Jawhar
This article has been extracted from THE IMPERIAL GAZETTEER OF INDIA , 1908. OXFORD, AT THE CLARENDON PRESS. |
Note: National, provincial and district boundaries have changed considerably since 1908. Typically, old states, ‘divisions’ and districts have been broken into smaller units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts. Some units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
Jawhar
State situated within the geographical limits of Thana District, Bombay, between 19° 40' and 20 degree 4' N. and 73 degree 2' and 73 degree 23' E., with an area of 310 square miles. Jawhar State consists of two unequal patches of territory, the larger in the north-eastern part of Thana District, and the smaller in the north-western. The Bombay, Baroda, and Central India Railway just touches the western boundary of the smaller patch.
Most of Jawhar is a plateau raised about 1,000 feet above the Kon- kan plain. Eastward the Western Ghats can be crossed by pack- bullocks through the Chinchutara and Gonde passes to the north, and through the Dhondmare and Shir passes to the south, of the high hill of Vatvad. The westerly route, about 38 miles from Jawhar to Dahanu Road on the Bombay, Baroda, and Central India Railway, crosses the Kasatwadi and Deng passes by a metalled road built by the Govern- ment in 1872-4. The road has recently been farther extended by the State eastwards to Kelghar. Towards the south and west the country is in some places level ; but the rest of the territory is elevated, and consists of the rocky and forest-covered tract that everywhere lies at the western foot of the Ghats. Though its many fertile valleys contain numerous streams, their waters are not used for irrigation. The chief streams are the Deharji, the Surya, the Pinjali, and the Vagh. Except in the southern mahal of Malvada, the water-supply fails as the hot season advances. Between June and October the rainfall is heavy, the average for the year being 120 inches. From the close of the rainy season till the end of December the air retains a considerable degree of moisture. In January and February the dryness and heat increase, followed from March to June by a tolerably warm season. The tem- perature xises to 106 in May and falls to 66° in January. During the greater part of the year the climate is malarious and unhealthy.
Up to 1294, the period of the first Muhammadan invasion of the Deccan, Jawhar was held by a Varli, not a KolT, chief. The first Koll chief, Paupera, otherwise known as Jayaba, obtained his footing in Jawhar by a device similar to that of Dido, when she asked for and received as much land as the hide of a bull would cover. The Koli chief cut his hide into strips, and thus enclosed the territory of the State. Jayaba was succeeded by his son Nlm Shah, on whom the king of Delhi conferred the title of Raja. So important was this event in the history of Jawhar that June 5, 1343, the day on which the title was received, has been made the beginning of a new era, which is still used in public documents. The Ahmadabad Sultans, who held the sea-coast of Thana, interfered but little with the inland portion of Jawhar : but with the Portuguese a continuous struggle was waged, which lasted until the decay of the latter, when the Jawhar chief, aided by alliances with the Mughal generals, managed to plunder the Portuguese possessions in the North Konkan and extend his territory from Bassein to Dah&nu. Subsequently the Marathas, who attacked the State on several occa- sions, deprived the chief of part of his territory and forced him to pay tribute. The succession to the chiefship follows the rule of primo- geniture ; a sanad granting the right of adoption on failure of natural heirs was granted in 1890. Except the nazarana, or succession fee in case of adoption, the Raja pays no tribute to Government.
Since 1872 the population of the State has increased by 27 per cent. According to the Census of 1901, the population was 47,538, of whom 47,007 were Hindus and 471 Muhammadans, the density being 153 persons per square mile. The State contains 108 villages, the only important one being that from which the State takes its name, situated in 19 degree 56' N. and 73 degree 16' E., with 3,567 inhabitants. Jawhar village is healthy and fairly cool, standing 1,500 feet above sea-level. The Only place of interest in the State is the ruined fort of Bhopatgarh, about 10 miles south-east of Jawhar village.
The soil, except in the level tracts, is stony anil unsuited for the better class of crops. Of the total area, 69 square miles are under forest and 58 are uncultivable, 171 square miles are cultivable, and 159 were cropped in 1903-4. Besides timber, the country yields rice to a limited extent and the coarser grains abundantly. The State escaped the famine that affected the rest of the Presidency in 1899- 1902, but it suffered rather severely from the depredations of locusts in 1903-4. The export trade consists of teak, rice, and ndgli. Good building stone is found.
Jawhar is under the political control of the Collector of Thana. The chief decides Sessions cases and hears appeals, and has power to try his own subjects for capital offences. The land is held to belong to the State, but so long as the owner pays his rent he cannot be ousted. The land revenue formerly varied in different parts of the State, but the settlement, completed in 1887-8, has fixed rates per acre varying from 2 / annas to Rs. 5/. The revenue of the State in 1903-4 was about i-7 lakhs, of which Rs. 50,000 accrued from land, Rs. 29,000 from excise, and Rs. 3,000 from forests. The expenditure amounted to over one lakh. The State pays no tribute, and the levy of transit dues was abolished in 1881. Control over opium has been ceded to the British, to whom also the excise arrangements are farmed. No mili- tary force is maintained. The police number 45. The State possesses two schools, with an average daily attendance of 132 pupils. The State dispensary, opened in 1878, annually treats 3,000 patients. About 1,500 persons are annually vaccinated in the State.
