Bastar state

Bastar was a princely state in the British Indian province of Central Provinces. Its capital was the city of Jagdalpur. The country had 1941 634.000 inhabitants and an area of 35,490 km ².

History

According to legend, Bastar in 1324 by Raja Annam Dev, a brother of the Raja of Warangal, founded under the protection of the tribal goddess Danteshwari who is honored at the annual Dussehra festival. The dynasty ruled a total of 20 generations.

First one came under the influence of Marathas and then under the British. Raja Rudra Pratap Deo 1870, was forced to sign a protection treaty, which ceded the significant control, such as the management of forests, the Political Agent of the Chhattisgarh Division of Central Provinces. The British were, however, have been as early as 1848 the view that the state is too poor to incorporate it themselves. Since 1888, during the minority of the Raja of the country was, for the first time under the Court of Wards de facto under direct British rule.

For the colonial period, there was a series of regional rebellions, of which the Halba rebellion ( 1774-79 ), the Tarapur Uprising ( 1842-54 ), the Meria Rebellion ( 1842-63 ), the Koi revolt (1859 ) and the Muria rebellion (1876 ) were important. Since 1893, the American Methodist Mission tried to convert the inhabitants. The unit is called Bhumkal uprising of February to mid-May 1910, driven mainly by members of the indigenous tribes ( tribals ). It was the largest in the history of this small country. From about 1927 the administrators planned to transform the areas inhabited by the tribals in reserves to maintain their original way of life. This policy was particularly Verrier Elwin from anthropologists, both official represented.

Since about 1925 agents recruited workers in the tea gardens of Assam. The destruction of forests, particularly by Teakeinschlag for railway sleepers continuously, increased. The number of recruits rose by the year 1946/47 to 1300. From 1942 there was a recruiting office of the army. All this accelerated the disintegration of the traditional social structure. 1941 could read and write 0.1 % of the population.

Pravir Chandra Deo Bhanj, the last ruler was shortly before the independence of India of age in July 1947 and ascended the vacant since the death of his mother in 1936 throne. Already in the following year he abdicated. The country was combined with the state located in the north Kanker district to Bastar, which was then incorporated in the state of Madhya Pradesh.

State and Finance

Traditionally, the state -funded - in this case the " State " is equated with the Raja and his needs - as in the Mughal Empire usual: tax collection was made, albeit with local characteristics on the basis of the administrative divisions, by officials or tax farmers. Land could not be sold, it went on only in the case of inheritance. Eviction was only possible with tax debts. Often whole villages fled from excessive tax assets, the tax collector then gave up their rights to the Raja back because they could not afford the abgemachte fixed salary.

Khalsa called districts subordinate to the Raja directly, much of the land were leased to zamindars, who acted as their own little sovereign in their areas. Villages of tribals paid usually collectively a fixed tribute. Were managed by the Khalsa Diwan, who appointed a manager for one or more sub-districts. The Negi under him managed and administered justice over several villages, in part, they were supported by Hikmi. In some areas there was a separate tax officials, the Adkhari, who collected the taxes from the village heads or chiefs. Civil servants were paid partly in kind and partly in Kauri. The Natural taxes were housed in government warehouses. For amounts not spent the officials and the budget of the Rajas, presented the prince vouchers as payment for services. Often the government revenues from fines were higher than those of the Khalsa - country tax. With the coming of the British, the burden of the state increased. In the first half of the 19th century. the tax burden rose by up to ½. Base was "a plow, " an area that could be plowed with two draft animals, and consequently 10-12 acres. Artisans paid a poll tax, for example, in Webern accounted for with an annual income of Rs 50, about 3 Rs. The Raja should get per harvested tree also 4 Anna. The detailed duties were held for each village in the control register. Precise cadastral data were missing until the post- colonial period.

The 1867 came into office sofa Gopinath Kapardas resulted in the Khalsa, mainly in the eastern part of the country, the first time a lease system, similar to the permanent settlement one in which the applicant brought Malguzar taxes, but not a percentage but a fixed rate led away to the sofa. This led to arbitrary and often violent, excessive collection and was a major reason for the Muria rebellion in 1876. The tax per plow in 1867 to Rs 2 4 A. Cash, to about 80 kg unthreshed rice, 10 kg legumes and about 4 lb. Oil set. Five years later, the tax on Rs 3 and 120 kg of rice, in addition to increased legumes and oil. Furthermore, the farmers were obliged to pay the Malguzar three days in the year forced labor. The right to request was often abused and farmers were 10 days or longer in service. Later they were also used for road construction, sometimes up to 2 months at a time. The forced labor were abolished only in 1929, although this was one of the main concerns when Bhumkal 1910. As a substitute special levies for schools, roads, etc., were collected. In 1932 a head tax 1-4 ​​Anna was then required for all adult men.

The preference of the Rajas Bhairam Deo for pedigree dogs and horses meant that he often left entire villages to pay its debts to traders for exploitation. From 1898, all taxes in cash were due. The associated abolition of government-owned warehouses exacerbated the famine in years of drought. 1898 a tax on forest products has been introduced throughout india for private benefit, the Anna 2 per capita for farmers, twice for urban artisans was by the Forest Department. Pro " plow " came to four Anna for pasture use. Non- indigenous inhabitants were additionally loaded firewood control with 3 Annas. In 1906, approximately 246,000 inhabitants paid the taxes and Rs 130,000 to the Forest Department Rs 64,000 fees.

Justice

Until 1856, the Court was entirely in the hands of the Rajas. After the intervention the most severe cases were submitted to the British Deputy Commissioner in Raipur. Appointments had to be submitted through the chief of police in Jagdalpur.

In 1873 there were in the land of nine justices, the cases could decide to Rs 50. In the villages, the tribals was usually judged by the Panchayats. Graver was decided in an absolutist manner by the Raja, his brother or the sofa. The Raja Deo Bhairam limited his state business on 2-3 hours of the evening in a relaxed atmosphere. Compared to the British declared it, it'll strictly proceed according to the Criminal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code, although this only in 1893 in the land law were. From about 1880, the Raja Ghat on court judgments began to precipitate, often without hearing the accused party at all during his evening bath. Reports of the colonial masters that time described the judiciary as " a joke " When the State was administered directly under the Court of Wards during the minority of Rudra Pratap Deo, it came to building a "modern" police after the pattern of other parts of the country, but what was still enough open opportunities for corruption. So demanded police completed investigations for 1/20 of the harvest as a fee.

After the creation of reserved forests by the Forest Act in 1878 many offenses were regarding forest use, which belonged to the traditional way of life, added. These were followed rigorously the British side. The anthropologist Verrier Elwin could find in 1944 that "every Tribal least once any prohibition excreted daily for forest use. "

The competence of the Panchayats has been extended experimentally in the 1920s. They were now negotiating box rules, matrimonial disputes and 17 different minor crimes and assess penalties up to 25 Rs. Appeals went to Panchayats on Pargana level. The local police had a right of veto, and could require that certain procedures had to negotiate before regular courts again. Was laid down by law, this method 1932.

Ruler of Bastar

With the " voluntary" accession of the little country to the Indian Union on January 1, 1948 ended the rule of the dynasty, however, persists. Under the leadership of:

107869
de