Muzaffarnagar District, 1908
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.
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Muzaffarnagar District
Physical aspects
District in the Meerut Division of the United Provinces, lying between 29° 10' and 29° 45' N. and 77° 2' and 78° Y E., with an area of 1,666 square miles. On the north it is bounded by Saharanpur District, and on the south by Meerut, while the Ganges separates it on the east from Bijnor, and the Jumna on the west from the Punjab District of Karnal. Muzaffarnagar consists of a central elevated tract, flanked on either side by the low-lying land or khddar of the Ganges and Jumna. The Ganges khddar is a precarious tract of moist land with scanty cultivation, but gene- covered with coarse grass and occasional patches of tamarisk. The northern portion, included in the Gordhanpur pargana, is especially liable to flooding from the Solani river, which is increased by percolation from the Upper Ganges Canal. Drains and dams have been constructed with but little success, and the khudat- is chiefly valuable as a grazing ground. The Jumna khddar is less swampy, but is equally poor, and much of it is covered with dhdk jungle {Butea frondosa). The uplands are divided into four tracts by four rivers flowing from north to south. On the east is the large tract lying between the old high bank of the Ganges and the West Kaii Nadi, which is watered by the Upper Ganges Canal. This tract is generally fertile, but is crossed by a sandy ridge, and suffers from excessive moisture near the Kali Nadl. Between this river and the HiNDAN lies another fertile tract, which was immensely improved by the opening of the Deoband branch of the Ganges Canal in 1880, as the spring-level is very low. This area is less sandy than the first, but is crossed by one well-defined belt of sand. West of the Hindan, sand is comparatively rare ; and the tract between this river and the Karsuni or Krishnl is uniformly good in the centre, though less fertile in the north and south. Between the Karsuni and Katha, which marks the beginning of the Jumna tract, lies an area which is flourishing in the south, but inferior in the north, where population is scarce. This tract is watered by the Eastern Jumna Canal. The District consists entirely of the Gangetic alluvium, which varies from fine sand to stiff clay.
The botany of the District presents no peculiarities. In the north- west corner dhdk jungle is abundant. About 16 square miles are under groves, the mango, pomegranate, and guava being the favourite trees. Shisham, Ja??w?i, and siras are the most common species in avenues. Thatching-grass is abundant, but its use is giving way to that of tiles.
Wolves are fairly common, and wild hog swarm in the khddar and near the canals. Hog deer are also found near swampy land, and leopards are occasionally seen. Tigers, which were formerly common, are now very rare.
The climate is comparatively cool, owing to the proximity of the hills, and the mean temperature is about 76"^. There can be no reasonable doubt that the wide extension of irrigation has had a prejudicial effect on the climate, and its stoppage near towns has occasionally been necessary in the interest of the public health.
The rainfall over a long series of years has averaged 33 inches, increasing gradually from 30 inches in the west to about 37 inches in the east. Large variations from the normal are not very common.
History
Tradition represents Muzaffarnagar as having formed a portion of the Pandava kingdom, which had its capital at Hastinapur in the adjoining District of Meerut, and at a more historical date as being included in the dominions of PrithwT Raj, the Chauhan ruler of Delhi. Authentic history first shows us the country around Muzaffarnagar at the time of the Musalman conquest in the thirteenth century, and it remained a dependency of the various dynasties which ruled at Delhi until the final dissolution of the Mughal empire. The earliest colonists probably consisted of Aryan settlers, Brahman and Rajput. They were succeeded by the Jats, who occupied the whole southern portion of the District, where their descendants still form the chief landowning class. At a later date, the Giijars took possession of the poorer tracts which the Jats had left unoccupied, and they, too, are still to be found as zamtnddrs. Finally, with the Muhammadan irruptions, bodies of Shaikhs, Saiyids, and Pathans entered Muzaffarnagar, and parcelled out among themselves the re- mainder of the territory.
Timur paid one of his sanguinary visits to the District in 1399, when all the infidel inhabitants whom he could capture were mercilessly put to the sword. Under Akbar, Muzaffarnagar was included in the sarkdr of Saharanpur. During the seventeenth century, the Saiyid family of Barha rose to great eminence, and filled many important offices about the court. Their ancestors are said to have settled in Muzaffarnagar about the year 1350, and to have enjoyed the patronage of the Saiyid dynasty which ruled at Delhi in the succeeding century. In 1414 Sultan Khizr Khan conferred the control of Saharanpur on Saiyid Sallm, the chief of their fraternity : and from that time forward they rose rapidly to territorial power and court influence. Under Akbar and his successors, various branches of the Barha stock became the leading landowners in the province.
They were celebrated as daring military leaders, being employed by the emperors on all services of danger, from the Indus to the Narbada. It was mainly through their aid that the victory near Agra was won in 1707, by which Bahadur Shah I made good his claim to the imperial title. The part which they bore in the revolution of 171 2, when Farrukh Siyar was elevated to the throne, belongs to the general history of India. As a reward for the important services rendered on that occasion, Saiyid Abdullah was appointed Wazir of the empire, and Saiyid Husain All commander- in-chief. On their fall in 1721, the power of the Barha family began to wane, until, in 1737, they were almost exterminated, on a pretext of a rebellious design, by their inveterate enemy the WazTr Kamar-ud-dln.
During the whole of the disastrous eighteenth century Muzaffarnagar suffered from the same Sikh incursions which devastated the remainder of the Upper Doab. The Sikhs were assisted in their raids by the Gujars, whose semi-nomad life made them ever ready to join in rebeUion against the government of the time. As regularly as the crops were cut, Sikh chieftains poured their predatory hordes into the Doab, and levied an organized blackmail. The country was divided between them into regular circuits, and each chieftain collected requisi- tions from his own circuit only. It was during this anarchic period that those mud forts began to spring up which became in time so characteristic of the Upper Doab. In 1788 the District fell into the hands of the ]\Iarathas, under whom the famous military adventurer, George Thomas, endeavoured with some success to prevent the con- stant raids across the Jumna. The Begam Sumru of Sardhana in Meerut District held large possessions in the southern parganas at the end of the eighteenth century.
After the fall of Aligarh in 1803, the whole Doab as far north as the Siwalik Hills came, without a blow, under the power of the British. A final Sikh invasion occurred in the following year, encouraged by the advance of Holkar's forces ; but it was promptly suppressed by Colonel Burn, who drove the intruders back across the river.
The first incident which broke the course of civil administration was the Mutiny of 1857. On the news of the outbreak at Meerut, the Magistrate of Muzafifarnagar, who was then in weak health and about to go on leave, issued orders that all the public offices should be closed. This measure naturally produced a general impression that British rule was suspended. At first there was no open rebellion, and the semblance of government was kept up, but plunder and incendiarism went on un- molested. At length, on June 21, the 4th Irregulars rose in revolt and murdered their commanding officer as well as another European, after which they marched off to Shamir. Five days later, a party of the 3rd Cavalry arrived at the town ; and on July i Mr. R. M. Edwards came in from Saharanpur with a body of Gurkhas, and took charge of the administration. Vigorous measures were at once adopted to repress crime and collect revenue, the good effects of which became quickly apparent. The western parganas, however, remained in open revolt ; and the rebels of Thana Bhawan attacked Shamli, where they massacred 113 persons in cold blood. Reinforcements shortly after arrived from Meerut ; and Thana Bhawan, being evacuated by the rebels, had its walls and gates razed to the ground. After this occurrence no notable event took place, though the troops were kept perpetually on the move, marching backwards and forwards along the Ganges, and watching the mutineers on the opposite bank. Order was restored long before the end of the Mutiny.
There are no important Hindu buildings, but pious Muhammadans have erected many mosques and tombs in different parts of the District. Several buildings at Kairaxa date from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries; at INIajhera, 18 miles south-east of Muzaffarnagar, there are some sixteenth-century tombs of the Saiyids ; and at Ghausgarh, 2 1 miles north-west, are the remains of a fort built by Najib Khan, the Rohilla, and a fine mosque erected by his son.
Population
The District contains 15 towns and 913 villages. Population has risen steadily. The number at the last four enumerations was as follows: (1872) 690,107, (1881) 758,444, (1891) Population. 772,874, and (1901) 877,188. There are four tahsils — Muzaffarnagar, Kairana, Jansath, and Budhana — the head-quarters of each being at a town of the same name. The chief towns are the municipalities of Muzaffarnagar, the administrative head-quarters of the District, Kairana, and Kandhla. The principal statistics of population in 1901 are shown below : —
Budhana, which has the densest population, has the smallest area of inferior khadar land. Between 1891 and 1901 the District shared in the general prosperity of the Upper Doab, which profited by the high prices in 1896-7, when famine attacked other parts of the Provinces. Hindus number 607,000, or 69 per cent, of the total ; Muhammadans, 255,000, or 29 per cent. ; and Jains, 10,150, or 1-2 per cent. The number of Aryas is 3,000, and this form of belief is rapidly increasing. More than 99 per cent, of the population speak Hindustani. A small colony of emigrants from Sind still use Sindi.
Among the Hindus, Chamars (leather-workers and labourers) number 135,000 ; followed by the Jats (83,000), who are excellent cultivators. Kahars (labourers, cultivators, and fishermen) and Brahmans, with 47,000 each, come next. Rajputs include 29,000 Hindus and 24,000 Musalmans ; and Banias 29,000, many of whom are Jains. Among the castes peculiar to the western Districts of the United Provinces are the Jats ; the Gujars (agriculturists), 31,000; Sainis (cultivators), 26,000; and Tagas (agriculturists), 10,000. The Bauriyas (726) are a criminal tribe peculiar to this District, the members of which steal and pass base money all over India. They are confined to a tract in the extreme west of the District, where they were settled by Government. The most numerous IMusalman caste is that of the Julahas or weavers (29,000) ; but the Saiyids, who have been referred to in the history of the District, are very influential, though they number only 14,000. Shaikhs number 26,000; Pathans, 12,000; Telis (oil-pressers), 14,000; and Kassabs (butchers), 14,000. The Jhojhas (8,000) and Garas (6,000) are excellent cultivators, found chiefly in this District and in Saharanpur. The population is largely agricultural, 49 per cent, being supported by occupations connected with the land. General labour supports II per cent, and personal services 10 per cent.
Out of 1,402 Christians in 1901, natives numbered 1,259, <-*f whom nearly 1,200 were Methodists. These are all recent converts of the American Methodist Mission, which has a branch here. The American Presbyterian Church also commenced work in 1887.
Agriculture
The most striking feature in the methods of cultivation is tlie high standard set by the Jats. Manure is not confined to the area im- mediately surrounding the village site, but each field of good land is manured in turn. This is largely due to the importance of the sugar-cane crop, which requires much manure and careful cultivation. The injurious saline efflorescence called reh is found most abundantly in the Jumna khddar and near the Eastern Jumna Canal, and occasionally along the West Kali Nadi and the Ganges Canal.
The tenures are those found in most parts of the United Provinces. In 1890 there were 1,347 zamindari, 1,069 bhaiydchard^ and 579 pattiddri viahdls. The principal agricultural statistics for 1903-4 are shown in the following table, areas being in square miles : —
The most important food-grains are wheat and gram, the areas under
which in 1903-4 were 445 and 189 square miles respectively, or 38
and 16 per cent, of the net area cropped. A more valuable crop is,
however, sugar-cane, with an area of no square miles. Rice, which is
increasing in importance, especially in the case of the finer varieties,
covered 86 square miles. Cotton is a valuable crop, but was grown
on only 22 square miles, chiefly in Budhana.
almost died out.
Indigo cultivation has The development of the canal system — especially the extension of canal-irrigation to the tract between the Kali Nadi and Hindan — has been an important factor in the agricultural condition ; and it has been assisted by drainage operations, which have led to the extension of culti- vation by 10,000 acres in the north-west corner of the District alone. The normal area cultivated is about 66 per cent, of the whole. Muzafifarnagar wheat is celebrated throughout the Provinces, and care- fully selected seed is exported to other Districts. From 1895 to 1900 loans were freely taken under the Agriculturists" Loans Act, the total being about Rs. 60,000 ; but the annual advances since then have fallen to about Rs, 1,500 or Rs. 1,000. Advances under the Land Improve- ment Loans Act amount to only about Rs. 1,000 annually.
The domestic breed of cattle is inferior, and the best cattle are im- ported from the Punjab. The khddar is, however, noted as a grazing ground where breeders bring cattle. Horse-breeding is very popular, and there are about 20 Government stallions and 600 branded mares. Every year in March a large horse show is held at Muzaffarnagar, where about 1,000 animals are exhibited. Li 1903 the supervision of horse- breeding in this District was transferred from the Civil Veterinary to the Military Remount department. Rajputs, Jats, and Gujars are the chief breeders. Sheep are kept for their wool and meat, and goats for milk and meat.
Few Districts are so well protected by canals as Muzaffarnagar. Almost every part of the upland area is commanded, the western portion by the Eastern Jumna Canal, the centre by the Deoband branch of the Upper Ganges Canal, and the east by the latter main canal and the Anupshahr branch. More than 1,000 square miles are commanded and 450 could be irrigated annually. In 1903-4, 340 square miles were irrigated by canals and 130 by wells, other sources supplying only 7 square miles, ^^'ell-irrigation is especially required in the western tract to supplement the supply from the Eastern Jumna Canal. The usual method of supply is by a leathern bag with a rope and pulley worked by bullocks ; but the Persian wheel is used in the west of the District. The Canal department has constructed and maintains more than 500 miles of drains.
Trade and Communication
The chief mineral product of value is kankar or nodular limestone, but this is scarce. Reh, a saline efflorescence of varying composition, is used for glass-making and some other purposes.
There are few manufactures of importance. Cotton-weaving supports about 3 per cent, of the population. At Kairana calico-printing is carried on to a small extent for a local market ; and ornamental curtains are made there and at a few co Jmi^ications. other places. Good country blankets are manufac- tured, especially at Gangeru, and are exported. A coarse blue faience is made at Miranpur, but this is inferior to the products of other Districts ; papier mache is prepared in small quantities at the same place. Two small indigo factories are still worked. The use of iron sugar-mills has led to the establishment of depots for their supply and repair in many towns.
The most important article of export is wheat, which has obtained a good name and commands a high price in the European market. Nearly 30,000 tons of wheat were exported annually between 1897 and 1 90 1 from Muzaffarnagar and Khatauli stations. Large quantities of unrefined sugar are also exported, usually by railway, but the trade with the Punjab is partly carried on by means of pack-camels. The other exports are rice and oilseeds.
The North-Western Railway from Delhi to Saharanpur passes through the centre of the District from south to north, and has four stations. The Oudh and Rohilkhand Railway just touches the District in the north-east corner, but hardly affects it. A light railway is under con- struction from Shahdara in Meerut District to Saharanpur, which will tap a rich tract in the west of the District.
There are only 78 miles of metalled roads and 321 miles of un- metalled roads. All but 35 miles are maintained from Local funds. Avenues of trees are kept up along 1 50 miles. Good village roads are incompatible with easy canal-irrigation, and the local roads are often extremely bad, especially in the northern part of the Jumna Canal tract. They are best in the south of the District. The Ganges khadar also has poor communications. The Ganges is crossed by two boat bridges, and there are two main ferries over the Jumna.
Famine
The Ganges Canal is used for the transit of grain and timber, but the rivers are little used as means of communication.
Nothing is known of the history of famines in Muzaffarnagar before British rule, but it probably suffered less than the Districts farther south . in the many severe visitations which devastated the
Doab. Scarcity was felt in 1 803, and again in 1 824, and famine in 1837, when Rs. 40,000 of revenue was remitted. The Eastern Jumna Canal was opened in 1830, and the Ganges Canal in 1854. Owing chiefly to the latter, the famine of 1 860-1 was not much felt. The Anupshahr branch of the Ganges Canal was, however, commenced as a relief work. In 1868-9 '^^e protection of the canals was even more marked, and large stores of grain existed, while distress was further relieved by the demand for work on the Sind, Punjab, and Delhi (now called the North-Western) Railway. Numbers of immi- grants poured in from Bikaner and Western Rajputana. Since 1869 the District has practically escaped famine; and high prices in 1877, 1896, and 1900 were a source of profit to the agricultural inhabitants, though immigrants in distressed circumstances were numerous. The opening of the Deoband branch canal in 1880 has further protected an important tract.
Administration
The District is divided into four tahsils and seventeen parganas. The normal District staff includes, besides the Col- .... lector, four Assistants with full powers, one of whom is a Covenanted Civilian, when available, the rest being Deputy- Collectors recruited in. India.
There are two Munsifs in the District, which is included in the jurisdiction of the Subordinate Judge of Saharanpur and in the Civil and Session Judgeship of the same place. Muzaffarnagar has a bad reputation for murders and cattle-theft, while gang dacoities are not uncommon. The Gujars are particularly turbulent, and the Bauriyas and gipsy tribes — such as Sansiyas, Kanjars, and Nats — are respon- sible for many thefts and burglaries. Infanticide was formerly very prevalent, but is not suspected now.
The District was acquired in 1803, and at first part was included in Saharanpur District, and part administered by the Resident at Delhi. In 1824 the present District was formed by creating a sub-collectorship at Muzaffarnagar, which became a separate District in 1826. The early settlements thus formed part of those for Saharanpur. Quinquennial settlements were made in 1825 and 1830, the latter being extended till 1840. Operations for the first regular settlement began with- measure- ments in 1836 and 1838, when the soil was classified into, circles and average rent-rates were obtained to form the basis of assessment. The rent-rates were really calculated from valuations of produce and the method of division of that produce, as rent was generally paid in kind, and in many villages where the tenure was bhaiydchdrd there were no rents, as the co-sharers cultivated practically the whole area. The total demand was 11-2 lakhs, calculated at two-thirds of the rental 'assets,' and the settlement lasted twenty years. War, famine, and pestilence swept over the District before the next settlement operations began in i860, and the new revenue at half 'assets' remained at 11-2 lakhs. In this settlement rent rates were calculated on an average of the rates paid in previous years. Inquiries were made with a view to making a permanent settlement, which was not granted, and the assessment was raised in various tracts in 1870 when it was found inadequate. The last settlement was completed in 1892 for thirty years, and the revenue was fixed at 15-1 lakhs, rising to 15-6 lakhs. The assessment was based on recorded rents, corrected where necessary ; but the area for which rents were not paid was as high as 47-5 per cent, of the total, chiefly owing to the large proprietary cultivation. The revenue amounted to 48 per cent, of the assessable 'assets.' The incidence varied from Rs. 1-3 to Rs. 3-6 per acre, the average being Rs. 2-6.
The collections on account of land revenue and total revenue are shown below, in thousands of rupees : —
There are three municipalities — Muzaffarnagar, Kandhla, and Kairana — and eleven towns are administered under Act XX of 1856. In 1903-4 the District board had an income of i-i lakhs and an expenditure of x-\ lakhs. The expenditure on roads and buildings was Rs. 64,000.
The District Superintendent of police is assisted by three inspectors, and is in charge of 75 ofificers and 296 men of the regular police, besides 209 municipal and town police, and 1,277 village, road, and canal watchmen. The average daily number of prisoners in the District jail in 1903 was 168.
The District takes a medium place in the Provinces as regards the literacy of its population, of whom 2-6 per cent. (4-7 males and c-i females) can read and write. In 1 880-1 there were 135 schools under Government inspection, attended by 3,779 pupils, and in 1900-1 156 schools with 6,366 pupils. In 1903-4, 194 such schools contained 7,404 pupils including 192 girls, besides 398 private schools with 5,533 scholars, of whom 157 were girls. Of the public schools, 2 were managed by Government and 114 by the District and municipal boards. Out of a total expenditure of Rs. 32,000, Rs. 4,000 was derived from fees and Rs. 28,000 from Local and municipal funds.
In 1903 there were seven hospitals and dispensaries, with accom- modation for 65 in-patients. The number of cases treated was 70,000, of whom 1,000 were in-patients, and 4,600 operations were performed. The total expenditure was Rs. 12,600, chiefly met from Local and municipal funds.
In 1903-4, 29,000 persons were vaccinated, representing t^2> P^^" 1,000 of the population. Vaccination is compulsory only in the municipalities.
[H. R. Nevill, District Gazetteer (1903); J. O. Miller, Settlement Report (1892).]
