Bilaspur State was a
state of India
India is a federalism, federal union comprising 28 federated state, states and 8 union territory, union territories, for a total of 36 subnational entities. The states and union territories are further subdivided into 800 List of districts ...
from 1950 to 1954 with
Bilaspur town as its capital. The state was established after the province of the same name created in 1948
[ from the princely state of Bilaspur.
The 31st state of Bilaspur, which had been until then a separate entity under the control of the Chief Commissioner, was integrated with ]Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...
on 1 July 1954 thereby adding one more district to the state.
The main reason why Bilaspur was made a separate state, instead of being merged with Himachal Pradesh from the beginning, was because of the ongoing construction of the Bhakra Dam
Bhakra Nangal Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the Satluj River in Bhakra Village in Bilaspur district, Himachal Pradesh in northern India. The dam forms the Gobind Sagar reservoir. Nangal Dam is another dam at Nangal in Punjab downstream o ...
in the area. This was expected to cause extensive flooding that would displace a lot of people, who would then need to receive compensation as well as be relocated. The central government wanted to have Bilaspur as a separate state so that they could deal with these matters separately instead of being subsumed under Himachal Pradesh.
History
Bilaspur State was formed out of the territory of former Princely State of Bilaspur, which became part of the Dominion of India
The Dominion of India, officially the Union of India,
*
* was an independent dominion in the British Commonwealth of Nations existing between 15 August 1947 and 26 January 1950. Until its Indian independence movement, independence, India had be ...
on 12 October 1948 by the accession of its erstwhile Ruler, Raja Anand Chand of the Princely State of Kahlur
Bilaspur State or Kahlur State, sometimes Kahloor Riyasat, was a kingdom (697–1849) and later princely state (1849–1948) in the Punjab Province ruled by a separate branch of Chandravanshi Chandel rajput dynasty. Raja Bir Chand 697–73 ...
a.k.a. Bilaspur.
Bilaspur was a Province
A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
, until it was established as a Class "C" State, named Bilaspur State on 26 January 1950 within the Republic of India
India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area; the most populous country since 2023; and, since its independence in 1947, the world's most populous democracy. Bounded by ...
. Class "C" States were under the direct rule of the Central Government.[
]
Disestablishment
After 'The Himachal Pradesh and Bilaspur (New State) Act, 1954' was passed by an act of Parliament Bilaspur State was dissolved on 1 July 1954 and incorporated into the State of Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...
as Bilaspur district, with an area of 106,848 hectares.[
Himachal Pradesh State was another part-C state under a Lt. Governor. Initially it had a 36-member Legislative Assembly and the first elections to the Assembly had been held in 1952. In 1954, when Bilaspur was merged with Himachal Pradesh, the strength of its Assembly was raised to 41.]
Chief Commissioners
# Raja Anand Chand
His Highness Raja Sir Anand Chand (26 January 1913 – 12 October 1983) was the 44th Raja of Bilaspur. He was a Member of Parliament, representing Bihar in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of India's Parliament as a member of the Indian Nat ...
from October 1948 to April 1949.[Social, cultural, and economic history of Himachal Pradesh By Manjit Singh Ahluwalia]
/ref>
# Shrichand Chhabra, from April 1949 to November 1953
# K. S. Himmatsinhji, from November 1953 to July 1954[ Bilaspur State : Chief Commissioners]
/ref>
See also
* Political integration of India
Before it gained independence in 1947, India (also called the Indian Empire) was divided into two sets of territories, one under direct British rule (British India), and the other consisting of princely states under the suzerainty of the Briti ...
* States Reorganisation Act
The States Reorganisation Act, 1956 was a major reform of the boundaries of India's States and union territories of India, states and territories, organising them along linguistic lines.
Although additional changes to India's state boundaries ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bilaspur State (1950-54)
History of Himachal Pradesh (1947–present)
1950 establishments in India
Political integration of India
1954 disestablishments in India
1948 establishments in India
Former states and territories of India