The Panjab, North-West Frontier Province, and Kashmir Part 15

St.u.r.dy hard-working Jats are the backbone of the peasantry. They furnish many recruits to the Army. Ludhiana is a thriving town and an important station on the N.W. Railway. Our connection with Ludhiana began in 1809, and the district a.s.sumed practically its present shape in 1846 after the first Sikh War.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 96.]

[Sidenote: Area, 4286 sq. m.

Cultd area, 3504 sq. m.

Pop. 959,657; 44 p.c. M.

29 p.c. H.

27 p.c. S.

Land Rev.

Rs. 11,79,924 = 78,661.]

~Ferozepore~ is a very large district. The Faridkot State nearly cuts it in two. The northern division includes the _tahsils_ of Ferozepore, Zira, and Moga, the last with an outlying tract known as Mahraj, which forms an island surrounded by the territory of several native states.

The southern division contains the _tahsils_ of Muktsar and Fazilka. Our connection with Ferozepore began in 1809, and, when the widow of the last Sikh chief of Ferozepore died in 1835, we a.s.sumed direct responsibility for the administration of a considerable part of the district. Two of the great battles of the first Sikh War, Mudki and Ferozeshah or more properly Pherushahr, were fought within its borders.

Mamdot with an area of about 400 square miles ceased to be independent in 1855, but the descendant of the last ruler still holds it in _jagir_.

Fazilka was added in 1864 when the Sirsa district was broken up. Of the cultivated area 47-1/2 p.c. is irrigated by the Sirhind Ca.n.a.l, the Grey Inundation Ca.n.a.ls, and wells. For the most part the district is divided into three tracts, the riverain, Hithar or Bet, with a poor clay soil and a weak population, the Utar, representing river deposits of an older date when the Sutlej ran far west of its present bed, and the Rohi, an upland plain of good sandy loam, now largely irrigated by the Sirhind Ca.n.a.l. The Grey Ca.n.a.ls furnish a far less satisfactory source of irrigation to villages in the Bet and Utar. In different parts of this huge district the rainfall varies from 10 to 22 inches. The chief crops are gram and wheat. The Jats are the chief tribe. In the Uplands they are a fine st.u.r.dy race, but unfortunately they are addicted to strong drink, and violent crime is rife. Ferozepore has a large cantonment and a.r.s.enal and a big trade in grain. It is an important railway junction.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 97.]

[Sidenote: Area, 12,387 sq. m.

Cultd area, 7924 sq. m.

Pop 4,656,629; 57 p.c. M.

24 p.c. H.

16 p.c. S.

Land Rev.

Rs. 70,53,856 = 470,257.]

~Lah.o.r.e Division.~--Lah.o.r.e is the smallest division, but the first in population. Its political importance is great as the home of the Sikhs of the Manjha, and because the capital of the province and the sacred city of the _Khalsa_ are both within its limits. It contains the five districts of Gurdaspur, Sialkot, Gujranwala, Lah.o.r.e, and Amritsar. The Commissioner is in political charge of the Chamba State.

[Sidenote: Area, 1809 sq. m.

Cultd area, 1281 sq. m.

Pop. 836,771; 49 p.c. M.

34 p.c. H.

14-1/2 p.c. S.

Land Rev.

Rs. 17,68,412 = 117,894.]

~Gurdaspur~ is a submontane district with a good rainfall and a large amount of irrigation. The crops are secure except in part of the Shakargarh _tahsil_. 27 p.c. of the cultivated area is irrigated, 16 by wells and 11 by the Upper Bari Doab Ca.n.a.l. Irrigation is only allowed from the Ca.n.a.l for the Autumn harvest. The chief crop is wheat and the area under cane is unusually large. Of late years plague has been very fatal and the population fell from 940,334 in 1901 to 836,771 in 1911.

Jats, Rajputs, Arains, Gujars, and Brahmans, are the chief agricultural tribes, the first being by far the most important element. There are four _tahsils_, Batala, Gurdaspur, and Pathankot in the Bari Doab, and Shakargarh to the west of the Ravi. Batala is one of the most fertile and prosperous tracts in the Panjab and Gurdaspur is also thriving.

Pathankot is damp, fever stricken, and unprosperous. It lies mostly in the plains but contains a considerable area in the low hills and higher up two enclaves, Bakloh and Dalhousie, surrounded by Chamba villages.

Shakargarh is much more healthy, and is better off than Pathankot. There is good duck and snipe shooting to be got in some parts of the district, as the drainage from the hills collects in swamps and _jhils_.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 98.]

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 99.]

Area, 1991 sq. m.

Cultd area, 1427 sq. m.

Pop. 979,553; 62 p.c. M.

25 p.c. H.

8 p.c. S.

Land Rev.

Rs. 14,79,390 = 98,626.

~Sialkot~ is another secure and fully cultivated submontane district. It lies wholly in the Rechna Doab and includes a small well-watered hilly tract, Bajwat, on the borders of Jammu. The Ravi divides Sialkot from Amritsar an the Chenab separates it from Gujrat. The Degh and some smaller torrents run through the district. In the south there is much hard sour clay, part hitherto unculturable. But irrigation from the Upper Chenab Ca.n.a.l will give a new value to it. There are five _tahsils_, Zafarwal, Sialkot, Daska, Pasrur, and Raya. The chief crop is wheat which is largely grown on the wells, numbering 22,000. The pressure of the population on the soil was considerable, but since 1891 the total has fallen from 1,119,847 to 979,553 as the result of plague and emigration to the new ca.n.a.l colonies. Christianity has obtained a considerable number of converts in Sialkot. The Jats form the backbone of the peasantry. Rajputs and Arains are also important tribes, but together they are not half as numerous as the Jats.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 100.]

[Sidenote: Area, 4802 sq. m.

Cultd area, 2166 sq. m.

Pop. 923,419.

Land Rev.

Rs. 15,43,440 = 102,896.]

~Gujranwala~ is a very large district in the Rechna Doab, with five _tahsils_, Wazirabad, Gujranwala, Sharakpur, Hafizabad, and Khangah Dogran. The rainfall varies from 20 inches on the Sialkot border to ten or eleven in the extreme south-west corner of the district. Gujranwala is naturally divided into three tracts: the Riverain of the Ravi and Chenab, the Bangar or well tract, and the Bar once very partially cultivated, but now commanded by the Lower and Upper Chenab Ca.n.a.ls.

Enormous development has taken place in the Hafizabad and Khangah Dogran _tahsils_ in the 20 years since the Lower Chenab Ca.n.a.l was opened. Of late years the rest of the district has suffered from plague and emigration, and has not prospered. But a great change will be effected by irrigation from the Upper Chenab Ca.n.a.l, which is just beginning. In the east of the district much sour clay will become culturable land, and the Bar will be transformed as in the two _tahsils_ watered by the older ca.n.a.l. Of the cultivated area 73-1/2 p.c. is irrigated, 36-1/2 from wells and 37 from ca.n.a.ls. The chief crops are wheat and gram. There is, as is usual in the Western Panjab, a great preponderance of Spring crops. The Jats are far and away the strongest element in the population.

[Sidenote: Area, 1601 sq. m.

Cultd area, 1184 sq. m.

Pop. 880,728; 46 p.c. M.

29 p.c. S.

24 p.c. H.

Land Rev.

Rs. 12,70,799 = 84,720.]

~Amritsar~ is a small district lying in the Bari Doab between Gurdaspur and Lah.o.r.e. 62 p.c. of the cultivated area is irrigated, half from 12,000 wells and half from the Upper Bari Doab Ca.n.a.l. Unfortunately much waterlogging exists, due to excessive use of ca.n.a.l water and defective drainage. Measures are now being taken to deal with this great evil, which has made the town of Amritsar and other parts of the district liable to serious outbreaks of fever. There are two small riverain tracts on the Bias and Ravi and a poor piece of country in Ajnala flooded by the Sakki. The main part of the district is a monotonous plain of fertile loam. The two western _tahsils_, Amritsar and Tarn Taran, are prosperous, Ajnala is depressed. The rainfall is moderate averaging 21 or 22 inches, and the large amount of irrigation makes the harvests secure. The chief crops are wheat and gram.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 101.]

The Sikh Jats of the Manjha to the south of the Grand Trunk Road form by far the most important element in the population. Between 1901 and 1911 there was a falling off from 1,023,828 to 880,728. Besides its religious importance the town of Amritsar is a great trade centre.

[Ill.u.s.tration: Fig. 102.]

[Sidenote: Area, 2824 sq. m.

Cultd area, 1866 sq. m.

Pop. 1,036,158.

Land Rev.

Rs. 991,815 = 66,121.]

~Lah.o.r.e~ lies in the Bari Doab to the south-west of Amritsar. It is a much larger district, though, like Amritsar, it has only three _tahsils_, Lah.o.r.e, Kasur, and Chunian. 76 p.c. of the cultivated area is irrigated, 23 from wells and 53 from ca.n.a.ls. There has been an enormous extension of irrigation from the Upper Bari Doab Ca.n.a.l in the past 30 years. Accordingly, though the rainfall is somewhat scanty, the crops are generally secure. The princ.i.p.al are wheat and gram. The district consists of the Riverain on the Bias and Ravi, the latter extending to both sides of the river, and the plain of the Manjha, largely held by strong and energetic Sikh Jats. In the Ravi valley industrious Arains predominate. Railway communications are excellent. Trade activity is not confined to the city of Lah.o.r.e. Kasur, Chunian, and Raiwind are important local centres.

[Sidenote: Area, 21,361 sq. m.

Cultd area, 8099 sq.m.

Pop. 3,353,052; 87 p.c. M.

Land Rev.

Rs. 50,43,587 = 336,239.]

The ~Rawalpindi Division~ occupies the N.W. of the Panjab. It is in area the second largest division, but in population the smallest. Five-sixths of the people profess the faith of Islam. It includes six districts, Gujrat, Jhelam, Rawalpindi, Attock, Mianwali, and Shahpur. This is the division from which the Panjab Musalmans, who form so valuable an element in our army, are drawn.