The Western India States Agency (WISA) was one of the

agencies of British India An agency of British India was an internally autonomous or semi-autonomous subdivision of India whose external affairs were governed by an agent designated by the Viceroy of India.Great Britain India Office. '' The Imperial Gazetteer of 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 areas under the erstwhile

Kathiawar Kathiawar () is a peninsula, near the far north of India's west coast, of about bordering the Arabian Sea. It is bounded by the Gulf of Kutch in the northwest and by the Gulf of Khambhat (Gulf of Cambay) in the east. In the northeast, it is ...

, Cutch (covering only Kutch state) and

Palanpur Palanpur is a city and a municipality of Banaskantha district in the Indian state of Gujarat. Palanpur is the administrative headquarters of Banaskantha district. Palanpur is the ancestral home to an industry of Indian diamond merchants. Ety ...

agencies. At one time or another between 1924 and 1944, 435

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 ...

were included in this agency, roughly covering the present Gujarat state, but only eighteen out of these were salute states. Some 163 Talukas and Estates were included in this Agency: these were mostly petty (e)states, some no larger than a town or village.

Agencies

The divisions of the Western India States Agency were : *

Eastern Kathiawar Agency The Baroda, Western India and Gujarat States Agency was an agency of the Indian Empire, managing the relations of the Provincial Government of the Bombay Presidency with a collection of princely states. The political agent in charge of the ag ...

(from 1926 onwards) ** Sabar Kantha Agency (merged with Eastern Kathiawar Agency on 1 September 1943) ***

Banas Kantha 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 ...

(former Palanpur Agency) and

Mahi Kantha Agency Mahi Kantha was a political agency or collection of princely states in British India, within the Gujarat Division of Bombay Presidency. In 1933, the states of the Mahi Kantha Agency, except for Danta, were included in the Western India States Ag ...

merged in 1933 to form Sabarkantha Agency in 1933 except Danta and Palanpur states which went to

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 ...

. * Western Kathiawar Agency (from 1926 onwards)

History

The city of Rajkot became the headquarters of this new agency and C.C. Watson became its first Agent to the Governor General of British India (AGG). Its boundary was modified twice, in 1933 and 1943. On 5 November 1944 it was merged with the Baroda and Gujarat States Agency to form the larger Baroda, Western India and Gujarat States Agency. In 1924,

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 ...

was merged into the Western India States Agency and placed under the political control of the Government of India. The designation of Palanpur Agency was changed to

in 1925 and

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

in 1933. Also in 1933, the states of the

, except for Danta were included in this agency. In 1941, the area covered by this agency was and the population was 52,20,011.

Chief officers

Agent to the Governor-General and Resident, Western States

*10 Oct 1924 – 15 July 1926 Charles Cunningham Watson (1st time) (born 1874 – died 1934) *16 July 1926 – Nov 1926 A.D. Macpherson (acting) *21 Nov 1926 – 17 October 1927 Sir Charles Watson (2nd time) (s.a.) *18 Oct 1927 – 18 May 1928 Edward Herbert Kealy (1st time) (born 1873 – d. 19..) (acting to 22 April 1928) *19 May 1928 – Apr 1929 H.S. Strong (acting) * 3 April 1929 – 23 October 1929 Terence Humphrey Keyes (acting) *24 Oct 1929 – Aug 1931 Edward Herbert Kealy (2nd time) (s.a.) *15 Aug 1931 – Aug 1932 A.H.E. Mosse (acting) *17 Aug 1932 – 26 May 1933 J. Courtenay Latimer (acting to 16 February 1933) *27 May 1933 – 13 October 1933 J.C. Tate (acting) *14 Oct 1933 – 5 June 1936 Courtenay Latimer (1st time) (born 1880 – d. 1944) * 6 June 1936 – 1 April 1937 J. de la Hay Gordon (acting) * 1 November 1936 – 31 March 1937 Sir Courtenay Latimer (2nd time) (s.a.)

Residents for the Western India States Agency

* 1 April 1937 – 10 October 1937 Sir Courtenay Latimer (s.a.) *11 Oct 1937 – 31 January 1941 Edmund Currey Gibson (1st time) (born 1886 – d. 19..) (acting to 16 May 1939) * 1 February 1941 – 14 March 1941 G.B. Williams (acting) *15 Mar 1941 – 3 April 1942 M.C. Sinclair (acting) * 4 April 1942 – 14 April 1942 R.W. Parkes (acting) * April 1942 – Nov 1942 Edmund Currey Gibson (2nd time) (s.a.) * 2 November 1942 – 5 September 1944 Philip Gaisford (acting to 3 January 1944) * 6 September 1944 – 5 November 1944 Cyril Percy HancockProvinces of British India
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References