily  increased, 
and  tracts  which  fifty  years  ago  sheltered  the  more  dangerous  wild 
beasts  are  now  tilled  fields. 

The  District  is  chiefly  ryotzvari.  Inam  and  jagir  lands  occupy 
about  650  square  miles.  The  chief  statistics  of  cultivation  in  1903-4 
are  shown  below,  in  square  miles  : — 


Agriculture. 


Taluka. 

Total  area. 

Cultivated. 

Irrigated. 

Cultivable 
waste. 

Forest. 

1 
Indi 

Sindgi . 

Bijapur 

Bagevadi 

Muddebihal 

Bagalkot 

Hungund 

Badami 

Total 

83S 
810 
869 
764 

569 
684 

521 

615 

782 
766 
772 
713 
529 
528 

45i 
407 

5 
2 

4 

0 

1 

1 

9 

9 

33 

8 

6 

10 

3 
21 

3 

5 

i°5 

37 

139 

5>6r°;: 

4,948 

j6 

99 

289 

*  Statistics  are  not  available  for  i8|  square  miles  of  this  area, 
based  upon  the  latest  information. 


These  figures  are 


Jowar,  grown  both  as  a  rains  and  as  a  cold-season  crop,  holds  the 
first  place,  with  1,900  square  miles  under  actual  cultivation.  It  sup- 
plies the  chief  food  of  the  people.  Bajra  and  wheat  are  also  grown 
to  a  large  extent,  covering  595  and  249  square  miles  respectively,  the 
latter  chiefly  in  Bagevadi,  Bijapur,  Sindgi,  and  Muddebihal.  Little 
rice  (n  square  miles)  is  produced,  and  it  is  of  an  inferior  variety. 
Rale-ka/ig,  or  Italian  millet,  occupied  51  square  miles.     Pulses  occupied 


A  GRIC  UL  TURE  1 8 1 

365  square  miles,  the  chief  being  tin;  gram,  kulith,  mug,  and  math. 
The  most  valuable,  and  next  to  millet  the  most  widely  grown  crop,  is 
cotton,  occupying  an  area  of  860  square  miles.  Castor-oil,  linseed, 
safflower,  and  sesamum  are  grown  and  exported,  safflower  in  consider- 
able quantities. 

Several  experiments  for  the  improvement  of  cotton  have  been  tried  in 
the  last  fifty  years  with  different  kinds  of  seeds.  New  Orleans  proved 
successful  for  a  time  in  brown  soils,  but  it  has  reverted  to  the  old  short 
staple,  the  usual  experience  with  exotic  seeds.  The  ryots  have  availed 
themselves  freely  of  the  Land  Improvement  and  Agriculturists'  Loans 
Act,  and  from  1894-5  to  1903-4  nearly  35  lakhs  were  advanced  for 
improvements  and  for  the  purchase  of  seed  and  cattle.  Of  this  total 
11-3,  5-4,  and  6-6  lakhs  were  lent  in  1896-7,  1900-1,  and  1901-2 
respectively. 

Though  there  is  no  lack  of  grazing,  and  though  the  climate  is  favour- 
able for  rearing  animals,  imported  cattle  are  generally  preferred  to  the 
local  breeds.  The  finest  cattle  bred  locally  aie  found  in  villages  bor- 
dering the  Kistna  river.  The  best  imported  bullocks,  the  Mudalshimi, 
come  from  Bangalore,  Bellary,  Chitaldrug,  and  other  places  in  Madras. 
Of  buffaloes  there  are  two  kinds  :  Gaularu  or  Gaulis  and  the  ordinary 
Mhais.  The  Gaularu  buffalo  comes  from  Nagpur.  It  has  very  long 
horns  and  is  much  stouter  and  gives  better  milk  than  the  local  buffalo. 
Sheep  include  three  varieties  :  Muralgini,  Patalgini,  and  Batgini,  the 
best  being  found  in  the  Bijapur  taluka.  There  are  two  kinds  of  goats  : 
the  Kengori  which  come  from  Madras,  and  the  Kunyi  or  Gujarat  goat, 
famous  for  the  quantity  and  quality  of  its  milk.  The  District  is  a  poor 
place  for  horse-breeding  ;  but  in  many  parts,  particularly  in  the  Indi 
and  Sindgi  talukas,  ponies  of  a  hardy  type  are  cheap. 

Of  the  total  area  of  land  cultivated,  about  16  square  miles  or  -*-  per  cent, 
were  irrigated  in  1903-4.  The  areas  supplied  by  various  classes  of  irri- 
gation are  :  canals,  one  square  mile  ;  tanks,  \  ;  wells,  13J  square  miles  ; 
and  other  sources,  1^  square  miles.  The  Kendur  reservoir,  about  6 
miles  north  of  Badami,  is  the  largest  and  most  important  of  the  reser- 
voirs. It  is  said  to  have  been  built  before  the  Muhammadan  conquest 
and  has  a  catchment  area  of  22  square  miles,  and,  when  full,  waters  256 
acres  of  land.  Of  recent  irrigation  works  the  reservoir  at  Muchkundi, 
4  miles  south  of  Bagalkot,  is  the  most  important.  It  is  formed  by 
a  masonry  dam  60  feet  in  greatest  height  and  720  feet  long.  The  area  of 
the  lake  when  full  is  about  1,059  acres,  and  its  contents  are  624  million 
cubic  feet.  The  catchment  area  is  26  square  miles.  The  gross  area 
commanded  by  the  tank  is  5,570  acres  ;  but  the  tank  is  not  successful, 
as  the  catchment  area  does  not  supply  sufficient  water.  Up  to  1904  it 
had  involved  a  capital  outlay  of  1^  lakhs.  The  area  irrigated  in  1903-4 
was   only    49   acres.    Other   reservoirs  are  the  two  Mamdapur  tanks, 


r82  BIJAPUR  DISTRICT 

situated  about  24  miles  south-west  of  Bijapur,  which  together  irrigate 
about  600  acres.  They  are  of  considerable  age,  having  been  constructed 
in  the  days  of  the  Adil  Shahl  dynasty,  but  were  repaired  at  a  cost  of 
Rs.  7,500  during  the  famine  of  1 899-1 902.  Tanks  are  not  numerous, 
and  sites  in  the  District  are  not  suitable  for  small  works  within  the 
means  of  the  people.  In  Indi,  Bijapur,  and  Bagalkot  a  large  area  close 
to  the  villages  is  watered  from  wells  and  small  streams.  The  famine  of 
1876  gave  an  impulse  to  well  sinking,  but  most  of  the  wells  were  tem- 
porary. Their  average  depth  varies  from  20  feet  in  Indi  to  100  feet  in 
Bagalkot.  The  water  in  some  of  the  wells  in  the  Don  valley  is  brackish, 
but  is  occasionally  used  for  irrigation.  There  are  6,654  wells  and  13 
tanks  for  irrigation,  and  10  small  irrigation  works,  supplying  about 
1,500  acres,  for  which  only  revenue  accounts  are  kept. 

The  '  reserved '  forest  lands  are  mostly  on  the  hills  to  the  south  of  the 
Kistna  and  between  the  Kistna  and  Dharwar.  They  cover  289  square 
miles,  including  181  square  miles  in  charge  of  the  Revenue  department, 
and  may  be  divided  into  two  sections  :  scrub  forests  and  babul  Reserves. 
The  scrub  forests  are  composed  chiefly  of  stunted  mashvala  (Chloroxylon 
Stvietenia),  kakkai  (Cassia  fistula),  trim  (Melia  Azadirachta),  aval 
(Cassia  auriculata),  hulgal  (Dalbergia  arborea),  khair  (Acacia  Catechu), 
ippi  (Bassia  latifolia),  and  jaune  (Greivia  Rothii).  The  babul  Reserves 
include  the  lands  which  yield  babul,  trim,  bamboo,  jambul,  and  bor. 
The  revenue  from  forests  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  9,300. 

The  District  of  Bijapur  ranks  relatively  high  in  mineral  wealth. 
Gold  is  said  to  have  been  found  formerly  in  the  Malprabha.  Near 
Kajadoni,  4  miles  south-west  of  Kaladgi,  are  traces  of  copper.  Iron  ore 
is  found  in  various  parts  of  the  District  south  of  the  Kistna ;  but  as  the 
cost  of  smelting  makes  it  dearer  than  imported  iron,  it  is  never  sold. 
Small  quantities  are  used  for  field  tools.  Several  varieties  of  gneiss, 
greenstone,  quartzite,  sandstone,  limestone,  clay-slate,  and  trap  are  used 
for  building  purposes.  The  extremely  beautiful  granites  and  kindred 
rocks  of  great  variety  of  colour  are  capable  of  taking  a  high  polish. 

A  large  proportion  of  the  people  earn  a  living  as  weavers,  and  the 

peasants  add  to  their  income  by  the  sale  of  hand-woven  cloth.     The 

chief   manufactures   are   cotton   and    silk  cloth.     In 

Trade  and         addition  to  what  is  used  in  the  District,  considerable 
communications.  .  .  , 

quantities    are    sent   to   Sholapur,   Poona,  Belgaum, 

and  the  Nizam's  Dominions.     Blankets  are  woven  to  some  extent,  and 

are  in  demand  as  far  as   Bombay.      Large  quantities  of  cotton  yarn 

and  cloth  are  also  dyed  and  exported.     Except  the  copper-smiths,  whose 

wares  are  sent  out  of  the  District,  none  of  the  Bijapur  artisans  have 

a  name  for  special  skill  in  their  crafts. 

The  chief  articles  of  import  are  piece-goods  and  rice  from  Sholapur, 

coco-nuts  and  salt  from  the  coast,  betel-nuts  and  spices  from  Kanara, 


FAMINE  -  183 

and  molasses  from  Belgaum.  In  all  taluka  head-quarters,  and  in  some 
of  the  larger  villages,  a  weekly  market  is  held.  Amingarh  is  a  great 
mart  for  cattle  and  coast  produce.  Besides  the  local  trading  classes, 
there  is  a  large  body  of  Gujarat!  and  Marwari  money-lenders  and 
cloth  merchants  in  the  District. 

The  East  Deccan  branch  of  the  Southern  Mahratta  Railway,  opened 
in  1S84,  runs  through  five  of  the  eight  idlukas  of  the  District,  con- 
necting Bijapur  with  the  more  prosperous  Districts  and  trading  centres 
in  the  north  and  south.  Since  the  opening  of  the  railway,  a  network  of 
feeder-roads  connecting  the  principal  villages  and  towns  with  the  railway 
has  been  constructed.  There  are  also  roads  communicating  with  other 
Districts,  such  as  the  Sholapur-Bellary  road  ;  the  Sholapur-Hubli  road 
from  Mira  Bay  to  Sindgi  via  Amba  Ghat ;  the  Satara-Bijapur  and  the 
Belgaum-Ilkal  roads.  Fifty  years  ago  there  were  no  cart-roads  in  the 
District.  There  are  now  (1903-4)  748  miles  of  road,  of  which  184 
miles  are  metalled.  Except  93  miles  of  metalled  and  .74  miles  of 
unmetalled  roads  in  charge  of  the  local  authorities,  all  are  maintained 
by  the  Public  Works  department.  Avenues  of  trees  are  maintained 
along  361  miles. 

Owing  to  its  uncertain  rainfall,  Bijapur  is  very  subject  to  failure  of 

crops  and  consequent  scarcity  of  food.     Like  the  rest  of  the  Deccan, 

this  District  was  left  almost  utterly  waste  and  deserted 

r      ■■       c        r  j  •  Famine. 

after  the  great  famine  of  1396-1420  ;  and  in  1791  want 

of  rain  again  caused  a  grievous  scarcity,  which  is  still  remembered  by 

the  people  as  the  Skull  Famine,  the  ground  being  covered   with  the 

skulls   of  the    unburied    dead.     In    1803    the    Pindaris   stripped    the 

country  of  food,  and  the  price  of  millet  rose  to  2  seers  per  rupee.     In 

18 18-9  a  failure  of  rain  caused  great  distress  and  raised  the  price  of 

millet  to  6  seers  per  rupee.     Other  years  of  drought  and  scarcity  were 

1824-5,  1832-3,  1853-4,  1863-4,  and  1866-7.     In  1876-7  the  failure 

of  rain  was  more  complete  and  general  in  Bijapur  than  in  any  other 

part  of  the  Presidency.     The  price  of  millet  rose  to  \\  seers  per  rupee 

and  the  price  of  wheat  to  %\  seers..    The  total  cost  of  the  famine  in  the 

District  was  estimated  at  nearly  26  lakhs,  of  which  23  lakhs  was  spent 

on  public  works  and  3  lakhs  on  charitable  relief.     The  estimated  loss 

of  population  caused  by  death  and  emigration  was  234,000,  and  about 

300,000  head  of  cattle  perished.     In  1879  the  District  suffered  from 

a  plague  of  rats,   which  destroyed  about  half  the  crops,    and  active 

measures  were  taken  to  reduce  their  numbers.     In  1891  monsoon  rain 

only  fell  in  isolated  showers.     The  result  was  that  the  whole  of  the 

District  suffered  from  famine,  prices  being  nearly  doubled.     More  than 

17,000  persons  left  their  villages  to  find  subsistence.     Relief  works  were 

opened.     In  1896  the  District  was  visited  by  a  more  severe  famine, 

during  which  the  numbers  on  relief  rose  to  134,000  in  September,  1897. 


184 


niJAPUR  DISTRICT 


Administration. 


Since  then  the  District  has  passed  through  a  series  of  unfavourable 
seasons.  In  1899  severe  scarcity  swept  the  District  and  lasted  for 
months.  The  real  famine  was  confined  to  the  Incli,  Sindgi,  and  Badami 
talukas,  but  intense  scarcity  was  felt  in  the  rest  of  the  District.  At  the 
height  of  the  famine  in  September,  1901,  32,291  persons  were  on  relief 
works  and  nearly  14,000  in  receipt  of  gratuitous  relief.  Relief  measures 
were  continued  till  October,  1902.  Including  remissions  of  advances  to 
agriculturists  and  land  revenue,  this  famine  cost  the  state  32^  lakhs. 

The  District  is  divided  into  eight  talukas  :  Bagevadi,  Hungund, 
Sindgi,  Indi,  Badami,  Muddebihal,  Bijapur,  and  Bagalkot.  The 
Collector,  who  is  ex-officio  Political  Agent  of  the 
Jath  and  Daphlapur  States,  is  aided  by  two  Assistants, 
who  are  members  of  the  Indian  Civil  Service. 

The  District  and  Sessions  Judge  at  Bijapur  is  assisted  for  civil  busi- 
ness by  three  Subordinate  Judges.  There  are  twenty-four  officers  to 
administer  criminal  justice  in  the  District.  Theft,  house-breaking,  and 
incendiarism  are  the  commonest  forms  of  crime  ;  and  in  the  Muddebihal 
and  Bagevadi  talukas  dwell  a  considerable  number  of  Chaparbands 
or  counterfeit  coiners.  These  men,  who  are  now  classed  as  a  criminal 
tribe,  make  lengthy  tours  over  India,  coining  false  money  in  various 
places,  which  is  passed  into  currency  by  their  women-folk.  Dacoities 
are  occasionally  committed  by  Mahars  and  Mangs,  but  are  not  as 
prevalent  in  the  north  of  the  District  as  they  once  were. 

As  Bijapur  did  not  become  a  separate  District  till  1864,  no  definite 
information  is  obtainable  regarding  the  land  management  of  former 
rulers.  Up  to  1843  no  attempt  was  made  to  revise  the  Maratha.  assess- 
ment, but  much  of  the  land  was  measured  between  1825  and  1830.  The 
chief  characteristics  of  the  old  assessment  were  a  high  nominal  demand 
and  large  yearly  remissions.  The  first  settlement  of  the  District  was 
commenced  in  1843  and  completed  in  1869.  A  revision  survey  settle- 
ment was  carried  out  between  1875  and  1889,  and  the  revised  rates  are 
now  in  force.  The  revision  found  an  increase  in  the  cultivated  area  of 
171  square  miles,  and  enhanced  the  total  revenue  from  8-7  to  11-4 
lakhs.  The  average  assessment  per  acre  of  '  dry  '  land  is  io  annas,  of 
rice  land  Rs.  3-6,  and  of  garden  land  Rs.  2. 

Collections  on  account  of  land  revenue  and  revenue  from  all  sources 
have  been,  in  thousands  of  rupees  : — 


1880-1. 

1 890-1. 

1900-1. 

i9°3-4- 

Land  revenue 
Total  revenue 

16,10 
19,82 

18,10 

23,72 

12,04 
i6,57 

18,82 
23,99 

The  District  has  four  municipalities  :    namely,  Bijapur,  Bagalkot, 
Ilkal,  and  Guledgarh,  their  total  average  income  being  Rs.  72,000. 


BIJAPUR   TALUK  A  185 

Outside  the  municipalities,  local  affairs  are  managed  by  the  District 
board  and  eight  tahtka  boards.  The  total  income  of  these  boards  in 
1903-4  was  1-92  lakhs,  the  chief  source  being  the  land  cess.  The 
expenditure  amounted  to  i-66  lakhs,  including  Rs.  56,000  spent  on  the 
construction  and  maintenance  of  roads  and  buildings. 

The  District  Superintendent  of  police  is  aided  by  one  Assistant  and 
two  inspectors.  There  are  ten  police  stations  in  the  District.  The 
police  number  647,  including  10  chief  constables,  141  head  con- 
stables, and  496  constables.  There  is  a  District  jail  at  Bijapur,  with 
accommodation  for  294  prisoners.  In  addition,  9  subsidiary  jails  have 
accommodation  for  133  prisoners.  The  average  number  of  prisoners  in 
these  jails  in  1904  was  331,  of  whom  20  were  females. 

Bijapur  stands  sixteenth  among  the  twenty-four  Districts  of  the 
Presidency  as  regards  the  literacy  of  its  population,  of  whom  4-6  per 
cent,  (males  9  and  females  o-i)  could  read  and  write  in  190 1.  In  1888 
there  were  157  schools  with  8,277  pupils.  The  latter  number  rose  in 
1891  to  17,697,  including  1,044  in  78  private  schools.  In  1901  it  fell 
to  15,136,  exclusive  of  1,281  in  83  private  schools.  In  1903-4  there 
were  376  institutions  of  all  kinds  attended  by  17,657  pupils,  of  whom 
899  were  girls.  Of  the  309  institutions  classed  as  public,  2  are  high 
schools,  one  is  a  middle  school,  and  306  are  primary  schools.  One 
is  managed  by  Government,  20  by  municipalities,  236  by  District 
boards,  while  51  are  aided  and  one  unaided.  The  total  expenditure 
on  education  in  1903-4  was  1-06  lakhs,  of  which  Rs.  17,000  was  derived 
from  fees,  and  Rs.  28,000  from  Local  funds.  Of  the  total,  84  per  cent, 
was  devoted  to  primary  schools. 

There  are  two  hospitals  at  Bijapur  town,  one  of  which  is  for  females, 
and  seven  medical  dispensaries  in  the  District,  with  accommodation 
for  81  in-patients.  In  these  institutions  52,000  persons  were  treated 
in  1904,  of  whom  478  were  in-patients,  and  1,097  operations  were 
performed.  The  total  expenditure,  exclusive  of  the  female  hospital, 
was  Rs.  15,000,  of  which  about  Rs.  7,300  was  met  from  Local  and 
municipal  funds. 

The  number  of  persons  successfully  vaccinated  in  1903-4  was  19,574, 
representing  the  proportion  of  27  per  1,000  of  population,  which 
slightly  exceeds  the  average  for  the  Presidency. 

[Sir  J.  M.  Campbell,  Gazetteer  of  the  Bombay  Presidency,  vol.  xxiii 
(1884) ;  E.  Stack,  Memorandum  on  Land  Revenue  Settlements  (Calcutta, 
1880).] 

Bijapur  Taluka. — Western  tdluka  of  Bijapur  District,  Bombay, 
lying  between  160  25'  and  170  5'  N.  and  750  26'  and  760  2'  E.,  with  an 
area  of  869  square  miles.  It  contains  one  town,  Bijapur  (population, 
23,811),  the  head-quarters;  and  94  villages,  including  Bobleshwar 
(6,300).     The  population  in  1901  was  102,416,  compared  with  103,718 


t86  BIJAPUR   TAT.UK A 

in  1891.  The  density,  ri8  persons  per  square  mile,  is  a  little  below 
the  District  average.  The  demand  for  land  revenue  in  1903-4  was 
1-62  lakhs,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  12,000.  The  south-eastern  portion  of 
the  taluka,  lying  along  the  Don  valley,  is  very  fertile  and  consists  of  rich 
black  soil  ;  but  the  northern  region  is  composed  of  rocky  and  treeless 
uplands,  unfit  for  cultivation.  A  range  of  unusually  lofty  uplands 
lies  in  the  extreme  north,  and  in  the  south-west  are  seven  low  hills. 
The  climate  is  dry  and  healthy. 

Bijapur  Town  {Vijayapur,  'Town  of  Victory'). — Head-quarters  of 
Bijapur  District,  Bombay,  situated  in  160  49'  N.  and  750  43"  E., 
on  the  Southern  Mahratta  Railway,  350  miles  south  of  Bombay, 
from  which  it  is  reached  via  Poona  and  Hotgi.  Population  (190 1), 
23,811,  including  16,697  Hindus  and  6,857  Musalmans.  The  muni- 
cipality was  established  in  1854,  and  had  an  average  income  during 
the  decade  ending  190T  of  Rs.  30,000.  In  1903-4  the  income  was 
Rs.  29,000.  The  construction  of  the  Southern  Mahratta  Railway  and 
the  transfer  of  the  District  head-quarters  from  Kaladgi  have  restored  to 
Bijapur  some  of  its  former  importance.  It  has  a  large  grain  and  cattle 
trade,  and  contains  four  cotton-ginning  factories.  In  the  town  are 
situated  the  chief  revenue  and  judicial  offices,  a  Subordinate  Judge's 
court,  two  hospitals,  of  which  one  is  for  women,  and  two  high  schools, 
one  maintained  by  Government  and  the  other  unaided.  In  addition, 
there  are  nine  boys'  schools  with  383  pupils  and  three  girls'  schools 
with  162. 

The  past  greatness  of  Bijapur  is  attested  by  the  remains  of  numerous 
palaces,  mosques,  tombs,  and  other  imposing  works.  The  most  note- 
worthy are  :  the  Ibrahim  Rauza,  or  tomb  and  mosque  of  Ibrahim  Adil 
Shah  II  ;  the  Gol  Gumbaz,  or  tomb  of  Muhammad  Adil  Shah,  the 
second  largest  dome  in  the  world  ;  the  Anand  Mahal ;  the  Asar  Mahal ; 
the  Jama  Masjid  ;  the  Mehtar  Mahal ;  and  the  Sat  Mazli.  The  Begam 
lake  near  the  town,  constructed  by  Muhammad  Adil  Shah  in  1653,  and 
named  after  his  wife  Jahan  Begam,  as  well  as  the  Torvi  aqueduct, 
show  how  the  city  was  supplied  with  water  in  the  days  of  its  splendour. 
The  ruins  of  Hindu  temples  on  the  Ark  or  citadel  indicate  that  Bijapur 
was  an  important  Hindu  town  in  pre-Muhammadan  times.  There  are 
some  large  pieces  of  ordnance,  including  the  Malik-i-Maiddn,  a  bronze 
gun  in  the  muzzle  of  which  a  man  can  be  seated. 

The  founder  of  the  Musalman  State  of  Bijapur  was,  according  to 
Firishta,  a  son  of  Murad  II,  the  Osmanli  Sultan,  on  whose  death  his 
son  and  successor  Muhammad  II  gave  orders  that  all  his  own  brothers 
should  be  strangled.  From  this  fate  one  only,  named  Yiisuf,  escaped 
by  a  stratagem  of  his  mother.  After  many  adventures  Yusuf  is  said  to 
have  entered  the  service  of  the  king  of  Ahmadabad-Bldar,  where  he 
rose  to  the  highest  offices  of  state.     On  the  king's  death  he  withdrew 


B  I/A  PUR   TOWN  187 

from  Ahmadabad  to  Bijapur,  and  declared  himself  its  king,  the  people 
readily  acknowledging  his  claim.  Yilsuf  reigned  with  great  prosperity, 
and  included  Goa  among  his  dominions  on  the  western  coast.  This, 
however,  was  taken  from  him  by  the  Portuguese  a  few  months  before 
his  death.  His  resources  must  have  been  considerable,  as  he  built  the 
vast  citadel  of  Bijapur.  He  died  in  151 1,  and  was  succeeded  by  his 
son  Ismail,  who  died  in  1534  after  a  brilliant  and  prosperous  reign. 
Mallu  Adil  Shah,  having  been  deposed  and  blinded  after  an  inglorious 
reign  of  only  six  months,  made  way  for  his  younger  brother  Ibrahim, 
a  profligate  man,  who  died  in  1557.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son 
All  Adil  Shah,  who  constructed  the  wall  of  Bijapur,  the  Jama  Masjid, 
or  great  mosque,  the  aqueducts,  and  other  works.  This  ruler 
joined  the  Sultans  of  Ahmadnagar  and  Golconda  against  Rama  Raja, 
the  minister  of  the  powerful  Hindu  State  of  Vijayanagar.  Rama 
Raja  was  defeated  in  1565  in  a  great  battle  to  the  south  of  Talikota, 
and,  being  made  prisoner,  was  put  to  death  in  cold  blood,  and  his 
capital  taken  and  sacked.  All  Adil  Shah  died  in  1579.  The  throne 
then  passed  to  his  nephew  Ibrahim  Adil  Shah  II,  an  infant,  whose 
affairs  were  managed  by  Chand  Bibl,  widow  of  the  late  king,  a  woman 
celebrated  for  her  talents  and  energy.  Ibrahim,  on  assuming  the 
government,  ruled  with  ability  ;  and,  dying  in  1626,  after  a  reign  of 
forty-seven  years,  was  succeeded  by  Muhammad  Adil  Shah,  under 
whose  reign  Sivajf,  the  founder  of  the  Maratha  power,  rose  into  notice. 
Shahji,  the  father  of  Sivajl,  had  been  an  officer  in  the  service  of  the 
Sultan  of  Bijapur ;  and  the  first  aggressions  of  Sivajl  were  made  at 
the  expense  of  that  State,  from  which,  in  the  interval  between  1646  and 
1648,  he  wrested  several  forts.  Soon  afterwards  he  took  possession  of 
the  greater  part  of  the  Konkan.  Muhammad,  however,  had  a  more 
formidable  enemy  in  the  Mughal  emperor  Shah  Jahan,  whose  son  and 
general  Aurangzeb  besieged  the  city  of  Bijapur,  and  was  on  the  point  of 
taking  it,  when  he  precipitately  marched  to  Agra,  drawn  thither  by 
intelligence  of  court  intrigues,  which  he  feared  might  end  in  his  own 
destruction.  After  his  departure,  the  power  of  Sivajl  rapidly  increased, 
and  that  of  the  Sultan  of  Bijapur  proportionately  declined.  Muhammad 
died  in  1656,  and  was  succeeded  by  All  Adil  Shah  II,  who,  on  his 
decease  in  1672,  left  the  kingdom,  then  fast  descending  to  ruin,  to  his 
infant  son  Sikandar  Adil  Shah,  the  last  of  the  race. 

In  1686  Aurangzeb  took  Bijapur,  and  put  an  end  to  its  existence  as 
an  independent  state.  Its  vast  and  wonderful  ruins  passed,  with  the 
adjoining  territory,  to  the  Marathas  during  the  decline  of  the  Delhi 
empire.  On  the  overthrow  of  the  Peshwa,  in  1818,  they  came  into  the 
hands  of  the  British  Government,  and  were  included  within  the  territory 
then  assigned  to  the  Raja  of  Satara.  On  the  transfer  of  the  head- 
quarters  of   the    District    from    Kaladgi    to  Bijapur,  many  of  the  old 


iSS  BIJAPUR   TOWN 

Muhammadan  palaces  were  utilized  for  public  purposes  ;  hut  most  of 
them  are  now  recovering  from  the  rough  treatment  which  they  received 
at  the  hands  of  those  who  devoted  them  to  utilitarian  ends.  Among 
the  chief  works  undertaken  by  Government  during  the  last  few  years  is 
the  restoration  of  the  overhanging  sculptured  cornices  of  the  Gol 
Gumbaz,  which  is  still  in  progress,  and  of  the  Jama  Masjid.  The 
unsightly  beams  which  were  erected  about  thirty  years  ago  round  the 
tomb  in  the  Ibrahim  Rauza  to  support  cracked  masonry  have  now 
given  place  to  supports  more  in  character  with  the  building,  while  the 
Mehtar  Mahal,  the  mosque  of  Malika  Jahan  Begam,  and  the  sarcophagus 
of  greenstone  have  all  received  attention.  The  mosque  of  the  Gol 
Gumbaz,  which  was  used  as  a  travellers'  bungalow,  has  been  restored  to 
its  former  condition,  as  also  the  Bokhara  mosque,  which  was  for  many 
years  occupied  by  the  post  office.  The  upper  storey  of  the  nagarkhana 
of  the  Gol  Gumbaz  is  now  used  as  a  museum  in  which  all  objects  of 
interest  discovered  in  the  surrounding  country  are  exhibited. 

[For  a  detailed  description  of  the  numerous  architectural  works  found 
in  Bijapur,  see  the  account  given  by  Fergusson  in  his  History  of  Indian 
and  Eastern  Architecture,  pp.  557-67;  Bombay  Gazetteer,  vol.  xxiii ; 
H.  Cousens,  Guide  to  Bijapur  (second  edition,  Bombay,  1905)  ;  and 
H.  Cousens,  '  Notes  on  the  Buildings  and  Remains  at  Bijapur,'  Selec- 
tions from  Records  of  Bombay   Government,  ccxlv  (1890).] 

Bijawar  State. — A  sdnad  State  in  Central  India,  under  the  Bundel- 
khand  Agency,  lying  between  24°  21/  and  24°  57'  N.  and  790  o'  and 
8o°  39'  E.,  with  an  area  of  973  square  miles.  The  State  takes  its 
name  from  its  chief  town,  founded  by  Bijai  Singh,  one  of  the  Gond 
chiefs  of  Garha  Mandla.  It  is  divided  into  two  separate  tracts,  con- 
sisting of  the  three  home  parganas  and  the  isolated  pargana  of  Karaia. 
The  former  are  much  cut  up  by  a  series  of  jungle-covered  spurs  which 
spring  out  from  the  Panna  range,  rising  in  places  to  1,700  feet  above 
the  sea,  while  the  Karaia  pargana  forms  a  level  plain.  The  State  is 
watered  by  the  Dhasan  with  its  affluent  the  Bila,  and  the  Ken  with 
its  two  tributaries  the  Bairma  and  Sunar. 

The  geological  formations  met  with  are  of  unusual  interest,  the  State 
giving  its  name  to  the  Bijawar  series  of  sandstones  and  shales,  one  of 
the  most  important  geological  formations  in  India,  of  which  it  con- 
tains the  type  area.  Its  characteristic  rocks,  which  are  here  met  with 
in  great  abundance,  are  quartzite,  sandstones,  shales,  slates,  limestones, 
banded  jaspers,  hornstone,  breccias,  and  a  considerable  deposit  of  basic 
volcanic  rocks.  Rich  deposits  of  a  peculiar  iron  ore  are  also  met  with. 
All  the  northern  part  of  the  State,  however,  including  the  chief  town, 
stands  upon  an  outcrop  of  gneiss,  which  underlies  the  Bijawars.  Some 
diamond  mines  situated  in  the  Panna  diamond-bearing  tract  belong  to 
this  State.     The  annual  rainfall  averages  38  inches. 


BIJAWAR  STATE  189 

Bijawar  was  originally  part  of  the  territory  held  by  the  Garha  Mandla 
Gonds,  and  was  taken  by  Chhatarsal,  the  founder  of  Panna,  in  the 
eighteenth  century.  On  the  partition  of  his  territory  among  his  sons, 
Bijawar  fell  to  Jagat  Raj,  as  part  of  the  Jaitpur  State.  In  1769  Bijawar 
was  given  to  Bir  Singh  Deo,  an  illegitimate  son  of  Jagat  Raj,  by  his 
uncle  Guman  Singh,  then  ruler  of  Ajaigarh.  Bir  Singh  gradually 
extended  his  original  holding  by  force  of  arms,  but  was  killed  fighting 
against  All  Bahadur  and  Himmat  Bahadur  in  1793.  The  latter 
restored  the  State  to  Kesri  Singh,  son  of  Bir  Singh,  granting  him  a 
sanad  in  1802.  On  the  accession  of  the  British  to  the  supreme  power, 
Raja  Kesri  Singh  at  once  professed  his  allegiance.  He  was,  however, 
at  the  time  carrying  on  a  feud  with  the  chiefs  of  Chhatarpur  and  Char- 
khari  regarding  the  possession  of  certain  territories,  and  his  sanad  was 
withheld  until  the  dispute  was  settled.  He  died  in  18 10,  and  the 
dispute  being  arranged,  a  sanad  was  granted  to  his  son  Ratan  Singh  in 
181 1,  he  in  return  presenting  the  usual  deed  of  allegiance.  Ratan 
Singh  on  his  accession  instituted  a  State  coinage.  The  chief  in  1857 
was  Bhan  Pratap  Singh,  who  for  his  services  during  the  Mutiny  received 
a  khilat  and  an  hereditary  salute  of  1 1  guns.  He  obtained  a  sanad  of 
adoption  in  1862,  the  hereditary  title  of  Maharaja  in  1866,  and  the 
prefix  of  Sawai  in  1877  ;  but  his  maladministration  plunged  the  State 
into  financial  difficulties,  and,  as  there  were  no  signs  of  amendment,  it 
was  placed  under  supervision  in  1897.  Having  no  son,  he  adopted  in 
1898  Sanwant  Singh,  second  son  of  the  present  Maharaja  of  Orchha, 
who  succeeded  on  Bhan  Pratap's  death  in  1899.  Objections  to  this 
succession  were  raised  by  the  Thakurs  of  Lakhangaon,  and  others,  who 
refused  to  attend  the  installation  ceremony,  for  which  act  of  contumacy 
they  were  detained  at  Nowgong  until  they  had  apologized.  The  chief 
bears  the  titles  of  His  Highness  and  Maharaja  Sawai,  and  receives  a 
salute  of  1 1  guns. 

The  population  at  the  last  three  enumerations  was:  (1881)  110,285, 
(1891)  123,414,  and  (1901)  110,500,  giving  a  density  of  114  persons 
per  square  mile.  There  has  been  a  decrease  of  10  per  cent,  during  the 
last  decade.  The  State  contains  343  villages  and  one  town,  Bijawar, 
the  capital  (population,  5,220).  Hindus  number  105,985,  or  96  per 
cent. ;  Jains,  2,035  >  and  Musalmans,  2,067.  The  prevailing  castes  are 
Brahmans,  13,500,  who  form  12  per  cent,  of  the  population;  Ahirs, 
10,300,  or  9  per  cent. ;  Kachhis,  9,000,  or  8  per  cent.;  Lodhls,  7,800, 
or  7  per  cent.  ;  Thakurs,  including  Bundela  Rajputs,  6,000,  or  6  per 
cent.  The  principal  dialect  is  Bundeli.  Of  the  population,  48  per 
cent,  are  supported  by  agriculture  and  23  per  cent,  by  general  labour. 

The  soil  in  the  different  parganas  varies  considerably.  Round 
Bijawar  itself  the  country  is  hilly  and  the  soil  poor  and  rocky,  while 
the    Karaia  pargana  is   of  considerable    fertility.      The  total  area  of 


i9o  BIJAWAR  STATE 

973  square  miles  is  thus  distributed:  cultivated,  218  square  miles,  or 
22  per  cent.,  of  which  23  square  miles  are  irrigable;  forest,  429  square 
miles,  or  44  per  cent.  ;  cultivable  but  uncultivated,  168  square  miles,  or 
1 7  per  cent. ;  and  the  rest  waste.  The  chief  crops  are  kodon,  occupy- 
ing 45  square  miles,  or  19  per  cent,  of  the  cropped  area;  kutki, 
27  square  miles,  or  12  per  cent. ;  barley,  24  square  miles,  or  10  percent.  ; 
gram,  21  square  miles;  urd  and  rice,  12  square  miles  each;  and  wheat, 
9  square  miles. 

The  forests,  which  occupy  429  square  miles,  are  now  being  in  part 
'  reserved.'  The  most  important  trees  are  the  mahua  (Bassia  latifolia), 
which  supplies  the  staple  food  of  the  poor,  especially  in  bad  seasons, 
the  tend/7  (Diospyros  tomentosd),  and  the  seja  (Lagerstroemia  parviflora). 
A  stunted  form  of  teak  also  abounds. 

There  are  good  grounds  for  believing  that  the  State  is  rich  in  mineral 
deposits,  but  as  yet  these  have  not  been  fully  investigated.  Formerly 
the  iron-smelting  industry  was  considerable,  but  it  has  decayed  of  late 
years.  Diamonds  are  also  met  with  in  several  places.  A  considerable 
export  trade  in  iron  once  existed,  but  this  has  now  disappeared,  while 
the  distance  of  the  State  from  all  railways  has  considerably  reduced 
the  trade  in  grain. 

The  only  two  metalled  roads  in  the  State  are  the  Chhatarpur-Saugor 
high  road,  which  passes  through  Gulganj,  10  miles  west  of  Bijawar  ;  and 
a  feeder,  12  miles  long,  between  Mahatgawan  and  the  chief  town.  A 
British  post  office  has  been  opened  at  Bijawar,  with  a  branch  at 
Gulganj. 

The  State  is  divided  for  administrative  purposes  into  four  tahsils — 
Bijawar,  Gulganj,  Ragaull,  and  Karaia — each  under  a  tahsilddr,  who 
is  the  magistrate  and  revenue  officer  of  his  charge.  The  Maharaja  has 
entire  control  in  civil  judicial,  revenue,  and  general  administrative 
matters.  In  criminal  cases  he  exercises  the  powers  of  a  Sessions  Court, 
subject  to  the  proviso  that  appeals  lie  to  the  Political  Agent,  and  that 
sentences  of  death,  imprisonment,  or  transportation  for  life  require  the 
confirmation  of  the  Agent  to  the  Governor-General.  He  is  assisted 
by  a  minister,  who  has  immediate  control  of  the  various  departments. 
The  British  criminal  codes  are  followed  generally  in  the  State  courts. 

The  total  revenue  from  all  sources  is  2-3  lakhs,  excluding  jdglrs,  of 
which  1-2  lakhs  is  derived  from  land  revenue,  Rs.  21,000  from  customs, 
and  Rs.  1 1,000  from  tribute.  The  chief  heads  of  expenditure  are  gene- 
ral administration  (Rs.  76,000),  chiefs  establishment  (Rs.  36,000), 
public  works  (Rs.  25,000),  and  police  (Rs.  12,000). 

The  incidence  of  the  land  revenue  demand  is  Rs.  1-5-0  per  acre 
of  cultivated  land,  and  5  annas  per  acre  of  total  area.  Of  the  total  area 
of  the  State,  368  square  miles,  or  38  per  cent.,  have  been  alienated  in 
jdglrs.     Until   1902   these  were  held  on  feudal   tenure   (zdbta),  under 


BIJNI  19  r 

which  each  landholder  was  bound  when  called  on  to  provide  a  certain 
quota  of  men  and  horses.  In  1902  this  tenure  was  commuted  to  a  cash 
tribute.  The  currency  until  1897,  when  the  British  rupee  was  made 
legal  tender,  consisted  of  various  local  coinages,  including  the  Ratan 
shdhi  rupees  struck  by  Maharaja  Ratan  Singh  at  Bijawar. 

The  army  consists  of  a  body-guard  of  132  men,  and  the  State  owns 
7  serviceable  guns.  The  police  force  was  organized  in  1897,  and  num- 
bers 92  regular  and  268  rural  police.  A  jail  is  maintained  at  Bijawar, 
besides  a  school  with  142  pupils,  and  a  hospital. 

Bijawar  Town. — Chief  town  of  the  State  of  the  same  name  in 
Central  India,  situated  in  24°  39'  N.  and  790  30'  E.,  1,200  feet  above 
sea-level,  close  to  a  spur  of  the  Panna  range,  12  miles  by  metalled  road 
from  Mahatgawan  on  the  Chhatarpur-Saugor  high  road  and  43  miles 
thence  from  the  Harpalpur  station  of  the  Jhansi-Manikpur  branch  of 
the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway.  Population  (1901),  5,220.  It 
was  founded  by  Bijai  Singh,  a  Gond  chief  in  the  seventeenth  century, 
and  was  acquired  by  Chhatarsal  of  Panna  in  the  next  century.  The 
town  contains  a  jail,  a  school,  a  dispensary,  and  a  guesthouse. 

Bijna. — A  petty  sanad  State  in  Central  India,  under  the  Bundel- 
khand  Agency,  belonging  to  the  Hasht-Bhaiya  Jagirs,  with  an  area 
of  about  27  square  miles.  It  is  bounded  on  all  sides,  except  on  the 
east  where  it  touches  the  Dhurwai  estate,  by  portions  of  the  Jhansi 
District  of  the  United  Provinces.  Population  (1901),  1,578.  The 
jdgirdar  is  a  Bundela  Rajput  of  the  Orchha  house.  Diwan  Sanwant 
Singh,  second  son  of  Diwan  Rai  Singh  of  Baragaon,  obtained  Bijna 
about  1690.  After  the  death  of  Sanwant  Singh  the  holding  was  sub- 
divided among  his  three  sons,  one  share  being  subsequently  reabsorbed 
into  the  parent  estate.  On  the  establishment  of  British  supremacy, 
a  sanad  was  granted  to  Diwan  Sujan  Singh  in  1823,  confirming  him  in 
possession  of  his  territory.  The  present  jdgirdar  is  Diwan  Mukund 
Singh,  who  succeeded  his  father  Durjan  Singh  in  r85o.  It  is  interesting 
to  note  that  this  small  estate  has  given  four  Maharajas  to  Orchha, 
BhartI  Chand,  Vikramajlt,  Tej  Singh,  and  Sujan  Singh  having  been 
adopted  from  this  branch  of  the  family.  Number  of  villages,  4  ; 
cultivated  area,  4  square  miles;  revenue,  Rs.  10,000.  Bijna,  the  chief 
town,  is  situated  in  250  27'  N.  and  790  o'  E.,  14  miles  off  the  high 
road  from  Jhansi  to  Nowgong.     Population  (1901),  1,092. 

Bijnaur. — District,  tahsl/,  and  town  in  the  United  Provinces.  See 
Bijnor. 

Bijni. — Estate  in  Goalpara  District,  Eastern  Bengal  and  Assam,  lying 
between  250  53'  and  260  32'  N.  and  900  85'  and  910  85'  E.,  in  posses- 
sion of  the  Bijni  family,  descended  from  the  Koch  king,  Nar  Narayan, 
who  reigned  over  Kamarupa  from  1534  to  1584.  Nar  Narayan's 
armies  were  victorious  from  Gargaon  and  Manipur  in  the  east  to  Jaintia 


192  BIJN1 

and  Tippera  in  the  south  ;  but  before  his  death  he  allowed  his  kingdom 
to  be  divided  between  his  son  Lakshml  Narayan  and  his  nephew  Raghu 
Kai.  Raghu  Rai  established  his  capital  at  Barnagar  in  the  Barpeta 
subdivision,  and  received  as  his  share  the  Koch  territories  lying  to  the 
east  of  the  Sankosh.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son  Parlkshit,  who 
quarrelled  with  Lakshml  Narayan  and  was  defeated  by  the  Muham- 
madans,  whom  the  latter  summoned  to  his  assistance.  Parikshit's  son, 
Vijita  Narayan,  was  confirmed  by  the  Musalmans  as  zaimnddr  of  the 
country  between  the  Manas  and  the  Sankosh,  and  from  him  the  present 
Bijni  family  is  descended.  Under  Mughal  rule  the  Raja  paid  a  tribute 
of  Rs.  5,998,  which  was  afterwards  commuted  to  an  annual  delivery  of 
68  elephants.  Difficulty  was  experienced  in  realizing  the  tale  of  the 
animals  in  full,  and  in  1788  it  was  decided  to  revert  to  a  money  pay- 
ment, which  was  fixed  at  Rs.  2,000  per  annum.  It  is  doubtful  whether 
Goalpara  was  ever  included  in  the  Decennial  Settlement  which  was 
made  permanent  in  1793,  but  this  small  assessment  has  always  been 
accepted  in  lieu  of  land  revenue,  though  it  has  sometimes  been  argued 
that  it  is  nothing  more  than  tribute.  The  family  now  pay  a  revenue  of 
Rs.  1,500,  and  cesses  amounting  to  nearly  Rs.  19,000,  for  an  estate 
which  covers  an  area  of  950  square  miles  and  has  an  estimated  rent- 
roll  of  2  lakhs  of  rupees. 

On  the  conclusion  of  the  Bhutan  War,  the  Bijni  family  put  forward 
claims  to  hold  a  large  tract  of  land  in  the  Eastern  Duars,  of  which  they 
alleged  that  they  were  in  possession  under  the  Bhutan  government. 
The  claim  was  admitted,  and  in  1870  a  settlement  was  effected  with  the 
Court  of  Wards  on  behalf  of  the  minor  Bijni  Raja.  The  precise  extent 
of  the  estates  to  which  they  were  entitled  was  still  a  matter  of  uncer- 
tainty, but  in  1882  it  was  ruled  by  the  Government  of  India  that  the 
Raja  should  receive  130,000  acres.  These  estates  have  generally 
remained  under  the  direct  management  of  Government,  who  allow  to 
the  Raja  i\  per  cent,  of  the  collections  as  his  share  of  the  profits. 

Bijnor  District  {Bijnaur). — Northernmost  District  in  the  Bareilly 
Division,  United  Provinces,  lying  between  290  1/  and  290  58''  N.  and 
780  and  780  57'  E.,  with  an  area  of  1,791  square  miles.  On  the  north- 
east the  road  which  passes  along  the  foot  of  the  Himalayas  divides 
Bijnor  from  Garhwal  District ;  south-east  and  south  lie  Nairn  Tal  and 
Moradabad  ;  while  the  Ganges  flows  along  the  western  border  between 
Bijnor  and  the  Districts  of  Dehra  Dun,  Saharanpur,  Muzaffarnagar,  and 
Meerut.  The  District  of  Bijnor,  an  irregular  triangle  of  which  the  apex 
points  directly  northwards,  forms  the  uppermost  por- 
sr^ct*  t*on  °^  tne  R°hilk.hand  plain,  stretching  like  a  wedge 

between  the  valley  of  the  Ganges  and  the  hills  of 
Garhwal.  In  the  north  is  a  system  of  small  elevations,  known  as  the 
Chandi  hills,  which  resemble  in  geological  formation  the  Siwalik  range 


BIJNOR  DISTRICT  i93 

in  Dehra  Dun  on  the  western  bank  of  the  Ganges.  These  hills  are 
little  more  than  rugged  and  barren  rocks,  except  in  the  valleys  and  on 
the  lower  slopes.  They  include  an  area  of  about  25  square  miles. 
South  of  the  hills  and  along  the  north-east  border  lies  a  broad  level  belt 
of  forest  varying  from  2  to  10  miles  in  width,  across  which  flow  numer- 
ous streams  from  the  hills  in  the  neighbouring  District  of  Garhwal. 
Large  clearances  have  been  made  in  places,  and  cultivation  sometimes 
extends  as  far  as  the  submontane  road.  This  tract  resembles  the 
Bhabar  in  the  adjacent  District  of  Nairn  Tal,  but  the  marshy  tarai  belt 
found  in  NainI  Tal  does  not  occur  here.  The  rest  of  the  District  is  an 
open  upland  plain  crossed  by  river  valleys.  The  largest  river  is  the 
Ganges,  which  debouches  on  the  plain  near  the  north  of  the  District, 
and  is  there  a  rapid  stream  flowing  over  boulders.  Lower  down  its 
course  is  less  rapid,  its  bed  becomes  wide,  and  the  river  is  navigable 
from  Nagal.  The  first  considerable  affluent  of  the  Ganges  is  the 
Malin,  which  rises  in  the  Garhwal  hills  and  flows  across  the  north-west 
portion  of  the  District.  The  river  is  celebrated  in  Sanskrit  literature, 
and  the  scene  of  Kalidasa's  play  of  Sakuntala  is  laid  near  its  banks.  It 
has  also  been  identified  with  the  Erineses  mentioned  by  Megasthenes. 
The  Khoh  rises  in  the  Garhwal  hills,  east  of  the  Malin,  and  flows 
almost  due  south,  joining  the  Ramganga  near  the  border  of  the  Dis- 
trict. The  latter  river  crosses  the  Garhwal  border  near  the  eastern 
corner,  and  meanders  across  the  eastern  portion  of  the  Nagina  tahsil. 
Both  the  Khoh  and  Ramganga  are  liable  to  sudden  floods  which  sub- 
side as  quickly  as  they  rise.  Many  smaller  streams  from  the  lower  hills 
join  these  large  rivers  after  a  short  course. 

Nearly  the  whole  of  the  District  is  situated  on  the  Gangetic  alluvium, 
with  a  bhabar  zone  of  coarse  gravels  along  the  north-east  border.  The 
Chandi  hills  are  composed  of  Upper  Tertiary  rocks,  all  in  a  rapid  state 
of  decay  by  weathering.  These  rocks  comprise,  towards  the  plains, 
a  gentle  normal  anticlinal  arch  in  middle  Siwalik  soft  sand  rock,  which 
is  very  micaceous.  North-east  lies  the  southern  limit  of  a  synclinal 
trough  in  upper  Siwalik  conglomerates1. 

The  forests  of  Bijnor  will  be  described  later.  The  rest  of  the  Dis- 
trict presents  no  peculiarities  in  its  flora.  Fine  groves  of  mango-trees 
are  found  in  every  part.  The  river  valleys  as  well  as  the  forest  glades 
produce  grasses  which  are  utilized  for  thatching,  for  basket-work,  for 
matting,  and  for  making  rope  and  twine.  The  wild  hemp  {Cannabis 
sativa)  grows  abundantly ;  the  leaves  are  collected,  and,  when  dry,  are 
known  as  bha?ig,  which  is  used  for  preparing  a  refreshing  drink. 

Tigers  and  leopards  were  formerly  common  in  the  forests,  together 

1  R.  D.  Oldham,  '  Geology  of  Part  of  the  Gangasulan  Pargana,'  Records,  Geological 
Survey  of  India,  xvii,  pt.  iv;  and  C.  S.  Middlemiss,  'Physical  Geology  of  the  Sub- 
Himalaya  of  Garhwal  and  Kumaun,'  Memoirs,  Geological  Survey  of  India,  xxiv,  pt.  ii. 

VOL.   V«I.  O 


i94  BIJNOR  DISTRICT 

with  chltal  (Cervus  axis)  and  sambar  (Cervus  unicolor).  The  deer 
have,  however,  been  almost  exterminated,  and  the  carnivora  have  con- 
sequently retired  farther  into  the  hills.  A  tiger  occasionally  strays 
down,  and  leopards  are  still  met  with  in  ravine  tracts.  Antelope  are 
common,  and  a  few  hog  deer  and  wild  hog  survive  along  the  Ramganga 
and  Ganges.  Four-horned  deer  and  barking-deer  are  occasionally  met 
with  in  the  forests.  There  are  some  hyenas,  and  the  lynx  is  not 
unknown.  Wild  elephants  come  down  from  the  hills  during  the 
rains.  The  chief  game-birds  are  duck,  snipe,  peafowl,  black  partridge, 
jungle-fowl,  quail,  and  sand-grouse. 

Its  proximity  to  the  Himalayas  renders  the  climate  of  Bijnor  cool 
and  pleasant,  while  the  abundance  of  drainage  channels  prevents  the 
District  from  being  as  unhealthy  as  other  tracts  near  the  foot  of  the 
mountains.  The  annual  rainfall  averages  44  inches,  varying  from  38 
near  the  Ganges  to  47  in  the  north  of  the  District.  Between  1864  and 
1898  the  variations  from  the  average  did  not  exceed  25  per  cent,  in 
twenty-seven  years,  while  in  four  years  the  fall  was  in  excess,  and  there 
were  four  years  of  considerable  deficit. 

Legend  ascribes  the  foundation  of  Bijnor  town  to  the  mythical  king 
Ben  or  Vena,  who  is  familiar  in  tradition  from  the  Punjab  to  Bihar. 
In  the  seventh  century  the  Chinese  pilgrim,  Hiuen 
Tsiang,  visited  a  kingdom  the  capital  of  which  has 
been  identified  with  Mandawar.  The  early  history  of  Muham- 
madan  rule  is  obscure,  but  raids  by  the  Mongols  are  referred  to.  In 
1399  Timur  ravaged  the  District,  fighting  several  pitched  battles  and 
massacring  a  large  number  of  the  inhabitants.  Thence  he  marched 
to  Hardwar,  returning  to  the  Doab.  No  more  is  heard  of  Bijnor 
till  the  time  of  Akbar,  when  it  formed  part  of  the  sarkar  of  Sam- 
bhal  in  the  Subah  of  Delhi.  During  the  most  prosperous  age  of 
the  Delhi  empire,  the  District  shared  in  the  general  freedom  from 
historical  incidents,  though  in  1566  and  again  in  1587  peace  was  dis- 
turbed by  ambitious  jagirdars  or  by  rebels  fleeing  from  other  parts  of 
India.  As  the  power  of  the  Mughals  relaxed,  the  Rohilla  Pathans 
began  to  assert  independence,  under  All  Muhammad.  Although  this 
chieftain  had  managed  to  annex  the  rest  of  Rohilkhand  by  1740,  his 
first  acquisitions  in  Bijnor  seem  to  have  been  made  in  1748,  after 
his  return  from  exile,  while  his  friend,  Dunde  Khan,  occupied  another 
tract  about  the  same  time.  The  remainder  of  the  District  was  rapidly 
acquired,  and  before  his  death  in  1749  All  Muhammad  made  a  grant  of 
the  northern  portion  to  Najib  Khan,  who  was  to  become  a  great  leader. 
In  the  forests  on  the  border  of  the  District  lies  a  strong  fort,  called 
Lai  Dhang,  which  often  proved  a  safe  refuge  in  the  struggles  between 
the  Rohillas  and  the  Nawabs  of  Oudh.  Here,  in  1752,  after  a  trying 
siege,  the  Rohillas  gave  a  bond  to  the  Marathas,  as  the  price  of  release, 


POPULATION  195 

which  was  afterwards  made  the  excuse  for  further  invasions.  Najlb 
Khan  married  Dunde  Khan's  daughter,  and  gradually  extending  his 
influence  west  of  the  Ganges,  and  at  Delhi,  obtained  the  title  of  Najlb- 
ud-daula  and  in  1757  became  paymaster  of  the  imperial  army.  His 
success  laid  him  open  to  the  attacks  of  jealous  rivals  ;  and  the  infamous 
Wazir  Ghazl-ud-din  called  in  the  Marathas,  who  besieged  Najlb-ud- 
daula  in  the  fort  of  Shukartar  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Ganges,  but 
retreated  on  the  approach  of  the  Rohillas.  After  the  battle  of  Panipat, 
where  Najlb-ud-daula  distinguished  himself,  he  became  Wazir,  and 
filled  the  highest  post  in  the  kingdom  with  credit  to  himself  and 
benefit  to  the  state.  After  his  death  in  1770  his  son,  Zabita  Khan, 
was  defeated  by  the  Marathas,  who  now  ravaged  Rohilkhand  ;  and  a  few 
years  later,  in  1774,  the  Rohilla  power  east  of  the  Ganges  was  crushed, 
and  the  final  treaty  by  which  the  territory  was  incorporated  in  Oudh 
was  concluded  at  Lai  Dhang.  The  District  was  ceded  to  the  British 
by  the  Nawab  of  Oudh  in  1801  ;  and  four  years  later  AmTr  Khan,  the 
Pindari,  rode  through  it  like  a  whirlwind,  recalling  the  raid  of  Timur  400 
years  before.    The  District  then  remained  quiet  till  the  Mutiny  of  1857. 

News  of  the  Meerut  outbreak  reached  Bijnor  on  May  13.  The 
Roorkee  sappers  mutinied  and  arrived  at  Bijnor  on  the  19th,  but  they 
passed  on  without  creating  any  disturbance,  and  the  District  remained 
quiet  till  June  r.  On  that  date  the  Nawab  of  Najlbabad,  a  grandson 
of  Zabita  Khan,  appeared  at  Bijnor  with  200  armed  Pathans.  On  the 
8th,  after  the  outbreak  at  Bareilly  and  Moradabad,  the  European 
officers  quitted  Bijnor,  and  reached  Roorkee  on  the  nth.  The  Nawab 
at  once  proclaimed  himself  as  ruler,  and  remained  in  power  till 
August  6,  when  the  Hindus  of  the  District  rose  against  the  Musalman 
authority  and  defeated  him  for  the  time.  On  the  24th  the  Muham- 
madans  returned  in  force  and  drove  out  the  Hindus.  The  latter 
attacked  their  conquerors  again  on  September  18,  but  without  success, 
and  the  Nawab  ruled  unopposed  until  April  17,  1S58.  Our  troops 
then  crossed  the  Ganges,  and  utterly  defeated  the  rebels  at  Naglna 
on  the  21st.  British  authority  was  immediately  re-established,  and 
has  not  since  been  disturbed. 

The  forests  in  the  north  of  the  District  contain  many  ancient  ruins 
and  mounds  which  have  not  been  fully  explored  ;  but  Buddhist  remains 
have  been  unearthed  in  places.  At  Najibabad,  the  tomb  of  Najlb 
Khan,  the  founder  of  the  town,  and  a  few  remains  of  other  buildings 
are  the  chief  memorials  of  Muhammadan  rule. 

The  District  contains  16  towns  and  2,132  villages.    The  village  sites 
still  preserve  the  old  compact  appearance,  which  was  the  result  of  the 
unsettled  times  when  men  built  their  houses  close 
together  for  protection,  and  there  are  few  outlying 
hamlets.    Population  has  fluctuated  considerably.    The  numbers  at  the 

o  2 


TQfi 


MINOR  DISTRICT 


last  four  enumerations  were  as  follows:  (1872)  737,153,  (r88r)  721,450, 
(1S91)  794,070,  and  (1901)  779,451.  The  variations  largely  depend  on 
the  rainfall,  excessive  rain  causing  land  to  fall  out  of  cultivation.  There 
are  four  taksfls — Bijnor,  Najibabad,  Nagina,  and  Dhampur — the 
head-quarters  of  each  heing  at  a  place  of  the  same  name.  The  chief 
towns  are  the  municipalities  of  Nagina,  Najibabad,  Bijnor  (the  Dis- 
trict head-quarters),  Chandpur,  and  Dhampur.  The  following  table 
gives  the  chief  statistics  of  population  in  1901  : — 


Tali  si  I. 


Bijnor 
Najibabad  . 
Nagina 
Dhampur  . 

District  total 


Number  of 

c 

g*« 

"'    0) 

w 

ts 

"5  a 

c 

be 

3 

£ 

a 

0. 

0 

1"^ 

0 

< 

H 

> 

Ph 

4S3 

6 

57-' 

2O3.072 

396 

2 

422 

153,896 

453 

2 

464 

15,6,898 

459 

6 

674 

2,132 

265,185 

i,79! 

16 

779,951 

o  S 

SB 

"32 


435 


, 

0 

9; 

B 

— 

0 

^  ' 

hi 

C 

c 

x; 

0 

n( 

c 

0 

■— 

0 

£ 

•w 

c 

— 

u 

a; 

c 

- 

- 

'r* 

a 

0 
0. 

(J 

422 

+     20 

389 

-   i-9 

346 

-14-3 

578 

+    4-4 

O  JU-3 

1-1:  c 
&  Is 


rt  S 


^,248 

3,55S 
2,816 

4,837 


—    l- 


16,459 


Hindus  form  64  per  cent,  of  the  total,  Musalmans  35  per  cent.,  and 
there  are  5,730  Aryas,  a  larger  number  than  in  any  District  in  the 
Provinces  except  Bulandshahr.  The  density  of  population  is  almost 
the  same  as  the  Provincial  average.  Between  1891  and  1901  Bijnor 
suffered  both  from  excessive  rain  and  from  drought.  Almost  the 
whole  population  speak  Western  Hindi,  the  prevailing  dialect  being 
Hindustani. 

Chamars  (leather-dressers  and  cultivators),  118,000,  are  the  most 
numerous  of  the  Hindu  castes,  forming  nearly  25  per  cent,  of  the  total 
Hindu  population.  Rajputs  number  72,000,  but  61,000  of  these  are 
so-called  Chauhans,  who  intermarry  among  themselves  and  therefore 
are  not  true  Rajputs.  Jats  (agriculturists),  55,000  ;  Tagas  (agricul- 
turists), 8,000 ;  and  Sainls  (cultivators),  20,000,  are  chiefly  found  in  the 
west  of  the  United  Provinces.  Brahmans  number  only  26,000.  A 
caste  peculiar  to  the  District  is  that  of  the  Ramaiyas  or  pedlars  (2,200). 
Among  Muhammadans  are  Shaikhs,  59,000  ;  Julahas  (weavers),  57,000  ; 
and  Telis  (oil-pressers),  15,000.  The  Jhojhas  (6,000)  are  not  found 
east  of  Bijnor.  Agriculture  supports  only  47  per  cent,  of  the  popula- 
tion, while  personal  services  support  8  per  cent.,  general  labour  8  per 
cent.,  and  cotton-weaving  6  per  cent.  Chauhans,  Banias,  Jats,  Tagas, 
and  Shaikhs  are  the  largest  holders  of  land ;  and  Jats,  Chauhans, 
Shaikhs,  Rawas,  and  Sainls  are  the  chief  cultivators. 

Out  of  1,853  native  Christians  in  1901,  1,824  were  Methodists.  The 
American  Methodist  Mission  has  laboured  here  since  1859,  and  has 
several  branches  in  the  District. 


AGRICULTURE 


197 


Agriculture, 


Most  of  Bijnor  is  included  in  the  uplands,  which  arc  divided  into 
three  portions.  The  western  tract,  near  the  Ganges,  consists  of  low 
sandy  ridges,  the  space  between  which  is  occupied  by 
a  fair  loam  ;  but  facilities  for  irrigation  are  not  good. 
East  of  this  tract  the  central  portion  of  the  District  forms  the  low-lying 
valley  of  the  Ban,  Gangan,  and  Karula  rivers.  This  is  decidedly  more 
fertile,  and  opportunities  for  irrigation  are  better  than  in  the  western 
tract.  Another  elevated  watershed  farther  east,  which  divides  the 
central  portion  from  the  Khoh  and  Ramganga  rivers,  is  sandy  but  more 
fertile  than  the  western  tract.  East  of  the  Ramganga  lies  an  area  the 
soil  of  which  is  moist  and  fertile,  but  the  deadly  climate  makes  cul- 
tivation fluctuate.  As  in  most  Districts  where  Tats  are  found,  equal 
care  is  devoted  to  all  good  land,  instead  of  the  lands  near  village  sites 
receiving  most  of  the  manure  available. 

The  tenures  are  those  usually  found  in  the  United  Provinces.  There 
are  4,348  zamlnddri  mahd/s,  thirty-five  pattiddri,  and  369  bhaiydchdra, 
the  local  term  for  the  last  being  landddri.  The  main  _  agricultural 
statistics  for  1903-4  are  shown  below,  in  square  miles  : — 


Tahsd. 

Total. 

Cultivated. 

Irrigated. 

Cultivable 
waste. 

Bijnor 
Najibabad 
Naglna    . 
Dhampur 

Total 

433 
396 
453 
459 

328 

188 

'97 
320 

8 

7 

'4 
39 

53 
66 

148 
5i 

i>79J 

1,033 

68 

3iS 

The  chief  food-crops,  with  their  areas  in  square  miles  in  1903-4,  are  : 
rice  (221),  wheat  (271),  barley  (115),  bajra  (120),  and  gram  (98). 
Sugar-cane  is  the  most  important  of  the  other  crops,  covering  105 
square  miles.     Cotton  and  oilseeds  are  also  largely  grown. 

Cultivation  has  not  extended  within  the  last  forty  years  ;  but  the  area 
sown  with  the  more  valuable  crops — such  as  rice,  sugar-cane,  and  wheat 
— has  increased,  the  area  double  cropped  is  rising,  and  a  better  variety 
of  wheat  has  been  introduced.  Loans  under  the  Land  Improvement 
and  Agriculturists'  Loans  Acts  are  not  taken  to  any  large  extent, 
amounting  to  only  Rs.  77,000  between  1890  and  1903,  of  which 
Rs.  40,000  was  advanced  in  the  famine  year  1896-7. 

The  ordinary  breed  of  cattle  is  inferior  ;  but  the  forests  provide 
ample  grazing  for  cattle  from  other  Districts.  An  attempt  has  been 
made  to  improve  the  breed  of  horses,  and  two  Government  stallions 
are  kept.  Mule-breeding  has  become  popular,  and  several  donkey 
stallions  are  maintained.      The  sheep  are  of  the  ordinary  inferior  type. 

Bijnor  is  remarkable  for  the  small  extent  of  its  irrigation  by  artificial 
means.      In    1903-4  canals  supplied    26    square   miles,   wells 


5h  and 


i98  BIJNOR  DISTRICT 

other  sources  9.  The  canals  are  small  works,  those  drawn  from  the 
Khoh  and  Gangan  rivers  being  maintained  by  Government ;  while 
a  third  canal,  drawn  from  the  Malin,  is  a  private  enterprise.  Some  of 
the  rivers  are  used  directly  for  irrigation,  especially  in  years  of  drought. 
Masonry  wells  are  practically  never  used  for  irrigation  ;  and  water 
is  generally  obtained,  where  required,  from  shallow  temporary  wells, 
from  which  it  is  raised  in  a  pot  by  a  lever. 

Three  portions  of  the  forest  land  in  the  District  are  '  reserved  '  under 
the  Forest  Act.  The  Chandi  forest  of  60  square  miles,  which  includes 
the  hills  in  the  north  of  the  District,  some  islands  in  the  Ganges,  and 
part  of  the  plains,  is  part  of  the  Ganges  division  of  the  Western  Circle. 
In  the  northern  half  sal  (Shorea  robusta)  is  well  established  ;  but 
the  southern  portions  are  more  open.  The  forest  supplies  bamboos 
and  other  minor  products  to  Hardwar,  and  the  revenue  varies  from 
Rs.  10,000  to  Rs.  20,000.  The  Rehar  forest  is  situated  in  the 
south-east  of  the  District  and  belongs  to  the  Garhwal  forest  division. 
Its  area  is  26  square  miles ;  and  sal  and  other  timber,  fuel,  and 
grass  are  supplied  to  inhabitants  of  the  neighbourhood,  the  revenue 
varying  from  Rs.  2,000  to  Rs.  7,000.  The  Amsot  and  Mohanwali 
Reserves,  managed  by  the  Collector,  include  an  area  of  8  square 
miles. 

Kankar  or  nodular  limestone  is  extremely  rare,  and  is  generally 
imported  from  Moradabad.  Lime  is  made  from  the  limestone  found 
in  the  Chandi  hills. 

The  chief  industry  of  the   District  is  the  manufacture  of  raw  and 

refined    sugar,  which    are   largely   exported.     Coarse   cotton   cloth   is 

woven  in  many  parts,  and  in  a  few  towns  a  finer 

ra  e. a°.  material  is  produced.     There  are  small  local  indus- 

communications.  l 

tries  at  several  places,  such  as  the  manufacture  of 
Brahmanical  threads  (ja?ieo)  at  Bijnor,  papier  mache  at  Mandawar, 
carved  ebony,  glassware,  and  ropes  at  NagTna,  and  ironwork  at 
Dhampur. 

Sugar  and  forest  produce  are  the  chief  exports,  while  gram  and  other 
grain,  salt,  piece-goods,  and  metals  are  imported.  The  grain  and  salt 
come  chiefly  from  the  Punjab.  The  trade  of  Western  Kumaun  largely 
passes  through  the  District  from  Kotdwara  at  the  foot  of  the  hills. 
The  chief  commercial  centres  are  the  towns  of  Seohara,  Dhampur, 
Nagina,  and  Najibabad  on  the  railway.  Before  the  railway  was 
opened,  sugar  was  exported  by  road  to  Meerut  or  Muzaffarnagar ;  but 
the  railway  now  takes  about  four-fifths  of  the  total  exports. 

The  main  line  of  the  Oudh  and  Rohilkhand  Railway  passes  through 
the  centre  of  the  District,  with  a  branch  from  Najibabad  to  Kotdwara 
at  the  foot  of  the  Himalayas  in  Garhwal  District.  A  line  from 
Gajraula  on  the  Moradabad-Ghaziabad   Railway  to  Chandpur  in  the 


ADMINISTRA  TION  1 99 

south  of  the  District  has  been  surveyed.  Communications  are  very 
defective.  Only  39  miles  of  road  are  metalled,  while  553  miles  are 
unmetalled.  All  the  former  and  17  miles  of  the  latter  are  maintained 
by  the  Public  Works  department ;  but  the  cost  of  repairs  is  met  almost 
entirely  from  Local  funds.  The  metalled  roads  radiate  from  Bijnor 
town  to  the  railway  at  Nagina,  and  to  the  Ganges  on  the  Meerut  and 
Muzaffarnagar  roads.  The  tracts  most  in  need  of  improved  roads  are 
the  northern  Ganges  khadar  and  the  area  north-east  of  the  railway. 
Avenues  of  trees  are  maintained  on  95  miles. 

Bijnor  has  suffered  comparatively  little  from  drought.  The  natural 
moistness  of  the  soil  and  the  rarity  of  a  complete  failure  of  the  rains, 
due  to  the  proximity  of  the  hills,  combine  to  save 
a  crop  in  most  years,  while  the  profits  from  sugar- 
cane have  been  fairly  constant.  The  dependence  for  food-grains  on 
other  tracts  is  the  most  serious  factor  in  prolonged  drought.  In 
1803-4  famine  was  severely  felt;  but  Bijnor  escaped  distress  in  later 
years  till  1837-8,  when  Rs.  91,000  of  the  revei.ue  demand  was  remitted. 
Famine  attacked  the  District  in  1 860-1,  when  Rs.  32,000  was  spent 
on  relief,  and  in  1868-9  the  expenditure  was  i-8  lakhs.  In  1878  the 
number  on  relief  works  rose  to  over  22,000.  Bijnor  again  escaped 
lightly  in  1896-7,  when  relief  works  were  opened  but  did  not  attract 
considerable  numbers. 

The  Collector  is  assisted  by  a  member  of  the  Indian  Civil  Service 

(when  available),  and  by    two  Deputy-Collectors    recruited  in   India. 

A   tahslldar  is    stationed   at    the   head-quarters    of  ... 

,       r    ,       ,         ,   7  -j  Administration, 

each  of  the  four  tahsils. 

There  are  two  regular  District  Munsifs,  and  village  Munsifs  have 
recently  been  appointed.  The  District  is  included  in  the  Civil  and 
Sessions  Judgeship  of  Moradabad,  criminal  work  being  usually  dis- 
posed of  by  the  Additional  Judge.  Crime  is  not  heavy,  and  Bijnor 
is  not  remarkable  for  any  special  offences.  Female  infanticide  was 
formerly  suspected  in  the  case  of  the  Jats,  and  in  1904  as  many  as 
1,884  persons  were  still  registered  and  under  surveillance. 

Bijnor,  when  acquired  by  cession  in  1801,  formed  the  northern  sub- 
division of  the  new  District  of  Moradabad.  In  181 7  it  was  constituted 
a  separate  charge  with  head-quarters  at  Nagina,  and  in  1824  Bijnor 
became  the  capital.  The  early  settlements  were  for  short  periods,  and 
were  based  on  rough  statements  of  area  and  probable  out  turn  and 
on  a  consideration  of  previous  collections.  Up  to  1822  the  system  of 
administration  was  one  of  farming  ;  but  in  that  year  proprietary  rights 
were  first  recognized.  A  rough  survey  was  commenced  about  1827,  and 
the  first  regular  settlement  on  modern  principles  was  made  under 
Regulation  IX  of  1833  between  1834  and  1839.  It  was  preceded  by 
a  regular  survey  and   was  carried  out  in  the  usual  method,  by  ascer- 


200 


BIJNOR  DISTRICT 


taining  standard  rent  and  revenue  rates.  The  revenue  fixed  was  11-2 
lakhs,  which,  though  very  uneven,  was  much  more  moderate  than  earlier 
settlements.  Another  revision  took  place  between  1863  and  1874,  when 
a  revenue  of  n -8  lakhs  was  assessed.  The  last  resettlement  of  the 
District  was  made  between  1893  and  1898,  but  four  parganas  were 
settled  in  1901-2.  The  revenue  then  fixed  amounted  to  14-5  lakhs,  or 
about  46  per  cent,  of  the  net  '  assets.'  The  incidence  is  a  little  more 
than  R.  1  an  acre,  varying  from  about  5  annas  to  slightly  more  than 
Rs.  2.  Assessments  of  revenue  in  Bijnor  have  always  been  difficult, 
owing  to  the  prevalence  of  grain  rents.  Cash  rents  are  always  taken  on 
account  of  sugar-cane  and  cotton,  but  the  produce  of  other  crops  is 
divided  equally  between  the  landlord  and  the  tenant.  Another  custom 
exists  by  which  for  a  short  period,  usually  three  to  five  years,  the  owner 
of  a  village  agrees  with  the  whole  cultivating  community  to  receive  from 
them  a  lump  sum  in  place  of  the  cash  rents  and  a  share  of  produce. 
The  latest  revision  of  settlement  was  largely  based  on  rent  rates  derived 
from  these  leases.  The  soil  was  classified,  and  rates  paid  for  different 
classes  were  ascertained. 

Collections  on  account  of  land  revenue  and  total  revenue  have  been, 
in  thousands  of  rupees  : — 


1880-1. 

180C-1. 

1900-1.       1903-4. 

Land  revenue 
Total  revenue 

1  2.29 
13,87 

1 '  ,93 
l6-57 

16,07         i-b2' 
21,59         I9w7 

There  are  five  municipalities:  Nagina,  Najibabad,  Bijnor, 
Chandpur,  and  Dhampur  ;  and  eight  towns  are  administered  under 
Act  XX  of  1856.  Beyond  the  limits  of  these,  local  affairs  are  managed 
by  the  District  board,  which  has  an  income  and  expenditure  of  about 
a  lakh.     In  1903-4  roads  and  buildings  cost  Rs.  69,000. 

The  District  contains  20  police  stations ;  and  the  Superintendent  of 
police  commands  a  force  of  4  inspectors,  75  subordinate  officers,  and 
30S  constables,  besides  210  municipal  and  town  police,  and  1,827 
rural  and  road  police.  The  District  jail  contained  a  daily  average  of 
256  prisoners  in  1903. 

Few  Districts  in  the  United  Provinces  are  so  backward  in  regard  to 
literacy  as  Bijnor.  In  1901  only  2  per  cent.  (3-9  males  and  0-2  females) 
could  read  and  write.  The  number  of  public  schools  increased  from 
128  with  3,991  pupils  in  18S0-1  to  204  with  8,588  pupils  in  1900-1. 
In  1903-4  there  were  209  public  schools  with  9,307  pupils,  including 
537  girls,  besides  250  private  schools  with  3,768  pupils.  Three  of 
the  schools  are  managed  by  Government  and  107  by  the  District  and 
municipal  boards.  Out  of  a  total  expenditure  on  education  of 
Rs.  46,000,  Local  funds  contributed   Rs.  35,000  and   fees    Rs.  9,000. 


BIJNOR  TOWN  2or 

An  attempt  has  been  made  by  the  Arya  Samaj  to  revive  the  old  Hindu 
system  of  education,  and  a  Gurukul  has  been  founded  at  Kangri  in  the 
north  of  the  District. 

There  are  10  hospitals  and  dispensaries,  with  accommodation  for 
88  in-patients.  The  number  of  cases  treated  in  1903  was  89,000,  of 
whom  1,500  were  in-patients,  and  400  operations  were  performed.  The 
expenditure  was  Rs.  15,000,  most  of  which  was  met  from  Local  funds. 

About  26,800  persons  were  successfully  vaccinated  in  1903-4,  repre- 
senting a  proportion  of  34  per  1,000  of  population.  Vaccination  is 
compulsory  only  in  the  municipalities. 

[District  Gazetteer  (1879,  under  revision);  F.  J.  Pert,  Settlement 
Report  (1899).] 

Bijnor  Tahsil. — Western  tahsil  of  Bijnor  District,  United  Pro- 
vinces, comprising  theparganas  of  Bijnor,  Daranagar,  Mandawar,  Chand- 
pur,  and  Bashta,  and  lying  between  290  r'and  290  38'  N.  and  7S°o/and 
7 8°  25'  E.,  with  an  area  of  483  square  miles.  Population  increased 
from  200,039  in  1891  to  203,972  in  1901.  There  are  572  villages  and 
six  towns,  the  largest  of  which  are  Bijnor  (population,  17,583),  the 
District  and  tahsil  head-quarters,  Chandpur  (12,586),  Mandawar 
(7,210),  Jhalu  (6,444),  and  Haldaur  (5,628).  The  demand  for  land 
revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  3,96,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  64,000.  The 
density  of  population,  422  persons  per  square  mile,  is  slightly  below  the 
District  average.  The  tahsil  is  bounded  on  the  west  by  the  Ganges, 
and  the  Malin  crosses  its  northern  portion.  Near  the  Ganges  is  a  rich 
alluvial  tract,  from  which  a  gentle  ascent  leads  to  the  sandy  uplands. 
In  1903-4  the  area  under  cultivation  was  328  square  miles,  of  which 
only  8  were  irrigated. 

Bijnor  Town  (Bijnaur).  —  Head-quarters  of  the  District  and  tahsil 
of  the  same  name,  United  Provinces,  situated  in  290  22'  N.  and  780  8'  E., 
on  a  metalled  road  19  miles  from  Naglna  station  on  the  Oudh  and 
Rohilkhand  Railway.  Population  (1901),  17,583,  of  whom  9,429  were 
Musalmans.  According  to  tradition,  the  town  was  founded  by  the 
mythical  Raja  Ben  or  Vena.  Its  early  history  is,  however,  a  blank 
until  the  time  of  Akbar,  when  Bijnor  gave  its  name  to  a  mahdl  or 
pargana.  In  the  seventeenth  century  it  was  the  rallying-place  of 
the  Jats,  who  struggled  long  with  the  Musalmans.  It  became  the 
head-quarters  of  the  District  in  1824,  and  was  occupied  in  the  Mutiny 
by  the  rebel  Nawab  of  Najibabad.  The  town  stands  on  undulating 
ground  3  miles  east  of  the  Ganges,  and  is  well  paved  and  drained.  Be- 
sides the  District  offices,  it  contains  male  and  female  dispensaries,  the 
District  jail,  and  the  head-quarters  of  the  American  Methodist  Mission 
in  the  District.  Bijnor  has  been  a  municipality  since  1866.  During 
the  ten  years  ending  1901  the  income  and  expenditure  averaged 
Rs.  11,000.     In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  17,000,  chiefly  from  octroi 


20  2  BIJNOR   TOWN 

(Rs.  12,000);  and  the  expenditure  was  Rs.  16,000.  There  is  some 
trade  in  sugar,  and  the  pocket-knives  and  Brahmanical  threads  (ianeo) 
made  here  enjoy  more  than  a  local  reputation.  The  District  school 
has  155  pupils,  a  middle  school  282,  a  girls'  school  48,  and  8  aided 
schools  300  boys  and  30  girls. 

Bijnot  ( Winjhrot). — Ancient  fort  in  the  Bahawalpur  State,  Punjab, 
situated  in  280  5'  N.  and  71°  45'  E.  According  to  tradition,  it  was 
erected  by  Raja  Wanjho  or  Bija  Bhatia,  and  demolished  by  Shahab- 
ud-din  Ghori  in  11 75,  its  first  mention  in  history.  Another  tradition 
preserved  by  Colonel  Tod  assigns  its  foundation  to  Tunno,  father  of 
Bija  Rai  (the  Bija  of  the  former  legend)  and  grandfather  of  Deoraj,  the 
founder  of  Derawar.  It  was  included  in  a  fief  of  the  Delhi  empire 
under  Altamsh,  and  subsequently  formed  part  of  the  Subah  of  Multan. 

Bijolia. — Chief  town  of  an  estate  of  the  same  name  in  the  State  of 
Udaipur,  Rajputana,  situated  in  250  ro'  N.  and  750  20'  E.,  close  to  the 
Bundi  border  and  about  112  miles  north-east  of  Udaipur  city.  The 
estate  consists  of  83  villages,  and  is  held  by  one  of  the  first-class  nobles 
of  Mewar,  who  has  the  title  of  Rao  Sawai ;  its  income  is  about 
Rs.  57,600,  and  a  tribute  of  Rs.  2,860  is  paid  to  the  Darbar.  The 
Raos  of  Bijolia  are  Ponwar  Rajputs,  and  their  ancestor  is  said  to  have 
come  to  Mewar  from  Bayana  in  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century. 
The  ancient  name  of  Bijolia  was  Vindhyavalli ;  it  is  a  small  walled 
town,  picturesquely  situated  on  a  plateau  called  the  Uparmal.  Among 
places  of  antiquarian  interest  may  be  mentioned  three  Sivaite  temples, 
probably  of  the  tenth  century;  a  reservoir  with  steps,  called  the 
MandakinI  Baori ;  five  Jain  temples  dedicated  to  Parasnath ;  and  the 
remains  of  a  palace  built  in  the  twelfth  century.  There  are  also  two 
rock  inscriptions  of  the  period  last  mentioned ;  one  gives  the  genealogy 
of  the  Chauhans  of  Ajmer  from  Chahuman  to  Someshvvar  (see  Journal, 
Asiatic  Society,  Bengal,  vol.  lx,  part  i,  p.  40),  and  the  other  is  a  Jain 
poem  called  Unnathshikhar  Puran  (unpublished). 

[J.  Tod,  Annals  and  Antiquities  of  Rajasthan,  vol.  ii  (1832)  ; 
A.   Cunningham,  Archaeological  Survey  of  Northern    India,    vol.    vi, 

PP-  234-52-] 

BIkaner  State. — The  second  largest  State  in  Rajputana,  lying  in 

the  extreme  north  of  the  Agency,  between   270   12'  and   30°   12'  N. 

and  720  12'  and  750  41'  E.,  with  an  area  of  23,311  square  miles.     It 

is  bounded  on  the  north  and  west  by  Bahawalpur ;  on  the  south-west 

by    Jaisalmer ;    on   the   south  by    Marwar ;    on  the  south-east  by  the 

Shekhawati  district  of  Jaipur;  on  the  east  by  Loha.ru  and  Hissar;  and 

on  the  north-east  by  Ferozepore.  The  southern  and 
Physical         eastern  portions  of  the  State  form  part  of  the  vast 

sandy  tract  known  as  the  Bagar  ;  the  north-west  and 
part  of  the  north  lie  within  the  Great  Indian  Desert,  while  the  north- 


BIKANER  STATE  203 

east  corner  is  the  least  infertile  section.  The  surface  of  the  country  is 
for  the  most  part  covered  with  undulating  sandhills  from  20  to  over 
100  feet  high,  the  slopes  of  which,  lightly  furrowed  by  the  action  of  the 
wind,  suggest  the  ribbed  appearance  of  the  sea-shore.  The  only  rocky 
hills  deserving  the  name  are  in  the  south,  close  to  the  borders  of  Marwar 
and  Jaipur,  and  the  highest  of  them,  near  Gopalpura,  is  only  600  feet 
above  the  level  of  the  plain.  The  general  aspect  of  Bikaner  is  dreary 
and  desolate  in  the  extreme.  Elphinstone,  who  passed  through  in  1808 
on  his  way  towards  Kabul,  wrote  that,  within  a  short  distance  of  the 
capital,  the  country  was  as  waste  as  the  wildest  parts  of  Arabia  ;  but 
during  and  just  after  the  rains  it  wears  a  very  different  appearance, 
becoming  a  vast  green  pasture-land  covered  with  the  richest  and  most 
succulent  grasses.  The  only  rivers  are  the  Ghaggar  in  the  north-east 
and  the  Katli  in  the  east.  The  former  once  flowed  through  the 
northern  part  of  the  State  and,  according  to  Tod,  joined  the  Indus ; 
but  it  is  now  dry,  except  in  the  rains,  and  even  then  the  water  rarely 
flows  more  than  a  mile  or  two  west  of  Hanumangarh.  By  the  con- 
struction in  1897,  at  the  joint  expense  of  the  British  Government  and 
the  Darbar,  of  a  weir  at  Otu,  about  8  miles  west  of  Sirsa,  the  water  of 
the  Ghaggar  is  now  utilized  for  feeding  two  canals  which  form  the  only 
important  irrigation  works  in  the  State.  The  Katli  is  a  river  of  Jaipur 
which,  in  years  of  good  rainfall,  flows  for  a  few  miles  into  Bikaner 
territory  in  the  south  of  the  Rajgarh  tahsil. 

There  are  two  salt  lakes,  one  at  Chhapar  in  the  south  near  Sujan- 
garh  and  the  other  at  Lunkaransar,  5 1  miles  north-east  of  the  capital ; 
both  are  small,  and  the  latter  only  is  worked  now.  Of  artificial  lakes 
the  most  notable  is  that  at  Gajner,  19  miles  south-west  of  Bikaner  city, 
where  the  Maharaja  has  a  palace,  shooting-box,  and  garden. 

Nearly  the  whole  of  the  State  is  covered  with  blown  sand  driven  up 
from  the  Rann  of  Cutch  by  the  prevailing  south-west  winds ;  the  sand- 
hills are  of  the  transverse  type,  with  their  longer  axes  at  right  angles  to 
the  direction  of  the  wind.  Nummulitic  rocks,  limestones,  and  clays 
crop  out  from  beneath  the  sands  and  are  found  in  wells  ;  coal  was  dis- 
covered in  these  rocks  in  a  well  at  Palana  in  1896,  and  fuller's  earth 
is  found  in  the  same  formation.  At  Dalmera,  42  miles  north-east  of 
the  capital,  there  is  a  small  outcrop  of  Vindhyan  sandstone,  which  is 
largely  quarried  for  building  purposes ;  and  superficial  deposits  of 
gypsum  occur  in  various  parts. 

There  are  no  forests,  and,  for  want  of  water,  trees  are  scarce.  The 
commonest  is  the  khejra  (Prosopis  spicigera),  the  pods,  bark,  and  leaves 
of  which  are  eaten  by  cattle,  and  in  times  of  famine  by  the  poor.  Next 
come  the  jal  (Salvadora  oleoides)  and  the  khair  {Acacia  Catechu).  The 
babul  (Acacia  arabicd)  is  found  on  the  sandhills  ;  a  few  shlsham  trees 
(Dalbergia  Sissoo)  grow  spontaneously  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Sujan 


2o4  B  IK  A  NEE  STATE 

garh,  and  there  are  plantations  of  ber  (Zizyphus  Jujuba)  and  other  trees 
at  the  capital.  The  best  timber  produced  is  that  of  the  rohlra  ( Tecoma 
undulatd).  Of  bushes,  the  most  common  is  \hv  phog  {Calligonum);  its 
twigs  and  roots  are  used  to  support  the  sides  of  wells  and  supply 
material  for  huts,  while  its  buds  are  eaten  with  buttermilk  and  con- 
diments by  the  poor.  The  sajji  (Sa/so/a)  is  a  valuable  plant  which 
grows  plentifully  in  the  firm  soil  north  of  the  Ghaggar,  and  in  the 
south-west  of  the  Anupgarh  subdivision  ;  an  impure  carbonate  of  soda, 
used  in  washing  and  dyeing  cloth,  is  obtained  by  burning  the  plant. 
The  land,  a  shrub  of  the  same  species,  but  of  a  darker  colour,  is 
generally  found  in  conjunction  with  the  sajji  and  yields  soda  of  an 
inferior  quality.  The  large  number  of  excellent  fodder-grasses  for 
which  Blkaner  is  famous  make  the  country,  in  years  of  even  fair  rain- 
fall, one  of  the  best  grazing-grounds  in  India. 

The  fauna  is  not  very  varied.  The  Indian  gazelle  is  common  every- 
where, and  antelope  and  wolves  are  met  with  in  the  north.  Wild  hog 
are  generally  to  be  found  in  the  bed  of  the  Ghaggar,  and  there  are 
sanctuaries  for  them  at  Gajner  and  the  capital.  The  State  is  famous 
for  its  imperial  sand-grouse,  of  which,  in  a  good  year,  enormous  bags 
can  be  made  ;  and  there  are  a  good  many  bustard,  especially  the  lesser 
species  ijioubard). 

The  climate  is  dry  and  generally  healthy,  though  characterized  by 
extraordinary  extremes  of  temperature.  During  the  summer  the  heat 
is  exceedingly  great ;  hot  winds  blow  with  great  force  in  May,  June, 
and  part  of  July,  heavy  sandstorms  are  of  frequent  occurrence,  and  the 
sun  is  so  powerful  that  even  the  people  of  the  country  fear  to  travel  in 
the  middle  of  the  day.  On  the  other  hand,  the  cold  in  the  winter  is 
generally  intense,  and  trees  and  vegetation  are  not  infrequently  injured 
by  the  frost.  The  average  mean  temperature  at  the  capital  is  about 
8i°,  with  a  mean  daily  range  of  about  220. 

The  annual  rainfall  for  the  whole  State  averages  a  little  under 
12  inches,  varying  from  less  than  6  inches  in  the  north-west  to  over 
14  inches  in  the  south-east  and  east.  About  two-thirds  of  the  rain 
is  received  in  July  and  August.  The  heaviest  fall  in  any  one  year 
was  nearly  45  inches  at  Churu,  in  the  south-east,  in  1892,  while  in 
1885  less  than  half  an  inch  fell  at  Anupgarh  in  the  north-west  and 
at  Hanumangarh  in  the  north-east. 

The  State  was  founded  by  Bika,  a  Rathor  Rajput,  the  sixth  son  of 
Rao  Jodha,  chief  of  Marwar.  He  is  said  to  have  been  born  in  1439, 
and  twenty-six  years  later,  accompanied  by  his  uncle 
Kandhal,  his  brother  Blda,  and  others  of  less  repute, 
started  out  to  conquer  the  country  now  known  as  Blkaner.  The 
territory  was  at  that  time  occupied  partly  by  various  Rajput  clans,  such 
as  the  Bhatis,  the  Chauhans,  the  Mohils,  and  the  Johiyas  :  partly  by 


HISTORY  205 

Tats,  and  partly  by  Musalmans,  prominent  among  whom  were  the 
Bhattis,  or,  in  other  words,  Bhati  Rajputs  converted  to  Islam.  Rika 
appears  to  have  been  first  opposed  by  the  Bhatis  in  the  west,  but,  by 
marrying  the  daughter  of  the  Rao  of  Pugal  (whose  descendant  is  one  of 
the  principal  nobles  of  the  State  at  the  present  time),  he  allied  himself 
with  the  most  powerful  Bhati  family  in  that  region.  He  next  came  in 
contact  with  the  Jats,  who  were  constantly  quarrelling  with  each  other ; 
the  most  influential  clan  of  this  tribe  is  said  to  have  been  that  of  the 
Godaras,  who  determined  to  conciliate  the  invader.  Accordingly,  they 
voluntarily  acknowledged  the  sovereignty  of  Blka,  on  certain  conditions 
accepted  by  the  latter,  who  further  bound  himself  and  his  successors  to 
receive  the  tlka  of  inauguration  from  the  hands  of  the  descendants  of 
the  head  of  this  clan ;  and  to  this  day  the  headman  of  the  Godaras 
applies  '  the  unguent  of  royalty  to  the  forehead  of  Bika's  successors.' 
Soon  afterwards  the  rest  of  the  Jats  were  subdued;  and  in  1485  Blka 
founded  the  small  fort  (at  the  capital)  which  still  bears  his  name,  while 
the  building  of  the  city  itself  was  begun  in  i^S8.  Blka  died  in  1504  ; 
and  his  successors  gradually  extended  and  consolidated  their  posses- 
sions, until  in  1541  Maldeo,  chief  of  Marwar,  invaded  the  country,  slew 
the  Rao,  Jet  Singh,  captured  the  fort  at  the  capital,  and  possessed  him- 
self of  about  half  the  territory.  The  fort  was,  however,  retaken  by 
Bikaner  troops  in  1544  ;  and  in  the  same  year  Kalyan  Singh,  son  and 
successor  of  Jet  Singh,  joined  the  imperial  army  near  Delhi,  marched 
with  it  to  Ajmer,  and  was  present  at  the  battle  near  that  city  in 
which  Maldeo  was  defeated.  This  is  the  first  mention  of  intercourse 
between  the  Bikaner  State  and  the  Muhammadan  emperors  of  Delhi. 

In  1570  Kalyan  Singh  and  his  son  Rai  Singh  waited  on  Akbar  at 
Nagaur  (in  Marwar),  where,  in  the  words  of  the  latter's  historian1,  '  the 
loyalty  and  sincerity  of  both  father  and  son  being  manifest,  the  emperor 
married  Kalyan  Singh's  daughter.'  Rai  Singh  succeeded  his  father  in 
1 57 1  and  ruled  for  forty  years;  he  was  the  first  Raja,  of  Bikaner,  was 
one  of  Akbar's  most  distinguished  generals,  serving  in  the  country 
round  Attock,  in  Gujarat,  the  Deccan,  Sind  and  other  parts,  and  was 
rewarded  with  a  grant  of  52  districts,  including  Hansi  and  Hissar.  He 
had  a  place  on  the  list  of  mansabdars  higher  than  any  other  Hindu 
except  the  chief  of  Amber  (Jaipur) ;  and  in  1586  he  gave  his  daughter 
in  marriage  to  Sallm  (afterwards  the  emperor  Jahanglr),  their  son, 
Parwez,  being  one  of  those  who  unsuccessfully  strove  for  the  empire 
with  Shah  Jahan.  The  main  fort  of  Bikaner  was  built  during  Rai 
Singh's  rule.  The  next  chief  of  note  was  Karan  Singh  (1631-69),  who, 
in  the  struggle  between  the  sons  of  Shah  Jahan  for  the  imperial  throne, 
threw  in  his  lot  with  the  fortunate  Aurangzeb.  His  last  service  was 
in  the  Deccan,  where  he  founded  three  villages— namely,  Karanpura, 

1   II.  M.  Elliot.  History  of  India,  vol.  v,  pp.  335-6. 


zo6  BIKANER  STATE 

Padampura,  and  Kesri  Singhpura — which  were  held  by  the  Darbar 
till  1904,  when  they,  together  with  a  fourth  village  named  Kokan- 
wari,  were  transferred  to  the  British  Government  in  exchange  for 
two  villages  in  Hissar  District  and  a  cash  payment  of  Rs.  25,000. 
Karan  Singh's  eldest  son,  Anup  Singh  (1669-98),  also  served  with 
distinction  in  the  Deccan,  took  a  prominent  part  in  the  capture  of 
Golconda,  and  was  made  a  Maharaja,  a  title  since  held  by  his 
successors. 

Throughout  the  eighteenth  century  there  was  constant  fighting 
between  Bikaner  and  Jodhpur,  and  much  land  was  alternately  lost  and 
won.  In  1788  Surat  Singh  succeeded  to  the  chiefship,  and  twenty 
years  later  occurred  the  eighth  invasion  of  Bikaner  by  Jodhpur ;  and  it 
was  while  the  army  of  the  latter  State  was  in  a  half-hearted  manner 
besieging  the  fort  that  Elphinstone  passed  through  Bikaner  on  his 
mission  to  Kabul.  Maharaja  Surat  Singh  treated  him  with  great  respect 
and  applied  for  the  protection  of  the  British  Government,  but  this 
request  could  not  be  granted  as  it  was  opposed  to  the  policy  then 
prevailing.  Between  1809  and  18 13  Surat  Singh,  whose  extortions 
knew  no  bounds  and  whose  cruelty  kept  pace  with  his  avarice  and 
his  fears,  plundered,  fined,  and  murdered  his  Thakurs,  with  the  result 
that  in  181 5  there  was  a  more  or  less  general  rebellion.  The  ousted 
Thakurs  recovered  their  estates,  ravaged  the  country,  and  defied  the 
Darbar;  Amir  Khan  appeared  on  the  scene  in  1816,  and  the  insurrec- 
tion had  become  so  serious  that  the  Maharaja  again  asked  for  British 
aid.  A  treaty  was  concluded  on  March  9,  1818,  and  British  troops 
entered  the  State,  captured  twelve  forts  and  restored  them  to  the 
Darbar,  and  suppressed  the  insurgents.  Surat  Singh  died  in  1828  and 
was  succeeded  by  his  son  Ratan  Singh,  who,  in  violation  of  his 
treaty  engagements,  invaded  Jaisalmer  to  revenge  some  injuries  com- 
mitted by  subjects  of  the  latter.  Jaisalmer  had  prepared  an  army  to 
repel  the  invasion,  and  both  parties  had  applied  to  neighbouring  States 
for  assistance,  when  the  British  Government  interfered,  and,  through 
the  arbitration  of  the  Maharana  of  Udaipur,  the  dispute  was  settled. 
In  1830  the  chief  again  found  some  of  his  nobles  troublesome  and 
applied  for  British  aid  to  reduce  them,  but  this  could  not  be  granted. 
During  the  next  five  years  dacoity  was  so  rife  on  the  border  to  the 
south  and  south-east  that  it  was  decided  to  raise  a  special  force  to 
suppress  it.  This  force  was  called  the  Shekhawati  Brigade,  and  for 
seven  years  the  Bikaner  State  contributed  Rs.  22,000  towards  its 
cost.  The  Thakurs  continued  their  plundering  for  a  time,  but  the 
brigade,  under  the  vigorous  leadership  of  Major  Forster,  soon  brought 
them  to  order.  In  1842  the  Maharaja  supplied  200  camels  for  the 
Afghan  expedition  ;  in  1844  he  agreed  to  a  reduced  scale  of  duties  on 
goods  in  transit  through  his  country,  and  he  assisted  Government  in 


HISTORY  207 

both    the   Sikh    campaigns.       Ratan    Singh    died    in    1851,    and    was 
succeeded  by  his  son,  Sardar  Singh.     He  did  good  service  during  the 
Mutiny  by  sheltering  Europeans  and  co-operating  against  the  rebels  of 
Hansi  and  Hissar,  and  as  a  reward  received  in   1861  a  grant  of  the 
Tibi  pargana,  consisting  of  forty-one  villages  in  Sirsa  District.     Sardar 
Singh's  rule  was  remarkable  for  the  constant  change  of  ministers,  of 
whom  there  were  no  less  than  eighteen  in  the  twenty-one  years.     For 
a  few  years  the  State  was  well  administered  ;   but  subsequently  affairs 
fell   into   confusion,   a   large    amount   of  debt  was  incurred,  and  the 
exactions  of  the  Maharaja,  in  his  anxiety  to  increase  the  revenue,  gave 
rise  to  much  discontent.     In  1868  the  Thakurs  again  rose  to  resist  the 
extortions  of  their  chief;    a  Political  officer  was  deputed,  and  affairs 
were  for  the  time  amicably  arranged.     Sardar  Singh  died  on  May  16, 
1872.    He  had  received  a  sanad  of  adoption  in  1862,  and  his  widow 
and  the  principal  persons  of  the  State  selected  Dungar  Singh  as  his 
successor.      The  choice  was  confirmed  by  Government,  and  Dungar 
Singh  was  invested  with  full  powers  in  1873.     The  principal  event  of 
his  time  was  the  rebellion  of  the  Thakurs  in  1883.    This  was  due  to 
an  attempt  on  the  part  of  the  chief  to  increase  the   amount   of  the 
tribute  payable  by  them  in  lieu  of  military  service,  and  it  was  not  till 
a  British  force  from  Naslrabad  had  marched  a  considerable  distance 
towards  Blkaner  that  the  majority  of  the  Thakurs  surrendered  uncon- 
ditionally to  the  Political  Agent.     Some  of  them  still  held  together,  but 
eventually  gave  in.     A    Political  Agent  was    permanently   located   at 
Blkaner,  and  the  differences  between  the  chief  and  his  nobles  were 
gradually  adjusted.     Dungar  Singh  died  in  1887  without  issue,  having 
shortly  before  his  death  adopted  his  brother,  Ganga  Singh.   The  choice 
was  approved  by  Government,  and  Maharaja  Ganga  Singh,  who  was 
born  in  1880,  succeeded  as  the  twenty-first  chief  of  Blkaner.     He  was 
educated  at  the  Mayo  College  at  Ajmer,  and  was  invested  with  full 
powers  in  1898.     During  his  minority  the  State  was  administered  by 
a  council  presided  over  by  the  Political  Agent.     The  principal  events 
of  the  present  rule  have  been  the  raising  of  an  Imperial  Service  camel 
corps  (which  has  served  in  China  and  more  recently  in  Somaliland)  ; 
the  construction  of  a  railway  from  the  Marwar  border  in  the  south  to 
the    Punjab    border   in    the   north-east ;    the   conversion  of  the  local 
currency  ;  the  discovery  of  a  coal-mine  at  Palana  ;  and  the  great  famine 
of  1 899-1 900,  in  relieving  which  the  young  chief,  within  a  year  of 
receiving  full  powers,  took  the  most  active  personal  part.     Maharaja 
Ganga   Singh  holds  the  Kaisar-i-Hind  medal  of  the  first  class,  is  an 
honorary  major  in  the  Indian  Army,  took  part  in  the  China  campaign, 
is  a  G.C.I. E.,  a  K.C.S.I.,  and  A.D.C  to  H.R.H.  the  Prince  of  Wales. 
The  State  pays  no  tribute,   and  the  chief  is  entitled  to  a  salute  of 
17  guns. 


2oS 


BIKANER  STATE 


The  number  of  towns  and  villages  is  2,1 10,  and  the  population  at 
each  of  the  three  enumerations  was:  (iS8i)  509,021,  (1 891)  831,955, 
and  (1901)  584,627.  The  decrease  of  nearly  30  per 
cent,  during  the  last  decade  was  due  partly  to  emigra- 
tion in  consequence  of  scarcity  in  1 891-2  and  1896-7  and  of  famine  in 
1899-1900,  and  partly  to  excessive  mortality,  chiefly  from  cholera  and 
malarial  fever,  in  the  same  years.  The  State  is  divided  into  the  four 
nhamats  of  Bikaner,  Reni,  Sujangarh,  and  Suratgarh,  with  head-quarters 
at  the  places  from  which  each  is  named.  The  principal  towns  are 
Bikaner  City,  Churu,  Ratangarh,  and  Sardarshahr. 

The  following  table  gives  the  chief  statistics  of  population  in  1901  :— 


Nisamat. 

Number  of 

Population. 

Percentage 
of  variation 
in  popula- 
tion between 
1891  and 
190 1. 

Number 
of  persons 

able  to 

read  and 

write. 

OS 

c 

0 
H 

I 

4 
3 
1 

9 

V 

be 

> 

Bikaner .... 
Reni       .... 
Sujangarh 

Suratgarh 

State  total 

537 
64S 

436 

4S0 

2,IOI 

194,297 

i75>"3 

147,172 

68,045 

-30.8 

-  32-2 

-  29-5 

-  1S.4 

5,946 
3,964 
3,712 
1,262 

584,627 

-  29-7 

i4,8S4 

In  1 90 1  Hindus  numbered  493,534,  or  more  than  84  per  cent,  of 
the  total ;  Musalmans,  66,050,  or  more  than  1 1  per  cent. ;  and  Jains, 
23,403,  or  about  4  per  cent.  The  only  religious  sect  peculiar  to  the 
State  is  that  of  the  Alakhglrs.  It  is  neither  large  nor  important,  but  is 
interesting  from  the  fact  that  it  was  founded  by  a  member  of  the 
despised  caste  of  Chamars,  and  numbers  high-caste  men  among  its 
adherents.  LalgTr  founded  the  sect  about  1830  ;  he  denounced  idolatry 
and  taught  his  followers  to  call  only  on  the  '  Incomprehensible '  (Alakh), 
and  their  sole  worship  consisted  in  the  repeating  of  this  word  '  Alakh.' 
Charity  was  to  be  practised  ;  the  taking  of  life  and  the  eating  of  flesh 
was  forbidden,  and  asceticism  was  encouraged.  The  sole  reward  held 
out  to  his  followers  was  the  attainment  of  purity,  untroubled  contem- 
plation, and  serenity.  There  was  no  future  state ;  all  perished  with  the 
body,  which  was  finally  dissolved  into  the  elements.  The  Alakhglrs 
are  chiefly  ascetics,  though  a  few  are  family  men  ;  they  do  not  admit 
Musalmans ;  they  consider  themselves  a  Jain  sect,  and  respect  but  do 
not  worship  the  Jain  Rishis,  and  they  wear  clothes  of  a  reddish  colour 
like  the  Dadupanthis.  The  language  mainly  spoken  in  the  State  is 
Marwarl,  one  of  the  four  main  groups  of  Rajasthanl. 

The  most  numerous  caste  is  that  of  the  Jats,  who  number  133,000, 
or  more  than  22  per  cent,  of  the  total.  As  noticed  above,  they  held  a 
considerable  portion  of  the  territory  prior  to  the  Rathor  conquest,  and 


AGRICULTURE  209 

the  headman  of  the  Godara  clan  still  has  the  privilege  of  placing  the 
tika  or  mark  of  inauguration  on  the  forehead  of  each  new  chief  of 
Blkaner.  The  Tats  are  now  almost  all  agriculturists.  The  next  most 
numerous  caste  is  that  of  the  Brahmans,  who  number  64,000,  or  nearly 
1 1  per  cent,  the  principal  divisions  being  Pushkarna  and  Paliwal. 
They  are  mostly  traders  and  agriculturists,  and  generally  a  hard-working 
class.  After  the  Brahmans  come  the  Chamars  (59,000  in  number) ; 
they  are  also  called  Balais,  and  are  workers  in  leather,  cultivators,  and 
village  drudges.  The  Mahajans,  mostly  Oswal,  Mahesri,  and  Agarwal, 
number  56,000,  and  form  the  great  majority  of  the  trading  community; 
many  of  them  are  very  wealthy  and  carry  on  an  extensive  business  in 
the  remotest  parts  of  India.  The  Rajputs  number  54,500,  the  majority 
being  of  the  ruling  clan,  Rathor.  Some  hold  land,  and  others  are  in 
the  service  of  the  Darbar  or  of  the  nobles ;  but  the  greater  proportion 
are  cultivators,  and  lazy  and  indifferent  as  such.  The  only  caste  or 
tribe  found  in  no  other  State  in  Rajputana  is  that  of  the  Raths,  who 
number  17,700,  mostly  in  the  north;  the  word  rath  means  'cruel'  or 
'  ruthless.'  They  are  said  to  be  Rajputs  converted  to  Islam,  and  are 
called  Pachhadas  in  Hissar,  but  their  exact  origin  is  doubtful  ;  they 
cultivate  but  little  land,  and  their  chief  occupations  are  pasturing  their 
own  cattle  and  stealing  the  cattle  of  other  people.  Taking  the 
population  as  a  whole,  415,261,  or  71  per  cent.,  are  engaged  in  or 
dependent  on  agriculture. 

The  southern,  central,  and  western  portions  of  the  State  form  a  plain 
of  the  lightest  class  of  sandy  soil,  broken  at  short  intervals  by  ridges  of 
almost  pure  sand.     The  northern  limit  of  this  tract  . 

may  be  roughly  drawn  at  the  old  bed  of  the  Ghaggar. 
The  country  to  the  north  is  the  most  fertile  portion  of  the  State ;  the 
soil  is  more  level,  and  principally  consists  of  a  light  loam,  improving  in 
quality  as  one  goes  eastwards  to  the  Hissar  border.  In  the  eastern 
districts  the  soil  is  a  sandy  loam,  for  the  most  part  well  adapted  to  the 
conditions  of  the  local  rainfall ;  while  in  the  south-east  it  is  less  loamy, 
and  sandhills  are  more  frequently  met  with.  The  agricultural  methods 
employed  are  of  the  simplest  description.  For  the  kharlf  or  autumn 
crop  only  one  ploughing  is  given,  and  the  seed  is  sown  at  the  same  time 
by  means  of  a  drill  attached  to  the  rear  of  the  plough.  The  labour  of 
ploughing  is  very  small  in  the  light  and  sandy  soil,  and  with  a  camel 
about  37  acres  can  be  ploughed  and  sown  for  the  kharlf,  at  the  rate  of 
about  2  acres  a  day.  More  trouble  is  taken  for  the  cultivation  of  the 
rain  or  spring  crop  in  the  loamy  soil.  The  land  receives  two  pre- 
liminary ploughings  at  right  angles  to  each  other,  and  is  harrowed 
and  levelled  after  each  in  order  to  keep  in  the  moisture  \  the  seed  is 
sown  at  the  third  ploughing,  and  more  attention  is  paid  to  weeding 
than  in  the  case  of  the  autumn  crop.     In  the  central  sandy  tract  there 

VOL.  VI4I.  p 


210  BIKANER  STATE 

is  practically  only  one  harvest,  the  Man/,  and  the  principal  crops 
are  bajra,  moth,  and  joivar.  The  cultivation  of  rabi  crops,  such  as 
wheat,  barley,  and  gram,  may  be  said  to  be  confined  to  the  Surat- 
garh  nizamat  in  the  north  and  portions  of  the  Reni  nizamat  in  the 
east. 

Agricultural  statistics  are  available  from  1898-9,  but  only  for  the 
khalsa  area,  or  land  paying  revenue  direct  to  the  State.  This  area  is 
liable  to  fluctuation,  and  may  at  the  present  time  be  put  at  7,372  square 
miles,  or  rather  less  than  one-third  of  the  State.  The  area  for  which 
returns  exist  is  6,539  square  miles,  from  which  must  be  deducted  119 
square  miles  not  available  for  cultivation,  leaving  an  area  of  6,420 
square  miles.  The  net  area  cropped  in  1903-4  was  933  square  miles, 
or  about  14  per  cent,  of  the  total  khalsa  area  available  for  cultivation. 
The  areas  under  the  principal  crops  were:  bajra,  222  square  miles,  or 
about  24  per  cent,  of  the  net  area  cropped;  gram,  25  square  miles; 
til,  21  square  miles;  barley,  18  square  miles;  jotvar,  11  square 
miles  ;  and  wheat,  4  square  miles.  A  few  acres  bore  Indian  corn  in 
the  north,  cotton  and  rapeseed  in  the  north  and  east,  or  tobacco  in  the 
east  and  south. 

Cattle,  sheep,  and  camels  are  an  important  part  of  the  wealth  of  the 
agricultural  population,  and  in  the  almost  uncultivated  tracts  in  the 
north-west  and  west  they  form  practically  the  only  source  of  income  of 
the  pastoral  tribes  found  there.  The  sheep  are  famous  ;  but  the  riding 
camels  have  somewhat  deteriorated  of  late,  and  to  encourage  breeding 
a  fair  is  held  yearly  at  the  capital  in  the  cold  season.  Other  important 
cattle  fairs  are  the  Gogameri  held  in  August  and  September  at  Gogano, 
near  Nohar  in  the  east,  and  one  at  Kolait,  25  miles  south-west  of  the 
capital.  Attempts  are  being  made  to  improve  the  breed  of  sheep  by 
importing  Australian  rams. 

Of  the  total  area  (933  square  miles)  cultivated  in  1903-4,  20  square 
miles,  or  about  2  per  cent.,  were  irrigated  :  namely,  15-I  square  miles 
from  canals,  and  4^  from  wells  and  other  sources.  Up  to  1897,  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  plots  watered  by  wells  in  the  east,  and  a  small 
area  irrigated  from  the  Western  Jumna  and  Sirhind  Canals,  artificial 
irrigation  was  unknown  in  the  State.  The  Ghaggar  floods  irrigated  by 
natural  flow  a  small  area  in  the  north,  and  occasionally  the  Katli  river 
benefited  a  few  villages  in  the  east.  The  Ghaggar  canals,  already 
referred  to,  were  constructed  in  1896-7,  and  are  two  in  number.  The 
northern  runs  for  more  than  29  miles  and  the  southern  for  22  miles 
in  Bikaner  territory.  The  total  capital  outlay  of  the  Darbar  on  these 
canals  to  the  end  of  1904-5  was  4-7  lakhs.  The  area  irrigated  from 
them  in  Bikaner  territory  during  the  eight  years  ending  1904-5  averaged 
about  17  square  miles,  the  income  about  Rs.  15,700,  and  the  Darbar's 
share  of  working  expenses  Rs.  10,800. 


TRADE  AND  COMMUNICATIONS  21  r 

The  principal  mineral  worked  in  the  State  is  coal.  It  was  discovered 
in  1896  while  sinking  a  well  at  Palana,  about  14  miles  south  of  the 
capital.  Operations  were  started  in  1898,  and  the 
colliery  was  connected  with  the  railway  in  1899,  by 
a  siding  10  miles  long.  The  seam  is  over  20  feet  in  thickness,  250  feet 
below  the  surface,  and  50  above  water-level.  More  than  two  mil- 
lion tons  of  coal  are  said  to  exist,  and  only  in  one  direction  has  the 
seam  shown  signs  of  disappearing.  The  total  capital  outlay  (excluding 
the  cost  of  the  railway  siding)  was  a  lakh  to  the  end  of  1904-5  ;  in  that 
year  44,450  tons  were  sold,  the  total  earnings  were  Rs.  86,100,  the 
working  expenses  Rs.  15,700,  and  the  net  earnings  Rs.  70,400,  or 
a  profit  of  70  per  cent,  on  the  capital  cost.  The  colliery  gives  employ- 
ment to  about  100  labourers  daily  ;  the  average  price  of  the  coal  at  the 
mine  head  is  about  Rs.  2-9-0  per  ton.  The  coal  is  of  inferior  quality, 
but  when  mixed  with  the  Bengal  variety  is  found  satisfactory,  and  is 
largely  used  on  the  Jodhpur-Blkaner  Railway  and  by  the  State  public 
works  department ;  an  increasing  amount  is  annually  exported  to  the 
Punjab.  The  salt  lakes  at  Chhapar  and  Lunkaransar  have  already 
been  mentioned.  By  the  agreement  concluded  with  the  Darbar  in 
1879  the  total  aggregate  out-turn  is  restricted  to  30,000  maunds,  or 
about  1,100  tons  a  year.  The  Lunkaransar  source  alone  is  worked  now  ; 
the  salt,  which  is  of  inferior  quality  and  consumed  only  by  the  poor  or 
used  for  curing  skins  and  other  antiseptic  purposes,  is  produced  in  large 
solar  evaporation  pans  excavated  in  the  bed  of  the  lake.  Excellent 
red  sandstone  is  quarried  near  Dalmera,  on  the  railway  42  miles  north- 
east of  the  capital.  By  the  aid  of  a  3-ton  crane  erected  in  1899-1900 
the  output  has  greatly  increased,  and  is  now  about  3,500  tons  a  year. 
The  sale  proceeds  in  1904-5  were  about  Rs.  14,000,  compared  with 
Rs.  11,000  in  the  preceding  year.  Limestone  is  found  in  many 
localities,  and  fuller's  earth  is  quarried  to  the  south-west  of  the  capital ; 
it  is  used  as  a  hair-wash  and  for  dyeing  cloth,  and  is  exported  in  con- 
siderable quantities  to  the  Punjab.  A  copper  mine  was  discovered 
about  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century  near  Bldasar,  70  miles  east- 
by-south-east  of  the  capital,  but  it  has  not  been  worked  for  many  years ; 
it  is,  however,  now  being  examined  by  a  company  to  whom  a  mining 
and  prospecting  concession  was  granted  in  1904. 

The  principal  manufactures  are  woollen  fabrics,  carpets,  ivory 
bracelets,  pottery,  lacquer-ware,  leathern  water-bags,  and  sweetmeats. 
Of  these  the  lois,  or  woollen  shawls,  are  of  very  fine 

texture,  and  the  carpets  are  famous.    The  chief  exports  rade  ana 

,  „  ,  communications, 

are  wool,  woollen  carpets  and  rugs,  rapeseed,  sugar- 
candy,  saltpetre,  soda,  and  fuller's  earth ;  while  the  chief  imports  are 
cereals,  piece-goods,  cotton,  sugar  and  molasses,  opium,  tobacco,  and 
metals.      The   exports   and    imports   are    mostly   carried    by   railway  \ 

p  2 


212  BIKANER  STATE 

camels,  however,   are  used  in    carrying   goods  to  and  from   Bhiwani 
and  Hissar. 

The  Bikaner  section  of  the  Jodhpur-Bikaner  Railway  (metre  gauge), 
which  runs  through  the  State  from  the  Marwar  border  on  the  south  to 
the  Sirsa  border  in  the  extreme  north-east,  and  thence  to  Bhatinda,  was 
constructed  between  1889  and  1902  at  the  cost  of  the  Darbar.  The 
total  length  in  Bikaner  territory,  including  the  Palana  colliery  siding, 
is  a  little  more  than  245  miles.  The  first  section,  from  the  Marwar 
border  to  Bikaner  city,  was  opened  in  December,  1891,  and  the  extensions 
to  Dalmera,  Suratgarh,  and  finally  to  Bhatinda  (in  the  Punjab]  were 
completed  in  1898,  1901,  and  1902  respectively.  The  total  capital 
outlay  by  the  Darbar  to  the  end  of  1904-5  was  51  lakhs  ;  and  in  that 
year  the  total  earnings  and  working  expenses  were  respectively  7-4 
and  3 '4  lakhs,  leaving  a  net  profit  of  4  lakhs,  or  nearly  8  per  cent,  on 
the  capital  outlay.  The  total  length  of  metalled  roads  is  46!  miles ; 
these  roads  are  all  in  the  vicinity  of  the  capital  and  are  maintained 
by  the  State. 

Imperial  postal  unity  was  accepted  by  the  Darbar  in  1904,  and  there 
are  now  twenty-nine  post  offices  in  the  State.  In  addition  to  tele- 
graph offices  at  the  twenty-one  railway  stations,  there  are  four  British 
telegraph  offices. 

In  a  desert  country  like  Bikaner,  where  the  rainfall  is  precarious,  and 
there  is  practically  no  artificial  irrigation,  famines  and  scarcities  are  not 
uncommon  visitors.  A  general  famine  is  expected 
once  in  ten  years  and  a  local  failure  once  in  four ; 
extensive  emigration  is  the  accustomed  remedy.  Since  the  beginning 
of  the  nineteenth  century  famines  are  known  to  have  occurred  in  1834, 
1849,  and  i860,  but  the  first  of  which  any  details  are  available  is  that  of 
1868-9.  The  Darbar  did  little  or  nothing  except  to  distribute  cooked 
food  in  the  city,  at  a  kitchen  which  had  shortly  to  be  moved  several 
miles  off,  in  consequence  of  the  number  of  dead  and  dying  ;  and  the 
only  relief  work  was  a  small  tank,  which  was  soon  closed  for  want  of 
funds.  The  price  of  bdjra  rose  to  6  seers  per  rupee  ;  and  the  State 
is  said  to  have  lost  one-third  of  its  population  and  nine-tenths  of  its 
cattle.  The  next  famine  was  in  1891-2,  when  the  area  affected  was 
15,340  square  miles,  mostly  in  the  north,  where  the  kharlf  harvest  failed 
for  the  eighth  year  in  succession.  Relief  works,  chiefly  tanks,  repairs  to 
wells,  and  earthwork  for  the  railway,  were  started  in  September,  1891, 
and  closed  in  August,  1892;  and  during  this  period  more  than 
1,151,000  units  found  employment,  while  over  404,000  units  were 
relieved  gratuitously.  Grass  was  very  scarce,  and  was  selling  at  35  seers 
per  rupee,  and  about  half  the  cattle  are  said  to  have  died,  but  of 
these  not  more  than  10  per  cent,  were  really  valuable.  The  number  of 
emigrants  was  estimated  at  about  three  times  that  of  ordinary  years. 


ADMINISTRA  TION  2 1 3 

Prices  rose  to  8  seers  per  rupee  for  wheat,  bdjra,  and  moth ;  but  the 
average  was  about  10,  and  the  large  imports  of  grain  and  the  facilities 
afforded  by  the  railway  prevented  the  famine  from  pressing  severely  on 
the  people.  The  total  expenditure  on  direct  relief,  including  more  than 
2  lakhs  of  land  revenue  remitted,  was  about  3-3  lakhs,  and  advances  to 
agriculturists  and  suspensions  of  land  revenue  amounted  to  a  further 
sum  of  Rs.  53,000.  There  was  severe  scarcity  over  three-fourths  of  the 
State  in  1896-7;  the  relief  works  consisted  chiefly  of  the  Ghaggar 
canals  and  the  railway.  More  than  3,560,000  units  were  relieved, 
either  on  works  or  gratuitously,  at  a  cost  exceeding  3-5  lakhs,  and  sus- 
pensions of  land  revenue  and  advances  to  agriculturists  were  granted. 
The  prices  of  grain  averaged  from  7  to  9  seers  per  rupee,  while  grass 
was  very  scarce,  and  the  mortality  among  the  cattle  was  heavy.  The 
last  famine  was  that  of  1899- 1900.  The  average  rainfall  for  the  whole 
State  in  1899  was  3^  inches,  and  the  harvest  naturally  failed  ;  but  owing 
to  the  liberal  expenditure  of  the  Darbar  and  the  well-considered 
measures  of  relief,  personally  supervised  by  the  Maharaja,  the  people 
suffered  less  than  might  have  been  expected.  Relief  works  and  famine 
camps  were  started  in  August,  1899,  and  maintained  till  October,  1900. 
Over  9,348,000  units  were  relieved  on  works  and  over  1,840,000 
gratuitously,  and  the  largest  number  relieved  on  any  one  day  was 
nearly  48,000.  About  22  per  cent,  of  the  population  emigrated,  and 
75  per  cent,  of  the  cattle  are  said  to  have  died.  Thanks  to  the  railway, 
the  price  of  grain  was  never  as  high  as  8  seers  per  rupee.  The  total 
expenditure  on  direct  relief  was  8-5  lakhs,  of  which  nearly  half  was  sub- 
scribed by  the  leading  Seths  or  bankers,  who  have  a  high  reputation  for 
benevolence;  land  revenue  suspensions  amounted  to  4-7  lakhs,  and 
Rs.  85,300  was  granted  as  loans  to  agriculturists. 

For  administrative  purposes  the  State  is  divided  into  four  districts  or 
m'zdmats,  each  under  an  officer  called  a  nazim  ;  and  these  are  again 

subdivided  into  eleven  tahs'ds  under  tahslldars.  and    .  ,    .  . 

..  .  .  ,  .,  .   ,  _„-  Administration. 

seven   smaller  units,  each  under  a  naio-talisiiaar,  to 

which  the  name  sub-to/is//  has  been  given.  An  officer  is  in  charge  of 
each  important  department,  and  at  the  head  of  affairs  is  the  Maharaja, 
who  has  exercised  full  powers  since  1898.  His  Highness  is  assisted  by 
five  secretaries,  to  each  of  whom  are  allotted  certain  departments  ;  and 
there  is  a  council  of  five  members,  which  is  primarily  a  judicial  body, 
but  is  consulted  in  matters  of  importance.  The  State  has  its  own  Codes 
and  Acts  for  the  guidance  of  its  judiciary,  based  largely,  if  not  entirely, 
on  the  similar  enactments  of  British  India  ;  for  example,  the  Indian 
Penal  and  Criminal  Procedure  Codes  were  introduced  in  their  entirety 
in  1897.  The  lowest  court  is  that  of  the  naib-tahslldar,  who  is  a  third- 
class  magistrate,  and  can  try  civil  suits  not  exceeding  Rs.  300  in  value. 
Next  come  the  tahslldars,  who  are  second-class  magistrates  and  decide 


2i4  BIKANER  STATE 

suits  not  exceeding  Rs.  500  in  value.  The  nazims  hear  appeals  against 
the  decisions  in  civil  or  criminal  cases  of  the  lower  courts,  are  themselves 
magistrates  of  the  first  class,  and  decide  suits  not  exceeding  Rs.  10,000 
in  value.  The  Appellate  Court  hears  all  appeals  against  the  decisions 
of  nazims,  tries  civil  suits  beyond  their  powers,  and  on  the  criminal  side 
can  pass  a  sentence  of  ten  years'  imprisonment.  The  council  is  the 
highest  appellate  court  of  the  State,  and  has  powers  of  revision  in  certain 
cases  ;  it  deals  with  all  murder  cases,  submitting  them  with  its  opinion 
to  the  Maharaja,  who  alone  can  pass  sentence  of  death.  In  addition 
to  these  tribunals,  there  are  courts  of  honorary  magistrates  at  the  capital 
and  the  town  of  Nohar,  and  a  Munsif's  court  at  the  capital.  The 
former  have  the  powers  of  second-class  magistrates,  and  decide  petty 
civil  suits  relating  to  immovable  property,  while  the  latter  can  try  suits 
not  exceeding  Rs.  500  in  value. 

The  normal  revenue  of  the  State  is  about  26  lakhs,  and  the  expendi- 
ture about  21  lakhs.  The  chief  sources  of  revenue  are:  land  (including 
irrigation),  6-7  lakhs;  customs,  6  lakhs;  railway  (including  telegraphs), 
about  6  lakhs;  judicial  (including  court-fees,  stamps,  &c),  1-4  lakhs; 
minerals  (including  Rs.  6,000  paid  by  Government  under  the  Salt  agree- 
ment of  1879),  1-5  lakhs;  and  tribute  from  jdgi rdars,  about  3  lakhs. 
The  main  items  of  expenditure  are  :  privy  purse  and  household,  3-4 
lakhs  ;  cost  of  administrative  staff  (civil  and  judicial),  2-4  lakhs  ;  rail- 
way, 2-6  lakhs  ;  army,  2-4  lakhs  ;  public  works,  2  lakhs  ;  police,  i-i 
lakhs ;  medical  department,  including  municipalities,  Rs.  75,000  ; 
and  customs,  Rs.  50,000.  The  financial  position  is  sound ;  there  are 
no  debts. 

The  State  had  formerly  a  silver  and  copper  coinage  of  its  own,  the 
privilege  of  coining  having  been  granted  by  the  Delhi  emperor  about 
the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century;  but  on  February  16,  1893,  an 
agreement  was  concluded  between  the  Darbar  and  the  Government  of 
India,  under  the  Native  Coinage  Act,  IX  of  1876,  and,  in  accordance 
therewith,  10  lakhs  of  Bikaner  rupees  were  made  legal  tender  by  being 
recoined  at  Bombay,  and  in  1895  copper  coins  were  struck  for  the  State 
at  the  Calcutta  mint  and  put  into  .circulation.  Under  the  agreement, 
the  Darbar,  among  other  things,  abstains  from  coining  silver  and  copper 
in  its  own  mint  for  a  period  of  thirty  years. 

There  are  two  main  tenures  in  the  State  :  namely,  khalsa,  or  land 
under  the  direct  management  of  the  Darbar  ;  and  land  held  by  grantees, 
whether  individuals  or  religious  institutions.  In  the  khalsa  area,  except 
in  the  Tibi  villages  where  the  zamindars  have  transferable  rights,  the 
proprietary  right  in  the  land  as  a  rule  belongs  to  the  Darbar,  and  the 
cultivator's  right  of  occupancy  depends  on  his  ability  to  meet  the  demand 
for  revenue.  Some  of  the  land  held  by  grantees  is  revenue-free,  while 
for  the  rest  a  fixed  sum  is  paid  yearly  or  service  is  performed.     The 


ADMINISTRA  TION  2 1 5 

jdgirddrs,  or  pattaddrs  as  they  are  usually  called,  are  for  the  most  part 
the  nobles  of  the  State  ;  they  formerly  served  the  Darbar  with  troops, 
but  this  obligation  has  now  been  commuted  for  a  money  payment  or 
tribute  (rahm),  which  varies  in  amount  in  different  estates  but  is 
generally  about  one-third  of  the  income.  They  have  also  to  pay  one 
year's  revenue  as  nazarana,  or  fee  on  succession,  and  other  cesses  on 
such  occasions  as  the  Maharaja's  accession  or  his  marriage.  Their 
estates  descend  from  father  to  son  (or,  with  the  sanction  of  the  Darbar, 
to  an  adopted  son),  but  are  liable  to  resumption  for  serious  offences 
against  the  State.  Many  villages  are  held  revenue-free  (beta/ah)  by  the 
chief's  near  relations  or  connexions  by  marriage,  or  by  those  pattadars 
whose  estates  have  been  attached  or  confiscated  but  to  whom  lands  have 
been  given  for  maintenance.  Such  grants  are  temporary  and  can  be 
resumed  at  the  pleasure  of  the  Darbar ;  the  holders  are  expected  to 
serve  the  chief  on  certain  occasions.  Lastly,  there  are  sdsan  villages  or 
lands  granted  to  Brahmans  and  temples,  which  are  held  revenue-free 
and  practically  in  perpetuity. 

In  the  khdlsa  area,  prior  to  1884,  there  was  no  uniform  system  of 
assessment  and  revenue  collection.  The  commonest  method  was  to 
measure,  every  second  or  third  year,  the  area  held  by  each  cultivator 
and  assess  it  at  a  cash  rate  per  blgha.  The  sum  so  calculated  was  paid 
by  the  cultivator,  with  the  addition  of  certain  cesses  fixed  with  no 
reference  to  the  area  of  the  land  held.  Occasionally  a  share  of  the 
produce,  either  by  actual  division  {batai)  or  by  appraisement  (kaiikf/t), 
would  be  taken  instead  of,  and  sometimes  in  addition  to,  a  cash  rate. 
In  other  cases  a  lump  assessment  (I'/'dra)  would  be  annually  fixed  for 
a  village  and  distributed  over  the  total  cultivated  area,  excluding  the 
fields  of  the  chaudhris  (headmen)  and  some  of  the  village  menials.  In 
the  central  sandy  tract  the  revenue  was  collected  by  a  system  which  was 
a  combination  of  rates  on  ploughs  and  cattle  with  a  poll-tax  and  some 
additional  items ;  but,  whatever  the  method  of  assessment  employed, 
there  was  little  hesitation  at  any  time  in  levying  new  and  irregular 
cesses.  In  1884  it  was  decided  to  undertake  a  summary  settlement 
of  the  khdlsa  villages,  excluding  those  in  the  Tibi  pargana,  to  assess 
and  collect  on  some  uniform  system  in  place  of  the  haphazard  methods 
described  above.  This  settlement  was  completed  in  1886,  and  intro- 
duced for  a  period  of  five  years,  subsequently  extended  to  eight.  Each 
village  was  assessed  at  a  lump  sum,  for  the  payment  of  which  the 
chaudhris  became  jointly  responsible.  The  sum  assessed  was  calculated 
by  applying  to  the  cultivated  and  waste  areas  rates  which  were  con- 
sidered to  be  suitable  ;  these  rates  did  not  vary  from  village  to  village, 
but  were  uniform  throughout  an  assessment  circle  or  subdivision  of 
a  tahsil  made  for  assessment  purposes. 

The   first  regular  settlement  was  made  by  a  British  officer  from  the 


2.6  BIKANER  STATE 

Punjab  in  1892-3,  and  came  into  force  in  1894  for  a  period  of  ten  years, 
recently  extended  by  three  years.  The  principal  change  made  was  to 
class  almost  all  the  villages  in  the  Suratgarh  nizamat  (except  in  Tibi)  as 
ryotwar  or  khdiawdr,  each  cultivator  being  responsible  for  payment 
of  the  assessment  imposed  on  the  land  held  by  him,  whether  cultivated 
in  a  particular  year  or  not.  The  remaining  villages  are  joint ;  there  is 
a  fixed  lump  assessment  for  the  payment  of  which  the  joint  village  body 
are,  as  against  the  State,  jointly  and  severally  responsible,  while  among 
themselves  each  member  is  responsible  for  the  amount  of  revenue 
entered  opposite  his  name  in  the  settlement  record.  The  average 
assessment  per  acre  on  'wet'  land  is  about  Rs.  2-1 1,  and  that  on 
'dry' land  varies  from  z\  to  8^  annas.  Suspensions  and  remissions 
of  revenue  are  freely  granted  in  times  of  scarcity.  In  the  Tibi  fiargatia 
the  system  of  tenure  is  zamlndarl.  A  twenty  years'  settlement  had 
been  made  in  1856  by  the  British  Government.  Five  years  later  the 
tract  was  granted  to  the  State  for  services  rendered  during  the  Mutiny, 
and  for  seven  years  the  Darbar  disregarded  the  settlement ;  but,  on 
the  villagers  complaining  to  Government,  the  Maharaja  was  required  to 
abstain  from  interference  with  their  rights,  and  in  1869  he  signified  his 
intention  to  continue  the  settlement  for  seven  years  beyond  the  date  on 
which  it  would  have  expired.  A  new  settlement  was  accordingly  made 
in  1883,  and  is  now  being  revised. 

The  State  maintains  an  Imperial  Service  camel  corps  500  strong,  and 
an  irregular  local  force  of  380  cavalry,  500  infantry,  and  38  artillerymen, 
at  a  cost  of  about  2-4  lakhs  a  year.  There  are  altogether  94  guns, 
of  which  33  are  serviceable.  The  camel  corps  was  raised  between  1889 
and  1893  as  a  contribution  to  the  defence  of  the  empire,  and  is  called 
the  Ganga  Risala  after  the  present  chief.  It  served  in  China  in  1 900-1 
as  an  infantry  regiment,  and  a  detachment  of  about  250  men  mounted 
on  camels  did  particularly  well  in  Somaliland  in  1903-4.  The  State 
now  contributes  to  no  local  corps  or  contingent,  though  formerly 
(1836-42)  it  paid  Rs.  22,000  a  year  towards  the  cost  of  the  Shekhawati 
Brigade.  There  are  no  cantonments  in  Blkaner  territory,  but  the 
43rd  (Erinpura)  Regiment  furnishes  a  small  detachment  of  cavalry  and 
infantry  (32  of  all  ranks)  for  escort  and  guard  duty  at  the  residence 
of  the  Political  Agent. 

The  total  strength  of  the  police  force  is  about  900,  of  whom  about 
200  are  mounted,  mostly  on  camels.  The  whole  is  under  a  general 
superintendent,  and  there  are  separate  superintendents  for  the  districts 
and  the  city.  The  force  costs  about  i-i  lakhs  a  year,  and  there  are 
70  police  stations.  Besides  the  Central  jail  at  the  capital,  there  are 
District  jails  at  Reni  and  SOjangarh  in  which  prisoners  sentenced  to  one 
year  or  less  are  confined.  These  three  jails  have  accommodation  for 
742  prisoners;  and  in  1904-5  the  daily  average  number  was  375  and 


BIKANER  CITY  217 

the  cost  about  Rs.  25,000,  both  figures  being  considerably  below  the 
normal.  The  jail  manufactures  yield  a  net  profit  of  about  Rs.  20,000 
a  year,  and  consist  of  carpets  (specially  famous  at  the  Central  jail), 
rugs,  woollen  shawls,  blankets,  curtains,  rope,  &c. 

In  the  literacy  of  its  population  Blkaner  stands  thirteenth  among  the 
twenty  States  and  chiefships  of  Rajputana,  with  2-5  per  cent.  (4-7  males 
and  0-2  females)  able  to  read  and  write.  In  1905,  excluding  indigenous 
schools  such  as  chatsdls,  38  institutions,  with  2,011  pupils  on  the  rolls, 
were  maintained  by  the  State.  The  daily  average  attendance  was 
1,543,  and  the  expenditure  on  education,  including  Rs.  3,000  spent 
at  the  Mayo  College  at  Ajmer,  was  about  Rs.  28,400.  Education  is 
given  free  throughout  the  State.  Save  at  the  high  school,  from  which, 
since  its  affiliation  to  the  Allahabad  University  in  1897,  32  boys  have 
passed  the  matriculation  and  middle  school  examinations,  the  school 
for  the  sons  of  nobles,  and  three  schools  in  the  districts,  the  vernacular 
alone  is  taught.  Female  education  is  backward  ;  there  is  but  one  girls' 
school  in  the  State,  at  the  capital. 

The  State  possesses  13  hospitals  and  3  dispensaries,  with  accommo- 
dation for  191  in-patients.  In  1904  the  number  of  cases  treated  was 
110,409,  of  whom  1,900  were  in-patients,  and  9,367  operations  were 
performed.     The  total  expenditure  was  about  Rs.  40,500. 

Vaccination  is  nowhere  compulsory,  but  is  on  the  whole  popular. 
In  1904-5  a  staff  of  12  men  successfully  vaccinated  21,678  persons,  or 
nearly  37  per  1,000  of  the  population. 

[P.  W.  Powlett,  Gazetteer  of  the  Blkaner  State  (1874);  P.  J.  Fagan, 
Report  on  the  Settlement  of  the  Khdlsa  Villages  of  the  Blkaner  State  (1893); 
W.  H.  Neilson,  Medico-topographical  Account  of  Blkaner  (1898) ;  Reports 
on  the  Administration  of  the  Blkaner  State  (1893-4  to  1895-6,  and 
1902-3  to  date).] 

Blkaner  City  ('  the  settlement  or  habitation  (ner)  of  Blka '). — Capital 
of  the  State  of  the  same  name  in  Rajputana,  situated  in  280  N.  and 
730  18'  E.,  1,340  miles  by  rail  north-west  of  Calcutta  and  759  miles 
almost  due  north  of  Bombay,  on  the  Jodhpur-Blkaner  Railway.  Blkaner 
is  the  fourth  largest  city  in  Rajputana.  Its  population  at  each  of 
the  three  enumerations  was  :  (1881)  33,154,  (1891)  50,513,  and  (1901) 
53>°75-  In  tne  last  year  Hindus  numbered  38,796,  or  more  than  73 
per  cent,  of  the  total;  Musalmans,  10,191,  or  more  than  19  per  cent.  ; 
and  Jains,  3,936,  or  7  per  cent. ;  there  were  also  a  few  Christians, 
Sikhs,   ParsTs,  and  Aryas. 

The  city,  which  was  founded  in  148S,  is  situated  on  a  slight  elevation 
about  736  feet  above  sea-level,  and  has  an  imposing  appearance,  being 
surrounded  by  a  fine  wall  crowned  with  battlements,  and  possessing 
many  lofty  houses  and  temples  and  a  massive  fort.  The  wall,  4-|  miles 
in  circuit,  is  built  wholly  of  stone,  and  has  five  gates  and  six  sally-ports. 


218  BIKANER  CITY 

It  is  6  feet  thick  and  from  15  to  30  feet  high,  including  a  parapet  6  feet 
high  and  2  feet  thick.  There  is  a  ditch  on  three  sides  only,  the  ground 
on  the  southern  face  being  intersected  by  ravines  which  have  broken 
up  the  whole  plain  in  that  quarter ;  the  depth  of  the  ditch  is  about 
15  feet  and  the  breadth  20  feet. 

The  old  fort,  built  by  Blka  three  years  before  he  founded  the  city, 
is  picturesquely  situated  on  high  rocky  ground  close  to,  and  on  the 
south-west  side  of,  the  city.  It  is  small,  and  now  rather  a  shrine  than 
a  fort ;  near  it  are  the  cenotaphs  of  Blka  and  two  or  three  of  his  succes- 
sors, as  well  as  those  of  some  persons  of  less  note.  The  larger  fort 
is  more  modern,  having  been  built  by  Raja  Rai  Singh  between  15S8 
and  1593  ;  it  contains  the  old  palaces,  and  is  situated  about  300  yards 
from  the  Kot  Gate  of  the  city.  It  is  1,078  yards  in  circuit,  with  two 
entrances,  each  of  which  has  three  or  four  successive  gates  ;  and  its 
rampart  is  strengthened  by  numerous  bastions  about  40  feet  high,  and 
a  moat  running  all  round  in  a  direction  parallel  to  the  curtains  without 
following  the  curve  of  the  bastions.  The  moat  is  30  feet  wide  at  the 
top  but  narrow  at  the  bottom,  and  from  20  to  25  feet  in  depth.  This 
fort  has  been  besieged  several  times,  but  is  said  to  have  never  been 
taken,  though  the  old  one  once  was.  The  palace  buildings,  some  of 
which  are  handsomely  decorated  with  coloured  plaster,  are  the  work 
of  successive  chiefs,  nearly  every  one  of  whom  has  contributed  some- 
thing. The  latest  addition  is  the  spacious  Darbar  hall,  called  Ganga 
Niwas  after  the  present  Maharaja  ;  it  is  a  fine  building,  the  interior 
being  of  carved  red  sandstone,  the  ceiling  of  carved  wood  and  the 
floor  of  marble,  but  being  of  different  material  and  architectural  style 
it  does  not  blend  very  well  with  its  surroundings.  A  fine  library  of 
Sanskrit  and  Persian  books  is  maintained  in  the  fort. 

The  city  is  irregularly  square  in  shape  and  contains  many  good 
houses,  faced  with  red  sandstone  richly  carved,  the  tracery  being 
called  khudai  or  manowat ;  but  the  majority  of  these  houses  are  situ- 
ated in  narrow  tortuous  lanes  where  they  can  scarcely  be  seen.  The 
poorer  buildings  are  besmeared  with  a  sort  of  reddish  clay,  abundant 
in  the  ravines  near  the  city,  which  gives  the  place  an  appearance  of 
neatness  and  uniformity,  the  walls  being  all  red  and  the  doors  and 
windows  white.  The  north-western  portion  of  the  city,  where  the 
richest  bankers  reside,  was  so  much  congested  that  it  was  found 
necessary  to  extend  the  wall  in  that  direction  so  as  to  bring  in  a 
considerable  area  of  habitable  land.  This  is  being  rapidly  built  over, 
while  in  the  northern  and  north-eastern  portions,  where  formerly  there 
were  only  a  few  small  houses,  such  public  buildings  as  the  jail,  hospital, 
high  and  girls'  schools,  post  office,  and  district  courts  have  been  erected. 
The  total  number  of  wells  in  the  city  and  fort  is  45,  of  which  5  are 
fitted   with   pumping   engines  ;    water  is   found   from   300  to   400   feet 


BIKANER  CITY  219 

below  the  surface,  and,  though  not  plentiful,  is  generally  excellent 
in  quality.  There  are  10  Jain  monasteries  (updsdras)  which  possess 
many  old  manuscripts,  159  temples,  and  28  mosques;  but  none  of 
these  buildings  is  particularly  striking  in  appearance.  Outside  the 
city  the  principal  buildings  are  the  Maharaja's  new  palace  called 
Lalgarh,  a  handsome  edifice  of  carved  red  sandstone,  fitted  with  electric 
light  and  fans  ;  the  Victoria  Memorial  Club,  the  new  public  offices 
called  Ganga  Kacheri,  and  the  Residency. 

Blkaner  is  famous  for  a  white  variety  of  sugar-candy,  and  for  its 
woollen  shawls,  blankets,  and  carpets.  Since  the  establishment  of 
a  municipality  in  1889,  the  sanitation  and  lighting  of  the  city  have 
been  greatly  improved.  The  average  income  of  the  municipality  is 
about  Rs.  10,600  a  year,  derived  mainly  from  a  conservancy  tax  and 
a  duty  on  ghl ;  and  the  average  expenditure  is  about  Rs.  31,400,  the 
deficit  being  met  by  the  Darbar.  A  number  of  metalled  roads  have 
been  constructed  in  the  city  and  suburbs,  the  principal  one  from  the 
new  palace  to  the  fort  being  lit  by  electric  light.  The  Central  jail 
is  prohably  the  best  in  Rajputana;  it  has  accommodation  for  590 
prisoners.  In  1904-5  the  daily  average  number  of  inmates  was  300, 
the  expenditure  was  Rs.  20,000,  and  the  jail  manufactures  yielded  a 
net  profit  of  Rs.  9,400.  There  are  seven  State  schools  at  the  capital, 
one  of  which  is  for  girls;  and  in  1904-5  the  daily  average  attendance 
was  462  boys  and  85  girls.  The  principal  educational  institution  is 
the  high  school,  which  is  affiliated  to  the  Allahabad  University.  Be- 
sides the  Imperial  Service  regimental  and  the  jail  hospitals,  one  general 
hospital  and  two  dispensaries  for  out-patients  are  maintained,  while 
a  hospital  solely  for  females  is  under  construction.  The  general 
hospital,  named  Bhagwan  Das,  after  a  wealthy  Seth  of  Churu,  who 
provided  the  necessary  funds  for  its  construction,  has  accommodation 
for  70  in-patients,  and  is  largely  attended. 

Five  miles  east  of  the  city  is  the  Devi  Kund,  the  cremation  tank 
of  the  chiefs  of  Blkaner  since  the  time  of  Jet  Singh  (1527-41).  On 
the  sides  of  this  tank  are  ranged  the  cenotaphs  of  fourteen  chiefs  from 
Kalyan  Singh  to  Dungar  Singh  ;  several  of  them  are  fine  buildings, 
with  enamel  work  on  the  under  surface  of  the  domes.  The  material 
is  red  sandstone  from  Dahnera  and  marble  from  Makrana  (in  Marwar) ; 
on  the  latter  are  sculptured  in  bas-relief  the  mounted  figure  of  each 
chief,  while  in  front  of  him,  standing  in  order  of  precedence,  are  the 
wives,  and  behind  and  below  him  the  concubines,  who  mounted  his 
funeral  pile.  The  date,  names  of  the  dead,  and  in  some  cases  a  verse 
of  Sanskrit  are  inscribed.  The  last  distinguished  sail  in  Blkaner  was 
a  daughter  of  the  Udaipur  ruling  family  named  Dip  Kunwar,  the  wife 
of  Maharaja  Surat  Singh's  second  son,  Moti  Singh,  who  died  in  1825. 
Near  the  tank  is  a  palace   for  the  convenience  of  the  chief  and  his 


220  BlKANER  CITY 

ladies  when  they  have  occasion  to  attend  ceremonies  here,  while  about 
half-way  between  Devi  Kund  and  the  city  is  a  fine  though  modern 
temple  dedicated  to  Siva,  with  a  garden  attached  to  it  known  as 
Siva  bari. 

[Sodhi  Hukm  Singh,  Guide  to  Bikaner  and  its  Suburbs  (1891).] 

Bikapur. — South-western  tahsll  of  Fyzabad  District,  United  Pro- 
vinces, comprising  theparganas  of  Pachchhimrath  and  Khandansa,  and 
lying  between  260  24/  and  260  43'  N.  and  8i°  41'  and  820  21/  E.,  with 
an  area  of  467  square  miles.  Population  increased  from  288,893  in 
1891  to  296,776  in  1901.  There  are  623  villages,  but  no  town.  The 
demand  for  land  revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  3,58,000,  and  for  cesses 
Rs.  59,000.  The  density  of  population,  635  persons  per  square  mile,  is 
below  the  District  average.  Most  of  the  tahsll  forms  a  fertile  plain 
interrupted  by  many  small  patches  of  grass  and  dhak  jungle,  and  by 
jhlls  or  swamps,  the  drainage  from  which  gradually  collects  into  a 
channel  called  the  BiswT.  The  Gumti  forms  the  south-western  boun- 
dary for  a  little  distance.  In  1903-4  the  area  under  cultivation  was 
2S7  square  miles,  of  which  143  were  irrigated.  Wells  and  tanks  or 
jhlls  supply  most  of  the  irrigation  in  equal  proportions. 

Bikrampur. — Pargana  or  fiscal  division  in  the  Munshiganj  sub- 
division of  Dacca  District,  Eastern  Bengal  and  Assam,  famous  as  the 
seat  of  government  under  the  Sen  kings  of  Bengal,  and  especially  of 
Ballal  Sen,  who  effected  so  many  changes  in  the  caste  system  of  Bengal. 
It  takes  its  name  from  Vikramaditya,  who  is  reputed  to  have  made  his 
capital  there,  the  site  of  which  can  still  be  traced  in  the  modern  village 
of  Rampal.  The  pargana  extends  over  the  two  police  divisions  of 
Munshiganj  and  Srinagar.  It  contains  several  tots  where  logic,  rhetoric, 
grammar,  and  astronomy  are  taught,  and  in  Bengal  ranks  second  only 
to  Nabadwlp  as  a  seat  of  Sanskrit  learning.  It  supplies  nearly  a  third 
of  the  subordinate  native  officials  in  the  Government  offices  of  Bengal. 

Bilara. — Head-quarters  of  the  district  of  the  same  name  in  the 
State  of  Jodhpur,  Rajputana,  situated  in  260  n'  N.  and  730  43'  E.,  on 
the  left  bank  of  a  river  called  the  Raipur  Luni  (a  tributary  of  the  Luni), 
about  45  miles  east  of  Jodhpur  city.  Population  (1901),  8,695.  It 
takes  its  name  from  a  traditional  founder,  Raja  Bal,  and  is  the  seat  of 
the  spiritual  head  (styled  Dlwati)  of  the  Slrvi  community,  a  fact  which 
adds  greatly  to  its  importance.  The  town  is  walled,  and  possesses  a 
post  office,  a  vernacular  school,  and  a  hospital.  About  4  miles  to  the 
north  is  a  fine  tank,  called  the  Jaswant  Sagar  (after  the  late  chief  of 
Jodhpur),  which  is  described  in  the  article  on  the  Luni  river. 

Bilari. — South-eastern  tahsll  of  Moradabad  District,  United  Pro- 
vinces, conterminous  with  the  pargana  of  the  same  name,  lying  between 
280  22' and  280  48'  N.  and  780  39'  and  780  58'  E.,  with  an  area  of 
333  square  miles.     Population  fell  from  231,947  in  1891  to  216,340  in 


BILASPUR  DISTRICT  221 

1901.  There  are  387  villages  and  three  towns,  the  largest  of  which  are 
Chandausi  (population,  25,711)  and  Bilarl  (4,766),  the  tahsil  head- 
quarters. The  demand  for  land  revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  3,38,000, 
and  for  cesses  Rs.  57,000.  The  density  of  population,  650  persons 
per  square  mile,  is  considerably  above  the  District  average.  Most  of 
the  tahsil  is  a  fertile  level  plain,  richly  wooded,  and  requiring  artificial 
irrigation  more  than  any  other  portion  of  the  District.  The  Gangan 
forms  part  of  the  northern  boundary,  and  the  Aril  and  Sot  cross  the 
centre  and  southern  portions.  Sugar-cane  is  the  most  profitable 
crop,  but  wheat  covers  the  largest  area.  In  1902-3  the  area  under 
cultivation  was  279  square  miles,  of  which  34  were  irrigated,  mostly 
from  wells. 

Bilaspur  District1. — District  in  the  Chhattlsgarh  Division  of  the 
Central  Provinces,  lying  between  210  37'  and  230  7'  N.  and  8i°  12' and 
830  40'  E.,  with  an  area  of  7,602  square  miles.  The  District  occupies 
the  northern  portion  of  the  Chhattlsgarh  plain  or  upper  basin  of  the 
Mahanadi.  It  is  bounded  on  the  south  by  the  open  plains  of  Raipur ; 
and  on  the  east  and  south-east  by  the  broken  country  comprised  in  the 
Raigarh  and  Sarangarh  States,  which  divides  the  Chhattlsgarh  and 
Sambalpur  plains.  To  the  north  and  west  the  lowlands  are  hemmed  in 
by  the  hills  constituting  the  eastern  outer  wall  of  the 
Satpuras,  known  locally  as  the  Maikala  range.     The  aspects 

area  of  the  District  was  8,341  square  miles  up  to 
1905,  and  it  ranked  third  in  the  Province  in  point  of  size.  A  large  part 
of  it  is  held  on  zamindari  tenure.  The  rugged  peaks  and  dense  forests, 
which  alternating  with  small  elevated  plateaux  stretch  along  the  north 
of  the  District,  and  are  divided  among  a  number  of  zamindari  estates, 
cover  about  2,000  square  miles,  or  24  per  cent,  of  the  total  area.  South 
of  these  is  an  open  undulating  plain  closely  cultivated,  and  in  the 
western  portion  wholly  denuded  of  trees,  which  contains  the  majority  of 

1  In  1906  the  constitution  of  Bilaspur  District  was  entirely  altered  by  the  formation 
of  the  new  Drug  District,  to  which  a  tract  in  the  west  of  the  Mungell  tahsil,  with  an 
area  of  363  square  miles  and  a  population  of  83,650  persons,  was  transferred.  At  the 
same  time  part  of  the  District  lying  south  of  the  Mahanadi  and  the  Tarenga  estate, 
south  of  the  Seonath,  were  transferred  to  Raipur  District,  this  area  amounting  to 
706  square  miles  with  a  population  of  99,402  persons.  On  the  transfer  of  Sambalpur 
District  to  Bengal  in  1905,  the  Chandarpur-Padampur  and  Malkhurda  estates,  with 
an  area  of  333  square  miles  and  a  population  of  87,320  persons,  were  transferred 
to  Bilaspur.  The  area  of  the  reconstituted  Bilaspur  District  is  7,602  square  miles, 
and  the  population  of  this  area  in  1901  was  917,240  persons,  compared  with  1,045,096 
in  1891.  The  density  was  121  persons  per  square  mile.  The  District  contains  three 
towns — Bilaspur,  Ratanpur,  and  Mungeli — and  3,258  inhabited  villages.  It 
includes  10  zamindari  estates,  with  a  total  area  of  4,236  square  miles,  of  which 
2,668  are  forest.  The  approximate  land  revenue  in  1902-3  on  the  area  now  constituting 
the  District  was  3-94  lakhs.  This  article  refers  almost  throughout  to  Bilaspur 
District  as  it  stood  before  its  recon>titution. 


222  BILASPUR  district 

the  population,  and  practically  all  the  wealth  of  the  District;  while  in 
the  small  strip  cut  off  by  the  Mahanadi  on  the  southern  border  rising 
ground  and  patches  of  thick  forest  are  again  met  with.  The  general 
inclination  of  the  surface  is  from  north-west  to  south-east ;  Bilaspur 
itself  is  848  feet  above  the  sea,  and  the  level  of  the  plain  country 
decreases  from  about  1,000  feet  in  the  west  of  the  Mungeli  tahsll  to 
750  at  the  south-eastern  extremity  of  the  District.  The  Pendra  plateau 
is  about  2,000  feet  high,  while  several  of  the  northern  peaks  have  eleva- 
tions approaching  2,500  feet,  and  the  hill  of  Amarkantak,  a  few  miles 
across  the  border  of  the  Rewah  State,  rises  to  nearly  3,600  feet.  The 
whole  area  of  the  District  is  included  in  the  drainage  system  of  the 
Mahanadi,  but  the  river  itself  only  flows  near  the  southern  border  for 
a  length  of  about  25  miles.  The  Seonath  crosses  the  southern  portion 
of  the  Bilaspur  tahsll,  cutting  off  the  Tarenga  estate,  and  joins  the 
Mahanadi  at  Changori.  Among  the  tributaries  of  the  Seonath  are  the 
Maniari,  which  divides  the  Bilaspur  and  Mungeli  tahsils,  the  Arpa  and 
Kurung,  which  unite  in  the  Arna,  and  the  Lllagar,  which  separates 
Bilaspur  from  Janjgir.  In  the  east  the  Hasdo  enters  the  Matin  zamin- 
dari  from  the  Surguja  hills,  and,  after  a  picturesque  course  over  the 
rocky  gorges  of  Matin  and  Uprora,  flows  through  the  plains  of  Champa 
to  the  Mahanadi.  The  bed  of  the  Hasdo  is  noted  for  its  dangerous 
quicksands. 

The  plains  are  composed  mainly  of  shales  and  limestones,  with 
subordinate  sandstones,  belonging  to  the  Lower  Vindhyan  series.  The 
hills  on  the  western  side  are  formed  of  metamorphic  and  sub-meta- 
morphic  rocks  or  slates  and  quartzites,  while  those  on  the  eastern 
and  northern  sides  consist  of  gneiss  and  other  rocks  of  the  Gondwana 
series.     The  Korba.  coal-field  is  comprised  in  this  District. 

The  forests  of  Bilaspur  are  largely  made  up  of  sal  {Shorea  robustd), 
often,  however,  of  a  scrubby  character.  In  the  western  parts  of  the 
District  some  teak  is  to  be  met  with,  but  towards  the  east  this  species  is 
comparatively  rare.  With  the  sal  are  associated  saj  (Terminalia  tomen- 
tosa),  dhaurd  {Anogeissus  latifolia),  tendu  (Diospyros  to/nentosa),  and 
shisham  {Dalbergia  latifolia  and  D.  lanceolaria),  while  karrd  (Cleislan- 
thus  collitius),  tinsa  {Ougeinia  dalbergioides),  lendid  {Lagerstroemia 
parviflora),  and  bijasdl  {Pterocarpus  Marsupium)  are  also  sometimes 
found,  as  well  as  various  species  of  Acacia  and  Albizzia,  Buteafrondosa, 
Aditia  cordifolia,  Stepheg)>ne,  Elaeodendron,  Schleichera  trijuga,  Soymida 
febrifuga,  Boswellia  serrata,  and  various  species  of  Eugenia.  The  under- 
growth includes  shrubs,  such  as  Flemingia,  Woodfordia,  Flueggea, 
Phyl/antln/s,  Grewia,  Zizyphus,  Casearia,  Clerodcndron,  and  Vemonia. 
The  forest  climbers  are  fairly  numerous,  the  most  conspicuous  being 
species  of  Spatholobus,  Millettia,  Contbretum,  Dalbergia  volubilis,  and 
Butca  superba.      In  river-beds  the  characteristic  shrubs  are  Homonoia 


HISTORY  223 

riparia,  Tamarix  ericoides,  and  Rhabdia  viminalis.      There  are  occa- 
sional patches  of  bamboo,  chiefly  Dendrocalamus  st rictus. 

Wild  elephants  were  formerly  found  in  the  forests  of  Matin  and 
Uprora  in  considerable  numbers.  They  have  now  abandoned  these 
tracts;  but  stray  animals  occasionally  enter  the  District,  and  wander 
down  as  far  as  the  Lormi  forests  when  the  crops  are  on  the  ground. 
A  few  buffaloes  frequent  the  southern  forests,  and  bison  are  met  with 
in  the  Lormi  Reserve.  Wolves  and  swamp  deer  also  occur,  besides 
the  usual  game  animals.  There  are  a  few  antelope  in  the  west  of  the 
District.  All  the  usual  game-birds  are  found,  but  duck  and  snipe  are 
not  common  except  in  a  few  special  localities.  The  demoiselle  crane 
visits  the  Mahanadi  in  the  cold  season.  The  rivers  are  well  supplied 
with  numerous  kinds  of  fish,  which  are  a  favourite  article  of  food 
among  nearly  all  classes  and  are  also  exported. 

The  climate  resembles  that  of  the  other  plain  Districts  of  the  Central 
Provinces.  On  the  plateau  of  Pendra  in  the  north  the  temperature 
is  some  40  lower  on  an  average.  Epidemics  of  cholera  and  small-pox 
occur  about  once  in  three  years,  and  leprosy  is  more  common  here 
than  in  other  parts  of  the  Province. 

The  annual  rainfall  at  Bilaspur  town  averages  50  inches.  That  of 
Mungeli  is  5  inches  less  or  45,  while  at  Janjglr  it  rises  to  50^  inches. 

The  traditions  of  Bilaspur  go  back  to  a  very  early  age,  and  are 
connected  with  the  history  of  the  Haihaivansi  Rajput  kings  of  Ratanpur 
and  Raipur.  The  earliest  prince  of  this  line  is  said 
to  have  been  Mayura  Dhwaja,  whose  adventures  with 
Krishna  on  the  occasion  of  the  theft  of  Arjun's  horse  are  related  in 
the  Jaiminiya  Ashivamedha.  A  genealogical  table  compiled  from  old 
documents  professes  to  give  a  regular  succession  of  kings  down  to  the 
Maratha  conquest,  but  the  dates  are  probably  not  reliable  until  the 
sixteenth  century.  The  territories  of  the  Haihaivansi  kings  comprised 
thirty-six  gar/is  or  forts,  and  the  name  Chhattisgarh  was,  therefore, 
applied  to  them.  To  each  of  these  forts  a  tract  of  country  was  attached, 
and  they  were  held  on  feudal  tenure  by  relatives  or  subordinate  chiefs. 
Together  they  embraced  the  greater  part  of  the  modern  Districts  of 
Raipur  and  Bilaspur,  and  many  of  them  survive  in  the  present  zamindari 
estates.  On  the  accession  of  the  twentieth  Raja,  Surdeo,  whose  date 
is  calculated  to  be  A.D.  1000,  the  Chhattisgarh  country  was  divided 
into  two  sections  ;  and  that  king's  younger  brother  established  his 
capital  at  Raipur  with  the  southern  portion  of  the  kingdom  under 
his  control,  remaining,  however,  in  feudal  subordination  to  the  elder 
brother  at  Ratanpur.  From  this  period  the  kingdom  of  Chhattisgarh 
was  divided  between  two  ruling  houses.  In  the  time  of  Kalyan  Sahi, 
the  forty-fourth  Raja,  who  is  recorded  as  having  reigned  from  ^36 
to   1573,  the  influence  of  Muhammadan  sovereignty  first  extended  to 


224  BILASPUR  district 

the  landlocked  and  isolated  region  of  Chhattlsgarh.  This  prince  is 
said  to  have  proceeded  to  Delhi,  obtained  audience  of  the  emperor 
Akbar,  and  returned  after  eight  years  with  a  Muhammadan  title.  One 
of  the  revenue  books  of  this  period,  which  has  been  preserved,  shows 
that  the  revenue  of  the  Ratanpur  territories  including  Raipur  amounted 
to  9  lakhs  of  rupees,  a  figure  which,  considering  the  relative  value  of 
money,  indicates  a  high  degree  of  prosperity.  The  army  maintained 
by  Kalyan  Sahi  consisted  of  14,200  men,  of  whom  1,000  were  cavalry, 
and  116  elephants.  This  force  was  probably  employed  almost  solely 
for  the  maintenance  of  internal  order,  as  Chhattlsgarh  appears  to  have 
escaped  any  foreign  attack  up  to  the  time  of  the  Marathas.  In  1741 
occurred  the  invasion  of  Chhattlsgarh  by  the  Maratha  general  Bhaskar 
Pant.  The  reigning  Raja,  Raghunath  Singh,  the  last  of  the  dynasty, 
was  an  old  and  feeble  man  who  made  no  attempt  to  resist  the  Marathas, 
and,  on  the  army  reaching  the  capital,  it  capitulated  after  a  few  rounds 
had  been  fired.  Chhattlsgarh  was  conferred  as  an  apanage  on  two  cadets 
of  the  Bhonsla  family  of  Nagpur,  and  was  governed  by  Maratha  Subahs 
or  district  officers  until  1 8 1 8.  The  administration  of  the  Marathas  during 
this  period  was  in  the  highest  degree  oppressive,  being  devoted  solely 
to  the  object  of  extracting  the  maximum  amount  of  revenue  from  the 
people.  On  the  deposition  of  Appa  Sahib,  the  country  came  under 
the  control  of  British  officers  while  Sir  Richard  Jenkins  was  adminis- 
tering the  Nagpur  territories  on  behalf  of  the  minor  Raja ;  and  the 
name  of  the  Superintendent  of  Chhattlsgarh,  Colonel  Agnew,  was  long 
remembered  with  gratitude  by  all  classes  of  the  people  for  the  justice, 
moderation,  and  wisdom  with  which  his  administration  was  conducted. 
At  this  period  the  capital  was  removed  from  Ratanpur  to  Raipur.  On 
the  termination  of  the  Raja's  minority  a  period  of  Maratha  admin- 
istration supervened  until  1S53,  when  Chhattlsgarh  with  the  rest  of 
the  Nagpur  territories  lapsed  to  the  British  Government.  Bilaspur  was 
constituted  a  separate  District  in  1861.  During  the  Mutiny  the  zamln- 
dar  of  the  estate  of  Sonakhan,  in  the  south-east  of  the  District,  raised 
a  small  force  and  defied  the  local  authorities.  He  was  taken  prisoner 
and  executed,  and  his  estate  was  confiscated  and  sold  to  an  English 
capitalist,  whose  representatives  still  own  it. 

The  old  town  of  Ratanpur,  the  seat  of  the  Haihaivansi  Rajput 
dynasty,  is  situated  16  miles  north  of  Bilaspur  town,  and  with  it  the 
history  and  archaeology  of  the  District  are  indissolubly  connected. 
The  temples  of  Seonnarayan  and  Kharod  in  the  south  of  the  District 
date  from  the  twelfth  century,  and  contain  inscriptions  relating  to  the 
Ratanpur  kings.  At  Janjgir  are  two  interesting  temples,  profusely 
sculptured.  Another  beautifully  sculptured  temple  is  situated  at  Pali. 
At  Dhanpur,  5  miles  from  Pendra,  are  extensive  sculptural  remains, 
many  of  which   have  been  brought  to  Pendra.      There  are  ruins  of 


POPULATION 


225 


old  forts  at  Kosgain,  Kotgarh,  Laphagarh,  and  Malhar.  Amarkantak, 
about  12  miles  from  Pendra  across  the  Rewah  border,  is  the  source 
of  the  Narbada,  Son,  and  Johala  rivers.  It  forms  the  eastern  peak 
of  the  Maikala  range,  and  is  a  celebrated  place  of  Hindu  pilgrimage. 
Several  temples  have  been  erected  here,  but  that  known  as  the 
Kama  Mandira  is  the  only  one  which  possesses  any  architectural 
interest. 

The  population  of  the  District  at  the  last  three  enumerations  was 
as  follows:  (1881)  1,017,327,  (1891)  1,164,158,  and(iooi)  1,012,972. 
Between  1S81  and  189 1  the  increase  was  14^  per 
cent. ;  but  the  rise  of  over  24  per  cent,  in  the  figures 
for  the  zamindaris  was  principally  due  to  more  accurate  enumeration, 
and  outside  them  the  growth  of  population  was  nearly  the  same  as  the 
Provincial  average.  During  the  next  decade  Bilaspur  suffered  severely 
from  famine.  The  District  contains  three  towns — Bilaspur,  Mungeli, 
and  Ratanpur — and  3,258  inhabited  villages.  Statistics  of  population 
of  the  reconstituted  District,  based  on  the  Census  of  1901,  are  shown 
in  the  following  table  : — 


Population. 


Tahsil. 


Bilaspur  . 
Mungeli  . 
Janjgli     .       . 

District  total 


V 

Number  of 

3 

CuS 

""  c 

c 

u 
ha 

cS  " 

(d 

V 

0 

£_' 

-^ 

H 

> 

3.1" 

2 

1,049 

'.452 

I 

87S 

3,039 

3 

r,33i 

7,602 

3,25S 

3 

o. 
o 


177,116 
418,209 


917,240 


D-JJ 


103 
122 

13S 


121 


30-0 


U.5J:  KT3 
o  u  3  U  C 


6-8 

28.8 
7-3 


12-2 


E  c  is  s 

n  o  <v  ■" 


7,55' 
2,677 
6,251 


'6,479 


The  average  density  is  121  persons  per  square  mile,  but  it  varies 
greatly  in  different  tracts.  About  93  per  cent,  of  the  population  speak 
the  Chhattisgarhl  dialect  of  Eastern  Hindi,  and  6  per  cent,  the  Bagheli 
dialect,  which  is  also  found  in  Jubbulpore  and  Rewah.  The  forest 
tribes  are  nearly  all  returned  as  having  abandoned  their  own  language 
and  adopted  Hindi.  About  90  per  cent,  of  the  population  are  Hindus 
and  8  percent.  Animists.  More  than  12,000  are  Muhammadans.  The 
Satnami  and  Kablrpanthi  sects  are  strongly  represented  in  Bilaspur, 
there  being  117,476  adherents  of  the  former  and  99,268  of  the  latter. 
The  original  head-quarters  of  the  latter  sect  were  at  Kawardha  ;  but 
there  has  now  been  a  schism,  and  one  of  the  ma/nvits,  Ugranam  Sahib, 
lives  at  Kudarmal  in  Bilaspur,  where  an  annual  fair  attended  by 
members  of  the  sect  is  held.  The  caste  known  as  Panka  consists  of 
Gandas  who  have  adopted  Kablrpanthism.  The  head-quarters  of  the 
Satnami  sect  are  now  in  Raipur  :  but  it  was  to  the  Sonakhan  forests 

VOLi  VIII.  Q 


226  BILASPUR  DISTRICT 

that  Ghasidas,  the  founder  of  the  sect,  retired  between  1820  and  1830, 
and  from  Girod  in  the  same  tract  he  proclaimed  his  revelation  on 
emerging  from  his  six  months'  solitary  communing.  The  Satnamis 
are  nearly  all  Chamars. 

The  two  castes  which  are  numerically  most  important  are  Chamars 
(210,000),  who  constitute  21  per  cent,  of  the  population,  and  Gonds 
(143,000)  14  per  cent.  Other  fairly  numerous  castes  are  AhTrs  or 
Rawats  (90,000),  Kurmls  (54,000),  and  Kawars  (42,000).  The  pro- 
prietors of  eight  of  the  zamlnddri  estates  belong  to  the  Tawar  sub-caste 
of  the  Kawar  tribe.  The  zamlndar  of  Bhatgaon  is  a  Binjhia,  and 
those  of  Pandaria,  Kantell,  and  Bilaigarh-Katgi  are  Raj  Gonds.  Out- 
side the  za/ni/iddris,  the  principal  castes  of  proprietors  are  Brahmans, 
Banias,  and  Kurmls.  The  best  cultivators  are  the  Chandnahu  Kurmls, 
but  their  stinginess  is  proverbial.  Chamars  own  some  villages,  but 
are  idle  and  slovenly  cultivators.  In  addition  to  the  Kawars  and 
Gonds,  there  are  several  minor  forest  tribes,  such  as  the  Bhainas, 
Dhanwars,  and  Khairwars,  most  of  whom  are  found  in  small  numbers. 
The  Dhanwars  are  very  backward  and  live  by  hunting  and  snaring. 
The  hills  to  the  north  of  Pandaria  also  contain  a  few  Baigas,  who 
subsist  principally  on  forest  produce  and  game.  About  84  per  cent, 
of  the  population  of  the  District  were  returned  in  1901  as  supported 
by  agriculture. 

Christians  number  2,292,  of  whom  2,030  are  natives.  The  majority 
belong  to  the  German  and  Evangelical  Churches,  while  there  are  over 
200  Roman  Catholics.  The  District  contains  a  number  of  mission 
stations,  the  principal  centres  being  Bilaspur,  Mungell,  and  Chandkhurl. 

Black  cotton  soil  or  kanhar  covers  two-thirds  of  the  area  of  the 
Mungeli  tahsil,  nearly  a  quarter  of  that  of  Bilaspur  excluding  the 
zamlnddris,  and  is  found  in  patches  elsewhere.  The 
remaining  area  consists  of  the  brown  or  yellow  clays 
called  dorsa  and  matdsi,  each  of  which  extends  over  about  30  per  cent, 
of  the  ?ndlguzari  portion  of  the  District.  Rice  is  the  staple  crop  and  is 
practically  always  sown  broadcast,  while  for  thinning  the  plants  and 
taking  out  weeds  the  system  of  bidsi,  or  ploughing  up  the  plants  when 
they  are  a  few  inches  high,  is  resorted  to.  This  is  a  slovenly  method, 
and  the  results  compare  very  unfavourably  with  those  obtained  from 
transplantation.  Manure  is  kept  almost  entirely  for  rice,  with  the 
exception  of  the  small  quantity  required  for  sugar-cane  and  garden  crops. 
Second  crops  are  grown  on  the  superior  black  and  brown  soils,  the 
method  pursued  being  to  sow  the  pulses  (urad,  peas,  lentils,  tiura)  and 
sometimes  linseed  in  rice-fields,  either  among  the  standing  rice,  or  less 
frequently  after  the  crop  has  been  cut  and  while  the  fields  are  still 
damp. 

Of  the   total  area  of  the  District,  56  per  cent,  is  included  in   the 


AGRICULTURE  227 

10  zamindari  estates,  2,500  acres  have  been  allotted  on  the  ryotwari 
system,  and  64  square  miles  are  held  wholly  or  partially  free  of  revenue. 
The  remainder  is  held  on  the  ordinary  mdlguzari  tenure.  In  1903-4 
the  classification  showed  626  square  miles,  or  9  per  cent.,  as  included 
in  Government  forest ;  432  square  miles,  or  6  per  cent.,  as  not  available 
for  cultivation  ;  and  2,616  square  miles,  or  38A  per  cent.,  as  cultivable 
waste  other  than  fallow l.  The  remaining  area,  amounting  to  3, 1 20  square 
miles,  or  51  per  cent,  of  the  total  available,  is  occupied  for  cultivation. 
Except  in  one  or  two  special  tracts  there  is  little  or  no  scope  for  further 
extension  of  cultivation  in  the  mdlguzari  area,  but  in  the  zamlndaris 
only  about  a  quarter  of  the  whole  has  yet  been  broken  up.  They 
probably  include,  however,  considerable  tracts  of  permanently  uncul- 
tivable  land.  Rice  covers  1,496  square  miles,  kodon  468,  wheat  193, 
linseed  234,  and  the  pulses  (urad,  mung,  and  moth)  182  square  miles. 
The  recent  unfavourable  seasons,  besides  causing  a  decrease  in  the  total 
area  under  crop  of  about  45  square  miles,  have  further  brought  about 
to  some  extent  a  substitution  of  the  light  millet  kodon  for  the  more 
valuable  staples  wheat  and  rice.  Wheat  is  grown  in  the  unembanked 
black-soil  fields  of  the  Mungell  tahsil.  Only  about  2,500  acres  are  at 
present  occupied  by  sugar-cane,  as  against  more  than  5,000  at  the  time 
of  settlement  (1886-9). 

During  the  twenty  years  between  1868  and  1888  the  cropped  area 
increased  by  39  per  cent.,  and  a  further  increase  of  44  per  cent,  had 
taken  place  by  1903-4.  The  system  of  cultivation  has  hitherto  been 
very  slovenly  ;  but  with  the  great  rise  in  the  prices  of  grain,  better 
methods  are  being  introduced,  and  the  advantages  of  manure  and 
irrigation  are  appreciated.  Thirty  years  ago  second  crops  were  raised 
on  only  a  very  small  area,  but  in  recent  years  as  much  as  400,000  acres 
have  been  double  cropped.  During  the  ten  years  ending  1904, 
1-58  lakhs  was  advanced  under  the  Land  Improvement  Loans  Act  and 
nearly  9  lakhs  under  the  Agriculturists'  Loans  Act. 

The  local  breed  of  cattle  is  very  poor,  and  no  care  is  exercised  in 
breeding.  Buffaloes  are  largely  used  for  the  more  laborious  work  of 
cultivation.  They  are  imported  from  the  northern  Districts,  and  come 
in  herds  along  the  road  from  Jubbulpore  and  Mandla.  Buffaloes  are 
kept  only  by  the  better  class  of  tenants,  and  used  in  conjunction  with 
bullocks,  as  they  do  not  work  well  in  the  dry  season.  A  few  small 
ponies  are  bred  in  the  District,  being  kept  by  well-to-do  landowners 
for  riding.  The  use  of  carts  is  as  yet  very  uncommon,  and  most  people 
travel  on  foot.  Goats  and  sheep  are  bred  for  food,  and  the  latter  also 
for  their  wool  ;  but  the  supply  is  insufficient  for  local  requirements, 
country  blankets  being  imported  from  Cawnpore. 

1  These  statistics  include  1,548  square  miles  of  waste  land  in  the  zamlndaris  which 
have  not  been  cadastrally  surveyed. 

Q  2 


228  BILASPUR  district 

Irrigation  is  not  a  regular  feature  of  the  local  agriculture.  The  Dis- 
trict now  contains  more  than  7,000  tanks,  but  the  large  majority  of 
these  were  not  constructed  for  irrigation,  but  to  hold  water  for  drinking. 
The  tanks  are  usually  embanked  on  all  sides,  and  the  bed  is  dug  out 
below  the  level  of  the  ground.  In  a  year  of  ordinary  rainfall  the  irri- 
gated area  would  not,  until  recently,  have  amounted  to  more  than  5,000 
acres.  A  large  number  of  new  tanks  have,  however,  been  constructed 
during  the  famines,  by  means  of  loans  or  Government  grants  of  money, 
and  these  have  been  made  principally  with  a  view  to  irrigation.  In 
1903-4  the  irrigated  area  amounted  to  only  3,000  acres  ;  but  in  the 
previous  year  more  than  113  square  miles  had  been  irrigated,  and 
provided  that  there  is  sufficient  rainfall  to  fill  the  tanks,  this  area  may 
now  be  considered  capable  of  being  protected.  Schemes  for  the  con- 
struction of  tanks  to  protect  140  square  miles  more  have  been  prepared 
by  the  Irrigation  department,  and  most  of  them  are  expected  to  be 
remunerative.  The  District  has  also  about  2,400  wells,  which  irrigate 
about  1,000  acres  of  good  garden  crops  and  sugar-cane. 

Government  forests  cover  626  square  miles,  or  9  per  cent,  of  the  total 
area.     The  most  important  Reserves  are  those  of  Lormi  in  the  north- 
„  west  and  Sonakhan  in  the  south-east.     Sal  (Shorea 

7-obusta)  is  the  chief  timber  tree,  and  teak  is  found  in 
small  quantities  in  the  Sonakhan  range.  Other  species  are  bljasal 
{Pterocarpus  Marsupium),  saj  {Terminalia  tomentosa\  and  karra  (Clei- 
stanthus  collinus).  Of  a  total  forest  revenue  in  1903-4  of  Rs.  21,000, 
about  Rs.  6,600  was  realized  from  bamboos,  Rs.  3,600  from  grazing  and 
fodder  grass,  and  nearly  Rs.  2,900  from  minor  forest  produce.  The 
sales  of  timber  are  thus  very  small ;  and  this  is  due  to  the  competition 
of  the  extensive  zamindari  forests,  the  produce  of  which  is  sold  at 
a  cheap  rate  and  with  little  restriction  on  fellings.  From  statistics 
obtained  from  railway  stations  it  appears  that  in  1901  more  than  11,000 
tons  of  timber  were  exported  from  these  forests,  of  which  about  two- 
thirds  consisted  of  railway  sleepers. 

No  mines  are  at  present  worked  in  the  District ;  but  prospecting 
licences  for  coal  over  the  area  of  the  Korba  and  Chhuii  zamindaris 
have  been  granted  to  European  firms,  and  it  is  believed  that  the  Korba 
seams,  whose  existence  has  long  been  known,  can  be  worked  at  a  profit. 
Iron  ores  exist  in  Korba  and  Lapha.  The  iron  is  smelted  by  native 
methods,  and  is  used  for  the  manufacture  of  agricultural  implements. 
The  Jonk  river,  which  passes  through  the  Sonakhan  estate,  has 
auriferous  sands ;  and  the  original  purchaser  of  the  estate  prospected 
for  gold,  but  found  no  veins  which  would  yield  a  profit,  though  gold 
is  obtained  in  minute  quantities  by  Sonjharas  or  native  gold-washers. 
Traces  of  copper  have  been  observed  in  the  north  of  Lormi  and  at 
Ratanpur.     Mica  in  small  slabs  is  found  in  Pendra ;  and  a  mine  was 


TRADE  AND  COMMUNICATIONS  229 

started  by  a  European  company  in  [the  year  1S96,  but  the  experiment 
proved  a  failure  owing  to  the  sheets  being  too  small  and  brittle.  Lime- 
stones occur  in  abundance,  and  slates  found  near  Seorinarayan  are  used 
in  the  local  schools.     Red  and  white  clays  occur  in  places. 

The  tasar  silk  of  Bilaspur  is  the  best  in  the  Central  Provinces.  Silk- 
worms are  bred  by  Gandas  and  Kewats,  and  the  thread  is  woven  by 
Koshtas.  The  breeding  industry  was  in  danger  of 
extinction  a  few  years  ago  ;  but  some  plots  of  Govern-  communications, 
ment  forest  have  now  been  set  apart  for  this  purpose, 
and  it  shows  a  tendency  to  revive.  The  supply  of  cocoons  is,  however, 
insufficient  for  local  requirements,  and  they  are  imported  from  Chota 
Nagpur.  The  principal  centres  are  Baloda,  Khokra,  Champa,  Chhurl, 
and  Bilaspur  town.  Tasar  cloth  is  exported  in  small  quantities  to  all 
parts  of  India.  Cotton-weaving  is  carried  on  in  many  of  the  large 
villages,  the  finest  cloth  being  produced  at  BamnfdThi  and  Kamod.  A 
little  home-spun  thread  is  still  utilized  for  the  thicker  kinds  of  cloth 
which  are  required  to  keep  out  rain,  but  otherwise  mill-spun  thread  is 
solely  employed.  Cotton  cloths  with  borders  of  tasar  silk  are  also 
woven.  There  is  no  separate  dyeing  industry,  but  the  Koshtas  them- 
selves dye  their  thread  before  weaving  it.  Bell-metal  vessels  are  made 
at  Ratanpur  and  Champa ;  but  the  supply  is  quite  insufficient  for  local 
requirements,  and  they  are  largely  imported  from  Mandla,  Bhandara, 
and  Northern  India.  Catechu  is  prepared  by  the  caste  of  Khairwars 
in  several  of  the  zamindaris.  A  match  factory  was  established  at  Kota 
in  1902.  The  capital  invested  is  about  a  lakh  of  rupees,  and  nearly 
200  workers  are  employed. 

Rice  is  the  staple  export,  being  sent  to  Bombay,  and  also  to  Berar 
and  Northern  India.  The  other  agricultural  products  exported  are 
wheat,  til,  linseed,  and  mustard.  Sal  and  bijasdl  timber  is  exported, 
sleepers  being  sent  to  Calcutta,  and  logs  and  poles  for  building  to  the 
United  Provinces.  A  considerable  quantity  of  lac  is  sent  to  Mirzapur 
and  Calcutta,  very  little  being  used  locally.  Myrabolams,  bagai  or 
b/idbar  grass  (Pollinia  eriopoda)  for  the  manufacture  of  paper,  tlkhur  or 
arrowroot,  chironjl  (the  fruit  of  Buchanania  latifolia),  and  gum  are  other 
articles  of  forest  produce  which  are  exported.  As  in  other  parts  of  the 
Province,  a  brisk  trade  has  recently  sprung  up  in  the  slaughter  of  cattle, 
and  the  export  of  dried  meat,  hides,  and  horns.  A  certain  amount 
of  salt  is  still  brought  from  Ganjam  by  pack-bullocks,  but  most  comes 
by  rail  from  Bombay.  Gram  and  g/il  are  imported  from  the  northern 
Districts  for  local  consumption,  and  tobacco  from  Madras  and  Bengal. 
A  large  number  of  weekly  bazars  or  markets  are  held,  the  most 
important  being  those  of  Bamnldlhi,  Bilaspur,  Ganiari,  Baloda,  Takhat- 
pur,  and  Champa.  Pali  in  the  Lapha  zawlnddri  and  Sohagpur  in 
Korba  are  markets  for  the  sale  of  country  iron  and  bamboo   matting 


230  JUL  AS  PUR  DISTRICT 

A  certain  amount  of  trade  in  grain  and  domestic  utensils  takes  place 
at  the  annual  fair  of  Kudarmal. 

The  direct  line  of  the  Bengal-Nagpur  Railway  from  Bombay  to 
Calcutta  passes  through  the  centre  of  the  District,  with  nine  stations 
and  a  length  of  85  miles  within  its  limits.  From  Bilaspur  station 
a  branch  line  runs  north  to  Katnl,  with  six  stations  and  a  length  of 
74  miles  in  the  District.  All  the  trade  of  Bilaspur  is  now  concentrated 
on  the  railway,  and  the  old  roads  to  Jubbulpore,  Raipur,  and  Sambal- 
pur  have  become  of  very  slight  importance.  Bhatapara  is  the  chief 
station  for  exports,  and  the  Mungell-Bhatapara  road  is  an  important 
feeder.  Bilaspur  town  is  the  chief  station  for  imports,  but  exports  only 
pass  through  it  from  the  adjacent  tracts.  It  is  connected  by  a  metalled 
road  with  MungelT,  and  by  gravelled  roads  with  Seorlnarayan,  Raipur, 
and  Ratanpur.  Akaltara  and  Champa  are  the  principal  stations  for  the 
eastern  part  of  the  District.  The  feeder-roads  are  those  from  Akaltara 
to  Baloda  and  Pamgarh,  and  from  Champa  to  Bamnldihi.  The 
northern  zamwdaris  are  still  very  badly  provided  with  roads  passable 
for  carts  ;  and,  with  the  exception  of  timber,  produce  is  generally  trans- 
ported on  pack-bullocks.  The  total  length  of  metalled  roads  in  the 
District  is  27  miles,  and  of  unmetalled  roads  275  miles;  and  the 
annual  expenditure  on  maintenance  is  Rs.  38,000.  The  Public  Works 
department  is  in  charge  of  256  miles  of  road  and  the  District  council 
of  45  miles.     There  are  avenues  of  trees  on  280  miles. 

Bilaspur  District  has  frequently  suffered  from  failure  of  crops.  In- 
formation about  any  except  the  recent  famines  is  meagre,  but  distress 
is  recorded  in  the  years  1828-9,  I^34-5,  and  1845-6. 
In  1868-9  the  rains  failed  almost  as  completely  as  in 
1 899-1900,  and  there  was  severe  distress,  accompanied  by  migration 
and  desertion  of  villages.  Relief  works  were  opened  by  Government, 
but  great  difficulty  was  found  in  inducing  the  people  to  take  advantage 
of  them.  The  famine  of  1868-9  was  followed  by  a  period  of  twenty- 
five  years  of  prosperity  ;  but  in  1895  there  was  a  very  poor  harvest, 
followed  in  1896  by  a  complete  failure  of  crops,  and  severe  famine 
prevailed  throughout  the  year  1897.  Nearly  13  per  cent,  of  the  popula- 
tion were  on  relief  in  September,  and  the  mortality  rose  temporarily  to 
a  rate  of  153  per  1,000  per  annum.  The  total  expenditure  was  nearly 
20  lakhs.  The  famine  of  1897  was  followed  by  two  favourable  years; 
but  in  1899  the  monsoon  failed  completely,  and  the  rice  crop  was 
wholly  destroyed.  Relief  operations  commenced  in  the  autumn  of 
1899  and  lasted  till  the  autumn  of  1900.  In  May,  1900,  nearly 
300,000  persons,  or  24  per  cent,  of  the  whole  population,  were  on 
relief.  Owing  to  the  complete  and  timely  organization  of  relief 
measures,  the  mortality  was  not  severe.  The  total  expenditure  was 
48I  lakhs. 


ADlflNISTRA  TION 


231 


The  Deputy-Commissioner  has  a  staff  of  four  Assistant  or  Extra- 
Assistant    Commissioners.     For   administrative  pur- 
poses the  District  is  divided  into  three  tahslls,  each 
of  which   has  a  tahslldar  and  a   naib-tahsildar.     The   Forest  officer 
belongs  to  the  Provincial  service. 

The  civil  judicial  staff  consists  of  a  District  and  one  Subordinate 
Judge,  and  a  Munsif  at  each  tahsil.  The  Divisional  and  Sessions 
Judge  of  the  Chhattlsgarh  Division  has  jurisdiction  in  the  District. 
Magisterial  powers  have  been  granted  to  five  of  the  zamindars,  and  the 
proprietor  of  the  Chandarpur  estate  has  civil  powers.  Cattle-theft  and 
cattle-poisoning  by  Chamars  for  the  sake  of  the  hides  are  common 
forms  of  crime.  Suits  for  grain  bonds  and  parol  debts  at  heavy  interest 
are  noticeable  features  of  the  civil  litigation. 

When  the  management  of  Bilaspur  District  was  undertaken  by  the 
British  Government  in  1818,  it  had  been  under  Maratha  rule  for  about 
sixty  years,  and  the  condition  of  the  people  had  steadily  deteriorated 
owing  to  their  extortionate  system  of  government.  During  the  ensuing 
twelve  years  of  the  temporary  British  administration,  the  system  of 
annual  settlements  prevailing  under  the  Marathas  was  continued,  and 
the  revenue  rose  from  Rs.  96,000  in  181 8  to  Rs.  99,000  in  1830. 
From  1830  to  1853  it  continued  to  increase  under  the  Maratha  govern- 
ment ;  and  in  the  latter  year,  when  the  District  lapsed  to  the  British,  it 
amounted  to  Rs.  1,47,000.  Triennial  settlements  were  then  made, 
followed  by  the  twenty  years'  settlement  of  1868,  when  proprietary 
rights  were  conferred  on  the  local  headmen  (malguzars)  and  the 
revenue  was  fixed  at  2-85  lakhs,  which  was  equivalent  to  an  enhance- 
ment of  66  per  cent,  on  the  malgttzari  area.  The  next  settlement  was 
made  in  1886-90  for  a  period  of  eleven  or  twelve  years.  Since  the 
preceding  revision  cultivation  had  expanded  by  40  per  cent.,  and  the 
income  of  the  landholders  had  nearly  doubled.  The  demand  was 
enhanced  by  81  per  cent,  in  the  malguzari  area.  A  fresh  regular 
settlement  was  commenced  in  1898,  but  was  postponed  till  1904  owing 
to  the  deterioration  caused  by  the  famines.  Some  reductions  have 
been  made  in  the  tracts  most  affected,  and  the  revenue  now  stands  at 
5-28  lakhs.  The  average  rental  incidence  at  the  last  regular  settlement 
for  the  fully  assessed  area  was  R.  0-9-9  Per  acre  (maximum  R.  0-15-5, 
minimum  R.  0-7-1),  the  corresponding  figure  of  revenue  incidence 
being  R.  0-5-6  (maximum   R.  0-9—4,   minimum   R.  0-4-0). 

The  collections  of  land  and  total  revenue  in  recent  years  are  shown 
below,  in  thousands  of  rupees : — 


1880- 1. 

1890-1. 

1900-1. 

1903-4. 

J, and   revenue    . 
Total  revenue   . 

2,81 
4,64 

5>25 
8,57 

4,76 
7,34 

C,I2 

8,35 

232  JUL  A  SPUR  DLSTRLCT 

The  management  of  local  affairs  outside  the  Bilaspur  municipality 
is  entrusted  to  a  District  council  and  four  local  boards,  one  for  each 
of  the  three  tahsils  and  a  fourth  for  the  northern  zamlndari  estates  of 
the  Bilaspur  tahsil.  The  income  of  the  District  council  in  1903-4 
was  Rs.  74,000  ;  and  the  expenditure  on  education  was  Rs.  35,000 
and  on  public  works  Rs.  17,000. 

The  District  Superintendent  of  police  has  a  force  of  505  officers  and 
men,  including  3  mounted  constables,  besides  3,415  watchmen  for 
3,258  inhabited  towns  and  villages.  The  District  jail  contains  accom- 
modation for  193  prisoners,  including  18  females,  and  the  daily  average 
number  of  prisoners  in  1904  was  140. 

In  respect  of  education  Bilaspur  stands  last  but  one  among  the 
Districts  of  the  Province,  only  3-8  per  cent,  of  the  male  population 
being  able  to  read  and  write  in  1901  and  only  502  women.  Statistics 
of  the  number  of  pupils  under  instruction  are  as  follows:  (1880-1) 
4,202,  (1890-1)  5,833,  (1900-1)  8,594,  and  (1903-4)  12,351,  including 
1,012  girls.  The  educational  institutions  comprise  3  English  middle, 
11  vernacular  middle,  and  142  primary  schools.  The  municipal  English 
middle  school  at  Bilaspur  town  was  raised  to  the  standard  of  a  high 
school  in  1904.  The  District  has  also  11  girls'  schools,  of  which  6  are 
maintained  by  Government,  4  from  mission  funds,  and  one  by  a 
zemindar.  The  girls'  school  at  Bilaspur  town  teaches  up  to  the  middle 
standard.  The  total  expenditure  on  education  in  1903-4  was 
Rs.  61,000,  of  which  Rs.  43,000  was  derived  from  Provincial  and 
Local  funds  and  Rs.  6,800  from  fees. 

The  District  contains  8  dispensaries,  with  accommodation  for  95  in- 
patients. In  1904  the  number  of  cases  treated  was  68,840,  of  whom 
1,111  were  in-patients,  and  1,155  operations  were  performed.  The 
expenditure  was  Rs.  1 3,000.  The  dispensaries  at  Pendra  and  Pandaria 
were  constructed,  and  are  partly  supported,  from  the  funds  of  zamlndari 
estates.     Bilaspur  town  has  a  veterinary  dispensary. 

Vaccination  is  compulsory  only  in  the  municipal  town  of  Bilaspur. 
The  percentage  of  successful  vaccinations  in  1903-4  was  34  per  1,000 
of  population. 

[Rai  Bahadur  Purshotam  Das,  Settlement  Report  (1891).  A  District 
Gazetteer  is  being  compiled.] 

Bilaspur  Tahsil. — Central  tahsil  of  the  District  of  the  same  name, 
Central  Provinces,  lying  between  21°  43'  and  230  7'  N.  and  8i°  44'  and 
820  40'  E.  In  1901  its  area  was  5,080  square  miles,  and  the  popu- 
lation was  472,682.  On  the  formation  of  the  new  Drug  District,  it  was 
considerably  reduced  in  size.  The  Tarenga  estate  lying  south  of  the 
Seonath  river  was  transferred  to  the  Baloda  Bazar  tahsil  of  Raipur,  and 
three  northern  zamindaris  of  Korba,  Chhurl,  and  Uprora  to  the 
Janjgir  tahsil  of  Bilaspur.     The  revised  area  of  the  Bilaspur  tahsil  is 


BILASPUR  STATE  233 

3,111  square  miles,  and  its  population  321,915  persons,  compared  with 
345,332  in  1891.  The  density  is  103  persons  per  square  mile,  being 
202  in  the  khdlsa  or  ordinary  proprietary  tract  and  47  in  the  zamln- 
daris.  The  tahsil  contains  two  towns,  Bilaspur  (population,  18,937), 
the  District  and  tahsil  head-quarters,  and  Ratanpur  (5,479)  ;  and 
1,049  inhabited  villages.  About  96  square  miles  of  Government  forest 
are  included  in  the  tahsil.  It  contains  the  zamlndari  estates  of  Pendra, 
Kenda  Lapha,  and  Matin,  with  a  total  area  of  1,976  square  miles  and 
a  population  of  92,394.  Tree  and  scrub  forest  occupy  1,659  square 
miles  in  the  zam'inddris.  The  land  revenue  demand  in  1902-3  on 
the  area  now  constituting  the  tahsil  was  approximately  1-34  lakhs. 
The  tahsil  consists  of  an  open  plain  to  the  south,  mainly  producing 
rice,  and  an  expanse  of  hill  and  forest  comprised  in  the  zamlndari 
estates  to  the  north. 

Bilaspur  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  District  of  the  same  name, 
Central  Provinces,  situated  in  220  5'  N.  and  820  io'  E.,  near  the 
Bengal-Nagpur  Railway,  776  miles  from  Bombay  and  445  from  Cal- 
cutta. The  town  is  said  to  be  named  after  one  Bilasa,  a  fisherwoman, 
and  for  a  long  period  it  consisted  only  of  a  few  fishermen's  huts. 
A  branch  line  of  198  miles  leads  to  Katni  junction  on  the  East  Indian 
Railway.  The  town  stands  on  the  river  Arpa,  3  miles  from  the  railway 
station.  Population  (1901),  18,937.  Bilaspur  is  the  eighth  largest 
town  in  the  Province,  and  is  rapidly  increasing  in  importance.  Its 
population  has  almost  quadrupled  since  1872.  A  municipality  was 
constituted  in  1867.  The  municipal  receipts  during  the  decade  ending 
1901  averaged  Rs.  33,000.  In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  39,000, 
derived  principally  from  octroi.  Bilaspur  is  the  leading  station  in  the 
District  for  the  distribution  of  imports,  but  it  ranks  after  Bhata.pa.ra 
and  Akaltara  as  a  collecting  centre.  Its  trade  is  principally  with 
Bombay.  The  weaving  of  tasar  silk  and  cotton  cloth  are  the  principal 
industries.  Bilaspur  is  the  head-quarters  in  the  Central  Provinces  of 
the  cooly-recruiting  Agency  for  Assam.  It  contains,  besides  the  usual 
District  officers,  a  number  of  railway  servants  and  is  the  head-quarters 
of  a  company  of  volunteers.  The  educational  institutions  comprise 
a  high  school,  a  school  for  the  children  of  European  railway  servants, 
and  various  branch  schools.  The  town  possesses  four  dispensaries, 
including  railway  and  police  hospitals,  and  a  veterinary  dispensary. 
A  station  of  the  Foreign  Christian  Missionary  Society  of  America 
(unsectarian)  was  opened  in  1885.  A  church  has  been  built  and  the 
mission  supports  an  orphanage  for  girls,  boarding  and  day  schools  for 
boys,  and  a  dispensary. 

Bilaspur  State  (or  Kahlur). — One  of  the  Simla  Hill  States,  Punjab, 
lying  between  310  12'  and  310  35'  N.  and  760  28'  and  76°  58'  E.,  with 
an  area  of  448  square  miles.     Population  (1901),  90,873.     The  State 


234  BILlSPUR  STATE 

contains  one  town  and  42  r  villages.  The  Gurkhas,  who  had  overrun 
the  country  at  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century,  were  driven  out 
by  the  British  in  1815,  and  the  Raja  reinstated  in  his  possessions.  In 
1 84 7-8,  when  the  Punjab  was  conquered,  the  Raja  was  confirmed  in 
his  possession  of  the  State,  including  part  of  a  tract  on  the  right  bank 
of  the  Sutlej,  which  he  had  previously  held  on  payment  of  tribute  to 
the  Sikhs.  The  British  Government  waived  its  right  to  tribute,  but 
required  the  Raja  to  abolish  transit  duties  in  his  dominions.  About 
1865  the  pargana  of  Bassi  Bachertu  was  given  up  to  the  Raja,  on  con- 
dition of  an  annual  payment  of  Rs.  8,000  to  the  British  Government. 
In  acknowledgement  of  his  services  during  the  Mutiny,  the  Raja 
received  a  dress  of  honour  of  the  value  of  Rs.  5,000,  and  a  salute  of 
7  guns,  since  increased  to  11  guns.  Bije  Chand,  the  present  Raja, 
succeeded  in  1889;  but  in  1903-4  he  was  deprived,  for  a  time,  of  his 
administrative  powers,  and  the  State  is  now  managed  by  a  British 
official.  The  military  force  of  the  State  consists  of  11  cavalry, 
187  infantry  (including  gunners  and  police),  and  2  field  guns.  The 
revenue  is  about  Rs.  1,57,000  ;  and  the  principal  products  are  grain, 
opium,  tobacco,  and  ginger. 

Bilaspur  Town.— Capital  of  the  Kahlur  or  Bilaspur  State,  Punjab, 
and  residence  of  the  Raja,  situated  in  310  19'  N.  and  760  50'  E..  on  the 
left  bank  of  the  Sutlej,  1,465  feet  above  sea-level.  Population  (1901), 
3.192.  The  place  suffered  much  in  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth 
century  from  the  depredations  of  the  Gurkhas.  It  now  contains 
a  number  of  well-built  stone  houses,  a  bazar,  the  neat  but  unpretentious 
palace  of  the  Raja,  a  dispensary,  and  a  school.  A  ferry  across  the 
Sutlej,  2  miles  above  the  town,  forms  the  chief  communication  with  the 
Punjab  proper. 

Bilaspur  Tahsll.— North-eastern  tahsll  in  the  State  of  Rampur, 
United  Provinces,  lying  between  280  44'  and  290  1'  N.  and  790  io'  and 
790  26'  E.,  with  an  area  of  204  square  miles.  Population  (1901), 
73,450.  There  are  223  villages  and  one  town,  Bilaspur  (population, 
4,448),  the  tahsll  head-quarters.  The  demand  for  land  revenue  in 
1903-4  was  Rs.  3,08,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  49,000.  The  density  of 
population,  360  persons  per  square  mile,  is  the  lowest  in  the  State. 
The  tahsll  lies  in  the  damp  submontane  tract  and  is  intersected  by 
many  streams,  some  of  which  supply  small  canals.  In  1903-4  the  area 
under  cultivation  was  69  square  miles,  of  which  37  were  irrigated. 

Bilaud.—  Thakarat  in  the  Malwa  Agency,  Central  India. 

Bilbari.— Petty  State  in  the  Dangs,  Bombay. 

Bildi. — Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bilgram  Tahsll.— South-western  tahsll  of  Hardol  District,  United 
Provinces,  comprising  the  parganas  of  Bilgram,  Sandl,  Katiyarl,  Mal- 
lanwan,  and  Kachhandau,  and  lying  between  260  56'  and  27°  27'  N. 


BILHAUR   TAHSIL  235 

and  79°  41'  and  8o°  18'  E.,  with  an  area  of  596  square  miles.  Popula- 
tion increased  from  281,747  in  1891  to  293,948  in  1901.  There  are 
485  villages  and  four  towns  :  Bilgram  (population,  11,190),  the  tahsll 
head-quarters,  Mallanwan  (11,158),  Sandi  (9,072),  and  Madhoganj 
(3>59-0-  Tne  demand  for  land  revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  4,24,000, 
and  for  cesses  Rs.  70,000.  The  density  of  population,  493  persons  per 
square  mile,  is  the  highest  in  the  District,  and  this  is  the  only  tahsll  of 
Hardoi  which  showed  an  appreciable  increase  between  1891  and  1901. 
On  the  south-west  the  tahsil  is  bounded  by  the  Ganges,  which  is  joined 
by  the  Ramganga,  the  Garra  meeting  the  lower  river  close  to  the  con- 
fluence. A  large  portion  of  the  west  and  south-west  lies  in  the  alluvial 
lowlands.  In  1903-4  the  area  under  cultivation  was  402  square  miles, 
of  which  92  were  irrigated.  Wells  supply  nearly  three-quarters  of  the 
irrigated  area,  and  tanks  and  small  streams  the  remainder. 

Bilgram  Town.— Head-quarters  of  the  tahsil  of  the  same  name, 
Hardoi  District,  United  Provinces,  situated  in  270  11'  N.  and  8o°  2'  E., 
at  the  termination  of  a  metalled  road  from  Hardoi  town.  Population 
(1901),  11,190.  Tradition  states  that  this  place  was  held  by  the  Tha- 
theras.  These  were  expelled  by  the  Raikwars  under  Raja  Sri  Ram, 
who  founded  a  town  which  he  named  after  himself,  Srlnagar.  The 
Raikwars  in  their  turn  were  ousted  by  the  Muhammadans  about  12 17. 
A  Muhammadan  saint,  whose  tomb  is  the  oldest  in  the  place,  is  said  to 
have  slain  a  demon,  named  Bil,  by  his  enchantments,  and  the  name  of 
the  town  was  changed  to  Bilgram.  The  Hindus  have  a  similar  tradi- 
tion, in  which  the  exploit  is  attributed  to  Balarama,  brother  of  Krishna. 
The  place  is  built  on  and  around  a  lofty  bluff,  and  in  the  older  part  of 
it  many  fragments  of  carved  stone  bas-reliefs,  pillars,  and  capitals  of  old 
Hindu  columns  are  found.  Numerous  mosques  and  dargdhs  adorn 
Bilgram,  some  of  them  dating  from  the  thirteenth  century.  Bilgram 
is  administered  under  Act  XX  of  1856,  with  an  income  of  about 
Rs.  3,600.  Its  trade  has  declined,  but  there  is  still  some  traffic  with 
Hardoi  and  Madhoganj  ;  and  cloth,  glazed  pottery,  carved  doors  and 
lintels,  shoes,  and  brass-ware  are  produced.  The  town  contains  a  dis- 
pensary, a  munsifi,  a  branch  of  the  American  Methodist  Mission,  and 
two  schools  with  158  pupils.  It  has  produced  a  number  of  Muham- 
madans who  have  attained  distinction  as  officials  or  in  literature. 

Bilhaur  Tahsll. — Northern  tahsll  of  Cawnpore  District,  United 
Provinces,  conterminous  with  the  pargana  of  the  same  name,  lying 
between  260  31'  and  260  58'  N.  and  790  40'  and  8o°  8'  E.,  with  an  area 
of  345  square  miles.  Population  fell  from  157,593  in  1891  to  156,261 
in  1901.  There  are  245  villages  and  one  town,  Bilhaur  (popula- 
tion, 5,143),  the  tahsll  head-quarters.  The  demand  for  land  revenue  in 
1903-4  was  Rs.  3,00,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  48,000.  The  density  of 
population,  453  persons  per  square  mile,  is  below  the  District  average. 


236  1ULHAUR    TAHSIL 

The  Ganges  forms  the  north-eastern  boundary,  and  the  tahsil  is  crossed 
by  the  Isan  and  Pandu,  wliile  the  Rind  flows  along  the  southern  side. 
Near  the  Isan  the  soil  is  light  and  sandy,  but  it  improves  near  the 
Pandu,  and  a  fertile  red  soil  is  found  along  the  Rind.  Many  swamps 
in  the  centre  of  the  tahsil  are  used  for  irrigating  about  10  square 
miles  in  ordinary  years.  In  1903-4  the  area  under  cultivation  was 
163  square  miles,  of  which  76  were  irrigated.  The  Cawnpore  branch 
of  the  Lower  Ganges  Canal  is  the  most  important  source  of  irrigation, 
but  wells  supply  nearly  as  large  an  area. 

Bilhaur  Town. — Head  quarters  of  the  tahsil  of  the  same  name 
in  Cawnpore  District,  United  Provinces,  situated  in  260  50'  N.  and 
8o°  4'  E.,  on  the  grand  trunk  road,  and  on  the  Cawnpore-Achhnera 
Railway.  Population  (1901),  5,143.  The  town  contains  a  tahslli 
and  a  dispensary,  and  is  administered  under  Act  XX  of  1856,  with 
an  income  of  about  Rs.  1,100.  The  tahslli  school  has  about  100 
scholars. 

Biligiri-Rangan  Hills. — A  range  in  Southern  India  which  originates 
(120  27'  N.  and  760  11/  E.)  in  the  south-east  of  Mysore  District,  Mysore 
State,  and,  after  running  north  and  south  for  nearly  10  miles,  passes 
into  the  Coimbatore  District  of  Madras.  The  peak  from  which  the 
range  is  named  is  5,091  feet  high,  with  an  old  temple  of  Biligiri  Ranga 
at  the  top.  The  slopes  are  well  wooded,  teak  and  sandal-wood  being 
found  among  the  trees  ;  and  long  grass,  often  10  to  18  feet  high,  grows 
everywhere.  The  only  inhabitants  are  the  wild  aboriginal  Sholigas, 
who  live  in  isolated  hamlets  containing  five  or  six  wattled  huts. 
Elephant*,  bison,  and  sdmbar  are  found,  and  occasionally  tigers, 
leopards,  and  bears. 

Bilimora. — Town  in  the  Gandevi  taluka  of  the  Navsari  prdnt,  Baroda 
State,  situated  in  200  46'  and  730  o'  E.,  on  the  Bombay,  Baroda,  and 
Central  India  Railway,  13  miles  distant  from  Navsari,  and  135  miles 
from  Bombay.  Population  (1901),  4,693.  The  town  is  built  on  the 
bank  of  the  Ambika  river,  and  a  moderate  trade  is  carried  on  in  grain, 
molasses,  castor-oil,  fuel,  and  timber,  by  both  rail  and  sea.  Works 
are  now  being  constructed  to  improve  the  port.  It  possesses  a  dis- 
pensary, Anglo-vernacular  and  vernacular  schools,  and  local  offices. 
The  municipality  has  an  income  of  Rs.  1,300,  derived  from  a  grant 
by  the  State.  Factories  for  the  manufacture  of  chocolate  on  a  large 
scale  and  rice-milling  have  been  erected  here.  Work  in  sandal-wood 
and  ivory  is  carried  on  by  a  local  firm. 

Bilin. — Township  in  the  Thaton  District  of  Lower  Burma,  on  the 
eastern  coast  of  the  Gulf  of  Martaban,  lying  between  160  57'  and 
1 7°  42'  N.  and  970  o'  and  970  32'  E.,  with  an  area  of  937  square  miles. 
It  consists  for  the  most  part  of  an  alluvial  plain,  stretching  from  the 
hills  in  the  north  to  the  sea.     It  contains  224  villages,  and  the  popula- 


BILUGYUN  237 

tion,  which  was  48,524  in  1891,  had  risen  by  1901  to  55,112.  The 
head-quarters  are  at  Bilin,  a  village  of  2,610  inhabitants,  on  the  right 
bank  of  the  Bilin  river.  The  township  is  famous  for  its  sugar-cane, 
which  is  grown  in  considerable  quantities  on  the  rich  well-watered 
lowlands.  The  area  cultivated  in  1903-4  was  123  square  miles,  pay- 
ing Rs.  1,74,100  land  revenue. 

Billesvara  Betta. — Sacred  hill  in  the  Nagar  taluk  of  Shimoga  Dis- 
trict, Mysore  State,  situated  in  about  130  48'  N.  and  750  19'  E.  It 
is  the  source  of  several  streams,  two  running  north-west  to  the  Shara- 
vati,  one  north  to  the  Tungabhadra,  and  one  south  to  the  Tunga. 

Biloli. — South-eastern  taluk  of  Nander  District,  Hyderabad  State, 
with  an  area  of  269  square  miles.  The  population  in  1901,  including 
jdgirs,  was  54,925,  compared  with  56,170  in  1901,  the  decrease  being 
due  to  the  famine  of  1900.  The  taluk  till  recently  contained  118 
villages,  of  which  33  are  jagir,  and  Biloli  (population,  2,926)  is  the 
head-quarters.  The  Godavari  river  flows  north  of  it  and  the  Manjra 
to  the  east,  the  latter  separating  it  from  Nizamabad  District.  The 
land  revenue  in  1901  was  i-6  lakhs.  It  is  composed  of  alluvial  and 
regar  soils.  In  1905  Biloli  was  enlarged  by  the  addition  of  some 
villages  from  Osmannagar. 

Bilsi. — Town  in  the  Sahaswan  tahsit  of  Budaun  District,  United 
Provinces,  situated  in  2 8°  8'  N.  and  7 8°  55'  E.,  16  miles  west  of 
Budaun  town.  Population  (1901),  6,035.  Tne  town  was  founded 
towards  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century,  and  owes  its  name  to 
one  Bilasi  Singh.  In  the  first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  new 
road  system  gave  great  advantages  to  Bilsi,  which  became  the  second 
trading  centre  in  the  neighbourhood.  The  railway,  however,  passed 
Bilsi  at  a  distance  of  20  miles  and  it  has  lost  its  trade,  while  its 
prosperity  has  further  decreased  owing  to  the  decline  in  indigo,  which 
was  largely  manufactured  here.  From  1884  to  1904  Bilsi  was  admin- 
istered as  a  municipality,  with  an  income  and  expenditure  of  about 
Rs.  3,000.  In  1904  it  was  reduced  to  the  position  of  a  'notified 
area.'  The  town  contains  a  primary  school  with  94  pupils  and  a 
small  girls'  school,  besides  a  dispensary  and  a  branch  of  the  American 
Methodist  Mission. 

Bilugyun.— Island  at  the  mouth  of  the  Salween  river  in  Lower 
Burma,  south-west  of  the  town  of  Moulmein,  lying  between  160  14'  and 
160  31'  N.  and  970  27'  and  970  38'  E.,  with  an  area  of  190  square  miles. 
Its  length  north  and  south  is  20  miles,  and  its  width  east  and  west 
rather  less  than  10.  It  constituted,  in  1901,  the  Bilugyun  township 
of  Amherst  District,  and  then  had  a  population  of  41,880,  compared 
with  34,056  in  1891.  The  density  is  220  persons  per  square  mile, 
which  is  high  for  Burma.  The  centre  of  the  island  is  occupied  by 
a  range  of  wooded  hills  but  the  greater  part  consists  of  alluvial  plains. 


238  BILUGYUN 

The  inhabitants  are  mainly  Talaings,  but  about  one-quarter  of  the 
population  is  Burman,  and  there  is  a  fair  proportion  of  Karens. 
Bilugyun  means  'the  island  of  bilus1  or  ogres.  The  island  now 
forms  the  township  of  Chaungzon,  the  head-quarters  of  which  are 
at  Chaungzon  (population,  1,112),  situated  in  the  centre  of  the 
island. 

Bimgal. — Former  taluk  in  Nizamabad  (Indur)  District,  Hyderabad 
State.     &£Armur. 

Bimlipatam  Tahsil. — Coast  tahsll  in  Vizagapatam  District,  Madras, 
lying  between  r7°  50'  and  1S0  6'  N.  and  830  12'  and  830  37'  E.,  with 
an  area  of  207  square  miles.  The  population  in  1901  was  126,354, 
compared  with  114,834  in  1891.  The  tahsil  contains  one  town, 
Bimlipatam  (population,  10,212),  the  head-quarters,  and  117  villages. 
The  demand  for  land  revenue  and  cesses  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  8,805. 
This  is  a  densely  populated  tahsil,  which  is  entirely  zamindari  land 
belonging  to  the  Vizianagram  Estate. 

Bimlipatam  Town.  —  Head- quarters  of  the  tahsil  of  the  same  name 
in  Vizagapatam  District,  Madras,  situated  in  170  54'  N.  and  830  27'  E., 
on  the  coast  about  18  miles  north-east  of  Vizagapatam  town.  The 
population  (1901),  10,212,  has  advanced  but  little  in  recent  years. 
A  factory  was  established  here  in  the  seventeenth  century  by  the 
Dutch,  but  it  plays  no  part  in  history.  It  was  sacked  by  the  Maratha 
hordes  of  Jafar  All  in  1754,  but  otherwise  remained  in  the  peaceful 
possession  of  the  Dutch  till  1825,  when  it  was  ceded  by  treaty  to 
the  East  India  Company.  Till  1846  Bimlipatam  remained  a  mere 
fishing  village,  but  in  that  year  it  began  to  attract  European  capital 
and  enterprise.  It  now  forms  a  regular  place  of  call  for  coasting 
steamers,  and  ranks  as  one  of  the  chief  ports  on  the  east  coast.  The 
maritime  trade  has,  however,  been  affected  by  the  completion  of  the 
railway  between  Madras  and  Calcutta.  During  the  five  years  ending 
1903-4  the  value  of  the  seaborne  imports  averaged  8  lakhs  and  of 
the  exports  32  lakhs.  The  chief  exports  are  gingelly  and  gingelly  oil, 
hides  and  skins,  seeds,  jute,  indigo,  and  myrabolams  ;  the  principal 
imports  are  cotton  twist  and  yarn,  and  piece-goods.  Though  an  open 
roadstead,  the  port  is  fairly  well  protected  by  the  Uppada  and  Sugar- 
loaf  headlands.  The  town  is  governed  by  a  municipal  council  of 
twelve  members,  created  in  1866.  During  the  ten  years  ending  1902-3 
the  income  and  expenditure  averaged  Rs.  14,000.  In  1903-4  the 
income  was  Rs.  17,000,  derived  chiefly  from  taxes  on  houses  and 
land,  tolls,  and  school  fees.  The  usual  tahsil  staff  is  stationed  here ; 
and  in  addition  several  European  merchants  and  others  connected 
with  the  trade  of  the  town  reside  either  here  or  at  Chittivalsa  (3  miles 
distant),  where  a  jute  and  gunny-bag  factory  has  been  established. 

Bina. — Railway  junction  in  the  Khurai  tahsll  of  Saugor  District, 


PIRBHUM  239 

Central  Provinces,  situated  in  240  12'  N.  and  780  14'  E.,  2  miles  from 
the  town  of  Etawa.  Population  (1901),  1,826.  The  main  line  of  the 
Indian  Midland  section  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway  from 
Itarsi  to  Cawnpore  and  Agra  passes  Bina,  and  is  connected  here  with 
Katnl  junction  on  the  East  Indian  Railway  by  a  branch  line  through 
Saugor  and  Damoh.  Another  branch  line  has  been  constructed  from 
Bina  to  Guna  and  Baran.  Bina  is  607  miles  from  Bombay  and  806 
miles  from  Calcutta.  A  number  of  railway  officials  reside  here  and 
form  a  company  of  volunteers. 

Bindhachal. —  Town  and  shrine  included  in  Mirzapur  Citv, 
United    Provinces. 

Bindkl. — Town  in  the  Khajuha  tahsll  of  Fatehpur  District,  United 
Provinces,  situated  in  260  3'  N.  and  8o°  36'  E.,  5  miles  from  the  Mauhar 
or  Bindkl  Road  railway  station  on  the  East  Indian  Railway.  Population 
(1901),  7,728.  The  town  has  now  become  the  most  important  trading 
centre  between  Cawnpore  and  Allahabad,  and  attracts  a  great  deal  of 
trade  from  Bundelkhand.  Grain,  gkl,  and  cattle  are  the  chief  articles 
of  commerce.  Bindkl  is  administered  under  Act  XX  of  1856,  with  an 
income  of  about  Rs.  1,500  from  taxation  and  Rs.  2,500  from  rents. 
There  is  a  flourishing  town  school  with  114  pupils,  and  a  dispensary. 

Bir. —  District,  taluk,  and  town  in  Hyderabad  State.     See  Bhir. 

Birbhum. — District  in  the  Burdwan  Division  of  Bengal,  lying  between 
230  S3'  and  240  35'  N.  and  870  10'  and  88°  2'  E.,  with  an  area  of 
1,752  square  miles.  The  name  is  commonly  derived  from  Bir  Bhilmi, 
'the  land  of  heroes';  but  some  trace  it  to  Bir  Raja,  a  Hindu  king 
of  Rajnagar,  the  old  capital.  Probably  Bir  was  the  title  of  an  old  line 
of  rulers,  just  as  were  Man,  Singh,  and  Dhal  of  the  rulers  of  Manbhum, 
Singhbhum,  and  Dhalbhum  respectively.  The  District  is  bounded  on 
the  north-west  by  the  Santal  Parganas  ;  on  the  east  by  Murshidabad  and 
Burdwan;  and  on  the  south  by  Burdwan.  The  administrative  head- 
quarters are  at  Suri   town. 

The  District  forms  part  of  the  eastern  fringe  of  the  Chota  Nagpur 
plateau,  and  the  surface  is  broken  by  a  succession  of  undulations  from 
north-west  to  south-east.     To  the  west  these  rise  into  high  ridges  of 
laterite  separated  by  valleys  a  mile  or  more  in  width, 
while  to  the  south-east  the  valleys  gradually  merge  as^ct^ 

into  the  alluvial  plains  of  the  Gangetic  delta.  The 
drainage  from  the  plateau  passes  south-eastwards  across  the  District,  the 
only  rivers  of  any  size  being  the  Mor  and  the  Ajay,  which  forms 
the  southern  boundary.  The  Mor  is  a  tributary  of  the  Dwarka,  and  the 
latter  and  the  Ajay  are  both  affluents  of  the  Bhaglrathi.  Their  width 
varies  from  200  yards  to  half  a  mile ;  neither  river  is  navigable  in 
the  hot  season,  when  they  run  almost  dry  in  broad  sandy  beds.  In 
the  rains  they  swell  rapidly  till  they  overtop  their  banks  and  inundate 


240  BIRBIIUM 

the  surrounding  country,  but,  even  then,  the  Mor  is  only  navigable 
down-stream.  The  other  streams  deserving  notice  are  the  Hingla, 
a  tributary  of  the  Ajay,  the  Bakreswar,  the  Dwarka  and  its  tributary  the 
Brahman!,  and  the  Bansloi,  all  of  which  rise  in  the  Santal  Parganas. 

The  geological  formations  represented  in  Blrbhum  are  the  Archaean 
gneiss,  the  Gondwana  system,  the  laterite,  and  the  Gangetic  alluvium. 
The  last  conceals  the  older  rocks,  except  in  a  narrow  strip  along  the 
western  boundary.  The  gneiss  belongs  to  the  division  designated 
Bengal  gneiss,  which  is  remarkable  for  the  great  variety  of  rocks  which 
it  contains.  The  Gondwana  system  includes  the  Rajmahal,  Dubrajpur, 
and  Barakar  subdivisions.  The  Barakar  is  a  subdivision  of  the  Lower 
Gondwana,  while  the  two  other  groups  belong  to  the  Upper  Gondwana  ; 
they  occur  in  the  Ramgarh  hills,  which  form  the  southern  extension  of 
the  Rajmahal  range.  The  Dubrajpur  group  is  found  only  in  a  narrow 
strip  with  faulted  western  boundary  along  the  western  border  of  the 
range.  It  consists  of  coarse  grits  and  conglomerates,  often  ferruginous, 
containing  quartz  and  gneiss  pebbles,  with  occasionally  hard  and  dark 
ferruginous  bands.  It  is  unconformably  overlaid  by  the  Rajmahal 
group,  consisting  chiefly  of  bedded  basic  volcanic  lavas  of  the  nature  of 
dolerites  and  basalts.  Basic  dikes  scattered  through  the  gneiss  area 
represent  the  underground  portion  of  these  eruptions.  Intercalated 
between  successive  lava-flows  are  some  aqueous  sedimentary  layers, 
containing  fossil  plants  similar  to  those  found  near  Jubbulpore  and  in 
Cutch.  The  coal-measures  are  represented  only  by  the  Barakar  group 
which  forms  the  small  Tangsuli  field,  on  the  northern  bank  of  the  Mor 
river,  and  by  the  northern  edge  of  the  Ranlganj  coal-field.  The  coal 
which  is  contained  in  those  outcrops  is  scanty  and  of  poor  quality. 
As  a  rule,  it  is  scarcely  more  than  a  carbonaceous  shale.  Ferruginous 
laterite  occupies  large  areas  in  the  Ramgarh  hills  and  in  the  valleys  of 
the  Mor  and  Ajay  rivers. 

In  the  east  the  vegetation  is  characteristic  of  rice-fields  in  Bengal 
generally,  species  of  Aponogeton,  Utricularia,  Drosera,  Dopatriumy 
Jfysantkes,  Hydrolea,  Sphenoclea,  and  similar  aquatic  or  palustrine 
genera  being  abundant.  In  the  drier  undulating  countrv  in  the  west 
the  characteristic  shrubs  and  herbs  include  species  of  Wendlandia, 
Evolvulas,  Stipa,  Tragus,  Perotis,  Spennacoce,  Zizyphus,  and  Capparis. 
Round  villages  are  the  usual  clumps  of  mangoes,  palms,  bamboos,  and 
other  trees,  among  which  species  of  Ficus,  jack,  and  arjun  (Terminalia 
Arjund)  are  often  present.  The  District  contains  no  Government 
forests  ;  but  in  the  west  are  forests  containing  sal  {Shorea  robustd),  piar 
(Buchanania  latifolia),  dhau  (Anogeissi/s  latifolia),  kend  (Diospyros 
me/anoxylon),  and  mahud  (Bass/a  latifolia). 

With  the  exception  of  a  few  leopards,  big  game  has  disappeared 
before  the  advance  of  cultivation. 


HISTORY  Ui 

The  climate  is  dry,  and  high  day  temperatures  are  a  feature  of  the 
hot  months.  The  annual  rainfall  averages  57  .inches,  of  which 
10-7  inches  fall  in  June,  12-7  in  July,  12-1  in  August,  and  99  in 
September.  Destructive  floods  occurred  in  1787  and  1806,  and  again 
in  September,  1902,  when  the  Mor,  Brahmani,  and  Bansloi  rivers  rose 
suddenly  and  overflowed  the  surrounding  country,  causing  great  damage 
to  villages,  houses,  roads,  and  bridges.  In  June,  1902,  a  cyclone  passed 
through  the  Rampur  Hat  subdivision,  which  derailed  and  wrecked  a 
passenger  train,  causing  great  loss  of  life. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  thirteenth  century,  Blrbhum  was  a  Hindu 

principality  with  its  capital  at  Rajnagar  or  Nagar,  and  it  is  recorded 

that  the  Pathan  conquerors  constructed  a  road  from 

t^      -  •     ,*•    -•  1  1    ^  xt  n.1  •  History. 

Devikot,  in  I  hnajpur,  through  daur  to  Nagar.     T  his 

place  was  sacked  by  the  Oriyas  in  1244.  The  zamindari  of  Blrbhum 
first  appears  as  a  separate  fiscal  unit  at  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  when  a  sanad  wasvgranted  by  Jafar  Khan,  Nawab  of  Murshid- 
abad,  to  Asad-ullah  Pathan,  to  hold  it  as  a  kind  of  military  fief.  His 
family  had  probably  reigned  in  the  country  since  the  fall  of  the  Pathan 
dynasty  of  Bengal  in  1600.  The  zamindari,  which  at  that  time  included 
a  great  part  of  the  Santa.1  Parganas  and  extended  over  3,858  square  miles, 
passed  into  the  hands  of  the  British  in  1765,  but  it  was  not  until  1787 
that  the  Company  assumed  the  direct  government  of  Blrbhum.  Mean- 
while the  District  was  overrun  by  marauders  from  the  western  highlands 
of  Chota.  Nagpur,  who  formed  large  permanent  camps,  intercepted  the 
revenues  on  the  way  to  the  treasury,  and  brought  the  commercial 
operations  of  the  Company  to  a  standstill.  The  Raja,  could  make  no 
head  against  them,  and  it  became  absolutely  necessary  for  the  British 
Government  to  interfere.  The  two  border  principalities  of  Blrbhum 
and  Bankura  were  united  into  one  District,  and  a  large  armed  force 
was  maintained  to  repress  the  bands  of  plunderers,  who  for  some  time 
continued  their  depredations.  In  1788  the  Collector  had  to  call  out 
the  troops  against  a  body  500  strong,  who  had  made  a  descent  on  a 
market  town  within  two  hours'  ride  of  his  head-quarters,  and  murdered 
or  frightened  away  the  inhabitants  of  between  30  and  40  villages.  In 
the  following  year  the  inroads  assumed  even  more  serious  proportions, 
the  plunderers  going  about  sacking  villages  'in  parties  of  three  or  four 
hundred  men  well  found  in  arms.'  The  population  was  panic  stricken, 
the  large  villages  and  trading  depots  were  abandoned  ;  and  the  Collector 
was  compelled  hastily  to  recall  the  outposts  stationed  at  the  frontier 
passes,  to  levy  a  militia  supplementing  the  regular  troops,  and  to  obtain 
reinforcements  of  soldiery  from  the  neighbouring  Districts.  The  ban- 
ditti could  not  hold  out  against  the  forces  thus  brought  against  them, 
and  were  driven  back  into  the  mountains.  Order  was  soon  established, 
and  the  country  recovered  with  amazing  rapidity  from  the  disastrous 

VOL.  VIII.  K 


242 


MRU  HUM 


effects  of  the  ravages  to  which  it  had  been  exposed.  The  tranquillity 
of  the  District  has  since  remained  undisturbed,  except  during  the  Santal 
insurrection  of  1855.     See  Santal  Parganas. 

In  1765  the  District  was  more  than  twice  its  present  size.  In  the 
beginning  of  the  nineteenth  century  the  zamindari  of  Bishnupur  was 
formed  into  the  independent  Collectorate  of  Bankura,  and  some  years 
later  considerable  tracts  to  the  west  were  cut  off  and  now  form  part 
of  the  Santal  Parganas. 

The  population  of  the  present  District  area,  which  was  851,235  in 
1872,  fell  to  792,031  in  1881,  but  rose  to  798,254  in  1891  and  to 
902,280  in  1901.  The  decrease  previous  to  i88r 
wds  due  to  the  ravages  of  the  Burdwan  fever,  from 
which  the  District  formerly  suffered  severely,  and  which  was  still  preva- 
lent in  portions  of  the  head-quarters  subdivision  in  1891.  The  District 
is  now  one  of  the  healthiest  in  Bengal.  Mortality  is  chiefly  due  to  fever ; 
cholera  breaks  out  occasionally  in  the  south-eastern  t/ia/ias,  but  there 
have  been  no  serious  epidemics.  Leprosy  is  very  prevalent,  the  number 
of  males  afflicted  amounting  in  1901  to  3-21  per  1,000  of  the  population. 
This  District  and  Bankura  enjoy  the  unenviable  notoriety  of  harbouring 
a  greater  number  of  lepers  in  proportion  to  their  population  than  any 
other  tract  in  India.  The  principal  statistics  of  the  Census  of  1901  are 
shown  below  : — 


Subdivision. 

Area  in  square 
miles. 

Number  of 

Population. 

u 

|& 

C    w 

Percentage  of 
variation  in 

population  be- 
tween 1891 
and  1901. 

Number  of 

persons  able  to 

read  and 

write. 

w 

0 
H 

Villages. 

Suri 
Rampur  Hat 

District  total 

1,107 
645 

1 

1,981 
1,336 

3,317 

535,92S 
.^66,352 

902,280 

484 
568 

5'5 

+    14-0 

+   II. 7 

+    13-0 

44,352 
25>695 

7°,°47 

',752 

I 

The  only  town  is  Suri,  the  head-quarters.  The  increase  of  population 
at  the  Census  of  190 1  was  most  marked  in  the  south,  where  it  represents 
a  recovery  from  the  unhealthiness  of  the  previous  decade,  and  in  the 
Murarai  thana,  in  the  north,  where  there  has  been  a  considerable 
settlement  of  Santals.  The  Rampur  Hat  subdivision  possesses  a  fertile 
soil,  and  is  also  tapped  by  the  railway,  and  the  District  as  a  whole  is 
now  the  most  progressive  in  the  Burdwan  Division.  The  Santal  settlers 
are  mostly  cultivators  ;  the  District  also  receives  a  large  number  ot 
labourers,  shopkeepers,  peons,  &c,  from  Sha.ha.bad  and  the  United 
Provinces.  On  the  other  hand,  many  of  its  inhabitants  emigrate  to 
Assam  as  tea-garden  coolies.  The  dialect  spoken  is  that  known  as 
Rarhi  boli  or  Western  Bengali.     Of  the  total  population,  657,684  are 


AGRICULTURE 


243 


Hindus,  201,645  Muhammadans,  and  42,019  Animists.     Most  of  the 
Animists  are  found  among  the  Santals,  who  number  47,000. 

Among  Hindus,  the  most  prominent  castes  are  the  semi-aboriginal 
Bagdis  (88,000)  and  the  Sadgops  (84,000).  The  Musalmans  are 
mostly  Shaikhs  (183,000),  though  there  are  also  some  Pathans  (12,000), 
Saiyids,  and  Jolahas.  Of  the  total  population,  69  per  cent,  are  supported 
by  agriculture,  11-7  by  industries,  0-4  by  commerce,  and  1*5  by  the 
professions. 

A  Baptist  mission,  founded  at  the  beginning  of  the  nineteenth 
century  by  Dr.  Carey,  as  a  branch  of  the  Serampore  Mission,  maintains 
a  girls'  school  in  Suri  and  a  few  village  schools.  A  Methodist  Episcopal 
mission  works  at  Bolpur  on  the  East  Indian  Railway.  Christians  in 
1 90 1  numbered  819,  of  whom  709  were  natives. 

The  alluvial  tract  to  the  east  is  well  watered  and  extremely  fertile,  but 
the  western  uplands  are  arid  and  barren.     The  chief 
agricultural  statistics  for  1903-4  are  shown  below,  in 
square  miles : — 


Agriculture. 


Subdivision. 

Total. 

Cultivated. 

Cultivable 
waste. 

89 

52 

Suri            .... 
Rampur  Hat     . 

Total 

1,107 
645 

596 
460 

»>752 

1,056 

141 

Of  the  cultivated  area  it  is  estimated  that  37  square  miles  are  twice 
cropped.  Rice  is  the  main  staple,  covering  999  square  miles.  Nine- 
tenths  of  the  rice  crop  is  of  the  variety  known  as  avian  (winter  rice), 
which  is  sown  in  May  and  June  and  reaped  in  November  and  December. 
Other  food-crops  are  relatively  unimportant,  but  some  maize,  gram 
{Cicer  arietinum),  and  sugar-cane  are  grown.  Orchards  and  garden 
produce  cover  39  square  miles,  and  mulberry  is  extensively  grown  in 
the  east  in  connexion  with  the  silk  industry. 

The  area  under  cultivation  has  been  greatly  extended  in  recent  years 
by  the  Santals,  who  have  reclaimed  large  tracts  of  jungle  land  in  the 
west  of  the  District.  Little  advantage  has  been  taken  of  the  Land 
Improvement  and  Agriculturists'  Loans  Acts,  except  in  1896-7,  a  year 
of  poor  crops,  when  Rs.  14,000  was  advanced  under  the  former  Act. 

Pasturage  is  scarce  in  the  east  of  the  District,  and  the  cattle  are  for 
the  most  part  poor  and  ill-fed.  A  dairy  farm  has  been  started  at  Suri, 
and  a  cattle  and  produce  show  is  held  there  in  January  or  February. 
Some  English  and  Hissar  bulls  have  been  imported  by  the  District 
board  and  the  Suri  cattle  show  committee. 

A  good  deal  of  irrigation  is  effected,  by  means  of  reservoirs,  in  the 
undulating  country  in  the  west ;  and  sugar-cane,  oilseeds,  flax,  and 
vegetables  are  watered  from  tanks  or  rivers  by  means  of  lifts. 

r  2 


244  BIRBHUM 

Coal  is  mined  on  a  small  scale  at  Arang  on  the  banks  of  the  Ajay. 
Iron  ores  occur  in  beds  towards  the  base  of  the  laterite  in  the  west ; 
nodular  limestone,  mica,  pottery  clay,  granite,  and  sandstone  are  also 
found. 

Cotton-weaving  is  carried  on  at  Supur,  Raipur,  and  Ham  Bazar  in  the 

Bolpur  thdna,  and  at  Alunda  and  Tantipara  in  the  Suri  thdna,  where 

good  cloths  and  sheets   are  manufactured.     A  little 

Trade  and        ^-^  js  woven  at  Baswa,  Bishnupur,  Karidha,  Tanti- 
communications.  '  *      '  .      .'      . 

para,  and  a  few  other  places,  while  silk-spinning  is  an 

important  industry  in  the  east  of  the  District,  a  factory  at  Ganutia, 

which  originally  belonged  to  the  East  India  Company  and  is  now  in 

the  possession  of  the  Bengal  Silk  Company,  being  the  head-quarters 

of  the  industry.      The  company  owns  another  factory  at  Bhadrapur 

and  out-factories  at   Kotasur  and  Kaytha,  and  employs  about  1,000 

spinners.     Lac  bracelets,  ink-pots,  rulers,  and  other  articles  are  made  at 

Ham  Bazar.    Brass-ware  is  made  at  Dubrajpur,  Tikarbetha,  Ham  Bazar, 

Hazratpur,  and  Nalhati,  and  iron-ware  at  Dubrajpur,  Kharun,  Lokpur, 

Rajnagar,  and  Rampur  Hat. 

The  chief  exports  are  rice  and  raw  silk ;  and  the  chief  imports  are 
salt,  cotton,  cotton  thread,  European  cotton  piece-goods,  pulses, 
tobacco,  kerosene  oil,  and  coal.  The  principal  trading  centres  are 
Bolpur,  Sainthia,  Rampur  Hat,  Nalhati,  Murarai,  Dubrajpur, 
Purandarpur,  and  Ahmadpur. 

The  loop-line  of  the  East  Indian  Railway  intersects  the  District  from 
south  to  north,  and  a  branch  from  Nalhati  runs  eastward  to  Azimganj. 
The  chord-line  of  the  same  railway  passes  about  10  miles  south  of  the 
District,  and  a  line  has  been  surveyed  to  connect  Sainthia  station  on 
the  loop  line  with  Andal  on  the  chord  passing  through  Suri  and 
Dubrajpur.  In  addition  to  140  miles  of  village  tracks,  the  District  con- 
tains 126  miles  of  metalled  and  302  miles  of  unmetalled  roads  main- 
tained by  the  District  board,  the  most  important  being  those  from 
Katwa  through  Suri  to  Dumka  and  those  connecting  Suri  with  the 
railway. 

The  District  has  not  suffered  from  famine  since  1874,  but  in  1885 

there  was  some  local  scarcity  and  Government  relief 
Famine. 

was  necessary. 

For  administrative  purposes  Blrbhum  is  divided  into  two  subdivi- 
sions, with  head-quarters  at  Suri  and  Rampur   Hat.     The  District 
Magistrate-Collector    has    at    Suri    a   staff  of   three 
minis  ra  on.   j}epUty_ Magistrate -Collectors  ;      the      subdivisional 
officer  at  Rampur  Hat  is  assisted  by  a  Sub-Deputy-Collector. 

Subordinate  to  the  District  Judge  for  the  disposal  of  civil  work  are 
a  Subordinate  Judge,  with  powers  of  a  Small  Cause  Court  judge  up  to 
Rs.  500,  and  six  Munsifs  stationed  at  Suri,  Dubrajpur,  Bolpur  (2),  and 


ADMINISTRA  TION 


245 


Rampur  Hat  (2).  The  criminal  courts  are  those  of  the  Sessions  Judge, 
the  District  Magistrate,  and  the  above-mentioned  magistrates.  Formerly 
the  head-quarters  of  wandering  bands  of  banditti,  Blrbhiim  is  now  one 
of  the  quietest  Districts  in  Bengal.  Crime  is  light,  but  dacoities  are 
not  infrequent,  a  local  gang  of  Muhammadans  being  responsible  for 
twenty-three  dacoities  between  1896  and  1904. 

The  land  revenue  demand  in  1903-4  was  10-09  lakhs,  payable  by 
1,060  estates.  With  the  exception  of  five  small  estates  paying  a  total 
revenue  of  Rs.  2,000,  the  whole  of  the  District  is  permanently  settled. 
The  incidence  is  only  Rs.  r-7-5  per  cultivated  acre,  or  less  than  half 
that  prevailing  in  the  neighbouring  District  of  Burdwan.  The  ghatwali 
rent-free  tenures  which  formerly  existed  in  this  District  were  resumed 
by  Government  in  1901.  They  are  described  in  the  article  on  Bankura 
District.  Ordinary  rice  lands  are  rented  at  from  Rs.  3  to  Rs.  9  per  acre, 
and  sugar-cane  lands  at  Rs.  9  and  upwards,  while  as  much  as  Rs.  15  is 
paid  for  good  vegetable  lands  and  Rs.  80  for  plots  on  which  betel-leaf 
{Piper  Betle)  is  grown.  The  ryots  frequently  sublet  their  holdings  for 
a  share  in  the  produce. 

Collections  on  account  of  land  revenue  and  of  total  revenue  (principal 
heads  only)  are  shown  below,  in  thousands  of  rupees  : — 


1880-1. 

1890-1. 

1 900- 1. 

1903-4. 

Land  revenue 
Total  revenue 

8,03 
n,3l 

10,21 
14,48 

IO.OQ 
16,45 

io,oS 
17,07 

Outside  the  municipalities  of  Suri  and  Rampur  Hat,  local  affairs  are 
managed  by  the  District  board,  to  which  subdivisional  local  boards 
are  subordinate.  The  income  of  the  District  board  in  1903-4  was 
Rs.  1,33,000,  of  which  Rs.  76,000  was  derived  from  rates;  and  the 
expenditure  was  Rs.  1,40,000,  of  which  Rs.  83,000  was  spent  on  public 
works. 

The  District  contains  9  police  stations  and  5  outposts.  The  force 
subordinate  to  the  District  Superintendent  in  1903  consisted  of  2  in- 
spectors, 27  sub-inspectors,  13  head  constables,  and  235  constables;  in 
addition  to  which  there  was  a  rural  police  of  236  daffadars  and  3,144 
chaukldars.  The  cost  of  the  regular  force  was  Rs.  68,000,  and  there 
was  one  policeman  to  every  ir  square  miles  and  to  every  5,674  persons. 
The  District  jail  at  Suri  has  accommodation  for  290  prisoners,  and 
a  subsidiary  jail  at  Rampur  Hat  for  18. 

In  1901  the  proportion  of  literate  persons  was  7-7  per  cent.  (15-3 
males  and  0-4  females).  The  total  number  of  pupils  under  instruction 
increased  from  about  12,000  in  1881  to  24,043  in  1892-3  and  to  27,303 
in  1900-1.  In  1903-4,  27,210  boys  and  1,557  girls  were  at  school, 
being  respectively  40-7  and  2-2  per  cent,  of  the  children  of  school-going 


-M6  BlRBHUM 

age.  The  number  of  educational  institutions,  public  and  private,  in 
that  year  was  1,046,  including  one  Arts  college,  52  secondary,  952  pri- 
mary, and  41  special  schools.  The  expenditure  on  education  was 
Rs.  i,6r,ooo,  of  which  Rs.  n,ooo  was  met  from  Provincial  funds, 
Rs.  25,000  from  District  funds,  Rs.  500  from  municipal  funds,  and 
Rs.  91,000  from  fees.  These  institutions  include  15  Santal  schools 
attended  by  about  400  pupils  of  aboriginal  origin. 

In  1903  the  District  contained  8  dispensaries,  of  which  3  with  25 
beds  had  accommodation  for  in-patients.  The  cases  of  35,000  out- 
patients and  2i r  in-patients  were  treated  during  the  year,  and  2,391 
operations  were  performed.  The  expenditure  was  Rs.  12,000,  of  which 
Rs.  400  was  met  from  Government  contributions,  Rs.  3,000  from  Local 
and  Rs.  1,200  from  municipal  funds,  and  Rs.  4,000  from  subscriptions. 
In  addition,  a  sum  of  Rs.  20,000  received  on  behalf  of  the  Chetla 
Dispensary  was  invested. 

Vaccination  is  compulsory  only  within  Suri  municipality.  In  1903-4 
the  number  of  successful  vaccinations  was  27,500,  or  31  per  1,000  of 
the  population. 

[Sir  W.  W.  Hunter,  Statistical  Account  of  Bengal,  vol.  iv  (1876),  and 
Annals  of  Rural  Bengal  (1868) ;  E.  G.  Drake-Brockman,  Notes  on  the 
Early  Administration  of  the  Birbhum  District  (Calcutta,  1898).] 

Birnagar  (or  Ula). — Town  in  the  Ranaghat  subdivision  of  Nadia 
District,  Bengal,  situated  in  230  15'  N.  and  88°  34'  E.  Population 
(1901),  3,124.  Birnagar  was  constituted  a  municipality  in  1869.  The 
income  during  the  decade  ending  1901-2  averaged  Rs.  3,700,  and  the 
expenditure  Rs.  2,900.  The  income  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  3,400,  mainly 
from  a  tax  on  persons  (or  property  tax) ;  and  the  expenditure  was 
Rs.  2,400. 

Birur. — Town  in  the  Kadur  taluk  of  Kadur  District,  Mysore,  situated 
in  1 30  36'  N.  and  750  58'  E.,  at  the  junction  for  the  Shimoga  branch 
railway.  Population  (1901),  5,701.  Areca-nuts  from  the  Malnad  in 
the  west  are  exported  to  Bellary  and  Dharwar.  A  very  large  trade  is 
carried  on  in  coco-nuts,  grain,  and  other  produce  of  the  surrounding 
country.  The  town  has  been  extended  in  recent  years.  The  muni- 
cipality dates  from  1870.  The  receipts  and  expenditure  during  the  ten 
years  ending  1901  averaged  Rs.  4,700  and  Rs.  4,400.  In  1903-4  they 
were  Rs.  4,000  and  Rs.  6,500. 

Bisalpur  Tahsil. — Southern  tahsll  of  Pllibhlt  District,  United 
Provinces,  conterminous  with  the  pargana  of  the  same  name,  lying 
between  280  6'  and  280  32'  N.  and  790  42"  and  8o°  2'  E.,  with  an  area 
of  363  square  miles.  Population  increased  from  190,864  in  1891  to 
J96,333  in  1901.  There  are  424  villages  and  two  towns,  including 
Bisalpur  (population,  9,851),  the  tahsll  head-quarters.  The  demand 
for  land  revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  3,25,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  53,000. 


BISAULI  TOWN  247 

The  density  of  population,  541  persons  per  square  mile,  is  the  highest 
in  the  District.  Three  considerable  rivers,  the  Deoha,  Katna,  and 
Khanaut,  and  a  number  of  smaller  streams  flow  from  north  to  south, 
and  are  dammed  and  used  for  irrigation,  especially  the  upper  course 
of  the  Katna,  which  passes  through  the  Mala  swamp.  In  1903-4  the 
area  under  cultivation  was  241  square  miles,  of  which  84  were  irrigated, 
mostly  from  wells. 

Blsalpur  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  tahsll  of  the  same  name  in 
Plllbhlt  District,  United  Provinces,  situated  in  280  18'  N.  and  79°49'  E., 
23  miles  south  of  Plllbhlt  town.  Population  (1901),  9,851.  It  is  said 
to  have  been  founded  by  one  BlsQ,  Ahlr,  in  the  reign  of  Shah  Jahan 
and  a  fort  was  built  here  during  the  rule  of  the  Rohillas.  The  town  is 
merely  an  overgrown  agricultural  village,  surrounded  on  all  sides  but  the 
south  by  groves.  The  centre  is  occupied  by  a  good  market-place,  where 
four  roads  meet,  and  brick  houses  are  increasing  in  number.  The  chief 
public  buildings  are  the  municipal  hall,  tahsili,  dispensary,  and  school. 
Blsalpur  has  been  a  municipality  since  1862.  During  the  ten  years 
ending  1901  the  income  and  expenditure  averaged  Rs.  6,000.  The 
income  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  12,000,  chiefly  from  octroi  (Rs.  7,000)  ;  and 
the  expenditure  was  Rs.  10,700.  Trade  is  largely  local,  consisting  in 
the  collection  of  sugar  and  grain.  The  municipality  maintains  one 
school  and  aids  two  others,  attended  by  239  pupils. 

Bisauli  Tahsll. — North-eastern  tahsll  of  Budaun  District,  United 
Provinces,  comprising  the  pdrganas  of  Bisauli,  Islamnagar,  and  SatasI, 
and  lying  between  2S0  8'  and  28"  28'  N.  and  780  32'  and  790  8'  E., 
with  an  area  of  360  square  miles.  Population  increased  from  183,716 
in  1891  to  211,507  in  1901.  There  are  350  villages  and  three  towns, 
the  largest  being  Islamnagar  (population,  6,367)  and  Bisauli  (5,323), 
the  head-quarters.  The  demand  for  land  revenue  in  1903-4  was 
Rs.  3,18,000,  and  for  cesses  Rs.  38,000.  The  density  of  population, 
588  persons  per  square  mile,  is  considerably  above  the  District  average. 
Bisauli  is  one  of  the  most  prosperous  tahs'ils  in  Budaun.  It  lies  almost 
entirely  in  the  fertile  Katehr  tract,  and  is  watered  by  the  Sot  and  Aril 
rivers.  There  are  also  numerous  small  lakes  ox  j hi  Is.  In  1903-4  the 
area  under  cultivation  was  322  square  miles,  of  which  69  were  irrigated, 
mostly  from  wells. 

Bisauli  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  tahsll  of  the  same  name  in 
Budaun  District,  United  Provinces,  situated  in  280  18'  N.  and  7 8°  57'  E., 
23  miles  north-east  of  Budaun  town.  Population  (1901),  5,323. 
The  town  first  became  of  importance  under  Dunde  Khan,  lieutenant 
of  All  Muhammad  and  Hafiz  Rahmat  Khan,  the  celebrated  Rohilla 
chiefs,  who  built  a  fort  here  about  1750.  After  the  fall  of  the  Rohilla 
power  Bisauli  declined.  Near  the  town  is  Dunde  Khan's  tomb,  which 
stands  on  a  commanding  spot  overlooking  the  broad  valley  of  the  Sot. 


248  BISAULI  TOWN 

Bisauli  contains  a  tahslli,  a  munsifi,  a  dispensary,  and  a  branch  of  the 
American  Methodist  Mission.  It  is  administered  under  Act  XX  of 
1856,  with  an  income  of  about  Rs.  1,400.  The  trade  of  the  place 
is  purely  local.  The  tahsili  school  has  1 1 7  pupils,  and  there  is  a  small 
girls'  school. 

Bishenpur. — Subdivision  and  town  in  Bankura  District,  Bengal. 
See  Bishnupur. 

Bishnupur  Subdivision. — Eastern  subdivision  of  Bankura  District, 
Bengal,  lying  between  220  54'  and  23°25'N.  and  870  15' and  87°46/E., 
with  an  area  of  700  square  miles.  The  subdivision  is  for  the  most  part 
alluvial  and  flat,  presenting  the  appearance  of  the  ordinary  paddy  lands 
of  Bengal ;  but  the  level  surface  is  broken  here  and  there  by  undulating 
slopes  of  infertile  laterite.  The  population  in  1901  was  404,356,  com- 
pared with  377,311  in  1891,  the  density  being  578  persons  to  the 
square  mile.  It  contains  two  towns,  Bishnupur  (population,  19,090), 
its  head-quarters,  and  Sonamukhi  (13,448);  and  1,523  villages. 

Bishnupur  Town. — Ancient  capital  of  Bankura  District,  Bengal, 
situated  in  23°  5"  N.  and  87°2o'E.,  a  few  miles  south  of  the  Dhalkisor 
river.  Population  (1901),  19,090.  The  family  of  the  Rajas  of  Bishnu- 
pur, which  was  founded  in  the  eighth  century,  was  at  one  time  one  of 
the  most  important  dynasties  in  Bengal  \  they  were  nominally  tributary 
to  the  Muhammadan  Nawabs,  but  frequently  exercised  independent 
powers.  In  the  eighteenth  century  the  family  rapidly  declined  ;  they 
were  impoverished  by  the  ravages  of  the  Marathas,  and  the  famine 
of  1770  depopulated  their  territory  and  completed  their  ruin.  The 
estate  was  ultimately  sold,  in  detached  portions,  for  arrears  of  land 
revenue. 

Ancient  Bishnupur  was,  according  to  the  native  chronicles,  a  city 
'  more  beautiful  than  the  beautiful  house  of  Indra  in  heaven.'  It  was 
surrounded  by  seven  miles  of  fortifications,  within  which  lay  the  citadel, 
containing  the  palace  of  the  Rajas.  The  ruins  are  very  interesting. 
Near  the  south  gateway  are  the  remains  of  an  extensive  series  of 
granaries ;  and  inside  the  fort,  which  is  overgrown  with  jungle,  lies  an 
iron  gun  io|  feet  long,  the  gift,  according  to  tradition,  of  a  deity  to  one 
of  the  Rajas.  Within  the  boundaries  of  the  fort  are  numerous  brick 
temples  covered  with  curious  mouldings,  representing  birds,  flowers, 
and  other  ornaments.  The  most  important  are  the  Jorbangala,  the 
Rashmancha,  and  the  Malleswar  temples. 

At  the  present  day  Bishnupur  is  an  important  trading  centre,  the 
exports  being  rice,  oilseeds,  lac,  cotton,  silk  cloth  and  silk  cocoons  ;  and 
the  imports  English  piece-goods,  salt,  tobacco,  spices,  coco-nuts,  and 
pulses.  It  contains  a  large  weaving  population,  and  is  a  centre  of  the 
tasar  silk  industry,  while  it  is  also  noted  for  its  embroidered  silk  scarves 
and  shawls.     The  grand  trunk  road  from  Calcutta  to  the   north-west 


BISSAU  249 

passes  through  the  town,  and  it  is  a  station  on  the  newly  constructed 
Midnapore  Jherria  branch  of  the  Bengal-Nagpur  Railway.  Bishnupur 
was  constituted  a  municipality  in  1863.  The  income  during  the  decade 
ending  190 1-2  averaged  Rs.  6,700,  and  the  expenditure  Rs.  6,300. 
In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  13,000,  of  which  Rs.  6,000  was  derived 
from  a  tax  on  persons  (or  property  tax),  and  Rs.  4,000  was  a  loan  from 
Government.  The  expenditure  in  the  same  year  was  Rs.  8,000.  The 
town  contains  the  usual  public  offices  ;  the  sub-jail  has  accommodation 
for  15  prisoners. 

[Sir  W.  W.  Hunter,  Annals  of  Rural  Bengal  (1868)  ;  Archaeological 
Survey  Reports,  vol.  viii,  pp.  203-6.] 

Bison  Hill. —  Hill  in  the  Papikonda  range,  in  the  Polavaram  minor 
taluk,  Godavari  District,  Madras,  situated  on  the  right  bank  of  the 
Godavari  river  where  it  emerges  from  the  gorge,  and  about  2,700  feet 
above  the  sea.  It  takes  its  name  from  the  bison  {Bos  gaums)  which 
frequent  the  plateau  of  the  Papikonda  range. 

Bisrampur. — Chief  place  of  the  Surguja  State,  Central  Provinces, 
situated  in  230  7'  N.  and  830  12'  E.  Population  (1901),  3,279.  The 
village  contains  the  residence  of  the  chief,  a  jail,  and  a  charitable  dis- 
pensary. Bisrampur  has  given  its  name  to  a  coal-measure  extending 
over  about  400  square  miles  in  the  eastern  portion  of  the  comparatively 
low  ground  in  the  centre  of  Surguja  State.  Good  coal  exists  in  abun- 
dance, but  no  borings  have  yet  been  made.  At  present,  the  distance 
of  the  field  from  the  railway  precludes  the  possibility  of  the  coal  being 
worked. 

Bissamcuttack. — Tahsil  in  Vizagapatam  District,  Madras,  situated 
entirely  within  the  Agency  tract  and  comprising  the  upper  basins  of  the 
Nagiivali  (or  Langulya)  and  Vamsadhara  rivers.  It  may  be  described 
as  generally  hilly,  though  the  Nngavali  valley  which  runs  through  it  is 
one  of  the  great  channels  of  communication  between  the  Central  Pro- 
vinces and  the  sea.  The  proposed  railway  from  Raipur  to  Vizianagram 
will  follow  this  route.  The  hills  are  as  a  rule  barren  ;  but  the  valleys 
are  well  cultivated,  grain,  tobacco,  saffron,  and  mustard  being  the  chief 
exports.  The  land  tenure  throughout  is  zamlndari,  and  the  zaminddr 
is  a  feudatory  of  the  Raja  of  Jeypore.  The  area  of  the  tahsil  is  about 
1,200  square  miles,  and  it  contains  a  population  (1901)  of  59,445, 
living  in  837  villages.  The  people  are  for  the  most  part  Khonds, 
though  many  Telugus  reside  in  the  valleys.  The  head-quarters  are  at 
Bissamcuttack  village  (population,  2,026). 

Bissau. — Chief  town  of  an  estate  of  the  same  name  in  the  Shekh- 
awati  nizamat  of  the  State  of  Jaipur,  Rajputana,  situated  in  2 8°  15'  N. 
and  750  5'  E.,  about  105  miles  north-west  of  Jaipur  city,  and  within 
a  mile  or  two  of  the  Blkaner  border.  The  town,  which  is  walled,  and 
possesses  a  fort  of  some  pretensions,  is  the  residence  of  a  Thakur  who 


250  BISSAU 

pays  a  tribute  of  Rs.  9,700  to  the  Jaipur  Darbar.  Population  (1901), 
7,726.  There  are  four  schools  attended  by  about  340  boys,  and  a 
combined  post  and  telegraph  office. 

Bissemkatak.- — Zamlndari  tahsil of  Vizagapatam  District,  Madras. 

See  BlSSAMCUTTACK". 

Bist  Jullundur  Doab. — A  doab  or  '  tract  between  two  rivers '  (the 
Beas  and  Sutlej)  in  the  Punjab,  lying  between  300  57'  and  320  7'  N. 
and  750  4'  and  760  38'  E.,  and  comprising  Jullundur  and  Hoshifirpur 
Districts  and  the  State  of  Kapurthala.  The  name  was  formed  by  the 
Mughal  emperor  Akbar,  by  combining  the  first  syllables  of  the  names  of 
the  two  rivers. "   It  is  also  known  as  the  Saharwal  Doab. 

Biswan  Tahsil. — North-eastern  tahsil  of  Sltapur  District,  United 
Provinces,  comprising  the  parganas  of  Biswan,  Tambaur,  and  Kondrl 
(North),  and  lying  between  270  22'  and  270  44/  N.  and  8o°  50' and 
8i°  20'  E.,  with  an  area  of  565  square  miles.  Population  increased 
from  271,894  in  1891  to  297,277  in  1901.  There  are  501  villages, 
and  one  town,  Biswan  (population,  8,484),  the  tahsil  head-quarters. 
The  demand  for  land  revenue  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  3,66,000,  and  for 
cesses  Rs.  58,000.  The  density  of  population,  526  persons  per  square 
mile,  is  about  the  District  average.  The  tahsil  is  bounded  on  the  east 
by  the  Gogra,  which  constantly  overflows  and  shifts  its  channel,  and  on 
the  north  by  the  Dahawar,  a  branch  of  the  Sarda.  Another  branch  of 
the  Sarda,  called  the  Chauka,  flows  sluggishly  across  the  centre.  The 
eastern  part  is  thus  situated  in  a  damp  alluvial  tract,  liable  to  severe 
floods  ;  but  the  south-west  stretches  up  to  the  elevated  area  in  the 
centre  of  the  District.  In  1903-4  the  area  under  cultivation  was 
416  square  miles,  of  which  only  36  were  irrigated.  Swamps  and  tanks 
supply  more  than  two-thirds  of  the  irrigated  area. 

Biswan  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  tahsil  of  the  same  name,  in 
Sltapur  District,  United  Provinces,  situated  in  270  29'  N.  and  8i°  i'  E., 
at  the  termination  of  metalled  roads  from  Sltapur  and  Sidhaull  railway 
station.  Population  (1901),  8,484.  The  town  is  said  to  have  been 
founded  about  1350  by  &  fakir  named  Biswa  Nath.  Some  tombs  of 
the  early  Muhammadan  period  are  ascribed  to  followers  of  Saiyid  Salar. 
Biswan  also  contains  a  fine  mosque  built  in  the  reign  of  Shah  Jahan, 
and  a  stately  palace,  sarai,  mosque,  and  dargah  built  by  Shaikh  Bar! 
towards  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century.  Besides  the  usual  offices 
there  is  a  dispensary.  The  town  is  administered  under  Act  XX  of 
1856,  with  an  income  of  about  Rs.  2,000.  A  large  market  is  held 
twice  a  week,  and  Biswan  is  celebrated  for  its  tobacco,  tdz/as  or  lahf/ts, 
cotton  prints,  and  printed  pottery.  Trade  is  declining,  but  may  revive 
when  the  railway  is  constructed  from  Sltapur  to  Burhwal.  There  are 
two  schools. 

Bithiir. — Town    in   the    District  and    tahsil  of  Cawnpore,   United 


BLACK  MOUNTAIN  251 

Provinces,  situated  in  260  37'  N.  and  8o°  16'  E.,  near  the  Ganges,  on 
a  branch  line  of  the  Cawnpore-Achhnera  Railway.  Population  (1901), 
7,173.  The  Hindus  believe  that  Brahma  celebrated  the  completion  of  the 
creation  of  the  world  by  a  horse  sacrifice  at  this  place.  A  great  bathing- 
fair  takes  place  annually  in  November  at  the  Brahmavarta^a/.  Early  in 
the  nineteenth  century  the  civil  head-quarters  of  the  District  were  for 
a  time  at  Bithur.  Baji  Rao,  the  last  of  the  Peshwas,  was  banished  to  Bithur 
and  had  extensive  palaces  in  the  town.  His  adopted  son,  Dundu  Pant, 
better  known  as  the  Nana  Sahib,  was  the  instigator  of  the  massacre  at 
Cawnpork  in  1S57.  The  town  was  captured  by  Havelock's  forces  on 
July  19,  when  the  palaces  were  utterly  destroyed  ;  but  the  Nana  suc- 
ceeded in  making  good  his  escape.  In  the  neighbourhood  of  Bithur 
some  prehistoric  copper  arrow-heads  and  hatchets  have  been  found.  The 
town  is  administered  under  Act  XX  of  1856,  with  an  income  of  about 
Rs.  2,000.     There  is  a  primary  school  with  70  pupils. 

Black  Mountain. — A  mountain  range  on  the  north-western  border 
of  Hazara  District,  North-West  Frontier  Province,  lying  between  34°32r 
and  340  50'  N.  and  720  48'  and  720  58'  E.  Bounded  on  the  east  by 
Agror  and  on  the  south  by  Tanawal,  the  range  has  a  length  of  25  to 
30  miles  from  north  to  south  and  an  elevation  of  8,000  feet  above  sea- 
level.  The  Indus  washes  its  northern  extremity  and  thence  turns  due 
south.  Between  the  river  and  the  crest  of  the  range  the  western  slopes 
are  occupied  by  Yusufzai  Pathans.  The  rest  of  the  range  is  held  by 
Swatis,  or  tribes  who  have  been  gradually  driven  from  Swat  by  the 
Yusufzai.  The  Black  Mountain  forms  a  long,  narrow  ridge,  with  higher 
peaks  at  intervals  and  occasional  deep  passes.  Numerous  spurs  pro- 
ject from  its  sides,  forming  narrow  gorges  in  which  lie  the  villages  of 
the  tribes.  The  upper  parts  of  the  ridge  and  spurs  are  covered  with 
thick  forests  of  pine,  oak,  sycamore,  horse-chestnut,  and  wild  cherry ; 
but  the  slopes  are  stony  and  barren.  In  1851  the  Hasanzai  sept  of  the 
Yusufzai  murdered  two  officers  of  the  British  Customs  (Salt)  depart- 
ment within  the  borders  of  Tanawal.  Punishment  for  this  outrage  was 
inflicted  by  an  expedition  under  Colonel  Mackeson,  which  destroyed 
a  number  of  tribal  strongholds.  In  1868  the  Yusufzai,  instigated  by  the 
Khan  of  Agror,  who  resented  the  establishment  of  the  police  post  at 
Oghi  in  the  Agror  valley,  attacked  that  post  in  force,  but  were  repulsed. 
Further  attacks  on  the  troops  of  the  Khan  of  Tanawal,  who  remained 
loyal,  followed,  and  soon  culminated  in  a  general  advance  of  the  Black 
Mountain  tribes  against  the  British  position.  This  was  repulsed,  but 
not  until  twenty-one  British  villages  had  been  burnt,  and  a  second  expe- 
dition under  General  Wilde  had  overrun  the  Black  Mountain  and 
secured  the  full  submission  of  the  tribes.  In  consequence  of  raids 
committed  in  the  Agror  valley  by  the  Hasanzai  and  Akazai  aided  by 
the  Madda  Khel,  a  blockade  was  commenced  in  the  year  1888.     While 


252  BLACK  MOUNTAIN 

more  stringent  measures  were  being  organized,  Major  Battye  and 
Captain  Urmston  and  some  sepoys  of  the  5th  Gurkhas  were  surprised 
and  killed  by  Gujar  dependants  of  the  Akazai.  Hashim  All,  the  head 
of  the  Hasanzai  and  Akazai,  was  suspected  of  having  instigated  the 
crime.  An  expedition  was  sent  in  the  same  year,  with  the  result  that 
the  tribes  paid  the  fines  imposed  upon  them,  and  agreed  to  the  removal 
of  Hashim  All  from  the  Black  Mountain  and  the  appointment  in  his 
place  of  his  near  relative  and  enemy  Ibrahim  Khan.  In  1890  the  tribe 
opposed  the  march  of  troops  along  the  crest  of  the  Black  Mountain, 
and  an  expedition  was  sent  against  them  in  the  spring  of  1891.  Imme- 
diately after  the  withdrawal  of  the  troops,  the  Hindustanis  (see  Ambela) 
and  Madda  Khel  broke  their  agreement  with  Government  by  permit- 
ting the  return  of  Hashim  All.  A  second  expedition  was  dispatched 
in  1892,  which  resulted  in  the  complete  pacification  of  the  Black 
Mountain  border. 

Boad. — Native  State  and  village  in  Orissa,  Bengal.     See  Baud. 

Boalia. — Subdivision  and  town  in  Rajshahi  District,  Eastern  Bengal 
and  Assam.     See  Rampur  Boalia. 

Bobbili  Estate. — Zamlndari  estate  in  Vizagapatam  District,  Madras, 
the  head-quarters  of  which  are  at  the  town  of  the  same  name.  It  lies 
along  the  foot  of  the  Eastern  Ghats,  extending  eastwards  across  the 
plain  irrigated  by  the  Nagavali  river,  and  comprises  the  whole  of  the 
Bobbili  tahsil  and  parts  of  the  adjoining  Palkonda  taluk  and  Salur 
tahsil.  The  country  is  flat  and  extensively  cultivated,  and  the  estate 
has  prospered  exceedingly  under  the  management  of  the  present  Raja 
and  his  predecessors. 

Bobbili  is  one  of  the  most  ancient  zamlndaris  in  the  Presidency  and 
possesses  an  interesting  history.  When,  in  1652,  Sher  Muhammad 
Khan,  the  Nawab  of  Chicacole,  entered  the  District,  there  followed 
in  his  train  two  rivals,  Peddarayudu,  the  ancestor  of  the  present  chief 
of  Bobbili,  and  the  ancestor  of  the  Vizianagram  family  ;  and  from  this 
time  dates  the  rivalry  between  the  two  houses.  Peddarayudu  soon 
after  received  an  estate  in  reward  for  gallantry,  and  on  this  he  built 
a  fort,  naming  it  Bobbili  ('the  royal  tiger')  in  honour  of  his  patron's 
designation  Sher  ('  tiger ').  This  estate  bordered  on  Vizianagram,  and 
there  was  constant  friction  between  the  two  chiefs.  In  1756  the 
turbulence  of  the  local  chieftains  called  for  measures  of  repression,  and 
the  French  general  Bussy  marched  with  a  European  force  to  restore 
order.  On  his  reaching  Vizianagram,  the  Raja  assured  him  that  the 
chief  of  Bobbili  was  the  instigator  of  all  the  disturbances,  and  to  testify 
his  own  loyalty  joined  the  French  with  a  force  of  11,000  men  to  assist 
in  crushing  his  rival.  Before  attacking  Bobbili,  Bussy  offered  the  chief 
a  pardon  for  the  past  and  lands  of  equal  value  elsewhere  if  he  would 
abandon  his  ancestral  estate ;  but  the  offer  was  refused. 


BOBBILI  TAHSIL  253 

The  attack  on  the  fort  at  Bobbili  which  followed  is  one  of  the  most 
memorable  in  Indian  history.  At  daybreak  the  field-pieces  began  to 
play  on  the  mud  defences,  practicable  breaches  were  at  once  made,  and 
the  assault  sounded.  After  four  hours'  fierce  hand-to-hand  fighting,  Bussy 
called  off  his  men  to  allow  the  cannon  to  widen  the  breaches.  A  second 
assault  was  then  ordered,  but  with  no  better  results,  for  not  a  man  had 
gained  a  footing  within  the  ramparts  when,  five  hours  later,  Bussy 
again  withdrew  the  storming  party  to  repeat  the  argument  of  artillery. 
The  defenders  now  recognized  their  desperate  position,  and  collecting 
their  wives  and  families  put  them  to  death  and  returned  to  their  posts. 
The  assault  soon  recommenced ;  and  when  at  sunset  Bussy  entered  the 
fort  as  victor  with  the  remnant  of  his  army,  it  was  only  because  every 
man  in  the  garrison  was  dead  or  mortally  wounded.  An  old  man, 
howrever,  crept  out  of  a  hut  and  leading  a  child  to  Bussy  presented  him 
as  the  son  of  the  dead  chief.  Three  nights  later,  when  the  Vizia- 
nagram  camp  was  buried  in  sleep,  four  followers  of  Bobbili  crept  into 
the  Raja's  tent,  and  before  the  sentries  had  discovered  and  shot  down 
the  assassins  they  had  stabbed  the  Raja,  to  death,  inflicting  thirty-two 
wounds  on  his  body. 

The  child  saved  from  the  slaughter,  Chinna  Ranga  Rao,  was  invested 
by  Bussy  with  the  chiefship  of  the  lands  that  had  been  offered  to  his 
father  ;  but  before  he  attained  his  majority  his  uncle  regained  by  force 
of  arms  his  former  estate.  Eventually  the  Vizianagram  family  came 
to  terms  with  their  rivals,  and  leased  certain  areas  to  them.  The  old 
feud,  however,  subsequently  broke  out  again,  and  the  Bobbili  chief  fled 
into  the  Nizam's  country.  But  in  1794,  when  the  Vizianagram  estate 
was  dismembered,  Chinna  Ranga  Rao  was  restored  by  the  British  to 
his  father's  domains,  and  in  1801  a  permanent  settlement  was  con- 
cluded with  his  son  for  a  tribute  of  Rs.  90,000. 

Since  then,  under  a  series  of  able  zamindars,  things  have  gone  well 
with  the  estate.  Its  income  exceeds  5  lakhs,  and  the  peshkash  payable 
to  Government  is  Rs.  83,652.  The  present  zamlndar,  Maharaja  Sir 
Venkataswetachalapati  Ranga  Rao,  K.C.I. E.,  the  adopted  great-grandson 
of  the  holder  of  the  permanent  settlement,  is  one  of  the  foremost  noble- 
men of  the  Madras  Presidency.  In  1895  he  was  invested  with  a 
knighthood  of  the  Order  of  the  Indian  Empire,  and  in  1900  the  title 
of  Maharaja  was  conferred  upon  him  as  a  personal  distinction,  the 
title  of  Raja  having  already  been  recognized  as  hereditary  in  the  family. 
He  has  also  been  a  member  of  the  Madras  Legislative  Council,  and 
has  visited  England. 

Bobbili  Tahsil. —  Tahsil  in  the  east  of  Vizagapatam  District, 
Madras,  lying  between  180  26'  and  180  44'  N.  and  830  14'  and 
830  33'  E.,  with  an  area  of  268  square  miles.  The  population  in  1901 
was  133,577,   compared   with  128,785    in  1891.     The  tahsil  contains 


254  BOBBILI  TAHSIL 

one  town,  Bobbili  (population,  17,387),  the  head-quarters  3  and  167 
villages.  It  is  entirely  zaminddri,  and  belongs  to  the  Raja  of  Bobbili. 
It  is  very  flat  and  is  under  extensive  cultivation.  The  demand  for 
land  revenue  and  cesses  in  1903-4  was  Rs.  1,34,000. 

Bobbili  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  tahsil  of  the  same  name  in 
Vizagapatam  District,  Madras,  situated  in  18°  34'  N.  and  830  23'  E. 
The  population,  which  is  increasing  rapidly,  numbered  17,387  in  1901. 
It  is  the  residence  of  the  Raja  of  Bobbili,  who  lives  in  a  fortified 
enclosure.  A  short  distance  outside  can  be  traced  the  position  of  the 
old  fort,  the  heroic  defence  of  which  against  the  forces  of  Vizianagram 
and  the  French  (see  Bobbili  Estate)  is  still  remembered.  The  Raja 
maintains  two  hospitals  in  the  town,  one  of  them  an  institution  for 
women  in  charge  of  a  lady  apothecary. 

Bobleshwar. — Village  in  the  Bijapur  taluka  of  Bijapur  District, 
Bombay,  situated  in  160  40'  N.  and  750  37'  E.,  15  miles  south-west  of 
Bijapur  town.  Population  (1901),  6,300.  The  present  village  is  said 
to  have  been  established  by  the  people  of  the  seven  surrounding 
villages,  who,  finding  that  it  was  the  resort  of  dacoits  and  lawless 
characters,  cut  down  a  babul  grove  in  which  a  god  stood  and  removed 
the  idol  to  the  temple  of  Siddheshwar  in  the  middle  of  the  village, 
built  by  one  Marlingappa  Jangamsett  about  1780.  Outside  the  village, 
on  the  east,  is  a  temple  of  Ambal  Mutiappa,  built  like  a  mosque,  and 
with  no  images. 

Bod. — Native  State  and  village  in  Orissa,  Bengal.     See  Baud. 

Boda-no-nes.— Petty  State  in  Kathiawar,  Bombay. 

Bodhan  Taluk. —  Taluk  in  Nizamabad  District,  Hyderabad  State, 
with  an  area  of  317  square  miles.  The  population  in  1901,  including 
jagirs,  was  52,862,  compared  with  50,779  in  1891.  The  taluk  has  one 
town,  Bodhan  (population,  6,438),  the  head-quarters,  and  65  villages, 
of  which  23  are  jaglr.  The  land  revenue  in  1901  was  1-7  lakhs.  In 
1905  the  area  was  increased  by  the  addition  of  part  of  the  Bans- 
wada  taluk.  The  Manjra  river  forms  the  western  boundary. 
Kotgir,  a  paigah  taluk,  having  a  population  of  24,267  and  an  area 
of  about  120  square  miles,  lies  to  the  south,  with  49  villages  and  one 
town,  Kondalwadi  (population,  6,557).  The  jaglr  taluk  of  Gandharl, 
having  a  population  of  10,180,  lies  to  the  south-east,  with  28  villages 
and  an  area  of  about  85  square  miles. 

Bodhan  Town. — Head-quarters  of  the  taluk  of  the  same  name 
in  Nizamabad  District,  Hyderabad  State,  situated  in  180  40'  N.  and 
77°  53'  E.,  16  miles  west  of  Nizamabad  town.  Population  (1901), 
6,438.  It  contains  a  Jama  Masjid,  a  temple  of  Narsingaswami,  a  police 
inspector's  office,  a  sub-post  office,  and  one  school  with  1 1 7  pupils. 
Three  large  tanks  are  situated  on  the  east,  north,  and  south  of  the 
town,  irrigating  2,000  acres  of  land. 


BOGAPANI  255 

Bodh  Gaya. — Village  in  Gaya  District,  Bengal.     See  Buddh  Gaya, 

Bodinayakkanur. — Town  in  the  Periyakulam  taluk  of  Madura  Dis- 
trict, Madras,  situated  in  io°  1/  N.  and  770  21/  E.  Population  (1901), 
22,209.  The  town,  which  is  the  chief  place  in  the  zamlndari  of  the 
same  name,  is  growing  rapidly,  mainly  because  the  coffee,  cardamoms, 
and  tea  of  the  Devikolam  and  Munnar  estates,  which  have  in  recent 
years  been  opened  out  on  the  hills  in  Travancore  just  above  it,  pass 
through  on  their  way  to  the  railway ;  and  it  is  also  a  base  for  the  supply 
of  the  grain  and  other  articles  consumed  by  the  employes  on  these 
estates.  It  is  under  consideration  to  construct  a  railway  to  the  town 
from  Ammayanayakkanur  on  the  South  Indian  Railway.  The  Bodi- 
nayakkanur zamlndari  is  one  of  the  seventy-two  ancient  palaiyatns 
{poligdrs1  estates)  of  Madura.  The  zamlndars  family  is  said  to  have 
migrated  hither  from  Gooty  in  1336.  The  estate  was  seized  by  Haidar 
All  in  1776,  and  after  an  interval  of  semi-independence  was  resumed  by 
his  son  Tipu  for  arrears  of  tribute.  The  Raja,  of  Travancore  subse- 
quently seized  the  property,  but  in  1793  the  zamlnddr  recovered  it. 
The  country  was  thereafter  settled  by  British  officers. 

Bodvad. — Town  in  the  Bhusawal  tdluka  of  East  Khandesh  District, 
Bombay,  situated  in  200  53'  N.  and  760  E.,  2  miles  south  of  the 
Nadgaon  railway  station,  which  is  now  called  Bodvad.  Population 
(1901),  5,670.  Bodvad  is  joined  to  Nadgaon  by  a  metalled  road,  and 
has  an  important  trade  in  cotton  and  oilseeds.  The  houses  are  for  the 
most  part  poor  and  badly  built,  and  the  streets  narrow,  crooked,  and 
dirty.  It  was  once  a  place  of  some  consequence,  but  the  only  remains 
are  a  ruined  fort,  town  gateways,  and  a  reservoir.  The  town  contains 
two  cotton-ginning  and  pressing  factories,  and  a  school  for  boys  with 
197  pupils. 

Bogale. — South-western  township  of  Pyapon  District,  Lower  Burma, 
lying  between  150  40'  and  160  29"  N.  and  950  6'  and  950  36'  E.,  with 
an  area  of  1,057  square  miles.  The  whole  area  is  low-lying  and  inter- 
sected by  a  labyrinth  of  tidal  creeks.  It  is  triangular  in  shape,  with  its 
base  along  the  sea-coast,  and  only  the  northern  portion,  or  about  one- 
third  of  the  whole,  is  cleared  of  jungle.  Considerably  more  than  half 
the  township  consists  of  forest  Reserves,  and  the  density  of  population 
is,  in  consequence,  low.  The  population  increased  from  9,724  in  1891 
to  43>756  in  1901,  distributed  in  272  villages,  Bogale  (population,  2,397), 
at  the  confluence  of  the  Gonnyindan  and  Dala  rivers,  being  the  head- 
quarters. Pyindaye,  the  village  from  which  the  township  formerly  took 
its  name,  is  situated  close  to  the  sea  at  the  mouth  of  the  Lala  river, 
which  traverses  the  township  from  end  to  end.  In  1903-4  the  area 
cultivated  was  155  square  miles,  paying  Rs.  2,34,000  land  revenue. 

Bogapani. — River  of  Assam,  which  rises  on  the  east  of  the  Shillong 
peak  in  the  Khasi  Hills,  and  after  flowing  west  and  south  through  the 


256  BOGAPANI 

hills  past  Maoflang  and  Sheila  falls  into  the  Surma  at  Chhatak  in  Sylhet 
District.  In  the  lower  part  of  its  course  it  is  an  important  trade  route, 
for  the  carriage  of  limestone,  oranges,  bay-leaves,  and  other  products  of 
the  hills.     The  total  length  of  the  Bogapani  is  52  miles. 

Bogra. — River  of  Assam.     See  Bogapani. 

Bogra  District  (Bagurd). — District  in  the  Rajshahi  Division  of 
Eastern  Bengal  and  Assam,  lying  between  240  32''  and  250  19'  N.  and 
88°  52'  and  890  4i/  E.,  with  an  area  of  1,359  square  miles.  Bogra  is 
a  small  District,  but  it  is  very  prosperous,  as  its  fertile  soil  grows  fine 
jute  crops  and  communications  are  excellent  both  by  rail  and  river.  It 
lies  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Brahmaputra  (here  called  the  Daokoba), 
and  is  bounded  on  the  north  by  the  Districts  of  Rangpur  and  Dinajpur ; 
on  the  south  by  Pabna  and  Rajshahi ;  and  on  the  west  by  Rajshahi  and 
Dinajpur. 

The  Karatoya  river  traverses  the  District  from  north  to  south,  and 
divides  it  into  two  unequal  portions  with  distinct  characteristics.  The 
eastern  tract  is  a  light  loam,  the  ordinary  alluvium 
snect;  ot  tne  l°wer  Brahmaputra  valley,  while  the    western 

and  larger  portion  merges  into  the  undulating  clay  of 
Dinajpur,  and  belongs  to  the  elevated  tract  of  </uasi-\a.terite  formation 
known  as  the  Barind,  in  which  name  the  Barendra  division  of  ancient 
Bengal  still  survives.  Here  the  soil  is  a  stiff  reddish  clay,  resting  on 
a  lower  stratum  of  sand,  and  covered,  where  not  reclaimed,  by  dense 
undergrowth.  The  District  is  seamed  by  river-beds.  The  Jamuna, 
which  forms  the  greater  part  of  the  western  boundary,  the  Nagar, 
Karatoya  (or  Phuljhur),  and  Bangali  are  all  portions  of  the  same 
drainage  system ;  they  are  connected  by  cross-streams,  and  all  fall 
ultimately  into  the  Atrai  or  the  Brahmaputra.  Numerous  marshes  have 
been  formed  by  the  silting  up  of  the  old  river-beds  and  the  consequent 
obstruction  of  the  drainage  in  the  depressed  tracts  between  them.  In 
the  east  and  south  especially,  the  greater  part  of  the  country  is  a  network 
of  swamps,  most  of  which  are  dry  from  January  to  June.  One  of  these, 
known  locally  as  the  Bara  Bil,  is  connected  with  the  great  Chalan  Bil 
in  Rajshahi. 

The  surface  is  covered  by  alluvium.  The  Barind  belongs  to  an 
older  alluvial  formation,  which  is  usually  composed  of  massive  argil- 
laceous beds  of  a  rather  pale  reddish  brown  hue,  often  weathering 
yellowish,  disseminated  throughout  which  occur  kankar  and  pisolitic 
ferruginous  concretions.  The  newer  alluvial  deposits  consist  of  sandy 
clay  and  sand  along  the  course  of  the  rivers,  and  fine  silt  consolidating 
into  clay  in  the  flatter  parts  of  the  river  plain. 

Where  the  ground  is  not  occupied  by  the  usual  crops  of  North 
Bengal,  it  is  covered  with  an  abundant  natural  vegetation.  Old  river- 
beds, ponds  and  marshes,    and  streams  with  a  sluggish  current  have 


BOGRA  DISTRICT  257 

a  copious  vegetation  of  Vallisneria  and  other  plants.  Land  subject  to 
inundation  has  usually  a  covering  of  Tamarix  and  reedy  grasses,  and 
where  the  ground  is  more  or  less  marshy  Rosa  involucrata  is  plentiful. 
Few  trees  occur  on  these  inundated  lands  ;  the  most  plentiful  and  largest 
is  Barringtonia  aattangula.  The  District  contains  no  forests,  but  in  the 
Barind  gigantic  pipal  (Fiats  religiosd)  and  sal  trees  (Shorea  robusta)  are 
numerous,  and  dense  scrub  jungle  still  remains  in  places  in  the  Sherpur 
and  Panchblbl  thanas ;  even  here,  however,  the  greater  portion  of  the 
surface  is  covered  with  grasses,  the  commonest  of  these  being  Imperata 
arundinacea  and  Andropogon  aciculatus.  Among  the  trees  the  most 
conspicuous  are  the  red  cotton-tree  (Bombax  malabaricurn)  and  the  jack- 
tree  (Artocarpus  integrifolid) ;  the  sissu  (Dalbergia  Sissoo)  and  mango 
occur  as  planted  or  sometimes  self-sown  species.  The  villages  are 
generally  surrounded  by  thickets  or  shrubberies  of  semi-spontaneous 
trees  of  a  more  or  less  useful  character. 

Leopards  are  still  met  with  in  the  jungles  of  the  Barind,  but  tigers, 
which  were  formerly  numerous,  have  disappeared  before  the  spread  of 
cultivation. 

The  temperature  in  the  cold  season  is  comparatively  low  owing  to 
northerly  winds  from  the  Himalayan  region  ;  and  the  heat  is  never 
excessive,  the  mean  temperature  being  640,  the  mean  maximum  960 
in  April  and  the  mean  minimum  570  in  January.  Mean  temperature 
rises  to  770  in  March  and  reaches  840,  its  highest  point,  in  April.  Rain- 
fall commences  early  in  the  hot  season,  and  the  annual  fall  averages 
65  inches,  of  which  7-9  occur  in  May,  12-5  in  June,  12-6  in  July,  11-5 
in  August,  and  io-6  in  September. 

A  terrible  cyclone  swept  over  the  District  on  October  5,  1864,  from 
the  south-east,  destroying  many  houses  and  trees ;  it  was  accompanied 
by  a  high  flood  in  the  eastern  thanas.  A  still  higher  flood  occurred  in 
1886,  when  the  extraordinary  rainfall  of  18  inches  took  place  between 
the  hours  of  11.30  p.m.  and  1  a.m.  on  the  night  of  June  30.  The  town 
of  Bogra  and  the  greater  part  of  the  District  were  flooded,  and  portions 
of  the  railway  were  swept  away.  The  District  has  suffered  much  from 
earthquakes.  Many  lives  were  lost  in  that  of  June,  1885,  when  the  line 
of  greatest  intensity  passed  through  Bogra,  and  the  earthquake  of 
December,  1888,  also  did  considerable  damage  ;  but  the  most  severe 
of  recent  times  was  that  of  1897,  which  overthrew  most  of  the  brick 
buildings  in  the  towns  of  Bogra  and  Sherpur,  including  the  Government 
offices,  and  struck  a  severe  blow  at  the  prosperity  of  the  latter  town, 
which  was  already  decadent.  At  the  same  time  numerous  fissures 
opened,  and  outpourings  of  sand  and  water  occurred  in  the  soft  soil 
between  the  Karatoya.  and  Brahmaputra  rivers  ;  marked  changes  also 
took  place  in  the  level  of  the  country,  and  the  roads  and  bridges  were 
damaged. 

vor..  viii.  s 


258  BOGRA   DISTRICT 

Little  is  known  of  the  early  history  of  the  District.  The  Karatoya 
river  at  one  time  formed  the  boundary  between  the  old  kingdoms  of 
Kamarupa  and  Pundra  or  Paundravardhana,  the 
country  of  the  Pods,  whose  capital  was  at  Mahasthan. 
In  the  ninth  century  the  Pal  dynasty  ruled  the  country,  but  they  were 
ousted  in  the  eleventh  century  by  the  Sens,  a  Hindu  dynasty  which  gave 
the  name  of  Barendra  to  the  old  Pundra  country.  When  the  District 
came  under  the  Muhammadans,  they  had  a  fort  at  Mahasthan  and 
a  frontier  outpost  at  Sherpur.  Bogra  passed  under  British  rule  with 
the  rest  of  Bengal  in  1765.  The  District  was  first  formed  in  182 1,  when 
certain  thanas  were  taken  from  Rajshahi,  Dinajpur,  and  Rangpur,  and 
placed  for  the  purposes  of  criminal  jurisdiction  under  a  Joint-Magis- 
trate, who  was  stationed  at  Bogra;  in  1832  he  was  charged  with  the 
collection  of  revenue  from  some  estates.  Several  minor  interchanges 
of  jurisdiction  subsequently  took  place  with  the  neighbouring  Districts, 
but  it  was  not  until  1859  that  Bogra  was  definitely  constituted  an 
independent  District. 

Archaeological  interest  centres  round  Mahasthan  and  Sherpur,  but 
there  are  also  ruins  at  Khetlal  and  elsewhere,  while  Bhawanipur,  on  the 
southern  border,  is  connected  by  tradition  with  Rani  Bhawani,  and  is 
much  frequented  by  Hindus  from  Pabna  and  Rajshahi. 

Bogra  is,  after  Pabna,  the  most  densely  populated  District  in  North 
Bengal,  having  a  density  of  629  persons  per  square  mile.  It  contains 
two  towns,  Bogra,  the  administrative  head-quarters, 
and  Sherpur  ;  and  3,865  villages.  The  population 
increased  from  642,060  in  1872  to  686,974  in  1881,  to  764,461  in  1891, 
and  to  854,533  in  1901.  The  increase  during  the  last  decade,  which 
was  1 1 -8  per  cent,  for  the  whole  District,  was  greatest  in  the  Barind, 
which  is  still  sparsely  populated,  and  in  Dhunot,  already  the  most 
crowded  thana  in  the  District.  The  climate  is  fairly  healthy,  except 
along  the  banks  of  the  moribund  Karatoya  river,  and  in  the  towns  of 
Bogra  and  Sherpur,  where  malaria  is  very  prevalent.  The  increase  in 
Panchbibi  is  largely  due  to  the  immigration  of  Santals  and  Mundas, 
known  locally  as  Bunas,  from  the  Chota,  Nagpur  plateau  ;  there  is  also 
a  considerable  influx  from  Nadia,  Saran,  and  the  United  Provinces. 
The  vernacular  spoken  is  Bengali. 

Hindus  number  154,131,  or  18  per  cent,  of  the  population,  and 
Muhammadans  699,185,  or  82  per  cent.,  a  higher  proportion  than  in 
any  other  District  in  Bengal.  The  Muhammadans  are  mostly  Shaikhs, 
though  there  are  also  Jolahas,  Kulus,  Pathans,  and  Saiyids.  With  the 
exception  of  the  two  last-named  communities,  which  number  5,000, 
the  great  majority  are  probably  the  descendants  of  converts  from  the 
Koch  or  Rajbansis  of  North  Bengal,  who  are  the  most  numerous 
(30,000)  of  the  Hindu  castes  in  the  District.     The  fact  that  conversion 


A  GRIC  UL  TURE  2  5  9 

to  Islam  has  taken  place  on  a  large  scale  seems  to  be  shown  by 
the  number  of  villages  which  bear  Hindu  names  but  have  no  Hindu 
inhabitants.  No  less  than  748,100  persons,  or  87-5  per  cent.,  are 
dependent  on  agriculture,  while  of  the  remainder  6-4  per  cent,  are 
supported  by  industries,  0-4  by  commerce,  and  i-r  by  the  professions. 

A  brotherhood  of  Christians  professing  to  belong  to  no  established 
Church  has  recently  settled  at  Bogra,  but  has  not  yet  been  successful  in 
making  conversions. 

The  east  of  the   District,  especially  the  densely  populated   Dhunot 

thana,  is  low,  and  receives  annual  deposits  of  silt  from  the  floods  which 

cover  it  ;   the  soil  is  friable  and  grows  excellent  crops 
c  .  XT  ...  ... .  .,    •      .,-,  Agriculture. 

of  jute.     Very  similar  conditions  prevail   in  Sibganj 

and  Shariakandi,  where,  however,  jute  is  less  extensively  grown.  The 
part  of  the  Bogra  thana  to  the  east  of  the  Karatoya  contains  a  large 
area  of  permanent  marsh  in  the  low  tracts  between  and  at  a  distance 
from  the  larger  watercourses,  whose  beds  have  been  raised  by  deposits 
of  silt.  The  thanas  of  Khetlal  and  Adamdlghi,  west  of  the  Karatoya, 
are  extensive  plains  noted  for  the  production  of  the  finer  kinds  of  rice. 
In  Panchbibl  the  jungles  are  being  gradually  cleared  by  migratory 
Santals  and  Mundas,  who  move  on  as  soon  as  rent  is  demanded, 
leaving  the  land  they  have  reclaimed  to  be  occupied  by  settled  cul- 
tivators ;  recently,  however,  a  large  number  have  settled  permanently 
in  this  tract.  In  1903-4  the  net  area  cropped  was  estimated  at 
728  square  miles,  while  153  square  miles  were  cultivable  waste. 

Rice  is  the  staple  food-crop  ;  the  winter  rice,  which  is  the  most 
important  harvest,  is  sown  on  low  lands  in  June,  July,  and  August,  and 
reaped  in  November  and  December.  Jute  is,  after  rice,  the  most 
important  product ;  and  the  rapid  growth  of  the  jute  trade  in  recent 
years  has  done  much  to  enrich  the  inhabitants  of  the  Dhunot,  Sharia- 
kandi, and  Sibganj  thanas,  where  it  is  chiefly  grown.  Sugar-cane  is 
almost  confined  to  Panchbibl  and  Sibganj.  Oilseeds  are  grown  in  the 
east  of  the  District,  as  also  pulses  and  a  little  tobacco. 

The  cultivated  area  is  being  gradually  extended,  especially  in  the 
Barind.  Mulberry  cultivation,  which  had  almost  entirely  disappeared, 
has  recently  received  some  encouragement  from  the  District  board, 
and  strips  of  raised  land  near  Bogra  town  have  been  planted  with  it. 
Agricultural  experiments  have  been  conducted  in  the  Jaypur  Govern- 
ment estates,  and  Patna  potatoes  and  Cooch  Behar  tobacco  have  been 
introduced.  Owing  to  the  fertility  of  the  soil  and  the  prosperity  of 
the  people,  there  is  generally  little  need  for  loans  under  the  Land 
Improvement  and  Agriculturists'  Loans  Acts ;  but  Rs.  2,000  was 
advanced  in  1897,  when  there  was  some  slight  scarcity. 

The  local  cattle  are  small,  but  a  few  buffaloes  and  large  Bihar 
bullocks    have   been    imported.     There  are  no  regular  pastures,  and 

s  2 


260  BOCA'. I    DISTRICT 

there  is  considerable  difficulty,  especially  during  the  rains,  in  providing 
food  for  cattle  in  the  flooded  tracts.  At  the  Jamtali-Rukindirpur  fair, 
held  about  the  middle  of  January,  agricultural  produce  is  exhibited  for 
prizes.  This  fair  was  started  in  connexion  with  the  Jaypur  Government 
estates,  but  has  not  been  very  successful,  and  it  is  proposed  to  remove 
it  to  the  head-quarters  station.  None  of  the  other  twenty-eight  fairs 
calls  for  special  mention. 

There  is  no  general  system  of  irrigation,  but  after  the  rice  harvest 
a  few  cultivators  take  advantage  of  tanks  or  pools  to  irrigate  their  fields 
for  a  spring  crop. 

Industries    are    insignificant.      Silk-weaving,    once   prosperous,    has 

decayed  owing  to  the  prevalence  of  silkworm  epidemics,  and  is   now 

practised   only  by  a  few  families  near  Bogra  town  ; 

Trade  and        but  efl-orts  are  being  made  by  the  Bengal  Silk  Com- 
communications.  ■       ,  ,      %  • 

mittee,  assisted  by  Government,  to  exterminate  these 

diseases.     Cotton-weaving   is   carried  on  by  Muhammadans,  but  this 

also  is  a  decadent  industry. 

Rice  and  jute  form  the  principal  exports,  and  next  to  them  come 
hides.  Hilli,  on  the  main  line  of  railway,  is  an  important  centre  for 
the  export  of  rice  and  jute,  and  a  large  quantity  of  produce  is  also 
conveyed  by  the  newly  opened  branch  line  from  Santahar  to  Phulchari, 
which  passes  through  the  marts  at  AdamdTghi,  Sukhanpukur,  and 
Sonatala.  Other  marts  for  rice  are  Dupchanchia  and  BurTganj  on  the 
Nagar  river,  Sultanganj  on  the  Karatoya,  and  for  jute  Shariakandi, 
Naokhila,  Gosainbari,  and  Dhunot.  The  jute  is  conveyed  by  boats 
along  the  numerous  water-channels  which  intersect  this  part  of  the 
District  and  converge  on  Sirajganj,  where  it  is  baled  for  export. 
Most  of  the  imports  come  from  Calcutta,  and  comprise  European  piece- 
goods,  gunny-bags,  salt,  and  kerosene  oil ;  tobacco  is  also  imported 
from  Rangpur.  The  largest  trading  castes  are  Telis  and  Sahas,  and 
the  Marwaris  are  increasing  in  number. 

Bogra  is  well  served  by  railways.  The  northern  section  of  the  Eastern 
Bengal  State  Railway  (metre  gauge)  traverses  the  west  of  the  District 
from  south  to  north,  and  is  protected  by  an  embankment  from  the  floods 
of  the  Jamuna.  The  Brahmaputra-Sultanpur  Railway  branches  off  at 
Santahar,  and,  after  passing  through  Bogra  town,  turns  north-east  and 
strikes  the  Brahmaputra  at  Phulchari  in  Rangpur  District.  Including 
46  miles  of  village  roads,  the  District  contains  384  miles  of  roads, 
all  unmetalled  ;  they  are  either  bridged  or  possess  ferries  where  they 
cross  the  rivers.  The  most  important  are  those  linking  Bogra  with 
Rangpur,  Dinajpur,  Sirajganj,  Nator,  and  Sultanpur. 

In  the  east  of  the  District  the  rivers  form  the  chief  means  of  com- 
munication. The  Brahmaputra  and  the  Bangali  are  navigable  throughout 
the  year,  and  the  Karatoya  and  the  Nagar  are  navigable  by  small  boats 


ADMINISTRA  TION  26 1 

up  to  the  end  of  November.  Numerous  steamers  ply  on  the  Brahma- 
putra from  Goalundo  to  Assam,  and  traffic  by  country  boat  is  brisk 
everywhere.  There  are  24  ferries  ;  the  most  important  are  those  at 
Mahasthan,  Nangla  Bara  Bll,  Jamalganj,  and  Fateh  All. 

Bogra  is  not  liable  to  famine  ;   but  in  1866,  and  again  in  1874,  some 
distress  was  caused  by  high  prices,  and  relief  opera-         Famjne 
tions  were  necessary. 

There  are  no  subdivisions.  The  executive  control  is  vested  in 
a  Magistrate-Collector,  who  is  assisted  by  four  Deputy-Magistrate- 
Collectors.     The  administrative  head-quarters  are  at    ,  j    . 

r    .       „        ..    /-  n  Administration. 

Bogra   town,  but    one  of  the    Deputy-Collectors    is 

stationed  at  Khanjanpur  and  is  manager  of  the  Jaypur  Government 
estates. 

There  are  two  Munsifs,  with  power  to  try  suits  up  to  the  value  of 
Rs.  1,000.  For  civil  and  criminal  justice  Bogra  is  amalgamated  with 
Pabna,  and  the  Sessions  Judge  of  that  District  pays  quarterly  visits 
to  Bogra.  Land  disputes  are  responsible  for  the  majority  of  the 
criminal  cases. 

The  revenue  history  presents  no  features  of  interest.  The  Joint- 
Magistrate  of  Bogra,  who  had  been  appointed  in  1821,  was  vested  with 
the  powers  of  a  Deputy-Collector  in  1832,  and  ordered  to  collect  the 
revenue  of  certain  estates  within  his  magisterial  jurisdiction  ;  but  it  was 
not  until  1859  that  he  was  raised  to  the  status  of  Magistrate-Collector. 
The  subsequent  revenue  history  of  Bogra  is  merely  a  narrative  of  inter- 
changes of  estates  between  Bogra  and  the  neighbouring  Districts,  which 
have  gone  on  up  to  the  present  time.  The  current  land  revenue  demand 
in  1903-4  was  4-91  lakhs,  payable  by  706  estates,  all  permanently  settled 
with  the  exception  of  two  Government  estates  paying  Rs.  58,000.  The 
incidence  of  the  revenue  is  R.  0-12-1  on  each  cultivated  acre,  and  is 
equivalent  to  24  per  cent,  of  the  rental.  The  rent  per  acre  for  rice  land 
in  the  clay  soil  in  the  west  varies  from  Rs.  6  to  Rs.  15,  and  in  the 
low  land  in  the  east  from  Rs.  9  to  Rs.  15.  The  rate  for  jute  land  varies 
from  Rs.  9  to  Rs.  15  in  the  west,  and  from  Rs.  9  to  Rs.  21  in  the  east  of 
the  District,  while  for  special  crops,  such  as  pan  {Piper  Beth'),  as  much 
as  Rs.  30  per  acre  is  paid.  Some  under-ryots  hold  lands  under  the 
chukani  system,  paying  a  fixed  quantity  instead  of  a  fixed  proportion 
of  the  produce.  The  only  estates  which  have  been  brought  under 
survey  and  settlement  are  the  Jaypur  Government  estates.  An  area  of 
22,223  acres  was  settled  with  5,969  ryots  for  Rs.  51,068,  the  average 
area  of  a  ryot's  holding  being  3-9  acres  and  the  assessment  Rs.  2-4-9 
per  acre.  The  highest  rates  assessed  were  Rs.  4-8  for  low  and  Rs.  3-12 
for  high  lands,  and  the  lowest  rates  were  12  annas  for  high  and 
8  annas  for  low  lands  ;  the  rates  paid  by  under-ryots  were,  how- 
ever, much  higher. 


262 


BOGRA   DISTRICT 


The  following  tabic  shows  the  collections  of  land  revenue  and  total 
revenue  (principal  heads  only),  in  thousands  of  rupees :— 


1880-1. 

1 894)- 1. 

I9<K)-I. 

1903-4. 

Land  revenue      .          .          4.60 
Total  revenue     .         .          6,44 

5 -°3 
7,88 

4,90 

8,62 

4,92 
8,96 

Outside  the  municipalities  of  Bogra  and  Sherpur,  local  affairs  are 
managed  by  the  District  board.  In  1903-4  the  income  of  the  District 
board  was  Rs.  1,09,000,  of  which  Rs.  51,000  was  derived  from  rates; 
and  the  expenditure  was  Rs.  1,04,000,  including  Rs.  67,000  expended 
on  public  works. 

The  District  contains  8  thdnas  or  police  stations  and  3  outposts. 
The  police  force  under  the  District  Superintendent  consisted  in  1903  of 
2  inspectors,  20  sub-inspectors,  15  head  constables,  and  166  constables, 
in  addition  to  26  town  ckaukidars.  The  rural  police  force  is  composed 
of  1,641  ckaukidars  and  149  daffadars.  The  District  jail  at  Bogra 
has  accommodation  for  127  prisoners. 

The  great  majority  of  the  population  are  illiterate,  only  5  per  cent, 
of  the  total  (9-6  males  and  0-3  females)  being  able  to  read  and  write 
in  1901.  A  considerable  advance  has,  however,  been  made  in  recent 
years.  The  total  number  of  pupils  under  instruction  increased  from 
3,540  in  1881-2  to  11,819  in  1892-3  and  to  16,335  in  1900-1,  while 
18,130  boys  and  617  girls  were  at  school  in  1903-4,  being  respectively 
27-6  and  1  per  cent,  of  those  of  school-going  age.  The  number  of 
educational  institutions,  public  and  private,  in  that  year  was  495, 
including  34  secondary,  425  primary,  and  36  special  schools.  The 
expenditure  on  education  was  Rs.  79,000,  of  which  Rs.  7,000  was  met 
from  Provincial  funds,  Rs.  18,000  from  District  funds,  Rs.  700  from 
municipal  funds,  and  Rs.  40,000  from  fees. 

In  1903  the  District  contained  9  dispensaries,  of  which  3  had  accom- 
modation for  26  in-patients.  At  these  the  cases  of  53,000  out-patients 
and  227  in-patients  were  treated  during  the  year,  and  1,676  operations 
were  performed.  The  expenditure  was  Rs.  13,000  and  the  income 
Rs.  14,000,  of  which  Rs.  1,900  was  met  from  Government  contribu- 
tions, Rs.  6,000  from  Local  and  Rs.  1,300  from  municipal  funds,  and 
Rs.  5,000  from  subscriptions. 

Vaccination  is  compulsory  only  in  the  two  municipalities.  It  is  not 
popular  with  the  illiterate  Muhammadan  community,  but  their  opposi- 
tion to  it  is  yearly  becoming  weaker.  In  1903-4  the  number  of 
successful  vaccinations  was  25,000,  or  30  per  r,ooo  of  the  population. 

[Sir  W.  W.  Hunter,  Statistical  Account  of  Bengal,  vol.  viii  (1876); 
S.  S.  Day,  Final  Report  on  the  Survey  and  Settlement  of  the  Jaypur 
Estates  (Calcutta,  1899).] 


BOLAN  PASS  263 

Bogra  Town  {Bagura). — Head-quarters  of  Bogra  District,  Eastern 
Bengal  and  Assam,  situated  in  24°  51'  N.  and  890  23'  E.,  on  the  west 
bank  of  the  Karatoya  river.  Population  (1901),  7,094.  Bogra  was 
constituted  a  municipality  in  1876.  The  income  during  the  decade 
ending  190 1-2  averaged  Rs.  15,000,  and  the  expenditure  Rs.  14,000. 
In  1903-4  the  income  was  Rs.  21,000,  of  which  Rs.  4,000  was  derived 
from  a  tax  on  persons  (or  property  tax)  and  Rs.  6,000  from  a  conserv- 
ancy rate  ;  and  the  expenditure  was  Rs.  16,000.  The  Brahmaputra- 
Sultanpur  branch  of  the  Northern  Bengal  State  Railway  passes  through 
the  town.  Bogra  possesses  the  usual  public  buildings,  and  a  park,  con- 
taining a  theatre,  has  recently  been  laid  out.  The  District  jail  has 
accommodation  for  127  prisoners,  the  chief  jail  industry  carried  on 
being  the  preparation  of  bamboo  matting. 

Bokpyin. — Township  of  Mergui  District,  Lower  Burma,  lying  on  the 
mainland,  between  io°  35'  and  n°  51'  N.  and  9S0  27'  and  990  14'  E., 
and  including  islands  extending  to  970  54'  E.  Its  area,  with  the 
islands,  is  2,103  square  miles.  The  township  is  a  mass  of  forest-clad 
hills  with  a  fringe  of  mangrove  swamps  on  the  sea,  widening  out  at  the 
estuary  of  the  Lenya  river,  which  flows  through  rocky  gorges  with  occa- 
sional narrow  strips  of  level  land.  Along  the  coast  is  an  immense 
shoal,  almost  bare  at  low  tide,  which  makes  it  impossible  for  steamers 
of  any  but  the  smallest  size  to  approach  the  head-quarters.  Earther 
south,  however,  there  is  a  good  anchorage  at  Karathuri,  a  tin-mining 
centre.  About  40  miles  from  Bokpyin,  in  clear  waters  among  wooded 
isles  with  sandy  beaches,  are  the  pearling-grounds.  The  population  was 
5,749  in  1891,  and  7,255  in  1901,  of  whom  18  per  cent,  were  returned 
as  speaking  Burmese,  9  Karen,  53  Siamese,  and  20  Malay  and  other 
languages.  The  Malays  and  most  of  the  Burmans  live  along  the  coast, 
the  Siamese  inland  on  the  watercourses,  and  the  Karens  in  the  hills. 
The  tin-mines  are  worked  mostly  by  Chinese  labour.  The  islands  are 
uninhabited,  save  for  the  roving  population  of  Salons.  There  are 
63  villages  and  hamlets.  The  head-quarters  are  at  Outer  Bokpyin, 
a  forlorn-looking  village  with  a  population  of  387.  The  area  cultivated 
in  1903-4  was  9  square  miles,  of  which  about  two-thirds  was  under  rice 
and  the  rest  orchards  or  palm  groves.  The  land  revenue  amounted  to 
Rs.  7,800. 

Bolan  Pass. — A  District  of  Baluchistan,  named  after  the  historic 
pass,  lying  between  290  24'  and  3oc  10'  N.  and  670  4'  and  670  44'  E., 
with  an  area  of  896  square  miles.  The  pass  proper  extends  from 
Kolpur,  known  to  the  natives  as  Kharlakai  Kotal,  to  Rindli,  and  is 
about  54  miles  long.  It  is  widest  in  the  Laleji  plain  on  the  south, 
whence  it  narrows  to  a  gorge  known  as  Afghan  Ponzak.  The  elevation 
rises  from  750  feet  to  about  5,900  feet.  The  District  is  bounded  on 
the  east  by  Sibi   District,  and  on  its  remaining  sides  by  the  Sarawan 


264  BOLAN  PASS 

and  Kachhi  divisions  of  the  Kalat  State,  and  is  enclosed  between  high 
mountains  belonging  to  the  Central  Brahui  range.  The  Bolan  river 
rises  near  Kolpur,  but  the  water  makes  its  first  appearance  at  Sar-i- 
Bolan  and  disappears  again  near  Abigum.  At  Bibi  Nani  it  is  joined 
from  the  west  by  the  Sarawan  river,  and  from  this  point  possesses 
a  perennial  stream.  Many  hill-torrents  empty  themselves  into  the  river, 
causing  violent  floods  after  heavy  rain. 

The  rocks  consist  of  a  varied  series,  including  Jurassic  and  Lower  and 
Upper  Cretaceous  strata  ;  basalt  flows  of  Deccan  trap  age ;  Ghazij  and 
Spintangi  beds  (middle  eocene) ;  lower  Nari  (upper  eocene) ;  lower, 
middle,  and  upper  Siwaliks  (middle  and  upper  miocene)  ;  and  recent 
and  sub-recent  deposits. 

The  vegetation  consists  of  a  repellent  scrub,  made  up  of  such  plants 
as  Capparis  aphy//a,  Acanthodium  spicatum,  Prosopis  spicigera,  With- 
ania  coagulans,  Calotropis  procera,  Alhagi  camelorum,  and  three  kinds 
of  Acacia.     On  the  surrounding  hills  occur  pistachio  and  a  little  olive. 

Sisi  and  chikor  are  found  in  the  upper  parts  of  the  pass,  and  a  few- 
hares  and  '  ravine  deer '  (gazelle)  occur  in  the  Laleji  plain.  Fish 
exceeding  20  lb.  in  weight  have  been  caught  with  the  rod  in  the  lower 
reaches  of  the  Bolan  river. 

The  climate  varies  with  the  elevation.  In  summer  the  heat  in 
the  lower  parts  is  trying,  while  in  winter  snow  falls  above  Mach. 
The  annual  rainfall  averages  about  8  inches.  Most  of  it  is  received 
in   winter,  but  an  occasional  fall  occurs  in  July. 

The  Bolan  Pass  has  for  centuries  been  the  route  which  traders, 
invaders,  and  nomad  hordes  have  traversed  between  India  and  High 
Asia,  and  has  been  the  scene  of  many  battles  between  the  people  of  the 
highlands  and  of  the  plains.  In  the  early  days  of  the  British  connexion 
with  the  country  it  was  nominally  under  the  control  of  the  Khan  of 
Kalat ;  but  the  Kurd  and  the  Raisani  tribes  had  acquired  rights  to  levy 
transit-dues,  and  it  was  a  favourite  raiding  ground  of  the  Marris  and 
Kakars.  The  army  of  the  Indus  negotiated  the  pass  without  much 
opposition  in  1839,  and  it  was  again  traversed  by  the  army  for  Southern 
Afghanistan  in  1878. 

In  pursuance  of  the  policy  of  freedom  of  trade  between  Kalat  and 
India,  posts  were  established  in  the  pass  soon  after  the  British  occupa- 
tion in  1877  ;  and  in  1883  the  Khan  of  Kalat  ceded  civil  and  criminal 
jurisdiction  in  the  pass  and  his  rights  to  levy  tolls,  in  return  for  an 
annual  payment  of  Rs.  30,000.  The  tolls  were  abolished  in  1S84,  and 
allowances  were  given  to  the  Raisani,  Kurd,  and  other  tribesmen  who 
had  shared  in  the  proceeds  of  the  transit  dues.  The  Bolan  was  first 
attached  to  the  old  Thal-Chotiali  District ;  it  was  then  placed  under 
Quetta-Pishln  ;  and  finally,  in  1888,  under  the  Political  Agent  in  Kalat. 

The   District   possesses  only  two  permanent     villages   of  any   size, 


BOLAN  PASS  265 

Mach  and  Kirta.  The  total  population  in  1901  was  1,936.  The 
Kuchiks,  a  section  of  the  Rind  Baloch  numbering  326,  are  the  culti- 
vating proprietors  of  the  soil.  The  total  area  of  cultivable  land  is 
3,300  acres,  about  one-third  of  which  is  generally  cropped  each  year. 
Most  of  the  cultivation  is  at  Kirta,  which  is  irrigated  from  the  perma- 
nent stream  of  the  Bolan.  The  water  and  land  are  divided  for  each 
crop  according  to  the  number  of  adult  males  among  the  Kuchiks. 
The  principal  crop  is  wheat  ;  some  jowar  also  is  cultivated  in  the  summer. 

Thin  seams  of  coal  in  the  Ghazij  strata  near  Old  Mach  are  worked 
by  a  private  firm.  The  output  in  1903  amounted  to  3,259  tons.  In 
the  spring  of  1889  a  boring  for  petroleum  was  put  down  near  Kirta,  and 
a  show  of  oil  was  struck  at  360  feet,  but  the  boring  was  abandoned 
owing  to  an  influx  of  hot  sulphurous  water.  Good  sulphur  has  also 
been  discovered.  No  trade  of  importance  exists.  The  Mushkaf-Bolan 
branch  of  the  North-Western  Railway  enters  the  District  at  Nari  Bank 
station  ;  and  a  road  traverses  the  pass  connecting  Sibi  with  Quetta, 
which  is  metalled  and  bridged  between  Rindli  and  Quetta. 

The  District,  which  is  officially  known  as  the  Bolan  Pass  and  Nushki 
Railway  District,  forms  part  of  the  Agency  Territories.  Besides  the 
pass  and  the  civil  station  of  Rindli,  it  includes  jurisdiction  over  the  road 
and  railway  from  the  Nari  river  to  a  point  within  about  13  miles  of 
Quetta,  and  over  the  portion  of  the  Nushki  Railway  lying  in  Kalat.  The 
Political  Agent,  Kalat,  holds  executive  charge  and  has  the  powers  of 
a  District  and  Sessions  Judge.  The  Assistant  Political  Agent,  Kalat, 
and  the  Native  Assistant  for  the  Sarawan  country  also  have  jurisdiction. 
The  official  in  immediate  charge  of  the  pass  is  a  tahslldar,  posted  at 
Mach,  who  exercises  civil  and  criminal  powers.  In  1903  the  number 
of  cognizable  cases  reported  was  15,  in  7  of  which  convictions 
were  obtained.  The  number  of  criminal  cases  was  45,  and  of  civil 
cases  182.  Land  revenue  at  the  rate  of  one-tenth  of  the  produce  was 
first  levied  in  1891,  but  the  rate  has  since  been  raised  to  one-sixth. 
The  land  revenue  in  1903-4  yielded  Rs.  4,700,  and  the  total  revenue 
of  the  District  from  all  sources  was  Rs.  9,500. 

A  small  sum  is  raised  by  a  conservancy  cess  in  the  Mach  bazar,  and 
is  spent  on  sanitation.  In  1903-4  the  receipts  amounted  to  Rs.  1,100, 
and  the  expenditure  to  Rs.  000.  The  sanctioned  strength  of  the  levy 
force  is  208  men,  of  whom  113  are  employed  in  the  pass,  the  remainder 
being  detailed  with  the  Political  Agent,  Kalat,  and  elsewhere.  The 
police  force,  which  numbers  39  men  under  two  deputy-inspectors, 
is  posted  at  eight  railway  stations  and  forms  part  of  the  Quetta-  Pishin 
police.  No  schools  have  been  established.  About  27  pupils  receive 
instruction  in  mosques. 

A  dispensary,  maintained  at  Mach  by  the  North-Western  Railway, 
affords  medical  aid  to  the  civil  population.     It  has  accommodation  for 


266  nOLAN  PASS 

13  in-patients.  The  total  attendance  in  1903  numbered  3,675.  Vac- 
cination has  not  been  introduced. 

Bolarum. — Formerly  a  cantonment  of  the  Hyderabad  Contingent, 
and  now  part  of  Secunderabad,  Hyderabad  State. 

Bolpur. — Village  in  the  head-quarters  subdivision  of  BirbhUm  Dis- 
trict, Bengal,  situated  in  230  40'  N.  and  870  42'  E.,  on  the  East  Indian 
Railway,  99  miles  from  Howrah.  Population  (1901),  3,131.  Bolpur 
is  the  most  important  trading  centre  in  the  District. 

Bolundra. — Petty  State  in  Mahi  Kantha,  Bombay. 

Bombay  Presidency.  -  Bombay,  the  Western  Presidency  of 
British  India,  is  divided  into  four  revenue  1  ^visions  and  twenty-five  x 
Districts.  It  also  includes  numerous  Native  States.  The  territory  thus 
composed  extends  from  130  53'  to  280  29'  N.  and  from  66°  40'  to 
760  32'  E.  The  British  Districts,  including  Sind,  contain  a  total  area 
of  122,984  square  miles  and  a  total  population  (according  to  the  Census 
of  1901)  of  18,515,587  ;  the  Native  States  under  the  Bombay  Govern- 
ment cover  an  additional  area  estimated  at  65,761  square  miles,  with 
a  population  of  6,908,648;  total  area,  188,745  square  miles;  total 
population,  25,424,235.  In  the  geographical  limits  of  the  Presidency- 
are  included  the  Portuguese  Possessions  of  Goa,  Daman,  and  Diu,  with 
an  aggregate  area  of  1,470  square  miles  and  a  population  (1900)  of 
531,798;  also  the  State  of  Baroda,  with  an  area  of  8,099  square  miles 
and  a  population  of  1,952,692,  which  is  under  the  political  control 
of  the  Government  of  India.  The  outlying  settlement  of  Aden  has 
an  area  of  80  square  miles,  with  a  population  of  43,974.  The 
capital  of  the  Presidency,  to  which  it  has  given  its  name,  is  Bombay 
City,  situated  on  an  island  on  the  shore  of  the  Arabian  Sea  in  18° 
55'  N.  and  72°  54'  E. 

The  Presidency  is  bounded  on  the  north-west,  north,  and  north-east 
by  Baluchistan,  the  British  Province  of  the  Punjab,  and  the  Native 
States  of  Rajputana  ;  on  the  east  by  the  Native  States  of  the  Central 
India  Agency,  the  Central  Provinces,  Berar,  and  the  Dominions  of 
the  Nizam  of  Hyderabad  ;  on  the  south  by  the  Presidency  of  Madras 
and  the  State  of  Mysore  ;  and  on  the  west  by  the  Arabian  Sea. 

Between  these  limits  are  contained  tracts  of  country  varying  greatly 

in   climate  and   physical  aspects.     Of  these,   the  most   important  are 

Sind,  Gujarat,  the   Deccan,    the    Konkan,    and    the 

Physical  Carnatic.     The    District   of    North    Kanara,    at   the 

aspects.  extreme   south    of  the    Presidency,   in   so   far   as    it 

can  be   brought    within  this   scheme   of  division,    lies   partly   in   the 

Carnatic  and  partly   in  the  Konkan. 

1  This  total  includes  Bombay  City  and  Island,  which  is  treated  as  a  separate 
District  under  a  Collector,  but  does  not  include  the  new  District  formed  in  1906  by 
the  partition  of  Khandesh. 


BOMB  A  Y  PRESIDENC  Y  267 

Sind,  or  the  lower  valley  of  the  Indus,  is  the  most  northerly  section 
of  the  Presidency.  It  includes  the  six  Districts  of  Karachi,  Hyderabad, 
Thar  and  Parkar,  Larkana,  Sukkur,  and  the  Upper  Sind  Frontier  ;  and 
also  the  Native  State  of  Khairpur.  It  differs  widely  in  physical  features 
and  climate,  no  less  than  in  the  language,  dress,  and  customs  of  its 
inhabitants,  from  the  rest  of  the  Presidency,  from  which  it  is  cut  off 
by  the  desert  or  the  sea.  Cultivation  in  Sind  is,  as  a  rule,  possible  only 
where  irrigation  exists,  and  the  province  is  thus  dependent  on  the 
annual  inundation  of  the  Indus  with  its  subsidiary  system  of  canals. 
The  surface  of  the  land  is  a  monotonous  desert,  interrupted  by  low 
cliffs  or  undulating  sand-heaps,  save  only  where  the  floods  of  the  great 
river,  or  the  silver  streak  of  a  canal,  have  transformed  a  waste  of  sand 
and  scrub  jungle  into  broad  acres  of  smiling  crop.  Flat  and  arid  for 
the  most  part,  Sind  possesses  an  indescribable  charm  in  its  wide  expanse 
of  reed  and  water,  where  the  floods  lie  held  from  the  adjacent  crops 
by  giant  banks  of  earth,  and  the  silence  is  broken  only  by  the  cries 
of  myriads  of  wild-fowl  on  the  wing. 

In  striking  contrast  to  the  Sind  desert,  the  plains  of  Gujarat  stand 
first  in  the  Presidency  for  richness  of  soil  and  density  of  population. 
They  are  watered  by  many  rivers,  the  most  famous  of  which  are  the 
Narbada  and  the  Tapti,  whose  valleys  are  sheets  of  unbroken  cultiva- 
tion. Towards  the  Rann  of  Cutch  the  rich  plains  pass  into  salt  and 
sandy  waste,  and  the  subsoil  is  brackish.  Gujarat  contains  the  Districts 
of  Kaira,  Ab.mada.bad,  Broach,  Surat,  and  the  Panch  Mahals,  with 
numerous  petty  Native  States,  of  which  the  most  important  are  Cutch, 
Morvi,  Gondal,  and  Bhaunagar,  situated  in  Cutch  and  the  peninsula 
of  Kathiawar.  Of  these,  Cutch  is  an  island  lying  between  220  47'  and 
240  N.  and  68°  25'  and  710  n'  E.,  cut  off  from  the  mainland  by  the 
great  salt  waste  known  as  the  Rann.  Kathiawar  is  a  peninsula  lying 
between  200  48'  and  230  45'  N.  and  68°  56'  and  720  20'  E.  It  is  con- 
nected with  the  mainland  of  Gujarat  by  a  neck  of  low  lying  land  which 
until  18 1 3  was  flooded  during  part  of  the  year,  and  is  still  partly  covered 
by  a  large  lagoon,  the  Nal.  The  State  of  Baroda,  though  contained 
within  this  geographical  division,  is  not  now  politically  attached  to  the 
Bombay  Presidency. 

The  remaining  portion  of  the  Presidency  is  divided  into  high 
and  low-level  tracts  by  the  rugged  line  of  the  Western  Ghats  or 
Sahyadris  which  run  parallel  to  the  coast-line  for  many  hundred  miles. 
Perched  upon  these  frowning  eminences  stand  the  hill  forts  famous  in 
Maratha  history.  Behind  them  lie  the  scantily  watered  tracts  of  the 
Deccan  plateau,  for  the  most  part  an  almost  treeless  plain,  sloping 
from  the  rock -bound  Ghat  edge  towards  the  level  fields  of  Berar  and 
Hyderabad.  Protected  by  the  hills  from  the  south-west  monsoon, 
which  at  times  surmounts  their  crest  only  to  hurl  its  heavy  clouds  across 


268  BOMB  A  Y  PRESIDENCY 

the  continent,  leaving  the  land  unwatered  and  untilled,  the  Deccan 
yields  to  much  labour  a  bare  measure  of  subsistence.  In  the  valleys 
of  the  large  rivers,  where  population  clusters  on  the  banks  in  busy 
townships,  the  soil  is  more  productive ;  but  the  country  is  ever  haunted 
by  the  spectre  of  famine.  It  breeds  a  race  of  sturdy  husbandmen,  who 
show  a  marked  superiority  over  their  Gujarat  brethren  in  their  powers 
of  resisting  the  rigours  of  a  starvation  diet.  The  Deccan  Districts  are 
Nasik,  Ahmadnagar,  Poona,  Satara,  and  Sholapur.  The  Native  States 
included  in  this  area  are  few  and  unimportant.  To  the  north  of  Nasik, 
Khandesh,  in  the  Tapti  valley,  is  usually  excluded  from  the  Deccan 
as  being  more  akin  to  the  plains  of  the  Central  Provinces  and  Berar, 
especially  in  its  rich  fields  of  black  cotton  soil,  growing  excellent  cotton 
and  wheat.  The  Deccan  possesses  large  tracts  of  rocky  and  uncultivable 
land.  To  the  west,  near  the  Ghats,  where  the  rainfall  is  heavy,  the  main 
crop  is  rice,  grown  in  terraces  in  the  broken  country  known  as  the  Kon- 
kan  Ghat  Matha  or  Maval.  Over  the  greater  part  of  the  desk,  or  level 
tracts,  a  light  rainfall,  if  seasonable,  produces  good  crops  of  cereals. 

South  of  the  Deccan,  three  Districts,  Belgaum,  Bijapur,  and  Dharwar, 
form  the  Bombay  Carnatic,  or  Kanarese  territory.  The  large  Native 
State  of  Kolhapur  also  forms  part  of  the  Carnatic,  which  is  otherwise 
known  as  the  Southern  Maratha.  Country.  Owing  to  the  edge  of  the 
Ghats  being  thickly  wooded  to  the  west  of  these  Districts,  they  enjoy 
a  better  water-supply  than  the  arid  Deccan  plain  farther  north,  and 
are  also  able  to  reckon  on  a  more  certain  rainfall.  In  Dharwar  Dis- 
trict a  system  of  numerous  small  tanks  for  water  storage  permits 
the  cultivation  of  irrigated  crops  on  a  large  scale.  The  greater  portion 
of  the  above-Ghat  section  of  North  Kanara  District  is  covered  with 
continuous  forest.  The  Carnatic  is  thus  a  land  of  sweeping  forest 
and  well-watered  fields,  bearing  rice  crops  beneath  the  storms  of  the 
Ghat  rainfall,  and  yielding  a  sea  of  wheat,  cotton,  and  jowar  beyond 
the  zone  of  the  monsoon's  fury.  Though  the  Western  Ghats  are 
here  covered  with  dense  jungle,  their  line  is  more  broken  than  in 
the  Deccan,  so  that  the  rivers,  which  elsewhere  flow  eastward  across 
the  continent,  sometimes  turn  towards  the  western  coast  line  in  the 
Southern  Carnatic. 

The  low-lying  tract  below  the  Ghats,  termed  the  Konkan,  contains 
the  Districts  of  Thana,  Kolaba,  Ratnagiri,  Bombay  City  and  Island, 
the  below-Ghat  section  of  North  Kanara,  and  the  Native  States  of 
Savantvadi,  Janjira,  and  Jawhar.  It  is  a  difficult  country  to  travel 
in,  for  in  addition  to  rivers,  creeks,  and  harbours,  there  are  many 
isolated  peaks  and  detached  ranges  of  hills.  Thus,  in  north-east 
Thana  the  Deccan  trap  forms  a  high  table-land,  which  passes  south- 
wards in  a  series  of  abrupt  isolated  hills  to  the  bare  flat  laterite  plateau 
of  Ratnagiri.     The  granite  and  sandstone  hills  of  North  Kanara  are 


PHYSICAL  ASPECTS  269 

locally  reckoned  as  distinct  from  the  main  range  of  the  Western  Ghats, 
and  the  large  proportion  of  forest  it  contains  distinguishes  below-Ghat 
Kanara  from  the  rest  of  the  Konkan.  The  cultivation  consists  of  a 
few  rich  plots  of  rice  land  and  groves  of  coco-nut  palms,  watered  by 
a  never-failing  supply  from  the  storm-clouds  of  the  south-west  monsoon. 
Though  in  climate  severely  oppressive,  when  the  sun  adds  its  power 
to  the  enervating  influence  of  the  moisture-laden  atmosphere,  yet  the 
Konkan  is  unrivalled  for  beauty  of  scenery. 

The  peculiarities  of  soil,  climate,  and  conformation  thus  briefly 
described  result  in  a  great  variety  of  scenery.  In  Sind  the  eye  of 
the  traveller,  fatigued  by  endless  stretches  of  sand  and  scrub  jungle, 
rests  with  relief  on  the  broad  expanse  of  the  lagoons  rich  in  waving 
reed  and  clustering  babul.  In  Gujarat  the  sandy  waste  of  Cutch  leads 
through  the  treeless,  if  more  fertile,  plain  of  Kathiawar  to  the  well- 
cropped  fields  of  the  central  Districts  :  a  park-like  territory  intersected 
at  intervals  by  the  broad  floods  of  its  rivers,  and  well  wooded,  with 
many  a  noble  tree  to  shade  the  approaches  to  its  busy  and  populous 
towns.  This  is  the  garden  of  the  Presidency.  The  approach  to  the 
Deccan  plateau  is  guarded  by  the  long  line  of  the  Western  Ghats. 
Though  smiling  with  fern  and  foliage  and  glistening  with  the  silver 
threads  of  numerous  waterfalls  during  the  summer  rains,  their  rugged 
crests  are,  in  the  dry  season,  left  gaunt  and  bare  save  when  robed  in 
purple  in  the  haze  of  early  morn,  or  touched  to  brilliance  by  the  last 
rays  of  the  setting  sun.  Beyond  the  Ghat  edge,  broken  country  slopes 
to  a  vast  treeless  expanse,  undulating  between  great  stretches  of  rock  or 
boulder  and  poorly  tilled  patches  of  cultivation.  South  of  the  Deccan 
the  well-watered  fields  of  the  Carnatic  lead  to  the  giant  forests  of 
Kanara,  which  are  to  be  seen  at  their  best  near  the  magnificent  Ger- 
soppa  Falls.  Vistas  of  rolling  hills  clad  with  evergreen  forest  stretch 
everywhere  to  the  limit  of  the  horizon.  Beyond  the  evergreen  zone, 
dense  patches  of  tall  teak  and  feathery  bamboo  line  the  valleys  of 
perennial  streams,  where  clumps  of  screw  pine  catch  the  broken  lights 
that  penetrate  the  leafy  canopy.  The  scenery  is  of  rare  beauty  at 
all  seasons  of  the  year,  whether  half  hidden  and  half  revealed  in  the 
driving  mists  of  the  monsoon,  or  pierced  by  the  shafts  of  the  hot- 
season  sun  in  the  mysterious  silence  of  an  April  noon.  Yet  before  all 
in  picturesqueness  are  the  coast  tracts  of  the  Konkan,  where  spark- 
ling rollers  break  on  soft  white  sand  beneath  overhanging  palm  and  grey- 
green  casuarina;  red-rocked  islets  and  promontories  lie  in  the  broad 
bosom  of  a  light  blue  sea;  the  flaming  leaf  of  the  gold-mohur  tree 
in  hot-season  foliage  offers  a  beacon  by  day  to  guide  the  quaintly 
moulded  native  craft  on  their  coastwise  journeys  ;  and  in  the  back- 
ground the  long  grey  lint'  of  the  eternal  hills  send  streamlet  and  broad 
river  alike  to  mingle  their  floods  with  the  depths  of  the  Indian  Ocean. 


2  70  BOMB  A  J '  BREST DENC  Y 

The  following  are  the  chief  mountain  ranges,  which  all  have  a  general 
direction  from  north  to  south.  In  the  north-west,  on  the  right  bank  of 
the  Indus,  the  Kirthar  mountains,  a  continuation  of  the  great  Sulaiman 
range,  separate  British  India  from  the  domains  of  the  Khan  of  Kalat. 
In  Sind  there  are  low  ranges  of  sandhills,  and  in  Cutch  and  Kathiawar 
several  isolated  peaks  and  cliffs,  which  form  geologically  a  continuation 
of  the  Aravalli  mountains.  Proceeding  towards  the  south-east,  an 
extensive  mountain  chain  is  met  with,  which  may  be  regarded  either  as 
a  southern  spur  of  the  Aravallis  or  a  northern  prolongation  of  the 
Western  Ghats  beyond  the  valleys  of  the  Tapti  and  Narbada.  These 
hills  separate  Gujarat  from  the  States  of  Central  India,  beginning  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  Mount  Abu  and  stretching  southwards  down 
to  the  right  bank  of  the  Narbada.  South  of  the  Tapti  the  country 
becomes  rugged  and  broken,  with  isolated  masses  of  rock  and  projecting 
spurs,  forming  the  watershed  for  the  great  rivers  of  the  Deccan.  This 
rugged  region  constitutes,  strictly  speaking,  the  northern  extremity  of 
the  Western  Ghats,  here  called  the  Sahyadri  Hills.  That  great  range 
runs  southward,  parallel  to  the  sea-coast  for  upwards  of  1,000  miles, 
with  a  general  elevation  of  about  1,800  feet  above  the  sea,  though 
individual  peaks  rise  to  more  than  double  that  height.  The  western 
declivity  is  abrupt,  and  the  low  strip  of  land  bordering  the  sea-shore  is 
seldom  more  than  40  miles  in  width.  The  Ghats  do  not  often  descend 
in  one  sheer  precipice,  but,  as  is  usually  the  case  with  a  trap  formation, 
the  descent  is  broken  by  a  succession  of  terraces.  The  landward  slope 
is  gentle,  also  falling  in  terraces,  the  crest  of  the  range  being  in  many 
cases  but  slightly  raised  above  the  level  of  the  central  plateau  of  the 
Deccan.  Apart  from  minor  spurs  of  the  Western  Ghats,  only  two 
ranges  in  the  Presidency  have  a  direction  from  east  to  west.  The 
Satpura  range,  from  the  neighbourhood  of  the  fort  of  Asirgarh  to  its 
termination  in  the  east  of  Gujarat,  forms  the  watershed  between  the 
Tapti  and  Narbada  rivers,  separating  Khandesh  from  the  territories 
of  Indore,  and  attaining  an  elevation  of  over  5,000  feet.  The  Satmala 
or  Ajanta  hills,  which  divide  Khandesh  from  the  Nizam's  Dominions 
on  the  -south,  are  of  less  importance,  being  rather  the  northern  slope 
of  the  plateau  of  the  Deccan  than  a  distinct  hill  range. 

The  Bombay  Presidency  has  no  great  rivers  which  it  can  call  its  own. 

The  outlying  province  of  Sind  is  penetrated  throughout  its  entire  length 
from  north  to  south  by  the  Indus,  whose  overflowing  waters  are  almost 
the  sole  means  of  distributing  fertility  through  that  parched  region. 

Its  season  of  flood  begins  in  March  and  continues  until  September  ; 
the  discharge  of  water,  calculated  at  more  than  40,000  cubic  feet  per 
second  in  December,  is  said  to  increase  tenfold  in  August,  the  average 
depth  of  the  river  rising  during  the  inundation  from  9  to  24  feet,  and 
the  velocity  of  the  current  increasing  from  3  to  7  miles  an  hour.     The 


PHYSICAL   ASPECTS  271 

entire  lower  portion  of  the  delta  is  torn  and  furrowed  by  old  channels  of 
the  river,  for  the  surface  is  a  light  sand  easily  swept  away  and  re-deposited 
year  by  year.  The  plains  of  Northern  Gujarat  are  watered  by  a  few 
small  streams,  the  chief  of  which  are  the  Sabarmati  and  Mahi,  both 
rising  in  the  Mahi  Kantha  hills  and  flowing  southward  into  the  head 
of  the  Gulf  of  Cambay.  The  Narbada,  in  its  westerly  course  to  the 
sea  from  Central  India,  has  but  a  short  section  within  the  limits  of  the 
Presidency.  It  separates  the  territory  of  Baroda  from  Rewa  Kantha, 
and,  after  passing  the  city  of  Broach,  falls  into  the  Gulf  of  Cambay  by 
a  noble  estuary.  For  about  a  hundred  miles  from  the  sea  it  is  navigable 
at  all  seasons  by  country  boats,  and  during  the  rains  by  vessels  of 
50  tons  burden.  The  Tapti,  although  a  smaller  river,  has  a  greater 
commercial  importance.  It  flows  through  the  whole  length  of  Khandesh 
and  enters  the  sea  a  little  above  the  city  of  Surat.  Both  these  rivers  run 
for  the  most  part  between  high  banks,  and  are  of  little  use  for  irrigation. 
Passing  southwards,  the  hill  streams  which  rise  in  the  Western  Ghats 
and  flow  west  into  the  /Arabian  Sea  are  very  numerous  but  of  little 
importance.  During  the  rains  they  become  formidable  torrents,  but  in 
the  hot  season  they  dwindle  away  and  almost  cease  to  flow.  In  the 
lowlands  of  the  Konkan  their  annual  floods  have  worn  deep  tidal  creeks, 
which  form  valuable  highways  for  traffic.  In  the  extreme  south  of  the 
Presidency,  in  the  District  of  North  Kanara,  these  westward-flowing 
streams  become  larger ;  one  of  them,  the  Sharavati,  plunges  downwards 
from  the  mountains  in  the  celebrated  Falls  of  Gersoppa.  On  the 
eastern  side  of  the  Ghats  are  the  head-waters  of  both  the  Godavari 
and  Kistna  (Krishna)  rivers,  the  former  of  which  rises  near  Nasik 
and  the  latter  near  Mahabaleshwar.  Both  of  these,  after  collecting 
the  waters  of  many  tributary  streams,  some  of  considerable  size,  leave 
the  Presidency  in  a  south-easterly  direction,  crossing  the  entire  plain 
of  the  Deccan  on  their  way  to  the  Bay  of  Bengal. 

The  most  peculiar  natural  feature  in  the  Presidency  is  the  Rann 
of  Cutch.  Authorities  have  not  yet  decided  whether  it  is  an  arm 
of  the  sea  from  which  the  waters  have  receded,  or  an  inland  lake  whose 
seaward  barrier  has  been  swept  away  by  some  natural  convulsion.  It 
covers  an  estimated  area  of  9,000  square  miles,  forming  the  western 
boundary  of  Gujarat  ;  but  when  flooded  during  the  rainy  season,  it 
unites  the  two  gulfs  of  Cutch  and  Cambay,  and  converts  the  peninsula 
of  Cutch  into  an  island.  In  the  dry  season  the  soil  is  impregnated  with 
salt,  the  surface  in  some  places  being  moist  and  marshy,  and  in  others 
strewm  with  gravel  and  shingle  like  a  dry  river-bed  or  sea-beach.  At 
this  time  the  Rann  is  frequented  by  numerous  herds  of  antelope,  the 
'black  buck'  of  sportsmen.  Large  tracts  of  marshy  land  are  to  be 
found  in  Sind,  caused  by  changes  in  the  course  of  the  Indus.  The 
Manchhar  Lake,  on  the  right  bank  of  the  river,  near  the  town  of  Sehwan, 


272  BOMBAY  BREST DE XCY 

is  swollen  during  the  annual  season  of  inundation  to  an  area  of  about 
1 60  square  miles;  and  a  large  portion  of  the  newly  formed  delta  has 
not  yet  been  fully  reclaimed  from  the  antagonistic  forces  of  the  river  and 
the  sea.  Along  the  coast  of  the  Konkan  the  low-lying  lands  on  the 
borders  of  the  salt-water  creeks  are  liable  to  be  overflowed  at  high  tide. 
Several  artificial  sheets  of  water  may,  from  their  size,  be  dignified  with 
the  title  of  lakes ;  of  these  the  chief  are  the  Tansa  lake,  constructed  to 
provide  Bombay  City  with  water,  and  the  Gokak  lake  in  Belgaum.  The 
former  has  an  area  of  about  3,400,  and  the  latter  of  4,000  acres. 
Another  sheet  of  water,  the  Kharakvasla  tank,  intended  to  supply 
the  city  of  Poona,  and  also  to  irrigate  the  neighbouring  fields,  covers 
an  area  of  3,500  acres. 

There  are  numerous  small  islands  scattered  along  the  coast,  few  of 
which  are  inhabited  or  of  any  importance.  The  noteworthy  exceptions 
are  Cutch,  Salsette,  and  Bombay.  These  are  separated  from  the 
mainland  by  creeks  of  salt  desert  or  tidal  mud.  An  island  of  historic 
interest,  as  being  one  of  the  first  places  on  the  coast  known  to  the 
ancients,  is  Anjidiv,  situated  a  few  miles  from  the  port  of  Karwar,  and 
since  1505  a  Portuguese  possession. 

Though  the  Presidency  coast-line  contains  many  estuaries  forming 
fair-season  ports  for  vessels  engaged  in  the  coasting  trade,  Bombay, 
Karachi,  and  Karwar  alone  have  harbours  sufficiently  landlocked  to 
protect  shipping  during  the  prevalence  of  the  south-west  monsoon. 
The  coast-line  is  regular  and  unbroken,  save  by  the  Gulfs  of  Cambay 
and  Cutch,  between  which  lies  the  peninsula  of  Kathiawar.  There  are 
69  lighthouses  in  the  Presidency,  of  which  the  chief  are  Manora  Point 
at  Karachi,  visible  for  20  miles ;  the  Prongs  and  Khanderi  lights  at 
Bombay,  visible  for  18;  and  the  Oyster  Rock  light  at  Karwar,  visible 
for  20  miles.     The  Aden  light  can  be  seen  for  20  miles. 

From  a  geological  point  of  view,  the  rocks  forming  the  Bombay 
Presidency  can  be  classified  in  the  following  divisions  :  (1)  A  group  of 
very  ancient  rocks,  partly  crystalline  and  partly  sedimentary.  These 
include,  firstly,  a  variety  of  granitic  and  gneissose  rocks  which  occur  in 
the  southern  Districts  (Dharwar,  Kanara,  Belgaum)  where  they  are 
closely  compressed  into  complicated  folds,  together  with  some  highly 
metamorphosed  stratified  rocks  called  the  '  Dharwar  series '  with  which 
they  are  intimately  associated  ;  they  are  also  found  in  parts  of  Rewa 
Kantha  and  the  Panch  Mahals.  Secondly,  younger  stratified  deposits 
known  under  various  local  names,  such  as  Kaladgi,  Bhlma,  Champaner. 
These  have  usually  undergone  a  very  moderate  degree  of  disturbance 
and  metamorphism  as  compared  with  the  highly  altered  older  strata  upon 
which  they  rest  unconformably  ;  they  are  completely  unfossiliferous, 
and  are  almost  entirely  older  than  the  Cambrian.  (2)  An  immense 
accumulation  of  volcanic  rocks,  principally  basaltic  lavas,  known  as  the 


PHYSICAL   ASPECTS  273 

'  Deccan  trap.'  This  is  the  most  important  geological  formation  in 
the  Bombay  Presidency,  covering  almost  entirely  the  region  included 
between  the  16th  and  22nd  parallels  of  latitude,  together  with  the 
greater  part  of  the  Kathiawar  peninsula  and  a  large  portion  of  Cutch. 

(3)  A  series  of  fossiliferous  marine  and  fluviatile  strata  extending  in  age 
from  middle  Jurassic  to  upper  Miocene  or  lowest  Pliocene.  They  are 
best  developed  in  the  northern  part  of  the  Presidency,  and  include 
strata  belonging  to,  firstly,  the  middle  oolite  (Cutch)  ;  secondly,  the 
lowest  Cretaceous  (Umia  beds  of  Cutch  and  Kathiawar)  ;  thirdly,  the 
upper  Cretaceous  (Lameta  and  Bagh  series  of  the  lower  Narbada 
region)  ;  fourthly,  the  Eocene  (Nummulitic  limestones  and  associated 
rocks  of  Surat,  Cutch,  and  Sind)  ;  fifthly,  Oligocene  and  Miocene 
(Upper  Nari,   Gaj,   and  Manchhars   of  Sind,  Cutch,  and   Kathiawar). 

(4)  Ossiferous  gravels  and  clays  of  the  Tapti  and  Godavari  valleys, 
with  fossil  remains  of  extinct  mammalia  of  upper  Pliocene  or  lower 
Pleistocene  age.  (5)  Recent  accumulations  forming  the  plains  of  Sind 
and  Gujarat  and  the  Rann  of  Cutch. 

The  geological  literature  of  Bombay  is  very  extensive.  Some  of  the 
most  important  works  have  been  published  in  the  Memoirs  of  the  Geo- 
logical Survey  of  India,  among  which  may  be  mentioned  the  geological 
descriptions  of  Sind  by  Dr.  W.  'P.  Blanford  (vol.  xvii),  of  Cutch  by 
A.  B.Wynne  (vol.  ix),  of  Kathiawar  by  F.  Fedden  (vol.  xxi),  of  the  Deccan 
trap  and  the  Narbada  and  Tapti  valleys  by  Dr.  Blanford  (vol.  vi),  and 
of  the  South  Maratha  Country  by  R.  B.  Foote  (vol.  xii).  The  Dharwar 
series,  the  chief  auriferous  series  in  South  India,  has  also  been  de- 
scribed by  R.  B.  Foote  in  vols,  xxi  and  xxii  of  the  Records  of  the 
Geological  Survey.  Most  of  the  fossils  from  the  Presidency  have  been 
described  in  various  volumes  of  the  Palaeo/itologia  Indica. 

The  Presidency  can  be  distributed  into  the  following  botanical  pro- 
vinces :  Sind,  Gujarat  (including  Kathiawar),  Khandesh,  Deccan, 
Southern  Maratha  Country  (including  the  greater  part  of  Belgaum, 
Bijapur,  and  Dharwar  Districts),  Konkan,  and  Kanara.  There  are  no 
absolute  boundaries  to  these  divisions,  but  each,  in  a  certain  degree, 
possesses  some  characteristic  forms  of  vegetation.  By  taking  the 
broadest  possible  view  of  the  subject,  the  number  of  provinces  may, 
however,  be  reduced  to  five,  as  Khandesh  can  be  included  in  the 
Deccan,  and  Kanara  may  be  looked  upon  as  a  southern  extension  of 
the  Konkan. 

The  flora  of  Sind,  Gujarat,  Khandesh,  and  the  Deccan  is  compara- 
tively poor  :  the  commoner  trees  are  those  which  have  been  intention- 
ally planted  or  preserved  ;  the  shrubs  are  often  thorny  and  stunted ; 
the  herbaceous  plants  are  mostly  represented  by  weeds  of  cultivation, 
but  the  grasses  are  of  extremely  varied  forms,  and  the  pastures  are 
luxuriant  in  the  rainy  season. 

VOL.   VIII.  T 


2  j  4  BOMB  A  V  J  'RESIDENCY 

In  the  tracts  of  the  Southern  Maratha  Country,  which  correspond  in 
configuration  to  the  Deccan  but  differ  in  their  geological  composition, 
the  flora  is  somewhat  more  varied  :  but  it  is  in  the  Konkan  and  Kanara, 
with  the  adjoining  Ghilts,  that  vegetation  is  richest  in  forms.  The  trees 
are  often  lofty  :  the  shrubs  are  of  many  different  types,  frequently  grow- 
ing in  impenetrable  thickets  :  while  the  herbaceous  vegetation  is,  on  the 
whole,  scantier  than  in  the  more  open  country  above  the  Ghats. 

Of  the  plants  of  the  Presidency,  only  the  following  orders  (detailed 
in  order  of  importance)  contain  more  than  fifty  species  each  :  Legumi- 
nosae,  Gramineae,  Acanthaceae,  Co/npositae,  Euphorbiaceae,  Cyperaceae, 
Convolvulaceae,  Orclu'deae,  Rubiaceae,  Labiatae,  Malvaceae,  and  Urlicaceae. 
There  are  probably  only  2,500  species  of  flowering  plants  altogether, 
and  many  of  these  are  confined  to  special  tracts  and  localities,  so  that, 
taking  into  account  the  extent  and  diversity  of  the  Presidency,  the  flora 
is  poor. 

The  principal  timber  trees  are  :  teak,  found  in  all  forests  throughout 
the  Presidency  except  in  Sind  ;  black-wood,  of  two  varieties,  Dalbergia 
Sissoo  in  Sind,  and  D.  latifoha  in  the  other  parts  of  the  Presidency  ; 
D.  01/geinensis  (tiwas),  found  in  hill  forests  throughout  the  Presidency  ; 
Pterocarpits  J/arsupiu/n,  called  honne  in  Kanara  and  bibla  in  the  North- 
ern Division  ;  Terminalia  tomentosa,  known  as  ain  in  Marathl  and  as 
sadara  in  Gujarat!;  ebony  and /<?<?//,  found  only  in  the  Southern  Divi- 
sion ;  babul  {Acacia  arabica),  attaining  to  greater  size  and  excellence 
in  Lower  and  Middle  Sind,  but  found  in  all  parts  of  the  Presidency  ; 
khair  {Acacia  Catechu),  valuable  not  only  for  timber  and  firewood, 
but  also  as  yielding  the  extract  known  as  cutch  ;  Naucka  cordifolia 
(heda)  and  Naucka  parvifolia  {kalam  in  Marathl,  yetgal  in  Kanarese), 
common  in  the  coast  forests,  less  so  inland  ;  nana  or  uandi,  and  bonda 
or  bonddra,  two  varieties  of  Lagerstroemia  ;  asana  {Bidelia  spinosd) ; 
anjan  {Hardivickia  binala),  found  only  in  Khandesh  ;  jdmba  {Xylia  dola- 
briformis),  a  hard  and  durable  wood,  sometirhes  called  iron-wood;  and 
bahdn  {Populus  euphraticd),  soft  and  of  no  great  size,  but  the  only 
timber  tree  which  grows  in  any  abundance  in  Upper  Sind.  Tamarisk 
(Tamarix  indica),  though  it  never  attains  any  size,  deserves  mention  from 
the  very  extensive  scale  on  which  it  is  cut  by  the  Forest  department  in 
Sind  as  fuel  for  steamers  on  the  Indus.  Sandal-wood  is  found  in  the 
forests  of  Kanara.  The  bamboo,  though  unknown  in  Sind,  is  widely 
spread  throughout  the  forests  of  the  Northern  and  Southern  Divisions. 

The  forests  also  contain  many  trees  which  are  valuable  on  account 
of  their  fruits,  nuts,  or  berries.  Among  these  are  the  mango  {Mangi- 
fera  indica) ;  the  jack  {Artocarpus  integrifolia) ;  the  ber  [Zizyphus 
Jujuba) ;  the  bel  {Aegle  Marmelos\  a  valuable  remedy  in  dysentery  ;  the 
hirda  {Terminalia  Chebula),  which  yields  the  myrabolam  of  commerce; 
the  undi  {Callophylum  inophyllum),  the  seeds  of  which  yield  a  dark-green 


PHYSICAL  ASPECTS  275 

oil ;  the  mahua-tree  (Pass/a  latifolid),  from  the  flowers  of  which  spirit  is 
distilled,  while  the  seeds  yield  a  large  quantity  of  thick  oil  used  for 
making  soap  in  Kaira  1  district,  and  are  also  exported  ;  and  the  karanj 
(Pongamia  glabra),  whose  beans  yield  an  oil  used  not  only  for  burning, 
but  also  medicinally  in  cutaneous  diseases. 

The  palms  of  the  Bombay  Presidency  are  the  coco-nut  (Cocas  nuci- 
ferd) ;  the  true  date  (Phoenix  dactylifera),  very  abundant  near  Sukkur 
in  Upper  Sind  ;  the  bastard  date  (Phoenix  syivestris),  found  in  the  Kon- 
kan,  Gujarat,  and  the  Deccan  ;  the  palmyra  palm  (Borassus  flabellifer), 
common  along  the  coast  ;  the  bherali  (Caryota  u reus),  a  mountain  palm 
found  on  the  seaward  slopes  of  the  Western  Ghats  ;  and  the  supari  or 
betel-nut  palm  (Areca  Catechu).  The  fermented  sap  of  the  tad  or 
palmyra  palm  is  largely  used  as  an  intoxicating  drink  under  the  name  of 
tadi  (toddy).  Similar  drinks  are  prepared  from  the  sap  of  the  coco-nut 
and  the  bastard  date  palm,  and  pass  by  the  same  name,  while  the  fer- 
mented sap  of  the  bherali  is  known  as  madi.  Oil  is  largely  extracted 
from  the  kernel  of  the  coco-nut,  and  coir  fibre  from  the  outer  husk. 
The  leaves  of  the  coco-nut  and  palmyra  palms  are  much  used  in 
Bombay  City  and  along  the  coast  in  the  construction  of  temporary 
buildings  and  huts.  Coarse  matting  is  made  from  the  leaves  of  the 
date  palm. 

The  Presidency  contains  most  of  the  fruit  trees  and  vegetables  com- 
mon in  India.  The  mangoes  of  Bombay  have  a  special  reputation,  and 
good  strawberries  are  grown  at  Mahabaleshwar.  In  Nasik  and  Karachi 
]  hstricts  grapes  are  successfully  cultivated,  and  Ahmadnagar  produces 
the  Cape  gooseberry  in  considerable  quantities. 

Among  the  wild  animals  peculiar  to  the  Presidency  may  be  men- 
tioned the  lion  of  Gujarat,  which  zoologists  are  now  disposed  to  regard 
as  a  local  variety  rather  than  a  separate  species  ;  and  the  wild  ass, 
frequenting  the  sandy  deserts  of  Cutch  and  Upper  Sind.  Leopards  are 
common,  but  the  tiger  has  retreated  before  the  advance  of  cultivation, 
and  is  now  found  only  in  remote  jungles.  The  sloth  bear  (Melursus 
ursinus)  is  found  wherever  rocks,  hills,  and  forests  occur  ;  and  the 
bison  (Bos  gaurus)  haunts  the  mountain  glades  of  Kanara.  Of  deer, 
the  sambar  (Cervus  unicolor)  is  found  in  the  same  localities  as  the  bison, 
though  in  greater  abundance  ;  while  the  nilgai  (Boselaphus  trago- 
camelus)  and  the  antelope  are  numerous,  especially  in  Gujarat.  Chital 
(Cervus  axis)  and  the  barking-deer  (Cervulus  muntjac)  are  also  com- 
mon. Small  game,  such  as  snipe,  quail,  partridges,  and  wild  duck, 
can  generally  be  obtained  by  the  sportsman  at  the  right  season  in 
most  parts  of  the  Presidency,  even  within  easy  reach  of  the  suburbs  of 
Bombay.  In  1904  the  total  number  of  registered  deaths  throughout  the 
Presidency  caused  by  wild  beasts  was  only  $$,  whereas  venomous 
snakes  killed  1,129  persons.     On  the  coast  and  in   the  big  rivers  fish 


276  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

are  found  in  abundance.  The  chief  kinds  of  sea-fish  are  the  pomfret, 
sole,  mullet,  stone-fish,  and  lady-fish,  while  the  rivers  contain  mahseer, 
maral,  and  pallet. 

The  rainfall,  with  the  exception  of  occasional  thunderstorms,  is  con- 
fined to  the  five  months  between  June  and  November,  during  which 
the  south-west  monsoon  strikes  the  long  line  of  the  west  coast,  to 
be  followed  by  heavy  storms  on  its  retirement  in  the  latter  part  of  this 
period.  Sind  is  almost  rainless,  receiving  2  inches  of  rain  in  July  and 
August,  and  less  than  2  inches  during  the  remaining  ten  months,  and 
the  temperature  is,  in  consequence,  subject  to  great  fluctuations. 
During  the  cold  months,  from  October  to  March,  the  thermometer  falls 
below  freezing-point  at  night,  and  the  days  are  of  agreeable  freshness. 
In  the  hot  months  that  follow,  the  dry  heat  is  intense,  reaching  a 
maximum  of  1260  at  Jacobabad.  Gujarat  has  a  more  ample  rainfall  of 
20  to  30  inches,  with  a  brisk  cold  season,  and  oppressive  heat  in  the 
summer.  The  temperature  falls  on  the  burst  of  the  south-west  mon- 
soon, but  the  air  remains  hot  and  sultry  till  the  approach  of  the  cold 
season  in  October.  The  Konkan  tracts  receive  the  full  brunt  of  the 
monsoon's  fury,  and  have  a  rainfall  of  100  to  150  inches,  almost 
entirely  due  to  the  south-west  rain  current.  The  air  is  heavily  charged 
with  moisture  throughout  the  year  ;  and  the  climate,  except  for  a  brief 
period  during  December,  January,  and  February,  is  oppressive  to  those 
who  are  not  used  to  it,  though  the  thermometer  seldom  rises  above  960. 
In  contrast  to  the  Konkan,  the  Deccan  or  Districts  above  the  Ghats 
receive  a  moderate  rainfall  of  between  20  and  30  inches,  starting  with 
downpour  and  drizzle  from  the  south-west  from  June  to  September, 
and  ending  with  sharp  heavy  storms  from  the  north-east  in  October. 
In  March  and  April  the  thermometer  readings  are  high,  1080  to  no° 
being  a  not  unusual  maximum  ;  but  the  air  is  dry  and  the  heat  less 
oppressive  than  on  the  coast.  During  the  monsoon  the  climate  is  cool 
and  pleasant,  and  the  cold  months,  if  short,  are  decidedly  bracing. 
The  Carnatic  in  its  western  portions  enjoys  a  heavy  rainfall,  increasing 
rapidly  from  50  to  200  inches  as  the  edge  of  the  Ghats  is  approached. 
To  the  east,  the  plain  country  has  a  rainfall  resembling  that  of  the 
Deccan,  though  heavier  and  more  certain.  The  cold  season  is  agree- 
able, but  of  short  duration.  During  the  hot  season  the  climate  is 
tempered  by  westerly  breezes  from  the  sea,  and  extremes  of  heat  are 
seldom  reached. 

At  the  height  of  the  south-west  monsoon,  floods  are  not  uncommon. 
The  rivers,  suddenly  filled  by  many  hundreds  of  streams  and  hill-side 
torrents,  rise  rapidly  in  their  beds,  inundating  the  land  on  each  side  for 
a  considerable  distance. 

The  following  tables  give  average  statistics  of  rainfall  and  tempera- 
ture : — - 


PHYSIC  AT.  ASPECTS 


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2  7  8  BOMB  A  ) '  PKES/nF.AC ) ' 

Many  houses  were  destroyed  in  Cutch  by  an  earthquake  in  1819. 
Seismic  disturbances  have  been  registered  from  time  to  time  at  the 
Colaba  Observatory  ;  but  no  earthquakes  perceptible  otherwise  than 
by  scientific  instruments  have  been  recorded  in  the  recent  history  of 
the  Presidency.  Cyclones  and  the  accompanying  floods  have  been 
numerous.  The  usual  period  for  such  occurrences  is  just  before,  or 
at  the  conclusion  of,  the  south-west  monsoon.  In  August,  1868, 
a  severe  storm  caused  floods  on  the  SabarmatT  river,  which  rose  many 
feet  in  a  few  hours,  flooding  Ahmadabad  and  destroying  10,000  houses. 
The  total  loss  ascribed  to  this  calamity  was  estimated  at  158  lakhs.  A 
similar  flood  in  1875  injured  4,000  houses.  In  1872  the  Panjhra  and 
Girna  rivers  in  Khandesh  District  overflowed  and  caused  great 
destruction  of  property.  More  than  5,000  families  were  rendered 
homeless,  apart  from  the  wild  tribes,  and  the  damage  to  crops  and 
property  was  estimated  at  160  lakhs.  Considerable  tracts  in  Kaira 
and  Surat  Districts  have  been  flooded  on  numerous  occasions.  In 
1883  continuous  rain  caused  the  Tapti  to  rise  steadily  until  one-third 
of  Surat  city  was  inundated  by  water  to  a  depth  of  20  feet.  The 
surrounding  country  was  flooded,  and  more  than  2  lakhs'  worth  of 
damage  to  crops  and  buildings  was  recorded. 

The  records  of  the  Meteorological  department  contain  particulars 
of  many  cyclones  on  the  west  coast.  In  recent  years  the  most 
noteworthy  of  these  were  in  1889,  1896,  and  1902,  the  first  two  during 
the  monsoon,  and  the  latter  in  May,  when  a  severe  storm  travelling 
northwards  struck  Bombay,  doing  much  damage  to  the  shipping  in  the 
harbour  and  the  produce  lying  ready  for  shipment  in  the  docks. 

In  the  earliest  times  of  which  we  have  any  record  the  Aryans  were 
already  settled  on  the  Indus  and  even  knew  of  trade  by  sea.  But 
the  greater  part  of  the  west  coast  was  peopled  by 
Dravidian  tribes,  who  lived  in  forts  and  villages 
under  the  rule  of  kings,  carried  on  the  ordinary  arts  of  life,  such  as 
weaving,  pottery,  and  working  in  metals,  and  worshipped  spirits  and 
demons  of  all  degrees,  besides  a  supreme  deity  known  as  Ko  (king). 
An  export  trade  to  the  Red  Sea  by  way  of  East  Africa  sprang  up  as 
early  as  1000  B.C.,  and  with  Babylon  by  way  of  the  Persian  Gulf  not 
later  than  750  B.C.  By  the  latter  route  the  Indian  traders  brought  home 
the  Brahml  alphabet,  the  parent  of  all  modern  Indian  scripts,  as  well 
as  the  art  of  brick-making,  and  possibly  the  knowledge  of  the  lunar 
mansions  (nakshatra),  the  Babylonian  weights  (mana),  and  the  legend 
of  the  Flood.  The  Persian  conquest  of  the  Indus  valley  {c.  510  B.C.) 
may  have  introduced  the  arts  of  sculpture  and  of  coining  money. 
Meanwhile,  India  south  of  the  Vindhyas  was  being  Aryanized  in  faith 
and  partly  in  speech,  not  at  first  by  conquest,  but  by  peaceful  settle- 
ments of  Brahmans  along  the  west   coast.      For   ^'estern   India  the 


HISTORY  .779 

importance  of  Alexander's  march  down  the  Indus  (325  B.C.)  lay  chiefly 
in  the  fact  that  it  cleared  the  way  for  the  huge  empire  of  the  Mauryas, 
which  under  Asoka  (272-231  B.C.),  who  became  an  ardent  Buddhist, 
included  Kalinga  and  the  whole  west  coast  down  to  Mysore,  as  well  as  the 
Marathas  of  the  Deccan  (Rastikas  and  Petenikas)  and  Berar.  Western 
India  was  placed  under  the  prince-governor  of  Ujjain.  Missions  spread 
Buddhism  among  the  traders  of  the  coast  towns  and  the  Western  Deccan, 
which  by  this  time  was  more  or  less  completely  Aryanized  ;  and  Jainism 
also  seems  to  have  first  reached  the  South  at  this  period.  It  was  a  time 
of  peace  and  of  active  intercourse  with  foreign  nations,  especially  with 
the  Greek  monarchy  of  the  Seleucids.  Asoka's  empire  broke  up  after 
his  death,  the  western  provinces  falling  to  the  prince  of  Ujjain. 

After  the  Mauryas  came  the  Bactrian  Greeks  (180  B.C.),  of  whom 
Apollodotus  and  Menander  (150  B.C.),  a  prince  of  Buddhist  leanings, 
probably  ruled  in  Sind  and  Kathiawar.  Farther  south  the  heritage 
of  the  Mauryas  fell  to  the  Andhras  or  Satavahanas  of  Paithan  on  the 
Godavari,  a  Dravidian  family  whose  power  by  200  b.  c.  had  reached 
Nasik  and  the  Western  Ghats.  In  the  meantime  a  great  migration 
of  the  nations  of  Central  Asia  brought  a  number  of  Scythians  into 
Northern  and  Western  India,  where  they  came  into  collision  with  the 
Satavahanas,  while  the  trade  with  Rome,  which  sprang  up  about 
a.  d.  40,  brought  ever-growing  wealth  to  the  cities  of  the  west  coast. 
About  120  Ujjain  and  Gujarat  fell  into  the  hands  of  a  line  of  foreign 
Kshatrapas,  which  lasted  till  about  300.  Their  best-known  ruler, 
Rudradaman  (150),  held  the  seaboard  from  the  mouth  of  the  Indus  to 
the  Damanganga,  together  with  the  inland  country  from  Multan  to 
Bhilsa.  The  kingdom  of  his  rivals,  the  Satavahanas,  stretched  across 
the  Peninsula  from  sea  to  sea,  and  on  the  west  from  the  Damanganga 
to  Vanavasi  (Banavasi)  in  Kanara,  the  chief  towns  being  Dhanakataka 
(Dharnikotta)  in  the  Kistna  delta,  Tagara  (Ter)  near  Naldrug,  and 
Paithan  on  the  Godavari.  About  210  their  power  in  the  west  seems 
to  have  died  out,  and  that  of  the  Kshatrapas  took  its  place  (r.  230- 
400).  The  country  flourished  so  long  as  the  two  kingdoms  were  at 
peace.  Brahmans  and  Buddhists  shared  the  royal  bounty,  and  mer- 
chants vied  with  each  other  in  excavating  temples  and  monasteries 
on  all  the  main  roads  to  the  coast.  The  Kshatrapas,  foreigners  as  they 
were,  were  the  first  Indian  dynasty  to  use  classical  Sanskrit  in  inscrip- 
tions, and  Rudradaman  himself  was  versed  in  all  the  learning  of  the 
Brahmans,  while  the  Satavahanas  seem  to  have  given  much  encourage- 
ment to  Prakrit  literature.  After  the  fall  of  the  Paithan  dynasty  (210) 
Broach  monopolized  the  European  trade,  which  was  much  encouraged 
by  the  Kshatrapas,  who  now  seized  and  held  Kalyan  ;  but  before  long, 
through  the  fall  of  Palmyra  (273)  and  the  extinction  of  the  main 
Kshatrapa  line  (c.  300),  commerce  fell  into  decay. 


28o  B0  Mil  A  ]  ■  PRESIDENC  J ' 

The  next  century  and  a  half  is  a  period  of  great  obscurity.  In 
Gujarat  a  series  of  short-lived  Kshatrapa  dynasties  followed  each  other 
till  c.  390,  when  the  country  was  conquered  by  the  Guptas  of  Magadha, 
who  held  it,  not  without  difficulty,  till  about  460  ;  in  the  Deccan  and 
Konkan  we  can  dimly  trace  a  number  of  small  kingdoms,  some  of  them 
founded  by  northern  tribes  (Abhlras).  In  the  latter  half  of  the  fifth 
century  new  Central  Asian  hordes,  led  by  the  White  Huns,  poured  into 
India  from  the  north-west,  and  spread  over  the  whole  country  as  far 
as  the  Narbada.  In  Kathiawar  the  Vallabhis  (c.  500-770)  established 
themselves  on  the  ruins  of  the  Gupta  power;  and  farther  south  an 
extensive,  though  short-lived,  empire  was  formed  by  the  Traikutakas, 
who  were  either  identical  or  closely  connected  with  the  Kalachuris 
of  Tripuri  near  Jubbulpore.  From  500  onwards  the  new  foreign 
invaders  quickly  became  Hinduized.  The  Brahmanic  sects  began 
to  prevail  over  Buddhism,  and  Persian  and  Arabian  influences  became 
more  powerful  than  European.  The  northern  Konkan  was  ruled  by 
the  Mauryas  of  Purl  near  Bombay,  while  the  coast  farther  south  obeyed 
the  Kadambas  of  Vanavasi,  and  the  Southern  Deccan  was  the  theatre 
of  a  struggle  between  the  Chalukyas  and  Rashtrakutas.  About  600 
Gujarat  was  overshadowed  by  the  power  of  a  new  and  energetic  race, 
the  Gujars,  who  had  probably  entered  India  with  the  White  Huns 
(452),  and  who,  besides  more  northerly  settlements  in  the  Punjab  and 
Rajputana,  established  themselves  at  Bhilmal  near  Mount  Abu.  By  600 
they  had  overrun  north-eastern  Kathiawar,  received  the  submission 
of  the  Vallabhis,  and  set  up  a  branch  at  Broach  (585-740).  They 
rapidly  assimilated  Indian  culture,  and  were,  in  the  opinion  of  certain 
writers,  the  forefathers  of  some  of  the  most  famous  Rajput  races.  For  a 
time,  indeed,  it  seemed  as  though  the  empire  of  the  Guptas  would  be 
revived  by  Harshavardhana  of  Kanauj  (606-48) ;  but  the  confusion 
that  followed  his  death  left  the  field  again  open  for  the  Gujar  dynasty 
of  Bhilmal,  whose  fortunes  henceforward  determined  the  fate  of  Gujarat. 

Meanwhile  (600)  the  Chalukyas  had  emerged  victorious  from  their 
struggles  with  the  Traikutakas  and  the  Rashtrakutas  in  the  Deccan, 
and  had  absorbed  the  smaller  kingdoms  of  the  coast.  In  the  seventh 
century,  which  was  the  time  of  their  greatest  prosperity,  a  senior  branch 
of  this  dynasty  ruled  the  Deccan  and  Konkan,  with  a  northern  offshoot 
at  Navsari,  while  a  junior  line  reigned  at  Vengi  in  the  Kistna  delta. 
The  Chalukyas  themselves  worshipped  Vishnu  and  Siva ;  but  Jainism 
flourished  in  the  southern  Deccan,  and  great  Buddhist  establishments 
existed  at  Ellora,  Ajanta,  and  elsewhere  in  the  northern  provinces. 
After  the  Arab  conquest  of  Persia  (640)  foreign  trade  became  extinct, 
and  the  strength  of  the  Chalukyan  empire  was  wasted  in  endless  wars 
of  conquest  with  its  southern  neighbours. 

The  eighth  century  saw  the  entrance  of  the  Musalmans  into  Indian 


HISTORY  281 

politics  (711)  and  the  fall  of  the  Western  Chalukya  dynasty  (750). 
The  Musalmans  raided  Gujarat  and  destroyed  the  famous  city  of 
Vallabhi  (c.  770),  but  their  permanent  conquests  were  limited  to  Sind. 
The  Chavadas,  a  Rajput  tribe,  probably  of  Gujar  origin,  took  advantage 
of  the  confusion  caused  by  the  Muhammadan  raids  to  found  the  first 
kingdom  of  Anhilvada  (746)  with  the  countenance  and  aid  of  the 
Gujars  of  Bhilmal,  whose  sway  in  the  course  of  the  next  fifty  years 
covered  all  Rajputana  and  Malwa,  threatened  Bengal,  and  eventually 
shifted  its  centre  to  Kanauj.  The  Gujar  empire  soon  showed  a 
tendency  to  break  up  into  separate  states  (Chauhans  of  Ajmer,  Para- 
maras  of  Dhar,  Chavadas  of  Anhilvada,  &c).  The  Gujarat  branch 
seems  to  have  encouraged  literature  and  especially  to  have  patronized 
the  Jains.  South  of  the  Mahl  also  changes  not  less  far  reaching  took 
place.  The  Rashtrakutas  at  last  (c.  750)  overthrew  their  old  enemies 
the  Chalukyas,  whom  they  penned  in  Mysore,  and  set  up  a  new  em- 
pire with  its  capital  at  Malkhed,  60  miles  south-east  of  Sholapur.  The 
new  kingdom  was  not  so  extensive  as  the  old,  for  it  did  not  include 
the  territory  of  Vengi,  but  it  was  strong  enough  to  prevent  any  northern 
power  securing  a  lodgement  on  the  southern  bank  of  the  Narbada.  The 
balance  of  power  between  the  Gujars  and  the  Rashtrakutas  lasted  for 
about  two  centuries  (c.  750-950).  Neither  kingdom  was  strong  enough 
to  encroach  to  any  large  extent  upon  the  territory  of  the  other — a  state 
of  things  to  which  the  dissensions  between  the  Rashtrakutas  of  the 
main  line  and  a  branch  that  ruled  in  Gujarat  may  have  contributed. 
The  Rashtrakutas  carried  on  a  good  deal  of  desultory  frontier  fighting 
and  had  to  meet  several  attacks  from  the  Chalukyas  of  the  south  ;  but 
after  the  reign  of  Govinda  III  (794-814)  they  do  not  seem  to  have 
attempted  conquests  on  a  large  scale.  They  were  Saivas  in  religion, 
but  Amoghavarsha  I  (814-77)  was  a  patron  of  Jain  literature.  The 
power  and  magnificence  of  the  dynasty  greatly  impressed  the  Arabs, 
to  whom  the  king  was  known  as  the  Balhara  (Vallabharaja).  But 
the  local  chiefs  with  whom  the  Arabs  came  most  in  contact  were  the 
Silaharas  of  Purl,  Chaul,  and  Thana,  who  were  made  governors  of  the 
Konkan  in  the  reign  of  Amoghavarsha  I.  Another  branch  of  the  same 
family  ruled  the  coast  farther  south  (800-1008).  The  trade  with  the 
Persian  Gulf  revived,  and  brought  with  it  an  influx  of  Pars!  refugees 
(775),  who  found  a  ready  welcome  at  the  hands  of  chiefs  who  honoured 
impartially  Siva,  Buddha,  and  Jina.  But  this  revival  of  trade  was 
attended  with  a  great  outburst  of  piracy,  in  which  the  daring  sailors 
of  western  Kathiawar  took  a  leading  part.  In  941  (961  ?)  the  kingdom 
of  Anhilvada  was  conquered  by  Mularaja  Solanki,  son  of  a  Gujar  chief 
who  probably  ruled  somewhere  in  northern  Rajputana.  A  few  years 
later  (973)  a  revolution  took  place  in  the  Deccan  also,  when  Taila, 
who  was  connected  in  some  way  with  the  old  Chalukya  family,  over- 


282  BOMBAY   PRESIDENCY 

threw  the  Rashtrakutas  and  set  up  a  new  Chalukya  kingdom,  for  whose 
capital  Kalyani  in  the  Deccan  was  soon  chosen.  His  follower  Barappa 
founded  a  subordinate  dynasty  in  southern  Gujarat,  but  farther  south 
the  Silaharas  still  continued  to  rule  the  coast. 

In  Gujarat  the  direct  descendants  of  Mularaja  (the  Solankis)  reigned 
at  Anhilvada  until  1143.  In  religion  they  were  Saivas  and  showed 
a  special  attachment  to  the  temple  of  Somnath,  which  frequently 
brought  them  into  collision  with  the  Chudasamas  of  Girnar  (c.  940-1 1 25), 
who  commanded  the  road  to  that  holy  place.  The  Chudasamas  called 
in  the  aid  of  the  chiefs  of  Cutch  and  Sind  (probably  the  Sumras),  and 
were  not  finally  subdued  till  11 13.  The  northern  frontier  of  the 
Solanki  kingdom  was  constantly  threatened  by  the  Chauhans  of  Ajmer, 
who,  however,  never  inflicted  any  serious  defeat  on  the  Anhilvada  kings. 
Wars  with  Malwa  were  also  frequent  till  about  1134,  when  Sidharaja 
defeated  the  Paramaras  and  occupied  Ujjain.  The  relations  of  the 
Solankis  with  the  Chalukyas  of  the  Deccan  were  at  first  hostile,  and 
some  time  after  1050  the  former  conquered  Gujarat  south  of  the  Mahi ; 
but  the  later  kings  of  Kalyani  appear  to  have  been  on  friendly  terms  with 
their  northern  neighbours.  The  famous  sack  of  Somnath  by  Mahmud 
of  Ghazni  (1026)  seemed  to  threaten  the  extinction  of  the  Solanki 
kingdom,  but  produced  no  lasting  effects,  and  the  Anhilvada  chiefs 
were  left  free  to  patronize  literature  and  to  adorn  their  chief  towns  with 
beautiful  buildings. 

The  Deccan  remained  from  about  973  to  11 55  in  the  hands  of  the 
Chalukyas  of  Kalyani,  who  adopted  on  a  large  scale  the  system,  begun 
by  their  Rashtrakuta  predecessors,  of  placing  separate  provinces  under 
hereditary  governors,  a  policy  which  eventually  proved  fatal  to  their 
power.  They  carried  on  a  series  of  indecisive  wars  with  the  Cholas 
of  Kanchi  (Conjeeveram),  and  inflicted  severe  defeats  on  the  Paramaras 
of  Malwa  and  the  Kalachuris  of  Tripuri  (near  Jubbulpore),  but  did  not 
attempt  any  lasting  conquest  of  those  kingdoms.  They  encouraged 
trade  and  showed  much  favour  to  Musalman  settlers  on  the  coast,  and, 
like  most  Indian  kings  of  this  period,  they  surrounded  themselves  with 
poets  and  scholars  and  posed  as  patrons  of  literature.  But  the  power 
of  the  feudatories  always  tended  to  increase  at  the  expense  of  the 
central  government,  while  a  rival  arose  in  Mysore  in  the  Hoysala  line 
of  Halebld,  which  first  became  dangerous  about  1120. 

Towards  the  middle  of  the  twelfth  century  the  throne  of  Anhilvada 
passed  to  a  collateral  branch  of  Mularaja's  line,  but  the  change  brought 
with  it  no  alteration  in  policy  beyond  an  increase  in  the  influence  of 
the  Jains.  Kathiawar  and  Malwa  were  nominally  provinces  of  Anhil- 
vada, but  we  still  hear  of  wars  against  chiefs  who  continued  to  resist 
the  Solanki  arms.  The  Konkan  was  invaded  about  1160,  but  without 
permanent  results,  while  the  Chauhans  of  Ajmer  continued  to  threaten 


HISTORY  28 


j 


the  northern  frontier.  The  far  more  serious  danger  of  Muhammadan 
conquest  was  averted  by  the  defeat  of  Muhammad  bin  Sam  in  11 78, 
which  saved  Gujarat  from  serious  molestation  for  more  than  a  century. 
But  the  Solanki  kingdom  had  in  its  hereditary  feudatories  the  same 
source  of  weakness  as  the  Chalukya  empire  of  Kalyani ;  and  when  the 
last  scion  of  Mularaja's  line  died  in  1242,  all  power  had  already  passed 
to  the  Vaghela  chiefs  of  Dholka. 

The  same  century  that  saw  the  decline  of  the  Solankis  (1 143-1242) 
witnessed  also  a  long  and  complicated  struggle  for  the  mastery  of  the 
Deccan.  In  n  55  Bijjala,  a  Kalachuri  feudatory  of  the  Chalukyas,  set 
up  as  an  independent  ruler  at  Kalyani,  whence  the  Chalukyas  fled  ;  but 
the  new  dynasty  was  hardly  founded  when  it  was  overthrown  (1167) 
by  a  revolution  in  which  Basava,  the  founder  of  the  Lingayat  sect, 
is  said  to  have  been  the  leader.  The  Southern  Deccan  now  fell  into 
absolute  confusion,  and  most  of  the  great  feudatories  claimed  inde- 
pendence, while  the  last  of  the  Chalukyas  and  of  the  Kalachuris  fought 
for  the  mastery,  and  the  Hoysala  king  stood  ready  to  destroy  the  victor. 
In  the  Northern  Deccan,  where  there  were  fewer  competitors,  the 
feudatory  Yadavas  of  Deogiri  had  been  steadily  enlarging  their  boun- 
daries and  strengthening  their  armies  for  the  final  struggle.  The 
Hoysalas  were  the  first  to  move.  They  destroyed  the  Kalachuris  in 
1 184  and  the  Chalukyas  in  1192,  in  which  year  they  also  defeated  the 
Yadavas  ;  and  for  a  time  it  seemed  as  if  they  would  succeed  to  the 
whole  heritage  of  the  Chalukyas.  But  after  an  interval  of  struggle 
the  Hoysalas  were  driven  back  into  Mysore,  and  the  Yadavas  under 
Singhana  remained  masters  of  the  Deccan  (12 12).  The  Konkan  chiefs, 
however,  maintained  their  independence  for  some  time  longer. 

The  Dholka  princes,  who  about  1233  superseded  the  Solankis  in 
Gujarat,  belonged  to  a  younger  branch  of  the  royal  house,  but  their 
power  was  only  a  feeble  caricature  of  the  greatness  of  their  predecessors. 
Their  kingdom  shrank  to  a  part  of  northern  Gujarat  and  eastern 
Kathiawar,  and  their  wars  were  little  more  than  cattle-lifting  raids. 
They  were  obliged  to  submit  to,  and  to  conclude  a  treaty  of  alliance 
with,  the  Yadava  kings  of  the  Deccan.  Still  at  this  time  commerce 
flourished,  and  merchants  spent  large  sums  in  building  temples,  while 
court  poets  and  panegyrists  were  not  wanting.  But  the  real  weakness 
of  the  kingdom  is  evident  from  the  ease  with  which  the  armies  at  Delhi, 
under  Ala-ud-dln's  brother  Alaf  Khan,  subdued  it  in  a  single  campaign 
(1298).  The  Yadava  kingdom  was  likewise  short-lived.  Its  first  task, 
the  subjugation  of  the  great  feudatories,  was  completed  in  the  Deccan 
about  1250,  and  in  the  Konkan  some  ten  years  later.  It  is  notable 
that  we  now  for  the  first  time  meet  with  Brahman  generals  and  Brahman 
provincial  governors,  employed  in  preference  to  the  hereditary  local 
chiefs  whose  power  had  proved  so  dangerous.     The  Yadavas  had  no 


: 


2  84  BOMB  A  J  *  PRESIDENC  J ' 

serious  rivals  on  their  frontiers,  and  we  hear  little  of  their  foreign 
relations.  Their  own  kingdom  was  peaceful  and  prosperous,  in  reaction 
from  the  troubles  of  the  preceding  century  ;  the  treasury  was  full ;  many 
temples  were  built  ;  learning  flourished ;  and  a  vernacular  literature 
began  to  spring  up.  But  these  fair  prospects  were  put  an  end  to  by 
an  unforeseen  enemy.  Ala-ud-dm  Khilji  suddenly  appeared  before 
Deogiri  with  8,000  men,  swept  off  the  treasures  of  king  Ramchandra, 
and  exacted  a  promise  of  tribute  (1294).  After  several  revolts  the  last 
of  the  Yadavas  was  put  to  death  in  13 18,  and  the  Deccan  became 
a  Muhammadan  province. 

For  nearly  a  century  (1298-1392)  governors  were  sent  to  Gujarat 
by  the  Sultans  of  Delhi,  but  their  province  included  only  the  open 
country  about  Patan,  Cambay,  Baroda,  and  Broach,  and  the  lower 
Tapti.  This  territory  suffered  from  the  turbulence  of  Mughal  mer- 
cenaries, and  from  the  hostility  of  the  Hindu  chiefs  of  Ka.thia.war  and 
the  eastern  hills,  who  were  only  brought  to  temporary  submission  by 
the  presence  of  Muhammad  bin  Tughlak  (1347-50).  The  last 
governor,  Zafar  Khan,  the  son  of  a  converted  Tonk  Rajput,  was  left 
more  and  more  to  himself  owing  to  the  increasing  weakness  of  the 
central  power,  and  finally  assumed  the  title  of  king  in  1407.  Owing 
chiefly  to  the  unusual  capacity  of  two  of  his  descendants — Ahmad 
Shah  (141 1-43),  the  founder  of  Ahmadabad,  and  Mahmud  Shah 
Begara  (1456-15 n) — the  kingdom  flourished  greatly  down  to  1526, 
and  lingered  on,  despite  the  factious  quarrels  of  its  nobles,  until  the 
province  was  conquered  by  Akbar  in  1572.  At  its  best  period  the 
kingdom  comprised  northern  Gujarat  from  Abu  to  the  Narbada  ;  Kathi- 
awar, which  became  a  Musalman  province  through  the  occupation  of 
Diu  (1402)  and  Girnar  (1471)  and  the  sack  of  Dwarka  Bet  (1473);  tne 
Tapti  valley  as  far  east  as  Thalner  ;  and  the  tract  between  the  Ghats 
and  the  sea  from  Surat  to  Bombay.  Between  these  southern  districts 
and  those  of  the  Bahmanis,  with  whom  Gujarat  was  usually  at  peace, 
lay  the  buffer  States  of  Baglan  and  Burhanpur,  the  latter  of  which 
became  for  a  long  time  a  Gujarati  dependency  under  the  Fariiki  chiefs 
of  Thalner  and  Asirgarh  (1370-1599). 

The  Deccan  was  organized  as  a  Muhammadan  province  by  Muham- 
mad bin  Tughlak,  who  divided  it  into  four  districts  for  which  he 
appointed  Moslem  chiefs  and  collectors,  and  brought  down  settlers  of 
all  classes  from  Delhi.  It  included  Chaul,  Dabhol,  Deogiri,  Kandhar, 
Bidar,  Gulbarga,  and  Raibag,  and  for  a  time  Warangal,  which  last,  how- 
ever, was  soon  retaken  by  the  Hindus.  The  garrisons  were  com- 
manded by  Mughal  and  Afghan  officers,  who  in  T347  were  driven  into 
revolt  by  the  severity  of  the  Sultan,  and  set  up  a  separate  kingdom 
under  the  rule  of  Hasan  Gangu  Bahmani,  a  low-born  Afghan  of  Delhi. 
Henceforward,  and  until  1586,  the  Sultans  of  Delhi  were  too  busy  in 


HISTOR  Y  285 

Northern  India  to  intervene  in  the  affairs  of  the  Deccan.  The  Bah- 
mani  house  did  not  die  out  until  1526,  but  it  ceased  to  be  of  political 
account  after  1482.  It  produced  some  active  soldiers,  but  no  really 
great  ruler,  and  its  prosperity  was  due  partly  to  a  succession  of  able 
ministers,  partly  to  the  absence  of  any  rival  of  really  equal  energy. 
The  centre  of  the  Bahmani  power  was  the  open  country  of  the  Deccan 
from  Daulatabad  to  Gulbarga.  The  frontier  was  advanced  to  Kaulas  in 
135 1,  to  Golconda  in  1373,  and  to  Warangal  in  1424,  but  did  not  reach 
the  Bay  of  Bengal  until  1472.  South  of  Dabhol  and  the  Kistna,  the 
Konkan  and  Carnatic  were  for  the  most  part  held  by  petty  Hindu 
chiefs  who  looked  for  aid  to  the  Rajas  of  Vijayanagar,  with  whom  the 
Bahmanis  disputed  the  possession  of  the  Raichur  Doab  and  the  fort  of 
Bankapur.  The  Moslems  were  on  the  whole  successful  in  these  wars 
and  retained  the  Doab,  but  their  progress  in  the  Ghats  and  Konkan 
was  very  slow  and  incomplete.  They  invaded  the  Konkan  in  1429  and 
1436  with  only  partial  success,  and  in  1453  with  disastrous  failure,  and 
did  not  effectively  occupy  Goa  till  1470.  Their  power  in  the  Konkan 
at  no  time  extended  beyond  a  few  of  the  larger  ports.  The  interior  of 
their  country  seems  to  have  enjoyed  peace,  but  suffered  from  terrible 
famines  in  1 396-1407  and  in  1472  3.  The  downfall  of  the  dynasty 
was  brought  about  by  the  bitter  jealousy  between  the  Deccani  nobles 
and  the  foreign  chiefs  (Afghans,  Turks,  Mughals,  Persians,  and  Arabs) 
upon  whom  the  Sultans  chiefly  relied.  At  the  end  of  the  fifteenth 
century  the  Bahmani  empire  was  divided  into  five  separate  kingdoms, 
the  more  northerly  of  which  (Ahmadnagar  and  Berar)  were  founded  by 
Deccani  nobles,  while  the  three  southern  States  of  Bijapur,  Bidar,  and 
Golconda  were  established  by  Turki  chiefs.  About  the  same  time 
(1490)  there  was  a  change  of  dynasty  at  Vijayanagar  also,  and  the  Por- 
tuguese profited  by  the  troubles  to  gain  a  footing  on  the  coast.  The 
Nizamshahi  house  of  Ahmadnagar  was  of  Brahman  origin  and  freely 
employed  its  fellows  in  high  civil  offices.  The  Bijapur  kings,  who 
descended  from  the  Maratha  wife  of  their  Osmanli  founder,  from  about 
1535  made  Marathi  their  official  language,  and  took  Brahman  clerks 
and  Maratha  soldiers  into  their  service.  The  Ahmadnagar  kingdom 
included  the  port  of  Chaul,  the  valley  of  the  Godavari  as  far  as  Nander, 
and  the  greater  part  of  the  present  Nasik,  Ahmadnagar,  Poona,  and 
Sholapur  Districts.  Sholapur  itself,  together  with  Naldrug  and  Kalyani, 
was  usually  held  by  Bijapur,  though  the  Ahmadnagar  kings  claimed  it 
whenever  they  felt  strong  enough.  The  districts  of  Mudgal  and  Rai- 
chur were  a  similar  bone  of  contention  between  Bijapur  and  Vijaya- 
nagar. The  original  partition  of  the  Deccan  had  no  elements  of  per- 
manency, as  the  statesmen  of  the  period  were  well  aware  ;  but  the 
balance  of  power  was  preserved  by  constantly  shifting  alliances  in  which 
the  Musalman  kings  and  the  rulers  of  Vijayanagar  took  part,  until  the 


286  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

ravages  committed  by  the  Hindu  troops  in  1562  brought  about  a  league 
between  the  Muhammadan  powers  which  destroyed  the  Vijayanagar 
kingdom  (1565).  Ahmadnagar  then  proceeded  to  absorb  Berar  (1572), 
while  Bijapur  set  about  conquering  the  Hindu  districts  south  of  the 
Kistna.  During  this  period  the  Eastern  Deccan  was  disturbed  by  per- 
petual warfare,  and  the  Muhammadans  were  not  strong  enough  at  sea 
to  protect  their  trade  against  the  Portuguese.  Although  the  Faruki 
king  of  Khandesh  acknowledged  Akbar's  supremacy  in  1572,  the  Mughal 
emperor  did  not  actively  intervene  in  the  affairs  of  the  Deccan  until 
1586,  when  his  troops  unsuccessfully  invaded  Berar  in  support  of  a  pre- 
tender to  the  throne  of  Ahmadnagar.  In  spite  of  this  warning,  the 
reckless  factions  of  the  Deccan  did  not  compose  their  differences.  In 
1595  a  new  Mughal  army  besieged  Ahmadnagar  and  compelled  the 
cession  of  Berar;  and  in  1596  war  broke  out  afresh  and  ended  in  the 
capture  of  Ahmadnagar  and  the  imprisonment  of  the  boy-king  by 
the  Mughals  (1600).  Khandesh  had  become  a  Mughal  province  in  the 
previous  year  (1599). 

In  1498  the  Portuguese  came  to  Calicut  in  search  of  'spices  and 
Christians,'  their  first  acquisition  in  the  Presidency  being  the  island  of 
Anjidiv.  Their  crusading  valour  soon  gave  them  a  footing  in  the 
ports  of  East  Africa  and  Malabar  ;  and  after  defeating  the  Egyptian 
fleet  at  Diu  in  1509,  they  became  unquestioned  masters  of  the  Indian 
Ocean,  where  they  were  careful  to  allow  no  local  navy  to  grow  up  and 
no  merchantman  to  trade  without  their  pass.  The  next  step  was  to 
establish  settlements  on  the  coast,  in  which  they  were  helped  by  the 
weakness  of  the  country  powers.  They  took  Goa  in  15 10,  Malacca  in 
151 1,  and  Ormuz  in  15  15.  Later,  the  decay  of  the  kingdom  of  Guja- 
rat enabled  them  to  occupy  Chaul  (1531 ),  Bassein  with  its  depen- 
dencies, including  Bombay  (1534),  Diu  (1535),  and  Daman  (1559). 
But  they  soon  became  a  corrupt  and  luxurious  society,  based  upon 
slave  labour  and  mixed  marriages,  and  recruited  by  place-hunters  and 
wastrels  from  home.  The  cruelties  of  the  Inquisition  (from  1560) 
alienated  the  natives,  and  the  union  of  Portugal  with  Spain  (1580) 
deprived  the  Indian  settlements  of  their  claim  to  be  the  first  care  of  the 
home  government.  The  Portuguese  monopoly  of  the  trade  with  Europe 
could  henceforth  last  only  so  long  as  no  European  rival  came  upon  the 
scene.  On  land,  however,  they  were  strong  enough  to  beat  off  all 
Musalman  attacks  on  Goa  (1570)  and  Chaul  (1570  and  1592-4). 

By  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century  the  Delhi  empire  included  the 
whole  of  Sind,  Khandesh,  and  Gujarat,  with  the  exception  of  the  Portu- 
guese possessions  of  Diu,  Daman,  Bassein,  and  Bombay.  The  effi- 
ciency of  the  administration  was,  however,  much  weakened  by  frequent 
transfers  of  officers,  and  by  the  practice,  which  soon  grew  up,  of  allow- 
ing the  great  nobles  to  remain  at  court  and  administer  their  provinces 


HISTORY  287 

by  deputy.  The  land  tax,  which  was  fixed  at  the  cash  equivalent  of 
one-third  of  the  produce,  was  the  chief  head  of  revenue  and  was 
assessed  upon  a  system  devised  by  Raja  Todar  Mai.  Akbar  abolished 
many  minor  imposts  and  transit  duties,  and  prohibited  sati  and  the 
enslavement  of  prisoners  of  war  ;  but  it  is  doubtful  whether  the  control 
of  the  central  power  was  at  any  time  strong  enough  to  enforce  the 
emperor's  benevolent  measures  in  distant  provinces.  The  emperors 
down  to  Aurangzeb  employed  Hindus  and  Musalmans  indifferently  in 
positions  of  trust,  and  did  not  levy  the  poll-tax  on  infidels  (jazia)  from 
Hindus.  In  Gujarat,  down  to  the  death  of  Aurangzeb  (1707),  the 
Mughal  viceroys  were  on  the  whole  successful  in  maintaining  order  and 
prosperity,  in  spite  of  the  turbulence  of  the  Kolls  and  Rajputs  in  the 
north,  of  the  famines  of  1596,  1631,  1681,  1684,  and  1697-8,  and  of 
the  Deccani  attacks  on  Surat,  which  was  sacked  once  by  Malik  Ambar 
(1610)  and  twice  by  Sivajl  (1664  and  1670).  Almost  throughout  the 
Mughal  period  the  province  yielded  a  revenue  of  nearly  two  crores  of 
rupees,  and  a  large  foreign  trade  was  carried  on  at  the  ports  of  Cambay, 
Broach,  and  Surat.  The  decline  of  Mughal  rule  began  with  a  Maratha 
raid  across  the  Narbada  in  1705.  From  171 1  these  invasions  became 
annual,  and  the  Marathas  established  themselves  successively  at  Songad 
(1719),  Champaner  (1723),  and  Baroda  (1734).  The  beginning  of  the 
end  came  during  the  governorship  of  Sarbuland  Khan  (1723-30),  who 
farmed  out  the  revenues  and  admitted  the  Maratha  claims  to  chauth 
and  sardeshmukhi.  Henceforward,  although  the  Delhi  court  continued 
to  appoint  viceroys  until  1748,  absolute  anarchy  reigned  in  the  pro- 
vince, which  was  ravaged  impartially  by  the  leaders  of  the  Peshwa's 
and  the  Gaikwar's  armies,  by  the  Rajas  of  Jodhpur,  by  the  agents 
of  the  Nizam-ul-mulk,  and  by  such  local  Musalman  chiefs  as  the  Babis, 
who  established  themselves  at  Junagarh  (1738)  and  Balasinor  (1761), 
the  Jhaloris,  who  settled  at  Palanpur  (17 15),  and  Momin  Khan,  who 
set  up  the  State  of  Cambay  (1748).  Famines  in  1719,  1732,  and  1747 
added  to  the  misery  of  the  people.  In  1737  the  Gaikwar  was  admitted 
to  a  full  half-share  in  the  revenues  of  the  province,  and  occupied  Ahmad- 
abad  jointly  with  the  viceroy's  troops  (1738).  Broach  from  1 73 1  to 
1752  was  held  by  a  deputy  of  the  Nizam,  who  had  to  give  up  a  share  of 
its  customs  to  the  Gaikwar.  Surat  suffered  chiefly  from  the  violence 
of  rival  candidates  for  the  governorship. 

By  1600  the  Mughals  held  Khandesh  and  the  forts  of  Ahmadnagar 
and  Nasik,  but  had  by  no  means  subdued  the  open  country  or  crushed 
the  Deccani  Musalmans,  who  established  a  new  capital  at  Kharki 
(Aurangabad)  close  to  their  old  centre  of  Daulatabad.  In  1610  Malik 
Ambar  recovered  Ahmadnagar  and  nearly  the  whole  of  the  old 
Nizamshahi  dominions,  and  sacked  Surat.  Almost  until  his  death 
(1626)  he  remained  master  of  the   Deccan,  where  he  introduced  the 


2<S8  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

revenue  system  that  lias  made  his  name  a  household  word.  'The 
Mughals  did  not  really  regain  their  position  until  1630,  or  finally  crush 
the  Nizamshahis  and  capture  Daulatabad  until  1633.  These  successes 
brought  them  into  collision  with  the  Bijapur  government,  which  had 
hitherto  followed  a  temporizing  policy.  The  result  of  the  war  was 
a  peace  very  favourable  to  Bijapur,  which  gained  the  territory  between 
the  BhTma  and  the  Nira,  as  well  as  the  northern  Konkan  up  to  the 
Bassein  river  (1636).  This  peace  lasted  for  twenty  years  (till  1656), 
during  which  the  Mughals  pacified  the  Northern  Deccan  and  introduced 
Todar  Mai's  revenue  system,  while  the  Bijapur  government  turned  its 
attention  to  the  conquest  of  the  petty  chiefs  of  the  Carnatic.  At  this 
time  the  Hindus  began  to  play  a  leading  part  in  the  Deccan.  For 
a  hundred  years  the  Marathas  had  been  learning  warfare,  and  the 
Brahmans  the  art  of  government,  in  the  service  of  the  Bijapur  Sultans. 
At  the  same  time  there  had  been  a  notable  revival  of  Hindu  religious 
feeling  under  the  guidance  of  Vaishnava  preachers  (Eknath  and 
Tukaram).  The  Mughals  had  destroyed  Ahmadnagar  and  were 
threatening  Bijapur.  The  old  order  was  clearly  falling  to  pieces  and 
the  Marathas  only  wanted  a  leader.  They  found  one  in  Sivajl  Bhonsla. 
Sivaji  was  born  (1627)  and  brought  up  in  the  country  which  passed 
from  Ahmadnagar  to  Bijapur  under  the  treaty  of  1636,  and  was  under 
the  immediate  government  of  his  father  Shahji,  who  had  been  one  of 
the  most  prominent  of  the  Bijapur  generals.  Though  a  younger  son, 
he  was  initiated  very  early  into  the  management  of  the  family  inheri- 
tance, owing  to  the  absence  of  his  father  and  brothers  in  the  Carnatic. 
He  was  trained  from  the  first  as  the  Hindu  ruler  of  a  Hindu  state, 
though  this  ideal  by  no  means  excluded  politic  submission  to  a  foreign 
superior  who  did  not  interfere  in  home  affairs.  As  his  power  increased, 
Sivaji  modelled  his  government  more  and  more  on  the  old  Hindu 
kingship  of  the  law  books.  The  complete  attainment  of  his  ideal  was 
notified  to  the  world  by  his  coronation  in  1674.  This  restoration  of 
the  old  law  under  a  Hindu  king  took  such  a  hold  upon  the  Maratha 
imagination  that  Sivaji's  system  was  enabled  to  survive  the  death  of  its 
founder.  Sivaji  built  up  his  kingdom  at  the  expense  of  Bijapur.  He 
began  by  subduing  the  new  provinces  in  the  northern  Konkan  and 
between  the  Bhima  and  the  Nira  (1646-8).  He  next  conquered  Javli 
in  the  old  Bijapur  dominions  (1655)  and  overran  the  Konkan  from 
Janjlra  to  Goa  (1659-62),  after  which  he  built  forts  on  the  coast  and 
began  to  create  a  navy.  The  Bijapur  government,  distracted  by  wars 
abroad  and  factions  at  home,  failed  to  recover  its  lost  provinces,  and  was 
compelled  by  an  alliance  between  Sivaji  and  the  Mughals  to  buy  him 
off  with  a  promise  of  tribute  (1668).  On  the  death  of  Sultan  All  Adil 
Shah  of  Bijapur  in  1673,  Sivaji  renewed  the  war  and  conquered  Panhala, 
with  the  open  country  to  the  east  of  it,  Satara,  Phonda  near  Goa,  and 


HISTORY  289 

the  ports  of  Karwar  and  Ankola  (1672-6).  He  next  allied  himself 
with  Golconda  and  invaded  the  Bijapur  Carnatic  (1676-87).  The 
Bijapur  government,  now  hard  pressed  by  the  Mughals,  bought  peace 
and  alliance  by  ceding  Kopal  and  Bellary  and  resigning  the  overlordship 
of  the  Carnatic  (1679).  In  his  two  wars  with  the  Mughals  (1662-5 
and  1670-80),  which  interfered  with  his  designs  on  Bijapur,  Sivaji  was 
not  the  aggressor.  Aurangzeb  on  his  part  desired  to  weaken  the 
Deccani  powers  by  fomenting  their  quarrels,  but  not  to  crush  them  until 
he  could  take  the  field  in  person.  Hence  the  real  fight  for  the  mastery 
of  the  Deccan  did  not  take  place  in  SivajI's  lifetime,  and  his  raids  upon 
Surat,  Ahmadnagar,  Aurangabad,  Khandesh,  and  Berar  were  only  diver- 
sions. Sivaji  carefully  strengthened  the  forts  in  his  territories,  and 
collected  his  revenues  direct  through  government  officers.  His  army, 
both  horse  and  foot,  received  regular  pay,  and  had  to  account  for  their 
plunder.  The  Mughals  had  besieged  Bijapur  in  1657  and  again  in 
1666,  when  its  Sultan  bought  peace  by  the  cession  of  Sholapur  and  the 
adjoining  districts  (1668).  In  1675  a  fresh  Mughal  invasion  ended  in 
a  truce  and  alliance,  which  was  renewed  in  1678.  But  Aurangzeb 
pressed  for  harder  terms,  and  the  Bijapur  government  turned  for  help 
to  Sivaji,  who  created  a  diversion  by  plundering  the  Mughal  Deccan 
(1679).  After  SivajI's  death  (1680)  the  Mughal  party  again  gained 
the  upper  hand  in  Bijapur  and  tried  to  recover  some  of  the  districts 
ceded  to  the  Marathas.  Aurangzeb  judged  that  the  time  had  now 
come  for  completing  the  conquest  of  the  Deccan,  which  he  entered  in 
person  with  a  vast  army  (1684).  For  a  time  success  seemed  to  follow 
his  arms.  He  took  the  capitals  and  occupied  the  territory  of  both 
Bijapur  (1686)  and  Golconda  (1687),  and  captured  and  executed  SivajI's 
weak  son  Sambhajl  (1689).  But  he  had  now  destroyed  the  only 
organized  Musalman  power  of  the  Deccan,  and  was  to  enter  upon  a  war 
of  race  and  religion  in  which  the  Marathas  were  no  longer  paralysed  by 
the  incapacity  of  Sambhajl.  The  country  was  overrun  by  the  disbanded 
soldiery  of  the  fallen  kingdoms,  and  the  resulting  anarchy  gave  full 
scope  to  the  guerrilla  tactics  of  the  Marathas.  Aurangzeb  could  neither 
trust  his  officers  nor  do  everything  himself,  and  corruption  and  dis- 
organization increased  from  year  to  year  until  the  whole  imperial 
machine  was  out  of  gear.  In  the  first  stage  of  the  war,  Raja  Ram,  the 
Maratha  regent,  held  his  court  at  Gingee  in  the  Carnatic  (1690-8), 
which  was  besieged  by  the  Mughals,  while  the  Maratha  horse  overran 
the  Deccan  in  every  direction.  In  the  next  period  (1699-1705) 
Aurangzeb  besieged  the  Maratha  forts,  while  the  Maratha  horsemen 
ranged  farther  afield  into  Malwa.  and  Gujarat.  About  1705  the  tide 
definitely  turned.  The  Marathas  recaptured  their  forts,  and  Aurangzeb 
retired  to  Ahmadnagar,  where  he  died  (1707).  The  new  emperor 
withdrew  the  remnant  of  the  great  army  of  the  Deccan,  but  created 
voi„  VIII.  u 


29o  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

a  division  among  his  enemies  by  releasing  Sivaji's  grandson  Shahu,  who 
had  been  brought  up  at  the  Mughal  court  (1707).  Shahu  established 
himself  at  Satara,  while  a  younger  branch  of  Sivaji's  line  set  up  a  sepa- 
rate kingdom  at  Kolhapur  (1710).  After  a  period  of  anarchy  Shahu, 
aided  by  the  talents  of  Balaji  Vishvanath,  the  founder  of  the  Peshwa 
line,  restored  order  in  his  own  territory,  was  acknowledged  (1713)  by 
Angria,  the  commander  of  the  fleet,  who  ruled  the  Konkan  from 
Kolaba  southwards,  and  obtained  (1720)  from  the  emperor  the  cession 
of  the  country  south  of  the  Bhlma  as  far  east  as  Pandharpur,  as  well  as 
the  right  to  levy  chauth  (one-fourth)  and  sardeshmukhi  (one-tenth)  from 
the  Mughal  Deccan,  the  Carnatic,  Tanjore,  Trichinopoly,  and  Mysore. 
These  levies  gave  the  Marathas  a  pretext  for  interfering  wherever  they 
chose.  The  collections  were  so  arranged  as  to  intermingle  the  interests 
of  the  several  military  chiefs,  and  make  them  dependent  on  their 
Brahman  clerks.  The  increasing  power  of  the  Peshwa  and  the  employ- 
ment of  the  Maratha  forces  in  distant  enterprises  brought  about  the 
decay  of  Sivaji's  constitution,  which  was  suited  only  for  the  manage- 
ment of  home  affairs.  As  the  authority  of  the  Raja  grew  less,  the 
kingdom  became  a  confederacy  of  leaders  whose  chief  bond  of  union 
was  a  joint  interest  in  their  plunder.  The  year  1724  was  a  turning- 
point  in  Deccan  history,  marked  by  the  definite  adoption  by  Shahu, 
under  the  influence  of  Balaji's  son,  the  Peshwa  Baji  Rao,  of  the  policy 
of  destroying  the  Mughal  empire,  in  preference  to  consolidating  his  own 
dominions,  and  by  the  arrival  in  the  Deccan  of  Nizam-ul-mulk,  the 
founder  of  the  present  Hyderabad  dynasty,  nominally  as  the  emperor's 
deputy,  but  really  as  an  independent  ruler.  The  Nizam  desired  to  free 
the  Subah  of  Hyderabad  from  the  Maratha  claims,  but  was  completely 
defeated  (1728).  His  ally,  the  Raja,  of  Kolhapur,  was  bought  off 
by  the  cession  of  the  country  between  the  Varna  and  Tungabhadra 
(1730);  and  his  tool,  Trimbak  Rao  Dabhade,  was  defeated  and  slain 
(1731).  The  Peshvva  now  (1732-6)  turned  his  attention  to  Malwa  and 
advanced  to  the  gates  of  Delhi.  In  1737  the  Nizam  was  induced  by 
the  emperor  to  invade  Malwa,  where  he  was  defeated  ;  but  in  the 
Deccan  his  troops  met  the  Marathas  on  equal  terms  and  peace  was 
restored,  to  the  vexation  of  Baji  Rao,  who  died  in  1740.  Meanwhile, 
the  ruin  of  the  Mughal  empire  was  completed  by  the  invasion  of  Nadir 
Shah  (1739). 

The  Marathas  from  this  time  to  the  end  of  the  eighteenth  century 
remained  the  dominant  power  in  Western  India,  and  during  the  first 
thirty-four  years  of  this  period  (1740-74)  they  had  only  local  rivals 
to  deal  with.  Gujarat  was  parcelled  out  among  a  number  of  local 
chiefs,  who  carried  on  ceaseless  petty  wars  which  the  Marathas  had  no 
wish  to  suppress  so  long  as  they  could  secure  their  share  of  the  plunder 
of  the  province.     The  Peshwa's  seizure  of  half  the  Gaikwar's  share  in 


HISTORY  291 

1751  only  added  another  claimant  of  blackmail.  After  the  battle  of 
Panlpat  the  local  Musalmans  tried,  but  failed,  to  drive  out  the  Gaikwar 
(1761).  The  last  chance  of  a  strong  native  government  growing  up  was, 
however,  ruined  by  the  disputed  succession  at  Baroda  in  1768.  The 
internal  troubles  at  Surat  lasted  until  the  castle  was  occupied  by  the 
British  in  1759.  This  event  gave  them  claims  on  Broach,  which  had 
been  independent  since  1752,  but  was  taken  by  a  British  force  in  1772. 
In  1740  the  new  Peshwa,  Balaji,  had  first  to  strengthen  his  own 
position  in  the  Deccan.  He  bought  off  his  most  dangerous  rival, 
RaghujI  Bhonsla  of  Nagpur,  by  giving  him  a  free  hand  in  Bengal  (1744). 
He  obtained  from  Shahu  on  his  deathbed  a  deed  empowering  him  to 
govern  the  kingdom  (1749)  ;  he  secured  the  succession  of  a  puppet 
Raja  of  doubtful  legitimacy  (1749);  won  over  the  leading  chiefs  by 
liberal  grants;  made  Poona  the  capital  of  the  confederacy  (1750) ;  and 
baffled  by  treachery  the  rising  of  Damaji  Gaikwar  (1751).  The  old 
Nizam  had  died  in  1 748.  Balaji  took  part  in  the  disputes  among  his  sons, 
and,  in  spite  of  the  aid  given  by  the  French  to  their  nominee,  extorted 
a  cession  of  all  the  country  west  of  Berar,  between  the  Tapti  and  the 
Godavari  (1752).  Further  quarrels  among  the  Nizam's  sons  enabled 
the  Peshwa  to  occupy  Ahmadnagar.  This  led  to  a  war,  at  the  end 
of  which  (1760)  the  Marathas  obtained  possession  of  the  SUbah  of 
Bijapur,  which  they  henceforth  retained,  as  well  as  of  other  lands  which 
the  Mughals  regained  later  (1763  and  1766).  In  1743  the  Peshwa 
had  become  governor  of  Malwa;  in  1754  his  troops  had  decided  the 
succession  to  the  Mughal  empire;  and  in  1755  they  levied  chauth  in 
Hindustan  and  at  Arcot.  But  their  military  power  was  broken  when  at 
its  height  by  Ahmad  Shah  Durrani  at  the  bloody  battle  of  Panlpat 
(1761),  which  was  followed  by  the  death  of  Balaji.  This  crushing  blow 
enabled  the  Nizam  to  recover  some  of  his  lost  provinces  (1763),  gave 
Haidar  All  time  to  strengthen  himself  in  Mysore  (1764),  and  freed 
Delhi  from  Maratha  domination  for  nine  years  (1761-70).  The 
Bhonsla  of  Berar  showed  a  tendency  to  break  off  from  the  confederacy, 
and  Balaji's  brother  Raghuba  began  that  course  which  for  twenty  years 
made  him  the  stormy  petrel  of  Maratha  politics.  None  of  the  country 
powers,  however,  was  strong  enough  to  overthrow  the  Maratha  kingdom. 
The  able  young  Peshwa,  Madhu  Rao  I  (1761-72)  checkmated  his  tur- 
bulent uncle,  played  off  the  Nizam  against  the  Bhonsla,  repeatedly 
defeated  Haidar  All,  and  re-established  Maratha  influence  at  Delhi 
(1770-2).  He  also  found  time  to  bring  his  Deccan  provinces  under 
a  system  of  government  which,  however  rude,  was  vigorous,  popular, 
and  comparatively  honest,  and  under  which  he  realized  a  revenue  of 
280  lakhs. 

The  first  collision  between  the  Marathas  and  the  British  took  place  in 
1774,  when  civil  war  broke  out  between  Raghuba  and    the  ministry 

u  2 


292  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

whicli  governed  in  the  name  of  the  child  Peshwa,  Madhu  Rao  II. 
Hearing  of  a  Portuguese  expedition  for  the  recovery  of  Salsette,  the 
Bombay  Government  seized  that  island  (1774),  and  agreed  to  aid 
Raghuba  in  return  for  the  cession  of  Salsette,  Bassein,  and  certain  dis- 
tricts in  Gujarat  (1775).  The  Governor-General,  however,  concluded 
with  the  Poona  ministry  the  Treaty  of  Purandhar  (1776),  under  which 
Raghuba  was  to  be  pensioned  off  and  Salsette  and  Broach  were  to  be 
left  in  the  hands  of  the  British.  But  the  wording  of  the  treaty  gave  rise 
to  new  disputes ;  and  the  fear  of  a  French  invasion  led  the  Bombay 
Government  to  send  Raghuba  towards  Poona  with  an  army,  which, 
however,  was  compelled  to  surrender  at  Wadgaon  to  Sindhia  and  Nana 
Farnavls,  the  two  leading  members  of  the  Peshwa's  government  (1779). 
The  balance  was  restored  by  the  march  from  the  Jumna  to  Surat  of 
a  Bengal  army,  which  met  with  considerable  success  in  Gujarat  and 
took  Bassein  (1780).  A  league  between  the  Peshwa,  the  Nizam,  and 
Haidar  All  (whose  aid  the  Marathas  obtained  by  confirming  his  con- 
quests in  Dharwar)  led  the  British  to  drop  the  scheme  of  setting  up 
Raghuba  at  Poona,  and  Malwa  and  Madras  became  the  chief  theatres 
of  war.  Sindhia  was  the  first  to  come  to  terms  (1781),  and  some 
months  later  Nana  Farnavls  also  agreed  to  the  Treaty  of  Salbai  (1782), 
under  which  Salsette  remained  with  the  British,  who  handed  over 
Broach  to  Sindhia.  The  Gaikwar  was  protected  against  the  Peshwa, 
and  Raghuba  was  pensioned  off  and  died  soon  after  (1784). 

For  twenty  years  (1782-1803)  the  British  and  Maratha  Governments 
remained  at  peace.  It  was  during  this  period  that  the  Maratha  con- 
federacy began  to  break  up.  The  Gaikwar  was  detached  by  his 
acceptance  of  British  protection  (1782);  Sindhia  had  become  accus- 
tomed to  act  alone  in  Hindustan,  and  took  no  part  in  the  Mysore 
War  (1785-92)  ;  while  the  Berar  chiefs  were  encouraged  by  the  British 
to  follow  a  policy  of  their  own.  In  Gujarat  there  was  little  improvement 
in  the  government  during  this  period,  though,  in  spite  of  disputes  in  the 
Gaikwar's  family  and  intrigues  at  the  Poona  court,  a  semblance  of  order 
was  preserved  by  British  influence  from  1782  to  1799,  when  the  Gaikwar 
took  Ahmadabad  and  imprisoned  the  Peshwa's  agent.  Further  dis- 
turbances then  took  place,  which  were  put  down  by  a  British  force 
(1803).  In  1799  the  Peshwa  farmed  his  rights  to  the  Gaikwar,  who 
entered  into  subsidiary  alliance  with  the  British.  Negotiations  followed 
between  the  British,  the  Peshwa,  and  the  Gaikwar,  which  ended  in  the 
cession  to  the  first  named  of  certain  districts  and  rights  in  Gujarat. 
The  British  Government  had  annexed  Surat  in  1800,  on  the  death  of 
the  Nawab,  whose  family  were  pensioned  off,  and  had  conquered 
Broach  from  Sindhia  in  the  war  of  1803. 

After  the  peace  with  the  English  (1782)  the  first  care  of  Nana  Far- 
navls was  to  regain,  by  an  alliance  with  the  Nizam,  the  territory  with 


HISTOR  Y  293 

which  the  Peshwa  had  bought  the  aid  of  Mysore  in  1779.     This  object 
was  attained  in   1787,  but  Tipu  renewed  the  war,  and    by  attacking 
Travancore  drove  the  British  to  join  the  alliance  against  him  (1790). 
In  1792  he  made  peace  at  the  cost  of  half  his  dominions,  of  which  the 
Peshwa  obtained  the  portion  north  of  the  Wardha.  river.    The  accession 
of  Raghuba's  son  Baji  Rao  to  the  Peshwaship  (1796)  caused  the  fall  of 
Nana  Farnavis  and  the  ruin  of  the  Maratha  power.     Through  his  efforts 
to  secure  the  throne  and  to  shake  off  first   Nana  Farnavis  and  then 
Sindhia,  Baji  Rao  incurred  the  distrust  of  all  parties  and  plunged  the 
Deccan  into  civil  wars  in  which  the  Rajas  of  Satara  and  Kolhapur  took 
part.     He  intrigued  both  with  the  British  and  with  Tipu,  but  took  no 
part  in  the  last  Mysore  War  (1799),  at  the  end  of  which  he  found  him- 
self hemmed  in  between  a  British  protectorate  (Hyderabad)  on  the  east 
and  British  Districts  on  the  south.     The  Marquis  Wellesley  now  invited 
him  to  enter  the  system  of  subsidiary  alliances.     In  fear  of  Holkar,  who 
had  seized  Poona  in  revenge  for  the  murder  of  his  brother,  Baji  Rao 
signed  the  Treaty  of  Bassein  (1802).      The  British    restored    him    to 
Poona  ;  defeated  Sindhia  and  the  Berar  chief,  who  had  taken  up  arms 
on    hearing   of  the   Treaty  of  Bassein,   at  Assaye,  at  Argaon,  and  in 
Hindustan,   and  forced  them  to  sue  for  peace  (1803).     The  Bombay 
Government  took  but  a  subordinate  part  in  these  proceedings,  as  from 
1774  their  foreign  policy  had  been  controlled  by  the  Supreme  Govern- 
ment at  Calcutta,  and  in  the  Deccan  campaign  of  1803  the  chief  part 
was   taken    by    Madras  troops.     The   Presidency  then    included  only 
Salsette,    the   harbour   islands    (from    1774),  Surat  (from    1800),    and 
Bankot  (from  1756),  the  affairs  of  Northern  Gujarat  and  the   Deccan 
being  the  business  of  the  Governor-General's  Agents  at  Baroda   and 
Poona  respectively. 

It  was  between  the  years  1803  and  1827  that  the  framework  of  the 
Bombay  Presidency  took  its  present  shape.  The  first  Districts  to  be 
organized  were  those  of  Gujarat,  which  were  taken  over  by  the  Bombay 
Government  in  1805,  and  enlarged  in  18 18.  The  Gaikwar  was  already 
under  British  protection,  and  the  Peshwa's  rights  were  acquired  partly 
by  treaty  and  partly  by  conquest.  The  Districts  were  organized  on  the 
Bengal  model,  and  the  change  from  native  rule  was  rather  in  men  than 
in  measures.  The  first  steps  towards  the  settlement  of  Kathiawar  and 
the  Mahi  Kantha  were  taken  between  1807  and  1820.  After  Baji  Rao's 
restoration  the  Deccan  suffered  severely  from  famine  ;  and  robbery, 
oppression,  and  corruption  were  rampant.  After  long  vacillation,  Baji 
Rao,  the  last  of  the  Peshwas,  attempted  to  shake  off  British  control,  but 
was  defeated,  captured,  and  pensioned  off  (181 7-8).  A  kingdom  was 
created  for  the  Raja  of  Satara,  the  heir  of  Sivajl,  out  of  part  of  the 
Peshwa's  dominions,  and  two  parganas  were  given  to  Kolhapur  ;  the  rest 
was  placed  under  a  British  Commissioner  (181 9).     The  settlement  of 


294  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

the  Presidency  was  completed  by  Mountstuart  Elphinstone  (Governor 
in  1819-27),  whose  aim  was  to  govern  on  the  best  native  lines,  avoiding 
changes  until  the  people  should  be  fitted  for  them  by  education.  He 
pacified  the  Deccan,  set  up  the  Sadr  Court,  codified  the  laws,  and 
opened  schools.  The  grosser  abuses  of  Baji  Rao's  days  were  stopped, 
and  the  peasantry  were  contented  and  orderly,  though  the  Brahmans 
and  the  soldiery  felt  the  loss  of  their  former  chances  of  distinction  and 
plunder. 

Elphinstone's  governorship  was  followed  by  a  period  of  retrenchment 
and  slower  progress,  marked  chiefly  by  the  enlargement  of  the  Presidency 
through  the  lapse  of  Native  States,  the  addition  of  Aden  (1839)  and 
Sind  (1847),  and  the  lease  of  the  Panch  Mahals  from  Sindhia  (1853). 
Something  was  done  for  education,  irrigation,  public  health,  and  rail- 
ways, and  in  1843-5  a  somewhat  serious  rising  in  Kolhapur  was  put 
down.  The  Government  had  the  defects  of  its  qualities.  Taxation  was 
lighter  than  before,  but  more  strictly  exacted.  Criminal  trials  were 
more  regular,  but  punishment  was  less  certain.  Now  that  order  reigned, 
more  land  was  tilled  and  trade  was  safer,  but  for  that  very  reason  there 
followed  a  great  and  general  fall  of  prices,  which  increased  the  pressure 
of  the  land  tax.  In  the  Deccan  a  premature  attempt  at  a  new  settle- 
ment led  to  great  distress.  The  new  rates  were  at  once  reduced,  and 
after  twelve  years  of  inquiry  the  principles  which  are  still  the  basis  of 
the  Bombay  land  revenue  system  were  formulated  in  1847.  The  opera- 
tions of  the  new  survey  generally  resulted  in  a  reduction  of  assessment, 
and  there  ensued  a  period  of  great  agricultural  prosperity.  The  survey 
brought  to  light  many  cases  of  lands  held  rent-free  without  authority, 
and  the  Inam  Commission  was  appointed  to  inquire  into  all  such 
claims  (1852). 

Under  Lord  Elphinstone  (1853-60),  though  the  landholders  had  been 
alarmed  by  the  proceedings  of  the  Inam  Commission  and  by  the  use  of 
the  doctrine  of  '  lapse,'  the  Presidency  passed  through  the  crisis  of  the 
Mutiny  without  any  general  rising,  for  the  local  rebellions  in  Gujarat, 
among  the  Bhils,  and  in  the  Southern  Maratha  Country  lacked  con- 
cert and  cohesion,  and  the  outbreaks  among  the  troops  at  Karachi, 
Ahmadabad,  and  Kolhapur  were  quickly  put  down.  The  most  dan- 
gerous rebel,  Tantia  Topi,  was  headed  off  from  Gujarat  and  hunted 
down  in  1859.  After  the  Mutiny  progress  was  much  more  rapid,  espe- 
cially as  regards  education,  railways,  and  the  cotton  manufacture. 

Under  Sir  Bartle  Frere  (1862-7)  agricultural  prosperity  reached  its 
highest  point,  owing  to  the  enormous  demand  for  Indian  cotton  in 
Europe  during  the  American  Civil  War  (186 1-5).  The  wealth  thus 
poured  into  the  country  led  to  an  extraordinary  epidemic  of  speculation, 
known  as  the  'Share  Mania'  (1864-5),  which  ended  in  a  serious  com- 
mercial crisis  and  the  failure  of  the  Bank  of  Bombay  (1866).      But  the 


HISTORY  295 

peasantry  on  the  whole  gained  more  than  they  lost,  and  in  the  long  run 
the  trade  of  Bombay  was  not  seriously  injured.  At  this  time  the  main 
lines  of  railway  were  opened  and  the  Presidency  was  covered  with 
a  network  of  roads. 

In  1868  the  monsoon  failed  and  the  condition  of  the  Deccan  began 
to  cause  anxiety,  owing  to  the  indebtedness  of  the  peasantry.  Their 
relations  with  their  creditors  led  to  riots  and  outrages  (1873),  which 
were  inquired  into  by  a  special  commission  ;  but  before  any  action  was 
taken  on  its  report,  the  monsoon  of  1876  failed  and  the  great  famine  of 
1876-8  set  in.  The  monsoon  of  1877  was  again  irregular,  and  was 
followed  by  epidemic  fever  and  a  plague  of  rats  (1878),  so  that  relief 
measures  were  not  discontinued  until  1S79.  The  direct  result  of  the 
famine  was  the  construction  of  new  railways  and  irrigation  works  in 
the  Deccan,  and  the  formation  of  Government  forests  on  a  large  scale 
for  the  purpose  of  improving  the  rainfall  and  securing  the  supply  of 
wood.  A  measure  was  also  passed  to  protect  agriculturists  against  the 
grosser  forms  of  fraud  on  the  part  of  money-lenders  (1879). 

There  followed  a  brief  period  of  prosperity  in  which  much  was  done 
for  education  and  local  self-government.  About  1S90  a  series  of  bad 
seasons  began.  Hindu  feeling  was  much  excited  by  discussions  on  the 
Age  of  Consent  Bill,  and  by  the  preaching  of  the  Cow  Protection 
Societies,  which  embittered  the  relations  between  Hindus  and  Muham- 
madans  to  such  an  extent  as  to  cause  riots  in  Bombay  and  many  other 
places  (1893-4). 

Worse,  however,  was  to  follow.  The  rains  of  1895  were  below  the 
average,  and  the  failure  of  those  of  1896  caused  famine  throughout  the 
Deccan  in  1896-7.  After  one  poor  and  one  fair  season  there  followed 
the  great  famine  of  1 899-1902,  which  desolated  Gujarat  and  the 
Northern  and  Western  Deccan,  and  was  accompanied  by  a  virulent 
outbreak  of  cholera.  Plague  appeared  in  Bombay  City  in  August,  1896, 
and  has  since  spread  by  land  and  sea  to  every  part  of  the  Presidency. 
The  original  plague  measures  caused  great  alarm  and  discontent,  and 
were  violently  opposed  in  1898  at  Sinnar  and  Bombay.  When  the 
most  stringent  and  costly  efforts  failed  to  stamp  out  the  disease,  it 
became  clear  that  a  permanent  plague  policy  could  not  be  based  on 
them.  From  October,  1898,  therefore,  more  use  was  made  of  native 
volunteer  agency,  the  restrictions  on  travelling  were  relaxed,  and  the 
discretional  relief  fund  was  started  to  help  the  poorer  sufferers.  The 
inquiries  of  the  Plague  Commission  (1898-9)  resulted  in  still  further 
relaxations,  which  came  into  force  under  the  orders  of  the  Govern- 
ment of  India  from  July,  1900.  The  people  are  now  generally 
accustomed  both  to  the  plague  and  to  the  existing  plague  measures, 
and  accept  both  with  resignation.  Down  to  the  end  of  March,  1904, 
over  one  million  deaths  had  been  reported  in  the  Presidency  as  due  to 


2  96  B OMB  A  1 r  P RESIDE NC  Y 

plague.  Bitter  feelings  against  Government  found  vent  in  the  native 
press,  in  an  attempted  strike  against  the  payment  of  revenue  (1896-7), 
and  in  disturbances  arising  out  of  forest  grievances  in  Thana  (1896), 
and  culminated  in  the  murder  of  the  chairman  of  the  Poona  plague 
committee  and  another  officer  by  a  band  of  Brahman  fanatics  in  June, 
1897.     Trade  and  industry  suffered  very  severely  during  these  years. 

Except  a  few  dolmens  and  implements  of  the  stone  age,  there  are  no 
remains  in  Western  India  older  than  the  inscriptions  of  Asoka  (250  B.C.) 
at  Junagarh  and  Sopara.  The  oldest  buildings  were  of  wood,  but 
were  copied  in  hundreds  of  Buddhist  caves  dug  out  of  the  trap  cliffs  on 
the  main  routes  from  the  Deccan  to  the  coast.  The  best-known  groups 
are  at  Bhaja  (200  B.C.),  Bedsa  (100  b. c),  Karli  (50  B.C.),  Junnar 
(a.d.  100),  Nasik  (100  b.c.-a.d.  200),  and  Kanheri  (a.d.  100—500). 
In  each  group  is  at  least  one  pillared  hall  with  a  barrel  roof  and  a  relic 
shrine  (chaityd)  and  a  number  of  square  chambers  (vihara),  out  of 
which  open  cells  for  monks  and  travellers.  There  are  no  separate  relic 
shrines  (stupa),  rails,  or  pillars  of  archaeological  importance.  Both 
Jains  and  Hindus  imitated  the  Buddhist  caves,  but,  except  the  Hindu 
caves  at  Elephanta  and  Badami  (seventh  to  eighth  century),  their 
best  work  is  found  in  the  Nizam's  country.  All  temples  in  Western 
India  have  a  cell  which  contains  the  idol,  with  a  tower  above  it 
(vimdna),  and  a  pillared  porch  or  hall  {mandapa)  in  front.  The  oldest 
structural  temples  (seventh  and  eighth  century)  are  to  be  found  at 
Aivalli,  Pattadkal,  and  Badami  in  Bijapur  District.  One  of  these 
resembles  a  chaitya  cave,  while  others  show  the  terraced  tower  of  the 
Dravidian  or  the  four-sided  spire  of  the  Indo-Aryan  style.  The  latter 
is  the  true  local  style  of  the  Deccan,  where  hundreds  of  temples,  which 
are  now  ascribed  in  the  MarathI  districts  to  Hemadpant  and  in  the 
Kanarese  country  to  Jakhanacharya,  were  built  between  1000  and 
1300.  The  term  Hemadpanti,  which  is  applied  to  old  temples,  reser- 
voirs, and  wells  in  Khandesh  and  the  Deccan,  is  derived  from  the 
name  of  the  minister  of  Ramchandra  (127 1),  the  Yadava  ruler  of 
Deogiri,  who  is  supposed  to  have  introduced  some  change  in  architec- 
tural style.  But  the  word  has  lost  the  special  meaning  which  it  once 
possessed,  and  is  loosely  applied  to  any  old  stone  building  dating  from 
the  period  mentioned.  This  was  the  great  age  of  temple-building  in 
Gujarat  also,  where  the  Jain  style  with  its  domed  porches  and  rect- 
angular courtyards  grew  up  at  Girnar  and  Shetriya.  Ambarnath  is  the 
best  known,  and  Gondesvar  near  Sinnar  the  most  perfect,  example  of 
the  Indo-Aryan  style.  To  the  same  period  belongs  the  secular  architec- 
ture of  Jhinjhuvada  and  Dabhoi,  and  a  number  of  large  wells  and  tanks 
in  Gujarat  and  the  Deccan.  The  earliest  Musalman  work  of  note  is 
the  Jama  Masjid  at  Cambay  (1325),  built  from  the  spoils  of  Jain 
temples.     During  the   best   period    (1411-1511)   of  the    Ahmadshahi 


POPULATION  297 

kings,  Ahmadabad,  Mahmudabad,  and  Champaner  were  adorned 
with  many  beautiful  mosques,  tombs,  and  palaces  of  Moslem  design 
worked  out  by  Hindu  artists.  In  the  Deccan  the  most  notable 
Muhammadan  remains  are  the  tombs,  mosques,  and  palaces  erected  at 
Bijapur  between  1557  and  1657.  Since  the  fourteenth  century  the 
Hindus  have  built  little  of  note  except  some  forts,  such  as  those  con- 
structed by  SivajT. 

The  history  and  archaeology  of  Sind  are  dealt  with  in  the  article  on 
that  Commissionership. 

The  Census  of  1901  showed  the  Bombay  Presidency  to  contain 
331  towns,  40,694  villages,  and  5,004,095  houses,  with  a  population  of 
25,468,209.  Of  these,  18,515,587  were  in  British  Population# 
territory,  6,908,648  in  Native  States,  and  43,974  in 
the  outlying  settlement  of  Aden.  The  density  for  the  Presidency  as 
a  whole  is  135  persons  per  square  mile.  Sind  has  a  population  of 
3,210,910,  with  a  density  of  68;  the  Northern  Division  3,513,532, 
density  256;  the  Central  Division  5,944,^47,  density  160;  and  the 
Southern  Division  5,070,692,  density  203.  Bombay  City  has  a  popula- 
tion of  776,006  ',  equal  to  35,273  to  the  square  mile.  The  Native 
States  belong  to  four  main  groups — Gujarat,  population  4,361,666, 
density  94  ;  Konkan,  350,684,  density  225  ;  Deccan,  373,779,  density 
78;  Carnatic,  1,623,206,  density  234.  Khairpur  in  Sind  has  a  popula- 
tion of  199,313  and  a  density  of  ^^.  In  British  territory  the  density  of 
population  varies  from  449  (Kaira  District)  to  27  (Thar  and  Parkar) ; 
in  the  Native  States,  from  319  (Kolhapur)  to  20  (Khandesh  Agency). 
Bombay  City  has  a  density  nearly  double  that  of  Madras  City,  exceeding 
500  to  the  acre  in  its  most  populous  sections. 

The  Presidency  as  a  whole  contains  1 1  towns  of  more  than  50,000 
inhabitants,  and  313  of  between  5,000  and  50,000.  Villages  of  between 
500  and  5,000  (including  a  few  classed  as  towns  in  the  Census)  number 
12,951,  and  villages  of  less  than  500  inhabitants,  27,747. 

Less  than  one-fifth  of  the  population  (19  per  cent.)  are  to  be  found 
in  towns  of  5,000  and  over.  The  percentage  of  urban  population  has 
increased  from  17  to  19  in  the  ten  years  since  1891  ;  but  in  the  face  of 
the  opposing  influences  of  plague  and  famine,  it  is  difficult  to  assign 
any  definite  significance  to  this  increase.  Except  in  the  Konkan,  where 
the  houses  are  often  widely  scattered,  the  majority  of  the  village  popula- 
tion are  crowded  together  on  limited  sites.  Famine  tends  to  drive 
villagers  to  centres  of  trade  in  search  of  employment,  while  plague  acts 
as  a  deterrent  on  those  who  would  otherwise  resort  to  infected  centres. 
Since  the  first  plague  epidemic  in  1896,  there  has  been  a  noticeable 
movement  from  town  and  village  sites  to  the  fields  in  the  vicinity.  The 
six  most  populous  towns   in   British  territory  are   Bombay  (776,006), 

1  The  population  in  1906  was  977,822,  according  to  a  special  census. 


298  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

AHMADABAD    (185,889),   POONA   (153,320),    SURAT    (119,306),    KARACHI 

(116,663),  an(i  Sholapur  (75,288).     Further  details  of  the  population 
by  District  and  State  are  given  in  Table  I.  on  pp.  383-4. 

An  estimate  of  the  population,  prepared  in  1854,  gave  a  total  of 
15,578,992  ;  in  1872  the  first  decennial  Census  showed  that  this  had 
increased  to  23,099,332.  In  1881,  in  spite  of  the  severe  famine  which 
occurred  in  1877,  the  total  reached  23,432,431,  and  this  had  again 
increased  in  189 1  to  26,960,421. 

The  decrease  of  population  since  1891  by  reason  of  famine  and 
plague  amounts  to  about  1^  millions,  and  has  affected  every  District  in 
the  Presidency  proper  except  Dharwar  and  Ratnagiri,  which  show  an 
increase  of  6  per  cent.  The  Mahl  Kantha  and  Khandesh  Agencies 
have  lost  38  and  43  per  cent,  of  their  population.  Sind  alone  shows  an 
increase  of  over  1 1  per  cent.,  which  is  due  to  immigration  as  well  as  to 
natural  growth.  The  brunt  of  the  loss  was  experienced  by  the  Native 
States  and  Gujarat,  which  suffered  most  severely  from  the  famine  of 
1 899- 1 900.  The  mortality  caused  by  famine  and  plague  between  1891 
and  1 90 1  is  roughly  estimated  at  3,000,000,  of  which  one-third 
occurred  in  British  territory  and  two-thirds  in  the  Native  States. 

The  Presidency  possesses  an  immigrant  population  of  800,000,  the 
most  noteworthy  immigration  being  into  Sind,  where  the  bringing  of 
fresh  land  under  cultivation  draws  many  cultivators  from  Baluchistan 
and  the  Punjab.  There  are  now  more  Baluchis  in  Sind  than  in  the 
whole  of  Baluchistan.  A  large  number  of  labourers  from  Kolaba  and 
Ratnagiri  Districts  and  from  the  Ghat  villages  of  Ahmadnagar,  Poona, 
and  Satara  are  found  in  Bombay  City,  where  they  are  employed  in 
the  docks,  or  in  the  many  factories  and  cotton-mills.  It  is  remarkable 
that  Bombay  draws  labourers  even  from  the  United  Provinces, 
36,000  immigrants  from  that  area  having  been  enumerated  in  190 1. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  Census  showed  a  total  of  600,000  emigrants 
from  the  Bombay  Presidency  in  other  Provinces  and  States  (excluding 
Baroda),  so  that  streams  of  migration  to  and  from  the  Presidency 
very  nearly  neutralize  each  other.  These  emigrants  are  chiefly  found 
in  Hyderabad  State,  Central  India,  and  Berar.  There  is  some  emigra- 
tion from  the  coast  of  Kathiawar  to  South  Africa. 

The  record  of  ages  in  an  Indian  Census  is  notoriously  untrustworthy, 
owing  to  the  widespread  ignorance  of  correct  ages.  In  1901  the  popu- 
lation of  the  Presidency  (excluding  Aden)  was  25,424,235,  including 
3,024,460  children  under  five  years  of  age.  The  age  distribution  for 
each  sex  shows  a  preponderance  of  females  in  the  periods  0-10  and 
over  40. 

The  only  interesting  conclusion  to  be  drawn  from  the  age  statistics 
recorded  in  1901  is  that,  in  Districts  severely  affected  by  famine,  the 
proportion  of  the  population  in  the  age  periods  0-5  and  60  and  over 


POPULATION 


299 


is  markedly  less  than  elsewhere,  an  indication  that  the  greatest  sufferers 
in  the  famine  period  were  young  children  and  old  people.  The  mean 
age  of  the  population  is  27,  and  is  highest  (29-4)  among  the  Parsls 
owing  to  the  steady  decrease  in  the  birth-rate  of  this  community. 


Age. 

1881. 

1801. 

IOOI. 

Males. 

Females. 

Males. 

Females. 

Males. 

Females. 

O  — IO 
IO—15 
10 — 25 

25—40 

40  and  over 

2,726 

1,236 
1,626 
2.482 
1,93° 

2,815 

1,039 
1,676 

2,400 
2,070 

2,853 
1,063 

1,645 

2,439 
2,000 

2,983 

Sb6 

1,688 

2,355 
2,oS8 

2,562 
1  ,^26 
I.662 
2.482 
1,96s 

2,669 

1,148 
1 ,699 
2.408 
2,076 

The  registration  of  births  and  deaths  is  compulsory  in  Bombay  City, 
and  is  enforced  more  or  less  imperfectly  under  by-laws  in  most  other 
municipal  towns.  In  rural  areas  the  village  officers  are  held  responsible 
for  omissions  and  do  their  work  with  fair  accuracy,  except  in  Sind. 
The  record  of  deaths  is  usually  better  than  that  of  births.  In  a  normal 
year  the  proportion  of  deaths  to  births  is  as  3  to  4  ;  but  since  1896 
plague  and  famine  have  caused  a  large  increase  in  the  mortality,  and 
have  also  affected  the  birth-rate.  Of  late  years  Bombay  City  has  had 
the  highest  death-rate  (66  per  1,000)  owing  to  plague,  and  the  lowest 
birth-rate  (14)  owing  to  the  small  proportion  of  women  and  to  the 
immigrant  nature  of  its  population.  The  highest  birth-rate  occurs  in 
Khandesh,  and  the  lowest  death-rates  in  Sind  (16  to  22),  where  registra- 
tion is  defective,  and  in  Ratnagiri  (25).  The  figures  for  1900  in  the 
table  given  below  for  British  Districts  show  very  clearly  the  effects 
of  famine  : — 


Population 
under 

registration. 

Ratio  of 
registered 

births 
per  1,000. 

Ratio  of 
registered 

deaths 
per  1,000. 

Deaths  per  1,000  from 

Cholera. 

Small-pox. 

Fever. 

Bowel 
complaints. 

1-8 
20 

116 

3-3 
3-2 
3.o 

1881    . 
1891    . 

1900*  . 

1901 

1902 

1903    . 

i6,454,4I4 
18,857,044 

18,515,587 

27.9 

36-3 
26-9 

25-2 

34-2 
31.2 

23.2 

27-3 
70-1 

37-i 
39-° 
43-9 

I-O 

0-9 
8.7 
0.7 

01 

O-O 
O-r 
0.5 
o-3 

0-2 
0-2 

16.6 
19.6 
28-9 
15.8 
14.7 
14.1 

*  Famine  year. 

Cholera  is  prevalent  in  the  hot  season  in  years  of  short  rainfall,  and 
fever  on  the  Ghats  and  in  tracts  liable  to  flooding  in  the  autumn  and 
winter.  Small-pox  is  held  in  check  by  vaccination.  Plague  broke  out 
in  Bombay  City  in  August,  1896,  and  has  spread  to  every  District, 
causing  a  larger  number  of  deaths  in  each  succeeding  year  except  1900. 
The  total  plague  mortality  in  1903  was  15  per  1,000,  Belgaum,  Dharwar 


;oo 


BOMBA  Y  PRESIDENCY 


Sholapur,  Ahmadnagar,  Satara,  Kaira,  and  Bijapur  suffering  most.  The 
deaths  returned  as  due  to  fever  probably  include  many  due  to  plague. 
The  present  policy  is  to  provide  hospitals  for  the  sick  and  camps  for 
the  healthy,  and  to  offer  inoculation  to  those  who  desire  it ;  but  com- 
pulsion is  avoided  as  far  as  possible. 

The  proportion  of  sexes  is  vitiated  to  some  extent  by  failure  to  enter 
females  at  the  Census  enumerations.  The  general  proportion  of  females 
recorded  in  1901  is  938  to  1,000  males  in  the  British  Districts.  In 
Sind  the  proportion  of  women  is  very  low.  An  excess  of  females  over 
males  is  particularly  noticeable  among  the  low  castes  and  wild  tribes. 
Infanticide  formerly  prevailed  among  the  Rajputs  and  Kunbis  of 
Gujarat,  but  is  believed  to  be  no  longer  practised.  The  cause  of  this 
barbarous  practice  was  the  difficulty  of  securing  bridegrooms  from  the 
sections  of  these  castes  with  whom  custom  prescribed  that  intermarriage 
should  take  place. 

Statistics  of  civil  condition  are  shown  in  the  table  below  :  — 


iRqi.                                                                   1901. 

Persons. 

Males. 

Females.           Persons. 

Males. 

Females. 

Unmarried 

Married    . 

Widowed . 

Civil  con- 
dition not 
returned  . 

Total 

IO,753>459 

'3,385,644 

2,758,003 

19,236 

6,536,214 

6/>75,545 
660,854 

10,579 

4,217,245     10,334,421 
6,710,099     11,974,989 
2,097,149       3,114,825 

8,657  ! 

6,261,56s 

5,972,759 
831,555 

4,072,853 
6,002,230 
2,283,270 

26,916,342 

13,883,192 

13,033,15°:  25,424,235 

13,065,882 

12,358,353 

According  to  the  results  of  the  Census  of  1901,  males  in  the  age  period 
10-15  show  85  per  cent,  still  unmarried,  but  females  only  50  per  cent., 
in  the  Bombay  Presidency  including  Native  States.  Females  married 
in  the  age  period  0-10  are  more  than  three  times  as  numerous  as 
males.  This  is  due  to  the  very  early  age  at  which  Hindu  parents  are 
accustomed  to  marry  their  female  children.  Among  Hindus  polygamy, 
though  allowed,  is  rare,  and  divorce  and  widow  marriage  are  marks 
of  low  status. 

The  proportion  of  widowed  females  to  1,000  widowed  males  is  very 
high  in  Ratnagiri  (5,862),  Satara  (4,005),  Kanara  (3,924),  and  Kolaba 
(3,794).  The  plague  epidemic  in  Bombay  City,  to  which  the  male 
population  of  these  Districts  emigrate  annually,  seems  to  have  caused 
the  death  of  the  husbands. 

The  table  on  the  next  page  gives  the  language  statistics  for  1891 
and  1 90 1,  excluding  Aden. 

In  the  north,  Sindl  is  the  mother-tongue  of  all  save  a  small  minority, 
who  for  the  most  part  speak  either  Marwari,  Baluchi,  or  Gujaratl. 
South  of  Sind,  Cutchi  or  Kachhi,  now  recognized  as  a  form  of  Gujaratl, 


POPVLA  TION 


301 


is  spoken  in  Cutch.  Gujarat!  and  Western  Hindi  are  the  principal 
languages  in  the  five  Districts  of  Gujarat,  the  former  merging  into  the 
dialects  of  primitive  races  where  the  province  approaches  the  hills  or 
the  borders  of  Rajputana.  Thana  and  the  Central  Division  are  the 
home  of  Marathl,  different  forms  of  which  are  spoken  above  and  below 
the  Ghats.  In  the  wilder  parts  of  Khandesh  the  hill  tribes  express 
themselves  in  dialects  that  resemble  either  Gujarat!  or  Marathl  according 
to  their  distance  from  places  where  these  languages  are  in  use.  The 
Southern  Division  is  divided  between  Kanarese  and  Marathl,  the  former 
slightly  ahead  of  the  latter  numerically.  Marathl  is  most  common  on 
the  coast  portions.  Kanarese  extends  as  far  north  as  the  southern  part 
of  Sholapur  District  and  is  spoken  by  an  appreciable  number  in  the 
south  of  Satara.  The  Native  States  resemble  the  adjacent  British  Dis- 
tricts.    Arabic  and  Somali  are  the  chief  languages  in  Aden  and  Perim. 


Persons. 

l8«  .. 

1 901. 

Marathl 

GujaratI    ..... 
Kanarese  ..... 
Sindl          ..... 
Hindi        ..... 
Bhil  dialects      .... 
Others 

Total 

10,550,84s 
8,633,332 
3,068,453 
2,564,845 
1,194,112 
125,496 

779>256 

10,338,262 
7,140,613 
3,097-325 

2,934,7  !• 

1,124,171 

1 19,946 

669,207 

26,916,342 

25,424,235 

The  Linguistic  Survey  of  India  has  now  advanced  sufficiently  to 
enable  the  languages  and  dialects  of  the  Presidency  to  be  classified 
on  a  scientific  basis.  It  is  probable  that  the  completion  of  the  survey 
will  lead  to  the  elimination  of  many  dialects  entered  in  the  provisional 
lists  framed  during  its  progress.  Meanwhile  the  Census  Report  for 
1 90 1  gives  the  numerical  results  of  this  preliminary  classification.  The 
following  figures  show  the  number  in  every  10,000  of  the  population 
who  speak  each  of  the  four  main  languages  (including  kindred  dialects) 
of  the  Presidency  : — 

Marathl  .         .     4,066  Kanarese  .         .     1,218 

GujaratI    .         .  .      2,809  Sindi         .  .  .      1,154 

Thus  more  than  90  per  cent,  of  the  population  use  a  language  or 
dialect  included  in  these  four.  The  only  other  languages  of  any 
importance  are  Western  Hindi,  Rajasthani,  Bhil,  Telugu,  and  Baluchi, 
of  which  all  but  Hindi  and  Bhil  are  the  languages  of  immigrants,  such 
as  merchants  and  bankers  from  Marwar,  or  cultivators  and  landowners 
from  Baluchistan.  Western  Hindi  for  the  most  part  covers  the  tongue 
affected  by  the  Musalman  population  outside  Sind,  and  includes  the 
dialect  known  as  Hindustani. 


3  o  2  B  OMB  A  ) '  PRESIDENC  Y 

It  should  perhaps  be  added  that  in  this  brief  description  Konkani 
has  been  treated  as  a  dialect  of  Marathi,  in  accordance  with  the 
classification  adopted  in  the  Linguistic  Survey.  The  decision  is  con- 
tested by  many,  who  would  derive  Konkani  direct  from  the  Prakrit 
and  claim  for  it  an  antiquity  exceeding  that  of  Marathi  as  a  spoken 
language.  The  point  is  one  for  experts  to  decide,  though  it  may  be 
remarked  that  modern  Konkani  is  certainly  permeated  with  corrupt 
forms  of  words  found  in  a  purer  state  in  Marathi,  and  is  also  to  no 
little  extent  dependent  on  words  borrowed  from  Dravidian  languages. 
Konkani  is  spoken,  as  the  name  implies,  in  the  Konkan,  including  the 
Konkan  Ghat  Matha  or  '  spurs  of  the  Ghats.'  Unlike  Marathi,  GujaratI, 
and  Kanarese,  it  has  practically  no  literature  except  that  written  by 
Roman  Catholics  of  Goa. 

The  Bombay  Presidency  intersects  many  of  the  social  strata  de- 
posited by  early  invasions  of  India,  and  contains  within  its  limits  a 
variety  of  castes  and  tribes  hardly  equalled  by  any  of  the  other  great 
Provinces. 

The  natural  divisions  of  the  Presidency,  distinguished  by  special 
influences  on  the  development  of  caste  and  tribe,  are  five  in  number  : 
Sind,  Gujarat,  the  Deccan,  the  Konkan,  and  the  Carnatic.  To  Sind 
and  its  predominant  Musalman  population  reference  is  made  below. 
Gujarat  has  remained  for  the  most  part  true  to  Hinduism,  though  petty 
Muhammadan  kingdoms,  as  well  as  the  supremacy  of  the  Mughals 
of  Delhi,  have  left  their  influence  in  many  parts  of  the  province — an 
influence  to  be  traced  in  the  formation  of  certain  castes  of  converts, 
such  as  the  Momna  Kunbis  and  Molesalams,  looking  to  Islam  for 
their  religion  and  to  Hinduism  for  their  social  structure.  The  former 
numerous  political  subdivisions  of  the  province,  which  was  for  centuries 
split  into  rival  Hindu  kingdoms,  display  the  effects  of  political  boun- 
daries on  the  evolution  of  caste  divisions.  The  large  caste  groups 
designated  comprehensively  by  the  terms  Brahman  and  VanI  exhibit 
in  Gujarat  a  minuteness  of  subdivision  elsewhere  unrivalled  ;  and  the 
fact  that  many  of  these  smaller  groups  bear  the  same  name — e.  g. 
Agarval,  Harsola,  Kapol  Khadayata,  Khedaval,  Mewada,  Nagar,  Osval, 
and  Srimali— lends  support  to  the  inference  that  a  common  cause  of 
caste  fusion  in  the  past  is  to  be  traced  to  the  influence  of  political 
boundaries. 

In  marked  contrast  to  Gujarat  with  its  amplitude  of  caste  divisions, 
the  Deccan  contains  a  comparatively  homogeneous  population.  Of 
the  total  population  of  the  Deccan  Districts  30  per  cent,  are  Marathas, 
between  whom  intermarriage  is  permissible,  provided  that  there  is 
comparative  equality  of  social  position,  while  of  the  6  per  cent,  of  the 
remainder  who  are  Brahmans,  only  13  local  divisions  are  to  be  found 
to  compare  with  the  170  of  Gujarat.     The  causes  which  have  led  in  the 


POPULATION  303 

past  to   the  crystallization  of  small  fragments  of  castes  farther  north 
have  evidently  been  inoperative  in  the  Deccan. 

The  coast-line  of  the  Konkan,  or  submontane  tracts,  possesses  a 
special  feature  in  the  large  number  of  Christians,  for  the  most  part 
Roman  Catholic,  which  its  population  contains,  and  exhibits  the 
singular  spectacle  of  the  maintenance  of  caste  distinctions  within  the 
fold  of  an  essentially  casteless  religion.  The  sixteenth  century  witnessed, 
in  the  halcyon  days  of  Portuguese  dominion,  the  forcible  conversion 
of  many  local  castes,  of  which  the  unconverted  fragments  remain  to 
add  to  the  diversity  of  social  divisions,  largely  due  to  the  arrival  of 
numerous  immigrants  by  sea. 

The  Carnatic,  or  Southern  Maratha  Country,  is  the  seat  of  Lingayatism, 
a  Hindu  reforming  movement  of  the  twelfth  century.  Social  divisions 
among  the  Lingayats,  who  form  the  majority  of  the  population  in  this 
portion  of  the  Presidency,  would  seem  to  be  based  on  both  religion  and 
function,  according  to  the  stage  in  the  history  of  the  reformation  at  which 
the  convert  caste  accepted  the  new  social  system  that  it  evolved. 

In  the  Ghat  tracts  of  the  Deccan  and  Khandesh,  where  the  broken 
ground  and  thin  soil  scarcely  permit  remunerative  cultivation,  Bhll 
and  Koli  tribes  eke  out  a  precarious  existence  as  hunters  and  collectors 
of  forest  produce.  They  represent  the  nearest  approach  to  the  abori- 
ginal inhabitants  of  the  country. 

The  terms  'caste'  and  'tribe'  are  commonly  used  without  any  clear 
perception  of  the  precise  significance  of  either ;  nor  is  it  easy  to  arrive 
at  a  satisfactory  definition  which  is  not  too  greatly  at  variance  with 
their  common  or  colloquial  meaning.  It  has  been  aptly  said  that 
'caste'  is  the  largest  group  based  on  common  occupation,  and  'tribe' 
the  largest  group  based  on  common  descent ;  but  in  practice  the 
former,  at  least,  of  these  definitions  proves  somewhat  too  restricted. 
Castes  may  be  found  which  are  based  on  religion  and  descent,  such 
as  the  Lingayats  or  Marathas  of  the  Bombay  Presidency,  while  the 
premier  caste  of  all,  the  Brahmans,  seems  at  the  present  day  to  be 
identifiable  more  by  social  precedence  involving  the  right  to  perform 
certain  ceremonies  than  by  any  common  form  of  occupation. 

The  main  castes  and  tribes,  which  in  most  instances  include  numerous 
endogamous  subdivisions,  number  over  500  ;  but  of  these  only  a  small 
number  exceed  100,000.  In  the  Presidency  (excluding  Sind)  these 
are,  in  order  of  numerical  importance  :— 

1.  Marathas.  8.  Dhangars,  Kurabas,  and  Bharvads. 

2.  Kunbls  (other  than  Maratha  Kunbis).         9.  Bhlls. 

3.  Kolls.  10.  Rajputs. 

4.  Lingayats.  11.  Mochis  and  Chamars. 

5.  Dhers,  Mahais,  and  Holias.  12.  Malls. 

6.  Brahmans.  13.  Mangs. 

7-  Vanls.  i4.   Kumbhars. 


3o4  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

15.  Sutars.  22.  Darzis. 

16.  Agris.  23.  Telis  and  Ghanchis. 

17.  Sonars.  24.  Thakurs. 

18.  Hajjams  and  XhavTs.  25.  Lohars. 

19.  Berads.  26.  Vanjaris. 

20.  Bhandaris.  27.  Rabaris. 

21.  Varlls.  28.  Ahirs. 

The  Marathas  consist  of  1,900,000  Kunbis,  350,000  Konkanis,  and 
1,400,000  Marathas  not  otherwise  specified.  The  term  Maratha  is  in 
some  respects  so  loosely  applied  that  it  is  difficult  to  determine  its 
precise  significance.  It  is  variously  used  to  describe  members  of 
various  castes  living  in  Maharashtra,  those  whose  mother-tongue 
is  Marathl,  and,  more- correctly  perhaps,  to  designate  the  descendants 
of  Sivaji's  warriors,  including  the  present  Maratha  Kunbi  and  the 
below-Ghat  Maratha,  who  were  the  backbone  of  the  Peshwa's  con- 
federacy. It  is  the  common  impression  at  the  present  day  that  the 
Marathas  properly  so  called  are  divided  into  two  groups  which  do  not 
intermarry,  the  Kunbi  or  agriculturist  being  the  inferior,  and  the 
warrior,  landowner,  or  high-class  Maratha  claiming  a  superior  origin. 
The  latter  indeed  profess  to  be  of  Rajput  descent,  to  consist  of  ninety- 
six  clans  or  families,  and  to  be  entitled  to  the  dignity  of  Kshattriya. 
They  support  their  claims  to  ascendancy  in  the  social  scale  by  favouring 
infant  marriage,  forbidding  the  marriage  of  widows,  and  wearing  the 
sacred  thread.  The  Kunbi,  on  the  other  hand,  does  not  claim  to  be  a 
Kshattriya,  allows  adult  marriages  and  the  marriage  of  widows,  and  wears 
no  thread  to  indicate  the  twice-born  status.  But  the  dividing  line  is 
not  of  the  nature  of  a  permanent  barrier,  and  can  be  passed  by  wealthy 
Kunbis  with  ambition  in  proportion  to  their  means.  There  is  some 
historical  evidence  in  support  of  the  claims  of  certain  Maratha  families 
to  Rajput  descent.  This  does  not,  however,  throw  light  on  the  origin 
of  the  main  portion  of  the  caste,  or  tribe  as  it  should  correctly  be 
styled.  The  indications  of  a  former  social  organization  of  the  tribe  on  a 
totemistic  basis,  which  are  now  attracting  attention,  would  seem  to  point 
to  a  mixed  origin  for  the  greater  number  of  the  present-day  Marathas. 

The  Lingayats,  who  number  1,422,000,  are  a  religious  community, 
resident  in  the  southern  portions  of  the  Presidency.  Having  first  come 
into  prominence  in  the  days  of  the  religious  reformer  Basappa  of 
Kalyani,  who  lived  in  the  twelfth  century,  they  seem  at  first  to  have 
disregarded  caste  distinctions,  and  the  social  organization  of  the  highest 
groups  among  the  Lingayats  appears  to  be  dependent  on  initiation  to 
the  present  day.  Converts  who  joined  at  a  later  date  are  ranged  in 
subdivisions  based  on  profession,  ordinarily  that  of  their  unregenerate 
days,  while  a  third  class  of  half  Lingayats,  or  low  castes  attached  to  the 
community  for  menial  services,  is  recognized.  One  of  the  tests  of 
a  Lingayat's  claims  so  to  describe  himself  is  his  right  to  the  ashtavarna 


POPULA  TION  305 

or  'eightfold  sacrament.'  Lingayats  of  the  present  day  are  disposed 
to  call  themselves  Hindus,  and  to  apply  to  their  subdivisions  Manu's 
fourfold  caste  system. 

Brahmans  number  1,053,000.  Apart  from  the  intellectual  and  social 
pre-eminence  of  the  majority  of  those  who  so  described  themselves,  the 
special  feature  of  the  Brahman  caste  is  its  very  extensive  system  of 
subdivision  into  endogamous  groups.  There  are  over  200  such 
groups,  each  of  which  is  again  subdivided  into  sections  the  members  of 
which  must  marry  outside  their  limits.  The  origin  of  many  of  these 
endogamous  divisions  is  believed  to  have  been  political ;  geographical 
names,  such  as  Agarval,  Khedaval,  and  Sihori,  of  which  there  are  many, 
are  evidence  in  support  of  this  assumption.  The  connecting  link 
between  the  numerous  divisions  is  that  of  common  social  predomi- 
nance, combined  with  the  right  to  perform  certain  ceremonies. 

Yams,  numbering  1,054,250  (Hindus  976,128),  are  traders.  The 
common  bond  is  one  of  occupation.  Ethnically  they  consist  of  groups 
of  widely  divergent  origin.  The  endogamous  subdivisions  are  almost 
as  numerous  as  in  the  case  of  the  Brahmans.  Ordinarily,  the  Vani 
claims  to  rank  as  a  Vaishya  of  Manu's  fourfold  classification  scheme, 
and  wears  the  sacred  thread. 

The  remaining  larger  castes  and  tribes  of  the  Presidency  proper  may 
be  roughly  classified  as  follows  : — 

Wild    or    semi-civilized    tribes — Kolis,     BhIls,     Berads,    Varlis, 

Thakurs,  Vanjaris,  and  Ahirs. 
Shepherds  and  herdsmen — Dhangars,  Kurabas,  and  Bharvads. 
Low  caste  and  menials — Dhers,  Mahars  and  Holias,  Moclus  and 

Chamars,  and  Mangs. 
Artisans—  Lohars,  Sutars,   Darzls,   Sonars,  Kumbhars,   Bhandaris, 
Malls,  Hajjams,  and  Nhavis. 

These,  with  a  few  additional  cultivating  castes  of  the  status  of 
the  Maratha.  Kunbi,  e.g.  Agrls,  Kunbis,  and  Rabaris,  make  up  the 
greater  portion  (85  per  cent.)  of  the  population  of  the  Presidency 
proper.  Details  of  the  strength  of  the  remaining  castes  are  to  be  found 
in  the  census  tables  of  1901. 

The  province  of  Sind,  which  since  an  early  period  of  its  history 
has  been  under  the  sway  of  invading  Musalman  tribes,  contains  a  popu- 
lation bearing  little  affinity  to  that  of  the  remainder  of  the  Presidency. 
Here  the  tribal  units  occupy  the  leading  place,  while  castes  are  rele- 
gated to  a  comparatively  subordinate  position. 

The  Musalman  tribes  of  the  province  consist  of  ten  main  groups  : — 

Arab.  Makranl. 

Afghan  or  Pathan.  Mughal. 

Baloch.  Sh.iikh. 

Brahui.  Sindl. 

Jat.  Menial  and  slave  tribes. 

VOLr-VIII.  X 


306  BOMBAY   PRESIDENCY 


o 


In  the  Census  of  1901  an  attempt  was  made  to  ascertain  the  numeri- 
cal strength  of  the  most  important  subdivisions  of  these  groups.  The 
attempt  was  only  partially  successful,  owing  to  the  tendency  of  mem- 
bers of  such  tribal  subdivisions  to  return  the  name  of  the  subdivision 
only  when  it  is  one  of  admitted  local  importance.  In  cases  where  the 
number  of  unspecified  was  very  high,  the  record  of  subdivisional 
strength  was  omitted.  In  the  case  of  the  Baloch  tribes  the  record  of 
subdivisions  appears  to  have  been  successfully  accomplished.  The 
Baloch  number  542,000,  divided  into  sixteen  important  tribes.  The 
Rind — with  its  offshoots  the  Dombki,  Khosa,  Jamali,  Jakrani,  Lighari 
—includes  270,000;  the  Chandias,  75,000;  the  Burdis,  68,000;  and 
the  border  tribes,  Marri  and  Bugti,  37,000.  Among  the  first  are  the 
Talpurs,  historically  of  interest  as  the  last  independent  rulers  of  Sind. 

Arabs  number  261,000  in  the  whole  Presidency,  of  whom  130,000 
described  themselves  as  Saiyid.  Sind  alone  contains  122,000.  The 
term  Saiyid,  strictly  interpreted,  means  '  lord '  or  '  chief,'  and  is 
applicable  to  the  descendants  of  the  Prophet's  daughter,  Blbi  Fatima. 
Some  caution,  however,  is  necessary  in  accepting  the  returns  of  Saiyid, 
the  title  being  popular  among  Musalmans  who  are  certainly  not  of 
Arab  origin,  and  thus  not,  strictly  speaking,  entitled  to  use  it.  A 
similar  error  may  result  from  classing  as  Arabs  those  Shaikhs  who  are 
ordinarily  nothing  more  than  converts  to  Islam,  whereas  a  Shaikh 
should  properly  signify  an  Arab  or  descendant  of  the  Prophet's 
relations.  Shaikhs,  who  number  968,000,  have  therefore  to  be  kept 
distinct  from  the  Arabs.  The  Kalhora  tribe,  which  preceded  the 
Talpurs  as  rulers  of  Sind,  numbers  more  than  23,000.  The  Samo  and 
Samro  divisions  of  the  Sindi  tribes  controlled  the  fortunes  of  the 
province  for  seven  hundred  years  previous  to  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  According  to  the  recent  Census  these  tribes  are  now  repre- 
sented by  124,000  Samros  and  794,000  Samos.  There  are  48,000 
Brahuis,  27,000  Mughals,  and  170,000  Pathans. 

The  caste  organization  in  Sind  has  undergone  considerable  modifica- 
tion, owing  to  contact  with  the  alien  and  dominant  social  system  of  the 
Musalman  tribes  referred  to  above.  Brahmans  number  14,000,  or 
0-4  per  cent,  of  the  population,  compared  with  4-7  per  cent,  in  the 
rest  of  the  Presidency.  They  are  a  degraded  and  illiterate  caste.  With 
their  fall  from  the  commanding  position  that  they  occupy  under  a 
Hindu  regime,  their  influence  on  subordinate  castes  has  diminished, 
until,  in  place  of  a  general  tendency  on  the  part  of  the  latter  to  imitate 
their  social  system  and  religious  customs,  it  will  be  found  that  the 
premier  Hindu  caste  in  Sind,  the  Lohanas,  wear  the  beard  of  the 
Musalman  conqueror,  and  permit  themselves  the  luxury  of  animal 
food,  provided  that  it  has  been  slain  after  the  orthodox  fashion 
of  Islam. 


POPULATION 


507 


•    The  chief  Sind  castes  (numbering  over  4,000)  are  : — 

Bhil.                                       Koli.  Rajput. 

Brahman.                               Kurmi.  Shikari. 

Charan.                                  Mazhabi  Sikh.  Sonar. 

Dher  or  Mahar.                    Odd.  Vanl. 
Khitri. 

Statistics  regarding  religion  for  the  whole  Presidency  in    1S91   and 
1 90 1  are  given  below  : — ■ 


Religion. 

Persons. 

1891. 

1901. 

Hindu  ...... 

Animist         ..... 

Jain 

Musalman     ..... 

Pars!     ...... 

Christian       ..... 

Native  Christians 
Europeans  and  Eurasians  . 

Others 

Total 

21,43s, 244 

292,023 

555.209 

4.355,802 

76,456 

167,004 

19,916,438 

94,845 

535.95° 

4,567,295 

78,552 
216,118 

129,308 
37,6q6 

31,604 

26,916,342 

180,841 

35.277 

15,037 

25.424,-'35 

About  78  per  cent,  of  the  population  is  Hindu,  18  per  cent.  Muham- 
madan,  2  per  cent.  Jain,  and  less  than  1  per  cent.  Christian.  No  very 
strict  line  can  be  drawn  between  Animists  and  low-class  Hindus. 
Hindus  are  for  the  most  part  either  Vaishnavas,  Saivas,  or  Lingayats, 
the  first  being  most  common  in  Gujarat  and  the  last  in  the  south  of 
the  Presidency.  The  leading  Vaishnava  sects  are  those  of  Ramanand 
(fourteenth  century),  Vallabhacharya  (1479-1531),  Swami  Narayan 
(1780-1830),  and  Kablr  (c.  1400). 

Muhammadans  are  chiefly  (97  per  cent.)  Sunnis,  though  the  Shiah  sect 
is  also  represented,  especially  in  Bombay,  where  the  Ismailiya  Shiahs  or 
Khojas  form  an  important  community  under  the  spiritual  headship  of  the 
Agha  Khan.  They  are  supposed  to  represent  the  Assassins  (Hashishin) 
of  the  crusading  epoch.  A  new  sect  of  Moslems  known  as  the  Ahmad- 
iyyas  and  numbering  over  10,000  was  recorded  in  1901.  They  are 
spiritual  followers  of  the  chief  of  Kadian,  who  resides  in  the  Punjab. 
Among  Jains,  the  Svetambara,  Digambara,  and  Dhundia  sects  are  all 
represented,  though  the  two  former  have  numerical  preponderance.  The 
Parsi  community  is  divided  between  Bombay  and  Surat.  Sikhs  are 
mainly  found  in  Sind,  and  Jews  in  Bombay  and  the  coast  Districts. 

Twenty-six  Protestant  missionary  bodies  are  at  work  in  the  Presi- 
dency. The  work  of  the  Irish  Presbyterian  Mission  and  the  Salvation 
Army  in  Gujarat,  of  the  American  Marathi  Mission  in  the  Deccan,  and 
of  the  Basel  German  Mission  in  the  Kanarese  Districts,  deserve  special 
mention. 

x  2 


Fhe  stations  of  the  S.P.G.  and  the  C.M.S.  are  more  gener- 


3o8  BOMB  A  V  PRESIDENCY 

ally  distributed.  Sind  is  included  in  the  Anglican  diocese  of  Lahore,  and 
the  rest  of  the  Presidency  in  that  of  Bombay.  The  greater  part  of  the 
Presidency  is  comprised  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Archbishopric  of  Bombay, 
Poona  being  the  seat  of  a  Suffragan  Bishop.  Diu,  Daman,  Thana,  Kolaba, 
and  parts  of  Bombay  City  are  in  the  diocese  of  Daman.  About  one- 
sixth  of  the  Christians  are  members  of  the  Anglican  communion,  while 
one-half  are  Roman  Catholics,  many  of  these  in  Kanara  and  Thana 
being  descendants  of  converts  made  by  the  Portuguese.  There  are 
a  few  thousand  Methodists  and  Presbyterians.  In  only  live  Districts 
does  the  Christian  population  exceed  10,000 — these  are  Thana,  Kaira, 
Ahmadnagar,  Poona,  and  Kanara.  During  the  decade  ending  1901  the 
Christian  population  increased  by  30  per  cent.,  mainly  owing  to  con- 
versions among  the  lower  classes. 

The  classification  of  the  people  in  British  Districts  according  to  occupa- 
tion shows  540,000  persons  (or  3  per  cent,  of  the  total)  in  Government 
service;  11,000,000  (59  per  cent.)  engaged  in  agriculture;  320,000 
(2  per  cent.)  in  trade  or  commerce  ;  3,400,000  (19  per  cent.)  in  manu- 
factures and  arts  ;  590,000  (3  per  cent.)  in  domestic  occupations. 
These  figures  include  dependants  or  persons  supported  by  the  occupa- 
tion referred  to  in  each  case.  The  chief  occupation  is  agriculture.  The 
industrial  section  of  the  population  in  most  of  the  rural  Districts  forms 
an  insignificant  section  of  the  whole.  The  leading  industrial  Districts 
are  Ahmadabad,  Surat,  Karachi,  and  Shikarpur  (now  Sukkur),  with 
27,  35,  24,  and  31  per  cent,  respectively  of  their  population  following 
industrial  occupations. 

Pood  is  taken  twice  a  day,  between  ten  and  twelve  in  the  morning 
and  eight  and  ten  at  night.  For  the  morning  meal  a  family  in  good 
circumstances  will  take  rice  of  hue  quality,  split  pulse  boiled  and 
seasoned  with  spices,  cakes  of  wheaten  flour  spread  with  clarified 
butter,  and  some  vegetables.  At  the  evening  meal  there  are  cakes, 
milk  boiled  and  mixed  with  sugar,  vegetables,  and  pickles.  It  is  rare 
for  high-caste  Hindus  to  eat  animal  food,  though  certain  coast  Brah- 
mans  allow  themselves  fresh  fish.  The  diet  of  the  poorer  classes  is 
joivar  or  bdjra  bread,  rice,  split  pulse,  and  vegetables.  To  this  the 
lower  castes  add  mutton  and  the  flesh  of  fowls.  The  wild  tribes  eat 
the  cheapest  grains,  such  as  ragi  and  kodra,  and  partake  freely  of  game. 
The  unclean  castes  will  eat  anything,  including  the  flesh  of  animals  that 
have  died  a  natural  death.  Musalmans  will  only  eat  the  flesh  of 
animals  killed  with  a  prayer  uttered  at  the  time  of  cutting  the  throat. 
To  Jains  and  Lingayats  of  all  ranks  animal  food  is  forbidden. 

People  of  the  better  class  do  not  ordinarily  touch  liquor.  The  low 
castes  and  wild  tribes  are  fond  of  toddy  and  cheap  country  spirits, 
though  excess  in  drinking  is  rare.  For  stimulants  and  narcotics,  opium 
and   tobacco    are    widely  used   in    moderation.     The   practice   oi    tea- 


POPULATION  309 

drinking,  especially  during  railway  journeys,  has  recently  made  great 
progress,  and  the  habit  of  chewing  betel-nut  is  almost  universal  with 
both  sexes. 

Fifty  years  ago  a  man's  costume  would  have  sufficed  to  serve  as  an 
indication  of  his  caste.  Nowadays  even  the  types  of  pagrls  or  turbans 
are  losing  their  significance,  and  a  distressing  form  of  pork-pie  cap, 
garnished  with  a  border  of  coloured  flowers,  frequently  tends  to  conceal 
the  social  status  of  the  wearer.  The  heavy  pagri  of  the  Maratha,  the 
high  headdress  of  the  Bania,  closely  imitated  by  the  head-covering  of 
the  Pars!,  the  tightly  bound  turban  of  the  Prabhu,  and  the  double- 
peaked  pagri  of  the  Bhatia  can  still,  however,  be  readily  identified. 
Most  Hindus  retain  the  fine  cotton  dhoti  as  a  leg  covering,  though 
European  influence  is  making  itself  felt  in  the  cut  and  texture  of  the 
coat  that  covers  the  upper  part  of  the  body,  and  the  shirt  and  collar 
that  are  to  be  detected  underneath.  Musalmans  and  Parsls  wear 
trousers.  The  women  are  far  more  simple  in  their  costume,  being  com- 
monly content  with  a  long  robe  or  sari,  wound  round  the  legs,  and 
drawn  across  the  breast  to  fall  over  the  head  and  shoulder.  To  this 
a  choll  or  short  tight  bodice  is  frequently  added,  and  in  Gujarat  a  petti- 
coat. On  the  other  hand,  they  delight  in  a  great  diversity  of  orna- 
ments, from  gems  and  necklets  of  solid  gold,  such  as  the  richer  classes 
wear,  to  the  long  brass  anklets  affected  by  the  Bhlls  and  gipsy  women, 
or  the  many  pounds'  weight  of  beads  and  berries  that  cover  the  breasts 
of  the  primitive  cultivating  and  fishing  classes.  For  the  most  part  the 
bright-coloured  saris  of  the  women  are  still  woven  on  the  village  loom. 

People  of  almost  all  classes  consider  it  a  point  of  honour  to  have 
a  house  of  their  own.  The  character  of  the  dwelling  depends  mainly 
on  the  materials  available,  the  extent  of  the  rainfall,  and  the  means  of 
the  owner.  Where  timber  is  scarce,  roughly  made  mud  bricks  are  in 
use,  and  a  foot  or  two  of  solid  earth  on  a  layer  of  rafters  serves  to  pro- 
tect the  residents  from  the  great  heat  and  the  scanty  rainfall.  On  the 
coast  two-storeyed  houses  are  common,  with  projecting  roofs  covered 
with  country  tiles.  Here  the  poorer  classes  are  content  with  wattle-and- 
daub  huts,  thatched  with  grass  or  dried  palm-leaves.  Houses  above  the 
Ghats,  within  the  zone  of  heavy  rainfall,  do  not  differ  materially  from 
those  on  the  coast,  though  more  wood  is  used  in  their  construction 
when  timber  is  plentiful.  There  is  little  luxury  in  the  furnishing — a 
few  strong  wooden  boxes,  some  tape-bound  wooden  cots,  mattresses, 
cotton  carpets,  and  the  indispensable  cooking-pots,  make  an  ample 
outfit  for  a  well-to-do  cultivator.  The  poorest  classes  are  content  with 
a  mattress  and  a  few  earthen  jars. 

Perhaps  the  most  interesting  characteristic  of  the  people  is  their 
fondness  for  caste  feasts  and  pilgrimages.  Trade  dinners  are  given 
either  by  the  whole  caste  or  by  a  member  of  it.     Social  dinners  are 


310  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

given  by  a  caste  member,  or  are  held  as  picnics,  each  supplying  his  own 
food.     It  is  usual  to  celebrate  a  family  event,  such  as  the  wife's  first 
pregnancy,  an  investiture   with    the   sacred   thread,  a  marriage,  or   a 
death,  by  a  feast  given  to  all  the  members  of  the  caste.    Several  days 
are  spent  in  laying  in  supplies  and  collecting  cooking-pots  ;  all  lend  a 
willing  hand  in  the  preparations.     The  food  is  distributed  by  the  host 
and  his  family  to  the  men  and  boys,  who  feed  first,  and  after  them  the 
women  are  allowed  to  sit  down  to  the  feast.     Among  the  more  popular 
forms  of  sport  are  bullock-racing  in  light  carriages,  and  ram-,  cock-,  or 
quail-fighting.     Outdoor  games  for  youths  generally  take  the  form  of 
gymnastic  exercises,  including  wrestling  and  putting  a  weight,  though 
of  recent  years  cricket  has  come  greatly  into  fashion  in  all  parts  of  the 
Presidency,  and  lawn-tennis  is   not   unknown.      Children  are  fond  of 
kite-flying.     Indoor  games  include  chess,  cards,  and  songati  or  Indian 
backgammon.     Dramatic  performances  are  popular,  and  some  of  the 
wild  tribes  are  skilful  in  devising  extempore  plays  for  the  entertainment 
of  visitors.     But  the  time  to  see  the  people  of  the  country-side  at  their 
best   is  at  the  fair.     At  the  oncoming  of  the  hot  season,   when  the 
harvest  has  been  gathered  in,  the  thoughts  of  the  simple  peasants  will 
turn  to  one  of  the  many  shrines  of  the  country-side.    Some  will  shoulder 
the  yellow  flag  of  SivajT,  the  bhagva  jhetido,  and  trudge  sturdily  along 
the  dusty  Deccan  roads  to  the  tomb  of  Jnaneshvar  at  Alandi.     Others 
in  their  best  costume  climb  the  steep  slopes  of  Harischandragarh,  to 
seek  the  tank  and  temples  of  the  Gauli  Raja  with  shouts  of  '  Gyanoba 
Tukaram  !  Gyanoba  Tukaram  ! '     The  sacred   shrines  of  Gokarn  will 
draw  thousands  from  all  parts  of  the  Konkan  and  Carnatic  to  worship 
the  mighty  Siva,  and  join  the  merry  crowd  of  bathers  in  the  long  rollers 
of  the  Indian  Ocean.     Endless  bands  of  women-folk,  packed  twenty  or 
thirty  in  a  country  cart,  will  rumble  along  for  days  to  the  rocky  hill  near 
Saundatti,   making  the   country-side   re-echo   to  the  long-drawn  cries 
of  '  Ai  Yellamma—oh  /'     Happy  in   the  anticipation  of  the  harmless 
merry-making  of  these  gatherings,  the  weary  journey  is  a  holiday  picnic, 
in  which  good  temper  and  stout  hearts  prevail,  for  a  simple  peasantry 
with  simple  pleasures,  bearing  with  equanimity  the  scourge  of  famine 
and    pestilence,    and   ever   ready   for   the    final    pilgrimage   when    the 
greatest  of  all  shrines  shall  lie  open  to  them. 

The  joint  family  system  is  everywhere  supreme.  The  Hindus  of  the 
Presidency  generally  have  three  names,  the  first  their  own,  which  is 
given  to  them  on  the  twelfth  day  after  birth,  the  second  is  the  father's, 
and  the  third  a  surname  (the  family  designation).  The  surnames  are  in 
some  cases  professional  appellatives,  and  in  others  are  derived  from 
places,  e.g.  Belgaumkar,  Poonekar,  which  once  signified  that  the  bearer 
had  special  rights  in  such  places,  though  the  significance  of  such  terms 
is  rapidly  disappearing  with   their  increasing  popularity.     The  ParsTs 


AGRICULTURE  311 

have  two  names  like  the  Hindus,  to  which  they  add  such  surnames  as 
'  Contractor,'  '  Engineer,'  &c,  and  at  times  the  names  of  their  grand- 
fathers are  used  in  the  place  of  surnames.  Among  low-class  Hindus 
the  word  bin  or  ivalad  (both  meaning  '  son ')  is  inserted  between  a 
man's  name  and  his  father's,  which  is  coupled  to  it,  while  women  add 
their  husband's  name,  after  the  word  kotn,  to  their  own. 

Honorific  suffixes  are  common.  Thus,  in  Gujarat,  rai,  /di,  shetji ;  in 
the  Deccan,  rao,  naik,  sahib  ;  and  in  the  Carnatic,  appa  or  gauda,  with 
corresponding  terms  for  females,  such  as  bai  and  amma.  Pant  and  shet 
generally  denote  a  Brahman  and  a  goldsmith.  The  common  form  of 
address  is  Raj  many  a  Rajeshri.  In  the  case  of  persons  of  lower  rank 
Rajeshri  alone  is  used.  Tirthstvarup  or  Chiranjlv  are  added  in 
addressing  old  or  young  relatives  respectively.  To  parents  Tirthrup 
is  used,  instead  of  Tirthstvarup.  Before  the  names  of  married  women 
the  word  Saubhdgyavati  is  used,  and  in  the  case  of  widows,  Gangdrup. 
Learned  Brahmans  are  styled  Vedmurti,  and  the  rich  Shrimant, 
while  in  the  Carnatic  it  is  usual  to  address  persons  of  rank  as  Swdtni 
('lord')  or  Devaru  ('god'). 

The  soils  of  the  Presidency  vary  according  to  the  natural  divisions 

which   have   been  already  described.      In  Sind  the  soils  are  wholly 

alluvial ;    they  vary  in  character   from    drift-sand  to  .     , 

Agriculture 
light  clays,  and  are  often  strongly  impregnated  with 

salt.  In  Gujarat  they  are  classed  in  two  main  divisions,  kali  and  goradu. 
The  first  is  black  cotton  soil,  of  which  extensive  tracts  are  found  in 
Broach  and  Surat.  It  is  supposed  to  be  the  result  of  an  alluvium 
brought  down  by  the  Tapti  and  Narbada  rivers,  and  corresponds  to 
the  regar  of  the  Central  Provinces.  Goradu  soils  are  characterized 
by  immense  depth,  varying  from  the  drift-sands  of  Ahmadabad  to  the 
rich  loam  of  Kaira.     They  are  entirely  alluvial. 

Characteristic  of  the  Ueccan  is  the  black  soil  formed  from  the 
weathering  of  the  trap  rock,  of  which  the  broad  wheat,  cotton,  and 
jowar  lands  of  Khandesh,  Nasik,  Ahmadnagar,  Sholapur,  Bijapur, 
and  Dharwar  are  formed.  Near  the  hills  the  soil  is  lighter-coloured 
and  less  rich.  In  the  valleys  of  the  south-west  the  reddish-brown 
laterite  is  terraced  into  rice  lands,  and  the  beds  of  the  streams  grow 
rice  crops  during  the  hot  season.  The  bottom  soils  are  clay  loams 
of  great  natural  fertility.  These  form  the  greater  part  of  Belgaum  and 
Dharwar.  The  Kanara  spice  gardens  are  formed  in  soil  closely  resem- 
bling the  red  loam  of  the  hilly  tracts  in  Belgaum  and  Dharwar.  In  the 
Konkan,  soils  are  classified  as  rice,  garden,  or  varkas  (the  light  and 
poor  soil  of  the  uplands).  The  open  tracts  of  land  at  the  bottom  of 
the  coast  valleys  are  rice  lands.  Where  the  soil  is  light  and  easily 
worked,  with  a  good  supply  of  fresh  water,  gardens  are  formed.  On  the 
uplands  the  varkas  soils  yield  coarse  grains  at  long  intervals. 


3i2  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

The  dark  deep  soils  described  above  grow  the  richest  crops — wheat, 
cotton,  gram  (Cicer  aricti/mm),  jowar  {Sorghum  vulgare\  and  bajra 
(Pennisetum  typhoideum).  With  irrigation  the  better  red  soils  may 
produce  spices  and  sugar-cane,  which  are  still  more  valuable,  but  for 
the  most  part  they  grow  rice.  The  lightest  soils  on  the  hill  slopes 
yield  coarse  grains  such  as  nagli  (Eleusine  coracatia),  and  require 
frequent  fallows.  The  light  soils,  under  a  heavy  rainfall,  give  one 
crop  at  the  end  of  the  south-west  monsoon.  Elsewhere  the  crops  are 
divided  into  kharlf  or  early  crops,  sown  from  May  to  July  and  reaped 
from  October  to  December  ;  and  rabi  or  late  crops,  sown  from  August 
to  October,  and  reaped  from  February  to  April.  In  good  soils  a 
double  crop  is  occasionally  gathered,  the  first  being  sown  with  the 
early  rains,  and  the  second  in  October  to  be  harvested  in  March  or 
April. 

The  system  of  cultivation  varies  with  the  soil.  In  the  black  soil 
plains  of  the  south-eastern  Deccan  ploughing  is  resorted  to  only  when 
fields  have  grown  foul.  The  surface  must  be  kept  free  from  weeds, 
and  is  thoroughly  harrowed  before  sowing.  Cattle-manure  is  applied 
when  available,  and  a  common  method  of  application  is  by  folding 
sheep  and  goats  when  the  flocks  of  professional  graziers  pass  through 
the  country.  In  the  uplands  subject  to  heavy  rainfall,  where  nagli  and 
van'  are  grown,  and  on  the  coast  for  rice  cultivation  the  reddish  soils 
are  terraced  with  great  care  to  hold  the  flow  of  water  during  the  mon- 
soon. Here  the  soil  requires  regular  ploughing,  and  the  heavy  clods 
must  be  broken  by  manual  labour  before  sowing  commences.  The 
seed  is  usually  sown  on  a  small  plot  of  land  upon  which  a  layer  of  dry 
grass,  leaves,  and  twigs  has  been  burnt  (ral>),  and  the  seedlings  are 
afterwards  transplanted  from  the  nursery  to  the  fields.  Sometimes  the 
whole  field  is  sown  broad-cast.  In  Kolaba  and  Kanara  the  wasteful 
form  of  tillage  known  as  dalhi  and  kumri  was  formerly  common, 
a  patch  of  forest  land  being  prepared  by  lopping  and  burning  the  trees, 
and  abandoned  after  two  or  three  crops  had  been  raised.  The  system 
is  now  dying  out.  Another  special  method  of  cultivation  in  the  forest 
tracts  is  the  growing  of  waingan  or  hot-season  rice.  By  damming  the 
perennial  streams  of  the  Ghats,  the  river  valleys  are  converted  into 
stretches  of  verdant  cultivation  during  the  hot  months.  The  spice 
gardens  of  Kanara  yield  valuable  crops  of  cardamoms,  betel,  and  pep- 
per. The  areca-palms  and  betel-vines  require  extensive  manuring, 
which  the  garden  owners  provide  from  stable  sweepings  and  decaying 
leaves.  The  mixture  is  heaped  round  the  base  of  the  tree,  and  covered 
with  branches  freshly  lopped  from  the  adjacent  forest. 

Where  the  water-supply  is  less  plentiful,  crops  are  raised  by  well- 
irrigation.  Near  large  cities  such  as  Poona,  the  use  of  poudrette  is 
becoming   popular,  and    in    the    Konkan    fish-manure   is   often    used. 


AGRICULTURE  313 

Throughout  the  greater  part  of  the  Presidency,  however,  owing  to 
the  common  practice  of  using  cow-dung  /or  fuel,  and  to  the  prejudice 
against  certain  other  forms  of  manure,  the  application  of  fertilizing 
materials  is  carried  out  on  a  very  limited  scale. 

In  irrigated  lands,  crops  such  as  sugar-cane,  yams,  turmeric,  suran 
{Amorphophalhts  campanulatus),  sweet  potatoes,  &c,  alternate  with 
each  other.  In  '  dry-crop '  land,  jowar  in  heavy  soils  and  bajra  in 
light  soils  alternate  with  cotton.  The  rotation  is  extended  by  growing 
tur  {Cajanus  indicus),  til,  or  a  rabi  crop  of  wheat  when  the  fields  have 
grown  foul  and  require  cleaning.  The  practice  of  growing  mixed  crops, 
i.  e.  leguminous  crops  with  cereals,  reduces  the  necessity  of  maintain- 
ing strict  rotation  of  crops,  the  former  supplying  nitrogen  to  the  soil. 
Nitrogen  is  the  essential  plant-food  in  which  Indian  soils  are  poorest. 

Except  in  Sind  and  on  the  poorer  lands  of  the  Konkan,  fallows  are 
not  common,  owing  in  some  measure  to  the  assessment  on  the  land 
being  payable  irrespective  of  whether  cultivation  takes  place  or  not. 

About  three-quarters  of  the  population  of  the  Presidency  are  engaged 
in,  or  dependent  on,  agriculture.  Outside  the  large  centres  of  industry, 
such  as  Bombay  and  Ahmadabad,  the  population  may  be  said  to 
consist  almost  entirely  of  the  landowning  classes,  and  of  agricultural 
labourers  who  assist  in  the  preparation  of  the  land  for  sowing,  in  the 
guarding  of  the  growing  crop,  and  in  the  subsequent  harvesting  operations. 

The  principal  food-crops  are  rice,  bajra,  jowar,  and  wheat ;  rice  being 
specially  characteristic  of  the  Konkan  and  wheat  of  Sind,  Northern 
Gujarat,  and  the  Deccan,  while  bajra  and  joivar  are  grown  almost 
everywhere  except  in  the  Konkan.  Of  non-food  crops,  cotton  is  by  far 
the  most  important,  and  is  characteristic  of  Gujarat,  the  Tapti  valley, 
and  the  south-eastern  Deccan.  The  average  yield  per  acre  of  cleaned 
rice  is  1,200  to  1,320  lb.  ;  that  of  wheat  on  irrigated  land  r,ooo  to 
1,320  lb.,  and  on  'dry-crop'  land  460  to  900  lb. ;  that  of  bajra  about 
350  lb.;  that  of  jowar  from  1,500  lb.,  if  irrigated,  to  540  lb.  if  not; 
and  that  of  cleaned  cotton  from  90  lb.  in  Khandesh  to  130  lb.  in 
Broach. 

Throughout  the  greater  part  of  the  Presidency  very  little  cultivable 
land  remains  uncultivated.  Since  1881  the  area  cultivated  in  the  Pre- 
sidency proper  has  increased  from  33,971  to  47,155  square  miles  ;  and 
in  Sind,  where  irrigation  has  been  extended,  the  area  taken  up  for  cul- 
tivation expanded  from  4,539  square  miles  in  1881  to  13,052  in  1903-4, 
and  the  area  actually  cropped  from  2,821  to  5,932  square  miles.  No  im- 
portant improvement  can  be  recorded  in  the  selection  of  seed  during 
this  period,  the  experiments  conducted  with  that  object  on  Government 
farms  not  having  yet  achieved  results  that  can  be  made  the  subject  of 
more  extensive  trials.  These  farms  are  situated  at  Poona,  Surat,  and 
Nadiad.      Important  experiments  are  being  made  there  with  the  object 


3 1 4  BO  MB  A  ) '  PRESIDE NCI ' 

of  improving  the  staple  of  indigenous  cotton  and  discovering  a  rust- 
proof variety  of  wheat. 

The  Land  Improvement  and  Agriculturists'  Loans  Acts  provide  for 
small  advances  being  made  to  cultivators  for  the  purpose  of  improving 
their  fields  by  digging  wells,  erecting  protective  banks,  weeding,  &c,  or 
for  the  purchase  of  seed  and  cattle.  Such  advances  were  not  unknown 
in  the  days  of  Maratha  rule,  but  until  lately  they  have  not  been  gener- 
ally popular  except  in  the  Southern  Deccan.  The  famines  of  the  last 
few  years  have  made  the  system  better  known  ;  and  it  is  probable  that, 
as  it  is  improved  and  developed,  the  sums  expended  each  year  will  very 
greatly  exceed  the  totals  hitherto  reached,  the  highest  of  which  was 
94^  lakhs  in  the  famine  year,  1 900-1.  Loans  for  the  purchase  of 
seed  and  cattle  are  repayable  in  short  periods  of  one  to  two  years, 
subject  to  the  discretionary  power  of  the  Collector  to  extend  the  period 
to  not  more  than  ten  years.  Loans  for  the  improvement  of  land  must, 
in  default  of  special  sanction  from  Government,  be  repaid  within  twenty 
years,  the  instalments  commencing  from  the  date  when  the  improve- 
ment is  estimated  to  yield  a  return.  Bad  debts  are  rare,  and  the  chief 
difficulty  is  to  meet  the  very  numerous  demands  received  for  advances. 
Agriculturists  are  specially  protected  by  the  Dekkhan  Agriculturists' 
Relief  Act  (1879),  the  most  important  provisions  of  which  have  been 
extended  to  the  whole  Presidency,  but  many  of  the  original  peasant 
proprietors  have  become  the  tenants  of  money-lenders.  Statistics  of 
agriculture  and  irrigation,  in  square  miles,  for  the  Bombay  Presidency, 
are  shown  in  Table  II  on  p.  385. 

The  cultivation  of  the  great  export  staple,  cotton,  is  sufficiently  impor- 
tant to  deserve  special  mention.  Even  before  the  close  of  the  eighteenth 
century  India  exported  a  considerable  amount  of  raw  cotton  to  England, 
but  this  was  mainly  shipped  from  Calcutta.  Bombay,  which  had  pre- 
viously exported  cotton  to  China,  does  not  seem  to  have  entered  into 
the  business  until  about  1825.  For  many  years  afterwards  the  ship- 
ments of  cotton  were  liable  to  great  vicissitudes,  depending  chiefly  upon 
the  yield  of  the  American  crop.  But  the  Indian  cultivators  found  their 
opportunity  when  the  war  between  North  and  South  in  the  United  States 
cut  off  the  supplies  of  the  English  manufacturer  and  caused  the  '  cotton 
famine'  in  Lancashire.  During  the  five  years  ending  with  1853-4  the 
export  of  cotton  from  Bombay  had  averaged  less  than  if  million  cwt., 
valued  at  250  lakhs;  in  the  five  years  ending  with  1868-9  the  average 
quantity  had  risen  to  3!  million  cwt.,  and  the  average  value  to  nearly 
20  crores.  In  the  single  year  1864-5  tne  value  reached  30  crores. 
A  collapse  came  in  1865,  on  the  termination  of  the  American  Civil 
War.  Prices  have  fallen  very  heavily,  but  the  quantity  of  cotton  grown 
is  maintained.  In  1 880-1  the  extent  of  land  under  cotton  in  the 
whole  Presidency,  including  Sind  and  Native  States,  was  returned  at 


AGRICULTURE  315 

6,563  square  miles.  Of  this  area,  5,469  square  miles  were  planted 
with  indigenous  and  about  1,094  square  miles  with  exotic  cotton.  The 
quantity  exported  in  the  same  year  was  returned  at  over  3^  million  cwt. 
from  Bombay,  and  100,000  cwt.  from  Sind.  By  1891,  the  area  under 
cotton  (exclusive  of  Native  States)  had  increased  to  4,934  square  miles, 
and  the  total  exports  to  4§  million  cwt.  In  1901,  owing  to  the  drought, 
the  area  decreased  to  3,701  square  miles,  and  the  exports  to  less  than 
3  million  cwt. ;  but  in  1903-4  the  area  was  5,906  square  miles,  and  the 
exports  were  6-7  million  cwt.,  of  which  Germany  and  Japan  each  took 
about  1 -4  million  cwt.,  Belgium  and  Italy  0-9  million  cwt.  each,  Austria 
0-7  million  cwt.,  and  the  United  Kingdom  0-4  million  cwt. 

The  growth  of  the  local  mill  industry  has  naturally  been  accom- 
panied by  a  largely  increased  local  consumption  of  cotton,  the  Bombay 
mills  being  almost  entirely  dependent  on  the  indigenous  variety.  This  is 
a  short-stapled  cotton  which  is  not  suitable  for  the  spinning  of  yarns 
above  32's.  Cotton  of  longer  staple  when  sown  in  the  best  cotton- 
growing  tracts  soon  degenerates  to  the  local  standard.  Numerous 
efforts  have  been  made  by  Government  and  private  persons  to  intro- 
duce a  seed  that  will  furnish  a  better  stapled  cotton,  but  hitherto  with 
little  success,  except  in  Sind.  The  most  recent  experiments  have  been 
directed  towards  the  production  of  a  hybrid  possessing  the  hardiness  of 
the  local  plant  and  a  staple  resembling  that  of  imported  cottons. 

The  Bombay  Presidency  was  formerly  famous  for  its  hardy  ponies 
which  supplied  the  Maratha  cavalry  with  their  means  of  rapid  move- 
ment. The  most  valuable  breeds  were  the  Kathiawari,  and  the  Deccan 
ponies  from  the  BhTmthadi  or  valley  of  the  Bhlma  river.  Both  breeds 
are  still  met  with,  though  the  latter  is  now  very  nearly  extinct.  Efforts 
are  made  by  Government  to  improve  local  stock  by  maintaining 
stallions,  chiefly  Arabs,  at  central  stations,  and  by  annual  horse  shows, 
at  which  prizes  are  offered  for  promising  young  stock  or  good  brood 
mares.  Up  to  the  year  1903-4,  46  stallions  were  thus  maintained  ;  but, 
on  May  31,  1903,  31  of  them,  located  in  Poona  and  Ahmadnagar  Dis- 
tricts, were  transferred  to  the  charge  of  the  Army  Remount  department. 
At  present  the  Civil  Veterinary  department  has  only  12  stallions,  6  of 
which  are  located  in  Gujarat.  Annual  shows  are  held  at  Ahmadnagar 
in  the  Deccan  and  Jacobabad  in  Sind.  Locally  bred  ponies  are  hardy 
and  make  good  hacks  ;  but  they  are  frequently  under-sized,  vicious,  and 
ill-formed.  The  horses  in  use  are  mainly  imported  Arabs,  Persians,  and 
Australians,  the  trade  in  which  centres  in  Bombay  City. 

A  military  remount  depot  exists  at  Ahmadnagar  in  the  Deccan,  where 
young  stock  are  kept  in  paddocks,  and  are  trained  to  draught  and 
saddle.  Mules  and  donkeys  are  numerous,  the  former  being  used  for 
military  purposes,  and  the  latter,  which  are  usually  under-sized  and 
ill-nourished,  for  the  conveyance  of  earth  and  stones. 


3i6  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

Cattle  are  in  general  allowed  to  breed  promiscuously.  Good  milch 
cows  are  raised  in  the  Gir  forest  of  Kathiawar,  while  the  plains  of 
Gujarat  support  cattle  of  exceptionally  fine  type,  large,  big-boned, 
powerful,  and  docile.  The  best  cattle  in  the  Deccan  are  bred  in  the 
Kistna  valley,  but  throughout  the  greater  part  of  the  Deccan  and 
Carnatic  the  cattle  are  of  no  fixed  type  or  particular  breed.  They  are 
small,  hardy,  and  active.  In  Sind  good  cattle  are  bred,  of  medium  size 
but  sturdy  proportions.  The  milch  cows  are  well  known  and  are 
exported  to  other  parts  of  the  Presidency.  The  following  prices  are 
obtainable  for  cattle  of  these  different  descriptions  :  Gir  cow  Rs.  60, 
bullock  Rs.  75;  Gujarat  cow  Rs.  80,  bullock  Rs.  125;  Deccan  cow 
Rs.  50,  bullock  Rs.  35  ;  Sind  cow  Rs.  70,  bullock  Rs.  35. 

Buffaloes  are  of  four  types  :  namely,  Jafarabadi,  Delhi,  Surati,  and 
Deccani.  They  are  usually  kept  for  milk,  but  in  Districts  of  heavy 
rainfall  buffaloes  are  often  used  for  draught  purposes  in  preference  to 
bullocks.  A  good  cow  buffalo  fetches  Rs.  150.  Sheep  and  goats  are 
numerous  throughout  the  Presidency.  The  former  are  of  four  breeds  : 
Gujarati,  Deccani,  Rajputani,  and  the  dumba  sheep  of  Sind  with  a  fat 
tail.  The  wool  of  all  varieties  is  short,  coarse,  and  hair-like,  and  is 
chiefly  used  for  the  manufacture  of  country  blankets.  Goats  are  regu- 
larly milked,  and  their  flesh  forms  a  common  article  of  diet.  The 
number  of  cattle  was  greatly  reduced  by  the  famine  years  between 
1896  and  1 901.  In  Sind  more  than  100,000  camels  are  used  for  the 
conveyance  of  passengers  and  goods  in  the  desert. 

The  broad  plains  of  Sind  and  Northern  Gujarat  furnish  abundant 
pasture.  In  Central  Gujarat  the  best  milch  and  plough  cattle  are  stall- 
fed,  while  the  herds  of  the  Deccan  for  the  most  part  pick  up  what  they 
can  on  the  borders  of  the  fields,  except  where,  as  near  the  Ghats,  there 
are  forest  lands  open  to  grazing.  There  are  no  great  yearly  cattle  fairs. 
The  common  cattle  diseases  are  rinderpest,  foot-and-mouth  disease, 
and  anthrax.  There  are  in  the  whole  Presidency  21  veterinary  dispen- 
saries, at  which  34,320  animals  were  treated  in  1903-4. 

The  Civil  Veterinary  department  of  the  Presidency,  which  is  under 
the  control  of  the  Director  of  Land  Records  and  Agriculture,  is  respon- 
sible for  horse-breeding  operations,  having  twelve  stallions  in  its 
charge  for  this  purpose,  and  also  supervises  the  working  of  the  various 
District  veterinary  dispensaries,  seventeen  of  which  are  stationary,  while 
four  are  travelling  dispensaries,  each  in  charge  of  a  veterinary  graduate. 
The  largest  hospital  under  this  department  is  at  Parel  on  Bombay 
Island.  Horse-breeding  operations  in  Sind  are  controlled  by  the 
Superintendent,  Civil  Veterinary  department,  Baluchistan  and  Sind, 
under  the  direct  supervision  of  an  Inspector-General  for  all  India. 

All  tillage  in  Sind  is  dependent  on  the  rise  of  the  Indus,  which  takes 
place  from  March  to  August  owing  to  the  melting  of  the  Himalayan 


A  GRIC  UL  TURE  3 1 7 

snows.  The  fields  are  watered  either  by  lift  or  by  flow  from  innumer- 
able canals  and  watercourses.  The  chief  systems  which  take  off  from 
the  right  bank  of  the  river  are  the  Begari,  the  Desert,  the  Ghar,  the 
Western  Nara,  and  the  Unharwah  canals  ;  and  from  the  left  bank,  the 
Eastern  Nara,  the  Dad,  the  Nasrat,  the  Fuleli,  and  the  Jamrao. 

In  the  rest  of  the  Presidency  '  dry '  and  '  wet '  crops  are  found  every- 
where side  by  side.  Wells  are  the  chief  source  of  irrigation,  but  canals 
have  also  been  made,  which  are  supplied  with  water  either  from  artificial 
tanks  or  from  rivers  which  have  been  dammed  up.  The  largest  of  such 
canals  are  the  Nira  at  Poona,  which  is  fed  by  the  river  Nira  and  a 
reservoir  at  Bhatghar,  and  the  Gokak  canal  in  Belgaum  District,  which 
draws  its  supply  from  the  river  Ghatprabha  and  from  storage  works. 
Outside  Sind  the  irrigation  revenue  is  raised  by  a  special  assessment  in 
addition  to  '  dry-crop '  rates  on  land  irrigated  from  all  works  for  which 
capital  and  revenue  accounts  are  kept,  except  in  the  case  of  some  small 
systems.  From  old  works,  for  which  only  revenue  accounts  are  kept, 
a  revenue  of  about  8  lakhs  is  derived.  The  irrigation  share  of  this  sum 
is  about  5  lakhs,  but  this  is  not  credited  in  the  Finance  Accounts  to 
irrigation  but  to  land  revenue.  There  is  a  third  class,  called  Agricul- 
tural Works,  or  works  for  which  neither  capital  nor  revenue  accounts 
are  kept,  yielding  a  revenue  of  about  Rs.  12,000  wholly  credited  to 
land  revenue.  The  revenue  is  collected  by  the  Revenue  department. 
In  the  Presidency  proper  the  total  capital  outlay  on  irrigation  works  up 
to  1903-4  was  about  3  crores  ;  the  cost  of  maintenance  during  1903-4 
was  about  3  lakhs,  and  receipts  during  the  same  year  about  8-|  lakhs, 
giving  a  return  of  nearly  1-89  per  cent,  on  capital  outlay.  The  figures 
include  twelve  '  major '  works  and  thirty-one  '  minor '  works  for  which 
capital  and  revenue  accounts  are  kept. 

Tanks  are  specially  numerous  in  the  Southern  Carnatic,  where  almost 
every  village  has  one,  from  which  coco-palms,  sugar-cane,  and  other 
rich  crops  are  irrigated.  The  tendency  is  for  such  reservoirs  to  silt  up 
rapidly,  and  funds  are  not  always  readily  available  for  their  clearance. 
Forced  labour  is  no  longer  exacted  for  the  repairs  of  these  works, 
though  voluntary  subscriptions  are  accepted. 

Wells  used  for  irrigation  in  the  Presidency,  exclusive  of  Sind,  num- 
bered 241,600  in  1903-4.  They  are  of  two  kinds:  pakka  or  masonry 
wells,  costing  from  Rs.  250  to  Rs.  750,  and  averaging  10  to  20  feet  in 
depth  ;  and  kachchd  or  unfaced  wells,  mere  holes  in  the  earth,  used  for 
one  season,  and  costing  from  Rs.  10  to  Rs.  50,  according  to  the  depth 
at  which  water  is  found.  From  these  wells  a  few  acres  of  wheat,  gram, 
sugar-cane,  fodder-crops,  &c,  are  irrigated,  according  to  the  nature  of 
the  soil.  They  are  worked  either  by  a  rahat  or  Persian  wheel  (an  end- 
less chain  of  buckets),  or  by  a  kos  or  mot,  a  large  leathern  bucket,  so 
suspended  as  to  discharge  itself  on  rising  to  the  surface.     The  motive 


o 


1 8  JWMRAY  PRESIDENCY 


power  is  supplied  by  a  pair  of  bullocks  advancing  and  retreating  on 

an  inclined  plane,  or  moving  in  a  circle.     In  a  few  cases  a  hand-lever 

and  bucket  are  used  to  raise  water  near  the  surface.      Wheat,  rice,  and 

sugar-cane  are  the  chief  irrigated  crops. 

The  sea  fisheries  are  important  and  give  employment  to  numerous 

castes,  chief  of  which  are  the  Kolis.     Pomfret,  sole,  stone,  and  lady-fish 

are  sold  fresh,  while  others,  such  as  the  bombil,  are 

salted  and  dried.     Large  quantities  of  small  fry  are 

sold  as  manure.    The  pal/a,  found  in  the  Indus,  and  the  maral  and 

mahseer  are  the  principal  fresh- water  fish. 

In  the  greater  part  of  the  Bombay  Presidency  land  is  held  on   the 

ryotwari  system  and  is  in  the  occupation  of  the  cultivator,  who  pays 

revenue  direct  to  Government  for  his  holding.  When, 

Rents,  wages,  and  as  frequently  occurs,  he  has  alienated  his  holding  to 
prices,  .  . 

a  member  of  the  non-cultivating  classes  as  security  for 

a  loan,  the  rent  exacted  from  him  for  continuing  to  cultivate  the  land 
depends  very  largely  on  the  will  of  the  money-lender.  It  may  be 
roughly  asserted  that  the  occupant  is  left  enough  to  cover  the  cost  of 
cultivation  and  to  allow  a  bare  subsistence  for  himself  and  his  imme- 
diate relations.  The  rest  of  the  produce,  after  defraying  the  Govern- 
ment assessment,  passes  into  the  hands  of  the  sahukar  (money-lender) 
until  the  debt  is  paid  off.  Land  held  by  females  and  persons  unable 
to  cultivate  it  themselves  is  usually  sublet  for  a  rent  amounting  to  half 
the  produce  after  deducting  expenses  of  cultivation. 

Rents  of  these  descriptions  are  generally  levied  in  kind,  in  contrast 
to  the  Government  demand,  which  is  payable  in  cash.  Originally 
payments  in  kind  for  rent  were  universal,  and  this  system  is  still  com- 
mon in  the  estates  of  Gujarat  and  Kathiawar  where  land  is  held  by 
a  class  intermediate  between  the  state  and  the  ryot.  It  is  usual  to 
set  aside  a  share  of  the  grain  for  the  cost  of  cultivation  and  for  special 
cesses,  such  as  the  hereditary  village  servants  are  entitled  to  levy.  The 
remaining  produce  is  divided  equally  between  landlord  and  tenant. 
An  interesting  light  is  thrown  on  the  probable  value  of  land  to  the 
cultivator  by  the  fact  that  good  land  will  frequently  sell  for  fifty  times 
the  Government  assessment,  and  will  pay  a  money  rent  of  from  two 
to  seven  times  the  assessment. 

The  summary  process  of  revenue  courts  is  only  put  into  force  to 
enable  landlords  to  recover  rent  from  their  tenants  when  the  revenue 
officer  is  satisfied  of  the  fairness  of  the  demand,  and  when  assistance  is 
called  for  during  the  year  in  which  the  rent  is  payable.  Otherwise  the 
landlords  must  have  recourse  to  the  civil  courts,  where,  under  the  pro- 
visions of  the  Dekkhan  Agriculturists'  Relief  Act,  their  claims  may  be 
regulated  on  an  equitable  basis.  The  result  of  this  Act  has  been  in 
some  cases  to  lead  to  a  more  equitable  adjustment  of  the  burden  on 


RENTS,    WAGES,  AND  PRICES  319 

the  borrowers  than  was  previously  possible  ;  but  it  has  also  led  to  eva- 
sion, by  the  exaction  of  a  deed  of  sale  from  the  borrower  in  place  of  a 
mortgage  bond.  In  newly  occupied  land  on  the  Sind  canals,  and  in 
certain  cases  in  the  Presidency  proper,  it  has  recently  become  the 
practice  to  make  the  occupancy  right  conditional  on  the  holding  not 
being  alienated  and  thus  to  protect  the  occupant  against  himself. 

The  rates  for  skilled  and  unskilled  labour  in  the  different  divisions 
of  the  Presidency  are:  in  Sind,  skilled  12  annas  to  R.  1  a  day,  un- 
skilled 4  annas  to  8  annas ;  in  Gujarat,  skilled  8  annas,  unskilled 
3  annas  ;  in  the  Deccan,  skilled  9  annas,  unskilled  3  annas  ;  in  the 
Konkan,  skilled  10  annas,  unskilled  4  annas  ;  in  the  Carnatic,  skilled 
12  annas,  unskilled  4  annas.  Women,  as  a  rule,  earn  two-thirds  of 
a  man's  wages,  and  children  one-half.  Payment  of  agricultural  wages 
in  kind  is  common  throughout  the  Presidency,  grain  being  given  at 
the  rate  of  12  to  15  lb.  for  a  man,  8  lb.  for  a  woman,  and  4  lb.  for 
a  child  per  diem.  In  Bombay  City  the  demand  for  labour  and  high 
cost  of  living  have  raised  the  daily  cost  of  unskilled  labour  to  6  annas 
for  a  man  and  4  annas  for  a  woman.  Skilled  operatives  in  mills  and 
factories  earn  at  least  double  these  rates,  the  following  being  the 
average  rates  of  wages  :- 


Rs.    a. 

V- 

Rs. 

a. 

P- 

Blacksmith 

O    14 

1 1 

to 

1 

3 

0 

Fitter 

.        0     S 

0 

to 

1 

4 

0 

Carpenter 

O    12 

0 

to 

1 

2 

0 

Bricklayer 

0   12 

0 

to 

1 

0 

0 

Mason 

O   12 

0 

to 

I 

0 

0 

Weaver  (man,-  . 

.       0      7 

6 

to 

0 

8 

0 

Spinner  (man)  . 

.       0     8 

0 

to 

1 

0 

0 

Dyer 

0     8 

0 

to 

0 

9 

0 

Engine-driver   . 

0   12 

9 

to 

1 

11 

0 

Boiler-man 

•       0     5 

S 

to 

0 

9 

0 

Messenger 

•       0     5 

0 

to 

0 

5 

10 

In  the  export  season  the  great  demand  for  unskilled  labour  raises 
its  remuneration  to  8  annas  and  over  a  day,  as  much  as  R.  1  a 
day  being  paid  in  times  of  brisk  trade  and  a  scanty  supply  of  labour. 
Such  a  rate  can,  however,  remain  in  force  only  for  a  few  days,  as  it 
serves  to  swell  rapidly  the  available  supply  from  the  almost  limitless 
reserves  of  the  Ghat  villages,  whence  cultivators  proceed  in  large 
numbers  to  Bombay  to  work  for  a  few  months  and  return  with  their 
savings  to  their  villages,  either  at  the  Holi  festival  (March)  or  at  the 
commencement  of  the  south-west  monsoon.  It  is  a  noticeable  feature 
of  the  Bombay  industrial  market  that  weavers  are  attracted  from  regions 
as  remote  as  the  United  Provinces. 

It  is  difficult  to  arrive  at  conclusions  regarding  the  progress  of  prices 
in  the  case  of  the  staple  food-grains  during  recent  years,  owing  to  the 
fluctuation  in  the  value  of  the  rupee  and  the  effect   of  famine   years 


32o  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

on  the  general  level  of  prices.    The  average  cash  rates  per  maund  of 
40  seers  (about  So  lb.  avoirdupois)  have  been  as  follows  : — 


Jowar. 

Bajra. 

Rice. 

Rs.    a.     p. 

Rs.    a.    p. 

Rs.  a.    p. 

1880-1    . 

•        1    15     4 

2     5     8 

400 

1890-1     . 

I    14     0 

220 

3  M     0 

1900-1     . 

2    IO      1 

2   13     6 

400 

1902-3    . 

209 

2      3    IO 

3  IO     5 

1903-4   . 

1    10     8 

112       O 

3  13    0 

The  actual  r,ates  at  the  chief  centres  of  trade  in  the  Presidency  are 
given  in  Table  III  on  p.  386.  The  recent  years  of  famine  and  bad 
harvests  have  been  largely  responsible  for  the  excess  in  price-levels 
of  1 900- 1  over  those  of  earlier  years.  Grains  such  as  gram  (Cicer 
arietinum),  which  are  used  for  food  in  a  less  measure  than  jowar, 
bajra,  and  rice,  have  risen  in  price  far  more  than  the  staple  foods. 
There  is  no  evidence  that  rates  of  wages  have  risen  with  the  price 
of  food,  but  the  system  of  recording  prices  current  in  the  Presidency 
does  not  seem  to  justify  complete  confidence  in  these  data. 

The  material  condition  of  the  people  differs  little  in  the  various  parts 
of  the  Presidency,  though  the  standard  of  comfort  among  the  proletariat 
is  lowest  in  the  case  of  the  wild  tribes  and  highest  in  the  wealthy  cities 
of  Gujarat.  For  the  ordinary  cultivator  a  daily  ration  of  2  lb.  of 
grain  with  a  little  vegetable  and  spice,  and  an  annual  supply  of  coarse 
cloth,  a  little  tobacco,  and  some  betel-nut,  generally  represents  the  sum 
of  his  requirements.  A  few  rupees  must  be  spent  on  country-made 
saris  for  his  women-folk,  and  perhaps,  if  the  harvest  is  a  good  one, 
a  few  more  will  be  devoted  to  joining  the  annual  pilgrimage  to  some 
popular  shrine.  With  the  hill  tribes  this  modicum  of  necessaries  is 
reduced  by  a  simplification  of  the  costume,  which  consists  of  a  head- 
scarf and  a  few  inches  of  cloth  at  the  waist.  The  diet  consists  of  the 
coarser  grains,  ragi  and  nachni  replacing  jowar  and  rice.  An  occasional 
bout  of  drinking  will  offer  the  only  opportunity  for  spending  a  few  coins 
from  their  scanty  earnings. 

Among  village  officials  and  middle-class  clerks  the  standard  of  com- 
fort is  undoubtedly  rising.  A  new  fashion  in  clothing,  and  an  increasing 
use  of  cheap  European  commodities,  offer  objects  of  expenditure  un- 
known to  previous  generations.  Houses  with  some  pretension  to 
comfort  replace  the  mud  hovel  of  the  labourer  or  the  mat  shelter  of  the 
wandering  hillnien  ;  and  in  the  case  of  a  rising  official  or  prosperous 
trader,  the  house  will  be  supplied  with  articles  of  furniture,  such  as 
lamps,  chairs,  and  tables,  in  European  style. 

It  seems  probable  that  the  majority  of  the  community,  that  is  to  say, 
the  agriculturists,  can  live  in  comfort  on  an  average  daily  income  of  from 
3  to  4  annas  :  while  the  petty  officials  and  village  merchants  would 
experience  no  difficulty  in  maintaining  the  standard  of  their  class  on 


FORESTS  32  t 

a  monthly  average  of  from  Rs.  20  to  Rs.  30.    In  this  and  the  superior 
ranks  of  society  the  influence  of  European  fashions  is  specially  noticeable. 
The  forests  of  the  Presidency  extend  over  an  area  of  about  15,000 
square  miles,  varying  in  type  from  the  babul  groves  of  Sind   to  the 
magnificent  timber  tracts  of  the  Western  Ghats.  They 
may   be    classified   as    (i)   Babul  forests,  in    which 
this    species    is    mixed   with   Prosopis   spicigera   and    Tamarix   dioica. 
(ii)    Scrub    jungle,    merging    gradually    into    fuel     and    pole    forests, 
(iii)   Mixed  forests,  in  which  are  found  teak  poles  and  larger  timber 
of  the  less  valuable  kinds,  such  as  ain,  black-wood,  anjan,  dhowra, 
b/bla,  lied,    and   kalam.     (iv)    High    timber  forests,    chiefly   found    in 
North   Kanara   District  and   in  Western   Khandesh.      The  valleys  of 
the  Kallnadl  in   Kanara   produce  excellent  teak,  in  association  with 
bamboo,  Dalbergia  Sissoo,   Tenninalia   tomentosa,  and  Xylia  dolabri- 
formis.      In  Khandesh  also  teak  of  good  quality   is  present,  though 
there  the  stock  has  suffered  much   from  fire  and  shifting  cultivation, 
(v)  Evergreen  forests  of  varying  constitution,  consisting  in  places  of  mere 
scrub  jungle,   but  also   containing  dense  groves  of  lofty  trees  whose 
timber  is  often  valuable  in  the  cabinet-maker's  trade.     These  forests 
extend  along  the  line  of  the  Western  Ghats  from  Khandesh  to  Kanara. 
About    600    square   miles   of  forest   are   set  apart  as  pasture  land, 
and  the  remainder  is,  in   respect   of  technical  management,  placed  in 
charge  of  the  Forest  department.     For  purposes  of  control,  the  forests 
of  the  Presidency  proper  are   divided  into   the  Northern  circle,  with 
1,667  square  miles  of  '  reserved '  and  652  square  miles  of  '  protected  ' 
forests  ;  the  Central  circle,  with  6,259  square  miles  of  '  reserved  '  and 
99  square  miles  of  '  protected  '  forests  ;  and  the  Southern  circle,  with 
4,495  square  miles  of  '  reserved  '  and  568  square  miles  of  '  protected ' 
forests l.     These  circles  correspond  closely  with  the  Revenue  Divisions, 
and  each  is  supervised  by  a  Conservator,  who  is  furnished  with  the  usual 
staff    of    deputy   and    extra-deputy-Conservators,   assistant  and   extra- 
assistant  Conservators,  rangers,  foresters,  and  guards.  This  staff  consisted 
in  1904  of  24  Imperial  Service  and  23  Provincial  Service  officers,  and 
of  47  rangers,  168  foresters,  and  3,394  guards,  maintained  at  a  cost  of 
about  6|  lakhs  per  annum.     The  forests  of  Sind,  which  are  included 
in  the  figures  last  given,  comprise  r,o66  square  miles  of  Reserves,  and 
are  similarly  supervised  by  a   Deputy-Conservator,  who  exercises  the 
power  of  a  Conservator.     Responsibility  for  the  executive  management, 
of  the  forests  of  each  District,  save  in  matters  relating  to  professional 
forestry,  is  vested  in  the  Collector,  who  issues  his  orders  direct  to  the 
divisional  Forest  officer.     Conservators  confine  their  attention  to  purely 
professional    matters  of  forest   management,  and  do  not    interfere  in 
details  of  administration. 

1   The  figures  are  for  1903-4. 
VOL.,  VII  I.  V 


322  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

In  spite  of  the  care  which  is  taken  to  control  forest  operations  in 
the  interests  of  the  people,  these  operations  are  not  popular,  as  the 
mass  of  the  population  are  unable  to  comprehend  the  necessity  of 
foresight  in  forest  utilization.  The  peasant  is  as  a  rule  wasteful  in  the 
extreme  :  he  will  not  hesitate  to  burn  a  valuable  forest  for  the  sake 
of  a  temporary  supply  of  green  fodder  or  to  lop  and  fell  trees  in  order 
to  provide  manure  for  his  crops,  without  thought  as  to  whether  the 
supply  of  forest  produce  will  continue  to  meet  the  needs  of  his  succes- 
sors. In  the  same  way,  accustomed  as  he  is  to  permit  his  cattle  to 
graze  at  will  throughout  the  whole  forest  area,  he  resents  measures 
taken  to  protect  the  regrowth  from  their  depredations,  while  ignorance 
of  the  rights  or  privileges  that  have  been  accorded  to  him  by  Govern- 
ment too  often  places  him  at  the  mercy  of  the  members  of  the  sub- 
ordinate forest  staff,  whom  it  is  at  times  impossible  to  restrain  from 
taking  advantage  of  their  official  position.  The  illicit  grazing  of 
cattle  in  areas  under  regeneration  is  often  a  serious  check  to  both 
the  improvement  and  the  sustained  yield  of  the  forest ;  and  another 
source  of  injury  exists  in  the  practice  of  shifting  cultivation,  which, 
before  systematic  regulation  came  into  force,  was  responsible  for  the 
destruction  of  large  forest  areas.  Such  systematic  regulation  has,  how- 
ever, been  effective  in  Khandesh,  where  Bhil  settlements  are  located 
in  various  Reserves,  and  in  Thana,  Kolaba,  and  Kanara,  where  suitable 
lands  have  been  allotted  for  dry-ash  cultivation. 

It  has  already  been  remarked  that  intentional  firing  of  the  forests  with 
a  view  to  obtaining  a  fresh  crop  of  grass  is  not  uncommon,  and  much 
damage  is  also  caused  by  conflagrations  due  to  the  carelessness  of  way- 
farers and  other  accidental  causes.  The  system  of  fire  conservancy 
consists  in  the  clearing  of  fire-lines  and  the  protection  afforded  by 
patrolling  guards.  In  1903-4,  when  9,441  square  miles  were  under  pro- 
tection from  fire  at  a  cost  of  Rs.  42,905,  no  less  than  1,572  square 
miles  were  nevertheless  burnt.  The  annual  proportion  of  failures 
in  fire  conservancy  averages  about  16  per  cent. 

In  the  case  of  forests  which  are  commercially  valuable,  working-plans 
have  been  prepared  in  order  to  regulate  felling  and  regeneration,  and  to 
define  the  areas  in  which  the  exercise  of  local  rights  of  grazing  and 
cutting  is  to  be  enjoyed.  These  working-plans  are  compiled  by  the 
officers  of  the  Forest  department,  with  the  approval  of  the  Collector 
and  the  sanction  of  Government.  They  are  based  on  the  principle  that 
the  forest  interests  must  be  subordinated  to  those  of  the  agricultural 
population  when  there  is  any  conflict  between  them. 

The  yield  of  the  forests  may  be  divided  into  major  and  minor 
produce.  In  1903-4  the  output  of  timber  was  4,740,000  cubic  feet, 
realizing  about  15!  lakhs.  The  production  of  first-class  logs  is  confined 
almost  exclusively  to  the  Kanara  forests,  whence  the  timber  is  brought 


ARTS  AND  MANUFACTURES  323 

to  depots  on  the  Southern  Mahratta  Railway.  It  consists  of  teak  and 
black-wood  of  very  fine  quality,  which  commands  a  ready  sale,  while  at 
the  same  time  these  forests  yield  annually  about  100,000  sleepers  of  teak 
and  jamber.  From  the  forests  of  Kanara,  Belgaum,  Dharwar,  Thana,  and 
Khandesh  several  hundred  thousand  teak  rafters  used  in  native  house- 
building are  exported.  Firewood  sales  in  1903-4  amounted  to  nearly 
47,000,000  cubic  feet,  of  an  estimated  value  of  6A  lakhs.  The  North- 
western and  Southern  Mahratta  Railways  receive  the  bulk  of  this 
out-turn,  and  the  remainder  is  absorbed  in  the  Bombay  market  or 
utilized  locally.  Besides  this,  large  quantities  of  fuel  are  granted  free  of 
charge  to  those  living  in  the  vicinity  of  the  forests.  The  yield  in  minor 
forest  produce  is  also  of  importance.  In  1903-4  the  revenue  derived 
from  this  source  amounted  to  Rs.  r, 60,000  (exclusive  of  3^  lakhs 
derived  from  grazing  and  grass),  of  which  the  chief  item  was  myra- 
bolams,  exported  to  Europe  for  tanning  purposes.  Next  in  importance 
come  rosha  grass,  catechu  or  cutch,  wax,  honey,  lac,  mahua  flowers, 
sago,  shikakai,  spices  such  as  cinnamon  and  nutmeg,  babul  pods,  leaves, 
bark,  and  medicinal  seeds  and  roots.  As  a  rule  the  collection  of  these 
products  is  carried  out  by  contractors. 

The  total  forest  receipts  and  expenditure  for  the  financial  year 
I9°3-4  amounted  to  27^5  and  17-7  lakhs  respectively,  giving  a  surplus 
of  10  lakhs.  The  average  figures  for  the  ten  years  ending  1890  were 
about  26  and  16  lakhs,  and  for  the  following  decade  about  32  and 
20  lakhs  respectively.  The  surplus  is  mainly  provided  by  the  Southern 
circle,  while  the  Central  circle  shows  a  deficit. 

With  the  exception  of  building  stone  and   salt,  the  production  of 
minerals  in  the  Bombay  Presidency  is  insignificant.     The  best  stone  for 
building  is  extracted  from  quarries  near  Porbandar  and 
Dhrangadhra  in   Kathiawar,   whence  it  is  carried  by        ^^    &\d 
sea  in  large  quantities  to  Bombay.      The  production 
of  salt  is  described  below.     Parts  of  Dharwar  District  are  believed  to 
have  yielded  in  the  past  considerable  quantities  of  gold.     Even   now 
small  quantities  of  gold-dust  are  washed  in  some  of  the  streams ;  and  in 
the  east  of  the  District,  where  the  hills  are  known    to   contain   gold, 
prospecting  operations  yielded  favourable  results,  and  a  company  with 
English    capital    is    now   at    work.       Mining    operations    undertaken 
recently  at  Alnavar  in  the  same  District  were  unsuccessful.     Agates 
are  found  in  small  quantities  in  the  Deccan  and  Gujarat. 

In   the    Bombay    Presidency    many  years   of  competition    between 

machine-made   and    hand-woven   cotton   cloth   have   still    left   a   very 

considerable  home  industry,  the  hand-loom  being  at 

work    in    almost    every    District.       The    output    is,  Ar*s  a°d 

,  e       ,  J  .      ,  r.  manufactures, 

however,   tor  the  most   part   confined   to   sans  and 

turbans,  with  a  certain  quantity  of  grey  cloth  of  the  very  coarsest  kind. 

Y  2 


3  2  4  BOMB  A  ) '  PRESTDENC ) ' 

Hand-spinning  is  not  yet  extinct,  but  is  rarely  relied  on  by  professional 
hand-weavers  for  their  supply  of  raw  material. 

The  number  of  hand-workers  employed  in  cotton-weaving  in  1901 
was  183,000,  with  167,000  dependants.  They  are  for  the  most  part 
Hindu  Koshtis,  Salis,  Hatkars,  and  Devangs,  with  a  certain  number  of 
Musalmans  known  as  Julahas  and  Tais.  The  Districts  of  Poona, 
Nasik,  Sholapur,  Dharwar,  and  Belgaum  are  noted  for  weaving ;  but  the 
highest  point  of  excellence  is  reached  in  Ahmadabad  and  Surat,  where 
some  of  the  most  skilful  weavers  in  India  are  to  be  found.  In  the 
manipulation  of  designs  woven  into  the  cloth  they  are  on  a  level  with 
the  best  workers  of  Madras.  The  hand-made  cotton  fabrics  compete  in 
the  market  with  an  immense  import  of  machine-made  goods,  but  the 
few  fabrics  for  which  the  workers  still  hold  a  reputation  will  probably 
continue  for  many  years  to  be  in  steady  demand. 

Dyeing  of  both  yarn  and  cloth  is  carried  on  wherever  sweet  water 
can  be  found,  and  supports  a  population  of  36,000.  In  the  north  of 
Gujarat  the  favourite  colour  is  red,  and  in  Kathiawar  red,  deep-brown, 
and  yellow.  Blue  and  green,  along  with  red  and  yellow,  are  more 
prevalent  in  South  Gujarat  and  in  the  Maratha  Districts.  In  addition 
to  village  dyers,  about  1,900  persons  are  employed  in  three  steam  dye- 
works  at  Bombay  and  in  one  at  Ahmadabad,  which  yearly  turn  out 
goods  (chiefly  turkey-red)  to  the  value  of  30  lakhs.  The  old  native 
vegetable  dyes  have  been  superseded  by  alizarine  and  similar  colours. 
These,  though  cheaper,  more  easy  to  apply,  and  quicker  in  taking 
effect,  are  at  best  often  harsh  and  glaring  and  soon  fade.  In  Sind  and 
in  the  Gujaratl-speaking  Districts  printed  cotton  goods  are  extremely 
popular,  whereas  Marathas  usually  wear  plain  stuffs  of  cotton  and  silk, 
dyed  in  the  thread,  and  decorated  with  metal-leaf,  or  with  a  simple 
border  and  a  fringe  (tiadar)  of  a  different  colour  at  one  end.  Chandari 
or  knotting  is  another  method  of  decorating  cotton  and  silk  goods. 

About  63,000  people  are  supported  by  silk  manufacture.  The  raw 
material  is  imported  from  China,  Bengal,  Persia,  or  Bangalore,  either  in 
the  cocoon  or  in  skeins,  both  raw  and  dyed.  Silk  goods  are  manu- 
factured at  Ahmadabad,  Surat,  Yeola,  Nasik,  Thana,  and  Bombay,  all 
by  hand-workers,  except  in  the  case  of  two  mills  with  about  1,200 
operatives  at  Bombay  and  one  mill  at  Poona.  The  material  is  often 
decorated  with  printed  or  woven  designs,  knot-work  or  embroidery, 
and  is  prepared  chiefly  for  saris,  brocades  {kamkhivabs),  trouser 
stuffs,  and  turbans. 

Wire-drawn  gold  and  silver  threads  are  largely  used  in  ornamental 
edgings  for  saris,  the  richest  of  which  are  made  at  Poona  and  Yeola. 
At  Bombay  also  gold  and  silver  thread  are  used  for  making  lace,  but 
everywhere  imported  thread  is  displacing  the  locally  spun  article. 
Embroidery  on  silk  and  cotton  cloth  in  gold,  silver,  and  silk  thread  is 


ARTS  AND  MANUFACTURES  325 

produced  at  Hyderabad  in  Sind,  chiefly  for  the  European  market.  The 
best  silk  embroidery  is  produced  at  Navanagar  and  Gondal  in  North 
Kathiawar,  though  Cutch  gets  the  credit  of  the  manufacture.  Baroda, 
Surat,  and  Bombay  also  supply  embroidery  to  Muhammadans  and 
Parsis. 

There  are  three  woollen  mills  in  Bombay  with  385  hands.  Woollen 
goods  are  in  little  demand.  The  only  important  product  is  the 
country  blanket  made  in  the  Deccan  and  Carnatic  by  the  Dhangars 
from  home-grown  wool.  In  Sind  saddle-cloths  and  blankets  and  felts 
are  made.  About  50,000  persons  in  all  parts  of  the  Presidency  are 
employed  in  cutting,  retting,  and  scutching  san-hemp  for  export,  in 
twisting  and  spinning  hemp,  flax,  and  coir  into  ropes  and  cordage,  and 
in  plaiting  and  weaving  them  into  mats,  nets,  and  sacking  for  export 
and  home  use.  The  custom  of  investing  savings  in  gold  and  silver 
ornaments  gives  employment  to  many  goldsmiths  throughout  the 
Presidency.  The  metal  is  usually  supplied  by  the  customer,  and  the  gold- 
smith charges  for  his  labour  from  8  annas  to  Rs.  2  or  Rs.  3  the  tola, 
which  is  somewhat  less  than  \  oz.  avoirdupois.  The  poorer  classes  often 
wear  ornaments  of  baser  metal.  Sind  goldsmiths'  work  is  very  beauti- 
ful, but  is  rarely  seen  outside  that  province.  The  well-known  Cutch 
gold-  and  silver-work  is  embossed  by  hand  on  a  backing  of  soft  lac. 
Many  Cutch  silversmiths  have  settled  in  Ahmadabad,  Bombay,  and 
Karachi.  Silver-ware  similar  to  the  Cutch  work  is  made  at  Ahmadnagar 
in  the  Deccan,  and  strong  and  massive  articles  of  gold  and  silver  are 
produced  in  Kathiawar.  The  women  of  Gujarat  prefer  ornaments  of 
a  plain  and  massive  style,  while  those  of  the  Deccan  favour  lighter  and 
more  intricate  patterns.  Nasik  and  Poona  are  both  celebrated  for  their 
brass-ware,  and  Bombay  and  Ahmadabad  produce  large  quantities  of 
copper  vessels  which  are  sent  to  almost  every  part  of  Western  India. 
The  copper  is  all  imported  from  Europe  in  sheets  and  is  hammered 
into  shape  by  the  local  workmen.  The  cutlery  and  agricultural  imple- 
ments required  by  the  people  are  still  for  the  most  part  made  locally  by 
the  village  Lohar  or  blacksmith.  The  only  goods  which  have  more 
than  a  local  reputation  are  the  spear-heads  of  Ahmadnagar,  the  knives 
and  other  tools  of  Amod  in  Broach,  and  the  swords,  spear-heads,  and 
chain  armour  of  Cutch,  Kathiawar,  and  Baroda. 

The  importation  of  kerosene  oil  in  tins  has  given  rise  to  a  new 
industry.  Enterprising  Bohras  in  Bombay  and  up-country  buy  up  the 
empty  tin  cases  at  from  2  to  2-|  annas  each,  and  fashion  -them  into 
lanterns,  kerosene  lamps,  cash-boxes,  travelling-trunks,  oil  and  ghl  pots, 
and  other  cheap  articles.  There  is  a  tin  factory  in  Bombay  with 
70  workers.  Glass-making  is  confined  to  bangles  and  fancy  articles, 
for  which  the  chief  centre  is  Kapadvanj.  Lac  is  collected  in  Khandesh, 
and  used  in  making  bangles  in  the  Panch  Mahals  and  in  lacquering 


3  2  6  BOMB*  I ) '  PRES1DENC  Y 

furniture  in  Sind  and  Gujarat.    In   Bombay  and  Gujarat  bangles  are 
also  made  from  imported  ivory  and  tortoise-shell. 

Coarse  pottery  is  made  almost  everywhere,  but  glazes  are  seldom 
used.  The  best  is  made  in  Sind,  whence  the  industry  taught  in  the 
Bombay  School  of  Art  is  derived.  The  humble  brick-kilns  of  the  local 
Kumbhar  or  potter  have  held  their  ground  against  steam  factories. 

Ahmadabad  and  Surat  are  the  chief  centres  of  wood-carving.  Carved 
black-wood  furniture  is  out  of  fashion,  but  house  fronts  and  wall 
ornaments  are  still  popular.  The  best  work  in  sandal-wood  is  done  in 
Kanara.  Country  carts  are  made  in  every  large  town,  and  pony  tongas 
at  many  places  in  the  Ueccan.  Native  boats  are  built  at  most  of  the 
coast  ports,  especially  in  Surat  and  Kanara.  Certain  low  castes  all 
over  the  Presidency  are  expert  at  weaving  matting  and  baskets  of  split 
bamboos.  Shoes,  sandals,  harness,  water-skins,  and  other  leathern 
articles  in  general  demand  are  made  by  the  local  MochI,  who  is  found 
in  every  village.  He  is  usually  his  own  tanner,  and  prepares  his 
materials  with  the  aid  of  the  bark  of  the  babul  tree.  Large  numbers  of 
people  are  employed  in  the  curing  of  hides  for  exportation,  of  which 
38  lakhs'  worth  are  sent  to  Europe  yearly.  In  one  factory  leathern 
industries  are  carried  on  by  the  aid  of  machinery.  Very  good  boots 
and  shoes,  saddles,  and  bags  are  made  in  European  fashion  by  native 
workmen  under  European  superintendence  at  Bombay  and  Poona. 
Fancy  articles  of  bison  and  other  horn  are  moulded  and  carved  with 
considerable  skill  in  Ratnagiri  and  Kanara.  Country  cigarettes 
(bldis)  are  made  on  a  large  scale  at  Bombay  from  up-country  tobacco, 
chiefly  from  Gujarat  and  the  Deccan.  The  best  snuff  comes  from 
Viramgam  in  Ahmadabad.  Attempts  have  been  made  at  Kaira  to 
manufacture  cigars  to  suit  the  European  taste,  but  without  success. 
Sugar  is  made  wherever  the  cane  is  grown,  and  very  largely  in  Thana 
and  Khandesh.  Except  in  parts  of  Satara  and  Ahmadabad,  iron  roller- 
mills  have  superseded  the  primitive  wooden  sugar-mill.  Oil-presses  are 
numerous  in  every  District,  and  oil  is  extracted  from  castor-seed, 
sesamum,  rape-seed,  poppy-seed,  mahua  (for  soap-boiling),  linseed, 
ground-nuts,  and  coco-nuts.  In  some  branches  the  local  industry  has 
suffered  by  the  competition  of  kerosene  oil,  but  this  loss  has,  to  a  great 
extent,  been  balanced  by  the  great  and  growing  demand  for  vegetable 
oil  for  machinery.  Grass  oil  is  made  in  Pimpalner  and  West  Khandesh. 
Two  steam-power  oil-mills  are  at  work  in  Bombay,  and  another  at 
Ahmadabad.  The  trade  in  clarified  butter  is  very  great,  being  of 
special  importance  in  Kaira  and  Khandesh.  Large  quantities  of  gki, 
some  of  which  is  more  or  less  adulterated  with  animal  fat,  are  exported 
to  Rangoon.  There  are  a  few  model  dairies  producing  good  butter  in 
Bombay  and  Poona. 

Salt  is  made  in  large  quantities  in  the  Government  works  at  Khara- 


ARTS  AND  MANUFACTURES 


32 


7 


ghoda  and  Udu  in  Ahmadabad,  and  is  exported  by  rail  to  Gujarat  and 
Central  India,  where  it  is  known  as  Baragara  salt.  Sea-salt  is  very 
largely  made  on  the  Konkan  coast  for  export  to  Malabar  and  Bengal. 
There  are  numerous  small  ice  and  soda-water  factories  in  the  larger 
towns.  Though  rice-husking  is  chiefly  carried  on  without  machinery, 
steam  rice-husking  mills  have  been  started  with  success  at  Bulsar, 
Ahmadabad,  and  Chinchni  in  Thana.  Flour-grinding  is  still  a  domestic 
industry  in  most  places  except  Bombay. 

High  art  hardly  exists,  though  Portuguese,  Parsis,  and  Hindus  have 
done  creditable  work  in  illustration,  design,  and  sculpture.  Excellent 
English  printing  comes  from  presses  managed  by  Europeans.  Vernacu- 
lar printing  is  improving,  especially  in  Bombay,  where  the  demand  for 
newspapers  and  new  books  is  rapidly  increasing. 

Within  the  last  twenty  or  thirty  years  the  spinning  and  weaving  of 
cotton  by  steam  machinery  has  become  an  important  industry,  a 
development  favoured  by  the  proximity  of  the  supply  of  raw  material. 
The  first  mill  was  started  in  Bombay  in  1857.  By  1881-2  the  number 
had  increased  to  49,  and  the  industry  has  since  expanded  steadily,  until 
in  1904-5  there  were  133  mills,  exclusive  of  2  hosiery  factories,  in  the 
Presidency,  and  3  others  situated  in  Native  States.  Of  the  133  mills, 
55  were  weaving  and  78  spinning-mills. 

Details  of  the  cotton-mills  are  given  in  the  following  table  : — 


1881-2. 

1891-2. 

1901-2. 

1904-5. 

Number  of  mills 
,,          looms 
„          spindles  . 
,,          handsemployed 

49 

13,046 

1,237,536 

37,567 

96 
19,117 

2,380,178 

79,9ft1 

129 
31,262 

3,353,729 
119,929 

136 

35,887 

3,573,564 

132,170 

For  many  years  the  mills  produced  mainly  yarns,  chiefly  of  coarse 
counts,  to  meet  the  demand  of  Indian  hand-weavers  and  of  the  China 
market ;  but  of  late  years  many  weaving-sheds  have  been  erected.  The 
best  mills  can  now  produce  fine  cloth  manufactured  from  imported 
high-count  yarns,  and  coloured  as  well  as  fancy  goods  of  superior 
description.  During  the  years  of  famine  and  plague  between  1896  and 
1 90 1,  the  industry  passed  through  a  period  of  depression,  but  brighter 
prospects  are  in  store  when  the  trade  assumes  its  normal  course.  The 
cotton-mills  consume  annually  about  6,000,000  cwt.  of  raw  cotton. 
The  output  amounts  to  415,000,000  lb.  of  yarn  and  112,000,000  lb.  of 
cloth  for  the  whole  Presidency  (including  Native  States).  Eighty-six 
(including  2  hosiery  factories)  of  the  mills  are  found  in  Bombay  City 
and  Island,  where  the  moist  atmosphere  favours  the  process  of  spinning 
and  weaving.  Outside  Bombay,  the  city  of  Ahmadabad  is  the  only 
centre  of  importance.  The  chief  articles  manufactured  are  yarns  of 
counts  up  to  32's,  dhotis,  shirtings,  chadars,  T  cloths,  sheetings,  coloured 


328  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

and  fancy  goods.  A  large  local  demand  exists  for  the  products  of  the 
mills ;  and  there  is  also  an  export  trade  of  considerable  value,  amount- 
ing to  about  318,000,000  yards  of  cloth  and  280,000,000  lb.  of  yarn 
annually,  with  a  total  value  of  about  14  crores.  The  mills  in  Bombay 
draw  large  numbers  of  labourers  from  the  Konkan  Districts  of  Kolaba 
and  Ratnagiri,  and  from  Satara,  Poona,  and  Ahmadnagar  in  the  Deccan. 
These,  for  the  most  part,  return  to  their  homes  at  intervals  for  such 
agricultural  operations  as  their  continued  connexion  with  the  land 
requires.  They  earn  good  wages,  which  average  for  a  man  8  to  12 
annas,  for  a  woman  4  to  6  annas,  and  for  a  child  2  to  3  annas  daily. 
The  hours  of  labour  for  women  and  children  are  strictly  regulated  by 
the  Indian  Factories  Act ;  and  it  does  not  appear  that  the  work  has 
any  ill  effect  on  the  physique  of  the  operatives,  who  compare  not 
unfavourably  with  other  labouring  classes. 

Including  cotton-mills,  432  factories,  within  the  meaning  of  the  term 
in  the  Factory  Act,  were  at  work  in  the  Presidency  in  1904.  Of  these, 
213  are  open  throughout  the  year  and  219  at  special  seasons  only.  The 
City  and  Island  of  Bombay  and  the  Districts  of  Khandesh  and 
Ahmadabad  contain  the  majority  of  these  factories.  Of  the  total  num- 
ber of  operatives  (182,910)  employed  in  these  factories,  146,208  are  en- 
gaged in  mills  and  factories  dealing  with  cotton,  1,621  in  other  textile 
industries,  such  as  wool  and  silk-weaving,  3,506  in  printing  presses,  561 
in  flour-mills,  27,336  in  workshops,  and  3,678  in  miscellaneous  works. 
The  ginning,  cleaning,  and  pressing  of  cotton  occupies  216  factories, 
the  majority  situated  in  the  rich  cotton  tracts  of  Khandesh.  There  are 
fourteen  iron  and  brass  foundries,  mainly  in  Bombay  City,  and  a  few 
flour-mills,  printing  presses,  railway  workshops,  oil-mills,  or  mills  for 
spinning  and  weaving  silk  and  woollen  goods.  The  recent  attempts  to 
start  factory  industries  in  matches,  paper,  carpets,  and  leather  have 
not  so  far  developed  industries  of  importance.  It  is  estimated  that 
the  total  factory  population  of  the  Presidency,  including  workers  and 
their  dependants,  amounts  to  about  250,000. 

Before  the  Maratha  Wars,  which  led  to  the  annexation  of  most  of  the 
present  Bombay  Presidency  (excluding  Sind),  trade  was  carried  on  with 

the  dominions  of  the  Mughals  and  Marathas  through 
tr^d  C  Rn      *ne   Company's   settlements  at   Bombay  and  Surat. 

Thence  many  a  deeply-laden  East  Indiaman  set  sail, 
carrying  fine  cotton  goods  and  spices  for  the  London  market.  With  the 
acquisition  of  Sind  in  1843  the  Presidency  assumed  its  present  con- 
figuration. Since  then  the  trade  with  Europe  has  naturally  been  drawn 
to  Bombay,  which  has  the  finest  harbour  in  India,  while  the  produce  of 
Sind  and  the  Punjab  is  exported  from  Karachi.  Both  have  benefited 
largely  by  the  opening  of  the  Suez  Canal  and  the  consequent  abandon- 
ment of  the  Cape  route  (1869).     In  the  harvest  season  the  broad  plains 


COMMERCE  AND   TRADE  329 

of  the  Deccan  and  Carnatic  furnish  a  steady  stream  of  cotton,  wheat, 
and  seeds  to  the  shipping  in  Bombay  harbour,  while  Karachi  exports 
wheat  drawn  from  the  irrigated  areas  of  the  Indus  valley.  In  exchange, 
these  ports  receive  numerous  imports,  of  which  the  chief  are  cotton 
goods,  metals  and  machinery,  sugar,  and  kerosene  oil.  Aden  is  a  port 
of  call  for  the  trade  between  Europe,  East  Africa,  and  Asia,  and  has 
a  considerable  local  traffic  in  coffee  with  Arabia  and  the  Somali  coast. 
A  small  direct  trade  is  carried  in  native  craft  between  Broach,  Bulsar, 
Surat,  Honavar,  and  ports  in  Arabia  and  the  Persian  Gulf.  The  dis- 
tribution of  trade  from  the  larger  ports  along  the  coast-line  is  carried 
on  by  coasting  steamers  and  native  craft  during  the  fair  season. 
Bombay,  Karachi,  and  Aden  have  Chambers  of  Commerce  and  Port 
Trusts,  and  Bombay  and  Ahmadabad  have  influential  associations 
of  native  piece-goods  merchants. 

Within  the  limits  of  the  Presidency  trade  is  facilitated  by  the  rail- 
ways running  north  and  south,  and  fed  by  cart  traffic  along  metalled 
roads.  In  the  hilly  regions  of  the  Ghats,  trains  of  pack-bullocks  are 
still  to  be  met  carrying  salt  from  the  coast  up  the  passes  that  are  too 
steep  for  carts,  and  returning  with  grain  and  molasses  for  residents  of 
the  lowlands. 

The  principal  objects  of  internal  trade  are  grain,  metals,  and  cotton 
goods.  Conspicuous  among  the  traders  in  every  town  of  importance 
will  be  found  the  Marwari  Van!  from  Rajputana,  the  Lohana  in  Sind, 
the  Van!,  Bohra,  and  Memon  in  Gujarat  ;  these  and  the  Bhatia,  Khoja, 
and  Pars!  in  Bombay,  and  the  Lingayat  Banjig  of  the  south,  are  repre- 
sentative of  the  local  castes  in  control  of  internal  trade.  Where  pack- 
bullock  trains  are  still  in  vogue,  Lamanis  and  Vanjaris  are  in  charge 
of  the  means  of  transport.  The  important  trading  centres  of  the 
Presidency,  after  Bombay  and  Karachi,  are  Ahmadabad,  Surat, 
Bhusawal,  Poona,  Sholapur,  and  Hubli  ;  and  in  Sind,  Hyderabad 
and  Sukkur.  In  the  distribution  of  miscellaneous  articles  advantage 
is  taken  of  the  numerous  fairs  held  at  places  of  pilgrimages  to  estab- 
lish temporary  bazars,  where  a  brisk  business  is  done  with  the  public. 

Rice,  coco-nuts,  salt,  cotton,  timber,  and  piece-goods  are  the  staples 
of  the  coasting  trade.  The  chief  maritime  Hindu  castes  are  Bhandaris, 
Kharvas,  Bhois,  and  Kolls  ;  but  many  of  the  best  sailors  are  Musalmans 
from  Cutch,  Kathiawar,  and  the  Maldive  Islands. 

The  value  of  the  internal  trade  of  the  Presidency  recorded  for  large 
areas  or  registration  blocks  in  1903-4  was  about  92  crores,  of  which 
one-quarter  is  sea-borne  and  the  rest  carried  by  rail.  In  1903-4  about 
128,000  vessels  of  4,345,000  tons  burden,  engaged  in  the  local  coasting 
trade,  entered  the  ports  of  the  Presidency,  and  about  1 14,400  vessels  of 
4,1 13,000  tons  burden  cleared  thence.  Of  the  total,  about  6,000  were 
steamers. 


33o  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

The  total  value  of  the  trade  of  the  Bombay  Presidency  with  other 
parts  of  India  by  sea  and  rail  is  74-7  crores,  consisting  of  43-2  crores 
imports  and  31-5  crores  exports.  The  chief  articles  of  trade  are  piece- 
goods,  grain,  and  coco-nuts.  About  13  per  cent,  of  this  trade  is  sea- 
borne, and  the  rest  travels  inland  by  road  and  rail.  There  is  nothing 
to  differentiate  it  from  the  internal  trade  of  the  Presidency,  which  has 
already  been  described  above.  A  very  considerable  share  of  the  trade 
of  India  with  foreign  countries  is  carried  on  from  the  ports  of  the 
Bombay  Presidency.  In  1903-4  this  share  had  attained  a  total  value 
of  146-6  crores  :  namely,  imports  68  crores  and  exports  78-6  crores. 
Of  this,  a  small  portion  (imports  47  lakhs  and  exports  41  lakhs)  represents 
trade  by  land  across  the  Sind  frontier  with  Kandahar  and  Herat.  The 
remainder  is  entirely  maritime.  Of  the  total  foreign  trade  of  the  Presi- 
dency (exclusive  of  Sind),  28  per  cent,  in  1903-4  was  with  the  United 
Kingdom,  16  per  cent,  with  China,  6  per  cent,  with  Japan,  7  per  cent, 
with  France,  7  per  cent,  with  Belgium,  and  6  per  cent,  with  Germany. 
Other  countries  claiming  at  least  3  per  cent,  of  the  trade  are  Austria, 
Italy,  and  Mauritius.  Table  IV  on  pp.  386-7  gives  the  value  of  the  chief 
imports  and  exports  for  the  years  1891,  1901,  and  1903-4.  The  figures 
shown  above  differ  from  those  given  in  the  table,  as  they  include 
Government  stores  and  treasure.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  leading 
articles  of  import  are  cotton  piece-goods,  metals  and  machinery,  sugar, 
oils,  and  silk  and  woollen  manufactures.  The  chief  exports  are  raw 
cotton,  grain  and  pulse,  seeds,  hides,  and  opium.  The  bulk  of  the 
imports  is  supplied  by  the  United  Kingdom,  though  Belgium  has 
recently  proved  a  formidable  competitor  in  iron  and  steel.  The 
exported  cotton  is  mostly  directed  to  the  continent  of  Europe  and 
Japan,  while  opium  is  sent  to  China,  with  cotton  twist  and  yarn  manu- 
factured in  the  Bombay  mills.  During  1903-4,  1,516  vessels  of  2,158,000 
tons  burden  engaged  in  foreign  trade  entered  the  ports  of  the  Presi- 
dency, and  1,348  vessels  of  2,150,000  tons  burden  cleared  thence. 

At  the  close  of  the  year   1904   there  were  4,137  miles  of  railways 

in  the  Presidency.     In  that  year  there  was  one  mile  of  railway  to  every 

46  square  miles  of  country,  compared  with  one  to 

Communications.  eyery  6l  in  ,90I<     The  chief  railways  are  the  Great 

Indian  Peninsula,  the  Bombay,  Baroda  and  Central  India,  and  the 
Southern  Mahratta ;  the  first  two  with  a  5-|-feet-gauge,  and  the  last  with 
a  metre-gauge  line.  The  Great  Indian  Peninsula  starts  from  Bombay 
and  bifurcates  at  Kalyan  towards  Calcutta  and  Madras,  climbing  the 
Ghats  by  the  Thai  and  Bhor  Ghat  passes.  At  Bhusawal  the  Calcutta 
line  again  divides,  to  join  the  East  Indian  Railway  at  Jubbulpore  and 
the  Bengal-Nagpur  at  Nagpur.  The  Calcutta  and  Madras  lines  are  con- 
nected by  the  Dhond-Manmad  section,  which  carries  traffic  between 
Madras  and  Northern  India  without  compelling  passengers  and  goods  to 


COMMUNICA  TIONS  33 1 

descend  and  reaseend  the  Ghats.  The  2|-feet-gauge  light  railway  which 
connects  Pandharpur  and  Barsi  town  with  Barsi  Road  junction  is  also 
under  this  company's  management.  Since  1900  the  Great  Indian 
Peninsula  Railway  has  been  a  state  line,  worked  by  a  company.  The 
Bombay,  Baroda,  and  Central  India  Railway  is  a  guaranteed  line  which 
was  purchased  by  the  state  in  1906.  It  runs  due  north  along  the  sea- 
coast  past  the  cities  of  Surat,  Broach,  and  Baroda,  to  Ahmadabad, 
where  it  connects  with  the  Rajputana-Malwa  metre-gauge  state  line 
to  the  north.  This  line  and  its  1 7-mile  branch  from  Palanpur  to  Deesa 
are  worked  by  a  company,  as  also  are  the  Dabhoi  2i-feet-gauge  line 
connecting  Padra  and  Chandod,  the  Mehsana  metre-gauge  railway 
93  miles  long,  and  the  Vijapur-Kalol-Kadi  metre-gauge  line,  completed 
in  1903.  These  three  last  lines  belong  to  the  Baroda  State.  A  branch 
line  connecting  Ahmadabad  with  Idar  is  also  managed  by  the  company. 
A  westerly  branch  of  the  company's  system  from  Ahmadabad  to 
Viramgam  brings  the  Presidency  into  touch  with  the  railway  system 
of  the  Kathiawar  peninsula,  which  comprises  the  Bhavnagar-Gondal- 
Junagarh-Porbandar  (334  miles),  the  Jamnagar  (54),  the  Jetalsar- 
Rajkot  (46),  and  the  Dhrangadhra  (21)  railways,  which  are  all  metre 
gauge ;  and  a  2A-feet-gauge  line  (90  miles),  connecting  Morvi  with  Raj- 
kot  and  Wadhwan,  the  greater  part  of  which  was  converted  to  metre 
gauge  in  1905.  Another  branch  of  the  Bombay,  Baroda,  and  Central 
India,  with  a  5I  feet  gauge,  starting  from  Anand,  connects  with  the  Raj- 
putana-Malwa Railway  through  Godhra  at  Ratlam.  From  the  junction 
the  latter  railway  has  a  branch  running  south  through  Indore  and  Mhow 
to  Khandwa,  and  a  broad-gauge  line  is  being  made  through  Central 
India  to  Muttra.  A  chord-line  from  Baroda  to  Godhra  has  recently 
been  opened.  Other  lines  under  the  same  management  are  the 
RajpTpla  2i-feet  gauge  (37  miles),  through  Broach  and  Rajplpla,  and 
two  5  ^-feet-gauge  lines,  the  Anand-Petlad-Tarapur  (22  miles)  linking 
Kaira,  Baroda,  and  Cambay,  and  the  Tarapur-Cambay  (n  miles).  In 
Gujarat  the  Ahmadabad-Parantlj  and  Ahmadabad-Dholka  metre-gauge 
lines  are  owned  by  private  companies,  with  rupee  capital  raised  in 
India,  both  being  managed  by  the  Bombay,  Baroda,  and  Central  India 
Railway.  An  important  line  recently  constructed,  known  as  the  Tapti 
Valley  Railway,  connects  the  Bombay,  Baroda,  and  Central  India 
Railway  at  Surat  with  the  Amalner-Jalgaon  branch  of  the  Great  Indian 
Peninsula  Railway  at  Amalner.  This  is  a  standard-gauge  line  owned 
by  a  private  company,  with  rupee  capital.  The  south  of  the  Presidency 
is  served  by  the  Southern  Mahratta  Railway,  which  has  two  branches. 
One  starts  from  Poona  and  runs  south  to  Londa,  where  it  doubles 
back  towards  Dharwar,  Hubli,  and  thence  south-east  to  Harihar,  where 
it  joins  the  Mysore  State  Railway,  with  a  short  extension  from  Londa 
to  Castle  Rock  to  connect  with  the  West  of  India  Portuguese  Railway  ; 


33-  BO  MBA  V  PRESIDENC  Y 

the  other  branch  connects  Hotgi  on  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula 
Railway  (Madras  line)  with  Gadag  and  Hubli  through  Bijapur.  This 
is  a  state  railway  on  the  metre  gauge,  worked  by  a  company.  A  metre- 
gauge  branch  line  from  Miraj  junction  to  Kolhapur,  29  miles  in 
length,  is  under  its  management.  It  has  access  to  the  sea  by  the  West 
of  India  Portuguese  Railway,  of  which  it  has  recently  acquired  the 
management,  and  which  connects  the  Carnatic  with  the  port  of  Mar- 
magao  near  Goa.  In  Sind  the  North-Western  Railway,  starting  from 
Karachi,  travels  up  towards  the  Punjab  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Indus, 
a  branch  on  the  left  bank  going  from  Kotri  as  far  as  Rohri.  At  Ruk 
it  connects  with  the  line  to  Quetta,  and  at  Hyderabad  with  the  metre- 
gauge  line  to  Marwar  Junction  in  Ra.jputa.na.  It  is  a  standard-gauge 
line  owned  and  worked  by  Government.  A  direct  line  from  Bombay 
to  Sind  is  in  contemplation. 

An  experiment  in  light  railways  was  inaugurated  in  1897,  when  the 
Barsi  line,  from  Barsi  Road  on  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway 
to  Barsi  town,  was  opened  for  traffic.  This  line,  which  is  z\\  miles 
long,  is  constructed  on  a  z\  feet  gauge,  with  a  capital  of  13^  lakhs 
of  rupees,  and  is  owned  by  a  private  company.  In  1904  it  carried 
77,000  passengers  and  60,000  tons  of  goods,  and  made  in  net  earnings 
over  Rs.  65,000.  It  has  recently  been  extended  to  Pandharpur  in 
Sholapur  District.  The  special  feature  of  this  line  is  the  great  carrying 
capacity  of  the  trucks  in  respect  to  the  width  of  the  gauge. 

There  are  three  public  tramway  systems  in  the  Presidency  :  in 
Bombay  City,  at  Karachi,  and  at  Nasik.  The  Bombay  tramways, 
owned  by  the  municipality  and  worked  by  a  company,  have  a  length 
of  track  of  17!  miles,  mostly  double,  and  carried  about  25  million 
passengers  in  1904.  The  Karachi  tramway,  owned  and  worked  by  the 
East  India  Tramway  Company,  carried  over  z\  million  passengers  in 
1904.  The  Nasik  tramway,  also  owned  and  worked  by  a  private 
company,  with  a  capital  of  one  lakh,  runs  between  Nasik  Road  station 
on  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway  and  Nasik  town.  It  conveys 
on  an  average  150,000  passengers  a  year  over  a  length  of  5  miles. 
Owing  to  successive  years  of  famine  and  plague  it  has  so  far  run  at 
a  loss.  The  Bombay  tramway  is  now  being  converted  from  horse  to 
electric  traction.  The  other  two  are  drawn  by  horses.  None  of  the 
lines  is  guaranteed  in  any  form. 

Communications  are  maintained  along  the  coast  by  the  British  India 
line  of  steamers,  sailing  at  regular  intervals  for  Karachi  and  the  Persian 
Gulf  and  for  Mangalore.  The  coast  ports  between  Mangalore  and 
Bombay  are  served  by  vessels  of  the  Bombay  Steam  Navigation 
Company,  which  leave  daily  for  ports  north  and  south  of  Bombay.  A 
ferry  service  exists  in  Bombay  harbour. 

There  were  in  1904  more  than  6,550  miles  of  metalled  roads  in  the 


FAMINE  333 

Presidency,  maintained  at  an  annual  cost  of  13  lakhs.  The  chief  roads 
are  the  Bombay-Agra  trunk  road,  starting  from  Bombay  and  running 
north-east  through  Thana,  Nasik,  and  Khandesh ;  and  the  road  from 
Poona  to  Bangalore.  About  3,700  miles  of  metalled  roads  are  in 
charge  of  the  Public  Works  department  and  308  miles  under  local 
boards.  There  are  also  19,849  miles  of  unmetalled  and  unbridged 
roads,  serving  for  communications  between  less  important  centres  of 
trade.  Of  these,  15,631  miles  are  maintained  by  local  authorities  and 
4,218  miles  by  the  Public  Works  department.  Native  States  maintain 
2,061  miles  of  metalled  roads  and  3,550  miles  of  unmetalled  roads. 
The  cost  of  the  former  is  about  3  lakhs.  On  the  Ghats  the  hilly  roads 
are  served  by  pack-bullocks. 

The  Presidency  proper  contained  in  1903-4  1,962  post  offices. 
The  inland  mails  are  conveyed  over  14,000  miles  of  lines,  and  10,000 
persons  are  employed  in  postal  work.  Progress  in  this  department  of 
the  administration  has  been  steadily  maintained  since  the  opening 
of  the  first  office  in  1853-4.  During  the  last  forty  years  the  number 
of  post  offices  has  quadrupled,  and  the  length  of  postal  lines  has 
increased  by  30  per  cent.  In  every  branch  of  post  office  business  the 
volume  of  work  done  expands  continuously. 

The  Presidency  of  Bombay  and  the  Native  States  attached  thereto 
(with  the  exception  of  Bhor  and  Junagarh,  which  have  their  own 
postal  arrangements,  and  Khairpur)  form,  together  with  the  State  of 
Baroda  and  certain  post  offices  in  the  Hyderabad  State,  a  postal  circle 
under  a  Postmaster-General.  The  post  offices  at  Aden,  Bushire,  Basra, 
Baghdad,  Muhammarah,  Linga,  Muscat,  Bahrein,  and  Bandar  Abbas 
are  also  controlled  by  the  Postmaster-General  of  Bombay.  The  table 
on  the  next  page  shows  the  progress  of  postal  business.  Unless 
otherwise  expressly  stated,  the  figures  do  not  include  those  of  Baroda 
or  of  any  post  offices  in  the  Hyderabad  State.  Both  the  Post  and 
Telegraph  departments  are  directly  controlled  by  the  Government  of 
India.     A  full  account  of  them  is  given  in  Vol.  Ill,  chap.  viii. 

The  usual  cause  of  famine  or  scarcity  is  partial  or  total  failure  of  the 
crops  due  to  insufficient  or  untimely  rainfall.  The  effects  of  this  failure 
are  widely  felt,  owing  to  the  large  proportion  of  the 
population  dependent  on  agriculture  for  a  livelihood. 
In  the  case  of  the  labouring  classes  usually  employed  in  the  fields  the 
pressure  of  bad  seasons  is  enhanced  by  the  fact  that  the  same  cause 
greatly  increases  the  cost  of  food  while  it  decreases  the  prospects  of 
employment.  Sind,  being  wholly  cultivated  with  irrigation,  is  practi- 
cally immune  from  famine.  The  western  coast  similarly  suffers  little 
from  this  calamity,  being  certain  of  an  ample  rainfall.  In  the  Deccan 
plains  and  the  East  Carnatic  the  ordinary  rainfall  is  so  light  that  a  very 
small    reduction  or  postponement  of  the  monsoon  showers  materially 


)j4 


BOMB  A  V  PRF.SrnE.VCY 


diminishes  the  crop  output,  and  these  tracts  are  therefore  liable  to 
frequent  crop  failures.  In  Gujarat  rain  failure  occurs  less  frequently. 
In  the  famine  tracts  the  most  valuable  crops  are  sown  during  the  late 
rains,  i.e.  during  September  or  October.  Hence  the  early  cessation 
of  the  monsoon  produces  the  most  serious  results,  far  exceeding  the 
loss  caused  by  deficiency  at  the  beginning.  The  chief  late  crops  are 
cotton,  wheat,  jowdr,  gram,  and  oilseeds.  If  the  failure  of  the  monsoon 
is  followed  by  widespread  rise  of  prices  and  the  influx  of  beggars  into 
the  towns,  measures  of  relief  will  be  required. 


1880-1. 

1890-1. 

1900-1. 

"903-4- 

Number  of  post  offices 

688 

1,276 

M94 

1 ,962 

Number  of  letter  boxes 

1,839 

2,309 

4,184 

7,376 

Number    of    miles    of 

postal     communica- 

tion 

14.295* 

M,S37* 

16,204* 

'9,475* 

Total  number  of  postal 

articles  delivered  :  - 

Letters 

23, 1 95,463* 

3i, 749,  •  59* 

41,070,660 

49,148,162 

Postcards 

2,734-I37* 

2  2, 346,^86* 

43,432,418 

55,841,141 

Packets 

418,525* 

1,413,280* 

4,076,713  + 

5,411,255  f 

Newspapers . 

1,713,127* 

3,837,975  * 

4,525, 791  + 

5,224,506  + 

Parcels 

134.294* 

2n5,/&/ 

354,545 

686,317 

Value   of  stamps  sold 

Rs. 

Rs. 

Rs. 

Rs. 

to  the  public    . 

11,73,676* 

iS,57>710* 

2  3.30,234* 

30,57,708 

Value  of  money  orders 

issued 

47,08,720* 

i,65>54'29°* 

3,n,n,4co* 

3,08,44,507  * 

Total  amount   of  sav- 

ings bank  deposits    . 

• — 

1,97,68,396* 

2,67,45,794* 

3.38,i9.o3S 

*  These  figures  include  those  of  Baroda  and  of  the  offices  of  the  Hyderabad  State  under  the 
Postmaster-General  of  Bombay. 
t  Including  unregistered  newspapers.  {  Registered  as  newspapers  in  the  post  office. 

History  records  many  famines  in  the  area  now  constituting  the 
Bombay  Presidency.  They  have  sometimes  been  caused  by  war, 
floods,  or  the  depredations  of  rats  and  locusts,  as  well  as  by  drought. 
Up  to  the  nineteenth  century  the  most  noteworthy  of  these  calamities 
occurred  in  the  years  1259-62,  1396-1407  (the  great  Durga-devT  famine), 
1472-3,  1629,  16S1,  1684,  1698,  1719,  1732,  1747,  and  1791-2. 

Of  the  notable  famines  of  the  nineteenth  century,  those  which 
affected  considerable  areas  are  described  below,  detailed  information 
about  local  calamities  being  given  in  articles  upon  the  Districts  concerned. 
One  of  the  worst  occurred  in  1802-3  fr°m  trie  depredations  of  Holkar's 
army,  which  on  its  march  to  Poona  laid  waste  the  whole  country-side. 
The  Pindaris  followed  in  Holkar's  wake  and  reduced  the  Deccan  and 
Carnatic  to  such  depths  of  misery  and  want  that  cows,  buffaloes,  and 
even  human  beings  are  said  to  have  been  devoured  by  the  starving- 
peasantry.  The  price  of  grain  stood  at  1^  lb.  per  rupee  ;  and  not- 
withstanding the  activity  of  private  charity,  and  importations  of  grain 
and   liberal   remissions  of  revenue  by  the  Peshwa's  government,  con- 


FAMINE  335 

tinuous  hordes  of  starving  emigrants  poured  into  the  Konkan  and 
Gujarat,  leaving  a  trail  of  dead  and  dying  behind  them.  The  failure 
of  the  late  rains  of  1803  accentuated  the  calamity  wrought  by  human 
agency ;  the  river  at  Poona  was  black  with  putrescent  corpses ;  and 
hunger,  hand  in  hand  with  cholera,  left  numerous  villages  permanently 
desolate.  Among  those  who  endeavoured  with  some  success  to 
mitigate  the  prevailing  misery  were  Lady  Mackintosh  in  Bombay,  who 
collected  a  subscription  of  £4,000  for  relief,  and  General  Wellesley, 
who  improvised  relief  works  and  free  doles  for  the  people  of  Ahmad- 
nagar. 

In  181 2-3  the  northern  Districts  of  the  Presidency  were  attacked  by 
swarms  of  locusts  from  Marwar,  which  covered  Kathiawar  and  Gujarat 
as  far  south  as  Broach  and  entirely  devoured  the  crops.  No  sooner 
had  the  scarcity  thus  caused  assumed  definite  proportions  than  Gujarat 
had  to  face  a  total  failure  of  rain  which,  coupled  with  enormous 
immigration  of  diseased  and  starving  Marwaris,  placed  her  in  most 
pitiable  straits.  Private  help  was  liberally  but  unmethodically  bestowed, 
and  every  roadside  was  crowded  with  men,  women,  and  children, 
famished  and  moribund.  '  During  this  time  of  misery,'  wrote  Captain 
Rivett  Carnac,  '  I  have  seen  a  group  of  Marwaris  deny  a  little  water 
to  a  dying  woman  with  a  dead  infant  at  her  breast.  Dogs,  by  feeding 
on  human  flesh,  grew  strangely  fierce.  I  have  seen  a  pack  of  them 
carry  off  a  living  child  from  its  dead  mother's  arms.  Even  among  the 
higher  classes  so  keen  was  the  distress  that  for  a  few  shillings  Brahmans 
sold  their  relations,  children,  and  wives."  Pestilence  walked  hard  upon 
the  heels  of  famine,  and  in  Ahmadabad  alone  slew  100,000  people. 

The  famine  of  1819-20,  due  in  Broach  to  two  years'  excessive 
rainfall  and  in  the  Deccan  to  a  failure  of  the  monsoon,  was  actually  less 
severe,  but  remarkable  for  widespread  panic  which  for  seven  or  eight 
months  emptied  considerable  tracts  of  the  Deccan  of  their  inhabitants. 
In  1824,  a  year  remembered  as  that  of  kharpad  or  'distress,'  the  failure 
of  rain  throughout  the  Presidency  raised  grain  prices  to  famine  level 
and  caused  widespread  scarcity,  which  was  only  partially  mitigated  by 
large  remissions  of  assessment,  and  by  the  opening  of  relief  works 
in  various  Districts.  Emigration,  notably  to  the  Nizam's  territory, 
continued  until  October,  when  a  timely  fall  of  rain  brought  relief.  The 
scarcity  of  1832-3,  though  affecting  both  the  Deccan  and  Carnatic,  was 
chiefly  felt  in  the  latter  region.  Grain  robberies  were  frequent ;  lack  of 
fodder  caused  high  mortality  among  cattle,  and  drove  shepherds  and 
graziers  from  their  homes ;  the  carrying  trade  in  some  places  was 
temporarily  brought  to  a  standstill.  The  opening  of  relief  works  and 
orders  to  grain-dealers  to  keep  down  prices  helped  the  people  to  tide 
over  the  scarcity,  which  lasted  for  eight  or  nine  months. 

A  considerable   portion    of  Gujarat   and    Khandesh    was    similarly 


3  $6  BOMB  A  ) '  PRESIDENC ) ' 

affected  in  1834,  distress  in  the  former  area  being  augmented  by  the 
ravages  of  locusts.  Grain  was  sold  at  Rs.  4  a  maund,  and  the  cattle 
suffered  severely  from  want  of  fodder.  In  Kaira  alone  remissions  of 
Government  revenue  amounted  to  nearly  2  lakhs.  Scarcely  had  the 
people  time  to  recover  from  the  effects  of  this  famine,  before  they  were 
plunged  in  more  acute  distress  by  a  total  failure  of  rain  in  1838.  Not 
only  Gujarat  and  Khandesh  but  Thana  District  also  witnessed  the 
wholesale  desertion  of  villages  ;  and  such  live-stock  as  survived  were 
driven  to  seek  a  bare  sustenance  among  the  hills.  Portions  of  Thana 
were  relieved  by  the  timely  arrival  of  shiploads  of  rice  from  Malabar  ; 
but  in  the  northern  districts  relief  works  had  to  be  opened,  and  revenue, 
amounting  in  Khandesh  to  6|  lakhs  and  in  Surat  to  5  lakhs,  was 
remitted.  Fourteen  years  later,  in  1853-4,  the  Northern  Konkan,  the 
Panch  Mahals,  and  parts  of  the  Deccan  were  attacked  by  serious 
scarcity.  Sholapur  was  the  greatest  sufferer  among  Deccan  District? 
and  poured  hundreds  of  starving  and  destitute  villagers  into  Bijapur, 
where  they  were  employed  by  Government  upon  road  construction.  In 
Thana  and  Kolaba  a  failure  of  the  late  rains  of  1853  was  followed  by  an 
equally  destructive  excess  of  rain  in  1854,  while  at  the  moment  when 
the  people  might  have  commenced  to  profit  by  the  liberal  actions  of 
Government,  a  terrific  hurricane,  sweeping  across  the  coast  villages, 
destroyed  the  last  vestiges  of  crops  and  cancelled  all  hopes  of  speedy 
recuperation.  In  1862  the  whole  Deccan  suffered  from  a  failure  of  the 
early  rains ;  and  distress  was  so  widespread  and  serious  that  relief 
works,  chiefly  road  construction,  were  opened  in  each  District.  In 
Nasik,  particularly,  the  price  of  grain  rose  more  rapidly  to  famine  level, 
owing  to  the  reduction  of  the  area  under  cereals  caused  by  increased 
cotton  cultivation  ;  but  in  the  end  every  District  was  equally  afflicted 
by  a  calamity,  the  severity  of  which  is  to  some  extent  proved  by  the 
fact  that  grain  compensation  allowances  were  required  for  all  Govern- 
ment servants  in  receipt  of  a  monthly  salary  less  than  Rs.  200. 

The  famine  of  1876-7  was  felt  throughout  the  Deccan  and  Southern 
Maratha  Country,  though  less  severely  than  in  the  adjoining  Districts, 
of  Madras  and  Mysore.  The  same  meteorological  causes  operated  over 
all  Southern  India.  The  total  rainfall  of  the  year  was  everywhere 
deficient,  but  the  disastrous  effect  upon  agriculture  was  determined 
mainly  by  local  variations.  The  harvest  of  1875  had  also  Deen  below 
the  average,  so  that  the  pressure  of  high  prices  fell  upon  a  population 
already  impoverished.  In  1876  the  summer  rains  of  the  south-west 
monsoon,  which  commence  in  June,  were  scanty,  and  the  autumn  rains 
upon  which  the  table-land  above  the  Ghats  is  mainly  dependent  failed 
altogether.  The  result  was  a  general  failure  in  the  winter  crops  in  the 
Presidency  over  an  area  estimated  at  39,000  square  miles,  with  a 
population  of  nearly  six  millions.     Serious  distress  began  in  November. 


FAMINE  337 

1876,  and  lasted  for  about  twelve  months.  In  April,  1S77,  the  number 
of  people  employed  by  Government  on  relief  works  was  287,000.  In 
July  of  the  same  year  the  persons  in  receipt  of  gratuitous  relief 
numbered  160,000.  The  District  most  affected  was  Bijapur,  bordering 
on  the  Nizam's  Dominions,  where  those  relieved  formed  14  per  cent,  of 
the  total  population,  and  the  severity  of  the  local  distress  was  intensified 
by  the  lack  of  roads  and  railways.  But  these  figures  convey  but  an 
inadequate  idea  of  the  general  impoverishment  produced  by  this 
disastrous  year.  The  statistics  of  the  Bombay  mint  show  in  a  decisive 
manner  how  even  the  well-to-do  portion  of  the  population  suffered.  In 
the  two  years  1877  and  1878  the  total  value  of  silver  ornaments 
and  disused  coin  brought  into  the  mint  as  bullion  exceeded  250  lakhs, 
compared  with  only  Rs.  40,000  in  1876.  The  Government  en- 
deavoured to  provide  work  for  the  starving  population  ;  but  notwith- 
standing the  wages  offered  and  the  supplies  of  food  brought  into  the 
Districts,  the  calamity  proved  beyond  the  power  of  administrative 
control.  The  deaths  in  the  two  famine  ye^rs  1877  and  1878  in  the 
Bombay  Presidency,  excluding  Sind,  are  estimated  to  have  been 
800,000  in  excess  of  the  usual  number. 

After  1877  a  period  of  nearly  twenty  years  elapsed  without  the  occur- 
rence of  any  famine  of  serious  dimensions.  In  1896  the  rain  failed 
in  the  Deccan  Districts  and  the  East  Carnatic,  and  severe  distress 
followed.  The  total  daily  average  number  of  persons  in  receipt  of 
relief  in  these  tracts,  either  employed  on  Government  works  or  being 
fed  in  poorhouses  or  by  village  doles,  during  a  period  of  fourteen 
months  was  280,000,  the  maximum  being  459,000  in  September,  1897. 
The  number  of  relief  works  open  amounted  to  180,  and  the  expendi- 
ture incurred  on  relief  was  146  lakhs,  of  which  128  lakhs  was  spent  by 
Government  and  the  rest  by  local  bodies  and  the  Indian  Famine  Fund. 
The  rainfall  of  the  succeeding  year  was  more  ample  but  still  inadequate  ; 
and  relief  measures  had  again  to  be  resorted  to,  the  resources  of  the 
people  being  severely  taxed. 

In  1899-1900  the  rains  failed  in  Gujarat,  the  Deccan,  and  parts  of 
the  Carnatic,  causing  a  famine  of  unprecedented  severity.  In  British 
Districts  alone  the  daily  average  number  of  persons  in  receipt 
of  relief  from  September,  1899,  to  November,  1900,  was  849,000,  the 
maximum  being  1,547,000  in  July,  1900.  The  daily  average  from 
December,  1900,  to  October,  1901,  was  291,000,  and  from  November, 
1901,  to  October,  1902,  192,000.  The  number  of  works  open  was  367 
in  1899-1900,  and  268  in  the  two  following  years;  the  total  expendi- 
ture on  relief  measures  exceeded  6  crores,  while  2^  crores  of  revenue 
was  remitted.  In  Native  States  a  daily  average  of  298,000  persons 
were  relieved  in  1899- 1900,  at  a  cost  of  83  lakhs.  This  famine  was 
marked  by  terrible  mortality,  the  highest  death-rate  occurring  in  the 

vol.  yin.  z 


338  BOMB  A  Y  PRESIDENCY 

Gujarat  Districts  and  States,  where  the  people,  long  unaccustomed 
to  suffer  from  scarcity,  frequently  failed  to  take  advantage  of  relief 
measures  until  the  progress  of  exhaustion  had  rendered  it  impossible 
to  save  their  lives.  The  wild  tribes  in  the  forest  tracts  of  Gujarat, 
ignorantly  distrustful  of  these  measures,  and  opposed  to  all  forms  of 
regular  work,  died  in  numbers  in  the  remoter  jungles.  Later  on,  when 
relief  measures  were  making  progress  in  public  favour,  virulent  out- 
breaks of  cholera  slew  thousands,  and  scattered  the  survivors  beyond 
the  reach  of  relief. 

It  is  difficult  to  separate  the  deaths  caused  by  disease  from  the 
results  of  privation,  and  estimates  of  mortality  are  again  complicated  by 
the  prevalence  of  bubonic  plague  in  certain  of  the  famine  areas.  It  is, 
however,  estimated  by  the  Provincial  Superintendent  of  the  Census  of 
1 90 1  that  between  1896  and  1901  the  Presidency  lost  3,000,000  of 
its  population,  owing  to  the  ravages  due  to  famine  and  plague. 
Of  this  loss  one-third  occurred  in  British  territory  and  two-thirds  in 
Native  States,  and  the  greater  part  of  it  must  be  attributed  to  famine. 

In  connexion  with  recent  famines  it  may  be  noted  that  the  extension 
of  the  railway  system  of  the  Presidency  has  very  largely  reduced  the 
difficulty  of  saving  life,  by  providing  for  the  transit  of  food-grains  to  the 
affected  areas.  In  1877,  for  instance,  attempts  made  to  import  food 
into  the  Camatic  failed,  owing  to  the  difficulty  of  transporting  gram 
from  the  coast  by  bullock-cart.  In  1896-7  and  in  i899-i9oothe  food- 
supply  was  everywhere  adequate,  though  naturally  costly.  Incidentally 
this  advantage  has  been  accompanied  by  a  lesser  but  inevitable  evil : 
namely,  the  raising  of  prices  to  a  level  formerly  unknown  in  the  tracts 
whence  food-grains  are  exported  by  the  newly  constructed  means  of 
communication.  Another  and  more  entirely  satisfactory  characteristic 
of  recent  famines  has  been  the  prompt  recovery  of  the  affected  areas  on 
the  return  of  the  normal  rainfall.  This  happy  result  is  to  be  attributed 
largely  to  the  measures  adopted  by  Government  for  facilitating  the 
recommencement  of  agricultural  operations.  The  loss  of  valuable  stock 
has  been  minimized  by  transporting  cattle  to  the  grazing  lands  in  the 
forests,  or  by  distributing  large  quantities  of  fodder  gathered  in  these 
forests  throughout  the  affected  tracts.  Advances  of  money  on  a  liberal 
scale  have  been  made  to  enable  the  small  landowner  to  purchase  seed 
and  cattle,  without  which  his  lands  must  have  remained  unsown. 
Large  suspensions  and  remissions  of  the  land  revenue  demand  were 
granted  throughout  the  famine  area.  Efforts  were  also  made,  by  employ- 
ing the  relief  workers  on  the  construction  of  irrigation  works,  to  provide 
against  the  consequences  of  rain  failure  in  the  future.  Measures  of  this 
description  are  unfortunately  limited  by  the  unsuitability  of  much  of  the 
country  most  liable  to  famine  to  large  and  comprehensive  schemes  of 
irrigation.     But    the    works   constructed   have   been  supplemented    to 


ADMINISTRATION  339 

some  extent  by  the  construction  of  numerous  wells,  for  which  loans 
were  advanced  to  the  cultivators.  Many  of  these  were  completed  in  time 
to  furnish  a  small  grain  or  fodder  crop  to  the  owner  during  the  period 
of  the  famine,  and  the  others  have  enabled  a  useful  addition  to  be 
made  to  his  crop  out-turn  ever  since.  Much  special  relief  was  afforded 
between  1899  and  1902  by  the  Indian  Charitable  Relief  Fund,  from 
which  57^  lakhs  was  given  to  deserving  sufferers  in  the  affected  Districts 
of  the  Presidency. 

The  government  of  the  Presidency  of  Bombay  is  administered  by 
a  Governor-in-Council.  This  body  consists  of  the  Governor  as  Presi- 
dent, and  two  members  of  the  Indian  Civil  Service, 

,,     r     ,  ,  1      .,      r^  rr..  Administration. 

all  of  whom  are  appointed  by  the  Crown.      I  he  term 

of  office  for  both  Governor  and  Councillors  is  five  years.  With  a  view 
to  diminish  the  pressure  of  business,  each  member  of  Council  takes 
immediate  charge  of  certain  departments.  Questions  which  present  no 
special  difficulty  are  finally  disposed  of  by  the  member  in  charge  of 
the  department  in  which  they  occur.  On  more  important  questions, 
and  on  those  involving  the  expenditure  of  any  large  sum  of  money, 
the  opinion  of  a  second  member  is  sought ;  and  should  there  be 
a  difference  of  opinion,  or  should  any  case  of  peculiar  difficulty  or 
general  public  interest  arise,  the  matter  is  settled  according  to  the 
balance  of  opinion  either  as  recorded  by  the  different  members,  or  after 
discussion  at  a  meeting  of  the  Council. 

In  matters  before  the  Council  in  their  judicial  capacity,  and  in  the 
making,  repealing,  and  suspension  of  the  ordinary  rules  of  civil  adminis- 
tration, the  opinion  of  the  majority  is  decisive  ;  but  in  any  matter 
essentially  affecting  the  safety  or  tranquillity  of  British  India,  the 
Governor  can  act  on  his  own  discretion  even  against  the  opinion  of 
his  Councillors. 

All  papers  connected  with  public  business  reach  Government  through 
the  Secretariat,  where  they  are  submitted  to  the  members  in  charge  of 
the  departments  to  which  they  belong.  The  Secretariat  is  divided  into 
five  main  departments  :  namely,  (a)  the  Revenue  and  Financial ;  (b)  the 
Political,  Judicial,  Legislative,  and  Special ;  (c)  the  General,  Educa- 
tional,  Marine,  and  Ecclesiastical ;  (d)  Ordinary  Public  Works,  includ- 
ing Irrigation ;  and  (e)  Railways  ;  and  each  department  has  at  its  head 
a  secretary,  who  is  usually  assisted  by  an  under  secretary  and  an  assis- 
tant secretary.  In  departments  (a),  (/>),  and  (c)  the  secretaries  and 
under  secretaries  belong  to  the  Indian  Civil  Service  ;  in  (d)  and  (e) 
they  are  Royal  or  Civil  Engineers ;  group  (d)  being  in  charge  of  two 
joint  secretaries,  with  an  under  secretary  for  irrigation  matters.  The 
senior  of  the  three  civilian  secretaries  to  Government  is  entitled  the 
Chief  Secretary.  The  Separate  department,  which  deals  with  the  dis- 
patch and  receipt  of  correspondence  from  the  India  Office,  and  is  in 

z  2 


3  40  BOMB  A  I '  J  'RESIDENC  Y 

charge  of  the  Secretariat  building,  is  under  the  Chief  Secretary,  assisted 
by  the  under  secretary,  Revenue  and  Financial  departments. 

Under  the  Governor-in-Council,  the  Presidency  is  administered  by 
four  Commissioners — the  Commissioner  in  Sind,  who  has  special 
powers,  and  the  Commissioners  in  charge  of  the  Northern,  Central,  and 
Southern  Divisions.  Sind  contains  six  Districts  :  namely,  Karachi, 
Hyderabad,  Larkana,  Sukkur,  Thar  and  Parkar,  and  Upper  Sind 
Frontier,  the  first  four  of  which  are  in  charge  of  Collectors  and  the  last 
two  of  Deputy-Commissioners.  The  Revenue  Divisions  of  the  rest 
of  the  Presidency  contain  the  following  Districts,  each  in  charge  of  a 
Collector,  who  is  generally  an  Indian  Civilian,  but  may  belong  to  the 
Statutory  or  the  Provincial  Service : — 

Northern  Division. — Ahmadabad,  Broach,  Kaira,  Panch  Mahals, 
Surat,  Thana. 

Central  Division. — Poona,  Satara,  Sholapur,  Nasik,  Khandesh 
(now  East  and  West  Khandesh),  Ahmadnagar. 

Southern  Division.— Belgaum,  Dharwar,  Bijapur,  Kanara,  Ratnagiri, 
Kolaba. 

The  head-quarters  of  the  Commissioner,  Northern  Division,  are  at 
Ahmadabad ;  the  Commissioner,  Central  Division,  resides  at  Poona ; 
and  the  Commissioner,  Southern  Division,  at  Belgaum. 

Each  District  has  one  or  more  Indian  Civilians  as  Assistant  Col- 
lectors in  charge  of  subdivisions,  and  one  or  more  Deputy-Collectors 
of  the  Provincial  Service  similarly  employed.  A  Deputy-Collector  is 
in  charge  of  each  District  treasury. 

A  Collectorate  contains  an  average  of  from  eight  to  twelve  tdlukas, 
each  consisting  of  ioo  to  200  Government  villages:  that  is  to  say, 
villages  of  which  the  whole  revenues  belong  to  the  state.  Each  village 
has  its  regular  complement  of  officers,  some  or  all  of  whom  are  usually 
hereditary.  The  officers  on  whose  services  Government  is  mainly 
dependent  are  the  patel,  who  is  the  head  of  the  village  for  both  revenue 
and  police  purposes  ;  the  kulkarni  or  ta/dti,  who  is  the  clerk  and 
accountant ;  the  messenger ;  and  the  watchman.  The  patel  and  kul- 
karni sometimes  hold  a  certain  quantity  of  rent-free  land,  but  are  now 
almost  universally  remunerated  by  a  cash  payment  equivalent  to  a  per- 
centage on  the  collections.  The  messenger  and  watchman,  and  some- 
times other  village  servants,  hold  land  on  special  terms  as  regards 
assessment,  and  receive  grain  and  other  payments  in  kind  from  the  vil- 
lagers. The  remaining  village  servants  include  the  carpenter,  blacksmith, 
potter,  barber,  and  others  whose  services  are  necessary  to  the  commu- 
nity. A  village  is,  for  Government  or  social  purposes,  complete  in 
itself,  and,  so  to  speak,  independent  of  the  outer  world.  But  owing  to 
the  greater  centralization  and  complexity  of  the  system  of  government, 
its  autonomy  is  now  less  than  it  was  under  native  rule. 


AD  MINIS  TRA  TION  34  r 

Over  each  tahika  or  group  of  villages  there  is  an  officer  termed 
mdmlatdar^  whose  monthly  salary  varies  from  Rs.  150  to  Rs.  250.  The 
?namlatdar  is  responsible  for  the  treasury  business  of  his  taluka ;  he 
has  to  see  that  the  instalments  are  punctually  paid  by  the  several 
villages  ;  that  the  village  accounts  are  duly  kept ;  that  the  occupants 
get  their  payments  duly  receipted  ;  that  the  boundary  marks  are  kept 
in  repair  ;  and,  in  general,  to  secure  that  the  village  officers  do  their 
work  properly.  He  has  also  to  look  after  the  administration  of  the 
local  funds,  and  is  a  subordinate  magistrate.  The  talaka  is  subdivided 
into  groups  of  villages,  each  of  which  is  under  the  immediate  super- 
vision of  a  subordinate  of  the  mamlatdar  termed  '  circle-inspector.' 
The  Assistant  or  Deputy-Collector  placed  in  charge  of  a  District  sub- 
division, containing  three  or  four  td/ukas,  has  to  travel  about  them 
during  seven  months  in  the  year,  to  satisfy  himself  by  personal  in- 
spection that  the  revenue  work  is  being  properly  done  :  during  the 
rains  he  resides  at  the  District  head-quarters.  The  Collector  and 
Magistrate  is  placed  over  the  whole  District,  and  has  to  travel  at 
least  for  four  months  in  the  year.  The  Commissioners  exercise  a 
general  superintendence  and  control  over  the  revenue  administration 
of  their  Divisions. 

The  control  of  the  Bombay  Government  over  the  Native  States  of 
the  Presidency  is  exercised  through  Political  Agents.  The  position 
and  duties  of  the  Agent  vary  very  considerably  in  the  different  States, 
being  governed  by  the  terms  of  the  original  treaties,  or  by  recent  sa/iads 
or  patents.  In  some  instances,  as  in  Cutch,  the  functions  of  the  Agent 
are  confined  to  the  giving  of  advice  and  to  the  exercise  of  a  general 
surveillance  ;  in  other  cases  he  is  invested  with  an  actual  share  in 
the  administration  ;  while  States  whose  rulers  are  minors — and  the 
number  of  these  is  always  large— are  directly  managed  by  Govern- 
ment officers.  The  characteristic  feature  of  the  Bombay  Native  States 
is  the  excessive  number  of  petty  principalities,  such  as  those  of  the 
Rajput  and  Bhil  chieftains.  The  peninsula  of  Kathiawar  alone  con- 
tains no  less  than  193  separate  States.  The  recognition  of  these 
innumerable  jurisdictions  is  due  to  the  circumstance  that  the  early 
Bombay  administrators  were  induced  to  treat  the  de  facto  exercise 
of  civil  and  criminal  jurisdiction  by  a  landholder  as  carrying  with  it 
a  quasi-sovereign  status.  The  rule  of  succession  by  primogeniture 
applies  only  to  the  larger  principalities,  and  consequently  the  minor 
States  are  continually  suffering  disintegration. 

The  States  may  be  conveniently  divided  into  three  classes.  First, 
there  are  important  States  in  each  of  which  the  British  Government 
is  represented  by  an  Agent  who  corresponds  with  the  Darbar,  or  State 
administration,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Bombay  Political  service, 
specially  appointed  to  the  post.     Second,  groups  of  smaller  States  in 


342  BOMB  A  V  PKESIDENC I ' 

charge  of  a  Political  Agent,  who  resides  in  a  central  station,  and  is 
also  a  member  of  the  Bombay  Political  service.  Third,  isolated 
States  in  close  proximity  to  British  Districts,  the  Collector  of  which  is 
ex-officio  Agent  for  the  State.  According  to  this  classification  the 
States  attached  to  the  Bombay  Presidency  are  as  follows  : — 

Class  I. — Kolhapur,  Savantvadi,  and  Cutch. 

Class  II. — Mahl  Kantha  States,  Palanpur  States,  Kathiawar  States, 
and  Southern  Maratha  JagTrs. 

Class  III. — Khairpur,  Rewa  Kantha,  Cambay,  Dharampur,  Bansda, 
Sachln,  Jawhar,  Janjlra,  Surgana,  Akalkot,  Bhor,  Aundh,  Phaltan, 
Savanur,  Jath,  and  the  Bhil  States  in  Surat. 

The  Native  States  are  either  subordinate  to  other  States  or  in  direct 
relation  with  the  British  Government.  Thus  Kolhapur  has  direct  deal- 
ings with  Government,  while  its  feudatory,  Kagal,  is  in  relation  with  the 
Kolhapur  Darbar.  The  status  of  the  feudatories  is  usually  guaranteed 
by  Government.  All  classes  are  administered,  subject  to  the  orders 
of  the  chief,  by  the  Darbar  of  ministers,  who  issue  orders  to  the  execu- 
tive, usually  through  the  chief  minister  or  Dlwan.  The  powers  of  the 
chiefs  are  regulated  by  treaty  or  custom,  and  vary  from  authority  to  try 
all  criminal  offences  not  committed  by  British  subjects,  and  complete 
civil  authority,  as  in  the  case  of  the  Maharaja  of  Kolhapur,  to  the  mere 
right  to  collect  revenue  in  a  share  of  a  village,  without  criminal  or  civil 
jurisdiction,  as  in  the  case  of  the  petty  chiefs  of  the  Kathiawar  penin- 
sula. When  the  chief  lacks  the  power  to  dispose  of  criminal  or  civil 
cases,  they  are  dealt  with  by  the  Political  Agent.  Appeals  from  the 
judicial  decisions  of  chiefs  with  large  powers  lie  to  the  Governor-in- 
Council,  and  are  not  cognizable  by  the  ordinary  courts  of  justice 
established  for  British  territory.  With  the  object  of  providing  a  tribunal 
by  which  speedy  justice  might  be  dispensed  to  the  wild  tribes  inhabiting 
the  border  States  of  Gujarat  and  Rajputana,  and  to  repress  border 
raids,  a  system  of  Border  Panchayats  was  instituted  in  1838,  which 
subsequently  (1876)  developed  into  regular  courts  under  two  British 
officers,  one  of  whom  represents  the  Rajputana  State  and  the  other 
the  Bombay  State  concerned  in  the  inquiry.  The  system  still  exists 
and  the  courts  assemble  as  occasion  requires. 

In  Aden  the  local  administration  centres  in  the  Resident,  who  is 
the  General  in  command  of  the  troops,  and  has  three  Political  officers 
as  Assistants  in  the  former  capacity. 

The    Legislative    Council   of    the    Presidency    is   composed   of  the 
members  of  the    Executive  Council,  with   the    Advocate-General  and 
twenty  Additional   Members  nominated  by  the  Go- 
Legislation  and    vernor  eieht  of  them  on  the  recommendation  of — 
insticp  • 

(t)  the  corporation    of   Bombay,  (2)   the   municipal 

corporations  of  the  Northern  Division,  (3)  the  District  boards  of  the 


LEGISLATION  AND  JUSTICE  34 


3*3 


Southern  Division,  (4)  the  District  boards  of  the  Central  Division, 
(5)  the  Sardars  of  the  Deccan,  (6)  the  jagirdars  and  zamindars  of 
Sind,  (7)  the  Chamber  of  Commerce,  Bombay,  and  (8)  the  Senate 
of  the  Bombay  University. 

The  non-official  Additional  Members  of  this  Council  have  the 
privilege  of  recommending  one  member  for  a  seat  as  an  Additional 
Member  in  the  Legislative  Council  of  the  Governor-General.  The 
members  of  the  Legislative  Council  avail  themselves  freely  of  the 
right  to  interpellate  Government  regarding  matters  of  general  admin- 
istration, and  to  discuss  the  annual  financial  statement. 

The  chief  legislative  measures  affecting  Bombay  which  have  been 
passed  since  1880  by  the  Governor-General's  Council  are  :  The  Indian 
Merchant  Shipping  Act  (Act  VII  of  1880),  the  Bombay  Revenue 
Jurisdiction  Act  (Act  XV  of  1880),  the  Indian  Factories  Act  (Act  XV 
of  188 1 ),  the  Indian  Trusts  Act  (Act  II  of  1882),  extended  to  Bombay 
in  1 89 1,  the  Land  Improvement  Loans  Act  (Act  XIX  of  1883),  ex- 
tended to  Bombay  in  1886,  the  Indian  Steamships  Act  (Act  VII  of 
1884),  the  Provincial  Small  Cause  Courts  Act  (Act  IX  of  1887),  the 
Land  Acquisition  Act  (Act  I  of  1894),  the  Cotton  Duties  Act  (Act  II 
of  1896),  the  Sind  Encumbered  Estates  Act  (Act  XX  of  1896),  and 
the  Epidemic  Diseases  Act  (Act  III  of  1897).  Of  the  enactments 
passed  by  the  Bombay  Legislative  Council  during  the  same  period 
the  chief  are  :  The  Bombay  Local  Boards  Act  (Act  I  of  1882),  the 
City  of  Bombay  Municipal  Act  (Act  IV  of  1888),  the  Bombay  Village 
Sanitation  Act  (Act  I  of  1889),  the  Bombay  Salt  Act  (Act  II  of  1890), 
the  Bombay  District  Police  Act  (Act  IV  of  1890),  the  City  of  Bombay 
Improvement  Act  (Act  IV  of  1898),  the  Bombay  District  Municipal 
Act  (Act  III  of  1901),  the  City  of  Bombay  Police  Act  (Act  IV  of 
1902),  the  Bombay  Land  Record-of-Rights  Act  (Act  IV  of  1903),  the 
Bombay  Motor-Vehicles  Act  (Act  II  of  1904),  and  the  Bombay  Court 
of  Wards  Act  (Act  II  of  1905). 

The  administration  of  justice  throughout  the  Presidency  proper  is, 
under  a  statute  of  1861  (Indian  High  Courts  Act)  and  the  letters  patent 
of  1865,  entrusted  to  the  High  Court,  which  has  both  ordinary  and 
extraordinary  civil  and  criminal  jurisdiction,  original  in  the  City  and 
Island  of  Bombay  and  appellate  in  the  other  Regulation  Districts.  It 
also  exercises  the  functions  of  an  insolvency  court,  and  possesses  the 
civil  and  criminal  jurisdiction  of  an  admiralty  and  vice-admiralty  court 
in  prize  causes  and  other  maritime  questions  arising  in  India.  The 
Court  consists  of  a  Chief  Justice  (a  barrister)  and  six  puisne  judges 
who  are  either  Indian  Civilians,  barristers,  or  native  lawyers. 

In  Sind  the  Court  of  the  Judicial  Commissioner  (consisting  of  three 
judges,  one  of  whom  must  be  a  barrister)  is  the  highest  court  of  civil  and 
criminal  appeal,  and  the  High  Court  at  Bombay  has   no  jurisdiction 


3  4  a  B  OMB A  Y  PRESWRNC ) ' 

over  that  province,  except  as  regards  a  few  special  matters.  The 
Judicial  Commissioner's  Court  is  a  colonial  court  of  admiralty,  from 
which  an  appeal  lies  to  a  full  bench  of  the  same  court  and  ultimately 
to  His  Majesty  in  Council. 

The  lower  civil  courts  are  constituted  under  Act  XIV  of  1869,  which 
defines  their  powers.  In  most  cases  the  court  of  first  instance  is  that 
of  a  Subordinate  Judge  of  the  first  or  second  class  according  to  the 
valuation  of  the  suit.  The  court  of  first  appeal  is  that  of  a  District 
or  Assistant  Judge,  or  of  a  first-class  Subordinate  Judge  with  special 
powers.  The  jurisdiction  of  the  District,  Additional,  and  Assistant 
Judges  in  each  District  is  conterminous.  The  Subordinate  Judges 
are  usually  recruited  from  the  ranks  of  the  local  pleaders,  while  the 
District  and  Assistant  Judges  are  Indian  or  Statutory  Civilians  or 
members  of  the  Provincial  Service.  A  Subordinate  Judge  of  the 
second  class  has  original  jurisdiction  in  suits  of  less  than  Rs.  5,000 
in  value,  but  no  appellate  powers ;  while  a  Subordinate  Judge  of  the 
first  class  has  jurisdiction  in  all  original  civil  suits,  except  those  in 
which  Government  is  a  party.  The  latter  may  be  invested  with  appel- 
late jurisdiction  and  with  the  summary  powers  of  a  Small  Cause  Court 
Judge  for  the  trial  of  suits  not  exceeding  Rs.  1,000  in  value.  An 
Assistant  Judge  may  try  such  original  suits  of  less  than  Rs.  10,000 
in  value  as  the  District  Judge  refers  to  him,  and  may  be  invested  with 
appellate  jurisdiction,  in  which  case  his  powers  are  the  same  as  those 
of  a  District  Judge.  The  District  Judge  exercises  a  general  control 
over  all  courts  within  his  charge,  and  refers  such  suits  as  he  deems 
proper  to  the  Assistant  Judge.  In  certain  parts  of  the  Presidency 
the  services  of  an  Additional  Judge  are  employed.  This  officer,  with 
the  title  of  Assistant  Judge,  has  all  the  powers  of  a  District  Judge 
in  civil  matters,  and  nearly  all  the  administrative  powers.  In  cases 
exceeding  Rs.  5,000  in  value  an  appeal  from  the  decision  of  a  Sub- 
ordinate or  Assistant  Judge,  and  from  the  decision  of  a  District 
Judge  in  all  original  suits,  lies  to  the  High  Court.  Any  Subordinate 
Judge  can  be  invested  with  certain  powers  as  regards  small  debts  ; 
and  special  Small  Cause  Courts  exist  in  Bombay,  Ahmadabad,  Nadiad, 
Broach,  Surat,  Poona,  and  Karachi.  The  Dekkhan  Agriculturists' 
Relief  Act  is  administered  in  the  Presidency  proper  by  a  Special 
Judge  and  two  first-class  Subordinate  Judges,  with  the  aid  of  a  number 
of  Village  Munsifs  and  conciliators. 

.  In  Sind  the  judicial  system  nearly  resembles  that  of  the  regulation 
portion  of  the  Presidency.  In  Aden  and  its  dependencies  the  Resident 
has  rather  more  extensive  powers  than  a  District  and  Sessions  Judge, 
but  his  decisions  are  in  certain  cases  subject  to  revision  by  the  High 
Court  at  Bombay. 

Mamlatddrs  have,  under  Bombay  Act  III  of  1876,  jurisdiction  in 


LEGISLATION  AND  JUSTICE  345 

suits  regarding  immediate  possession  of  immovable  property.  Their 
decisions  are  subject  to  revision  by  the  High  Court. 

District  and  Assistant  Judges,  under  the  title  of  Sessions  Judges 
and  Assistant  Sessions  Judges,  exercise  criminal  jurisdiction  throughout 
the  Presidency.  But  original  criminal  work  is  chiefly  disposed 
of  by  the  executive  District  officers,  who,  in  addition  to  their  revenue 
duties,  are  invested  with  magisterial  powers  under  the  Code  of 
Criminal  Procedure.  The  total  number  of  magistrates  of  all  classes 
(inclusive  of  242  honorary  magistrates)  in  1904  was  1,128,  of  whom 
24  were  District  magistrates,  4  Presidency  magistrates,  311  magistrates  of 
the  first  class,  259  magistrates  of  the  second  class,  and  288  magistrates 
of  the  third  class.  Under  the  general  title  of  Courts  of  Sessions  three 
grades  of  officers  are  included  :  the  Sessions  Judge,  who  is  the  District 
Judge;  the  Additional  .Sessions  Judge,  who  is  the  Assistant  Judge  with 
full  powers  ;  and  the  Assistant  Sessions  Judge.  Whereas  the  Sessions 
Judge  can  try  any  offence  and  pass  any  legal  sentence,  subject  in  the 
case  of  a  capital  sentence  to  confirmation  by  the  High  Court,  the 
Additional  Sessions  Judge  can  try  only  such  cases  as  he  is  empowered 
by  the  Government  to  try  or  which  are  made  over  to  him  by  the 
Sessions  Judge.  The  Assistant  Sessions  Judge  can  try  only  such  cases 
as  the  Government  may  direct  or  as  are  made  over  to  him  by  the  general 
or  special  order  of  the  Sessions  Judge.  A  sentence  passed  by  him  may 
not  exceed  imprisonment  or  transportation  for  seven  years.  The 
jurisdiction  of  the  three  classes  of  Judges  is  conterminous  in  each 
District  of  the  Presidency. 

Particulars  of  civil  suits  and  criminal  cases  instituted  before  these 
different  courts  are  given  in  the  tables  on  the  next  page. 

Civil  suits  tend  to  increase  steadily,  except  in  years  of  famine  or 
scarcity.  Thar  and  Parkar  in  Sind  and  Satara  in  the  Deccan  are 
remarkable  for  litigation,  whereas  the  fewest  suits  in  proportion  to  the 
population  are  instituted  in  Bombay  City  and  in  the  Gujarat  Districts. 
Criminal  offences  are  mainly  petty  assaults  and  thefts.  In  famine 
seasons  gang  robberies  or  '  dacoities '  are  doubled,  and  thefts  show  a 
similar  increase — the  natural  outcome  of  widespread  privation.  Con- 
victions are  obtained  only  in  less  than  half  the  cases  brought  into  court — ■ 
an  eloquent  indication  of  the  difficulties  under  which  the  courts  labour 
in  endeavouring  to  arrive  at  a  conclusion  regarding  the  guilt  of  the 
accused.  It  is  probable  that  the  prisoner  is  more  often  released  on 
account  of  the  unsatisfactory  demeanour  of  the  witnesses  than  because 
the  charge  is  untrue. 

Documents  regarding  rights  in  immovable  property,  and  those  deeding 
with  movable  property  of  over  a  certain  value,  are  required  to  be 
registered.  Sub-registrars  are  maintained  in  taluka  head-quarters  for 
this  purpose,  and  are  bound  to  require  evidence  of  execution  before 


346 


BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 


proceeding  to  register.  Collectors  are  ex-officio  Registrars  for  their 
Districts,  and  the  department  is  controlled  by  the  Inspector-General  of 
Registration.  The  number  of  offices  and  of  documents  registered  in  the 
Presidency,  excluding  Native  States,  but  including  Aden,  Deesa,  and 
Bhuj  cantonments,  was  as  follows:  offices  (in  1881)  255,  (1891)  244, 
(1901)  257,  (1903)  261  ;  average  number  of  documents  registered  (in 
1881-90)  111,441,  (1891-1900)  186,476,  (1900-1)  199,156,  and 
(1903-4)  161,593. 

Statistics  of  Civil  Justice  in  Bombay  Presidency 


Classes  of  suits. 

Average 

for  ten 

years 

ending 

1800. 

Average 

for  ten 

years 

ending 

1  goo. 

1901. 

1904. 

Suits  for  money  and  movable 
property   .... 
Title  and  other  suits     . 

I5M24 
I5,5I0 

160,369 
31,289 

H7,8l5 
38,593 

120,227 
40,276 

Total 

166,934 

191,658 

186,408 

160,503* 

*  Besides  these,  there  were  4,608  suits  under  the  Dekkhan  Agriculturists'  Relief  Act. 

Statistics  of  Criminal  Justice   in    Bombay   Presidency 


Average 

Average 

Percent- 

for ten 

for  ten 

age  of 

years 

years           iqoi. 

191,4. 

convic- 

ending 

ending 

tions, 

1890. 

1900. 

1904. 

Number  of  persons  tried  : 

(a)  For   offences    against 

person  and  property  . 

86,l8l 

110,431  j  91,088 

94,272 

'9 

(b)  For     other     offences 

against     the     Indian 

Penal  Code 

I7,005 

25,076 

22,265 

26,578 

16 

(/)  For   offences    against 

special  and  local  laws 
Total 

44,318 

127,670 

263,177 

'45,971 

135,996 
256,846 

64 
42 

147,504 

259>324 

The  financial  system  of  the  Marathas  was  largely  the  result  of  the 
historical  events  leading  to  their  political  ascendancy.     Thus  the  revenue 
p.  raised  in  the  svardj,  or  area  in  which  their  sovereignty 

was  unchallenged,  was  wholly  theirs.  Elsewhere  the 
revenue  was  divided  between  them  and  the  Mughals,  or  later,  between 
them  and  the  Nizam,  though  a  sardeshmukhi  or  overlordship  charge  of 
10  per  cent,  was  levied  and  retained  by  the  Marathas.  The  revenue 
was  raised  almost  entirely  from  the  land  assessment  and  special  cesses 
known  as  paltts,  such  as  a  butter  tax,  a  grain  and  grass  tax,  a  house  tax, 
and  a  tax  on  female  buffaloes.  Broadly  speaking,  the  sum  collected 
was  divided  into  two  portions  :  the  bdbti  or  chief's  share,  and  the  ?nokdsa 
or  share  given  away  by  the   chief,   three   parts   of  the  revenue  being 


FINANCE  347 

treated  as  babti  and  one  part  as  mokasa.      Thus  a  Mafatha  budget  for 
outlying  territory  would  roughly  have  been  as  follows : — 

Sardeshmukhi     ......     10  per  cent. 

Share  due  to  Mughals  or  Nizam  .         .     45        „ 


Maratha  share-  \  *****     33*  {  .         .     45 

(  Mokasa  \\\) 


Total       100 

But  the  division  of  the  revenues  was  in  practice  greatly  complicated 
by  special  assignments  made  to  the  great  hereditary  officers,  such  as 
the  Pant  Sachiv.  The  total  demand  was  never  realized,  and  the  receipts 
varied  greatly  from  year  to  year. 

Under  British  rule,  up  to  the  year  1870  there  was  but  one  common 
purse  for  all  India,  of  which  the  Government  of  India  held  the  strings. 
Since  then,  the  distribution  of  revenue  and  expenditure  between  the 
Supreme  and  Provincial  Governments  has  been  regulated  by  the  Pro- 
vincial settlement  system,  a  description  of  which  will  be  found  in 
Vol.  IV,  chap.  vi.  In  187 1-2  an  allotment  was  made  to  the  Govern- 
ment of  Bombay  for  certain  services  transferred  to  its  control,  such  as 
police,  education,  jails,  registration,  equal  to  the  estimates  for  those 
services  for  1870-1,  less  a  lump  deduction  of  6-6  lakhs  necessitated  by 
financial  exigencies.  This  settlement  was  accompanied  by  a  general 
promise  that,  except  in  the  event  of  war,  famine,  or  other  severe 
financial  exigency,  the  assignments  would  not  be  reduced. 

In  1877  the  system  was  expanded  by  assigning  to  the  Local  Govern- 
ment a  proportionate  share  in  certain  growing  heads  of  revenue,  from 
which  it  was  to  meet  the  expenditure  on  the  ordinary  Provincial 
services.  These  included  land  revenue,  66  lakhs  ;  excise,  40  ;  stamps, 
45  ;  law  and  justice,  3  ;  and  other  items  amounting  to  4  lakhs.  The 
result  was  to  raise  the  income  of  the  Local  Government  by  about  153 
lakhs  per  annum.  This  second  settlement  was  fixed  for  five  years.  It 
was  seriously  disturbed  by  the  famine  of  1877,  and  could  not  in  con- 
sequence be  strictly  adhered  to.  The  Provincial  revenue  and  expenditure 
during  this  period  averaged  respectively  347  and  336  lakhs. 

In  1882  a  third  quinquennial  settlement  was  arranged,  the  terms 
of  which  were  far  more  favourable  to  the  Local  Government  than  in  the 
two  previous  cases.  The  principle  adopted  was  to  extend  the  interest 
of  the  Provincial  authorities  in  the  development  of  the  revenue  by 
a  system  of  sharing  several  of  the  old  and  some  new  heads,  instead 
of  allotting  certain  heads  entirely  to  Provincial  funds.  Thus,  it  was 
arranged  that  the  Bombay  Government  should  receive  half  of  the 
revenues  under  forest,  excise,  assessed  taxes,  stamps,  and  registration, 
and  should  receive  in  their  entirety  the  proceeds  of  local  rates,  minor 
departments,  law  and  justice,  marine,  police,  education,  medical,  sta- 
tionery and   printing,   miscellaneous  receipts  under  customs,  salt,  and 


348  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

certain  items  under  interest,  pension,  miscellaneous,  and  public  works. 
The  Local  Government  was  to  look  for  no  special  aid  in  future  from 
Imperial  sources,  except  in  the  case  of  severe  famine,  and  then  only 
within  certain  definite  limits  ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  the  Supreme 
Government  was  to  make  no  demand  on  the  Provincial  authorities 
except  in  the  case  of  abnormal  disaster.  This  settlement  opened  with  a 
credit  balance  of  29  lakhs,  and,  after  contributing  20  lakhs  to  make 
good  deficiencies  in  Imperial  accounts,  closed  with  a  balance  of 
nearly  55  lakhs.  The  revenue  and  expenditure  during  this  period 
averaged  respectively  380^  and  380!  lakhs. 

In  the  fourth  settlement  (1S87)  the  principle  of  dividing  receipts  as 
well  as  expenditure  under  certain  heads  was  extended,  and  some 
changes  were  made  in  the  proportion  of  the  shares.  The  estimates 
of  the  receipts  thus  provincialized  fell  short  of  the  expenditure  by 
nearly  82  lakhs,  which  was  met  by  an  assignment  from  the  Imperial 
share  of  the  land  revenue  receipts.  The  closing  Provincial  balance 
under  this  settlement  was  about  40  lakhs.  The  revenue  and  expendi- 
ture during  this  period  averaged  respectively  390^  and  393^  lakhs. 

The  fifth  settlement  (1892)  was  marked  by  some  slight  changes  in 
the  classification  of  revenue  and  the  cessation  of  all  inter-Provincial 
adjustments.  The  special  feature  of  this  settlement  was  that  it  was 
a  consolidated  one,  intended  to  secure  to  the  Local  Government  a 
total  sum  for  all  heads  taken  collectively  instead  of  a  contract  figure  for 
each  major  head  of  receipts.  The  revenue  and  expenditure  during  this 
period  averaged  respectively  411  and  416  lakhs.  In  1897,  when  the 
settlement  came  to  a  close,  the  balance  had  fallen  to  18  lakhs.  The 
decrease  was  caused  by  the  demands  made  for  special  expenditure  in 
connexion  with  famine  and  plague.  Owing  to  the  disturbance  in 
Provincial  finance  due  to  continued  famine  and  plague,  the  Government 
of  India  limited  the  1897  settlement  to  a  period  of  one  year.  In  the 
cold  season  of  1898,  when  the  extension  of  this  settlement  was  discussed, 
it  was  found  that  the  Presidency  had  not  recovered  from  the  effects 
of  the  famine  of  1896-7 ;  and  it  was  decided  to  continue  its  contract  with 
the  Government  of  India  on  the  lines  of  the  fifth  settlement  (1892-7), 
the  fixed  assignment  being  curtailed  by  Rs.  94,000  on  account  of  some 
special  reductions  in  Provincial  services.  The  year  1898-9  opened  with 
no  balance,  and  it  was  therefore  directed  that  the  Provincial  share  of 
special  famine  arrears  of  land  revenue  should  remain  unspent  until  the 
minimum  balance  of  20  lakhs  had  been  restored.  The  occurrence  of 
a  still  more  severe  famine  in  1899-1900  entirely  upset  these  arrange- 
ments, and  further  grants-in-aid  by  the  Supreme  Government  became 
necessary.  On  March  31,  1902,  the  sixth  settlement  expired  ;  but, 
for  the  reasons  already  given,  it  had  never  amounted  to  more  than 
an  arrangement  of  accounts.     The  state  of  affairs  at  the  close  rendered 


LAND  REVENUE 


349 


it  difficult  to  fix  standards  for  either  revenue  or  expenditure  ;  and, 
mainly  for  this  reason,  it  was  decided  to  continue  the  former  Provincial 
arrangements  till  March  31,  1905.  Imperial  revenues  bore  all  direct 
famine  expenditure  during  the  period  1897-1903,  excepting  a  sum  of 
2-52  lakhs  in  1898-9,  which  was  debited  to  Provincial  revenues.  The 
details  of  this  expenditure  were,  in  thousands  of  rupees,  as  follows:— 


1897-S 

1S99-1900 

1900-1 

1901-2 

1902-3 


94,26 

1,15*43 

2,84,02 

77,63 
39,99 


Total     6,11,33 

The  chief  features  of  the  new  settlement,  which  came  into  force 
on  April  1,  1905,  are  that  the  period  of  its  duration  is  not  fixed,  a  fixed 
annual  assignment  of  Rs.  42,77,000  is  made  to  Provincial  revenues  under 
the  Land  Revenue  head,  and  the  proportions  between  Provincial  and 
Imperial  accounts  of  the  shared  heads  of  revenue  and  expenditure 
have  been  materially  changed  in  favour  of  the  Bombay  Government. 
That  is  to  say,  the  Provincial  share  of  the  revenue  has  been  raised  to 
the  whole  under  the  head  Registration,  and  to  one-half  under  the 
remaining  divided  heads.  On  the  expenditure  side  the  proportions  are 
the  same,  except  that  Land  Revenue  is  wholly  Provincial.  The  scope 
of  the  settlement  has  been  enlarged  by  the  provincialization  of  one-half 
of  the  revenue  and  expenditure  under  Irrigation. 

Tables  VI  and  VII  on  pp.  389-90  show  the  chief  sources  of  revenue 
and  the  chief  heads  of  expenditure  between  1880  and  1904. 

The  following  table  shows,  in  thousands  of  rupees,  the  gross  Pro- 
vincial receipts  and  expenditure,  as  well  as  the  opening  and  closing 
balances  for  the  years  1897-8  to  1903-4  : — 


Opening 

Gross 

Gross 

Glosing 

balance. 

receipts. 

expenditure. 

balance. 

1897-8  . 

17,97 

4,-9,01 

4,41,98 

5,00 

1898-9  . 

5>°° 

4,61,62 

4.5I>58 

'5-04 

1899-1900 

'r,°4 

4,25,76 

4,40,81 

... 

1900-1  . 

... 

4>52,20 

4,52,20 

1901-2  . 

.  .  . 

5> '5,36 

4,57,13 

58,23 

1902-3  . 

58,23 

4,68,85 

4,93,08 

34,°° 

1903-4  . 

34,  °° 

4,61,86 

4,63,09 

32,77 

In  the  Bombay  Presidency  (outside  Sind)  the  land  revenue  system 

is  with  few  exceptions  ryotwari :  that  is  to  say,  a  system  of  settlement 

with  the  ryots  or  cultivators  of  small  holdings,  whose     T      , 

'  °  '  Land  revenue. 

revenue  payments  are  fixed  after  careful  measurement 

and  classification  of  the  land  in  their  possession.     The  settlement,  once 

made,  is  in  force  for  a  period  of  thirty  years,  during  which  the  ryot  is  at 


35°  fiO.Vfi.1Y  PRESIDENCY 

liberty  to  alienate  his  occupancy  right  ;  but  he  cannot  be  dispossessed 
by  Government  so  long  as  he  regularly  pays  the  several  instalments  of 
land  revenue.  At  the  conclusion  of  the  term  of  the  settlement,  the 
revenue  payable  is  liable  to  revision  ;  but  the  tenant  has  a  continued 
right  of  occupancy  provided  that  he  agrees  to  accept  the  new  terms. 
His  position  is  thus  more  secure  than  it  was  before  the  advent  of  the 
British  Government.  In  earlier  times,  it  is  true,  the  hereditary  occu- 
pant, or  mirdsdar,  held  land  on  terms  which  precluded  its  forfeiture 
on  failure  to  pay  the  revenue  demand,  unless  he  absented  himself  for 
a  term  of  over  thirty  years.  But,  on  the  other  hand,  he  was  liable  to 
extra  and  arbitrary  impositions,  and  was  responsible  for  the  default  of 
neighbouring  mirasdars,  while  his  lien  on  the  land  was  also  conditional 
on  his  reimbursing  all  arrears  due  and  expenses  incurred  during  default. 
The  original  settlement  of  the  revenue  demand  from  each  occupant 
made  by  the  British  Government  was  based  on  the  investigations  of 
a  Survey  department,  specially  organized  for  this  work.  After  measur- 
ing and  mapping  every  holding,  the  Survey  officers  proceeded  to 
classify  the  fields  according  to  depth  and  quality  of  soil,  their  situation, 
and  natural  defects,  such  as  liability  to  inundation  and  the  like.  In 
this  manner  the  field  was  placed  in  a  class  corresponding  to  a  certain 
'  anna  valuation  '  or  fractional  share  of  the  maximum  rates  calculated 
in  terms  of  16.  Subsequently  villages  were  grouped  into  blocks  with 
reference  to  their  nearness  to  markets,  to  means  of  communication,  and 
other  economic  conditions.  The  maximum  rates  for  the  block  were 
then  fixed  with  reference  to  these  conditions,  and  to  average  prices. 
A  field  bearing  a  12-anna  valuation  would  thus,  if  situated  in  a  village 
with  a  maximum  rate  of  Rs.  4,  bear  an  assessment  of  Rs.  3  per  acre. 

It  will  be  observed  that  in  this  manner  the  ryot  is  called  upon  to 
pay  a  yearly  revenue  in  proportion  to  the  probable  income  that  he  can 
derive  from  his  holding.  The  advantages  offered  to  him  by  the  system 
are  security  of  tenure,  power  of  alienation,  either  temporarily  by  mort- 
gage or  permanently  by  sale,  and  a  fixed  annual  demand,  subject  only 
to  revision  at  the  expiry  of  the  settlement  period.  The  disadvantages 
are  that  the  revenue  is  payable  in  cash,  which  may  involve  forced  sales 
of  produce ;  that,  being  fixed  on  the  average  capacity  of  the  land,  it  is 
payable,  in  theory  at  least,  whether  the  crops  are  good,  bad,  or  a  total 
failure ;  and  that,  in  the  case  of  thriftless  occupants,  who  are  the 
majority,  the  power  to  alienate  the  holding,  combined  with  fixity  of 
assessment,  has  in  many  instances  facilitated  reckless  borrowing,  ulti- 
mately reducing  the  occupant  to  a  mere  serf  of  the  money-lender.  In 
other  words,  the  underlying  assumption  involved  in  the  original  survey 
settlement  of  Bombay  was  that,  with  a  moderate  and  fixed  demand  of 
revenue,  combined  with  permanency  of  tenure,  the  occupant  would  be 
encouraged  to  thrift  and  disposed  to  making  improvements.    Experience 


LAND   REVENUE  351 

shows  that  these  very  features  of  the  settlement  have  stimulated  a 
natural  disposition  to  reckless  borrowing  on  the  part  of  the  occupant, 
while  offering  to  capitalists  inducements  to  make  advances  that  never 
before  existed.  Recent  inquiries  tend  to  the  conclusion  that,  as  a 
result,  in  some  parts  of  the  Presidency  nearly  three-fourths  of  the  ryots 
have  mortgaged  their  holdings.  Legitimate  borrowing  by  an  agricul- 
turist for  the  development  of  his  land  is  a  process  which  Government 
may  view  with  equanimity.  Reckless  recourse  to  the  money-lender  for 
sums  to  be  dissipated  in  marriages  or  other  forms  of  domestic  expendi- 
ture tends  to  substitute  for  the  state  a  landlord  concerned  only  in 
extracting  from  the  cultivator  the  full  measure  of  his  dues,  however 
excessive  the  share  claimed  may  be  when  compared  to  the  total  produce 
of  the  land.  Under  such  landlords  the  state  of  the  cultivating  classes 
may  not  inconceivably  constitute  a  grave  political  embarrassment. 

The  original  survey  settlement  of  Bombay  commenced  in  1835  and 
was  concluded  in  1882,  except  in  North  Kanara  and  Ratnagiri,  which 
were  completed  respectively  in  1891  and  189^5.  Survey  operations  are 
now  in  progress  in  the  Akhrani  pargana,  a  wild  and  isolated  portion  of 
Khandesh  District.  The  settlement  imposed  a  total  revenue  demand 
of  2-7  crores  on  the  twenty-four  Districts  of  the  Presidency.  The  first 
revision  settlement  raised  this  sum  by  22  per  cent.,  the  revised  demand 
amounting  to  3-3  crores.  In  all  but  three  cases  the  District  revenue 
was  increased,  the  maximum  increases  being  50  and  46  per  cent,  in  the 
case  of  North  Kanara  and  Thar  and  Parkar.  For  the  last  thirty  years 
it  has  been  an  accepted  principle  of  revision  that  in  no  circumstances 
shall  the  increase  of  revenue  exceed  100  per  cent,  on  an  individual 
holding,  66  per  cent,  on  a  village,  or  33  per  cent,  on  a  group  of  villages. 
Improvements  effected  by  occupants  in  their  holdings  from  private 
capital  are  exempt  from  taxation  at  a  revision  settlement.  The  special 
Survey  department,  having  completed  its  work,  has  been  abolished, 
and  revisions  of  the  revenue  settlements  are  now  entrusted  to  the 
Assistant  or  Deputy-Collectors  in  charge  of  the  District  subdivision. 

The  maximum  and  minimum  rates  per  acre  of  assessment  on  '  dry- 
crop  '  and  garden  land  in  the  various  Divisions  of  the  Presidency,  under 
the  revised  survey  settlement,  are — Northern  Division:  'dry  crop,' 
6^  annas  to  Rs.  8-13;  garden  land,  11  annas  to  Rs.  16-9  ;  Central 
Division  :  '  dry  crop,'  3  annas  to  Rs.  2-1 1  ;  garden  land,  10  annas  to 
Rs.  14-14  ;  Southern  Division  :  'dry  crop,'  r  anna  to  Rs.  3-4  ;  garden 
land,  8  annas  to  Rs.  14-13.  In  Sind  the  rates  vary  from  R.  1  to 
Rs.  6-8  per  acre.  When  land  held  under  the  survey  settlement  is  sub- 
let, the  rent  paid  by  the  tenant  varies  from  two  to  seven  times  the 
Government  assessment.  In  cases  of  sales,  the  prices  realized  average 
about  twenty-five  times  the  assessment,  and  in  some  cases  are  as  high  as 
fifty  times  that  sum.    It  is  a  noticeable  fact  that  twenty  times  the  assess- 


352  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

ment  of  the  land  will  be  advanced  to  the  occupant  on  a  mortgage-deed, 
whereas,  if  history  is  to  be  credited,  land  would  not  sell  for  more  than 
two  or  three  years'  purchase,  and  could  not  be  mortgaged  for  more  than 
half  the  gross  yearly  produce,  before  the  days  of  British  government. 

Besides  the  survey  or  ryotwari  tenure  just  described,  the  chief 
forms  of  tenure  in  the  Bombay  Presidency  are  known  as  idlukddri, 
mehwasi,  udhad  jamdbandi,  khoti,  izdfat,  and  revenue-free  lands. 

The  tdlukddri  tenure  is  found  in  Gujarat,  principally  in  Ahmadabad 
District.  Tdlukddrs  are  absolute  proprietors  of  their  respective  estates, 
subject  to  the  payment  of  a  Government  demand,  periodically  revised. 
They  do  not  cultivate  the  land,  but  are  sharers  in  its  profits,  with 
power  to  mortgage  their  shares.  Permanent  alienation  requires  Govern- 
ment sanction.  These  landowners  levy  rent  from  their  tenants,  either 
by  bhdgbatai,  i.e.  taking  a  share  of  the  crops,  or  by  bighoti,  i.e.  a  fixed 
rate  per  acre.  The  mehwasi  tenure,  also  found  in  Gujarat,  is  a  system 
of  paying  revenue  in  a  lump  sum  for  the  village,  the  amount  being 
fixed  at  the  discretion  of  the  Collector.  The  payments  are  made  by 
joint  owners  of  the  villages,  who  are  descendants  of  Koli  or  Rajput 
chiefs,  formerly  subject  in  most  cases  to  tribute.  Udhad  jamdbandi  is 
a  fixed  assessment,  not  liable  to  revision,  on  villages,  or  groups  of 
villages.  The  khoti  tenure  of  the  Konkan  consists  in  the  holding  of 
village  lands  by  families,  who  make  an  annual  agreement  with  Govern- 
ment, and  have  the  right  to  lease  out  lands  on  their  own  terms.  They 
pay  a  lump  assessment  fixed  on  all  the  village  lands  by  the  Survey 
department,  which  is  liable  to  revision.  Izdfat  tenure  has  arisen  from 
the  holdings  of  hereditary  local  officers,  whose  services  are  no  longer 
demanded  but  whose  holdings  pay  the  full  revenue  demand,  subject  to 
certain  concessions.  Indms,  jdgirs,  &c,  are  tenures  wholly  or  partly 
free  from  assessment,  of  land  allotted  for  services  in  connexion  with  the 
state,  temples,  c\:c.  The  distribution  of  the  lands  of  the  Presidency 
among  the  different  forms  of  tenure  in  1903-4  was  as  follows:  ryotwari, 
or  survey  tenure,  1,392,740  holdings;  tdlukddri,  497;  mehwasi,  62; 
udhad  jamdbandi,  95;  khoti,  3,684;  izdfat,  30;  indms,  jdgirs,  &c, 
2,199.  I"  Sind  land  is  held  on  the  irrigational  settlement,  based  on 
the  mode  of  irrigation  adopted.  The  occupants  are  liable  for  the  full 
assessment  on  each  survey  number  when  cultivated,  and  fallows  are 
assessed  once  in  five  years.  The  land  is  mostly  held  by  zamtnddrs 
or  large  landholders.  There  are  special  forms  of  tenure  in  Bombay 
Island  unknown  throughout  the  rest  of  the  Presidency,  which  are 
described  in  the  article  on  Bombay  City. 

The  land  revenue  administration  of  the  Presidency  is  regulated  by 
Bombay  Act  V  of  1879  and  the  rules  passed  thereunder. 

It  is  not  easy  to  arrive  at  any  estimate  of  the  land  revenue 
raised    from   the    area  of  the   Presidency   before  British    rule,    for  the 


LAND   REVENUE  353 

accounts  kept  by  the  Peshwas  were  very  incomplete,  and  the  records 
which  have  been  preserved  are  fragmentary.  The  practice  was  to 
entrust  the  collection  of  the  revenue  to  farmers  (or  ijaradars) ;  a  certain 
maximum  assessment  known  as  the  kamal  ^2^  imposed  on  each  village, 
and  the  government  realized  from  the  farmer  as  large  a  proportion  of 
the  kamal  as  they  were  able  to  obtain.  At  harvest  time  a  division 
of  the  crops  {bhagbatai)  was  made,  and  the  farmer  took  from  the 
peasant  the  government  share,  which  varied  from  one-third  to  one- 
half,  after  deducting  the  cost  of  cultivation.  The  farmer  received  as 
his  profit  the  balance  between  his  collections  from  the  cultivator  and 
his  payments  to  the  Peshwa.  In  bad  seasons  extensive  remissions 
appear  to  have  been  made  to  the  farmers,  and  may  have  reached  the 
cultivators.  In  many  villages  the  kamal  has  been  found  to  be  twice  as 
high  as  the  assessment  now  levied  under  the  survey  settlement.  In 
spite  of  the  enormous  increase  in  the  area  now  cultivated,  it  is  probable 
that  the  total  assessment  now  raised  in  the  Presidency  is  far  lower  than 
the  value  of  the  contributions  extracted  from  the  villagers  under  the  Ma- 
ratha  system.  Further  it  was  customary  to  supplement  the  land  revenue 
demand  by  cesses  on  houses  and  trades,  and  for  special  objects  such 
as  the  ghas-dana  (expenditure  on  grass  and  grain).  All  such  cesses 
have  been  abolished  by  the  British  Government ;  their  only  counter- 
part being  a  rural  cess  of  one  anna  in  the  rupee  for  the  maintenance  of 
roads  and  schools. 

It  has  already  been  observed  that  the  original  survey  assessment  was 
intended  to  be  levied  in  seasons  good  or  bad,  or  even  of  total  crop 
failure.  Numerous  experiments  tend  to  prove  that  the  demand  aver- 
ages about  8  to  12  per  cent,  on  the  gross  out-turn  from  the  land.  The 
large  profit  made  by  the  cultivator  in  a  good  year  was  theoretically 
expected  to  cover  the  revenue  demand  when  the  season  was  bad.  As 
a  matter  of  fact,  extensive  remissions  have  been  granted  during  famines 
or  other  natural  calamities  ;  but  hitherto  the  burden  of  proving  incapa- 
city to  meet  the  revenue  demand  has  been  imposed  upon  the  occupant, 
the  dues  being  collected  even  in  famine  tracts  unless  the  occupant  can 
satisfy  the  authorities  of  his  inability  to  pay.  Apart  from  the  reasons 
already  given,  the  justification  for  this  course  lay  in  the  indebtedness  of 
the  cultivator.  It  was  argued  that  wholesale  remissions  would  chiefly 
benefit  wealthy  capitalists,  who  stood  in  no  need  of  relief.  But,  owing 
to  the  recent  succession  of  unfavourable  seasons,  great  practical  diffi- 
culties arose  in  discriminating  the  private  circumstances  of  individuals  ; 
and,  by  a  change  of  system  introduced  in  1907,  remissions  are  in  future 
to  be  determined  solely  by  the  failure  of  crops  and  the  depressed 
condition  of  agriculture  in  definite  tracts. 

Two  important  enactments  have  a  special  bearing  on  the  land 
revenue  policy  of  the  Bombay  Government.     In    1879  the  Dekkhan 

VOL.  sin.  a  a 


154 


BOMB  A  Y  PRF.SWEXCY 


Agriculturists'  Relief  Act  was  passed  to  cope  with  agrarian  discontent 
in  four  Deccan  Districts — Poona,  Satara,  Sholapur,  and  Ahmadnagar. 
The  Act  provided  for  the  appointment  of  a  special  judge  and  numerous 
conciliators,  who  were  empowered  to  investigate  mortgages  and  similar 
alienations  of  land,  to  revise  the  terms  of  the  contract,  and  to  arrange 
for  an  equitable  settlement  of  claims,  with  a  view  to  restoring  the 
original  rights  of  the  occupant.  The  agrarian  agitation  which  led  to 
this  measure  being  passed  has  not  since  recurred,  but  the  Act  is  held  to 
have  led  to  an  increase  in  sales  of  land  in  the  Districts  to  which  it 
applies.  The  Bombay  Land  Revenue  Code  Amendment  Act  of  1901 
introduced  some  changes  in  the  law  regarding  the  grant  of  survey 
settlement  occupancies,  the  Collector  being  empowered,  after  forfeiting 
land  on  which  arrears  of  revenue  were  due,  to  grant  it  free  of  all  incum- 
brances to  an  occupant  on  condition  that  it  should  not  be  mortgaged 
or  otherwise  alienated.  Infringement  of  these  conditions  entails  for- 
feiture of  the  holding.  The  object  of  this  amendment  was  to  restrict 
alienations.  Its  operation  has  not  so  far  been  sufficiently  extensive  to 
justify  any  conclusion  regarding  its  probable  results. 

No  opium  is  grown  in  the  Bombay  Presidency.     Revenue  is  raised 

from  this  drug  by  means  of  a  duty  payable  on  importation  or  on  issue 

from   the  Government  depot,  supplemented  by  fees 

Miscellaneous     for  th      •  ht  of        d      Qpium  intended  for  local  con- 
revenue 

sumption  pays  a  duty  of  Rs.  700  per  chest  of  140^  lb. 

A  regular  export  of  opium  from  Bombay  to  China  has  existed  for  many 
years.  The  duty  on  such  opium  was  raised  from  Rs.  500  to  Rs.  600 
per  chest  in  1904.  The  average  volume  of  this  trade  is  25,000  chests 
per  annum.  The  annual  local  consumption  of  the  Presidency  is  about 
550  chests,  equal  to  0-13  tola  per  head  of  population.  For  the  last 
twenty  years  the  volume  of  trade  in  opium  and  the  duty  raised  there- 
from has  been  as  follows  : — 


Imports  in 

Chests. 

Duty  in  thou- 
sands of  rupees. 

1880  (ending  August)  ..... 
1890  (ending  August)  ..... 
1900  (ending  August)    ..... 
1902-3  (ending  March,  for  eight  months) 
1903-4  (ending  March,  for  twelve  months)    . 

38,54! 
3°,°79 
21,638 
15,211 
27,498 

2,70,05 
1,80,69 
1,08,36 
76,28 
1.38,32 

The  opium  to  which  these  figures  refer  is  nearly  all  grown  in  Malwa 
and  imported  into  the  Presidency  by  rail ;  a  small  quantity  is  also  raised 
in  the  Native  State  of  Baroda.  The  '  opium  '  revenue  proper  con- 
sists only  of  the  duty  on  exported  opium  ;  the  duty  and  the  receipts 
from  local  consumption  are  credited  to  '  excise.'  The  local  transport 
and  sale  of  opium  is  permissible  only  under  a  licence,  and  the  amount 
which  u  private  individual  may  possess  or  carry  on  his  person  is  strictly 


MISCELLANEOUS   REVENUE  355 

limited.  There  is  a  central  opium  warehouse  in  Bombay.  Elsewhere 
opium  is  stored  in,  and  issued  from,  the  Government  treasuries. 

The  retail  vend  arrangements  fall  under  two  classes  :  (1)  The  'selec- 
tion farming '  system,  which  prevails  in  the  Districts  of  Ahmadabad, 
Kaira,  Panch  Mahals,  Broach,  Surat,  Poona,  Sholapur,  Ahmadnagar, 
and  Nasik,  by  which  the  monopoly  of  retail  vend  for  a  District,  at 
shops  licensed  by  the  Collector,  is  granted  year  by  year  to  a  farmer 
selected  by  the  Government.  The  farmer  has  to  contribute  to  the 
cost  of  the  Government  preventive  establishments,  but  otherwise  pays 
nothing  for  his  privilege  over  and  above  the  duty  on  the  opium  he 
sells.  Maximum  and  minimum  prices  are  prescribed  in  his  licence. 
He  may  procure  his  supply  direct  from  Malwa,  or  from  the  opium  ware- 
house at  Bombay,  or  from  local  Government  depots.  (2)  In  the  Dis- 
tricts of  Khandesh,  Bijapur,  Belgaum,  Dharwar,  Kanara,  Ratnagiri, 
Satara,  Thana,  Kolaba,  and  in  the  City  and  Island  of  Bombay,  at 
Aden,  and  in  the  Baroda  cantonment,  the  'licence  fee'  system  is  in 
force.  Under  this  system  the  right  of  retail  vend,  either  in  single 
shops,  or  throughout  a  taluka,  or  an  entire  District,  is  disposed  of  by 
auction,  the  sum  paid  being  in  addition  to  the  duty  on  issues.  The 
licensee  must  procure  his  supplies  from  a  Government  depot,  and  is 
bound  to  sell  subject  to  fixed  minimum  and  maximum  prices. 

The  control  of  the  Opium  department  in  the  Presidency  proper  is  in 
the  hands  of  the  Commissioner  of  Customs,  and  centres  in  the  Col- 
lector of  each  District,  assisted  by  his  ordinary  establishment  and 
a  staff  of  opium  police.  In  Sind  the  control  is  vested  in  the  Com- 
missioner. 

Agreements  are  in  force  with  all  Native  chiefs  in  the  Presidency  to 
secure  their  co-operation  in  stopping  contraband  traffic.  Under  these 
agreements  the  cultivation  of  the  poppy  is  prohibited  in  the  Bombay 
States,  and  the  chiefs  are  required  to  supply  themselves  with  opium 
from  a  British  depot,  by  purchase  wholesale  in  the  Bombay  market,  or 
by  direct  importation  from  Malwa  under  pass,  and  to  retail  it  to  their 
subjects  at  prices  not  lower  than  the  retail  prices  in  British  1  )istricts. 
In  return  for  these  undertakings  the  States  are  allowed  a  refund  oi 
either  the  whole  or  a  part  of  the  duty.  A  few  of  the  States  in  Mahl 
Kantha,  Rewa  Kantha,  and  Palanpur  have  been  allowed  annual  com- 
pensation for  the  loss  of  transit  duties. 

Salt  is  the  subject  of  Government  control  in  India,  to  enable  the 
tax  of  R.  1  per  maund  of  82  lb.  to  be  realized1.  The  salt  revenue  is 
raised  by  the  sale  of  Government  salt,  by  the  levy  of  duty  on  imports, 
by  leasing  out  private  salt-works,  and  by  selling  salt  on  special  terms  for 
fish-curing.    In  the  Bombay  Presidency  proper  about  9,000,000  maunds 

1  The  tax  was  reduced  from  Rs.  2\  per  maund  to  Rs.  2  in  1903,  to  Rs.  \\  in  1905. 
and  to  its  present  rate  in  1907. 

a  a  2 


356 


RO.VRAY  PRF.SmF.XCY 


of  salt  are  manufactured  yearly,  and  there  is  also  an  import  of  some 
300,000  maunds.  The  gross  revenue  derived  from  taxing  this  produc- 
tion is  about  2  crores,  and  the  consumption  amounts  to  nearly  3,000,000 
maunds  or  about  9  lb.  per  head  of  the  population. 

The  long  line  of  sea-coast  which  the  Presidency  possesses  offers 
special  facilities  for  the  manufacture  of  salt.  The  chief  centres  of 
production  are  at  Kharaghoda  on  the  Rann  of  Cutch,  where  salt  is  pro- 
duced from  brine  under  Government  management,  and  at  Dharasna 
near  Bulsar,  Matunga  in  Bombay,  Sanikatta  in  North  Kanara,  and 
similar  factories,  some  owned  by  Government  and  some  held  by  private 
individuals,  where  salt  is  manufactured  in  pans  from  sea-water  by 
evaporation. 

An  extensive  import  of  salt  amounting  to  about  250,000  maunds 
annually  takes  place  from  Portuguese  territory.  It  is  manufactured 
near  Panjim,  and  passes  into  British  territory  at  Castle  Rock  by  the 
West  of  India  Portuguese  Railway.  Small  imports  by  pack-bullock  are 
also  registered  along  the  numerous  ghat  roads  that  are  too  steep  for 
cart  traffic.  The  following  statistics  show  the  progress  in  the  production 
and  consumption  of  salt  during  the  last  twenty-four  years  in  the 
Bombay  Presidency,  including  Sind  :— 


Salt  delivered 
from  salt- 
works. 

Salt  imported.* 

Salt  consumed. 

Gross  revenue 
from  salt. 

Average 

consumption 

per  head. 

1880-1 

1 890-1 
I 900- I 

1903-4 

Maunds. 

6,35S.517 
8,852,045 
9,514,462 
9,008,878 

Maunds. 

26,536 

13,482 

319,495 

293,58o 

Maunds. 

2,670,657 
2,978.667 
3-i73,o89 
2,965,946 

Thousands  of 
rupees. 

1,50,56 
2,16,80 

2,34.o6 
1,86,77  t 

lb. 
9-12 

8.83 

97 
9-°3 

*  The  imports  of  salt  in  1881  and  1891  do  not  include  Goa  salt,  the  special  duty  having 
been  in  force  in  those  years. 

t  These  figures  exclude  Aden  but  include  certain  miscellaneous  items  which  are  credited 
to  other  heads  in  Table  VI  on  p.  389. 

For  the  protection  of  the  salt  revenue,  and  for  the  collection  of  the 
duty  on  manufactured  or  imported  salt,  a  staff  of  i  Collector,  10  Assis- 
tant Collectors,  and  1 1  Deputy-Collectors  is  maintained,  who  are  also 
responsible  for  the  control  of  the  customs  outside  the  ports  of  Bombay 
and  Karachi.  This  department  is  subordinate  to  the  Commissioner  of 
Customs,  Salt,  Opium,  and  Abkari.  No  salt  may  be  manufactured, 
imported,  transported,  or  exported  without  a  permit  from  the  Salt 
department.  Breaches  of  the  law  under  this  head  are  punishable  with 
fine  and  imprisonment.  The  salt  not  consumed  in  the  Presidency  is 
exported,  after  levy  of  duty,  to  the  Madras  Districts,  Hyderabad,  or  Cal- 
cutta, or  issued  free  of  duty  to  the  Native  States  of  Janjira,  Patri, 
Jhinjhuvada,  and  Radhanpur,  so  long  as  these  States  agree  to  prohibit 
the  manufacture  of  salt  within  their  own  borders.     Small  quantities  of 


MISCELLANEOUS  REVENUE  357 

salt  are  also  issued  at  special  rates  for  use  in  recognized  fish-curing 
yards,  of  which  there  are  15  in  North  Kanara  and  14  in  Ratnagiri. 
The  quantity  of  fish  cured  annually  amounts  to  about  184,000  maunds. 

The  statistics  of  salt  production  and  consumption  in  Sind  in  1903-4 
were:  delivered,  275,000  maunds;  imported,  12,725  maunds;  con- 
sumed, 287,000  maunds  ;  gross  revenue,  d\  lakhs  ;  average  consumption 
per  head,  7-37  pounds.  There  is  one  fish-curing  yard  in  Sind,  curing 
annually  about  5,000  maunds  of  fish. 

The  excise  revenue  is  derived  from  duties,  taxes,  or  fees  levied  on 
the  manufacture  and  sale  of  country  liquor,  including  toddy  ;  the  manu- 
facture and  sale  of  country  liquors  excised  at  rates  leviable  under  the 
Indian  Tariff  Act ;  the  sale  of  imported  foreign  liquors  ;  the  manufac- 
ture and  sale  of  intoxicating  drugs  other  than  opium  as  defined  in  the 
Abkari  Act;  (5)  the  local  consumption  of  opium. 

The  revenue  from  country  liquor,  which  forms  by  far  the  most 
important  of  these  items,  is  obtained  by — 

(a)  'The  still-head  duty,  central  distillery,  and  minimum  guarantee 
system.' — This  system  prevails  everywhere  except  in  the  City  and 
Island  of  Bombay,  the  cantonment  of  Deesa,  and  the  Districts  of 
Thana,  Kolaba,  Ratnagiri,  North  Kanara  (coast  tdlukas),  Belgaum, 
vSatara,  Poona,  Ahmadnagar,  Nasik,  and  Khandesh.  The  exclusive 
privilege  of  manufacture  and  sale  of  country  liquor  in  each  District  to 
which  the  system  applies  is  farmed  out  to  a  contractor,  who  manufac- 
tures the  spirit  at  a  central  distillery  and  pays  a  fixed  still-head  duty  on 
passing  it  out  for  sale  in  his  shops.  The  contractor  pays  nothing  for  the 
right  of  vend,  but  he  has  to  furnish  a  '  minimum  guarantee,'  that  is,  he 
undertakes  that  Government  shall  receive  not  less  than  a  fixed  sum 
each  year  on  account  of  still-head  duty  on  liquor  issued  from  the  distil- 
lery ;  and  he  has  thus  a  direct  interest  in  the  suppression  of  illicit 
distillation,  and  in  the  supply  to  the  public  from  the  central  distillery  of 
the  quantity  of  liquor  required  for  normal  consumption.  He  is  bound 
to  sell  spirit  of  authorized  strengths  only  and  within  certain  maximum 
prices  prescribed.  The  rates  of  still-head  duty  varied  in  1903-4  from 
12  annas  to  Rs.  3-10  per  gallon  of  spirit  of  250  under  proof,  correspond- 
ing respectively  to  R.  1  and  Rs.  4-13-4  per  proof  gallon,  and  from 
6  annas  to  Rs.  1-14  per  gallon  of  spirit  of  6o°  under  proof. 

(l>)  '  The  public  or  private  distillery  still-head  duty  and  licence  fee 
system.' — Under  this  system,  which  obtains  only  in  the  City  and 
Island  of  Bombay,  the  manufacture  of  country  spirit  is  separated  from 
sale  and  there  is  no  monopoly  of  either.  The  number  of  shops  for  the 
sale  of  country  spirit  is  fixed,  and  the  vend  licences  are  disposed  of 
either  by  auction  or  on  payment  of  fees  assessed  periodically  by  the 
Collector  on  the  basis  of  actual  sales.  The  vendors  are  at  liberty  to 
procure  their  liquor,  on  payment  of  the  prescribed  rates  of  still-head 


358  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

duty,  from  any  of  the  private  spirit  distilleries  at  Uran  or  from  the 
public  toddy  spirit  distillery  at  Dadar.  There  are  no  restrictions  in 
regard  to  maximum  price.  The  rates  of  duty  vary  from  Rs.  1-1-10 
per  gallon  of  toddy  spirit  of  6o°  under  proof  to  Rs.  2-1-6  per  gallon  of 
250  under  proof.  The  duty  per  gallon  of  Uran  spirit  of  any  strength  up 
to  10"  under  proof  is  Rs.  4. 

A  system  in  force  in  Thana,  Kolaba,  and  Ratnagiri,  and  in  the  coast 
talukas  of  North  Kanara  1  )istrict  may  be  briefly  described  as  a  combina- 
tion of  these  two  systems.  The  rates  of  duty  vary  in  different  tracts 
from  Rs.  2-5-4  to  Rs.  3-8-0  per  proof  gallon  of  mahua  spirit,  and 
from  R.  o-ii-i  to  Rs.  2-2-8  on  toddy  spirit. 

(c)  '  Contract  distillery  and  separate  shop  system.' — This  system  has 
lately  been  introduced  in  the  Districts  of  Belgaum,  Poona,  Ahmadnagar, 
Nasik,  Khandesh,  and  Satara.  Its  main  features  are  that  the  right  of 
manufacture  is  separated  from  that  of  retail  vend;  the  right  of  manufac- 
ture of  spirit  of  specified  strength  at  the  Government  central  distilleries 
or  at  private  distilleries,  and  of  supply  to  retail  vendors,  is  assigned  on 
competitive  tender  ;  and  the  right  of  retail  vend,  subject  to  the  pur- 
chased rates  of  duty,  is  put  up  to  auction  by  shops  separately,  or  by 
groups  of  shops,  or  by  talukas.  The  rates  of  duty  in  1903-4  varied  from 
Rs.  3-10-0  in  Satara  to  Rs.  4  in  Poona,  corresponding  respectively 
to  Rs.  4-13-4  and  Rs.  5-5-4  per  proof  gallon. 

(//)  '  Contract  distillery,  separate  shop,  and  minimum  guaranteed 
revenue  system.' — Under  this  system,  which  was  introduced  into  Khan- 
desh in  1903  and  subsequently  in  Nasik,  the  privilege  of  manufacturing 
spirit  and  supplying  it  to  retail  vendors  is  assigned  to  tenderers  offering 
to  supply  spirit  of  the  sanctioned  strengths  at  the  lowest  rates,  while 
the  right  of  retail  vend  in  shops  is  disposed  of  by  a  system  of  tenders 
of  minimum  guarantee  of  duty.  The  rates  of  duty  vary  from  12  annas 
to  Rs.  2  per  gallon  of  250  under  proof,  corresponding  to  R.  1  and 
Rs.  2-10-8  per  proof  gallon,  and  from  6  annas  to  R.  1  per  gallon  of 
6o°  under  proof. 

(e)  'The  lump-sum  tanning  system.' — Under  this  system,  which 
obtains  only  in  the  cantonment  of  Deesa,  the  right  to  import  spirit 
from  the  town  of  Deesa,  in  Palanpur  territory,  and  to  sell  it  at  one 
shop  in  the  cantonment,  is  sold  by  auction  every  year.  No  still-head 
duty  is  charged  under  this  system. 

In  1903-4  the  average  incidence  of  abkdri  taxation  was  about 
[o  annas,  and  the  consumption  of  country  liquor  8  drams  per  head  of 
population.  The  average  revenue  realized  was  Rs.  3-1 1-9  per  proof 
gallon,  of  which  Rs.  3-3-8  represents  still-head  duty.  The  retail  price 
of  country  liquor  ranged  from  Rs.  1-2-0  per  gallon  upwards,  according 
to  strength. 

Toddy  revenue  is  derived  from  a  tax  on  the  palms  from  which  toddy 


MISCELLANEOUS   REVENUE  359 

is  drawn,  and  licence  fees  for  the  right  of  vend.  The  rates  charged  per 
tree  tapped  vary  materially  in  different  Districts.  In  all  Districts  except 
Nasik  the  sale  of  toddy  is  conducted  under  the  separate  licensing 
system,  under  which  three  kinds  of  licences  are  ordinarily  allowed  : 
namely,  shop  licences,  tree-foot  booth  licences,  and  domestic  consump- 
tion licences.  Shop  and  tree-foot  booth  licences  are  granted  on  pay- 
ment of  fixed  fees  — Rs.  10  in  some  Districts  and  Rs.  20  in  others. 
Should  there  be  more  than  one  applicant  for  a  shop,  the  right  of  sale  is 
disposed  of  by  auction.  The  domestic  consumption  licences,  which  are 
issued  to  owners  of  trees,  are  granted  on  payment  of  tree  tax  only.  In 
Bombay  City  toddy  shop  licences  are  sold  by  auction  or  are  granted  on 
payment  of  fees  assessed  by  the  Collector.  In  Nasik  District  the  exclu- 
sive right  to  supply  and  sell  toddy  is  granted  to  a  farmer  under  the 
'  minimum  guarantee  system ' :  that  is,  the  farmer  has  to  pay  tree  tax  on 
the  trees  from  which  he  draws  toddy,  and,  if  the  total  amount  of  such 
tax  is  less  than  the  amount  of  revenue  guaranteed,  he  has  to  make  up  the 
balance.  The  farmer  has  further  to  pay  a  fee  of  Rs.  1 5  for  every  shop 
opened  by  him.  Maximum  prices  for  the  retail  sale  of  toddy  are  fixed 
in  all  the  Districts  except  Bombay  City,  where  they  apply  only  in  the 
case  of  tree-foot  booth  licensees. 

There  is  one  brewery  in  the  Presidency,  at  Dapuri  near  Poona.  The 
beer  issued  is  excised  at  the  tariff  rate  of  one  anna  per  gallon,  and  is 
sold  along  with  imported  liquors.  Rum  is  manufactured  at  a  sugar 
refinery  at  Mundhwa  near  Poona,  and  issued  to  the  Commissariat 
department  and  for  sale  by  foreign  liquor  shop-keepers  ;  it  also  is 
excised  at  the  tariff  rate  (Rs.  7  per  proof  gallon)1.  Rum,  spirits  of 
wine,  and  methylated  spirits  manufactured  at  the  Rosa  (Sha.hjaha.npur) 
distillery  in  the  United  Provinces  and  at  the  Aska  and  Nellikuppam 
distilleries  in  the  Madras  Presidency  are  occasionally  imported  into 
Bombay  on  payment  of  duty  at  the  tariff  rates,  and  are  sold  under 
licences  for  the  vend  of  foreign   imported  spirits. 

The  duty  realized  on  spirits,  wines,  and  liquors  imported  from  foreign 
countries  is  credited  to  customs  revenue  (Imperial),  the  figures  for  the 
Presidency  proper  being  as  shown  below : — ■ 

Thousands  of  rupees. 

Average  of  ten  years  1881-90     .         .         •  12,20 

„  „  1891-1900.         .         .  19,15 

In  the  year  1900-1      .....  21,42 

,,  '9°?>-4 24,26 

The  duty  realized  on  spirits,  &c,  imported  into  Sind  in  1903-4 
amounted  to  nearly  8  lakhs.  A  small  charge  for  the  right  of  vend 
at  shops,  hotels,  refreshment  rooms,  and  travellers'  bungalows  forms 
the  excise  revenue  from  this  class  of  liquor.     The  maximum  fee  for 

1  The  Mundhwa  refinery  is  to  be  clused. 


;6o 


BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 


such  licences  is  fixed  at  Rs.  500,  except  for  the  City  and  Island  of 
Bombay,  where  there  is  no  maximum. 

The  cultivation  of  hemp  is  restricted  under  the  Bombay  Abkari  Act, 
as  amended  in  190 1,  to  certain  villages  in  the  Khanapur  tdluka  of 
Satara  District,  and  in  the  Nevasa,  Ahmadnagar,  Rahuri,  and  Kopar- 
gaon  talukas  of  Ahmadnagar  District.  Drugs  manufactured  in  these 
talukas  are  stored  in  central  and  bonded  warehouses.  Duty  at  the 
following  rates  is  levied  on  intoxicating  drugs  issued  from  these  ware- 
houses or  imported  from  outside  the  Presidency  :  bhang,  8  annas  per 
seer  (about  2  lb.)  :  gdnja,  Rs.  4  per  seer ;  charas,  Rs.  6  per  seer 
(Rs.  2  prior  to  April  1,  1904).  The  wholesale  business  is  separated 
from  the  retail  vend.  Licences  for  wholesale  vend  are  issued  to  persons 
approved  by  the  Collector  and  the  Commissioner  of  Abkari  on  payment 
of  a  fixed  annual  fee  of  Rs.  15.  The  privilege  of  retail  vend  is  sold 
for  each  shop  separately  by  public  auction.  Ganja  comes  to  Bombay 
from  the  Central  Provinces  ;  bhang  from  the  Punjab  and  the  United 
Provinces ;  charas,  through  the  Punjab,  from  Central  Asia. 

The  revenue  under  excise  derived  from  the  various  sources  mentioned 
above,  for  the  ten  years  from  1 880-1  to  1889-90  and  1 890-1  to 
1 899- 1 900,  and  for  each  of  the  years  1 900-1  and  1903-4,  for  the 
Presidency  (excluding  Aden,  Bhuj,  and  Baroda),  was,  in  thousands 
of  rupees': — 


Items  of  revenue. 

Average  revenue  * 
for  ten  years. 

Realizations  in 

1880-1  to     1890-1  to 
1889-90.   '1899-1900. 

1900-1. 

1903-4. 

Country  spirit  and  toddy 
Rum,  &c,  excised  at  tariff  rates 
Vend  fee  on  imported  foreign 

liquors          .... 
Intoxicating  drugs  other  than 

opium          .... 
Opium    ..... 
Miscellaneous 

Total  gross  revenue 
Total  net  revenue   . 

Incidence  of   net    revenue   per 
head  of  population 

66,72 
,     1,11 

1,99 
11,42 

94 

89,32 

!  43 

(    1,13 
3,85 

•-'■39 

88 

85,19 
34 

..41 

4,75 

7,J4 

73 

1,02,09 
91 

1,69 

4,94 

8,52 

79 

82,1s 

78,65 

1,08,00 
1,02,92 

99,56 
95,o7 

Rs.  a.  p. 

060 

1,18,94 
1,12,56 

Rs.  a.  p. 

c    5    4 

Rs.  a.  p. 

0   6    1 

Rs.  a.  p. 

O    7    1 

*  These  figures  refer  to  the  year  ending  July  31. 

The  administration  of  the  Excise  department  is  similar  to  that  which 
has  been  described  in  the  case  of  opium.  Some  of  the  Native  States 
have  leased  their  excise  revenue  to  the  British  Government  for  a  period 
of  years,  in  consideration  of  a  sum  paid  annually  in  compensation,  and 
these  have  been  attached  for  excise  purposes  to  the  adjacent  British 


MISCELLANEOUS  REVENUE  361 

Districts.     Others  work  under  the  British  system,  while  others  again 
have  agreed  to  maintain  a  shopless  belt  along  the  joint  frontier. 

Foreign  liquors  are  largely  consumed  in  towns  like  Bombay,  Poona, 
and  Belgaum,  where  there  is  a  numerous  European,  Eurasian,  and  Pars! 
population  ;  and  to  a  smaller  extent  by  the  higher  classes  of  Hindus 
in  large  towns.  Consumption  has  undoubtedly  been  extended  by 
plague,  the  use  of  these  liquors  being  considered  as  a  prophylactic. 
Spirit  distilled  from  mahaa  is  consumed  in  all  Districts,  except  Ratna- 
giri,  because  this  is  the  cheapest  fermentable  material.  In  Ratnagiri, 
Kanara  (coast),  the  City  of  Bombay,  and  a  part  of  Thana  District, 
toddy  spirit  is  largely  used  for  the  same  reason ;  but  in  this  case  habit 
has  something  to  do  with  the  preference  for  this  spirit.  Rum  or  molasses 
spirit  is  used  to  a  limited  extent  in  Poona,  Satara,  Belgaum,  and 
1  >harwar  Districts.  Toddy  is  consumed  in  almost  all  parts  of  the 
Presidency,  especially  in  Sural,  Thana,  Belgaum,  Bijapur,  Dharwar, 
and  Poona,  where  a  large  number  of  palms  are  available.  Of  the 
intoxicating  drugs,  gdnja  is  principally  used  for  smoking,  particularly 
in  Bombay,  Poona,  Ahmadabad,  Surat,  Khandesh,  and  Kanara.  Ganja 
smoking  is  regarded  as  a  protection  against  cold,  and  the  consumption 
is  greatest  during  the  cold  season.  Bhang  is  used  in  the  form  of  drink 
and  of  sweetmeats,  but  more  particularly  as  a  drink,  in  the  City  of 
Bombay,  in  the  Gujarat  Districts,  and  in  the  Native  States  of  Cutch 
and  Kathiawar.  The  drinking  of  bhang  is  regarded  as  having  a  cooling 
effect  in  hot  weather.  Charas,  a  very  strong  intoxicant,  is  used  for 
smoking  only  in  Bombay  City  and  in  Ahmadabad.  Opium  is  largely 
consumed  in  Bombay,  Poona,  Khandesh,  in  the  Gujarat  Districts, 
and  in  the  Native  States  of  Cutch  and  Kathiawar.  The  consumption 
is  greatest  among  races  which  were  originally  resident  in  Central  India 
or  in  tracts  adjoining  it. 

The  efforts  made  by  Government  to  restrict  the  consumption  of 
liquors,  intoxicating  drugs,  and  opium  may  be  summed  up  as  follows  : — 

(1)  Imposition  on  these  articles  of  taxation  as  high  as  is  compatible 
with  the  avoidance  of  illicit  production  or  importation  ; 

(2)  Abolition  of  the  outstill  system,  and  concentration  of  the  manu- 
facture of  spirits  at  central  or  private  distilleries  under  the  supervision 
of  Government  establishments  ; 

(3)  Limitation  of  the  number  of  places  at  which  liquor  or  drugs 
can  be  purchased,  with  due  regard  to  the  circumstances  of  each 
locality  ; 

(4)  Limitation  of  the  quantity  of  liquor  or  drugs  which  may  be  legally 
transported  or  possessed  ;  and 

(5)  Employment  of  preventive  establishments  to  check  production 
and  smuggling. 

The  general  feeling  of  the  public  on  the  subject  of  intoxicants  is 


;b2 


BOMB.  1 ) '   rRESIDEXC  Y 


adverse  to  their  use,  and  there  is  a  tendency  to  assume  that  the  policy 
of  Government  encourages  consumption.  The  secular  education  pro- 
vided by  the  state  undoubtedly  has  this  effect,  by  weakening  social  and 
religious  influences,  and  the  example  of  Europeans  leads  the  educated 
classes  towards  the  consumption  of  foreign  liquors.  These  effects  are 
generally  deplored.  At  the  same  time  native  publicists  are  apt  to  forget 
that  fermented  and  distilled  liquors,  as  well  as  opium  and  intoxicating 
drugs,  have  always  been  freely  used  in  India.  The  existing  system 
is  entirely  defensible  in  principle  ;  and  staunch  advocates  of  temperance 
among  the  natives  themselves  admit  that  over  large  areas,  and  for  large 
classes  of  the  population,  the  use  of  a  narcotic  stimulant  of  some  kind 
is  actually  necessary  owing  to  climatic  reasons  and  the  conditions  under 
which  life  has  to  be  lived.  There  is  no  doubt  room  for  improvement 
in  detail,  and  the  attention  of  Government  is  steadily  directed  to  this — 
one  of  the  most  difficult  problems  with  which  it  has  to  deal. 

In  1894  the  taxation  of  imported  cotton  goods  at  5  per  cent,  was 
accompanied  by  the  passing  of  an  Act  imposing  a  similar  tax  on  locally 
produced  cotton  goods.  In  1895  the  tax  was  replaced  by  one  of 
3^  per  cent,  on  cotton  fabrics,  whether  imported  or  locally  produced  by 
machinery,  yarns  being  duty-free.  The  excise  or  local  duty  is  collected, 
through  the  agency  of  the  Bombay  Custom  House,  by  an  assessment 
on  monthly  returns  of  cotton  fabrics  issued  from  the  mills.  The  total 
net  revenue  derived  from  this  source  is  1 7  lakhs,  the  annual  taxable 
output  being  nearly  113,000,000  pounds  of  cloth.  A  rebate  of  the 
full  duty  is  allowed  on  cloth  exported  to  foreign  countries. 

The  stamp  revenue  is  collected  under  the  authority  of  the  Court 
Fees  Act  and  the  Stamp  Act,  which  are  uniform  for  all  India  and  are 
described  in  Vol.  IV,  chap.  viii.  The  revenue  from  judicial  and 
non-judicial  stamps  during  the  last  twenty  years  has  been,  in  thousands 
of  rupees  : — 


1880-1. 

i8yo-l.           1900-1. 

1903-4- 

35,  °9 
26,39 

Judicial     . 
Non-judicial 

Total 

22,99 

18,72 

29,79 

23,77 

33,68 

25,22 

4*.7i 

53,56             58,99 

61,48 

The  sales  of  stamps  of  all  descriptions  are  steadily  increasing  in 
normal  years.  In  1 900-1  the  prevalence  of  widespread  famine  caused 
a  slight  falling-off  in  the  sale  of  court-fee  or  judicial  stamps  ;  but  the 
decline  was  only  temporary,  and  the  sales  have  since  recovered  and 
exceeded  their  former  volume. 

The  income-tax  revenue  is  collected  under  an  Act  applying  to  the 
whole  of  India,  and  described  in  Vol.  IV,  chap.  viii.  In  Bombay  City 
a  special  Collector  is  appointed  for  assessing  and  collecting  the  revenue  : 


MISCELLANEOUS  REVENUE  363 

elsewhere  the  duty  is  entrusted  to  the  ordinary  revenue  staff.  The  net 
annual  revenue  for  the  decennial  periods  since  the  tax  was  introduced 
has  been  as  follows,  in  thousands  of  rupees:  (1886-90)  34,24, 
(1891-1900)  38,59,  (1900-1)  38,62.  Of  the  total  of  36J  lakhs  col- 
lected in  1903-4,  2\\  lakhs,  or  59  per  cent.,  was  levied  in  Bombay  City, 
which  contributes  nearly  one-tenth  of  the  yield  of  the  tax  for  the  whole 
of  India.  In  the  whole  Presidency  the  incidence  of  the  tax  is  about 
3  annas  per  head,  while  the  average  number  of  assessees  per  1,000  of 
population  is  4. 

The  customs  administration  of  the  Presidency  (excluding  Sind)  is  in 
charge  of  a  Collector  for  Bombay,  and  a  second  Collector,  who  is  also 
the  Collector  of  Salt,  for  the  smaller  ports  of  the  Presidency.  In  Sind 
there  is  a  Collector  of  Customs  at  Karachi,  subordinate  to  the  Com- 
missioner in  Sind.  A  large  preventive  staff,  under  numerous  Assistant 
Collectors  of  Salt  and  Customs,  is  maintained  to  patrol  and  guard  the 
long  coast-line,  as  well  as  the  land  frontier  overlooking  the  Portuguese 
possessions  and  the  Native  States  of  Northern  Gujarat.  Most  of  the 
dutiable  articles  imported  pass  through  Bombay.  Castle  Rock  on 
the  Goa  frontier  is,  however,  a  customs  post  of  increasing  importance, 
owing  to  the  recent  growth  of  direct  trade  between  Marmagao  and 
Europe.  The  respective  share  of  the  customs  revenue  of  the  Presidency 
collected  at  these  several  points  in  1903-4  was:  Bombay,  174  lakhs; 
Karachi,  ^1  lakhs  ;  land  posts  and  minor  ports,  2^  lakhs.  In  1904  the 
Kathiawar  frontier  line  was  opened,  with  a  chief  customs  station  at 
Yiramgam.  In  1882  the  duties  on  imported  goods  not  falling  under 
special  categories,  such  as  arms,  salt,  and  liquors,  were  abolished,  to  be 
replaced  in  March,  1894,  with  the  exception  of  cotton  goods,  which  were 
not  restored  to  the  dutiable  list  till  the  end  of  that  year.  The  cost  of 
collecting  the  customs  duties  amounts  to  4  per  cent,  on  the  total 
receipts.  The  chief  items  are  derived  (1903-4)  from  cotton  goods, 
hardware  and  metals,  oil,  sugar,  and  liquors,  as  follows  :  cotton  goods, 
35  lakhs  ;  hardware  and  metals,  46  lakhs  ;  oil,  18  lakhs  ;  sugar,  20  lakhs  ; 
and  liquors,  32  lakhs.  In  most  cases  the  import  duty  amounts  to 
5  per  cent,  on  the  value.  Cotton  goods  are  admitted  at  $\  per  cent., 
and  arms  and  liquors  pay  at  higher  rates.  There  is  an  export  duty 
of  5  per  cent,  on  all  rice  exported,  yielding  over  4^  lakhs.  With  a  view 
to  stimulating  local  industries,  coal  and  machinery  are  allowed  to  be 
imported  free.  Dutiable  goods  re-exported  within  three  years  are,  on 
satisfactory  proof  of  identity  and  of  payment  of  duty,  granted  a  draw- 
back amounting  to  seven-eighths  of  the  duty  paid.  Table  VIII, 
showing  the  annual  yield  of  the  import  duties  on  the  chief  articles 
imported  into  the  Bombay  Presidency  since  1895,  when  the  tariff 
was  put  on  its  present  basis,  and  the  total  yield  for  the  same  years, 
will  be  found  on  p.  391. 


364  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

Local  control  over  certain  branches  of  the  administration  is  secured 
by  the  constitution  of  local  boards  and  municipalities,  the  former  exer- 
cising authority  over  a  I  )istrict  or  a  tdluka,  and  the 

Local  and         latter  beinu;  entrusted  with  the  care  of  a  city  or  town, 
municipal.         ,„,  .       .  ,      ,  , 

rhese  local  committees  are  composed  ol  members 

either  nominated  by  Government  or  elected  by  the  people,  who  are 
empowered  to  expend  the  funds  at  their  disposal  on  education,  sanita- 
tion, the  construction  of  roads  and  tanks,  the  prevention  of  nuisances, 
and  generally  in  improving  the  area  committed  to  their  charge. 

Each  District  has  a  District  board,  which  receives  the  proceeds  of 
a  cess  amounting  to  one  anna  in  the  rupee  on  all  land  revenue  in 
the  District,  all  toll  and  ferry  funds,  and  some  minor  items.  One-third 
of  the  funds  thus  received  must  be  spent  on  education ;  but  the  board 
is  otherwise  free  to  direct  the  expenditure  of  its  funds  as  it  pleases, 
subject  to  the  limitations  imposed  by  the  law  constituting  the  boards. 
The  District  boards  make  over  a  part  of  their  revenues  to  the  tdluka 
boards,  who  may  expend  it  on  similar  works  within  the  limits  of  the 
tdluka.  The  origin  of  these  committees  dates  from  1863,  when  the 
Bombay  Government  sanctioned  the  establishment  of  Local  funds  for 
the  promotion  of  education  in  rural  Districts  and  the  construction 
or  repair  of  local  roads.  The  District  committees  were  to  consist  of 
the  principal  Government  officers  of  the  District,  and  other  members  to 
be  selected  by  the  Collector.  Tdluka  committees  were  to  be  composed 
of  the  Collector,  the  subdivisional  officer,  the  mdmlatddr,  and  three 
or  more  members  nominated  by  the  Collector.  This  system  was  for 
a  few  years  carried  out  without  the  aid  of  legislation  ;  but  as  it  was 
subsequently  found  necessary  to  legalize  the  levy  of  the  local  cess, 
Bombay  Act  VIII  of  1865  and  Act  III  of  1869  were  passed  for  this 
purpose,  the  former  being  applicable  to  Sind,  the  latter  to  the  remainder 
of  the  Presidency.  In  1884  a  new  Act  (I  of  1884),  styled  the  District 
Local  Boards  Act,  placed  these  committees  on  a  more  popular  basis. 
The  tdluka  board,  which  is  the  unit  of  rural  self-government,  thence- 
forth consisted  of  an  equal  number  of  elected  and  nominated  members, 
excluding  the  president.  The  right  of  voting  at  elections  was  conferred 
on  honorary  magistrates,  revenue  or  police  pdtels,  landholders  paying  at 
least  Rs.  48  assessment,  owners  of  immovable  property  worth  Rs.  5,000, 
persons  with  a  yearly  income  of  Rs.  500,  and  pensioners  on  Rs.  50  and 
over  a  month.  Holders  of  alienated  villages,  and  municipalities  of 
5,000  inhabitants  and  over,  could  also  return  members  to  these  boards. 
The  District  board  was  to  consist  of  certain  nominated  members  and 
of  members  elected  by  tdluka  boards,  by  municipalities  with  a  popula- 
tion of  not  less  than  18,000  inhabitants,  and  by  the  holders  of  alienated 
villages.  Usually  the  Collector  is  president  of  the  District  board  thus 
constituted,  while   his  assistants  preside  over  tdluka   boards   in   their 


LOCAL  AND  MUNICIPAL  365 

charges.  The  vice-president  may  he  either  an  official  or  an  unofficial 
member,  and  is  elected  by  the  board.  The  number  of  local  boards  as 
thus  constituted  was  231  in  1903-4:  namely,  46  in  the  Northern  Divi- 
sion, 72  in  the  Central,  56  in  the  Southern,  and  57  in  Sind.  They 
contained  32  ex-officio  members,  1,941  nominated  and  1,600  elected 
members.  The  taxation  raised  by  these  boards  on  a  population  of 
more  than  17  millions  averages  4-4  annas  per  head,  and  they  had  in 
1903-4  an  aggregate  income  of  48  lakhs.  The  chief  items  of  expendi- 
ture are  education  and  public  works,  to  which  over  two-thirds  of 
their  income  is  devoted.  The  boards  are  called  on  to  contribute, 
to  the  extent  of  their  capacity,  to  the  cost  of  famine  relief  measures, 
or  to  the  suppression  of  dangerous  epidemics  in  the  area  under  their 
control. 

The  origin  of  municipal  government  in  the  Province  outside  Bombay 
City  is  Act  XXVI  of  1850,  which  permitted  the  establishment  of  muni- 
cipalities in  towns  where  the  people  applied  for  them,  and  restricted  the 
expenditure  of  money  raised  by  such  bodies  to  the  making  and  repair 
of  public  streets,  drains,  tanks,  &c,  and  the  prevention  of  nuisances. 
In  1862  further  legislation  empowered  municipalities  to  spend  money 
on  dispensaries,  hospitals,  schools,  and  road-watering,  and  by  the  same 
Act  the  Government  received  the  power  to  coerce  recalcitrant  munici- 
palities into  carrying  out  measures  urgently  needed.  In  the  course  of 
twenty  years  the  Act  of  1850  was  taken  advantage  of  by  only  96  towns, 
the  population  of  urban  areas  being  generally  unwilling  to  submit  to 
municipal  taxation  and  control.  An  Act  (VI  of  1873)  was  therefore 
passed  dividing  municipalities  into  city  and  town  municipalities,  the 
executive  power  in  the  former  being  entrusted  to  the  municipal  com- 
missioners as  a  body,  and  in  the  latter  to  the  president,  vice-president,- 
and  chairman.  The  elective  franchise  could  be  granted  to  city  munici- 
palities, and  a  town  municipality  could  receive  this  privilege  where  the 
residents  showed  sufficient  public  spirit  to  justify  the  measure.  In  1882 
the  control  of  local  elementary  education  was  given  to  municipalities. 
In  1884  a  new  Act  (II  of  1884)  was  passed,  abolishing  the  former 
distinction  between  city  and  town  municipalities  and  extending  the 
elective  element.  The  municipal  law  in  the  province  of  Sind  was  at 
the  same  time  placed  on  the  same  footing  as  that  of  the  Presidency 
proper.  In  190 1  a  further  enactment  (III  of  1901)  enlarged  the  powers 
of  municipalities,  and  re-established  their  division  into  city  and  town 
corporations.  The  former  are  allowed  to  appoint  executive  officers  with 
extensive  functions,  and  to  possess  wider  powers  for  dealing  with  the 
recovery  of  taxes,  the  construction  of  new  buildings,  and  outbreaks  of 
epidemic  disease.  By  this  Act  rates  may  be  levied  in  certain  areas 
which  do  not  possess  municipalities,  the  proceeds  being  devoted  to  the 
same  objects  as  those  for  which  municipal  taxation  is  raised.    Excluding 


366 


IW.V/t.-l  Y  rRF.SIPEXCY 


Bombay  City  there  were  1A5  municipal  towns  in  the  Presidency 
in  1903-4.  Of  these  only  4  have  a  population  of  over  100,000,  and  69 
have  a  population  exceeding  10,000.  Of  the  total  of  2,252  members, 
473  are  ex  officio,  881  are  elected,  and  898  nominated  by  Government. 
The  population  of  municipal  areas  is  2,380,748,  from  which  taxation 
amounting  to  39  lakhs  is  levied,  at  an  average  of  Rs.  1-10-7  per  head. 
The  total  municipal  income  is  over  71  lakhs,  and  the  chief  items  of 
expenditure  are  conservancy  and  education.  Administration  and  the 
cost  of  collecting  taxes  involve  a  charge  of  8  per  cent,  on  the  total 
income.  Tables  IX  and  X  on  p.  392  show  further  financial  details 
for  District  boards  and  municipalities  for  the  years  1890-1900,  1900-1, 
and  1903-4. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  assert  that  the  result  of  the  establishment  of 
these  numerous  local  bodies  has  been  to  develop  in  any  marked  degree 
civic  ardour  for  local  affairs,  or  a  sense  of  responsibility  regarding  the 
expenditure  of  the  proceeds  of  local  taxation.  In  many  cases  the  ear- 
marking of  one-third  of  the  total  income  for  expenditure  on  education, 
and  the  very  large  share  of  the  balance  that  must  necessarily  be  devoted 
to  establishment  charges  and  the  upkeep  of  roads,  leaves  little  scope 
for  the  exercise  of  the  power  of  control  that  members  possess ;  and 
this  necessarily  diminishes  the  interest  that  the  control  of  local  affairs 
might  otherwise  inspire.  The  system  is,  however,  of  educative  value, 
inasmuch  as  it  accustoms  the  people  to  the  working  of  popular  insti- 
tutions. 

The  Presidency  contains  three  Port  Trusts— at  Bombay,  Karachi,  and 
Aden.  Of  these,  the  Bombay  Port  Trust,  constituted  in  1873,  consists 
of  13  members,  partly  nominated  by  Government  and  partly  elected  by 
the  Chamber  of  Commerce.  The  port  of  Karachi  was  entrusted  to 
a  Harbour  Board  in  1880,  which  was  subsequently  created  a  Port  Trust 
on  the  lines  of  the  similar  body  in  Bombay.  The  Aden  Trust  dates 
from  1889.  The  trusts  are  in  charge  of  the  wharves,  docks,  harbour, 
lights,  &c,  and  are  charged  with  the  duty  of  providing  conveniences 
for  the  trade  and  shipping  of  the  ports. 

For  the  last  thirty  years  the  income  and  expenditure  of  these  Trusts 
has  been,  in  thousands  of  rupees  : — 


Receipts. 

Expenditure. 

1881-2. 

1891-2. 
48.IO 

9,57 
1,92 

1903-4. 

1881-2. 

1 89 1-2. 

1903-4. 

Bombay  . 
Karachi   . 
Aden 

37>4r> 

4,48 

64)4i 

19,5s 
4.66 

28,73 

3,77 

46,24 

5>'4 
2,56 

56,98 

'3,87 

3,78 

Among  works  of  importance  carried  out  by  these  bodies  are  the 
Prince's  Dock,  the  Merewether  Dry  Dock,  and  the  Victoria   Dock  at 


PUBLIC   WORKS  367 

Bombay,  and  the  new  docks  at  Bombay  still  in  course  of  con- 
struction. 

The  Public  Works  department  is  controlled  by  two  Chief  Engineers, 
who  are  also  secretaries  to  Government,  by  Superintending  Engineers 

in  charge  of  Divisions,  Executive  Engineers  in  charge 

,_.    6.  la-         -.  t-      •  1         Public  works, 

of  Districts,  and  such  Assistant  Engineers  as  may  be 

required  by  the  circumstances  of  the  Districts.  The  officers  deal 
with  all  classes  of  public  works,  but  additional  Executive  Engineers 
are  in  some  instances  posted  to  take  charge  of  important  irrigation 
works.  The  staff  in  1905  consisted  of  2  Chief  Engineers,  5  Superin- 
tending Engineers,  excluding  the  Sanitary  Engineer  and  Consulting 
Architect  to  Government,  who  is  a  temporary  officer,  $$  Executive 
Engineers,  and  44  Assistants.  There  were  also  one  apprentice  and 
one  Executive  Engineer  lent  by  the  Government  of  India.  Six  tem- 
porary Engineers  are  under  three  to  five  years'  covenant,  and  twelve 
under  yearly  sanction.  The  department  is  concerned  with  the  con- 
struction and  maintenance  of  all  works,  such  as  roads,  bridges,  hospitals, 
offices,  irrigation  reservoirs,  canals,  and  the  like,  that  are  too  costly  and 
important  to  entrust  to  the  professional  staff  of  local  bodies  ;  it  also 
checks  the  plans  and  estimates  of  all  but  the  most  insignificant  works 
undertaken  by  those  bodies.  The  Executive  Engineer  is,  moreover, 
a  member  of  each  District  board. 

In  1 88 1  the  total  expenditure  of  the  Bombay  Public  Works  depart- 
ment, exclusive  of  irrigation,  was  about  64  lakhs.  During  the  ten  years 
ending  1900,  the  average  was  123  lakhs,  and  in  1903-4  the  expenditure- 
was  71  lakhs.  Apart  from  the  maintenance  of  the  roads,  irrigation 
works,  and  buildings  already  in  existence  at  the  commencement  of  this 
period,  the  expenditure  of  the  department  has  been  devoted  to  original 
works,  of  which  the  most  costly,  and  the  most  important  in  developing 
the  resources  of  the  country,  are  water  storage  and  irrigation  works. 
Chief  of  these  is  the  Jamrao  Canal  in  Thar  and  Parkar  District,  con- 
structed at  a  cost  of  66  lakhs,  which  has  opened  a  hitherto  uncultivated 
tract  to  settlers  from  other  parts  of  the  province  of  Sind  and  from  the 
Punjab.  A  like  expenditure  incurred  on  the  Mutha  ("anal  in  Poona 
District  has  rendered  the  water  of  the  Mutha  river  available  for  cultiva- 
tion, while  the  Nira  Canal  in  the  south-east  of  the  same  District  cost 
54  lakhs  in  construction.  At  Gokak,  in  Belgaum  District,  the  waters  of 
the  Ghatprabha  have  been  impounded  by  a  masonry  dam,  and  made 
available  for  the  working  of  the  Gokak  cotton-mills,  as  well  as  for  the 
irrigation  of  the  land  in  the  vicinity.  This  work,  which  is  capable  of 
extension  when  required,  has  so  far  cost  13  lakhs.  At  Mhasvad  in 
Satara  and  at  Ekruk  in  Sholapur  irrigation  tanks  have  been  constructed 
at  a  cost  of  20  and  1 2  lakhs  respectively.  Numerous  smaller  irrigation 
works,  among  which  may  be  mentioned  the  Jamda  canal  in  Khandesh, 


368  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

the  Kistna  canal  in  Satara,  and  the  reservoirs  at  Kapurvadi  in  Ahmad- 
nagar,  at  Ashti  in  Sholapur,  and  at  Vaghad  in  Nasik  stand  to  the  credit 
of  the  Public  Works  department.  It  has  also  carried  out  many  large 
schemes  for  improving  the  water-supply  of  big  cities.  Chief  of  these 
are  the  Surat  and  Kirkee  water-supply  schemes,  costing  9^  and  *]\  lakhs 
respectively.  The  expenditure  of  the  department  on  irrigation  in 
1 880-1  was  21  lakhs,  the  average  for  the  ten  years  ending  1900  was 
36  lakhs,  and  52  lakhs  was  spent  in  1903-4. 

As  funds  are  available,  the  construction  of  fresh  trunk  and  feeder- 
roads  is  undertaken  either  by  the  department  or  by  local  boards ;  but 
progress  in  this  direction  is  retarded  by  the  necessity  of  providing 
for  the  subsequent  upkeep  of  such  works,  on  which  the  wear 
and  tear  of  monsoon  rainfall  is  very  heavy.  Hospitals,  lunatic  asy- 
lums, school-houses,  offices  for  Government  business,  and  light- 
houses, help,  with  an  occasional  drainage  scheme,  to  fill  the  rest  of 
the  public  works  programme.  The  more  costly  works  of  these 
descriptions  undertaken  in  the  Presidency  during  recent  years  are 
the  following : — 

Roads.  —  From  Belgaum  to  the  port  of  Vengurla,  78  miles;  from 
Godhra  to  Dohad,  43  miles  ;  from  Mahad  to  Mahabaleshwar  via  the 
FitzGerald  ghat,  36  miles  ;  from  Kolhapur  to  Ratnagiri  via  the  Amba 
ghat,  82  miles;  from  Nadiad  to  Kapadvanj,  27  miles;  from  Gokak  to 
Nargund,  50  miles. 

Hospitals,  &c. — The  Bai  Motlibai  and  the  Sir  Dinshaw  Manekji 
Hospitals  in  Bombay,  a  military  hospital  at  Ahmadabad,  and  a  civil 
hospital  at  Aden. 

Lunatic  Asylums. — At  Navapada  near  Thana,  and  at  Ratnagiri. 

Schools. — The  Elphinstone  College  and  High  School  at  Bombay, 
the  training  college  at  Dharwar,  and  the  Gujarat  College  at  Ahmad- 
abad. 

Among  other  buildings  maybe  noted  the  High  Court  (cost  17  lakhs) 
and  Small  Cause  Court  in  Bombay  ;  the  Bombay  Police  Courts ;  the 
Treasury  and  Courthouse  at  Aden  ;  and  the  new  Rock  lighthouse  at 
Vengurla. 

Since  1884  the  chief  water-supply  and  drainage  works  undertaken  by 
the  municipalities  of  the  Presidency  have  been  :— 

The  Tansa  water-works  in  Bombay  (cost  150  lakhs);  the  drainage 
of  Bombay  City  (8  lakhs);  the  Hubli  water-works  (5  lakhs);  the  Ahmad- 
abad water-works  (4  lakhs)  ;  and  the  Surat  supply  scheme. 

The  total  number  of  troops  stationed  within  the  Presidency  on 
June  1,  1904,  was  22,008,  of  whom  9,215  were 
British,  and  12,793  belonged  to  the  Native  army. 

Bombay  Presidency,  except  Aden,  is  garrisoned  by  the  Quetta, 
Mhow,  and  Poona  divisions  of  the  Western  Command,  of  which  the 


POLICE  AND  JAILS 


569 


troops  at  Aden  form  an  independent  brigade.     The  military  stations 
1904  were  : — 


Quetta  Division. 

Poona  Division 

Hyderabad. 

Ahmadnagar. 

Jacobabad. 

Belgaum. 

Karachi. 

Bombay. 

Manora. 

Deolali. 

Sukkur. 

Hubli. 

Igatpuri. 

Mhow  Division. 

Khandala. 

Ahmadabad. 

Kirkee. 

Bhuj. 

Poona. 

Deesa. 

Purandhar. 

Palanpur. 

Satara. 

Rajkot. 

Sirur. 

Aden  Brigade. 

Aden  ;  Perim  :  Shaikh  Otiiman. 

Bombay  and  Karachi  possess  arsenals,  and  Kirkee  an  ammunition 
factory.  A  gun-carriage  factory  hitherto  located  at  Poona  has  recently 
been  closed. 

The  Volunteers  of  the  Presidency,  with  head-quarters  at  Bombay, 
Poona,  Karachi,  Belgaum,  Hubli,  and  at  several  other  smaller  stations, 
numbered  3,594  in  1904,  of  whom  352  were  artillery  and  65  were  light 
horse  or  mounted  rifles. 

Many  of  the  Native  States  maintain  small  bodies  of  troops  ;  the 
principal  are  : — 

Infantry. 
Kolhapur       .....         734 

572 

•      '>°58 

.     1,788 

288 

286 

Includes  a  small  force  of  artillery. 


Cinch 

Navanngar 

Junagarh 

Bhaunagar 

Savantvadi 


Cavalry. 

Total. 

156 

912* 

284 

856 

26 

',°93* 

62 

1,884* 

5' 

339 

306* 

The  Bombay  police  consists  of  several  distinct  forces  :   the  regular 
District  police,  the  Bombay  City  police,  the  railway  police,  and  the  vil- 
lage watch.     The  last-mentioned  body  is  maintained 
unly    in    certain    parts    of   the   country,   and    at    the        Police  and 
expense  of  the  villagers.     The  Bombay  City  police  is 
described  in  the  article  on  Bombay  City.     The  District  police  is  a  sti- 
pendiary force  divided  into  grades,  beginning  with  constables  on  Rs.  7 
a  month.       Talukas  and   Districts   are    in  charge  of   chief  constables 
and  a  District    Superintendent  respectively,  between  whom  are  placed 
inspectors,   and,   occasionally,   Assistant   Superintendents.     Chief  con 

vol.  viii.  w  b 


37o  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

stables  thus  correspond  to  sub  inspectors  in  other  parts  of  India  The 
District  Magistrate  controls  the  police  administration  of  the  District, 
subject  to  the  orders  of  the  Commissioner,  and  uniformity  in  matters  of 
routine  is  ensured  by  the  appointment  of  an  Inspector-General  for  the 
Presidency  (excluding  Sind).  A  part  of  the  District  police  force  is 
armed,  and  employed  in  guarding  jails  and  treasuries,  or  escort- 
ing prisoners  and  treasure.  In  1904  the  District  force  consisted  of 
17,173  men,  of  whom  12,107  were  armed.  The  proportion  of  the 
police  to  area  and  population  is  determined  by  local  conditions.  The 
Northern  Division  has  one  policeman  to  every  4  square  miles  and 
1,064  persons;  the  Central  Division,  one  to  9  square  miles  and 
1,477  inhabitants;  the  Southern  Division,  one  to  9  square  miles 
and  1,934  inhabitants  :  and  Sind,  one  to  16  square  miles  and  1,076 
inhabitants.  About  1,000  of  the  police  are  mounted,  mainly  for 
service  as  orderlies. 

Under  native  rule,  District  police  were  unknown ;  and  the  responsi- 
bility for  detecting  crime  rested  entirely  on  the  village  until  the  days 
of  Nana  Farnavis,  when  inspectors  (tapasnavh)  were  appointed  to  dis- 
cover offences.     The  patel  was  responsible  for  the  police  of  his  village. 
His  responsible  assistant  was    the  village   watchman  (mahar),   whose 
duties  were  to  keep  watch  at  night,  to  find  out  all  arrivals  and  depar- 
tures, watch  all  strangers,  and  report  all  suspicious  persons  to  the  head- 
man.    The  watchman  was  also  bound  to  know  the  character  of  each 
man   in  the  village  ;  and  when  a  theft  was  committed  within  village 
bounds,  it  was  his  business  to  find  the  thief.     He  was  enabled  to  do 
this  by  his  early  habits  of  inquisitiveness  and  observation,  as  well  as  by 
the  nature  of  his  allowance,  which,  being  partly  a  small  share  of  the 
grain  and  similar  property  belonging  to  each  house,  required  him  always 
to  be  on  the  watch   to  ascertain  his  fees,   and  always  in  motion   to 
gather  them.     When  a  theft  or  robbery  occurred,  the  watchman  began 
his  inquiries  and  researches.     It  was  very  common  for  him  to  track 
a  thief  by  his  footsteps  ;  and  if  he  did  this  to  another  village  so  as  to 
satisfy  the  watchman  there,  or  if  he  otherwise  traced  the  property  to  an 
adjoining  village,  his  responsibility  ended.     It  then  became  the  duty  of 
a  watchman  of  the  new  village  to  take  up  the  pursuit.     The  last  village 
to  which  the  thief  had  been  clearly  traced  became  answerable  for  the 
property  stolen,  which  would  otherwise  have  had  to  be  accounted  for  by 
the  village  where  the  robbery  was  committed.     The  watchman  was 
obliged  to  make  up  this  amount  as  far  as  his  means  went,  and  the 
remainder  was  levied  on  the  whole  village.     Only  in  particular  cases 
was  the  restoration  of  the  value  of  the  property  insisted  on  to  its  full 
extent.     Some  fine  was  generally  levied  ;   and  neglect  or  connivance 
was  punished  by  transferring  the  grant   or  inam  of  the  patel  or  the 
watchman  to  his  nearest  relation,  by  fine,  by  imprisonment  in  irons,  or 


POLICE  AND  JAILS  371 

by  severe  corporal  punishment.  This  responsibility  was  necessary,  as, 
besides  the  usual  temptation  to  neglect,  the  watchman  was  himself 
a  thief,  and  the  patel  was  disposed  to  harbour  thieves  with  a  view  to 
share  their  profits. 

The  village  watch  do  not  receive  regular  monthly  pay.  They  are 
controlled  by  the  village  headman  or  patel,  on  whom  lies  the  duty 
of  calling  in  the  District  police  when  crimes  are  committed.  His 
subordinates  guard  the  village  and  assist  in  the  apprehension  of 
offenders.  The  patel  and  his  assistants  are  important  features  in  the 
machinery  for  detecting  crime,  and  the  success  of  the  District  police 
in  that  direction  largely  depends  on  the  amount  of  assistance  received 
from  them.  In  the  Deccan  these  village  watchmen  are  recruited  from 
the  Ramosis,  who  were  formerly  a  criminal  and  marauding  tribe.  Each 
village  possesses  five  or  more  of  these  men,  who  are  paid  in  kind  and 
occasionally  have  a  portion  of  the  village  lands  assigned  to  them. 
Ramosis  are  also  employed  in  towns  as  night-watchmen  for  offices  and 
dwelling-houses,  and  in  this  capacity  they  form  a  recognized  division 
of  the  town  police.  Patels  are  still  permitted  in  certain  instances  to 
investigate  and  punish  petty  offences  without  the  intervention  of  the 
District  police.  In  Sind  there  arc  no  village  police,  their  place  being 
taken  by  the  zamindars,  whose  assistance  is  of  great  value  in  the 
detection  of  crime.  The  employment  of  pagis  or  professional  trackers 
is  common.  They  are  skilful  in  their  work,  and  are  rewarded  by  gifts 
from  the  owners  of  stolen  animals,  or  payments  by  the  community. 

The  office  of  Inspector-General  of  Police  has  two  special  branches, 
dealing  with  criminal  investigation  and  criminal  identification.  The 
former  was  organized  in  1901  for  the  detection  of  serious  crime  the 
ramifications  of  which  extend  beyond  the  limits  of  one  District.  The 
latter  records  and  traces  the  identity  of  criminals  by  means  of  thumb- 
marks  and  finger-tip  impressions.  A  special  police  organization  exists 
in  connexion  with  the  railways  of  the  Presidency.  Each  of  the  principal 
lines  is  organized  like  a  District,  under  a  Superintendent  who  is  directly 
subordinate  to  the  Inspector-General,  and  is  employed  in  travelling 
along  the  line,  inspecting  platform  constables,  and  investigating  crimes. 

In  cantonments  the  military  authorities  provide  a  small  number  of 
military  policemen  to  assist  the  local  police  force  in  the  maintenance  of 
order  in  cases  where  military  offenders  are  concerned.  The  control 
of  this  staff  rests  with  the  military  authorities.  The  result  of  the  work 
of  the  police  and  the  strength  of  the  various  grades  of  the  force  in 
the  last  twenty  years  are  shown  in  Tables  XI  and  XII  on  p.  393. 

In  1904  the  total  force  in  the  Presidency,  including  railways  and 
Sind,  but  excluding  the  City  of  Bombay,  was  22,380  officers  and  men, 
and  cost  45  lakhs. 

^Vhile    this    article    was    passing    through    the    press    the    force  was 

b  b  2 


3  7  2  BO  MB  A  Y  rRESIDENC  Y 

reorganized,  the  principal  changes  being  the  appointment  of  Deputy- 
Inspectors-General    for    Sincl,    for    the    rest    of    the 
Reorganization.  presj(jenCyj  which  has  been  divided  into  two  ranges, 

for  railways,  and  for  crime  ;  the  appointment  of  Deputy-Superintendents 
of  police  ;  and  an  increase  in  the  numbers  and  salaries  in  the  lower 
grades.  The  control  and  direction  of  the  police  still  rest  primarily 
with  the  District  Magistrates,  while  the  control  formerly  exercised  by 
Commissioners  of  Divisions  has  practically  been  transferred  to  the 
I  nspector-General. 

Statistics  relating  to  the  jails  of  the  Presidency  will  be  found  in 
Table  XIII  on  p.  393.  The  Jail  department  is  under  the  administration 
of  an  Inspector-General,  who  ordinarily  belongs  to  the  Indian  Medical 
Service.  A  full-time  Superintendent  is  employed  at  each  of  the  three 
Central  jails — at  Hyderabad,  Ahmadabad,  and  Veraoda ;  the  District 
jails  are  in  charge  either  of  full-time  civil  officers  who  are  not  medical 
men  or  of  civil  surgeons  as  additional  charges,  and  lock-ups  are  under 
local  magistrates.  Of  the  District  jails,  those  at  Thana  and  Aden, 
as  also  the  House  of  Correction  and  the  common  prison  at  Bombay, 
are  known  as  special  jails,  as  they  accommodate  long-term  prisoners. 
Excepting  Aden,  each  of  these  has  a  full-time  Superintendent.  The 
most  prevalent  diseases  of  the  prison  population  are  intermittent  fever, 
diarrhoea,  dysentery,  and  pneumonia.  Numerous  industries  are  carried 
on  in  the  jails,  the  chief  of  which  are  the  weaving  of  cotton  goods,  such 
as  jail  clothing,  coarse  cloth,  towels,  and  darls ;  carpet-making  ;  basket- 
work  ;  and  printing.  The  out-turn  is  sold  to  the  general  public  at 
rates  which  usually  exceed  the  ordinary  market  prices ;  but  the  ex- 
cellence of  the  articles  ensures  a  regular  demand  for  them.  Numerous 
articles  are  also  supplied  direct  to  Government  departments,  while 
a  printing  press  at  the  Poona  Central  jail,  started  in  1900,  relieves 
the  Government  Press  in  Bombay  of  much  routine  printing. 

The  Presidency  contains  two  reformatories,  one  at  Bombay  and 
one  at  Poona.  Both  are  under  the  control  of  the  Educational  depart- 
ment. The  latter  is  classed  as  an  Industrial  school.  In  1904  there 
were  380  inmates  in  these  institutions  receiving  instruction  in  agriculture 
or  industries. 

Under  native  rule  craftsmen  were  taught  their  arts  at  home  by  their 
fathers,  while  traders  and  secular  Brahmans  learnt  to  read,  write,  and 
cast  accounts  in  private  schools.  Higher  education 
was  represented  by  Sanskrit  pathsalas  and  Muham- 
madan  madrasas,  which  often  shared  in  religious  endowments.  The 
later  Peshwas  held  a  yearly  distribution  of  gifts  (dakshina)  to  learned 
Brahmans,  which  at  last  took  the  form  of  indiscriminate  alms-giving, 
and  cost  five  lakhs  a  year.  The  British  conquest  of  the  Deccan  was 
followed    by    the   opening    of   many    missionary   schools    and    by    the 


EDUCATION  373 

organization,  under  the  guidance  of  Mountstuart  Elphinstone,  of  a 
system  of  Government  schools  in  the  Districts.  In  1821  a  part  of  the 
dakshina  grant  was  devoted  to  the  creation  of  a  Sanskrit  College  at 
Poona,  which  afterwards  grew  into  the  existing  Deccan  College,  and 
in  1827  a  large  sum  was  raised  by  subscription  to  found  the  Elphinstone 
College  at  Bombay.  In  1840  a  Board  of  Education  was  created,  which, 
under  the  influence  of  Sir  Erskine  Perry  (1843-52),  devoted  itself 
chiefly  to  improving  the  teaching  of  English,  in  the  hope  that  the  love 
of  knowledge  would  filter  down  from  the  higher  classes  to  the  lower. 
The  Grant  Medical  College  was  opened  in  1845,  and  the  Poona  College 
of  Science  grew  out  of  an  engineering  school  founded  in  1854.  The 
Board  of  Education  was  abolished  in  1855  on  the  constitution  of  the 
existing  Educational  department,  to  carry  out  the  policy  of  Sir  Charles 
Wood's  famous  dispatch  of  1854.  The  Bombay  University  was 
established  in  1857.  The  establishment  of  public  primary  schools 
by  the  local  boards  under  the  guidance  of  the  Educational  department 
dates  from  the  levy  in  1863  of  the  Local  fund  cess,  one-third  of  which 
is  set  aside  for  education.  In  1884  the  burden  of  supporting  primary 
schools  in  municipal  towns  was  transferred  from  the  local  boards  to 
the  municipalities.  Soon  afterwards  the  system  of  grants  in  aid  of 
private  effort  was  greatly  expanded  in  accordance  with  the  views  of  the 
Education  ( 'ommission. 

The  Educational  department  is  administered  by  a  Director,  who  has 
under  him  an  Inspector  in  each  Division  and  a  Deputy-Inspector,  with 
assistants,  in  each  District.  These  officers  inspect  all  schools  that  receive 
state  aid,  and  also  administer  the  public  primary  schools  supported 
by  local  boards.  The  Director  and  three  of  the  Inspectors  are  recruited 
from  England,  while  the  other  Inspector  belongs  to  the  Provincial 
service,  and  the  deputies  and  their  assistants  to  the  Subordinate  service. 
Two  Inspectresses  of  Girls'  Schools,  recruited  from  England,  have  lately 
been  added.  The  Government  maintains  two  Arts  colleges,  one 
Medical  college,  and  a  College  of  Science,  the  teaching  staff  of  which 
includes  twenty-one  professors  recruited  from  England  and  fourteen 
belonging  to  the  Provincial  service.  The  Government  also  maintains 
in  Bombay  and  at  the  head-quarters  of  each  District  (except  Ahmad- 
nagar,  Kolaba,  Larkana,  Thar  and  Parkar,  and  Upper  Sind  Frontier) 
a  high  school  as  a  model  secondary  institution.  Three  head  masters 
of  high  schools  are  recruited  from  England,  and  the  rest  belong  either 
to  the  Provincial  or  the  Subordinate  service. 

The  Bombay  University  up  to  1905  was  a  body  corporate  consisting 
of  the  Chancellor,  who  was  the  Governor  of  the  Presidency  for  the 
time  being,  the  Vice-Chancellor,  appointed  by  Government  for  a  term 
of  two  years,  and  a  Senate  of  about  280  Fellows,  nominated  by  Govern- 
ment of  its  own  motion,  or,  in  the  case  of  two  appointments  every  year, 


374  BO  MB  A  V  PRESIDENCY 

on  the  recommendation  of  the  University.  Under  the  new  constitution 
introduced  by  Act  VIII  of  1904  the  total  number  of  Fellows  is  no, 
of  whom  not  more  than  10  are  ex-officio  Fellows  and  the  remainder  are 
styled  Ordinary  Fellows.  Of  the  Ordinary  Fellows  ten  are  elected  by 
the  Graduates,  ten  by  the  Faculties,  and  the  rest  are  nominated  by  the 
Chancellor.  At  least  two-thirds  of  the  total  number  of  Fellows  elected 
by  the  Faculties  or  nominated  by  the  Chancellor  must  be  persons 
following  the  profession  of  education.  The  executive  government  of 
the  University  vests  in  the  Syndicate,  which  is  composed  of  the  Vice- 
Chancellor,  the  Director  of  Public  Instruction,  and  not  less  than  seven 
or  more  than  fifteen  ex-officio  or  Ordinary  Fellows  elected  by  the  Senate 
or  Faculties.  The  Senate,  or  general  body  of  Fellows,  is  the  legislative 
authority  of  the  University.  The  function  of  the  University  has  hitherto 
been  to  ascertain,  by  means  of  examination,  the  persons  coming  from 
affiliated  colleges  who  have  acquired  proficiency  in  different  branches 
of  literature,  science,  art,  and  to  reward  them  by  academical  degrees 
as  evidence  of  their  respective  attainments.  Under  the  new  Universities 
Act,  it  will  be  able  to  provide  for  direct  higher  instruction  and  to 
exercise  a  closer  supervision  over  its  colleges.  The  degrees  given  are 
those  of  Bachelor  and  Master  of  Arts  (B.A.,  M.A.)  and  Bachelor  of 
Science  (B.Sc.) ;  in  Law,  that  of  Bachelor  of  Laws  (LL.B.) ;  in  Medicine, 
Doctor  of  Medicine  (M.D.)  and  Licentiate  in  Medicine  and  Surgery 
(L.M.  &  S.) ;  in  Agriculture,  that  of  Licentiate  in  Agriculture  (L.Ag.)  ; 
and  in  Civil  Engineering,  those  of  Licentiate  of  Civil  Engineering 
(L.C.E.)  and  Master  of  Civil  Engineering  (M.C.E.).  Of  the  ten  Arts 
colleges,  excluding  Baroda,  affiliated  to  the  University,  all  but  one  (the 
Rajaram  College  at  Kolhapur)  teach  the  full  degree  course  for  B.A.  ; 
and  the  B.Sc.  classes  (full  degree)  are  at  the  Elphinstone,  Wilson, 
St.  Xavier's,  and  Fergusson  Colleges.  There  are  also  B.Sc.  classes  at 
the  Grant  Medical  College  at  Bombay  and  the  College  of  Science  at 
Poona.  -The  Government  Law  School,  Bombay,  educates  up  to  the 
full  LL.B.  standard,  while  six  law  classes  attached  to  Arts  colleges 
teach  up  to  the  first  LL.B.  examination  only.  The  Grant  Medical 
College,  Bombay,  teaches  the  full  course  ;  and  the  College  of  Science 
at  Poona  teaches  the  agricultural  and  engineering  courses.  Of  the  Arts 
colleges,  two  are  maintained  by  Government  and  four  by  Native  States, 
including  one  in  the  State  of  Baroda  ;  and  all  the  rest,  two  of  which 
belong  to  missionary  bodies,  while  the  other  three  are  managed  by 
committees,  receive  aid  from  the  Government.  There  are  no  purely 
private  proprietary  colleges.  The  most  important  Arts  colleges  are 
the  Elphinstone,  Wilson,  and  St.  Xavier's  Colleges  in  Bombay,  and 
the  Deccan  and  Fergusson  Colleges  in  Poona.  The  total  expenditure 
of  the  University  in  1903-4  amounted  to  about  \\  lakhs,  which  was 
more  than  covered  by  fees,  &c. 


EDUCATION  375 

Candidates  for  the  B.A.  degree  are  required  to  have  attended  an 
affiliated  college  for  eight  terms  (four  years).  A  similar  course  is 
required  for  the  B.Sc.  degree,  while  for  the  L.C.E.  and  L.Ag.  degrees 
one  year  in  an  Arts  college  followed  by  three  years  in  a  Science  college, 
and  one  year  in  an  Arts  college  followed  by  two  years  in  a  Science 
college,  are  respectively  required.  Four  years  in  a  Medical  college 
are  necessary  for  a  candidate  for  the  L.M.  &  S.  degree,  and  the 
M.D.  degree  can  be  conferred  only  on  those  who  have  graduated  in 
both  Medicine  and  Arts  (eight  years).  A  two  years'  course  is  re- 
quired from  the  candidate  for  the  LL.B.  degree.  The  M.A.  degree 
can  be  obtained  at  any  time,  usually  one  year,  after  graduating  in 
Arts.  Hostels  for  resident  students  are  attached  to  every  college, 
except  St.  Xavier's  in  Bombay  and  the  Junagarh  and  Bhaunagar 
colleges  in  Kathiawar. 

The  other  examinations  conducted  by  the  Bombay  University  are 
the  matriculation  (the  entrance  examination  for  Arts  and  Medical 
courses),  previous  (the  first  examination  in  Arts  and  the  qualifying 
examination  for  Agriculture  and  Engineering  courses),  intermediate 
Arts  and  intermediate  Science  examinations  ;  in  law,  first  LL.B.  ;  in 
Medicine,  Agriculture,  and  Engineering,  there  are  first  and  second 
examinations  before  appearing  for  the  degree  examination  of  the 
course. 

The  normal  type  of  secondary  education  is  a  course  of  seven 
standards,  in  all  of  which,  except  the  first  three,  English  is  the  medium 
of  instruction  and  the  leading  subject  studied.  This  course  leads 
up  to  the  University  matriculation  or  the  school  final  examination  ', 
the  two  courses  bifurcating  after  the  fifth  standard.  They  differ  in 
that  in  the  school  final  course  a  number  of  optional  subjects  are 
prescribed,  out  of  which  two  have  to  be  taken  with  compulsory 
English,  a  second  language,  and  arithmetic.  Of  the  secondary  schools 
for  boys  in  the  Presidency  (1903-4),  106  are  high  schools  and -318 
middle  or  Anglo-vernacular  schools  teaching  the  first  three  standards 
only,  26  are  maintained  by  Government  and  113  by  Native  States, 
while  209  (of  which  68  are  maintained  by  municipalities  or  local 
boards  and  141  are  under  private  management)  receive  Government 
grants-in-aid  and  76  are  unaided.  The  Government  grant-in-aid  for 
any  year  is  fixed  at  one-third  of  the  total  expenditure  of  the  school 
in  the  previous  year,  and  may  in  no  case  exceed  one-half  the  local 
assets  of  the  school.  The  grant  is  reducible  to  one-fourth  or  one- 
fifth  of  the  expenditure,  according  to  the  efficiency  of  the  school. 
Of  the  male  population  of  school-going  age  2-2  per  cent,  attended 
public  secondary  schools  in  1903-4.      The  progress   made  in  secon- 

1  Since  1904  this  examination  has  been  conducted  by  the  Educational  department, 
and  the  course  was  altered  in  1906. 


376 


BOM  HA  Y  PRESIDENCY 


dary  education  during  the  last  twenty  years  is  shown  in  the  following- 
table  :  — 


Number  of 

public 
institutions. 

Scholars. 

Males. 

Females. 

1880-1 

1890-1 
1900-1 

1903-4 

292 

4°  3 
484 
492 

20,028 
37,941 

42,554 
40,987 

'•334 
3,773 

5,o74 
5  °35 

Primary  schools  are  of  two  types,  one  of  which  teaches  a  course 
of  seven  standards  which  aims  at  giving  a  complete  vernacular  educa- 
tion, while  the  other  has  a  course  of  five  simpler  standards  devised 
to  meet  the  needs  of  the  cultivating  classes.  The  transition  to 
secondary  education  occurs  after  the  fourth  standard  of  the  full  ver- 
nacular course.  The  majority  of  the  schools  of  both  types  are  main- 
tained by  District  or  municipal  boards.  In  1903-4  Government 
maintained  1 1  primary  schools  for  boys,  District  and  municipal  boards 
4,729,  and  Native  States  2,060,  while  1,534  schools  under  private 
management  received  Government  aid  and  118  were  unaided.  The 
District  board  schools  are  administered  by  the  Educational  depart- 
ment, and,  like  the  municipal  and  the  more  efficient  aided  schools, 
receive  grants  equal  to  one-half  of  their  expenditure,  and  teach  the 
Government  standards.  A  certain  number  of  indigenous  schools 
receive  small  lump  grants,  in  the  hope  that  they  may  grow  into 
primary  schools  of  the  Government  type.  Of  the  male  population 
of  school-going  age,  19-8  per  cent,  attended  public  primary  schools 
in  1903-4.  Of  15,777  masters  employed  in  public  primary  schools, 
4,101  are  head  masters  who  have  passed  through  a  training  college, 
2,764  are  untrained  head  masters,  1,564  are  trained  assistants,  3,887 
assistants  have  passed  the  public  service  certificate  examination,  and 
the  remainder  (3,459)  are  untrained  and  unpassed  assistants.  The 
minimum  pay  of  a  trained  teacher  is  Rs.  8  and  that  of  an  untrained 
assistant  Rs.  7  a  month.  The  maximum  pay  for  masters  of  primary 
schools  is  Rs.  60. 

The  college  lectures  and  the  university  examinations  are  open  to 
girls  as  well  as  boys,  but  there  are  no  separate  girls'  colleges.  In 
1881  1-2  per  cent.,  in  1891  3-75  per  cent.,  and  in  1903-4  4-74  per 
rent,  of  the  female  population  of  school-going  age  actually  attended 
schools.  In  1903-4  about  79  per  cent,  of  the  total  attendance  was 
in  special  girls'  schools,  and  21  per  cent,  in  boys'  schools.  Of  the 
68  secondary  schools  for  girls,  57  belong  to  the  'aided'  class,  and 
are  attended  chiefly  by  Europeans  and  Eurasians.  Government  main- 
tains two  secondary  girls'  schools,  and  one  is  supported  by  the  muni- 
cipality of  Karwar.      Of  867  primary  girls'  schools,  3  are  maintained 


EDUCATION  377 

by  Government,  400  by  District  or  municipal  boards,  and  226  by 
Native  States,  while  223  are  aided  and  15  unaided.  In  primary 
schools  girls  are  taught  the  ordinary  vernacular  standards,  with  the 
addition  of  needlework.  Early  marriage  and  consequent  withdrawal 
from  school  is  the  chief  obstacle  to  female  education,  which  now 
excites  little  active  opposition.  Some  200  women  receive  regular 
zanana  teaching,  which  is  of  use  chiefly  as  leading  them  to  wish  to 
send  their  own  children  to  school.  Missionary  effort  has  been  suc- 
cessful chiefly  in  providing  for  the  education  of  famine  orphans. 

For  the  training  of  masters,  Government  maintains  a  training  college, 
with  a  three  years'  course,  in  each  Division,  and  a  normal  school  with 
a  two  years'  course-  at  Dhulia,  and  aids  a  private  training  school  at 
Ahmadnagar.  Another  training  college  is  maintained  by  the  States 
of  Kathiawar  at  Rajkot.  These  7  institutions  trained  728  pupils  in 
1903-4.  Of  the  12  training  schools  for  mistresses,  which  had  239 
pupils  in  the  same  year,  3  are  maintained  by  Government,  2  by  District 
or  municipal  boards,  and  one  by  Native  States,  while  4  receive  grants- 
in-aid  from  Government,  and  2  are  unaided.  Medical  schools  main- 
tained by  Government  at  Hyderabad  (for  both  males  and  females), 
Ahmadabad,  and  Poona  trained  242  pupils  in  1903-4,  most  of  whom 
seek  employment  as  Hospital  Assistants.  The  Government  Veterinary 
College  in  Bombay  in  1903-4  produced  8  graduates  who  had  been 
through  a  course  of  three  years'  study,  and  has  lately  opened  a 
vernacular  class,  with  a  two  years'  course,  for  farriers. 

Subordinates  for  the  Public  Works  department  are  trained  at  the 
Poona  College  of  Science  and  in  the  engineering  class  attached  to 
the  Nava  Vidyalaya  high  school  in  Hyderabad.  The  former  institu- 
tion and  the  aided  Victoria  Jubilee  Technical  Institution  in  Bombay 
have  also  classes  for  mechanical  and  electrical  engineers.  The  Victoria 
Institution  likewise  trains  foremen  for  the  Bombay  cotton-mills.  The 
Government  School  of  Art  at  Bombay,  which  teaches  both  pictorial 
and  industrial  arts,  was  attended  by  437  students  in  1903-4.  Twenty- 
three  technical  and  industrial  schools,  chiefly  teaching  drawing  and 
carpentry,  instructed  1,809  pupils  in  1903-4,  while  5  agricultural 
and  commercial  schools  and  classes  had  201  pupils.  The  London 
Chamber  of  Commerce  examination  is  held  in  Bombay  under  the 
auspices  of  Government. 

Besides  the  public  institutions  mentioned  above,  there  are  92  private 
schools  for  advanced  teaching  -64  which  teach  Arabic  and  Persian, 
26  for  Sanskrit,  and  2  for  other  Oriental  languages.  The  private 
elementary  schools  number  2,481,  of  which  1,315  teach  the  Koran, 
and  the  remainder  teach  the  ordinary  vernaculars. 

All  schools  for  Europeans  and  Eurasians  are  classed  as  secondary, 
but    the  standards  in  use   in   them  cover   both   the  primary   and   the 


378  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

secondary  stage.  None  are  maintained  by,  but  most  receive  aid  from, 
Government.  In  1903-4  they  numbered  41  with  3,585  pupils.  Besides 
these,  there  are  4  normal  schools  with  34  pupils  and  one  industrial 
school  with  1  g  pupils.  Europeans  seldom  appear  either  for  the  school 
final  or  for  the  University  examination,  except  the  medical  course,  but 
commonly  seek  employment  on  the  railways,  in  the  Telegraph  depart- 
ment, or  in  business. 

Certain  Government  scholarships  are  reserved  for  Muhammadans 
and  other  backward  races,  and  other  scholarships  are  given  to  Muham- 
madans only  from  the  Kazi  Shahab-ud-dTn  Fund.  Whereas  in  t88i 
r-5  per  cent,  of  the  Hindu  population  and  1  per  cent,  of  the  Muham- 
madan  population  were  in  primary  schools,  in  1903-4  the  ratios  were 
1-76  and  1-91  respectively.  In  1881,  0-08  of  the  Hindu  population  and 
0-02  of  the  Muhammadan  population  were  in  secondary  schools,  while 
in  1903-4  the  proportions  were  0-14  and  0-07  per  cent.  In  t88i  one 
out  of  every  379,467  Hindus  and  no  Muhammadan  took  a  University 
degree,  but  in  1903-4  the  ratios  were  one  to  46,534  for  Hindus  and 
one  to  240,384  for  Muhammadans.  The  Muhammadans  have  a  pre- 
judice against  secular  education  which  has  not  yet  been  overcome, 
though  the  leaders  of  the  community  both  in  Sind  and  Bombay  City 
are  alive  to  the  needs  of  the  time  and  are  doing  their  best  to  rouse 
their  fellows  to  self-help. 

The  approximate  monthly  fees  are:  college,  Rs.  25  to  Rs.  75  ;  high 
school,  10  annas  to  Rs.  5  ;  middle  school,  8  annas  to  Rs.  3  ;  primary, 
6  pies  to  8  annas. 

Whereas  in  1881  only  10-2  per  cent,  of  the  population  of  school- 
going  age  were  under  instruction,  the  ratio  rose  to  15-45  in  1891  and  > 
15-13  in  1903-4.  In  1901,  according  to  the  Census  results,  11-5  per 
cent,  of  the  males  and  0-9  per  cent,  of  the  females,  or  6.4  per  cent,  of 
the  whole  population,  were  able  to  read  and  write,  while  0-7  per  cent, 
were  literate  in  English.  In  both  male  and  female  education  the  Parsis 
lead  the  way  and  the  Muhammadans  hold  the  last  place.  Among 
Hindus  the  Vanis  stand  first,  the  Prabhus  second,  and  the  Brahmans 
third  in  general  education  ;  but  in  female  education  the  Prabhus  lead 
the  way.  Education  is  most  general  in  Kathiawar  and  the  adjoining 
Districts  of  Gujarat,  and  at  the  lowest  level  in  Eastern  Sind. 

The  oldest  native  newspaper  is  the  Bombay  Samachar,  a  Gujarat! 
daily  of  Bombay,  which  was  founded  in  1819.  The  oldest  MarathI 
paper  is  the  Dnyan  Prakdsh  of  Poona,  started  in  1849.  In  1872-3 
there  were  4  English  and  52  vernacular  newspapers,  all  but  one  of 
which  were  published  either  in  Gujarat!  or  MarathI.  In  1904  there 
were  45  English  and  257  vernacular  newspapers  published  in  British 
territory,  with  an  estimated  circulation  of  about  280,000.  Many  of 
these  papers  are  very  short-lived,  but  new  ones  are  constantly  being 


ME  DIC AT.  379 

started.  The  largest  circulation  is  claimed  by  the  MarathI  Kesari  of 
Poona,  which  is  the  organ  of  the  extreme  section  of  the  Congress 
party.  The  most  widely  read  Gujarat!  papers  are  the  Bombay  Samachar 
and  the  Gujaratl,  which  hold  rather  more  moderate  views.  The 
Rdst  Go/far  is  the  chief  anti-congress  organ.  The  non-political  organs 
number  136  and  the  political  166.  The  number  of  Muhammadan 
newspapers  is  22.  The  annual  publications  of  the  local  press  number 
over  1,200,  of  which  1,100  are  original  works.  They  deal  largely  with 
religious  and  social  topics,  a  few  being  devoted  to  poetry  ;  the  exact 
sciences  are  represented  by  a  very  small  number  of  publications. 

The  Medical  department  is  controlled  by  a  Surgeon-General,  and 
sanitation  is  in  charge  of  a  Sanitary  Commissioner,  both  officers  being 
members  of  the   Indian   Medical  Service.      A   Civil  „   ..    , 

Tyf  an  j  r*g  1 

Surgeon  stationed  at  each  District  head-quarters  is 
responsible  for  the  medical  work  of  the  District,  while  sanitation  is 
entrusted  to  one  of  the  Deputy-Sanitary  Commissioners.  The  principal 
medical  institutions  of  the  Presidency  are  to  be  found  in  Bombay  City. 
In  1784  there  existed  three  large  hospitals  in  that  city:  a  European 
hospital  in  the  Fort,  a  hospital  for  native  troops  on  the  Esplanade,  and 
a  convalescent  home  on  Old  Woman's  Island.  The  first  of  these  is 
now  represented  by  the  St.  George's  Hospital  ;  the  Jamsetji  Jljibhoy 
Hospital  at  Byculla  is  the  successor  of  the  second  ;  and  the  ConvaUs 
cent  Home  has  been  transferred  to  the  cool  heights  of  Khandala  on  the 
Borghat.  St.  George's,  or  the  European  General  Hospital,  dates  from 
the  seventeenth  century,  when  70  beds  were  established  in  temporary 
premises  at  the  Old  Court  House.  It  was  subsequently  transferred  to 
a  building  near  the  dockyard,  accommodating  140  beds,  and  in  April, 
1892,  the  present  building  was  completed  and  occupied.  It  contains 
208  beds  ;  and  its  present  nursing  staff  consists  of  a  lady  superintendent, 
an  assistant  lady  superintendent,  7  charge  sisters  including  a  night 
superintendent,  26  nurses,  7  probationers,  a  housekeeper  and  assistant 
housekeeper.  The  cost  of  erection  was  nearly  6  lakhs  ;  and  the 
annual  cost  amounts  to  about  Rs.  39,000,  of  which  Government  provides 
one-half  and  the  balance  is  made  up  by  a  contribution  of  Rs.  2,800 
from  the  Port  Trust  and  public  subscriptions.  The  Jamsetji  Jljibhoy 
Hospital  on  Parel  Road,  to  which  is  attached  the  Grant  Medical 
College,  was  constructed  in  1843  by  the  munificence  of  the  first  baronet 
of  that  name.  The  Cama  Hospital  for  Females  near  the  Victoria  Ter- 
minus was  opened  in  1886,  and  theAllbless  Obstetric  Hospital  in  1891. 
The  Bai  Motlibai  Obstetric  Hospital  and  the  Sir  Dinshaw  Manekji 
Petit  Hospital  for  women  and  children  were  founded  in  1892  by  the 
widow  of  Naoroji  Wadia  and  the  late  Sir  Dinshaw  Petit  respectively, 
and  are  worked  in  connexion  with  the  Jamsetji  Jljibhoy.  Hospital. 

Well-equipped  hospitals  exist  in  all  important  up-country  stations,  of 


3 


So  FO.VPAY   PRESWEXCY 


which  the  best  known  is  the  Sassoon  Hospital  in  Poona,  furnished  with 
a  special  nursing  staff.  Of  the  665  hospitals  and  dispensaries  in  1904 
in  the  Presidency  (including  13  in  the  outlying  settlements  of  Aden  and 
the  Persian  Gulf),  61  are  institutions  maintained  and  managed  by 
Government,  247  are  vested  in  District  or  municipal  boards  or 
guaranteed  or  maintained  by  Local  or  municipal  funds  with  or  without 
the  aid  of  Government  or  private  subscriptions,  305  are  entirely  main- 
tained at  the  cost  of  private  individuals  or  associations,  8  are  supported 
by  private  subscriptions  but  receive  aid  from  Government  or  Local 
funds,  and  44  are  railway  dispensaries.  Over  four  million  persons, 
including  about  67,000  in-patients,  are  treated  at  these  institutions. 

The  Presidency  contains  7  lunatic  asylums,  and  a  central  asylum  at 
Yeraoda  near  Poona  is  now  under  consideration.  The  inmates  in 
1904  numbered  1,295,  tne  cause  of  insanity  being  physical  in  496  cases 
and  moral  in  133.  Excessive  indulgence  in  narcotics  and  spirits 
accounted  for  176  of  these  cases.  There  are  16  institutions  in  the 
Presidency  for  the  detention  and  treatment  of  lepers,  the  chief  of 
which  is  the  Matunga  Asylum,  Bombay  City. 

Vaccination  is  carried  out  by  a  large  staff  under  the  direction  of  the 
Sanitary  Commissioner  in  all  parts  of  the  Presidency.  It  is  not  unlikely 
that  intercourse  with  Europe  led  to  the  introduction  of  small-pox  into 
India.  In  1788  a  Mr.  Farmer  inoculated  about  1,300  old  and  young 
persons,  of  whom  only  2  died  of  small-pox.  Until  1827  no  systematic 
attempt  was  made  to  enforce  vaccination.  Although  primary  vaccina- 
tion is  compulsory  only  in  Bombay  City,  Kurla,  Bandra,  Karachi, 
Larkana,  Sukkur,  and  Rohri  towns,  the  process  is  voluntarily  resorted 
to  by  numerous  parents  anxious  to  protect  their  children,  with  the 
result  that  out  of  a  population  of  21,539,199,  529,421  were  successfully 
vaccinated  in  1903-4,  or  24^58  per  1,000.  The  expenditure  on  vaccina- 
tion averages  2-|  lakhs  per  annum,  equal  to  8  annas  2  pies  per  head  of 
those  vaccinated.  The  average  annual  mortality  from  small-pox  was 
11,530  during  the  years  1875-80,  and  4,312  during  the  five  years  end- 
ing 1903  4. 

Medical  aid  of  a  simple  description  is  available  at  all  post  offices  in 
the  form  of  packets  of  quinine  sold  at  one  pice  each  as  a  preventative  of 
malarial  fever.  The  use  of  this  febrifuge  is  steadily  gaining  in  popu- 
larity.    Over  17,000  packets  were  thus  distributed  in  1903. 

Outside  Bombay  and  the  few  big  cities  where  sanitation  is  provided 
by  the  employment  of  a  duly  qualified  staff  and  the  construction  of 
expensive  water  and  drainage  works,  the  rural  tracts  know  little  of  sani- 
tation in  its  modern  sense.  An  Act  passed  in  1889,  known  as  the 
Village  Sanitation  Act,  empowered  local  committees  supported  by 
voluntary  contributions  to  take  measures  for  improving  the  sanitary 
condition  of  the  villages.     This  Act  has  been  applied  to  265  villages  ; 


SURVEYS  381 

small  towns  may  adopt  similar  measures  of  their  own  initiative  when 
they  are  under  municipal  control.  It  would  be  difficult  to  assert  that 
any  marked  improvement  in  conservancy  has  hitherto  resulted  from  the 
initiative  of  municipalities  or  village  committees  ;  but  improvements  in 
the  water-supply  can  certainly  be  claimed  as  a  sign  of  advance  in  the 
case  of  many  municipalities.  More  than  this  cannot  be  expected 
until  the  mass  of  the  population  have  learned  to  connect  the  prevention 
of  epidemic  diseases  with  cleanly  habits  and  a  due  regard  for  the 
sources  of  the  drinking-water  supply,  instead  of  attributing  them  to  the 
actions  of  malevolent  deities  who  are  to  be  propitiated  by  offerings  and 
penances.  In  1892  a  Sanitary  Board,  which  is  now  under  the  presi- 
dency of  the  Surgeon-General,  was  constituted  to  advise  local  bodies  on 
measures  for  improving  local  sanitation.  For  ordinary  administrative 
purposes  the  Sanitary  Commissioner  is  assisted  by  five  Deputy-Sanitary 
Commissioners  and  one  Vaccination  Superintendent,  who  are  placed  in 
charge  of  an  equal  number  of  circles,  and  are  entrusted  with  the  super- 
vision of  vaccination  as  well  as  of  all  sanitary  measures.  The  Superinten- 
dent of  Vaccination  for  the  Presidency  circle  works  only  in  Bombay  City. 
The  topographical  survey  of  the  Presidency,  conducted   by  parties 

under  the  orders  of  the  Government  of  India,   com- 

,    •       ,  ,  ,  r     ar,        t.  Surveys, 

menced   in    the   cold    season    01    i860.      by     1904, 

nearly  the  whole  of  the  Presidency  had  been  mapped,  and  maps  are 
obtainable  on  1,  2,  4,  and  8  inch  scales. 

Revenue  or  cadastral  surveys,  undertaken  as  a  basis  for  land  assess- 
ment, date  from  the  reign  of  Akbar,  in  whose  time  over  7,000,000  acres 
in  Gujarat  were  measured  in  connexion  with  the  revenue  system 
of  Todar  Mai  (1575).  In  the  time  of  Shah  Jahan  this  survey  was 
extended  to  the  Deccan.  The  first  survey  for  which  records  are 
available  is  that  undertaken  by  the  Bijapur  Sultans  at  the  end  of  the 
sixteenth  century.  This  survey  formed  the  basis  of  revenue  assessments 
till  181 7,  though  the  original  measurements  were  partly  revised  by 
Sivaji  as  the  country  passed  under  the  sway  of  the  Marathas.  In  1835 
the  systematic  survey  of  the  land  for  revenue  purposes  was  commenced 
by  the  Bombay  Government  and  continued  till  1901.  Every  field 
separately  shown  in  the  revenue  accounts  was  entered  in  the  maps 
prepared  by  the  Survey  department,  each  map  recording  the  lands  of 
one  village.  These  maps  form  a  permanent  record  of  the  land  of 
the  Presidency,  subject  to  such  periodic  revision  as  is  required  by  the 
construction  of  roads  and  railways,  the  extension  of  village  sites,  the 
erection  of  new  dwelling-places,  and  the  like.  For  this  work  of 
revision  the  village  officers  are  being  gradually  instructed  in  the  art  of 
cadastral  measurement  under  the  trained  supervision  of  the  inspectors 
of  the  Agricultural  department,  the  special  survey  department  having 
been  abolished  on  the  completion  of  the  settlement  work  entrusted  to  it. 


382  BOMBAY  PRESIDENCY 

Eventually  it  is  intended  that  the  village  officers,  on  whom  the  duty 
falls  of  entering  duly  authorized  corrections  in  the  village  records  of 
tenure  and  rights,  should  follow  the  corrected  entry  by  a  corresponding 
correction  of  the  village  map,  thus  relieving  the  Agricultural  inspectors 
of  the  work  of  keeping  these  maps  up  to  date. 

Lands  under  the  control  of  the  Forest  department  are  specially 
demarcated  and  mapped  at  the  time  of  forest  settlement  operations, 
when  the  decision  is  arrived  at  regarding  their  retention  in  or  exclusion 
trom  forest.  Maps  of  certain  valuable  Government  forest  lands  are 
prepared  on  a  scale  of  8  inches  to  the  mile.  About  3,084  square  miles 
in  the  Central  circle  had  been  mapped  in  this  manner  up  to  1903-4. 

Sir  J.  M.  Campbell  :  Bombay  District  Gazetteers  (Bombay,  1877— 
1901). — Grant  Duff:  History  of  the  Mahrattas,  3  vols.  (1826). — James 
Forbes:  Oriental  Memoirs,  4  vols.  (1813). — M.  G.  Ranade  :  Rise 
of  the  Maratha  Potver  (Bombay,  1900).: — A.  K.  Forbes  :  Pas  Mala, 
2  vols.  (1856). — J.  S.  Cotton  :  Mountstuart  Elphinstone  (Oxford, 
1892). — Reports  on  the  Census  of  Bombay,  1872,  1881,  1891,  and  1901. 
— Reports  on  Famine  in  Bombay,  1896-7  and  1900-2. — Official  Mono- 
graphs on  Brass-working,  Pottery  and  Glass-making,  Dyes  and  Dyeing, 
Cotton  Fabrics,  Silk  Fabrics,  Woollen  Fabrics,  Leather-working,  Wood- 
carving,  Poo  ry -carving,  Stone-carving,  Gold  and  Silver-7vorking. — - 
Statistical  Atlas,   Bombay  Presidency    (second  edition,  1 906). 


TABLES 


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TABLES 


^5 


TABLE  II 

Statistics  of  Agriculture  in  the  Bombay  Presidency, 
excluding  Native  States 

(In  square  miles) 


Presidency  Proper. 

Sind. 

1881. 

1891. 

1901. 

1904. 

1881. 

1891. 
38,158 

I90I. 

1904. 

Total  area      .... 

|        c 

'       68,517 
2i,995 

68,130 

68.475 

46,983 

41,908 

Total  uncultivated  area 

21,289 

21,320 

28,209 

34,482 

33,856 

Cultivable  but  not  cultivated 

[  ^'1  ' 

3.419 

2,232 

2,220 

2~  1 

8,127 

10,420 

10,265 

Uncultivable  .... 

1        rt 

8,126 

7.834 

7,825 

)    t{ 

19,138 

22,86o 

22,593 

Forest 

10,450 

11,221 

",275 

944 

1,202 

1,048 

Total  cultivated  area 

33.971 

46,522 

46,843 

47.155 

4-539 

'.'•949 

12,501 

13.052 

(a)  Actually  cropped   . 

28,393 

39.H4 

32,813 

36.728 

■       1 

4-5°7 

5.827 

5.93? 

Irrigated  from  canals     . 

1    •» 

173 

191 

167 

|j| 

3,148 

4.574 

4738 

from  wells  and  tanks 

1  ~3 

882 

7"  4 

}       765 

22 

29 

„         from  other  sources  . 

,  ^  "3 

J"    I>°49 

131 

13" 

y  -3 

204 

333 

Total  irrigated 

? 

1,222 

1.  04 

I,IO 

1     l\ 

3.9  '3 

4,800 

5 

Unirrigated     .... 

'       1 

k         37,892 

31,609 

35,628 

)     ■■  \ 

594 

1.027 

832 

(b)  Current  fallows 

Total  cropped  area 

6,57s 

7,408 

14,030 

11  '.427 
37.7S2 

1.718 

5.442 

6,674 
6.282 

7.120 
6,444 

28,970 

S9,?66 

33.512 

!,l  1  |" 

4.879 

Cereals  : — 

Jtnviir          .... 

8,888 

Ij.003 

9.051 

9.512 

562 

722 

1,259 

1,051 

Bajra  

5,249 

6,952 

8.951 

7.549 

697 

1. 171 

r.4'  a 

1.478 

Rice 

1 ,900 

2,486 

2.289 

2.444 

846 

1,103 

1.448 

1,381 

Wheat          .... 

2,113 

2,989 

•,485 

2,420 

350 

634 

706 

858 

Kodra  or  harik. 

933 

395 

274 

340 

... 

Ndckniy  nagli  or  r&gi 

!-323 

1,066 

797 

759 

4 

2 

2 

1 

Others         .... 

J.353 

1,289 

1,174 

1,158 

89 

42 

3° 

33 

Pulses : — 

Tur 

489 

819 

'.'39 

951 

Gram ..... 

848 

1,100 

501 

886 

31 

43 

'38 

130 

Others         .... 

1,056 

1,664 

2.065 

2,613 

126 

244 

327 

400 

Tobacco         .... 

76 

151 

104 

"3 

10 

13 

'3 

■3 

Sugar-cane     .... 

76 

9g 

60 

89 

4 

4 

4 

4 

Oilseeds  (not  forest) : — 

Sesamum  (til)     . 

449 

346 

496 

795 

115 

135 

156 

182 

Linseed        .... 

238 

326 

215 

566 

Other  oilseeds     . 

895 

1,806 

848 

1,287 

... 

431 

497 

457 

Fibres  : — 

Cotton         .... 

2,702 

4.769 

J.57I 

5.58i 

75 

164 

130 

324 

Other  fibres 

76 

136 

'53 

237 

1 

1 

1 

Orchard  and  garden  produce 

no 

264 

257 

207 

25 

81 

72 

04 

Condiments  and  spices . 

171 

294 

272 

253 

72 

18 

8 

Dyes  (not  forest)    . 

M 

8 

5 

3 

6 

15 

16 

9 

Drugs    and    narcotics  other 

than  tobacco 

10 

2 

2 

I 

.  . . 

Miscellaneous         .         .         . 

1 

2 

3 

3 

2 

64 

45 

Area  cropped  more  than  once 

577 

852 

699 

1.054 

125 

j72 

4^5 

512 

VOL.   \  UI. 


C  c 


386 


HOMnAY  PRESIDENCY 


Table  ITI.      Prices  of  Chief  Grains  in  the  Bombay 
Presidency  at  six  selected  Centres 

(In  seers  per  rupee) 


Average  for  ten 

years  ending 

Selected  staples. 

Names  of  selected  centres. 

1880. 

1890. 

IQOO. 

/ 

Hyderabad 

Not  available. 

17 

16 

( 

Ahmadabad 

17 

17 

•5 

Bajra 

Bombay  City 
Poona 

14 
15 

15 
16 

13 
14 

Dharwar    . 

l9 

2.3 

!9 

\ 

Karwar 

M 

15 

'3 

[ 

Hyderabad 

Not  available. 

20 

17 

Ahmadabad 

19 

19 

J7 

Jowar  .         .  - 

Bombay  City 

17 

18 

H 

Poona 

«9 

20 

l7 

Dharwar    . 

22 

26 

20 

\ 

Karwar 

14 

18 

14 

( 

Hyderabad 

Not  available. 

M 

9 

Ahmadabad 

10 

I  I 

10 

i 

Bombay  City 

11 

I  I 

10 

Rice,  common  -\ 

Poona 

10 

10 

10 

1 

Dharwar  . 

13 

13 

11 

I 

Karwar 

12 

13 

10 

/ 

Hyderabad 

Not  available. 

16 

'4 

Ahmadabad 

16 

18 

16 

Gram     .         .  J 

Bombay  City 
Poona 

J4 

16 
16 

12 
13 

Dharwar   . 

12 

16 

12 

\ 

Karwar 

11 

14 

1 1 

Note. -Figures  for  Hyderabad  are  not  available  for  the  years  previous  to  1885. 
Acute  famine  years,  such  as  187"  and  1900,  have  been  omitted  from  these  averages. 

Table  IV.  Foreign  Maritime  Trade  of  Bombay  Pre- 
sidency for  the  Years  1890-1,  1900-1,  and  1903-4 
(exclusive  of  Government  Stores  and  Treasure) 

(In  thousands  of  rupees) 


Articles. 

180,0-1. 

1 900- 1. 

1 
i903-4- 

Imports. 

Animals,  living  ..... 

14.50 

i8,33 

28,21 

Apparel      ...... 

53.io 

61,1 1 

88,16 

Books  and  printed  matter   . 

9,31 

11,87 

H,32 

Carriages  and  carts  (excluding  railway 

carriages  and  parts  thereof) 

* 

",23 

19,84 

Chemical  products  and  preparations   . 

* 

18,53 

24,42 

Coal  and  coke    ..... 

1,31,68 

22,51 

30,57  1 

Cotton,  raw         ..... 

19,46 

66,88 

4,78 

,,       twist  and  yarn 

1,28,52 

50,29 

54j°° 

,,       manufactures 

10,31,10 

8,45.33 

10,09,59 

Drugs  and  medicines  .... 

22,73 

26,14 

42,39 

Dyeing  and  colouring  materials  . 

42, Si 

49,42 

77,o5 

( rlnss  and  glassware  .... 

35,15 

36,37 

52,43 

Grain  and  pulse  ..... 

'■ 

84,21 

5,32 

Not  registered. 


TABLES 


587 


TABLE 

IV  1 

continued) 

Articles. 

1890-1. 

lyoo-l. 

I903-4- 

Matches 12,72 

16,77 

20,00 

Metals  and  manufactures  thereof,  in- 

cluding hardware  and  cutlery  .         ,        3,10,19 

2,72-47 

4,27,35 

Ivory,  including  manufactures  thereof            34,65 

16,77 

20,54 

Instruments  and  apparatus  of  all  kinds            1 2,00 

18,40 

27,!9 

Jewellery,    including    precious    stones 

unset  and  parts        .         .         .         .           18,65 

50.72 

62,47 

Liquors      .... 

53," 

63,50 

73,i3 

Machinery  and  mill-work    . 

96.24 

77,08 

1,36,89 

Oils 

86,32 

1,46,48 

1 -37,85 

Paints  and  colours  and  painters' 

mate- 

rials        .... 

H,47 

l6,6l 

18,06 

Paper  and  pasteboard 

23,21 

24,49 

27,65 

Provisions  .... 

76,18 

1,04,25 

1,00,29 

Railway  plant  and  rolling  stock- 

1,14,04 

48,14 

46,62 

Silk,  raw    ..... 

87,02 

85,99 

49>65 

,,     manufactures 

67,29 

82,77 

i,1 7,46 

Spices         .... 

27,9' 

'9.57 

26,73 

Stationery  .... 

* 

M-65 

20,26 

Sugar          .... 

2,52,81 

3,7i>4i 

3,59,28 

Tea    ..... 

31,01 

22,78 

18,18 

Umbrellas  .... 

!°,35 

10,90 

1 1.31 

Wood  and  manufactures  thereof 

6,89 

18,92 

32,34 

Woollen  manufactures 

77,47 

85,97 

1,06,56 

All  other  articles  of  merchandise 

2,23,66 

2,20,73 

2,49,16 

Total 

3i,24,55 

3o,9i,59 

35,40,05 

Treasure     ...... 

Exports. 

17,66,65 

•)-79-44 

18,14,01 

Animal  bones 

* 

49,20 

24,37 

Apparel 

4,79 

22,22 

24,38 

Cotton,  raw         ..... 

i3,22,33 

7,93,19 

20,81,49 

,,      twist  and  yarn 

6,21,79 

4,07,32 

8,35,7o 

„       manufactures  .... 

2,36,94 

1,72,64 

2,04,52 

Dyeing  and  tanning  materials     . 

12,7s 

49»58 

48,84 

Grain  and  pulse.         .... 

6,35,21 

85,52 

11,22,41 

Gums  and  resins 

6..05 

13,19 

15,00 

Hemp         .... 

2,27 

20,71 

27.77 

Hides  and  skins,  raw  .... 

4,39 

1,07,85 

48,00 

,,                ,,      dressed  or  tanned 

5X>67 

1,00,65 

65,58 

Horns          ...... 

* 

IO,45 

6,95 

Metals  and  manufactures  thereof 

8,00 

42,09 

52,39 

Oils   .... 

3,50 

15,29 

I5>5'1 

Oilseeds      ...... 

5,01,03 

4,55,64 

8,59,46 

Opium         ...... 

3,2S,i9 

3,33,3o 

3,42,94 

Provisions  ...... 

38,50 

33-7o 

37,62 

Spices         ...... 

9,40 

16,49 

25-76 

Sugar          ...... 

22,77 

11,17 

6,26 

Tea . 

9,75 

28,21 

22,26 

Wool,  raw  ...... 

92,91 

I,15>!2 

1 ,54,97 

Woollen  manufactures 

4,54 

l8,IO 

13,82 

All  other  articles  of  merchandise 

3,39,n 

1,46,72 

62,03,55 

Total 

|  42,55,92 

x.7o>77 

30,48,35 
6,53,57 

Treasure     .... 

•                 • 

5,38,99 

Not  registered. 
C  C   2 


388 


BOM  HA  V  PRESIDENCY 


TABLE    V 

Trade   of  the    Bombay    Presidency  with   other  Proyinces  and 

States  ok  India  for  1890-1,   1900-1,  and  1903-4 

(In  thousands  of  rupees) 


By  sea  (exclusive  of  Govern- 
ment stores  and  treasure). 

By 

road  and 

rail. 

1 890-1. 

1 900-1. 

1903-4. 

1890-1. 

1 900- 1. 

1903-4. 

Imports. 

Animals,  living         .... 

1 

8 

3 

2,36 

35,68 

7,39 

Apparel 

50 

52 

38 

* 

23,92 

26,50 

Coal  and  coke  ..... 

52 

1,05,28 

88,85 

13,73 

44,72 

3i,95 

Coco-nuts,  coco-nut  copra 

49.50 

56,62 

58,71 

* 

Cotton,  raw 

2,95 

7,47 

2,97 

6,74,12 

7,36,93 

14,16,10 

„        piece-goods 

.,63 

2,93 

2,03 

37,29 

27,90 

37,64 

„        twist  and  yarn 

T,26 

28 

5 

2,86 

r,73 

r,95 

Drugs  and  medicines 

14 

1,64 

1,76 

6,97 

15,21 

!2,33 

Dyes  and  tans 

6,67 

4,29 

!.25 

30,10 

37,50 

29,18 

Grain  and  pulse         .... 

I.I5.98 

6,82,40 

1.53,62 

4,29,27 

5,97,64 

8,82,40 

Hay,  straw,  and  grass 

* 

2,21 

1,76 

# 

!2,77 

5,25 

Hemp 

4 

15 

a 

12,95 

14,21 

Hides  and  skins  (raw  and  dressed)  . 

68 

65 

1,22 

15,98 

55,45 

43,98 

Jute  and  manufactures  thereof 

67,30 

60,69 

71,40 

3,43 

4,39 

13,39 

Leather,  including  wrought      . 

10 

1 

6,49 

18,39 

26,73 

Metals  and  manufactures  thereof    . 

1,81 

54 

1,04 

6.93 

2,66,29 

31,64 

Oils 

16,32 

27,55 

32,44 

2,22 

8,96 

11,07 

Oilseeds 

4.93 

6,57 

I,°3 

3,04,21 

3,94,66 

5,84,23 

Opium       ...... 

. . . 

1,64,97 

2,24,18 

2,32,00 

Provisions 

3,20 

4,90 

4,25 

92,13 

1,85,98 

82,34 

Railway  plant  and  rolling  stock 

4 

9,06 

",57 

11,60 

Spices 

29,23 

39,23 

48,29 

29,64 

40,62 

39,52 

Sugar 

11,80 

2.47 

2,37 

68,69 

77J1 

45,24 

Tea 

4,32 

16,66 

15,15 

3,71 

5,57 

9,36 

Tobacco 

2,80 

1,02 

62 

5,37 

",58 

4,06 

Wood  and  manufactures  thereof     . 

34,94 

36,01 

30,23 

* 

8,68 

15,67 

Wool  and  manufactures  thereof 

53 

58 

26 

43,25 

68,74 

7i,37 

All  other  articles  of  merchandise     . 

Total 

Treasure 

Exports. 

43,82 
4,00,98 

28,96 

27,44 

67,96 

82,30 

77,77 

10,89,60 

5,47,3° 

20,20,74 

30,10,52 

37,64,87 

27 

33 

... 

» 

3,36,32 

5,16,91 

Apparel 

4,01 

4,00 

3,05 

* 

26,79 

43,i6 

Cotton,  raw 

39," 

15,04 

8,18 

12,43 

18,84 

17,06 

„       piece-goods 

68,00 

98,98 

1,01,63 

4,68,71 

5,46,73 

7,25,44 

„       twist  and  yarn 

89,r3 

1,01,89 

76,80 

1,07,41 

r,63,54 

2,56,87 

Dyes  and  tans 

3,49 

4,63 

4,57 

35,24 

35,46 

47,8i 

Grain  and  pulse         .... 

16,00 

39,44 

45,09 

12,53 

1,39,82 

46,31 

Hides  and  skins        .... 

M5 

1,26 

1,60 

17,07 

45,28 

26,42 

Jute  and  manufactures  thereof 

82 

i,43 

1,03 

25,13 

23,64 

29,14 

Leather 

1 

24 

48 

13,76 

30,40 

59,3i 

Liquor 

1,05 

2,07 

1,85 

53,67 

54,45 

61,92 

Metals  and  manufactures  thereof  . 

21,06 

31,25 

20,65 

1.50,45 

-,46,18 

4-00,31 

57 

16,66 

14,89 

40,52 

61,51 

62,61 

Provisions          ..... 

7.52 

12,99 

14,90 

91,06 

1,11,30 

1,28,26 

Railway  plant  and  rolling  stock 

8 

79,40 

94,47 

1,12,32 

Salt 

62,38 

56,04 

37,3o 

1,04,31 

l,4i,79 

1,26,43 

Silk,  raw 

5 

45 

M 

16,94 

23,69 

33,!3 

„    piece-goods        .... 

2,55 

4,25 

2,13 

5,63 

17,11 

17,61 

Spices        ...... 

3,99 

6,26 

6,91 

40,14 

48,13 

56,86 

Sugar 

2,69 

4,58 

5,36 

71,90 

2,11,15 

2,53,18 

Tobacco    ...... 

1, n 

67 

51,70 

25,89 

25.52 

Wool  and  manufactures  thereof 

5,23 

I>71 

1,62 

13,56 

27,27 

29,16 

Other  articles  of  merchandise  . 

Total 
Treasure 

53,8o 

54,68 

55,12 

81,75 

1,09,15 

1,82,42 

3,83,72 

4,58,60 

4.03,3° 

14,93,31 

22,02,59 

27,41,25 

4.74 

2,70 

5.73 

* 

8,92,59 

7,57,6i 

Not  registered. 


TABLES 


389 


TABLE  VI 

Principal  Sources  of  Provincial  Revenue  in  the  Bombay 

Presidency 

(In  thousands  of  rupees) 


Average  for  ten 

years  ending 
March  31,  1890. 

Average  for  ten           Yftar 

ending 

Year  end  i  11? 

Sources  of  revenui 

years  ending 
March  31,  1900. 

March  't 

I,  1901. 

March  , 

5',  '904- 

Total  amount 

raised  (Imperial, 

Provincial,  and 

Local). 

Amount  credited 

to  Provincial 

revenues. 

Total  amount 

raised  (Imperial, 

Provincial,  and 

Local). 

Amount  credited 

to  Provincial 

revenues. 

Total  amount 

raised  (Imperial, 

Provincial,  and 

Local). 

Amount  credited 

to  Provincial 

revenues. 

Total  amount 

raised  (Imperial, 

Provincial,  and 

Local). 

Amount  credited 

to  Provincial 

revenues. 

Partly  Imperial 

and  partly 

Provincial. 

Land  revenue 

.    4.o6»x3 

2,57.93 

4.50,99 

2.74.57 

3.92,34 

3,M,76 

4.75.54 

3,12,33 

Stamps 

45.65 

3o,79 

57.44 

43.08 

58,87 

44. 1 5 

61,48 

46,11 

Excise 

82,56 

40,03 

1,07,89 

26,97 

I,OI,3I 

25,33 

1,19,99 

30,00 

Provincial  rates 

f  *  . 

•  •  . 

•  •  . 

34.04 

Assessed  taxes 

20,97 

8,75 

37.2i 

17,80 

37.28 

18,10 

36,32 

17,89 

Forest 

22,79 

".39 

31,28 

15,64 

29,62 

14,81 

27.52 

13,76 

Registration 

3.71 

2,13 

5,97 

2.99 

6,10 

3,05 

5.54 

2,77 

Other  sources 

49>°7 

25,88 

58,3i 

29,16 

4.10,21 

49,18 

26,41 

58,34 

30,81 

Tota 

6,30,88 

3,76,90 

7.49,0(j 

6.74,7° 

4,46,61 

8,18,77 

4,53,67 

Mainly  Imperial 

Salt  . 

1  1,63,03 

49 

2,28,34 

57    2,33,89 

74 

1,86,59 

',03 

Customs     . 

33,24 

57 

1,23,94 

74 

1,93.59 

1,09 

2,35,56 

94 

Interest  on  cesses 

to  local  bodies 

-0,36 

86 

18,92 

3,i3 

il,hl  , 

3,44 

28,84 

5,74 

Irrigation  . 

*%45 

1 

16,95 

24 

23,57 

32 

t3T,04 

48 

State         railway 

gross  receipts 

... 

i'51.!1 

i.37 

... 

... 

... 

... 

*  From  1889-90  only.  t  Does  not  include  portion  of  Land  Revenue  due  to  Irrigation. 

%  Shared  with  Provincial  Government  from  1892-3  to  1899-1900  only. 


39© 


BOMB  A  V  PRES/PEXCY 


TABLE  VII 

Principal  Heads  of  Provincial  Expenditure 
in  the  Bombay  Presidency 

(In  thousands  of  rupees) 


Average 

Average 

lor  ten 

for  ten 

Year 

Year 

years 

years 

ending 

ending 

ending 

ending 

March  31, 

March  31, 

March  31, 

March  31, 

1901. 

1904. 

1890. 
\      1  I  ,OI* 

\    43.99+ 

1900. 

Opening  balance    . 

Charges   in  respect  of  collec- 

58,4' 
48,73 

... 

34,00 

tion  (principally  Land  Re- 

venue and  Forests) 

86,76 

78,21 

82,66 

76,82 

Salaries  and  expenses  of  Civil 

Department : — 

(a)  General     administra- 

tion .... 

12,48 

14,27 

15,27 

15,82 

(b)  Law  and  justice 

5°,59 

52,07 

57,38 

55,03 

(c)  Police 

46,93 

56,86 

65,09 

63,43 

(d)  Education 

13,01 

17,05 

17,31 

19,81 

(<r)  Medical     . 

12,46 

21,82 

31,94 

19-53 

(/)  Other  heads 

3,74 

5,72 

6,67 

6,36 

Pensions    and    miscellaneous 

civil  charges 

20,58 

27,52 

34,04 

44,33 

Famine  relief 

6 

50 

... 

2 

Irrigation        .... 

26 

60 

14 

13 

Public  works 

36..  50 

32,90 

27,29 

14 

Other  charges  and  adjustments 
Total  expenditure 

Closing  balance 

90,81 

1,14,60 

1,14,41 

1,61,67 

3, 74,  1  § 

4,22,12 

4,52,20 

4»63,09 

\    58,4't 
\    48,73§ 

27,34 

32,77 

*  Actual  at  commencement  of  each  period.  t  Average. 

{  Actual  at  close  of  each  period.  §  Average. 


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/WMFJV  PRESIDENCY 


TABLE  IX. 


Income  and  Expenditure  of  Bombay  District 
Municipalities 


Average 

1 

for  ten  years 

IQOO-I. 

1903-4. 

1891-1900. 

Income  from — 

Rs. 

Rs. 

Rs. 

Octroi  (gross) 

21,64,370 

22,89,129 

26,96,049 

Tax  on  houses  and  land  . 

5,48,917 

6,56,386 

7,°5,2I3 

Other  taxes      .... 

8,76,951 

10,39,088 

'3-32,43i 

Rents 

77,963 

81,971 

94,677 

Loans     ..... 

5,20,259 

2,13,607 

99,173 

Other  sources 

Total  income     . 
Expenditure  on — 

17,27,022 
59,I5,482 

16,51,565 

21,76,572 

59,3I,746 

7',°4,'i5 

Administration 

4,55,343 

5>3°,9-° 

5,52,938 

Public  safety  .... 

2,46,634 

2,44,655 

2;5°,372 

Water  supply  and  drainage — 

(a)  Capital 

4>98>329 

1,33-621 

4,15,822 

(b)  Maintenance 

2,78,564 

3,°i,747 

3,36,865 

Conservancy   .... 

8,85,152 

9,92,140 

10,02,791 

Hospitals  and  dispensaries 

2,73,854 

3,22,747 

3,10,099 

Public  works  .... 

5,21,983 

4,44,283 

7,27,353 

Education        .... 

6,76,026 

7,01,998 

7,99,723 

Refunds  (octroi) 

7,22,683 

7,00,196 

8,63,013 

Miscellaneous 

Total  expenditure     . 

14,83,77° 

I6,94>527 

15,46,015 

60.42,338 

60,66,834 

68,04,991 

Note.— The  Bombay  City  municipality  had  an  income  in  1903-4,  including  extra- 
ordinary, of  about  4  crores  of  rupees. 

TABLE  X 

Income  and  Expenditure  of  Bombay  District  Boards 


Average 

1 

for  ten  years 

1900-1. 

1903-4. 

189 1 -1900. 

Income  from  — 

Rs. 

Rs. 

Rs. 

Provincial  rates 

25,81,731 

22>55,505 

29,27,456 

Education         .... 

2,10,896 

1,30,262 

1,31,258 

Medical 

24,661 

12,622 

16,017 

Public  works    .... 

I>°9,757 

63,27s 

68,296 

Contributions   .... 

9,79,65' 

IO,53,°69 

10,92,841 

Pounds     ..... 

1,60,884 

84,187 

1,01,885 

Ferries  and  roads 

4,00,617 

3,87,158 

4,03,58l 

Other  sources  .... 
Total  income 
Expenditure  on  — 

82,343 

98,792 

58,823 

45,50,540 

40,84,873 

48,00,157 

Administration 

r>39,735 

',45,490 

I>52,234 

Education          .... 

I4,99,736 

15,12,90s 

'6,03,777 

Medical     ..... 

3,02,042 

3,33,825 

2,94,947 

Public  works     .... 

23,85,032 

17,09,964 

22,39-6i3 

Contributions    .... 

95,534 

84,381 

1,16,724 

Miscellaneous    .... 
Total  expenditure 

2.77,944 

2,76,370 
40,62,938 

1,73,818 

47,00,023 

45»8i,"3 

TABLES 


593 


TABLE   XI.     Police  Statistics  in  the  Bombay 
Presidency  (British  Districts) 


1881. 

1891. 

1901. 

1904. 

Supervising  Staff. 

District  and  Assistant 

Superintendents 

39 

45 

52 

52 

Inspectors 

78 

92 

102 

109 

Subordinate  Staff. 

Sub-Inspectors  . 

| 

3,675 

\          397 

408 

Head  constables 

1 

3, ' ,0 

I       4,347 

4>396 

Constables 

17,082 

18,820 

19,367 

1 9,540 

Municipal  police*  : — 

Officers . 

i84t 

20 

5i 

49 

Men 

1,256! 

148 

286 

282 

Expenditure       .    Rs. 

37,3i,42i 

41,71,188 

5'>5->7I4 

53,04,097 

*  Figures  under  this  head  include  cantonment  and  water  police,  who  are  paid  wholly 
from  other  than  Imperial  and  Provincial  revenues.  t  Including  137  railway  officers 

and  879  men. 

TABLE   XII.     Statistics  of  Cognizable  Crime  in  the 
Bombay  Presidency  (British  Districts) 


Particulars. 

A                        f 

Average  for 

five  years 
ending  1901. 

Actual 
in  1904. 

Number  of  cases  reported       .         .                  . 
,,           .,          decided  in  the  criminal  courts 
„          ,,          ending  in  acquittal  or  discharge    . 
„          ,,                 „         conviction    . 

78,920 

55,244 
8,560 

47,5°8 

90,511 
68,620 

7,736 
60,884 

TABLE    XIII.     Jail  Statistics  in  the  Bombay 
Presidency  (British  Districts) 


1881. 

1891. 

1901. 

1904. 

Number  of  Central  jails 

1 

1 

-■> 

3 

Number  of  District  jails 

. 

26 

20 

:4 

'4 

Number  of  Subsidiary  jail: 

> (lock- 

ups) 

. 

78* 

27* 

238 

238 

Average  daily  jail  population  :— 

{a)  Male : 

In  Central  jails   . 

.         * 

1,280 

1,085+ 

4,o57t 

3,oo7 

In  other  jails 

. 

8,117 

6,467! 

7,531+ 

5,764 

b)  Female  : 

In  Central  jails    . 

• 

•  *  . 

24t 

109! 

98 

In  other  jails 
Rate  of  jail  mortality  per 

Total 

r  ,000 . 

449 

223T 

290! 

189 

9>058 

20 

9,846 

7,799 

11,987 

42 

32 

35 

Expenditure     on      jail     mainte- 

nance X  • 

.    Rs. 

6,12,000 

s, 24,000 

8,48,000 

6,13,000 

Cost  per  prisoner 

.     Rs. 

62 

67 

7i 

68 

Profits  on  jail  manufactures    Rs. 

2,04,000 

1,46,000 

1,08,000 

2,09,000 

Earnings  per  prisoner 

.    Rs. 

2r 

19 

9 

23 

"  This  excludes  numerous  lock-ups,  details  of  which  are  not  available. 
t  The  figures  for  1891  and  igoi  include  the  average  number  of  prisoners  confined 
in  lock-ups.  »   Excluding  inspection  charges. 


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TABLES 


397 


TABLE   XVII 

Medical  Statistics  in  the  Bombay  Presidency  (including 
Native  States  but  excluding  Aden) 


1881. 


1891. 


181 

1,741.0 
12,802.4  j 

6,86,712 

1. 52 :.46s 

44**45 

5>7°»297 
2,75,422 


14 

28 


88 
544 

96.291 
11,405 

4-',9>7 
52,217 


24.) 

2 .069-3 
17,500.2 


2,45,029 
86,965 

7,17,802 


Hospitals,  tfc. 

A.  State  or  State-aided  Insti- 
tutions. 

Number  of   civil    hospitals    and 
dispensaries    .... 
Average  daily  number  of — 

(a)  In-patients 

(b)  Out-patients 
Income  from  — 

(a)  Government  payments  Rs. 
b    Local  and  municipal  pay- 
ments      .         .         .     Rs. 
c)   Fees,     endowments,     and 
other  sources     .  .     Rs. 

Expenditure  on — 

(a)  Establishment.  .     Rs. 

b)  Medicines,      diet,     build- 
ings, &c.  .         .         .     Rs. 

B.  Private,  Railway,  Municipal, 
(fc.}  Institutions. 

Number  of  institutions 
Average  daily  number  of — 

(a)  In-patients 

(b)  Out-patients 

Lunatic  Asylums. 
Number  of  asylums    . 
Average  daily  number  of — 

(a)  Criminal  lunatics 

{/>)  Other  lunatics . 
Income  from — 

(a)  Government  payments  Rs. 

(b)  Fees  and  other  sources  Rs. 
Expenditure  on — 

{a)  Establishment         .       Rs. 
/'     Diet,  buildings,  &c.      Rs. 

/  'accination* 

Population  among  whom  vaccina- 
tion was  carried  on  .         .     -'3,013,619  '  23,417,205 

Number  of  successful  operations  1       580,610         791,501 

Ratio  per  1,000  of  population     .  25  34 

Total    expenditure    on   vaccina-  j 

tion         ....     Rs.         2,25,161         2,80,724 

Cost  per  successful  case      .     Rs.         0-6-2  0-5-8 


3o 
59 


104 
609 

1,00,859 
16,182 

42,234 
61,699 


1901. 


232 

2,37' 
14,024 


7.90,940        6,73,644 


1,1  1,732 
5,08,855 
4,58,922 

38i 


I  OO-l 

669.5 
1,38,160 

23,998 

49,538 
76,799 


1904. 


302 


2,681 

18,842 


y>.i 


0,677 


2,74,933        4-94.214 


1.57,180 
6,74,328 
6,75,460 

3r>3 


no 
701 

1,13,07' 
2  3.547 

54-495 

82.1  23 


j6  902,263  j  21,539,199 
65S.486         529,421 

25 :        24. 5s 
3.45,924 '    2,69,06s 

0-8-4  0-8-2 


*  The  vaccination  statistics  are  for  the  financial  year,  while  the  remaining  figures  in  this  table 
are  for  the  calendar  year. 


398  BOMB  A  Y  CITY 

Bombay  City. — The  capital  of  the  Presidency  of  Bombay,  and  the 
principal  seaport  of  Western  India,  situated  on  an  island  in  i8°  55'  N. 
and  7  2°  54/  E.  Bombay  Island  is  one  of  a  group  lying  off  the  coast  of 
the  Konkan  ;  but  by  the  recent  construction  of  causeways  and  break 
waters  it  is  now  permanently  united  on  the  north  end  with  the  larger 
island  of  Salsette,  and  so  continuously  with  the  mainland.  The 
remainder  of  the  group  of  islands  constitutes  a  part  of  Kolaba  District. 
For  certain  administrative  purposes  Bombay  city  is  regarded  as  consti- 
tuting a  District  by  itself,  with  an  area  of  22  square  miles,  and  a 
population,  according  to  the  Census  of  1901,  of  776,006.  A  special 
enumeration,  in  1906,  gave  a  total  of  977,822. 

In  the  beauty  of  its  scenery,  as  well  as  in  the  commercial  advantages 
of  its  position,  Bombay  is  unsurpassed  by  any  city  of  the  East.  The 
entrance  into  the  harbour  from  the  sea  discloses  a  mag- 
nificent panorama.  The  background  is  shut  in  by  the 
range  of  the  Western  Ghats.  In  front  opens  the  wide  harbour,  studded 
with  islands,  dotted  with  the  white  sails  of  innumerable  native  craft,  and 
affording  a  secure  shelter  to  fleets  of  steamers.  The  city  itself  consists 
of  well-built  houses  and  broad  streets  ennobled  by  public  buildings. 
The  seashore  is  formed  by  docks,  warehouses,  and  a  long  line  of  arti- 
ficial embankments  extending  continuously  for  nearly  5  miles.  On 
approaching  Bombay  from  the  west,  there  is  little  to  strike  the  eye  :  the 
coast  is  low,  the  highest  point,  Malabar  Hill,  being  only  about  180  feet 
above  the  sea.  But  on  entering  the  harbour  a  stranger  is  impressed 
with  the  picturesqueness  of  the  scene.  To  the  west  the  shore  is 
crowded  with  buildings,  some  of  them,  as  Colaba  Church  and  the 
Ra.ja.bai  Clock-tower  of  the  University,  very  lofty  and  well-proportioned. 
To  the  north  and  east  are  numerous  islands  ;  and  pre-eminent  among 
the  hills  on  the  mainland  is  Bava  Malang,  otherwise  called  Malanggarh, 
on  the  top  of  which  is  an  enormous  mass  of  perpendicular  rock,  crowned 
with  a  ruined  fort.  The  harbour  presents  an  animated  and  picturesque 
scene.  There  are  usually  a  troopship  and  a  man-of-war  of  H.M.'s  East 
India  Squadron,  together  with  numerous  large  passenger  or  merchant 
steamers,  among  which  may  be  mentioned  those  of  the  Peninsular  and 
Oriental  Company,  the  British  India  Steam  Navigation  Company,  the 
Messageries  Maritimes,  the  Italian  Rubattino,  the  Austrian  Lloyd,  the 
Clan,  Anchor,  and  Hall  lines.  Many  other  steamers,  and  an  occa- 
sional sailing  vessel,  are  to  be  seen  riding  at  anchor,  swinging  with  the 
swiftly-flowing  tide,  and  discharging  or  receiving  cargo.  All  kinds  of 
boats,  ships'  dingies,  steam-launches,  native  baghlas  and  padaos  inces- 
santly ply  on  the  harbour.  At  the  southernmost  point  of  the  '  Prongs,' 
a  dangerous  reef  jutting  out  from  Colaba  Point,  stands  the  lighthouse, 
built  in  1874,  and  containing  a  first-class  dioptric  light,  which  is  visible 
for  18  miles. 


DESCRIPTION  399 

The  island  consists  of  a  low-lying  plain  about  n^  miles  long  by  3  to 
4  broad,  flanked  by  two  parallel  ridges  of  low  hills.  Colaba  Point,  the 
headland  formed  by  the  longer  of  these  ridges,  protects  the  harbour  lying 
on  its  eastern  side  from  the  force  of  the  open  sea  ;  the  other  ridge  termi- 
nates in  Malabar  Hill  ;  and  between  the  two  lies  the  shallow  expanse  of 
Back  Bay.  The  island  is  in  shape  a  trapezoid.  It  is  popularly  likened 
to  a  hand  laid  palm  upwards,  with  the  fingers  stretching  southwards 
into  the  sea,  and  the  thumb  representing  Malabar  Hill,  with  Back  Bay 
between  the  thumb  and  forefinger :  others  see  in  it  a  resemblance  to  a 
withered  leg,  with  a  very  high  heel  and  pointed  toe,  the  heel  being 
Malabar  Hill  and  the  toe  Colaba.  On  a  slightly  raised  strip  of  land 
between  the  head  of  Back  Bay  and  the  harbour  is  situated  the  Fort,  the 
original  nucleus  round  which  the  city  grew  up,  but  now  chiefly  occupied 
by  public  buildings  and  commercial  offices.  From  this  point  the  land 
slopes  westward  to  the  central  plain,  which,  before  the  construction  ot 
the  embankment  known  as  the  Hornby  Vellard,  was  liable  to  be 
submerged  at  high  tide.  To  the  north  and  east  recent  schemes  of  recla- 
mation have  similarly  shut  out  the  sea,  and  partly  redeemed  the  fore- 
shore for  the  use  of  commerce.  In  the  extreme  north  of  the  island 
a  large  tract  of  salt  marsh  still  remains  unreclaimed. 

The  Government  offices,  the  business  houses,  and  the  shops  cluster 
thickly  in  the  Fort.  Many  of  the  public  and  commercial  buildings, 
constructed  during  the  past  forty  years,  are  of  splendid  dimensions,  and 
have  no  rival  in  any  other  Indian  city,  except  perhaps  Calcutta.  The 
houses  in  the  native  bazar  are  also  handsomely  built,  rising  three,  four, 
and  even  six  storeys  in  height,  with  elaborately  carved  pillars  and  front- 
work.  Some  of  the  narrow,  unpaved,  and  crowded  streets  give  an 
inadequate  idea  of  the  real  opulence  of  their  inhabitants.  But  in  many 
of  them  may  be  seen  evidences  of  the  wealth  of  the  city  and  of  the 
magnificence  of  its  merchant  princes.  The  most  conspicuous  line  of 
public  buildings  is  on  the  Fsplanade  facing  Back  Bay.  Here  is  the 
Secretariat,  an  enormous  erection  in  the  Venetian  Gothic  st>le  of  archi- 
tecture ;  the  University  Library,  Senate  Hall,  and  Rajabai  Clock-tower  '- 
the  High  Court;  the  Public  Works,  Post,  and  Telegraph  offices.  A 
little  inland,  and  behind  the  Secretariat  range  of  buildings,  runs  the 
broad  thoroughfare  of  Rampart  Row,  off  which  branch  many  narrow 
streets  containing  native  and  European  shops.  Rampart  Row  and  its 
continuation  towards  the  Apollo  Bandar  (landing-place)  form  the  main 
line  of  thoroughfare  of  the  European  quarter.  Along  one  side  of  Ram- 
part Row  is  a  colonnade  of  arches  giving  entrance  to  the  Bombay  Club, 
the  French  Bank,  and  other  buildings.  On  the  opposite  side  of  Ram- 
part Row,  which  is  here  50  or  60  yards  broad,  rises  another  line  of 
many-storeyed  offices  chiefly  belonging  to  merchants  in  grain  and 
cotton.    The  Fort  is  illuminated  during  the  night  by  incandescent  light. 


4oo  BOMB  A  V  CITY 

Arrangements  have  recently  been  completed  for  the  installation  of 
electric  light,  and  of  electric  tramways  to  supersede  the  present  horse 
tramways.  Near  the  Apollo  Bandar  is  the  Sailors'  Home,  erected  at 
the  expense  of  a  former  Gaikwar  of  Baroda.  The  open  crescent-shaped 
site  opposite  the  Sailors'  Home  has  been  set  apart  for  the  erection  of  a 
Museum,  of  which  His  Royal  Highness  the  Prince  of  Wales  laid  the 
foundation-stone  in  November,  1905.  Behind  the  Sailors'  Home  is  the 
Yacht  Club,  a  favourite  resort  of  Bombay  society ;  adjoining  it  are  the 
club  residential  quarters  and  the  grand  structure  of  the  new  Taj  Mahal 
Hotel.  At  the  other  end  of  Rampart  Row  is  a  white  marble  statue 
of  Queen  Victoria,  under  a  Gothic  canopy,  the  gift  of  the  same  Gaikwar. 
The  most  important  buildings  in  the  densely  built  space  occupying  the 
site  of  the  Fort  are  the  circular  row  of  offices  and  warehouses  known  as 
the  Elphinstone  Circle,  the  Custom  House,  the  Town  Hall,  the  Mint, 
and  the  Cathedral.  North  of  the  Town  Hall  lies  the  Ballard  Pier, 
whence  passengers  by  the  mail  steamers  embark  and  where  also  they 
land. 

The  Castle  and  Fort  St.  George  are  the  only  two  spots  now  retaining 
any  traces  of  the  old  fortifications.  The  existing  defences  of  Bombay 
harbour  are  batteries  on  the  rocks  which  stud  the  sea  from  about  oppo- 
site the  Memorial  Church  at  Colaba  to  the  Elphinstone  Reclamation. 
The  one  most  to  the  south,  called  the  Oyster  Rock,  is  1,000  yards 
from  the  shore  and  8,400  feet  south-west  of  the  Middle  Ground 
Battery.  The  fort  on  the  Middle  Ground  shoal  is  in  the  middle  of  the 
anchorage,  r,Soo  yards  from  shore.  The  third  defence  is  on  Cross 
Island,  at  the  north  end  of  the  anchorage,  100  yards  from  the  shore  and 
4,000  yards  from  Middle  Ground.  There  are  also  batteries  at  Malabar 
Point  and  Mahalakshmi  on  the  western  side  of  the  island. 

On  leaving  the  Bazar  Gate  police  station,  which  represents  the  most 
northernly  point  of  the  Fort  section,  the  first  object  of  interest  is  the 
Victoria  Terminus  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway,  a  very 
handsome  building  standing  on  the  original  site  of  an  old  temple  of 
Mumbadevi.  Opposite  the  station  are  the  municipal  offices,  the  founda- 
tion stone  of  which  was  laid  by  Lord  Ripon  in  December,  1884. 
Immediately  beyond  them  the  new  offices  of  the  leading  Bombay  news- 
paper, the  Times  of  India,  have  now  been  erected  ;  and  thence  a  few 
minutes'  stroll  will  bring  the  visitor  to  the  great  markets,  named  after 
Mr.  Arthur  Crawford,  who  held  the  post  of  Municipal  Commissioner 
from  1865  to  187 1.  North  of  the  markets  lies  the  native  city  proper. 
Two  of  the  best-known  thoroughfares  in  this  portion  of  the  island  are 
the  KalbadevI  Road  and  Abdur  Rahman  Street,  both  of  which  lead  to 
the  Paydhuni  ('  foot-wash ')  locality,  so  called  from  the  fact  that  in  very 
ancient  times  a  stream  flowed  there,  in  which  passers-by  used  to  wash 
the  dust  of  travel  from  their  feet.     Close  to  the  junction  of  the  Kalba- 


DESCRIPTION  401 

devi  Road  and  Abdur  Rahman  Street  stand  the  modern  temple  and  tank 
of  Mumbadevi,  the  guardian  goddess  of  the  island.     To  the   north  of 
Paydhuni  there  are  two  interesting  buildings,  namely,  the  city  jail  in 
Umarkhadi  built  in  1804  under  the  administration  of  Jonathan  Duncan, 
and  the  Jewish  synagogue  called  'The  Gate  of  Mercy.'    The  latter  was 
built  by  a  member  of  the  Bani-Israil  community  named  Ezeckiel,  who 
served  in  the  Bombay  army  during  the  campaign  against  Tipu  Sultan. 
Having  been  captured,  he  was  about  to  be  executed  with  other  prisoners, 
when  the  mother  of  Tipu  begged  that  his  life  might  be  spared,  and  her 
request  was  seconded  by  the  chief  Munshi,  who  declared  that  Ezeckiel 
belonged  to  a  race  known  as  'the  chosen  of  God.'    He  was  accordingly 
taken    into   Tipu's    service  ;    but   he   managed  at   length  to  escape  to 
Bombay,  where,  in  gratitude  for  his  deliverance,  he  built  the  synagogue. 
Leaving  the    Tadvadi    and    Mazagaon  sections,   which  contain  several 
features  of  interest,  as  for  example  the  Victoria  Gardens  in  the  former 
and  the  temple  of  Ghorupdeo  in  the  latter,  and  journeying  northward, 
one  reaches  the  historic  locality  of  Parel.     It  was  here  and  in  the  neigh- 
bouring villages  of  Naigaon,  Vadala,  and  Matunga  that  Bhlma  Raja  and 
his  followers  settled  on  their  arrival  from  the  Deccan  about  1294.     In 
later  times  Parel  was  the  favourite  quarter  of  the  European  inhabitants, 
and  contained  the  official  residence  of  the  Governor  of  Bombay.    It  has 
now  yielded  place  as  a  fashionable  European  quarter  to  Malabar  Hill  and 
Cumballa  Hill  (a  continuation  of  the  former),  both  of  which  are  covered 
with  handsome  houses  and  bungalows.     The  views  obtainable  from  the 
ridge  of  Malabar  Hill  and  the  summit  of  the  Altamont   Road,  which 
winds  up  Cumballa  Hill,  are  magnificent.     Standing  by  night  upon  the 
ridge,  one  looks  down  upon  the  palm-groves  of  Chaupati,  and  across 
the  sweep  of  Back  Bay  to  the  Rajabai  Clock-tower,  the  Secretariat,  and 
the  Lighthouse  at  Colaba  Point,  the  whole  curve  of  land  being  jewelled 
with  an  unbroken  chain  of  lights,  which  have  earned  the  appropriate  title 
of  'The  Queen's  Necklace.'     From  Cumballa  Hill  the  view  to  the  east 
includes  the  entire  native  town,  the  hill  of  Mazagaon,  upon  which,  in 
early  days,  a  whitewashed  house  stood  as  a  guide  for  vessels  entering 
the  harbour,  and  beyond  them  the  harbour,  islands,  and  mainland  of 
the  North   Konkan.     To  the  left  lies  the  industrial  area,  with  its  high 
chimney-stacks  and  mill  roofs,  and  the  coast  section  of  Siwri,  in  which 
may  still  be  seen  relics  of  the  old  fortress  built  upon  a  projecting  spit  of 
land.     Siwri  in  these  days  contains  the  European  cemetery,  which  was 
originally  the  garden  of  the  Horticultural  Society  of  Bombay.     On  the 
west  side  Cumballa  Hill  slopes  down  to  the  shore,  where,  close  to  the 
Hornby  Vellard,  the  Mahalakshmi  temples  command  attention.     The 
present  shrines  are  comparatively  modern  ;  but  they  are  stated  to  stand 
upon  the  site  of  three  very  old  temples  which  were  destroyed  during  the 
period  of  Muhammadan  domination.     The  temples  form  the  northern 

VOL.  VIII.  1)  d 


4o2  BOMBA  V  CITY 

limit  of  another  suburb,  known  as  Breach  Candy,  where  the  houses  are 
built  close  down  upon  the  seashore  within  the  refreshing  sound  of  the 
waves.  The  ruined  fortress  of  Warli  can  be  visited  from  this  point ; 
while  a  good  road  leads  through  the  great  coco-nut  woods  of  Malum  to 
the  Lady  Jamsetji  Causeway  and  the  neighbouring  island  of  Salsette. 
The  causeway  was  opened  in  1845,  up  to  which  time  communication 
between  Bombay  and  Bandra,  the  southernmost  village  in  Salsette, 
had  been  carried  on  by  means  of  ferry-boats. 

At  Malabar  Point  the  Governor  of  Bombay  has  a  pretty  marine  villa, 
in  which  he  spends  the  cold  season  of  the  year.  During  the  hot  season 
the  Bombay  Government  repairs  to  Mahabaleshwar,  while  it  spends  the 
rainy  or  monsoon  season  at  F^oona.  Not  far  from  Malabar  Point  lie 
the  ruins  of  the  old  temple  of  Walkeshwar,  which  was  built  by  the  Sila- 
hara  dynasty  some  time  between  a.d.  810  and  1260.  Other  interesting 
religious  monuments  in  the  island  are  the  tomb  of  a  Musalman  plr  at 
Mahim  and  the  great  Jama  Masjid  in  the  city.  The  former  was  built 
about  1 43 1  in  memory  of  Shaikh  All  Paru,  and  is  the  only  architectural 
legacy  to  Bombay  of  early  Muhammadan  rule.  The  shrine,  which  was 
repaired  and  enlarged  in  1674,  is  surmounted  by  a  dome,  the  inner  side 
of  which  is  ornamented  with  a  gilt  inscription  in  Arabic  characters 
recording  the  name  and  dates  of  the  birth  and  death  of  the  saint.  An 
annual  fair  is  still  held  here,  which  is  attended  by  Muhammadans  from 
all  parts  of  India.     The  Jama  Masjid  was  built  in  1802. 

Bombay  never  attains  great  extremes  of  heat  or  cold,  such  as  are 
encountered  in  the  interior  of  India  ;  but  the  climate,  though  tem- 
perate, is  oppressive,  owing  to  the  extreme  saturation  of  the  air  with 
moisture  during  the  greater  part  of  the  year.  The  cold  season  lasts 
from  December  till  March.  In  June  the  south-west  monsoon  breaks, 
and  heavy  rain  continues  with  great  regularity  till  the  end  of  September. 
The  hottest  months  are  May  and  October.  The  average  rainfall  for 
the  twenty  years  ending  1901,  as  registered  at  Colaba  Observatory,  was 
74-27  inches,  the  maximum  being  99-74  and  the  minimum  35.  The 
average  temperature  is  79'2°. 

In  the  year  1904  the  chief  causes  of  mortality  were  plague  (13,504), 
fever  (2,392),  and  diseases  of  the  respiratory  system  (7,315). 

Originally  Bombay  consisted  of  seven  separate  islands,  and  formed 
an  outlying  portion  of  the  kingdom  of  Aparanta  or  the  North  Konkan, 
of  which  the  earliest  ruler  known  to  history  was 
named  Asoka.  To  him  succeeded  a  dynasty  of  Sata- 
karnis  or  Satavahanas,  who  nourished  about  the  second  century  a.  d., 
and  were  in  turn  succeeded  by  Mauryas,  Chalukyas,  and  Rashtrakutas. 
The  earliest  inhabitants  of  the  islands  were  the  Rolls,  an  aboriginal 
tribe  of  husbandmen  and  fisherlolk,  who  must  have  journeyed  thither 
about  the   opening  of  the  Christian  era,  and  formed  rude  hut  settle- 


N/STOR  Y  403 

merits  in  those  portions  of  the  island  which  are  now  known  as  Upper 
Colaba,  Lower  Colaba,  Dongri,  Mazagaon,  Naigaon,  Sion,  Mahim, 
and  Warli.  The  island  takes  its  name  from  the  Koh  goddess  Mumba, 
a  form  of  Parvatl,  whose  temple,  as  above  mentioned,  formerly  stood 
close  to  the  site  now  occupied  by  the  Victoria  station. 

In  the  Maurya  and  Chalukya  periods  (c.  a.d.  450-750)  the  city  of 
Purl  on  Elephanta  island  was  the  chief  place  in  Bombay  harbour  ; 
but  under  the  Silahara  chiefs  of  the  Konkan  (810-1260)  Bombay 
became  better  known  through  the  discovery  of  the  Shrigundi  or  '  stone 
of  trial,'  and  the  building  of  the  Walkeshwar  temple  at  Malabar  Point, 
But  no  town  sprang  up  until  Raja  Bhlma,  who  probably  belonged 
to  the  house  of  the  Yadavas  of  Deogiri,  founded  Mahikavati  (Mahim) 
as  a  direct  result  of  Ala-ud-din  Khiljfs  raid  into  the  Deccan  in  1294. 
Bhlma's  followers,  among  whom  the  Prabhus,  Palshikar  Brahmans. 
Panchkalshis,  Bhandaris,  Bhois,  and  Thakurs  were  the  most  note- 
worthy, spread  over  the  island  and  settled  in  Mahim,  Siwri,  Naigaon, 
Matunga,  Vadala,  and  Parel.  Representatives  of  these  classes  are 
found  in  Bombay  to-day,  while  many  place-names  in  the  island 
undoubtedly  date  back  to  this  era  of  Hindu  rule,  which  lasted  till 
1 348,  when  Salsette  and  Bombay  were  conquered  by  a  Muhammadan 
force  from  Gujarat.  The  islands  remained  part,  first  of  the  province, 
and  then  of  the  kingdom,  of  Gujarat  until  1534,  when  Sultan  Bahadur 
ceded  them  to  the  Portuguese.  With  the  exception  of  the  well-known 
shrine  at  Mahim  and  one  distinct  class  of  the  population,  the  Konkani 
Muhammadans,  the  era  of  Muhammadan  rule  has  left  little  trace  upon 
modern  Bombay,  for  the  Sultans  of  Gujarat  contented  themselves  with 
establishing  a  military  outpost  at  Mahim,  and  delegated  their  adminis- 
trative powers  to  tributary  Hindu  chieftains. 

The  Portuguese  were  no  more  successful  in  the  work  of  colonization 
than  their  immediate  predecessors.  The  lands  were  gradually  divided 
by  them  into  manors  or  fiefs,  which  were  granted  as  rewards  to  deserv- 
ing individuals  or  to  religious  orders  on  a  system  known  as  itjora/nento, 
whereby  the  grantees  were  bound  to  furnish  military  aid  to  the  king  of 
Portugal,  or,  where  military  service  was  not  deemed  necessary,  to  pay 
a  certain  quit-rent.  The  northern  districts  were  parcelled  out  among 
the  Franciscans  and  Jesuits,  who  were  responsible  for  the  building  of 
several  churches  on  the  island,  notably  that  of  Our  Lady  of  Hope  on 
the  Esplanade,  now  destroyed,  and  those  of  St.  Michael  at  Mahim,  and 
of  Our  Lady  of  Salvation  at  Dadar,  which  exist  to  this  day.  The 
Quinta  or  Manor  House,  built  some  time  in  the  sixteenth  century, 
stood  upon  the  site  of  the  modern  arsenal  behind  the  Town  Hall,  and 
was  surrounded  by  a  lovely  garden.  It  was  partly  burnt  by  the  Dutch 
and  English  in  1626,  but  remained  standing  in  a  more  or  less  dilapi- 
dated condition  until    1661,  when  Donna  Ignez  de  Miranda,  the  pro- 

D  d  2 


4o4  BOMBAY  CITY 

prietress  of  the  Manor  of  Bombay,  handed  it  over  to  the  British 
representative,  Humphrey  Cooke.  The  intolerance  of  the  Portuguese 
had  seriously  hindered  the  growth  of  the  settlement,  which,  when  it  was 
transferred  to  the  English,  had  a  population  of  some  10,000,  mostly 
KolTs,  Agiis,  and  other  low  castes,  with  a  sprinkling  of  Prabhus,  Brah- 
mans,  and  Muhammadans. 

The  English  had  coveted  Bombay  for  many  years  before  it  came 
into  their  possession  under  the  terms  of  the  marriage  treaty  between 
Charles  II  and  the  Infanta  of  Portugal.  They  had  endeavoured  to 
seize  it  by  force  in  1626  ;  the  Surat  Council  had  urged  the  Directors  of 
the  East  India  Company  to  purchase  it  in  1652  ;  and  the  Directors  in 
their  turn  had  urged  upon  Cromwell  the  excellence  of  the  harbour  and 
its  natural  isolation  from  attack  by  land.  But  it  was  not  until  1661 
that  Bombay  was  ceded  to  the  English  king,  nor  until  1665  that 
Humphrey  Cooke  took  possession  of  the  island  on  his  behalf.  The 
revenues  at  the  date  of  the  cession  were  not  large,  accruing  mainly  from 
taxes  upon  rice  lands,  oil,  and  ghi,  and  upon  the  coco-nut  and  brab 
palms  which  grew  in  abundance  between  the  maidan  or  Esplanade  and 
Malabar  Hill.  Moreover,  so  averse  were  the  Portuguese  in  India  to 
the  cession,  that  they  retained  their  hold  upon  the  northern  portion 
of  the  island,  declaring  that  it  was  private  property  ;  and  it  was  only 
by  the  vigorous  action  of  Cooke  and  his  immediate  successors  that 
Mahlm,  Sion,  Dha.ra.vi,  and  Vadala  were  taken  from  the  Portuguese 
religious  orders  and  incorporated  with  the  island  proper. 

The  island  was  transferred  in  1668  from  the  Crown  to  the  East  India 
Company,  who  placed  it  under  the  factory  of  Surat.  The  real  founder 
of  the  modern  city  was  Gerald  Aungier  (1669-77),  who  believed  in  the 
future  of  '  the  city  which  by  God's  help  is  intended  to  be  built,'  and 
increased  its  population  to  50,000  by  the  measures  which  he  took  for 
the  settlement  of  the  land  revenue,  the  establishment  of  law  courts, 
the  strengthening  of  the  defences,  and  the  securing  of  freedom  of  trade 
and  worship  to  all  comers.  Among  the  most  important  of  the  new 
settlers  were  Banias,  Armenians,  and  Parsis. 

In  the  later  years  of  the  seventeenth  century  the  settlement  became 
so  unhealthy  through  the  silting  up  of  the  creeks  that  separated  its 
component  islands  and  through  the  prevalence  of  plague  and  cholera 
{mordexin),  that  it  was  said  that  'two  monsoons  were  the  life  of  a  man.' 
Progress  was  further  checked  by  quarrels  among  the  leading  men  and 
the  rivalry  between  the  old  and  the  new  East  India  Companies.  The 
steady  unfriendliness  of  the  Portuguese  and  the  prevalence  of  piracy 
made  trade  unsafe,  and  supplies  for  the  large  population  hard  to  obtain, 
while  down  to  1690  the  Sldi  admirals  of  the  Mughal  fleet  were  frequent 
but  unwelcome  guests  of  the  English,  who  did  their  best  to  trim 
between  them  and  the  Marathas. 


HTSTOR  V  405 

In  1708  a  brighter  period  began  with  the  union  of  the  two  Com- 
panies, which  was  followed  by  the  transfer  of  the  Governor's  head- 
quarters from  Surat  to  Bombay.  The  two  great  needs  of  the  time  were 
a  base  of  supplies  on  the  mainland  and  the  suppression  of  piracy.  The 
former  object  was  attained  in  1733  by  an  alliance  with  the  Sidls,  but 
the  pirates,  though  held  in  check,  were  not  yet  suppressed.  The 
Maratha  conquest  of  Bassein  and  Salsette  (1737-9)  Put  an  en<^  to  tnc 
hostility  of  the  Portuguese,  but  warned  Bombay  to  strengthen  its  force-. 
by  sea  and  land  against  a  more  dangerous  enemy.  The  town  wall  had 
been  finished  in  17 18,  and  settlers  again  Mocked  in,  especially  from 
distracted  Gujarat. 

The  dockyards  were  extended  under  the  superintendence  of  a  Pars! 
'  wadia '  or  ship-builder  from  Surat,  Lowjl  NasarwanjI,  who  arrived 
in  Bombay  in  1736  ;  a  marine  was  established  about  the  same  date: 
a  criminal  court  was  created  in  1727,  and  a  mayor's  court  in  1728  for 
the  settlement  of  civil  disputes  ;  and  a  bank  for  the  encouragement 
of  trade  and  agriculture  was  established  in  1720.  Severe  measures 
were  taken  for  the  prevention  of  treachery,  as  evidenced  by  the  historic 
trial  and  conviction  of  Rama  KamathI ;  monetary  loans  were  granted, 
and  other  conveniences  afforded,  to  various  classes,  such  as  the  weavers 
and  small  traders,  whose  settlement  it  was  held  desirable  to  stimulate. 
As  a  result,  the  population  had  expanded  to  70,000  by  the  year  1744, 
and  the  revenues  of  the  island  had  risen  to  about  16  lakhs  as  compared 
with  about  Rs.  37,000,  which  it  had  yielded  to  the  Portuguese.  The 
most  notable  building  in  the  Fort  at  this  time  was  St.  Thomas's  Church, 
which  was  opened  by  Governor  Boone  on  Christmas  Day,  17 18. 

The  defences  of  the  town  were  further  strengthened  by  reason  of 
the  French  Wars  (1744-8  and  1756-63),  and  the  influx  of  settlers  from 
the  mainland  made  the  question  of  supplies  as  well  as  that  of  the 
protection  of  trade  from  piracy  more  pressing.  Both  were  in  a  measure 
secured  by  an  alliance  with  the  Peshwa,  which  resulted  in  the  acquisi 
tion  of  Bankot  (1755)  and  in  the  destruction  of  the  pirate  nest  at 
Vijayadrug  by  a  force  under  the  command  of  Watson  and  Clive  (1756). 
The  occupation  of  Surat  castle  (1759)  and  the  capture  of  the  forts  of 
Malvan  and  Reddi  (1765)  were  further  steps  taken  in  the  interests 
of  trade.  This  period  witnessed  the  opening  of  two  new  docks  at 
Bombay,  one  being  completed  in  1750  and  the  second  in  1762,  and 
a  further  increase  in  the  number  of  vessels.  Regulations  were  also 
passed  for  the  preservation  of  good  order  on  the  island  ;  a  town 
scavenger  was  appointed;  building  rules  were  promulgated  in  1748; 
advances  were  made  from  the  Land  Pay  Office  to  the  poorer  inhabi- 
tants whose  duellings  had  been  destroyed  by  fire  ;  passage-boats 
between  Bombay  and  the  mainland  were  organized  into  a  regular 
service;   and   a  Court   of   Requests    was    instituted    in   1753    for   the 


4°6  BOMBAY  CITY 

recovery  of  debt.  As  a  result,  a  very  large  increase  of  population  took 
place  ;  and  so  many  houses  were  built  in  the  native  town  that  many 
of  them  had  eventually  for  safety's  sake  to  be  removed.  Grose  referred 
in  1750  to  the  enormous  amount  of  building  which  had  taken  place 
in  the  'oarts'  (gardens)  and  groves;  and  new  thoroughfares  were 
continually  being  opened  throughout  the  period.  The  old  Govern- 
ment House  at  Parel  is  first  spoken  of  in  these  years  as  'a  very 
agreeable  country-house,  which  was  originally  a  Romish  chapel,  be- 
longing to  the  Jesuits,  but  was  confiscated  about  1719  for  some  foul 
practices  against  the  English  interest."  The  building  has  long  been 
deserted  by  the  Governors  of  Bombay,  and  is  at  present  utilized  as 
a  laboratory  for  plague   research. 

It  was  the  wish  to  acquire  Salsette  as  a  defence  and  a  base  of 
supplies  that  led  the  Bombay  Council  to  enter  the  field  of  Maratha 
politics  (1772).  The  history  of  the  transactions  that  ended  in  the 
formation  of  the  modern  Presidency  is  dealt  with  elsewhere.  (See 
Bombay  Presidency,  History.)  In  the  island  itself  great  improve- 
ments were  made.  A  tariff  of  labour  rates  was  formulated  ;  a  better 
system  of  conservancy  was  enforced  in  1777  ;  hospitals,  to  which 
Forbes  refers  in  the  Oriental  Memoirs,  were  erected  in  1768  and 
1769;  an  accurate  survey  of  the  land  was  carried  out;  a  proper 
police  force  was  organized  about  1780  in  place  of  the  old  Bhandari 
militia;  and  in  1770  the  cotton  trade  with  China  was  started,  in 
consequence  of  a  considerable  famine  in  that  country,  and  an  edict 
of  the  Chinese  Government  that  a  larger  proportion  of  the  land  should 
be  utilized  for  the  cultivation  of  grain.  The  orderly  extension  of  the 
native  town  was  also  taken  in  hand  about  1770:  crowded  and  in- 
sanitary houses  were  in  many  cases  removed  :  the  Esplanade  was 
extended  and  levelled  ;  new  barracks  were  built ;  and  every  encourage- 
ment was  given  to  the  native  community  to  build  their  dwellings  at 
a  greater  distance  from  the  Fort.  The  great  Vellard,  which  takes 
its  name  from  Governor  Hornby  (1771-87),  was  erected  during  this 
period,  and,  by  uniting  the  southern  boundary  of  Warli  with  the 
northern  limit  of  Cumballa  Hill,  shut  out  the  sea  from  the  central 
portions  of  the  island,  and  rendered  available  for  cultivation  and 
settlement  the  wide  stretch  of  the  flats.  The  traveller  Parsons,  who 
visited  the  island  in  1775,  speaks  of  the  town  as  'nearly  a  mile  in 
length  from  the  Apollo  Gate  to  that  of  the  Bazar,  and  about  a  quarter 
of  a  mile  broad  in  the  broadest  part  from  the  bunder  across  the  green 
to  Church  Gate,  which  is  nearly  in  the  centre  as  you  walk  round  the 
walls  between  Apollo  and  Bazar  Gates.  Between  the  two  marine 
gates  is  the  castle,  properly  called  Bombay  Castle,  a  very  large  and 
strong  fortification  which  commands  the  bay  :  and  the  streets  are  well 
laid  out  and  the  buildings  so  numerous  as  to  make  it  an  elegant  town.' 


HISTORY  407 

In  1798  the  mayor's  court  gave  place  to  that  of  a  Recorder.  In 
1800  this  court  was  held  in  Governor  Hornby's  house,  which  is  familiar 
in  these  days  as  the  Great  Western  Hotel ;  and  there  Sir  James  Mackin- 
tosh, who  succeeded  the  first  Recorder  in  1802,  used  to  decide  civil 
and  criminal  suits.  In  1793  the  Governor  and  Members  of  Council 
were  the  only  Justices  of  the  Peace  in  Bombay,  and  in  1796  sat  in 
a  court  of  quarter  sessions,  inviting  two  of  the  inhabitants  to  sit  with 
them.  This  system  continued  till  1807,  when  the  Governor  and 
Council  were  empowered  to  appoint  a  certain  number  of  the  Com- 
pany's servants  or  other  British  inhabitants  to  act  as  justices  under 
the  seal  of  the  Recorder's  Court.  Two  notable  events  at  the  com- 
mencement of  the  nineteenth  century  were  the  famine  of  1803,  which 
drove  a  vast  number  of  people  from  the  Konkan  and  the  Deccan  to 
seek  employment  in  Bombay,  and  the  great  fire  which  broke  out  in 
the  P'ort  in  the  same  year.  Though  the  damage  done  to  house  pro- 
perty was  enormous,  the  conflagration  enabled  the  Government  to 
open  up  wider  thoroughfares  in  the  most  congested  parts  of  the  Fort  ; 
and  it  acted  as  a  great  incentive  to  the  native  community  to  build 
their  houses,  shops,  and  godowns  outside  the  Fort  walls,  and  in  those 
areas  which  are  now  the  busiest  portion  of  the  city.  The  abolition 
of  the  Company's  monopoly  of  the  Indian  trade  in  18 13  led  to  a 
great  increase  in  the  number  of  independent  European  firms  and 
largely  improved  the  export  trade  in  raw  cotton. 

The  conquest  of  the  Deccan  in  181 7-8  put  an  end  to  the  Maratha 
troubles  and  transformed  Bombay  from  a  trading  town  into  the  capital 
of  a  large  Province.  The  Recorder's  Court  was  replaced  in  1823  by 
the  Supreme  Court.  The  Borghat  road  to  Poona  was  opened  in  1830, 
and  a  regular  monthly  mail  service  to  England  by  the  overland  route 
was  established  in  1838.  The  same  year  saw  the  construction  of  the 
Colaba  Causeway,  which  united  the  last  of  the  original  seven  islets 
to  the  main  island  of  Bombay,  and  was  immediately  followed  by 
commercial  speculation  in  recovering  a  certain  portion  of  ground  for 
building  factories,  wharves,  and  for  the  greater  facility  of  mercantile 
operations.  A  new  hospital  was  built  in  Hornby  Row  in  1825,  a 
new  Mint  was  opened  in  1827,  and  the  well-known  Town  Hall  was 
completed  after  a  series  of  vicissitudes  in  1833.  The  Bishopric  of 
Bombay  was  constituted   in   1835,  and  in   1838  the  old  church  of  St. 

Thomas  became  the  cathedral  of  the  diocese. 

The  year  1840  marked  the  commencement  of  a  period  of  progress 
and  prosperity.  The  first  sod  of  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway 
was  turned  in  1850  ;  the  first  20  miles  to  Thana  were  laid  by  1853  ; 
and  ten   years  later  the  Borghat   incline  was   opened.     The  Bombay, 

Baroda,   and   Central    India    Railway   was   completed   from    the   north 
as  far    as    Hombav    in    1864.       In    1855   the   first  contract   was   made 


4o8  BOMB  A  V  CTT\' 

with  the  Peninsular  and  Oriental  Company  for  a  fortnightly  mail 
service,  which  became  weekly  in  1857.  The  Austrian  Lloyd's,  the 
Rubattino,  and  the  Anchor  lines  at  this  time  (1857)  started  regular 
services.  The  first  Bank  of  Bombay  was  opened  in  1840;  and  by 
i860  there  were  at  least  six  large  banking  corporations,  all  holding 
an  assured  position.  Industrial  enterprises  and  schemes,  such  as 
the  Elphinstone  Reclamation  scheme,  were  promoted  ;  the  great  Yehar 
water-works  were  constructed  ;  the  first  tramway  communications  were 
opened  in  Colaba  in  i860:  a  scheme  of  drainage  was  formulated  in 
1 86 1  ;  and  in  1857  the  first  spinning  and  weaving-mill  commenced 
to  work.  By  i860  six  more  mills  had  been  opened,  and  Bombay 
had  become  the  great  cotton  market  of  Western  and  Central  India. 
Between  1861  and  1865  occurred  the  enormous  increase  in  the  cotton 
trade  which  was  brought  about  by  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War  in 
America.  The  supply  of  the  American  staple  being  suddenly  cut  oft", 
Lancashire  turned  eagerly  to  Bombay  for  her  cotton,  and  poured 
into  the  pockets  of  the  mercantile  community  about  81  millions  ster- 
ling over  and  above  the  former  price  for  their  cotton.  An  unexampled 
exportation  of  cotton  continued  as  long  as  the  war  was  carried  on. 
'  Financial  associations,'  as  Sir  Richard  Temple  wrote  in  Men  and 
Events  of  My  Time  in  India,  '  sprang  up  like  mushrooms  ;  companies 
expanded  with  an  inflation  as  that  of  bubbles  ;  projects  blossomed 
only  to  decay.'  Suddenly,  when  commercial  delirium  was  at  its  height, 
the  American  War  ended.  The  price  of  Bombay  cotton  at  once  fell 
fast,  and  the  whole  elaborate  edifice  of  speculation  toppled  down  like 
a  house  of  cards.  Nevertheless  the  commercial  stability  of  the  city 
suffered  no  permanent  damage,  and  modern  Bombay  was  literally 
built  up  and  established  during  those  years.  The  wealth  of  the 
speculators  of  the  early  sixties  was  sunk  in  the  engineering  and  re- 
clamation schemes,  which  pushed  back  the  sea  and  gave  the  island  her 
splendid  wharf  accommodation.  It  was  they  who  presented  Bombay 
with  her  University  Library  Buildings,  the  Rajabai  Clock-tower, 
the  Jamsetj!  Jljibhoy  School  of  Art,  and  the  Mechanics'  Institute. 
The  Government  aided  private  enterprise  in  the  task  of  beautifying 
and  improving  the  island  :  and  it  was  during  this  period  that  those 
great  schemes  were  formulated  which  have  endowed  the  city  with 
the  unrivalled  line  of  public  buildings  facing  Back  Bay,  with  the 
Elphinstone  Circle,  with  admirable  railway  workshops,  with  a  fine 
dockyard  at  Mazagaon,  with  new  police  courts  and  lighthouses,  with 
the  Wellington  Memorial  Fountain,  and  the  European  General  Hos- 
pital. Room  was  made  for  many  of  these  improvements  by  the 
demolition  of  the  walls  of  the  Fort  in   1862. 

Great  changes  took  place  at  this  time  in  municipal  administration. 
In   1858  a  triumvirate  of  municipal  commissioners  was  appointed  for 


s 


HISTORY  4°q 

the  control  of  urban  affairs,  which  was  succeeded  in  [865  by  a  body 
corporate  composed  of  justices  for  the  city  and  island,  the  entire 
executive  power  and  responsibility  being  vested  in  a  commissioner 
appointed  by  Government  for  a  term  of  three  years.  This  system 
existed  until  1872,  when  a  new  municipal  corporation,  consisting  of 
sixty-four  persons,  all  of  them  ratepayers,  was  established  by  law. 
Considerable  progress  was  made  in  sanitation  and  communication-,. 
An  efficient  Health  department  was  organized  in  1865  ;  many  old 
ami  dangerous  graveyards  were  closed  between  1866  and  187 1  ;  special 
committees  were  appointed  to  deal  with  the  drainage  question  ;  new- 
markets  were  built,  notably  the  Crawford  Markets,  which  were  opened 
in  1869  and  form  one  of  the  most  useful  of  all  the  public  improvement 
executed  in  Bombay  ;  the  water-supply  of  Vehar  was  increased  ;  the 
TulsT  water-works  were  commenced  ;  the  Oval  and  Rotten  Row  were 
laid  out  as  recreation  grounds  ;  and  the  reclamation  of  the  flats  with 
town-sweepings  was  after  much  discussion  taken  in  hand. 

Between  1872  and  1881  railway  communication  was  extended  across 
the  continent  of  India  and  steam  navigation  along  the  coast.  The 
mill  industry  throve  apace,  and  gave  employment  in  1882  to  about 
32,000  persons.  The  TulsT  water-works  were  completed  in  1879  ;  the 
Port  Trust,  established  on  the  model  of  the  Mersey  Board  in  1873, 
opened  the  Prince's  Dock  in  rS8o;  new  roads  were  constructed  in 
various  parts  of  the  island  :  the  lighting  of  the  city  was  extended  ;  the 
Victoria  Gardens,  the  Elphinstone  Circle  Garden,  and  the  Northbrook 
Garden  in  the  poorer  portion  of  the  city,  were  laid  out  between  1873 
and  1874;  while  in  1878  the  municipality  raised  a  loan  of  27  lakhs  for 
drainage  purposes,  and  commenced  the  task  of  laying  a  new  main 
sewer  from  Carnac  Bandar  to  Love  Grove,  and  a  new  outfall  sewer, 
pumping  station,  and  pumping  plant  at  Warli.  The  resources  of  Bom- 
bay were  tested  in  1878,  when  an  expeditionary  force  was  dispatched 
to  Malta  :  within  fourteen  days  after  the  receipt  of  orders  the  Bombay 
Government  engaged  48,000  tons  of  merchant  shipping  and  dispatched 
from  the  port  6,000  men  and  2,000  horses  with  two  months'  supplies 
of  provisions  and  six  weeks'  supply  of  water.  Again  in  1899  the 
salvation  of  Natal  directly  resulted  from  the  promptitude  with  which 
Bombay  carried  out  the  embarkation  and  dispatch  to  South  Africa 
of  a  large  military  force. 

The  water-supply  of  the  city  was  further  improved  by  the  opening 
of  the  Pawai  works  in  1889,  and  of  the  great  Tansa  works  in  189 1-2. 
Between  1872  and  189 r  much  attention  was  paid  to  education,  with 
the  result  that  the  Census  of  1891  showed  an  increase  of  46,000  in 
the  number  of  literate  persons.  Schools  for  deaf-mutes  were  subsidized  : 
the  Victoria  Jubilee  Technical  Institute  was  founded  by  Lord  Reay's 
Government  :  tramway  communications  were  greatly  extended  :  a  good 


4 to  BOMB  A  Y  CTTY 

tire  brigade  service  was  organized  :  special  cholera  and  small-pox 
hospitals  were  erected  for  the  benefit  of  the  poorest  classes  ;  and  the 
streets  were  cleared  of  lepers  to  a  great  extent  by  the  opening  of  the 
Matunga  Leper  Asylum,  in  which  the  victims  of  this  unsightly  disease 
are  so  well  cared  for  that  they  feel  no  temptation  to  stray  away.  The 
export  and  import  trade  showed  a  remarkable  increase  during  the  ten 
years  prior  to  1891,  while  the  mill  industry  assumed  such  large  pro- 
portions that  legislation  for  the  regulation  of  female  and  child  labour 
became  imperative  in  1890.  Not  only  had  sections  of  the  city  proper, 
such  as  Mandvi  and  Dhobi  Talao,  been  choked  with  buildings  in  such 
a  way  that  their  original  character  was  wholly  obliterated  ;  but  the 
northern  sections  of  the  island,  such  as  Parel,  Byculla,  Tadvadi, 
Nagpada,  and  Chinchpugli,  had  expanded  through  the  progress  of 
industrial  enterprise  into  the  populous  dwelling-places  of  a  large 
immigrant  population. 

The  great  influx  of  labourers  which  took  place  between  i860  and 
1890  has  been  indirectly  responsible  for  the  continued  presence  and 
virulence  of  the  plague,  which  broke  out  for  the  first  time  in  1896. 
The  congested  state  of  many  streets,  and  the  monstrous  overcrowding 
of  houses,  wThich  were  erected  to  accommodate  a  great  influx  of  popula- 
tion, have  proved  highly  favourable  to  the  spread  of  a  disease  which, 
during  the  last  seven  years,  has  played  havoc  with  the  cotton  industry 
and  with  trade,  and  has  raised  the  death-rate  of  the  city  and  island 
to  an  alarming  figure.  It  is  the  object  of  the  City  Improvement  Trust, 
created  by  Lord  Sandhurst's  Government,  to  open  out  such  localities, 
and  by  the  erection  of  model  dwellings  for  the  artisan  classes,  to  combat 
successfully  the  spread  of  evils,  such  as  plague  and  phthisis,  which 
at  present  flourish  unchecked  in  the  moist  and  infected  air  of  the 
industrial  quarters. 

At  the  time  of  the  cession  of  Bombay  to  the  English,  the  population 

is  stated  by  Dr.  John   Fryer  in  his   New  Account  of  East  India   and 

Persia  (1698)   to  have  been   10,000;  and,  according 
Population.  ...  ,    ,  ,     ,     .  ,  _ 

to   Niebuhr,   it    had    increased    to    70,000    in    i/44- 

In  1780  a  special  committee,  appointed  to  inquire  into  the  price  of 
food-grains,  was  furnished  with  a  rough  census  of  all  residents,  which 
totalled  113,726.  By  1814  this  number  had,  according  to  a  con- 
temporary writer,  risen  to  180,000  ;  and  an  estimate  recorded  in  1S36 
showed  a  further  increase  to  236,000.  Ten  years  later  the  benefits 
of  peace,  growth  of  commerce,  and  improvement  of  communications 
had  raised  the  total  to  566,119.  On  the  initiative  of  Sir  Bartle  Frere 
a  properly  organized  census  was  for  the  first  time  taken  in  1864,  which 
recorded  a  total  population  of  816,562.  This  abnormal  figure,  which 
was  mainly  due  to  the  extraordinary  prosperity  which  Bombay  enjoyed 
during    the   American  War,   decreased    in    1S72    to   644,405  :    but   the 


POPULATION  411 

decrease  was  the  natural  outcome  of  the  reversion  of  Bombay  com- 
mercial life  to  its  ordinary  groove,  and  was  in  no  wise  permanent,  as 
is  apparent  from  the  census  figures  of  1881  and  1891,  which  amounted 
to  773,196  and  821,764  respectively.  According  to  the  Census  of 
1 901  the  population  of  the  area  administered  by  the  Bombay  munici- 
pality, which  is  coextensive  with  Bombay  island,  in  an  area  of  22  square 
miles,  is  776,006 *.  This  figure  includes  37,68r  persons  who  are 
described  as  homeless,  as  the  harbour  population,  or  as  travellers  by 
the  railway.  The  density  of  population  per  acre  for  the  whole  island 
is  51,  but  this  figure  varies  largely  in  different  areas.  In  Kumbarwada, 
lor  example,  there  are  598  persons  to  the  acre,  in  Khara  Talao  556, 
in  Second  Nagpada  546,  in  Chakla  472,  and  in  Umarkhadi  460  ; 
whereas  in  Sion  there  are  only  5  persons  to  the  acre,  in  Siwri  20,  in 
Mahlm  21,  and  in  Warli  25.  It  will  be  apparent  from  these  figures 
how  suitable  a  field  is  afforded  by  the  northern  portions  of  the  island 
for  the  wider  and  more  healthy  distribution  of  the  native  population. 
The  extension  of  electric  traction,  which  the  municipality  is  at  present 
endeavouring  to  establish,  will  draw  off  the  surplus  population  of  the 
central  portions  of  the  city  and  lower  the  death-rate.  The  average 
population  per  inhabited  house  is  24-5  for  the  whole  island,  rising  to 
35  in  B  ward,  which  includes  Chakla,  Mandvi,  Umarkhadi,  and  Dongri, 
and  sinking  to  15  in  G  ward,  which  comprises  Mahfm  and  Warli.  The 
great  poverty  of  the  majority  of  the  population  is  shown  by  the  fact 
that  80  per  cent,  of  the  whole  number  occupy  tenements  containing 
only  a  single  room,  the  average  number  of  dwellers  in  such  a  room 
being  about  5.  Instances  were  discovered  in  1901  of  39,  43,  and  54 
persons  occupying  and  sleeping  in  a  single  room  ;  while  three  of  the 
largest  tenement  houses  in  the  central  part  of  the  island  gave  shelter 
to  as  many  as  587,  663,  and  691  individuals.  The  proportion  of  males 
in  the  total  population  is  over  61  per  cent.  The  number  of  females 
to  1,000  males  varies  considerably  by  localities,  there  being  770  in 
Dongri  and  only  234  in  the  southern  portion  of  the  Fort.  A  very  large 
proportion  of  the  male  inhabitants  come  to  Bombay  only  for  a  few 
months  in  search  of  work,  leaving  their  families  in  their  native  villages. 
The  number  of  children  under  one  year  of  age  had  sunk  in  1901  to  the 
very  low  figure  of  9,900  ;  but  this  was  brought  about  by  a  high  rate 
of  mortality  among  infants  since  1897  and  an  abnormally  low  birth-rate. 

Before  the  outbreak  of  the  plague  in  1896  the  average  death-rate  for 
the  whole  population  was  24  per  1,000.  Since  1896  it  has  risen  to  78. 
The  birth-rate  is  as  low  as  14  per  1,000  ;  but  this  is  no  indication  of  the 
true  natural  increase,  the  majority  of  the  population  being  immigrants 
whose  women  return  to  their  homes  at  the  time  of  maternity. 

Only  23  per  cent,  of  the  total  population  claim  the  island  as  their 
1   The  population  in  1906  was  977.822,  according  to  a  special  Census. 


4i2  BOMB  A  )'  CITY 

birthplace  :  and  the  proportion  of  those  born  in  Bombay  is  highest 
in  sections  like  Dhobi  Talao  and  (  hakla,  which  are  inhabited  respectively 
by  ParsTs  and  Konkani  Muhammadans,  who  are  really  indigenous. 
The  District  of  Ratnagiri  in  the  Konkan  supplies  Bombay  with  most 
of  her  mill-hands  and  labourers,  while  Cutch  and  the  Gujarat  Districts 
furnish  large  numbers  of  the  trading  classes. 

Hardly  any  city  in  the  world  presents  a  greater  variety  of  national 
types  than  Bombay.  The  Hindus  and  Muhammadans  of  course  pre- 
dominate, but  in  the  busy  streets  the  characteristic  dress  of  every 
Oriental  people  may  be  seen.  The  green  and  gold  turban  of  the 
Musalman,  the  large  red  or  white  head-dress  peculiar  to  the  Maratha, 
the  pointed  red  turban  of  the  Gujarat!  Bania,  and  the  black  or  brown 
brimless  hat  of  the  Pars!,  lend  colour  and  variety  to  the  scene.  In 
Dongri  and  Mandvi  one  meets  members  of  well-known  commercial 
classes,  such  as  the  Osval  Jains  ;  in  Chakla  will  be  found  the  Konkani 
Muhammadans,  a  very  rich  and  influential  community,  who  trace  their 
descent  from  the  ancient  '  Nawaits,'  the  children  of  Arab  fathers  and 
Hindu  mothers,  and  who  have  gradually  risen  from  the  position  of 
ships'  officers,  sailors,  and  boatmen  to  that  of  prosperous  and  educated 
merchants.  The  Sldis,  who  are  descended  from  the  warriors  of  Sidi 
Sambhal  and  from  Zanzibar  slave  immigrants,  will  be  seen  in  the 
Umarkhadi  quarter ;  the  Bani-Israil,  whose  ancestors  were  wrecked 
off  Chaul  in  the  thirteenth  century,  are  settled  in  the  same  neighbour- 
hood ;  the  Julahas,  a  poor  and  somewhat  turbulent  class  of  Muham- 
madan  weavers,  are  met  with  in  Nagpada  ;  the  portion  of  Dhobi  Talao 
known  as  Cavel  shelters  large  numbers  of  Goanese  and  native  Christians, 
who  have  regarded  this  locality  as  their  stronghold  since  the  era  of 
Portuguese  dominion  ;  the  unmistakable  head-gear  of  the  Arabs  is 
constantly  met  with  in  Byculla ;  Parel  and  Nagpada  are  peopled  by 
the  lower  and  industrial  classes  from  the  Deccan  and  the  Konkan ; 
while  hidden  away  in  many  corners  of  the  island  are  small  groups  of 
KolTs,  the  lineal  descendants  of  the  earliest  Bombay  settlers  known 
to  history.  The  ParsTs  exercise  an  influence  much  greater  than  is 
implied  by  their  numbers.  They  commenced  to  settle  in  Bombay  soon 
after  the  cession  of  the  island  to  the  English  ;  and  now  by  the  force 
of  their  inherited  wealth,  their  natural  genius  for  trade,  their  intelligence, 
and  their  munificent  charities,  they  hold  high  rank  among  the  native 
community.  Their  position  was  recognized  by  the  Crown  when  Sir 
Jamsetjl  jTjTbhoy  received  a  baronetcy  in  1857  ;  and  the  present 
representative  of  his  family  was  chosen  to  represent  the  city  of  Bombay 
at  the  coronation  of  the  King-Emperor  in  1902.  Next  in  importance 
to  the  ParsTs  are  the  Hindu  traders  or  Banias,  who  may  be  divided 
into  two  classes,  those  of  Gujarat  and  the  Marwaris  from  Rajputana. 
A  large  proportion  of  both  these  classes  adhere  to  the  Jain   religion. 


POPULA  TTON 


4i3 


while  not  a  few  of  the  remainder  belong  to  the  Vaishnav  sect,  espe- 
cially to  the  sub-denomination  known  as  Vallabhacharyas.  The  Mu- 
hammadans  include  representatives  from  all  the  great  countries  that 
have  embraced  Islam — Arabs,  Persians,  Turks,  Afghans,  Malays,  and 
Africans.  The  three  classes  of  trading  Muhammadans — the  Memons, 
Hohras,  and  Khojas — are  especially  numerous.  The  spiritual  head 
of  the  last-named  community,  His  Highness  the  Aga  Khan,  was  among 
the  representative  men  invited  to  His  Majesty's  coronation  in  190.?. 
The  commercial  dealings  of  these  three  classes  are  chiefly  with  the 
Persian  Gulf,  Zanzibar,  and  the  east  coast  of  Africa ;  but  many  of  them 
do  not  shrink  from  visiting  Kurope  for  trade  purposes,  and  arc  ready 
to  take  advantage  of  the  improved  means  of  communication  now 
existing  between  Bombay  and  the  rest  of  the  world.  The  ParsTs  and 
Jews  compete  with  the  English  in  the  markets  of  Europe. 

The  following  table  gives  the  population  of  the  city  in  1901  classified 
according  to  religion  : — 


Re 

igion. 

Number . 
508,608 

Percentage. 

Hindus 

. 

65-54 

Muhamma 

dans 

. 

'55<747 
11. 

jo-o7 

Christians 

. 

45- '76 

5-82 

ParsTs 

. 

. 

46,231 

5-96 

Jains 

■ 

14,248 

1.83 

lews  . 

. 

• 

5)357 

.70 

Others 

Total 

639 

.08 

776,006 

ioo.oo 

Some  idea  of  the  cosmopolitan  character  of  Bombay  can  be  formed 
from  the  fact  that  62  different  languages  or  dialects  are  spoken  within 
its  limits.  Marathi  and  Gujarat!  are  the  most  widely  prevalent,  the 
latter  being  the  main  commercial  language  of  the  island.  A  con- 
siderable number  of  Muhammadans  are  bilingual  from  an  early  age, 
speaking  Hindustani  in  their  homes  but  conducting  their  daily  business 
in  Gujarat!.  In  the  same  way  Gujarat!  and  English  are  equally  well 
known  to  many  members  of  the  Pars!  community. 

Of  the  total  area  of  the  island  a  considerable  portion  is  still  cropped. 
The  chief  crop  grown  is  rice  ;  but  many  varieties  of  garden  vegetables 
are  also  cultivated,  particularly  onions  and  several  members  of  the 
gourd  tribe.  The  tending  of  coco-nul  trees,  and  the  preparation  of 
intoxicating  drink  from  this  tree  and  other  species  of  palms,  afford 
employment  to  a  considerable  section  of  the  population.  The  original 
toddy-drawers  of  Bombay  were  the  Bhandaris,  who  at  present  number 
nearly  17,000  persons;  but  a  large  number  of  them  discarded  their 
hereditary  pursuit  in  favour  of  military,  police,  and  other  duties  during 
the  eighteenth  century,  and  they  are  found  engaged  at  the  present  day 


414  BOMB  A  V  CITY 

in  many  different  occupations.  The  Bombay  mangoes  are  said  to  have 
been  improved  from  grafts  by  the  Jesuits  and  Portuguese  priests;  and 
it  was  from  the  Mazagaon  groves  that  the  royal  tables  at  Delhi,  in  the 
time  of  Shah  Jahan,  were  supplied.  'They  have  long  been  famous 
throughout  India  for  their  delicate  flavour ;  and  there  exist  to  this  day 
in  Mazagaon  two  noted  trees  which  bear  a  double  crop  of  mangoes 
every  year.  The  Bombay  'pummelo,'  a  shaddock  which  looks  like 
a  large  orange,   is  also  a  favourite  fruit. 

Bombay  supports  all  the  many  industries  incidental  to  the  active  life 
of  a  great  city  and  seaport.     The  trades  of  dyeing,  tanning,  and  metal- 
working  are  especiallv  prosperous.      The  School  of 
Industries.  .       .  ,  ,  .  ,  , 

Art  has  done    much   to    encourage    those    technical 

faculties  which  depend  upon  an  artistic  and  scientific  education ;  and 
the  work  of  its  pupils,  at  the  Art  Exhibition  held  during  the  Delhi 
Darbar  of  1903,  earned  very  high  approbation.  But  the  characteristic 
feature  of  Bombay  manufacture  is  the  rapid  growth  of  the  European 
factory  system — mills,  worked  by  steam  and  employing  a  large  number 
of  operatives,  having  been  erected  by  local  capital,  especially  in  the 
northern  suburbs,  where  the  tall  chimney-stacks  recall  a  factory  town  in 
Lancashire.  Between  1881  and  1903  the  total  number  of  factories 
in  the  island  rose  from  53  to  143,  the  increase  being  mainly  due  to  the 
construction  and  opening  of  new  spinning  and  weaving-mills;  while 
the  number  of  persons  engaged  in  the  manufacture  and  sale  of  cotton 
is  131,796,  or  17  per  cent,  of  the  total  population,  as  compared  with 
101,821  in  1891.  This  increase  of  the  industry  during  the  last  decade 
has  taken  place  in  spite  of  very  great  disorganization  caused  by  the 
plague,  and  in  spite  of  a  decline  in  the  Chinese  demand  for  Bombay's 
production.  Since  1897  the  mill  industry  passed  through  a  grave  crisis, 
resulting  to  some  extent  from  an  unsuitable  and  improvident  system 
of  management.  The  better-conducted  mills,  however,  such  as  those  of 
the  great  Pars!  capitalist,  the  late  Mr.  Jamsetjl  N.  Tata,  have  made 
and  still  continue  to  make  a  steady  profit  from  their  yarns  and  piece- 
goods.  The  industry  has  proved  an  inestimable  boon  to  many  of  the 
poorer  inhabitants  of  the  Konkan  and  the  Deccan,  who.  without  the 
steady  wages  which  it  offers,  might  have  fared  ill  during  the  famines  of 
the  last  few  years.  At  Matunga  there  are  twenty-four  salt-works,  which 
yield  an  annual  revenue  of  1  7-!  lakhs. 

The   latter   half  of   the   nineteenth  century  witnessed  a  remarkable 
development  of  the  trade  of  the  port.     In  1854-5  the  whole  trade  of 

Bombay  was  valued  at  16  crores,  and  twelve  years 
Commerce.        ,  ,  „,,      >  fl„  , 

later  (1866-7)  rose  to  47  crores.      lhe  yearly  average 

for    the   succeeding   five  years   was   51   crores.       Between  1876-7  and 

1895-6  the  total  value  of  imports  and  exports,  including  the  coasting 

trade,  steadily  increased  from  hi  crores  to  105  crores.      The  constant 


AD,  VIIA ISTRA  TWA  415 

demand  from  distant  markets,  coupled  with  a  considerable  improve- 
ment of  communications,  has  brought  about  a  rise  under  every  head  of 
imports  and  exports  during  the  last  twenty-five  years,  the  most  notice- 
able increase  under  the  former  category  being  in  sugar  and  cotton 
manufactures,  and  under  the  latter  in  grain,  cotton  twist  and  yarn. 
The  total  value  of  the  sea-borne  trade  passing  through  Bombay  in 
1903-4  was  123  crores  (exports  64  crores,  and  imports  59  crores),  of 
which  101  crores  represented  trade  with  countries  beyond  India.  The 
chief  exports  are  raw  cotton,  grain,  seeds,  cotton  twist  and  yarn  ;  the 
chief  imports  are  cotton  goods,  metals,  and  machinery.  The  number  oi 
vessels,  sailing  and  steam,  which  entered  and  cleared  with  cargoes  from 
and  to  foreign  countries  at  the  port  of  Bombay  in  1903  4  was  1,607, 
with  a  tonnage  of  2,764,303.  (For  further  particulars  of  sea-borne 
trade,  see  the  article  on  the  Bombay  Presidency.) 

Bombay  possesses  a  Chamber  of  Commerce  with  116  members 
representing  200  firms,  and  a  committee  of  12  elected  annually,  whose 
deliberations  are  presided  over  by  a  chairman.  The  Chamber  is 
represented  on  the  Legislative  Council,  the  municipality,  the  Fort 
Trust,  and  the  Bombay  Improvement  Trust.  There  is  also  a  special 
association  for  protecting  and  furthering  the  interests  of  the  cotton 
industry,  styled  the  Bombay  Mill-Owners'  Association.  Over  100  mills 
are  represented  on  the  general  committee,  and  the  opinion  of  the 
association  therefore  carries  great  weight  on  all  questions  connected 
with  the  industry.  Founded  in  1868,  the  association  has  witnessed  an 
increase  from  3  to  143  mills  in  the  territories  from  which  it  draws  its 
members. 

The  Government  land  revenue,  amounting  to  3  lakhs  annually,   is 

under  the  charge  of  an  official  styled  the  Collector  of  Bombay,  who 

is  a  member  of  the  Covenanted  Civil  Service,  and  .  . 

,  c  ,       r         •  -  /--  n  ,-  ,  >    •  Administration, 

also  performs  the  functions  oi   Collector   oi   Opium 

and  Abkari  (Excise),  and  Income-Tax  Commissioner.  The  Presidency 
Stamp  and  Stationery  offices  and  the  Steam-Boiler  Inspection  depart- 
ment are  also  in  his  charge,  and  he  is  assisted  by  one  Indian  Civilian, 
who  is  Chief  Inspector  of  the  numerous  factories  in  the  island.  The 
administration  of  the  Sea  Customs  is  in  charge  of  a  Collector,  aided  by 
an  assistant,  both  of  whom  belong  to  the  Imperial  Customs  Depart- 
ment. The  ordinary  local  administration  is  vested  mainly  in  the 
Bombay  municipality,  which,  as  constituted  by  Act  III  of  1888,  consists 
of  72  members — 36  elected  by  the  ratepayers,  20  by  the  Chamber  of 
Commerce,  the  University,  and  the  Justices  of  the  Peace,  and  16 
appointed  by  Government.  The  corporation  thus  constituted  possesses 
extensive  powers,  and  elects  its  own  president  and  eight  out  of  twelve 
members  of  a  standing  committee  which  deals  with  ordinary  business. 
The  other  four  members  of  this  committee  are  appointed  by  Govern- 


416  ROM  HA  V  CTTY 

ment.  A  chief  executive  officer,  known  as  the  Municipal  Commissioner, 
is  appointed  by  Government,  usually  from  the  ranks  of  the  Indian  Civil 
Service.  The  revenue  and  expenditure  of  the  corporation  is  shown  in 
the  table  on  p.  421.  The  general  tax  which  contributes  a  large  propor- 
tion of  the  revenue  consists  of  a  tax  on  houses  and  lands,  fixed  at  io-| 
per  cent,  on  the  gross  annual  value  of  houses  and  lands,  the  \  per  cent, 
being  devoted  to  the  maintenance  of  a  fire  brigade.  The  tax  produces 
an  annual  revenue  of  25  lakhs,  to  which  are  added  contributions  of 
about  one  lakh  and  2  lakhs  paid  respectively  by  Government  and  the 
Fort  Trust.  The  municipality  has  raised  loans  amounting  in  1904  to 
about  479  lakhs,  mainly  for  the  provision  of  an  adequate  water-supply 
and  of  drainage  works. 

Justice  is  administered  by  the  Bombay  High  Court,  which,  in  addition 
to  the  appellate  and  revisionary  powers  which  it  exercises  throughout 
the  Presidency,  is  a  court  of  first  instance  for  causes  arising  within  the 
island  of  Bombay.  A  Small  Cause  Court  and  four  Presidency  Magis- 
trates exercise  jurisdiction  in  minor  civil  and  criminal  matters.  The 
former  takes  cognizance  of  suits  not  exceeding  Rs.  2,000  in  value 
arising  within  the  island.  Four  benches  of  honorary  magistrates  were 
established  in  1903  to  deal  with  minor  criminal  misdemeanours. 

The  city  police  force,  under  a  Commissioner,  who  is  directly  sub- 
ordinate to  Government,  consists  of  2,126  officers  and  men,  83  of 
whom  are  mounted.  The  force  includes  72  Europeans.  There  are  six 
Europeans  in  the  Sanitary  Police,  a  temporary  body  working  under 
the  Port  Health  Officer,  but  subordinate  to  the  Police  Commissioner  as 
regards  discipline  and  promotion.  The  Commissioner  is  assisted  by  a 
Deputy  and  eight  Superintendents.  The  municipal  corporation  pays 
a  fixed  contribution  of  5  lakhs  towards  the  cost  of  the  force.  There 
are  two  special  jails  in  the  city,  called  the  house  of  correction,  which 
is  at  Byculla,  and  the  common  prison,  at  Umarkhadi.  The  question  of 
constructing  a  new  prison  is  under  the  consideration  of  Government. 

Bombay  is  the  head-quarters  of  the  Bombay  brigade,  which  falls 
in  the  Poona  division  of  the  Western  Command,  and  is  commanded 
by  a  Brigadier-General.  The  garrison  consists  of  three  companies 
of  garrison  artillery,  one  company  of  the  submarine  mining  corps, 
one  British  and  two  Native  infantry  regiments1,  and  five  corps  of 
volunteers.  The  volunteers  comprise  the  Bombay  Light  Horse,  the 
Bombay  Volunteer  Artillery,  the  Great  Indian  Peninsula  Railway 
Volunteer  Rifles,  the  Bombay,  Baroda,  and  Central  India  Railway 
Volunteers,  and  the  Bombay  Volunteer  Rifle  Corps,  with  an  aggre- 
gate in  1906  of  1,043  men.  In  Bombay  are  also  stationed  the 
Director  and  Assistant  Director  of  the  Royal  Indian  Marine,  which 
is  the  modern  representative  of  the  old  Bombay  Marine  and  Indian 

1  One  of  these  is  now  quartered  at  Santa  Cruz  in  Salsetle. 


ADMINISTRA  TION  4 1 7 

Navy.  The  Royal  Indian  Marine,  which  chiefly  performs  trooping, 
station,  and  marine-surveying  duties,  possessed,  in  1906,  eighteen 
vessels  manned  by  97  superior  officers,  71  engineers,  and  1,439  men, 
while  a  large  number  of  men  are  also  employed  in  the  Government 
dockyard. 

The  Port  Trust,  a  small  board  of  thirteen  members  representing 
commercial  and  other  interests,  controls  the  administration  of  the  port. 
It  had  in  1903-4  a  revenue  of  over  64  lakhs  and  a  reserve  fund  of 
27  lakhs.  The  Trust  is  responsible  for  carrying  out  improvements  to 
the  port,  and  has  under  contemplation  the  early  addition  of  a  third 
dock  to  the  existing  Victoria  and  Prince's  Docks,  which  no  longer  meet 
the  requirements  of  the  local  shipping.  The  foundation  stone  of  this, 
to  be  called  the  Alexandra  Dock,  was  laid  by  His  Royal  Highness 
the  Prince  of  Wales  in  November,  1905. 

A  similar  board  of  fourteen  members,  constituted  under  the  Go- 
vernment of  Lord  Sandhurst  in  1898  and  styled  the  Bombay  City 
Improvement  Trust,  has,  as  already  mentioned,  been  entrusted  with  the 
regeneration  of  the  city  by  the  construction  of  new  thoroughfares, 
the  demolition  of  insanitary  areas,  the  erection  of  sanitary  quarters  for 
the  labouring  classes,  and  the  development  of  valuable  sites  for  build- 
ing. Its  chief  sources  of  revenue  are  an  annual  contribution  from 
the  municipality  and  the  income  from  valuable  property  assigned  to 
it  by  Government. 

There  are  eight  forms  of  land  tenure  existing  in  Bombay  :  namely, 

pension  and   tax,  quit  and  ground    rent,  foras,  loka,  leasehold,  land 

newly  assessed,  tenancies-at-will,  and  inam.     '  Pension  and  tax,'  from 

the    Portuguese  fienfao,    represents   a    fixed    payment    for    fee-simple 

possession  in  compromise  of  a  doubtful  tenure,  and  dates  from  1674. 

It  is  not  subject  to  revision,  and  is  redeemable  on  payment  of  thirty 

years'  assessment.      '  Quit  and  ground  rent '  assessment  represents  a 

tax  imposed  in   17 18  to  cover  the  cost  of  erecting  fortifications,  and 

varies  from  3  to  5^  pies  per  square  yard.     Foras  lands  are  held  on 

payment  of  a  foras  or  rent,  a  term  which  now  refers  only  to  the  rent 

paid  on  lands  given  out  at  a  low  rate  to  persons  willing  to  improve 

them.     The  tenure  dates  from  1740,  when  low-lying  land  was  offered  to 

the  public  for  cultivation  at  a  rent  ox  foras  of  2  pies  per  60  square  yards. 

Toka  represents  a  share  of  the  produce  of  the  land,  the  original  payment 

in  kind  being  subsequently  replaced  by  a  money  payment,  which  in 

1879-80  was  fixed  for  fifty  years.     '  Leasehold'  land  is  held  for  terms 

varying  from  2 1  to  999  years.      '  Newly  assessed  lands  '  are  rated  under 

Act  II  of  1876,  and  the  rates  may  be  raised  from  time  to  time.     The 

chief  holders  of  inam  land  in  the  island  are  the  Lowjl  family  (1783) 

and  the  heirs  of  Jamsetjl  Bomanji  (182 1).     They  pay  no  cess  or  rent 

of  any  kind.     The  revenue  of  Bombay  is  collected  under  a  special  Act 

vol.  viii.  e  e 


4iS 


BOMBAY  CITY 


(Bombay  Act  II  of  1876,  modified  by  Act  III  of  1900),  and  amounted 

in  1903-4  to  3-7  lakhs.     The  excise  revenue,  including  tree  tax  for  the 

same  year,  was  11-7  lakhs. 

Education  was  represented  in  1880-1  by  146  schools  and  colleges 
with  a  total  of  16,413  pupils.  In  1900-1  the  num- 
ber of  pupils  had  risen  to  40,104.     By  the  close  of 

March,  1904,  the  city  possessed  531  educational  institutions  of  all  kinds, 

as  detailed  in  the  subjoined  table  : — 


Class  of  institutions. 

Number. 

Number  of  pupils. 

Male. 

Female. 

Total. 

Public. 

Arts  colleges 
Professional  colleges 
High  schools 
Middle  English  schools  . 
Primary  schools 
Technical  schools  . 
Training  schools    . 

Total  public 
Private          .... 

Grand  total 

3 

2 

36 

49 

196 

10 

2 

1,086 

1,027 

8,495 

2,687 

12,785 
1,283 

29 

45 

i,i73 

943 

6,193 
40 

13 

I.II5 
1,072 

9,668 

3,630 
18,978 

1,323 
13 

298 
233 

27.363 
7,912 

8,436 
2,760 

35,799 
10,672 

53i 

35,2  75 

11,196 

46,47! 

Of  these  institutions  the  Grant  Medical  College,  which  was  established 
in  1845,  prepares  students  for  the  degrees  of  L.M.  &  S.  and  M.D.,  and 
is  the  only  college  of  its  kind  in  the  Presidency.  The  Elphinstone 
College  was  instituted  in  1835  and  is  under  the  management  of  Govern- 
ment. The  Bombay  Law  School,  which  teaches  the  full  course  in  Law, 
is  held  in  the  Elphinstone  College  building.  Among  other  important 
establishments  are  the  Wilson  College,  St.  Xavier's  College,  the  Sir 
Jamsetji  Jljibhoy  School  of  Art,  the  Victoria  Jubilee  Technical  Institute, 
the  Veterinary  College,  and  a  school  for  deaf-mutes.  According  to  the 
Census  of  1901  the  number  of  those  who  are  wholly  illiterate  amounts 
to  81  per  cent,  of  the  total  population. 

A  vigorous  English  and  vernacular  press  flourishes  in  Bombay.  The 
Times  of  India  and  the  Bombay  Gazette,  both  of  them  daily  journals, 
well  edited  and  well  informed,  represent  the  Anglo-Indian  community ; 
and  the  Advocate  of  India,  an  evening  paper,  is  also  widely  circulated. 
The  Bombay  Samdchdr  heads  the  list  of  vernacular  newspapers,  the 
most  important  of  which  are  published  in  Gujaratl. 

For  purposes  of  health  administration  the  city  is  divided  into  4  divi- 
sions of  32  sections,  each  division  being  placed  in  charge  of  a  qualified 
medical  officer  subordinate  to  the  Health  Officer  of 
the  municipality.  The  municipal  hospital  for  infec- 
tious diseases  at  Arthur  Road  is  supplemented  by  numerous  private 


Medical. 


MEDICAL  419 

plague  hospitals  where  members  of  the  different  communities  can  be 
treated.  Altogether  there  are  12  hospitals,  17  dispensaries,  and  19 
private  unaided  institutions  in  Bombay,  including  a  European  General 
Hospital  and  4  hospitals  and  2  dispensaries  for  women.  The  expen- 
diture on  public  medical  institutions  in  1904  was  Rs.  5,25,000  ;  and  the 
annual  attendance  was  18,304  in-patients  and  184,058  out-patients  in 
the  public  institutions,  and  1,355  in-patients  and  191,865  out-patients 
in  the  19  private  institutions.  Besides  these,  3  railway  institutions  and 
4  state  special  institutions  annually  treat  26,000  and  15,000  patients 
respectively.  Under  Act  I  of  1877  vaccination  is  compulsory  in  Bom- 
bay. There  are  13  vaccinating  stations  with  8  vaccinators,  and  the 
number  of  persons  vaccinated  in  1904  was  19,927. 

A  leper  asylum  at  Matunga,  established  by  the  efforts  of  a  former 
Municipal  Commissioner,  Mr.  H.  A.  Acvvorth,  provides  accommodation 
for  370  inmates  at  a  yearly  cost  of  Rs.  33,000.  The  lepers  are  mainly- 
drawn  from  the  neighbouring  coast  districts,  though  some  come  from 
remote  towns  in  Central  Asia.  They  are  employed  in  cultivating  food- 
crops,  assisted  by  a  system  of  septic  sewage  tanks,  and  the  asylum  is 
popular  among  those  who  are  afflicted. 

A  public  lunatic  asylum  is  maintained  at  Colaba  Point  for  Europeans, 
Eurasians,  and  Parsls.  It  had  in  1904  an  average  strength  of  136 
inmates,  costing  Rs.  307  per  head  per  annum. 

On  August  21,  1896,  a  case  of  genuine  bubonic  plague  was  discovered 
in  a  house  in  Mandvi,  a  densely  populated  quarter  of  the  native  town 
on  the  east  side  of  the  island.  The  disease  spread  rapidly,  and  by 
December  the  mortality  of  the  city  had  attained  alarming  dimensions. 
Measures  were  soon  imperatively  demanded  for  checking  the  epidemic. 
The  control  of  these  measures  was  entrusted  to  a  special  committee 
of  officers  appointed  by  Government  and  invested  with  very  full  powers. 
Attempts  were  then  made  to  enforce  the  segregation  of  persons  who  had 
been  in  contact  with  a  plague  patient,  the  removal  of  the  "patients  to 
some  properly  equipped  hospital,  and  the  disinfection  of  clothing  and 
premises.  These  measures  were  essentially  unpopular,  and  besides 
adding  a  stimulus  to  emigration  on  a  large  scale,  the  population  fleeing 
as  much  from  an  unreasoning  fear  of  all  forms  of  control  as  from  terror 
of  the  epidemic,  eventually  led  to  riots  and  bloodshed.  The  position 
was  one  of  extreme  difficulty.  The  sanitary  service  of  the  city  was  in 
the  hands  of  halalkhors  or  scavengers.  Had  these  joined  the  general 
exodus,  the  city  would  in  a  short  time  have  been  rendered  uninhabitable. 
At  the  same  time,  the  exodus  of  panic-stricken  residents  threatened  to 
carry  the  plague  over  the  whole  of  the  Presidency  and  even  beyond  its 
limits.  Attempts  were  made  to  enlist  the  co-operation  of  the  leaders  of 
native  communities ;  gradually  calmer  feelings  began  to  prevail,  and 
with  the  subsidence  of  the  epidemic  in  the  hot  season,  Bombay  tended 


420 


BOMBAY  CITY 


to  resume  its  normal  aspect.  But  in  the  interval  the  exodus  had  been 
enormous  (it  was  roughly  estimated  at  one-half  of  the  population),  the 
disease  had  been  spread  far  and  wide  by  heedless  fugitives,  business  had 
been  brought  almost  to  a  standstill,  and  the  weekly  mortality  had  risen 
to  the  appalling  figure  of  1,900.  Annually  since  the  fatal  year  of  1896 
plague  has  become  epidemic  in  the  city.    The  highest  rates  of  mortality 


•eek  during  the  succe 

eding  years 

were  : 

1897-8 

. 

2,333 

1898-9 

• 

2,412 

1 899- 1 900 

• 

2,772 

1 900- 1 

• 

2,632 

1901-2 

• 

1,902 

1902-3 

, 

2,613 

1903-4 

• 

1,676 

1 904-5 

• 

1,789 

The  usual  season  of  maximum  mortality  is  February  or  March. 
Gradually  it  came  to  be  recognized  that  the  continued  existence  of  the 
plague,  combined  with  the  passive  resistance  of  the  people  to  measures 
which  they  failed  to  approve,  rendered  drastic  expedients  both  undesir- 
able and  inoperative.  After  the  abolition  of  the  plague  committee,  the 
Government  maintained  for  several  years  a  specially  organized  plague 
administration  in  Bombay  city,  charged  with  the  carrying  out  of 
moderate  measures  of  disinfection  and  isolation,  as  far  as  possible 
with  the  concurrence  of  the  victims.  Assistance  was  given  for  the 
evacuation  of  seriously  infected  localities  by  the  erection  of  temporary 
'health  camps'  in  various  parts  of  the  island.  Finally,  in  1901,  the 
control  of  plague  measures  was  handed  over  once  more  to  the  Health 
department  of  the  municipality,  with  whom  it  now  rests.  The  inocula- 
tion of  healthy  persons  with  Haffkine's  preventive  serum  was  carried  out 
on  a  considerable  scale,  and  with  fair  success,  though  the  operation, 
partly  owing  to  the  shortness  of  the  period  for  which  it  offers  protection, 
and  partly  owing  to  prejudice,  was  never  popular. 

[Census  Reports  for  1872,  1881,  and  1901  ;  Sir  J.  M.  Campbell, 
Materials  towards  a  Statistical  Account  of  the  Town  and  Island  of 
Bombay  (Bombay,  1894);  S.  M.  Edwardes,  The  Rise  of  Bombay, 
a  Retrospect  (Bombay,  1902);  J.  Gerson  da  Cunha,  'The  Origin 
of  Bombay,'  extra  number,  Journal  of  the  Bombay  Branch  of  the 
Royal  Asiatic  Society,  1900;  James  Douglas,  Bombay  and  Western 
India,  2  vols.  (1893).] 


TABLE 


421 


Revenue  Account  of  Bombay  Municipality  for   1903-4 

(In  thousands  of  rupees) 


Receipts. 

Expenditure 

Taxation  Proper. 

General  tax        .... 

^9»°3 

General  superintendence 

2,34 

Wheel  tax  and  tolls  . 

3,98 

Assessment  and    collection    and 

Town  duties        .... 

11,69 

revenue  and  refund  audit  de- 

Licences   ..... 

1,06 

partments     .... 

2,99 

Receipts  from   Government   for 

Fire  brigade       .... 

1,24 

liquor  licences 

>>44 

Public      gardens  —  maintenance 

Receipts   from   Government    for 

and  new  works 

67 

tobacco  duty .... 

2,4° 

Public    works    (engineer's)    de- 

partment      .... 

15,82 

Total 

49,60 

New  works         .... 

84 

Public  health  department  . 

i9>79 

Police  charges    .... 

5>°° 

Services  rendered. 

Education           .... 

M3 

Haldlkhor  tax    . 

8,11 

Hospitals  ..... 

55 

Water  tax  and   other  miscella- 

Pensions,   gratuities,    and    com- 

neous water-works  revenue 

l5>71 

passionate  allowance     . 
Contribution    to   the    City    Im- 
provement Trust  . 

Total 

58 

Total 

23,82 

3,50 

54,45 

Returns  from  Property  and 

Municipal  debt  :  — 

Miscellaneous. 

Interest  and  charges  on  loans  . 

2M3 

Market  receipts 

4.53 

Reduction  of  debt  and  pay- 

Public gardens  .... 

1 1 

ment  of  sinking  fund,  includ- 

Tramway rent    .... 

50 

ing    investment    of    interest 

Contribution  from  municipal  ser- 

accrued on  sinking  fund 

6,76 

vants  towards    pension,   &c, 

fund       ..... 

23 

Total 

29,19 

Interest  and   piofit  on  in- 

Investments : — 

vestments  of  surplus  loan 

Municipal  buildings  insurance 

and  other  balances          .     1,36 

fund 

5 

Interest  on  the  sinking,  in- 

Interest on  the  insurance,  worn- 

surance,  worn-out  mains 

out    mains    renewal,    school- 

renewal,  school-building, 

building    and    net    premiums 

and  net  premiums  funds 
investments    .         .         .    2,23 

funds     ..... 

2S 

Total 

33 
23 

3,59 

Miscellaneous    .... 

Miscellaneous    .... 

2,34 

Investment  of  the  premium   on 
the  last  instalment  of  3§  lakhs 

Total 
Grand  total 

",30 

of  the  24^  lakhs  loan 

Grand  total 

11 

84,72 

84,31 

OXFORD 

PRINTED   AT   THE   CLARENDON   PRESS 

BY    HORACE    HART,   M.A. 

PRINTER  TO   THE   UNIVERSITY