Surul
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, units, and many tahsils upgraded to districts.Many units have since been renamed. Therefore, this article is being posted mainly for its historical value.
Surul
Village in the head-quarters subdivision of Birbhum Dis- trict, Bengal, situated in 23° 40' N. and 87° 40' E., in the south of the District, about 5 miles north of the Ajay river. Population (1901), 1,558, The village is noteworthy as the site of an old commercial residency, formerly the centre of the Company's trade in Birbhum. During the latter years of the eighteenth century, from 9/2 to 13/2 lakhs of rupees was annually expended on the mercantile investment at Surul. The first Commercial Resident, Mr, Cheap, who exercised magisterial powers, has left behind him the name of ' Cheap the Magnificent.' He introduced indigo cultivation into the District, improved the manu- facture of sugar by means of apparatus brought from Europe, and established a private firm, which flourished until within the last few years. When the Company gave up their commercial dealings, the residency at Surul was abandoned. The ruins crown the top of a small hill. The trade in indigo and sugar is now extinct.
