Kalu Singh Mahara

Last updated

Kalu Singh Mahara was a Kumaoni(Kumauni) leader during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. He is known as a freedom fighter from the state of Uttarakhand, then in the United Province.

Contents

Kalu Singh began a campaign named as Krantiveer. It became was popular among freedom loving Kumaonis [1]

Mahara is a surname found in Kumaon Division of Uttarakhand. Some people write their surname in its variant spelling in English as Mehra [2]

Kalu Singh Mahara was Thakur of Bisung Patti of Kumaon(Kumaun), known as Karnakarayat now. This region is situated near Lohaghat, in district Champawat of Uttarakhand.

The rebellion

On receiving a confidential letter from Oudh, Awadh, [3] inviting him and followers to join a rebellion against the British Kalu Singh responded.

The government of Awadh proposed that after regaining power from British, the hill area would be given to locals whereas Tarai (plain area) below the hills will be governed by Oudh. Kalu Singh Mahara agreed to this campaign against British empire

Skirmishes across the area of Kali, Sui, Gumdesh and adjoining areas, frustrated the British. His militiamen composed mainly of riflemen Bandukchi ambushed and harassed the British forces on several occasions.

However, in the end the British quashed the rebellion across northern India. But it led Queen Victoria to declare India as no longer a company territory transforming it into what is known as British India. (see Indian Rebellion of 1857)

Revered in Uttrakhand

Kalu Singh Mahara is revered as a hero in Kumaon division of Uttarakhand. In 2009 a statue of this freedom fighter was installed in Dehradun the capital of Uttarakhand.

Recently the Uttarakhand postal department released a new first day cover to honour him (https://www.outlookindia.com/newsscroll/amp/uttarakhand-postal-dept-releases-special-envelope-on-kalu-mahara/2178058 )

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kumaon division</span> Administrative division in India

Kumaon is a revenue and administrative division in the Indian State of Uttarakhand. It spans over the eastern half of the state and is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Nepal, on the south by the state of Uttar Pradesh, and on the west by Garhwal. Kumaon comprises six districts of the state: Almora, Bageshwar, Champawat, Nainital, Pithoragarh and Udham Singh Nagar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Uttarakhand</span> State in northern India

Uttarakhand, also known as Uttaranchal, is a state in northern India. It is often referred to as the "Devbhumi" due to its religious significance and numerous Hindu temples and pilgrimage centres found throughout the state. Uttarakhand is known for the natural environment of the Himalayas, the Bhabar and the Terai regions. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China to the north; the Sudurpashchim Province of Nepal to the east; the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh to the south and Himachal Pradesh to the west and north-west. The state is divided into two divisions, Garhwal and Kumaon, with a total of 13 districts. The winter capital of Uttarakhand is Dehradun, the largest city of the state, which is a rail head. Gairsain, a town in Chamoli district, is the summer capital of Uttarakhand declared on 5 March 2020. The High Court of the state is located in Nainital, but is to be moved to Haldwani in future.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haldwani</span> Metropolis in Uttarakhand, India

Haldwani is the largest city of Kumaon. It is also the third most populous city and largest commercial market in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. Haldwani is said to be the financial capital of Uttarakhand, having the most commercial, economic and industrial activities of the state. Haldwani is located in the Nainital District, and is one of its eight Subdivisions. The Haldwani Urban agglomeration has 232,060 people as of 2011, and is the third most populous UA in Uttarakhand, after Dehradun and Haridwar. Being situated in the immediate foothills of Kumaon Himalayas, the Kathgodam neighbourhood of Haldwani is known as the "Gateway to Kumaon".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kumaoni language</span> Indo-Aryan language

Kumaoni is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by over two million people of the Kumaon region of the state of Uttarakhand in northern India and parts of Doti region in Western Nepal. As per 1961 survey there were 1,030,254 Kumaoni speakers in India. The number of speakers increased to 2.2 million in 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kumaon Regiment</span> Military unit

The Kumaon Regiment is one of the oldest infantry regiments of the Indian Army. The regiment traces its origins to the 18th century and has fought in every major campaign of the British Indian Army and the Indian Army, including the two world wars, and is one of the highest decorated regiments of the Indian army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ranikhet</span> Town in Uttarakhand, India

Ranikhet is a hill station and cantonment town, near Almora Town in Almora district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the home of the Military Hospital, Kumaon Regiment (KRC) and Naga Regiment and is maintained by the Indian Army.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Didihat</span> Town in Uttarakhand, India

Didihat is a town and a Nagar Palika in Pithoragarh District in the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is one of the eleven administrative subdivisions of Pithoragarh district and also serves as its administrative headquarter. With a population of 6522, Didihat is located at a distance of 415 km (258 mi) from the state capital Dehradun.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pithoragarh</span> Town in Uttarakhand, India

Pithoragarh is a Himalayan town with a Municipal Board in Pithoragarh district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the largest and unplanned town in Kumaon hills. It is an education hub of the hilly region as the town has Laxman Singh Mahar Govt.P.G.College, Seemant Institute of Technology, now known as Nanhi Pari Seemant Engineering Institute and a nursing college.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kashipur, Uttarakhand</span> City of Udham Singh Nagar district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand

Kashipur is a city of Udham Singh Nagar district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, and one of its seven subdivisions. Located in the western part of Udham Singh Nagar district, it is Kumaun's third most populous city and the sixth most populous in Uttarakhand. According to the 2011 Census of India, the population is 121,623 for the city of Kashipur and 283,136 for Kashipur Tehsil. Kashipur also has IIM Kashipur, one of the thirteen Indian Institutes of Managements the government has set up during the Eleventh Five-year Plan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Almora</span> Town in Uttarakhand, India

Almora is a municipal board and a cantonment town in the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is the administrative headquarters of Almora district. Almora is located on a ridge at the southern edge of the Kumaon Hills of the Himalaya range. The Koshi (Kaushiki) and Suyal (Salmale) rivers flow along the city and snow-capped Himalayas can be seen in the background.

Chandola is a Brahmin surname of Garhwali and Kumaoni origin mostly used in the Indian state of Uttarakhand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shekhar Pathak</span>

Dr. Shekhar Pathak is a historian, editor, publisher, activist, and traveller from Uttarakhand, India. He is known for his extensive knowledge of the history of colonial and postcolonial social movements and contemporary environmental and social issues in Uttarakhand, and colonial exploration in the Himalayas and Tibet. He has also been engaged in activism for various social and environmental causes since the 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ceded and Conquered Provinces</span> Region of British India under Company rule (1805–34)

The Ceded and Conquered Provinces constituted a region in northern India that was ruled by the British East India Company from 1805 to 1834; it corresponded approximately—in present-day India—to all regions in Uttar Pradesh state with the exception of the Lucknow and Faizabad divisions of Awadh; in addition, it included the Delhi territory and, after 1816, the Kumaun division and a large part of the Garhwal division of present-day Uttarakhand state. In 1836, the region became the North-Western Provinces, and in 1904, the Agra Province within the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kumaoni people</span> Ethnolinguistic group of India and Nepal

Kumaonis, also known as Kumaiye and Kumain, are an Indo-Aryan ethno-linguistic group who speak Kumaoni language as their first-language and live mostly in Kumaon region in the Indian Himalayas and parts of the Sudurpashchim Province in far western Nepal.

Kumauni or Kumaoni Holi, is the historical and cultural celebration of the Hindu festival of Holi in the region of Kumaon, India. It is one of the most important festivals for the Kumauni people as it signifies not only the victory of good over evil but also end of the winter season and the start of the new sowing season which holds great importance for this agricultural community of the North Indian Himalayas. It is an amalgamation of the cultural traditions of North India and the local traditions of Kumaon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chholiya</span> Dance form practised in the [[Kumaon division|Kumaon]] region of India

Chholiya or Hudkeli is a traditional folk dance form originated in the Kumaon division of the Indian state of Uttarakhand and Sudurpashchim province of Nepal. It has today become a symbol of Kumaoni and Sudurpashchimi cultures. It is basically a sword dance accompanying a marriage procession but now it is performed on many auspicious occasions.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathgodam railway station</span> Indian railway station

Kathgodam railway station is railway station located in Kathgodam town near Haldwani, just 35 km from Nainital Town in Nainital district of Uttarakhand State of India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Outline of Uttarakhand</span> Overview of and topical guide to Uttarakhand

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Uttarakhand:

Mahara or Mahra is a Chhetri surname from Nepal and Kshatriya (Rajput) surname in Uttarakhand. In Kali Kumaon, the Mahra(Mahara) and Phartyals were the most famous 'dharras'/(धड़ा) in the recorded history of Kumaon. Have no relation with Mahar community of other states of India.

References

  1. "The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Dehradun Edition". www.tribuneindia.com. Archived from the original on 14 November 2009.
  2. Monika Krengel (1989). Sozialstrukturen im Kumaon. Steiner Verlag Wiesbaden
  3. Arun K. Mittal (1986). British Administration in Kumaon Himalayas: A Historical Study, 1815 – 1947. Mittal Publications - Kumaon Himalaya – p 17, of 249 pages

See also