Phillaur Town
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.
Phillaur Town
Head-quarters of the tahsil of the same name in Jullundur District, Punjab, situated in 31 1' N. and 75 48' E., on the north bank of the Sutlej, on the North-Western Railway and the grand trunk road. Population (1901), 6,986. The town was founded by Shah Jahan, who built a royal sarai here, converted by Ranjit Singh into a fort in consequence of the British occupation of Ludhi- ana. A cantonment was established here after the first Sikh War, but the native troops mutinied in 1857 and it was not reoccupied. The fort was made over in 1891 to the Police department, and is now occupied by the Police Training School and the central bureau of the Criminal Identification Department. The chief commercial im- portance of the place is as a timber market. Its only manufacture is that of cotton cloth. The Sutlej is crossed here by a railway bridge 5,193 feet long, completed in 1870. There is no foot-bridge, but ferry trains are run at frequent intervals. The municipality was created in 1867. The income and expenditure during the ten years ending 1902-3 averaged Rs. 9,400. In 1903-4 the income was Rs. 11,000, chiefly from octroi; and the expenditure was Rs. 11,000. The town has an Anglo-vernacular middle school, maintained by the municipality, and a Government dispensary.
