Kalahasti Zamindari

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This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS.

Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.

Kalahasti Zamindari

One of the largest zamindari estates in Madras, situated partly in North Arcot District, partly in Nellore, and partly in Chingleput. Number of villages, 406 in North Arcot, 201 in Nellore, and 206 in Chingleput; area, 638 square miles in North Arcot, 576 in Nellore, and 250 in Chingleput ; total population (1901), 223,327. The capital is Kalahasti Town, where the zamindar resides. The history of the family, which belongs to the Velama caste, is obscure. The original owner of the estate probably received it from a king of the Vijayanagar dynasty in the fifteenth century, on condition of maintaining order. The estate at one time spread as far as the site of Fort St. George, and the Company obtained the land on which Madras now stands from the proprietor in 1639. The settlement is tradition- ally said to have been named Chennappapatnam in honour of the zamindar’s father.

The estate came under British control in 1792, and a formal grant to the family was made in 1801. The zamindar afterwards received the hereditary title of Raja. The gross income amounts to over 5 lakhs. The peshkash (or permanent revenue paid to Government) for the whole of it is 1.7 lakhs, and the demand for land cess amounts to Rs. 35,000. Owing to the estate being heavily encumbered, it was recently taken under the management of the Court of Wards, but it has now been handed back to the proprietor. The estate is in a great measure covered by scrub jungle, especially the portion in North Arcot District. Much firewood is sent to Madras city from these forests ; and leopards, bears, and small game are fairly numerous in them. A large number of the jungle tribes of Irulas and Yanadis subsist by gathering honey, roots, and bark for sale in the neighbouring villages. The soil is not very rich, but about 140,000 acres are under cultivation.