Mahi Kantha was a political agency or collection of

princely states A princely state (also called native state or Indian state) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule, subject to ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

, within the

Gujarat Division Gujarat (, ) is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

Bombay Presidency The Bombay Presidency or Bombay Province, also called Bombay and Sind (1843–1936), was an administrative subdivision (province) of British India, with its capital in the city that came up over the seven islands of Bombay. The first mainl ...

. In 1933, the states of the Mahi Kantha Agency, except for Danta, were included in the

Western India States Agency The Western India States Agency (WISA) was one of the agencies of British India. This agency was formed on 10 October 1924 as a part of the implementation of the Montague Chelmsford report on constitutional reforms. It was formed by merging the ...

. The total area of the agency was ; the population in 1901 was 361,545.

History

The states came within the British sphere of influence after the

Second Anglo-Maratha War } The Second Anglo-Maratha War (1803–1805) was the second conflict between the British East India Company and the Maratha Empire in India. Background The British had supported the "fugitive" Peshwa Raghunathrao in the First Anglo-Maratha War, ...

of 1803–1805. In 1811, when the Maratha power was declining, the British Government stipulated to collect and pay over to the ruler of Baroda the yearly tribute of the Mahi Kantha states. In 1820 they finally took over the management of the whole territory, agreeing to collect and pay over the tribute free of expense to Baroda, while Baroda was pledged not to send troops into the country, or in any way to interfere with the administration. After a few disturbances in the 1830s, in 1857-58 and 1867, peace remained unbroken in the region until 1881, when the

Bhils Bhil or Bheel is an ethnic group in western India. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages. As of 2013, Bhils were the largest tribal group in India. Bhils are listed as tribal people of the ...

of Pol rose against their chief and extorted from him a settlement of their claims. The famine of 1899–1900 was severely felt in Mahi Kantha, and the population of the agency decreased by 38% in the decade 1891–1901 due to famine. Many of the inhabitants were

Bhil Bhil or Bheel is an ethnic group in western India. They speak the Bhil languages, a subgroup of the Western Zone of the Indo-Aryan languages. As of 2013, Bhils were the largest tribal group in India. Bhils are listed as tribal people of the s ...

s and

Kolis The Koli is an Indian caste found in Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Karnataka, Odisha and Jammu and Kashmir states in India. Koli is an agriculturist caste of Gujarat but in coastal areas the ...

. In 1897 a metre-gauge railway was opened from

Ahmedabad Ahmedabad ( ; Gujarati: Amdavad ) is the most populous city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It is the administrative headquarters of the Ahmedabad district and the seat of the Gujarat High Court. Ahmedabad's population of 5,570,585 (per t ...

through Parantij to Moyad, Vagpur, Sitwada , jagiri Rathod near

Ambliara State The Ambliara State, also spelt Ambaliyara was a princely state under Mahi Kantha Agency of the Bombay Presidency during the era of the British Raj in India. History According to the Gujarat State Gazetteers, the rulers were " Khant Kolis" b ...

Ahmednagar Ahmednagar (), is a city located in the Ahmednagar district in the state of Maharashtra, India, about 120 km northeast of Pune and 114 km from Aurangabad. Ahmednagar takes its name from Ahmad Nizam Shah I, who founded the town in 1494 ...

. At

Sadra The Iran Marine Industrial Company ( fa, شرکت صنعتی دریایی ایران), also known as SADRA, was founded in 1968 as a small ship repair yard in Bushehr. Since then, SADRA has established itself as the leading shipbuilding and shipr ...

was the Scott College for the education of the sons of rulers on the lines of a

British public school In England and Wales (but not Scotland), a public school is a fee-charging endowed school originally for older boys. They are "public" in the sense of being open to pupils irrespective of locality, denomination or paternal trade or profess ...

. There were also

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...

schools at Sadra,

Idar Idar may refer to: People * Idar Andersen (born 1999), Norwegian road racing cyclist * Idar Kreutzer (born 1962), Norwegian businessperson * Idar Kristiansen (1932–1985), Norwegian poet, novelist, short story writer and non-fiction writer * ...

and

Mansa Mansa may refer to: Places In India * Mansa, Gujarat, a town in northern Gujarat, Western India; the capital of: ** Mansa, Gujarat Assembly constituency ** Mansa State, a princely state under the Mahi Kantha Agency in India * Mansa district, ...

Successor jurisdictions

In 1933 the agencies of Mahi Kantha and Banas Kantha, known as

Palanpur Agency Palanpur Agency, also spelled Pahlunpore Agency, was a political agency or collection of princely states in British India, within the Gujarat Division of Bombay Presidency. In 1933, the native states of the Mahi Kantha Agency, except for Danta, we ...

until 1925, were merged. However

Palanpur State Palanpur State was a princely state of India during the British Raj. It was a Salute state with the Nawab of Palanpur having a hereditary salute of 13-guns. It was the main state of the Palanpur Agency. Palanpur State became a British protecto ...

was transferred to the

Rajputana Agency The Rajputana Agency was a political office of the British Indian Empire dealing with a collection of native states in Rajputana (now in Rajasthan, northwestern India), under the political charge of an Agent reporting directly to the Governor ...

and was thus not part of the newly created agency. After the

independence of India The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged ...

in 1947, the rulers of the Mahi Kantha states acceded to the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

, and the area was reorganized into districts of

Bombay State Bombay State was a large Indian state created at the time of India's Independence, with other regions being added to it in the succeeding years. Bombay Presidency (roughly equating to the present-day Indian state of Maharashtra, excluding Sou ...

. In 1960, Bombay State was split along linguistic lines, and the area of Mahi Kantha became part of the new state of

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...

List of Princely States

Mahi Kantha Agency during British India 1820-1933 with States and Thanas

The states were classified in the following manner:

Salute states

First Class state

(styled (Maha)Raja), a 15-guns

salute state A salute state was a princely state under the British Raj that had been granted a gun salute by the British Crown (as paramount ruler); i.e., the protocolary privilege for its ruler to be greeted—originally by Royal Navy ships, later also ...

, covering over half of the territory of the agency.

Second Class state

* Danta (styled Maharana), an 11-guns

Non-Salute states

Third Class states

Malpur Malpur is a census town in Aravalli district in the Indian state of Gujarat. History Malpur State was an Indian princely state founded about the middle of the fifteenth century. Rawal Virajmal, son of Rao Kiratsinghji of Idar State, was succ ...

* Mohanpur

Fourth Class states

* Ilol * Ghodasar * Katosan * Khadal *

Pethapur Pethapur State was a small princely state belonging to the Mahi Kantha Agency of the Bombay Presidency during the era of the British Raj. It was centered on Pethapur village, in present-day Gandhinagar district of Gujarat State, a place reno ...

* Vallbhapur *

Ranasan Ranasan is a village located in Sabarkantha district in the state of Gujarat, India. The village is located at about 62 km from the state capital, Gandhinagar. Ranasan postal head office is Harsol . Demographics Gujarati is the Local ...

* Sudasna *

Varsoda Varsoda is a small village located in Mansa, Gujarat, on the bank of the Sabarmati River, formerly the seat of an eponymous Rajput princely state. It is approximately from Gandhinagar, the state capital of Gujarat. History Varsoda (or Va ...

Ambliara The Ambliara State, also spelt Ambaliyara was a princely state under Mahi Kantha Agency of the Bombay Presidency during the era of the British Raj in India. History According to the Gujarat State Gazetteers, the rulers were " Khant Kolis" b ...

* Antroli * Moyad * Vaghpur

Fifth Class states

* Aglode * Dabha * Dadhalia *

Ged The General Educational Development (GED) tests are a group of four subject tests which, when passed, provide certification that the test taker has United States or Canadian high school-level academic skills. It is an alternative to the US high ...

* Magodi * Rupal * Sathamba * Tunadar * Valasna * Vasna (Wasna) * Wadagam

Sixth Class states

Mahi Kantha Agency British India map 1878

* Bhalusna *

Bolundra Bolundra is a village, princely state and Taluka in Modasa, India. The village (Ta – Modasa) is in Aravalli district in Gujarat state, western India, on the bank of the River Meshvo. Pin code: 383250 History The ''taluka'' was ranked a ...

Dedhrota The Dedhrota is a village and a former Princely state in Gujarat, India. History Dedhrota was a sixth class princely state in the Sabar Kantha Thana in Mahi Kantha Agency Mahi Kantha was a political agency or collection of princely states ...

Derol Derol or Dedol is a village in the Sabarkantha district of Gujarat, in western India. History Derol was a Sixth Class princely state, including a second village in Mahi Kantha. It had a combined population of 837 in 1901, yielding a state ...

* Hadol *

Hapa Hapa is a Hawaiian word for someone of multiracial ancestry. In Hawaii, the word refers to any person of mixed ethnic heritage, regardless of the specific mixture.: "Thus, for locals in Hawai’i, both hapa or hapa haole are used to depict p ...

* Kadoli * Khedwada * Likhi * Prempur * Ramas * Satlasna * Tajpuri * Vakhtapur

Seventh Class states

Deloli Deloli is a village in the Mahesana district of Gujarat, in western India. History Deloli was a petty princely state comprising only the village in Mahi Kantha Agency and ruled by Koli caste's chieftains. Deloli had a population of 800 in ...

* Gabat * Ijpura * Kasalpura * Mahmadpura * Palaj * Rampura * Ranipura * Tejpuri *

Timba Timba is a Cuban genre of music based on Cuban ''son'' with ''salsa'', American Funk/R&B and the strong influence of Afro-Cuban folkloric music. Timba rhythm sections differ from their salsa counterparts, because timba emphasizes the bass dru ...

* Umri * Virsoda

Estates

The agency included as well a large number of estates belonging to

Rajput Rajput (from Sanskrit ''raja-putra'' 'son of a king') is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Ra ...

formerly feudatories of

Baroda Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district and is situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River, from the state capital ...

; several of the states paid tribute to Baroda, and some, being classed as non-jurisdictional thalukdars, were under British administration.

References

* {{coord missing, Gujarat History of Gujarat Agencies of British India Bombay Presidency 1947 disestablishments in India