Auraiya district is one of the districts of Uttar Pradeshstate of India, and Auraiya town is the district headquarters.[2] It lies on the south-western portion of Uttar Pradesh and also forms a part of the Kanpur Division.
On 17 September 1997 two tehsils named Auraiya and Bidhuna were separated from district Etawah to form the new district named as Auraiya. It is situated on National Highway 19 (Mughal Road) and 64km in the east of district headquarters of Etawah and 105km in west of Kanpur.
Modern History
Under the Rohillas In 1760 ADAhmad Shah Durrani invaded India; he was opposed in 1761 by the Marathas on the field of Panipat and inflicted on them a signal defeat. Among other Maratha chieftains Govind Rao Pandit lost his life in the action. Before his departure from India the Durrani chief consigned large tracts of country to the Rohilla chieftains, and while Dhunde Khan received Shikohabad, Inayat Khan, son of Hafiz Rahmat Khan received the district of Etawah. This was then in the possession of the Marathas, and accordingly in 1762 a Rohilla force was sent under Mullah Mohsin Khan to wrest the assigned property from the Marathas. This force was opposed near the town of Etawah by Kishan Rao and Bala Rao Pandits, who were defeated and compelled to seek safety in flight across the Yamuna. Siege was then laid to the fort of Etawah by Mohsin Khan; but the fort was soon surrendered by its commander, and the district fell into the hands of the Rohillas.
The occupation, however, was merely nominal at first; the zamindars refused to pay revenue to Inayat Khan and, secure in their mud forts set his authority at defiance. Strong reinforcements were sent to the Rohillas, including some artillery, under Sheikh Kuber and Mullah Baz Khan, and many of the smaller forts were levelled to the grounds; but in their ravine fortresses the zamindars of Kamait in the trans-Yamuna tract still resisted the authority of Inayat Khan. Hafiz Rahmat and Inayat Khan then came in person to Etawah and operations were vigorously pressed against the refractory zamindars. Ultimately an annual tribute was agreed to by the latter. Hafiz Rahmat then departed to Bareilly, and Rohilla garrisons were established at convenient places in the district. Meanwhile, a new minister arose at Delhi called Najib Khan, better known as Najib-ud-daula, Amir-ul-umra, Shuja-ud-daula succeeded Safdar Jang as Nawab Wazir and occupied most of the Bangash possessions as far as Aligarh, with the exception of those granted by the Durrani to the Rohillas after he battle of Pandit. But the wazir's hostility to the FarrukhabadAfghans had not abated one jot, and in 1762 he persuaded Najib-ud-daula to join him in an attack on Farrukhabad. The attack was beaten off by the aid of Hafiz Rahmat Khan and matters once more settled down peacefully.
In 1766 the Marathas under Mulhar Rao, who had been awaiting their opportunity, once more crossed the Yamuna and attacked Phaphund, where a Rohilla force under Muhammad Hasan Khan eldest son of Mohsin Khan, was posted. On receipt of this news Hafiz Rahmat advanced from Bareilly to oppose the Marathas. He was joined near Phaphund by Sheikh Kuber, the Rohilla governor of Etawah, and prepared to give battle; but Mulhar Rao refused to risk an engagement and once more retired across the Yamuna. The ambitions Najib-ud-daula had been considerably irritated by the intervention of the Rohillas on behalf of Ahmad Khan Bangladesh in 1762; and though he had been too busily engaged otherwise to pursue his plans of revenge before, he began in 1770 to plot the downfall of Hafiz Rahmat Khan.
Accordingly, a Maratha army was invited to Delhi for the purpose of first wresting Farrukhabad from Ahmad Khan and of afterwards invading Rohillakhand. The united forces of Najib-ud-daula and the Marathas advanced from Delhi; but at Koil Najib-ud-daula fell ill and retraced his steps, leaving his eldest son, Zabita Khan to operate with the Marathas. Zabita Khan however, was by no means disposed to fight against his brother Afghans. The Marathas, knowing this, kept him practically a prisoner in their camp and he requested Hafiz Rahmat Khan to obtain his release. Hafiz Rahmat Khan accordingly opened negotiations with the Marathas for the release of Zabita Khan; but the Maratha leaders demanded as their price the surrender of the jagirs of Etawah and Shikohabad. Hafiz Rahmat Khan was not disposed to agree to those terms, and while negotiations were proceeding for buying off the Marathas Zabita Khan escaped. Several desultory engagements now took place between the Marathas and the Afghan forces. Inayat khan was summoned by his father to Farrukhabad in order that he might be consulted regarding the surrendering of his jagirs. But although Dhunde Khan agreed to give up Shikohabad Inayat Khan refused to surrender Etawah.
Ultimately, disgusted with his father's arrangements he returned to Bareilly, and his father on his own responsibility sent orders to Sheikh Kuber, the Rohilla governor of Etawah, to surrender the fort to the Marathas. The Marathas now marched to Etawah, but as the orders had not yet reached him Sheikh Kuber gave them battle. Several desperate assaults were made on the fort of Etawah which were all beaten off, but finally it was handed over to the Marathas in accordance with hafiz Rahmat Khan's orders, and the Rohillas quit the district, leaving it once more in the hands of the Marathas. Later in the same year, 1771 AD, the Marathas advanced to Delhi and reinstated the emperor Shah Alam, who had cast in his lot with them, on the throne. They were now masters of the empire and Zabita Khan determined to oppose them. Assembling his forces, he attacked the Marathas near Delhi but was signally defeated, and in 1772 the Marathas overran a large portion of Rohilkhand and captured Najafgarh, where Zabita Khan's family resided and his treasure lay.
Under the Government of Oudh Zabita Khan then solicited the aid of Shuja-ud-daula, Nawab Wazir of Oudh; but the Nawab declined to interfere unless Hafiz Rahmat Khan applied on his behalf. Negotiations were commenced with Shah Alam and the Marathas for the restoration of Zabita Khan's family and the evacuation of Rohilkhand. The Marathas agreed to accept 40 lakhs of rupees, provided that Shuja-ud-daula made himself responsible for the payment; but Shuja-ud-daula now declined to enter into any such engagement unless Hafiz Rahmat Khan gave him a bond for the money. To this Hafiz Rahmat Khan consented, the bond was signed and the Marathas retired from Rohilkhand. In 1773 AD the Marathas proposed to attack Shuja-ud-daula and attempted to gain the help of Hifaz Rahmat Khan. The latter refused to him them. Instead he sent information to Shuja-ud-daula concerning what he had done, and on the strength of this requested restoration of his bond. Shuja-ud-daula expressed his approval of Hafiz Rahmat Khan's conduct and promised the restitution of the bond when the Marathas as had been defeated. The Marathas were defeated soon after at Asadpur by the combined forces of Shuja-ud-daula and Hafiz Rahmat Khan, with the result that they quit not only Rohilkhand but Delhi also.
Shuja-ud-daula then returned to Oudh, but denied ever having promised to restore the bond. He next seduced many of the Afghan Rohillas from their allegiance to Hafiz Rahmat Khan, and then proceeded to eject the Maratha garrisons from Etawah and Shikohabad in spite of Rahmat Khan's remonstrance. He ever went further and called on Hafiz Rahmat Khan to discharge the balance of 35 lakhs due on the bond. This was only a pretext for provoking hostilities for which purpose the Nawab had already begun to assemble an army; and Hafiz Rahmat Khan having failed to pay up, the Nawab advanced to the Ganges. The last scene in the tangled history of the period closed with the defeat of Hafiz Rahmat Khan by Shuja-ud-daula who was aided by a British force, at the battle of Miranpur Katra in the Shahjahanpur district on 23 April 1774 AD Etawah under the Oudh Government.
From 1774 to 1801 the district of Etawah remained under the government of Oudh. Little occurred to disturb it during this period and little is known regarding its history. For many years the administration of the district was in the hands of Mian Almas Ali Khan. Ails were stationed, we know, at Etawah, Kudarkot and Phaphund. One of those who held office at the last named placed was Raja Bhagmal or Baramal. The latter was by Caste a Jat and was sister's son to Almas Ali Khan, who was by birth a Hindu but was subsequently made a eunuch and converted to Islam. Raja Bhagmal built the fort at Phaphund and the old mosque which still bears an inscription recording thenamed of donor. Almas Ali Khan was, recording to Colonie Sleeman,"the greatest and best man" Oudh ever produced; be amassed great wealth, but having no descendant, he spent his money for the benefit of the people committed to his charge. He held court occasionally at Kudarkot where he built a fort, of which the massive ruins still remain. At Etawah the amils are said to have resided in the fort; but the building was destroyed by Shuja-ud-daula in consequence of the representations of the Etawah townspeople that, so long as the amils occupied such an impregnable residence, they would never do anything but oppress the people.[2]
The district of Auraiya lies in the south-western portion of Uttar Pradesh 26.4667°N 79.5167°E and also forms a part of the Kanpur Division. It borders the districts of Kannauj on the north, Etawah on the west, Ramabai Nagar district on the east, and Jalaun to the south. It has an average elevation of 133 metres (436 feet).
The Auraiya District covers an area of 2,054km2 (793 sq mi), of which more than one-third is designated rural. The main rivers which flows through the district are Yamuna and Sengar. The total length of the Yamuna in the district is about 112km. Auraiya lies entirely in the Indo-Gangetic Plain, but its physical features vary considerably and are determined by the rivers which cross it.[2]
Climate
The District features an atypical version of the humid subtropical climate. Summers are long and the weather is extremely hot from early April to mid-October, with the monsoon season in between. The average annual rainfall in the district is 792mm. About 85% of the annual normal rainfall in the district is received during the south west monsoon months from June to September, August being the rainiest month. The brief, mild winter starts in late November, peaks in January and heavy fog often occurs.
Temperatures in the district range from 3 to 46°C, with May being the hottest and January being the coolest month. During the rainy season the relative humidity is generally high being over 70%. Thereafter the humidity decreases and by summer which is the driest part of the year the relative humidity in the afternoons become less than 30%.
Cultivable Land
The area of cultivable land in the district in 1990-91 was 141624 hectares. According to the 1990-91 agricultural survey, the total number of active cultivable lands remained to be 151838. Most of the cultivables are small. The count of cultivables less than 0.5 hectares remained to be 47.65%, and between 0.5 & 1.0 hectares the cultivables remained to be 23.76%, and 1.0 to 2.0, it were 17.33%, and 2.0 to 4.0 hectare cultivable land's percentage was 8.54%, and more than 4.0 it were 2.72%.
Civic Administration
As of 2012, Auraiya district comprises 2 tehsils (Auraiya and Bidhuna), 2 census towns, 7 statutory towns (Ajitmal, Bhagyanagar, Sahar, Bidhuna, Achalda, Erwakatra and Auraiya) and 841 villages. It also has its own Nagar Palika Parishad. In 2014 a new tehsil ajitmal comes in existence.
Smt. Neha Prakash, IAS is the current District Magistrate. Kamal singh dohare is M.L.C., Gudiya Katheriya is current M.L.A.
Auraiya district is one of the backward districts in industrial sector declared by the government of Uttar Pradesh state. Only the two town areas, Dibiyapur and Auraiya, are equipped with main industries.
Small Scale Industries
The Rice-mills and Dal-mills are working well there in Dibiyapur and Auraiya. Other than these mills some steel furniture and cement products small scale industries are there in Auraiya district located at different places. The raw material for these small scale industries is imported from Agra and Kanpur. Mainly, the rice, pulses and desi ghee is transported at large scale to the other districts and states. In the Auraiya city itself the wooden furniture work is on large scale and due to its cost and quality factor, the furniture has made a good place in the market of nearby districts.
Dibiyapur is notable industrial town of this district which has installations of India's leading Public Sector Enterprises viz. 663MW Combined cycle power plant of NTPC,[3] Petrochemical plant and Gas compressor station of GAIL.[4] The Uttar Pradesh Petrochemical Complex (UPPC) of Gas Authority of India Limited is located at Pata, District. Auraiya, U.P. It was set up in accordance with GAIL's mission to maximise the value addition from each fraction of Natural Gas.
Towns and villages are well equipped with a web of roads as it is the major way of transportation in the region. National Highway 19 (Mughal Road) pass from the southern part of the district. District's headquarters Auraiya is at 64km distance from Etawah and 105km from Kanpur. Auraiya Bus Station is situated on National Highway 19. Uttar Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation operates buses to all cities in Uttar Pradesh. Regular buses ply from Auraiya to Kannauj, Kanpur, Agra, Allahabad and Faizabad.
According to the 2011 census Auraiya district has a population of 1,379,545,[1] roughly equal to the nation of Eswatini[6] or the US state of Hawaii.[7] This gives it a ranking of 357th in India (out of a total of 640).[1] The district has a population density of 681 inhabitants per square kilometre (1,760/sqmi) .[1] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 16.3%.[1] Auraiya has a sex ratio of 864 females for every 1000 males,[1] and a literacy rate of 80.25%. 16.98% of the population lives in urban areas. Scheduled Castes made up 28.39% of the population.[1]
In 1991, Hindus percentage was 92.79% against the state average of 83.76% and 6.63% of Muslims as compared to the state average of 15.48%. The remaining 0.58% of the district population was Sikhs, Christians, Jains and Buddhists. In 2011, Auraiya district had 92% Hindus and 7% Muslims, with Hindus being more concentrated in rural areas.[8]
At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 98.52% of the population in the district spoke Hindi (or a related language) and 1.37% Urdu as their first language.[9]
Culture
Dance & Music
Popular varieties of folk music prevalent throughout western U.P. e.g. the Allaha, Phaag, Kajari and Rasiyas, etc. are popular in this district as well, and are sung at different times of the year. Folk songs known as Dhola, Unchari and Langadia are also very common in the villages. Bhajans, Kirtan in a chorus to the accomplishment of musical instruments is very much liked by the inhabitants of the district.
A number of open air performances, combining the rural style of folk music and dancing with a central theme are a regular feature of rural life in the district. The dance named Banjasha is one of the most popular folk dances of villagers of the district. Nautankis and dramas based on mythology are often staged and attract large gatherings, particularly in the villages.
A typical day-to-day traditional vegetarian meal of the district, like any other North Indian thali, consists of roti (flatbread), chawal, dal, sabji, raita and papad. Many people still drink the traditional drink chaach with meals. On festive occasions, usually 'tava' (flat pan for roti) is considered inauspicious, and instead fried foods are consumed. A typical festive thali consists of puri, kachori, sabji, pulav, papad, raita, salad and desserts (such as sewai or kheer). Wheat constitutes the staple food of the people, other materials commonly consumed here as food being maize, barley, gram and jowar. Chapatis prepared from kneaded wheat or corn flour are generally eaten with dal or gur and milk. The pulses consumed here are urd, arhar, moong, chana, masur etc. Sweets occupy an important place in the diet and are eaten at social ceremonies. People make distinctive sweetmeats from milk products, including khurchan, peda, gulabjamun, petha, Imarti, makkhan malai, and cham cham. The samosa, gol-gappa, chaat and Paan is consumed across the whole district for its flavour and ingredients.
The people of Auraiya have colorful and different attires. The sari is the most favourite dress of ladies of all denominations, though women in shalwar kameez combinations are usually met with. The men in village use to wear the traditional attires like kurtas, lungis, dhotis and pajamas. The colorless khadi (homespun cloth) jackets known as 'Nehru Jackets' are also popular. The Muslim women wear the traditional all enveloping 'burqa' and the men use to wear a round cap on their head.
Cricket and football are the most popular sports in the district. There are several cricket grounds, or maidans, located across the region.
Related Research Articles
The Third Battle of Panipat took place on 14 January 1761 between the Maratha Confederacy and the invading army of the Durrani Empire. The battle took place in and around the city of Panipat, approximately 97 kilometres (60 mi) north of Delhi. The Afghans were supported by three key allies in India: Najib ad-Dawlah who persuaded the support of the Rohilla chiefs, elements of the declining Mughal Empire, and most prized the Oudh State under Shuja-ud-Daula. The Maratha army was led by Sadashivrao Bhau, who was third-highest authority of the Maratha Confederacy after the Chhatrapati and the Peshwa. The bulk of the Maratha army was stationed in the Deccan Plateau with the Peshwa.
Etawah, also known as Ishtikapuri, is a city on the banks of Yamuna River in the state of Western Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the administrative headquarters of Etawah District. Etawah's population of 256,838 makes it the 180th most populous city in India. The city lies 300 km (190 mi) southeast of the national capital New Delhi, 230 km (140 mi) northwest of the state capital Lucknow, 120 km east of Agra and 140 km west of Kanpur. The city was an important centre for the Indian Rebellion of 1857. It is also the sangam or confluence of the Yamuna and Chambal rivers. It is the 26th most populous city in Uttar Pradesh.
Rohilkhand is a region in the northwestern part of Uttar Pradesh, India, that is centered on the Bareilly and Moradabad divisions. It is part of the upper Ganges Plain, and is named after the Rohilla tribe of Afghans. The region was called Madhyadesh and Panchala in the Sanskrit epics Mahabharata and Ramayana. During the colonial era in India, the region was governed by the Royal House of Rampur.
Rohillas are a mixed Indian community of Pashtun heritage, historically found in Rohilkhand, a region in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. It forms the largest Pashtun diaspora community in India, and has given its name to the Rohilkhand region. The Rohilla military chiefs settled in this region of northern India in the 1720s, the first of whom was Ali Mohammed Khan.
The Bareilly district belongs to the state Uttar Pradesh in northern India. Its capital is Bareilly city and it is divided in six administrative division or tehsils: Aonla, Baheri, Bareilly city, Faridpur, Mirganj, and Nawabganj. The Bareilly district is a part of the Bareilly Division and occupies an area of 4120 km2 with a population of 4,448,359 people according to the census of 2011.
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Mahadaji Shinde, later known as Mahadji Scindia or Madhava Rao Scindia, was a Maratha statesman and general who served as the Raja of Gwalior from 1768 to 1794. He was the fifth and the youngest son of Ranoji Rao Scindia, the founder of the Scindia dynasty. He is reputed for having restored the Maratha rule over North India and for modernizing his army.
Najib ad-Dawlah, also known as Najib Khan Yousafzai, was a Rohilla Yousafzai Afghan who earlier served as a Mughal serviceman but later deserted the cause of the Mughals and joined Ahmad Shah Abdali in 1757 in his attack on Delhi. He was also a House Chief of Rohilkhand, and in the 1740s founded the city of Najibabad in Bijnor district, India. He was instrumental in winning the Third Battle of Panipat.
Auraiya is a city and a municipal board in Auraiya district in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. NH 19 passes through the center of the town. Phaphund is the nearest railway station and Saifai Airstrip the nearest aviation facility, having limited private use. Etawah Safari Park is the nearest lion safari park. The nearest commercial airport is Kanpur Airport. Before becoming the district headquarters, it was the tehsil headquarters of Etawah district. This district is under Kanpur Mandal. [1] [2] [3] This is the heroic place of Sengar Rajputs. Sengar dynasty Kanardhani Maharajadhiraj Vishok Dev was married to Devkala, sister of Maharaja Jaichand Gaharwar (Rathore) of Kannauj. He had received this entire area in dowry. The famous Devkali Temple here was also built by him in the name of his wife Devkali. There are many famous villages of Kshatriya in which Ayana, Bhartaul, Jaswantpur, Bhurepur Kalan, Bhurepur Khurd, Sikharna, Fareha, Anepur, Senganpur, Barbatpur, Roshangpur, Manpur, Bhaupur, keontra, Phaphund, Aseva,Shahbadiya are very famous villages.
Miranpur Katra is a Vidhan Sabha constituency in Tehsil Tilhar in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. The town is located 47 kilometres (30 mi) east of the Bareilly, on the main Lucknow–Delhi National Highway 24.Its situated at midpoint which is connecting 3 major cities Lucknow-Kanpur-Delhi Mr.Veer Vikram Singh is the current MLA from BJP. Mrs. Jamal Fatima is the current chairperson of Katra.
Kiratpur, also known as Basi Kiratpur, is a town and a Municipal Board in Bijnor district of Uttar Pradesh.
Hafiz Rahmat Khan was the Regent of Rohilkhand in North India, from 1749 to 1774. He was a Pashtun by background, ruling over Rohillas. Hafiz Rahmat Khan had served honorably throughout the reign of three Mughal Emperors: Ahmad Shah Bahadur, Alamgir II and Shah Alam II. He was also a mentor of Prince Mirza Jawan Bakht.
Zabita Khan Rohilla was a Rohilla chieftain in the time of the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II.
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Shahzada Mirza Jawan Bakht Bahadur was a Mughal prince and the eldest son of Emperor Shah Alam II and the grandson of Emperor Alamgir II. He was born in 1749 at the Red Fort, Delhi. Jawan Bakht was a very influential Timurid Prince of the Mughal Empire and he also briefly served as the Heir-apparent of the Mughal Empire. He traced his family line back over five hundred years to Chagatai Khan, the second son of Genghis Khan.
The Oudh State was a Mughal subah, then an independent kingdom, and lastly a princely state in the Awadh region of North India until its annexation by the British in 1856. The name Oudh, now obsolete, was once the anglicized name of the state, also written historically as Oudhe.
Phaphund railway station is an "A" graded railway station in Auraiya district, Uttar Pradesh, India. Its code is PHD. It serves Auraiya district and Dibiyapur city. It is located on the Kanpur–Delhi section of Howrah–Delhi main line and Howrah–Gaya–Delhi line. It is one of the main serving railway stations on the Kanpur–Delhi section of the Prayagraj railway division. Built during British rule, the station is owned by Indian Railways and operated by North Central Railway and consists of five tracks and four platforms.
The Kingdom of Rohilkhand was a late modern Indian kingdom under nominal Mughal suzerainty, that rose under the declining Mughal Empire in 1721 and continued to exist until 1774 when it was defeated by Oudh the British transformed its significantly reduced borders into the princely state of Rampur. Nawab Ali Mohammed Khan became the first Nawab of Rohilkhand, having been previously elected as overlord by various Afghan chiefs at the age of fourteen. He would carve out the future kingdom from the collapsing Mughal Empire and go on to the found the Rohilla dynasty. The crown would go on being held by the Rohillas until the kingdom came to an end in 1774, and thereafter the same dynasty would rule over Rampur.
Maharaja Beni Bahadur was an administrator, minister, soldier and househelp in the courts of the Nawabs of Awadh from 1733 / 1734 to at least 1798 and at most 1814. He was most notable for his rapid rise to power, industry and charity.
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