Jhalawan
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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Jhalawan
Physical aspect
A highland division of the kalat state , Baluchistan, comprising the Country to the south of kalat as distinguished from Sarawn, the country north of that place, and lying between 25 degree 28' and 29 degree 21' N. and 65 n' and 67 degree 27' E., with an area of 21,128 square miles. It is bounded on the north by the Sarawan country ; on the south by the Las Bela State ; on the east by Kachhi and Sind; and on the west by Kharan and Makran. The boundary between the Jhalawan country and Sind was settled in 1853-4 and demarcated in 1 861-2. Elsewhere it is still undetermined. An imaginary line drawn east and west through Baghwana divides the country into two natural divisions. To the north the general cqn- ditions are those of the upper highlands, and to the south those of the lower highlands of Baluchistan. The country has a gradual slope to the south, with valleys of con- Physical siderable width lying among lofty mountain ranges. Among the more important valleys are Sural) with Gidar, Baghwana, Zahri, Khuzdar with Flrozabacl, Wad, Nal, Saruna, Jau, and the valley of the Mashkai river. The mountains comprise the southern portion of the Central Brahui range, including the Harboi hills and the greater part of the Kirthar and Pab ranges. On the west the Garr hills and their continuation southward separate the country from Kharan and Makran ; in the centre lie a number of more or less de- tached mountains, the chief of which are Dobanzil (7,347 feet), Hushtir (7,260 feet), Shashaii (7,513 feet), and Dra Khel (8,102 feet). The rivers include the Hingol, the largest river in Baluchistan, with its tributaries the Mashkai and the Arra; the Mula, the Hab, and a portion of the Porali. Among the less important streams may be mentioned the Karkh or Karu and the Sain, which debouch into the Kachhi plain near Jhal, and the Kolachi or Gaj, which traverses the centre of the country. None of these rivers possesses a continuous flow of water throughout its course.
In the north of the country nummulitic limestone is met with. Farther south red and white compact limestone (upper Cretaceous) is very extensively distributed. Beds containing chert are of frequent occurrence. Igneous rocks occur near Nal, and on the east are the Kirthar, Nari, and Gaj geological groups.
Vegetation is scanty except in the Harboi hills, on the north, where juniper and wild almond grow in abundance. Elsewhere olive and pistachio occur. In the south the little tree growth includes Capparis aphylla, Prosopis spicigera, two kinds of Acacia, and Tamarix articulata. The northern hill-sides are thickly covered with a scrub jungle of Arte- misia and Haloxylon Griffithii Tulips, irises, and other bulbous plants appear in the spring. The grasses are of the orders Bromus, Poa, and Hordeum. Dwarf-palm (Nannorhops Ritchieand) grows in profusion in the lower hills. Pomegranates are the commonest trees in the gardens, but apricots, mulberries, and dates are also found.
Sind ibex and mountain sheep are the most common game, but their numbers are decreasing. Leopards and black bears are occasionally killed. Wild hog are met with in the Mashkai valley. ‘ Ravine deer' are common. A few grey and black partridge are to be found in Lower Jhalawan ; chikor are numerous in the higher parts, and sisi almost everywhere.
Upper Jhalawan possesses a climate resembling that of Quetta, moderate in summer and cold in winter, with well-marked seasons. The lower parts are pleasant in winter, but subject to intense heat in summer. At this time fever is very prevalent in places south of the Harboi range. Earthquakes frequently occur in the neighbourhood of Wad and Mashkai. The rainfall is scanty, and is received in the upper highlands in winter and in the lower parts in spring or summer.
History
The country passed in the seventh century from the Rai dynasty of Sind to the Arabs, by whom it was known as Turan. Its capital was Khuzdar, which place was also the head-quarters of Sind to the Arab, by general commanding the Indian frontier. Kaikanan, probably the modern Nal, was another place of importance. The Ghaznivids and Ghorids next held the country, and were followed by the Mongols, the advent of Chingiz Khan being still commemorated by the Chingiz Khan rock between Nichara and Pandran. With the rise of the Sumra and Samma dynasties in Sind, the Jat aborigines of the country appear to have gained the ascendancy, but in the middle of the fifteenth century they were ousted by the Mlrwans. Beginning from Nigh&r near Surah, these founders of the Brahui kingdom gradually extended their dominion over all the Jhalawan hills. For many years the country remained firmly attached to the Khans of Kalat ; but the struggles which took place during Mir Khudadad Khan's reign involved the Jhalawan tribesmen also and resuUed in the strangling of then- leader, T§j Muhammad, Zarakzai. In 1869 Jam Mir Khan of Las Bela, who had caused the people of Jhalawan to rebel under Nur-ud-dln Mengal, received a severe defeat in a battle near Khuzdar, when he lost seven guns. Owing to its remoteness from Quetta, the Jhalawan country did not come so quickly and completely under control after the British occupation as the Sarawan country ; and an outbreak which began in 1893 under the leadership of Gauhar Khan, the Zahri chief, simmered till 1895, when it was put down by the Kalat State troops at the fight of Garmap, in which both Gauhar Khan and his son lost their lives.
The country is comparatively rich in archaeological remains. They include many gabrbands or embankments of the fire-worshippers; a curious vaulted burial chamber cut in the slope of the hill near Pand- ran ; and several tombs which indicate a system of superterrene burial. Interesting earthen vessels, and stones bearing Kufic inscriptions, have been excavated from the numerous mounds in the country.
Population
Jhalawan contains no large towns and only 299 permanent villages. Khuzdar is the head-quarters station. Most of the people live in blanket tents or mat huts. The inhabitants, the majority of whom are Brahuis with here and there a few Baloch, Jats, and Loris, number (190 1) 224,073, or about n persons to the square mile. They include the direct subjects of the Khan, such as Kurds, Nigharis, Gazgis, and Naklbs, who cultivate lands in the Khan's niabats; and tribal units. The principal tribes are the Zahri (49,000), the Mengal (69,000), the Muhammad Hasni (53,000), and the Bizanjau (14,000). Among minor tribal groups may be mentioned the Sajdi, Rodeni, Rekizai, Gurgnari, Sumalan, Kambrani, Mirwari, and Kalandarani. The leading chief of the Jhala- wan tribes belongs to the Zarakzai clan of the Zahri tribe. A few Hindus carry on the trade of the country. Most of the people speak Brahul; a few speak Sindl; the remainder, especially on the south- west, Baluchi. The majority of the people are Sunni Muhammadans, but some are Zikris, especially the Sajdis. Agriculture and flock- owning are the only occupations. Every year in September a large migration of nomads takes place to Kachhi and Sind, where they engage in harvesting and return to the highlands in spring.
Agriculture
Cultivation is confined to the valleys and the flats beside the river courses. Most of the cultivated tracts consist of 'dry-crop’ areas, dependent on flood-water which is held up by em- bankments. In comparison with the Sarawan country, irrigation is scarce. It is obtained from springs, from karez, which number only thirty-five, and from channels cut from the rivers. Most of the springs and karez occur in Upper Jhalawan. Tracts irrigated by river water include Zahri, part of Gidar, Khuzdar and Zidi, Karkh and Chakku, the valleys of the Mula and Kolachi rivers, and Mashkai. Well-irrigation is unknown. The soil has a considerable mixture of sand, and is but moderately fertile. ' Dry-crop ' areas produce better crops than ‘ wet' areas, unless the latter are highly manured.
The spring harvest is the most important, consisting chiefly of wheat. On the south-west, however, wheat suffers from the damp caused by the sea-breezes, arid its place is taken by barley. Rice is grown along the banks of the Mula and Kolachi rivers, and, with jowar, forms the chief autumn harvest. Dates are grown in Mashkai. Cultivation is gradually extending, but the people prefer flock-owning to cultivation, and progress is slow. Jhalawan is in fact a vast grazing tract. The bullocks are hardy but small, and a good many are bred in the lower tracts. Sheep and goats are found in vast numbers. The Khorasani variety of sheep is preferred to the indigenous kind, owing to its larger tail. Most of the camels are transport animals, and camel- breeding is almost entirely confined to the Pab range. A few horses are kept in the north, but they are not so numerous as in the Sarawan country.
Lead-smelting was carried on in former days at Sekran near Khuzdar, and Masson mentions the employment of 200 men in 1840, but the industry has now been abandoned. Little is known of the other minerals of the country. Ferrous sulphate (melanterite), known locally as zdgh or khdghal, has been found in the Ledav river and near Zahri. A soft ferruginous lithomarge, known as tnak^ is used as a mordant in dyeing.
Trade and communication
The manufacture of coarse woollen rugs in the dart stitch, and of felts, ropes, and bags, is general; good pile carpets are woven for private use by the Badinzai Kalandaranis of Tutak and at a few other Places - Nichara needlework is famous locally. There is a large export to Sind of matting and materials for mat-making, and many of the people entirely depend on this source of livelihood. The chief centres of trade are Surab, Khuzdar, Nal, Wad, and Mashkai ; but trading is much hin- dered by the levy of transit dues by both the Kalat State and local chiefs. Ghi wool, live sheep, and materials for mats are the principal exports ; coarse cloth, sugar, mustard oil, and jowar are imported.
Railways and metalled roads do not exist. Travellers follow camel- tracks, the most important of which are the Kalat-Bela route, known as the Kohan-wat, via Khuzdar, Wad, and the B£ran Lak ; the KaUtt- Panjgur route via Sural) ; and the Kachhi-Makran route via the Mula Pass, Khuzdar, Nal, and Mashkai. An unmetalled road is now under construction between Kalat and Wad.
Famine
Drought is frequent, owing to the shortness of the rainfall, but the proximity of Sind enables the inhabitants to find a ready means of support at such times. During a drought of ex- ceptional severity, which began in 1897 and cul- minated in 1 90 1, Brahuis were known in several instances to have taken their daughters of marriageable age to Sind, where the high bride-prices obtained for them enabled the parents to tide over the bad times. Cases have also been known in which servile dependants were exchanged for a maund of dates.
Administration
Since 1903 an officer, known as the Native Assistant for the Jhalawan country, has been posted to Khuzdar by the Khan of Kalat under the supervision of the Political Agent. He is supported by twenty levies, and decides petty intertribal and other cases with the assistance of jirgas. For administrative purposes, the country consists of areas subject to the Khan of Kalat and of tribal areas. The former include the niabats of Surab and Khuzdar, each of which is in charge of a ndib. In Surab there is a ja - nashin, or assistant, stationed at Mashkai ; and in Khuzdar three jd-nashins, stationed at Karkh or Kara, Zidi, and Baghwana. The Khan's in- terests in Zahri are supervised by a daroga. His rights at Gazg are leased to a farmer with those of Johan in the Sarawan country. In former times the Khan's naibs exercised a general control and com- municated the Khan's orders to the tribal chiefs ; but the latter are now largely controlled by the Political Agent through the Native Assistant in the Jhalawan country. They decide cases occurring among their tribesmen according to tribal custom. In civil suits, a custom has been established of taking one-fourth of the value of the property decreed.
Land revenue, in the case of the subjects of the Khan, is always taken in produce, the rates generally varying from one-fourth to one- eighth. Cesses, known as rasum or lawazimat, are also levied, by which the State share is largely increased. Transit dues, and fines known as bddi aawai, constitute the other sources of revenue in the niabats. Contrary to the custom in the Sarawan country, the Jhalawan chiefs exact tnalia from their tribesmen, generally in the shape of one sheep per household annually. Sheep are also taken on marriages and other festivals in a chiefs household, and on the occurrence of deaths. These payments are known as bijdr and purs. Some of the chiefs also levy octroi and transit dues. The value of the total revenue from the Khan's niabats varies with the agricultural condi- tions of the year. In 1903-4 the approximate amounts received were as follows: Surab with Mashkai, Rs. 15,500; Khuzdar, Rs. 14,200; Zahri, Rs. 1,300; total, Rs. 31,000.
In 1894, owing to the unsatisfactory state of affairs in Jhalawan, the Khan sanctioned payments aggregating about Rs. 40,000 per annum to the chiefs of the principal tribes, in return for which they were made responsible for the peace of their respective areas. This sum included the allowances of the Rind and Magassi chiefs in Kachhi. A sum of Rs. 3,600 is also contributed by the British Government. At this time tribal levy posts of ten men each were also instituted at Zahri and Saruna. A post of ten men has since been stationed at Surab, besides the Native Assistant's levies at Khuz- dar. The naib of Khuzdar is assisted by forty-five levies for revenue and police purposes, and the naib of Surab by twenty-five men ; but these numbers are increased or reduced as occasion requires. The naibs and stronger chiefs generally have stocks in their forts or houses in which offenders are placed.
A few of the chiefs employ Afghan mullas for teaching their sons ; otherwise education is unknown. The people are very superstitious, and have a firm belief in the influence of evil spirits, to whom diseases are generally attributed. A few resort to the dispensary at Kalat for medical treatment. They are well versed in the use, as remedies, of the medicinal drugs which the country produces in large quantities. The sick are frequently branded ; for fevers the usual remedy is to wrap the patient in the fresh skin of a sheep or goat. Inoculation by Saiyids is general, except in the case of the Zikris.
