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MONOGRAPH No. 7

COLONIZATION IN THE RECHNA DOAB

BY DEVA SINGH, M.A. (With a foreword oy H. E. Sir G. F. deMONTMORENCY, K.C.S.I., Governor of the Punjab).

General Editor :-H. L. O. GARRETT, I.E.S., Keeper of the Records of the Government of the Punjab.

«34&Q-or 5s. 8d (TO

A HISTORY OF THE COLONIZA­ TION IN THE RECHNA DOAB.

• Revised List of Agents for the Sale of Punjab Government Publications.

ON THE CONTINENT AND UNITED KINGDOM. Publications obtainable either direct from the High Commissioner for India, *2, Grosyenor Gardens, London, S. W. 1, or through any book­ seller. IN INDIA.

L. DIWAN CHAND, Proprietor, The Mercantile Press, Railway Road, Lahore. THE MANAGER, Punjab Law Book Mart, Mohan Lal Road, Lahore. THE MANAGER, Standard Book Depdt, Lahore. THE MANAGER, The University Book Agency, Kaoheri Road, Lahore. MR. D. PESTONJI, Stockists Representative, No. 1, Ewing Road, Lahore. RAI SAHIB M. GOLAB SINGH & SONS, Mufid-i-' Am Press, Lahore. KAMA KRISHNA & SONS, Booksellers and News Agents, Anarkali Street, Lahore. u L> RAM LAL SUBI, Proprietor, The Students Owu Agency", Post Box 51, Anarkali, Lahore. SECRETARY, Punjab Religious Bosk Society, Anarkali Street, Lahore. n THF. GENERAL MANAGER, U The Qaumi Daler and the Union Press, Amritsar.

MANAGER, Roze Bazar Steam Press, Amritsar. THE MANAGER, Imperial Book Depdt, Delhi.

TAACKER, SPINK & Co., Simla. THACKER, SPINK & Co., Calcutta. W. NEWMAN & Co., Limited, Calcutta. THE PROPRIETOR, The Book Company, Booksellers, 4/4A, College Square, Calcutta. MESSRS. S. K. LAHIRI & Co., Booksellers, Publishers and Printers, Calcutta. D. B. TARAPOREWALA, SONS & Co., Bombay. L. RAM NARAIN LAL, Publishers, Booksellers, etc., Allahabad, CONTENTS. PAGES.

Chapter I.—Physical and Geographical Features of the

Colony • • • • • • 1 II.—The Chenab Canal and the Progress of Colonization 10 ))

t> III.—Immigrants • • •-• • • 16

>9 IV.—Indigenous Population 22

a V.—Disposal of the Colony Land.—A.—General Policy and Ordinary Grantees 27

J? VI.—Disposal of the Colony Land.—B.—The Service Grantees • • • • 87

)} VII.—Village Homesteads 44

>y VIII.—Means of Communication . 52

?> IX.—Progress and Prosperity • • 57

APPENDICES. 1. Plan of Peasant Village Sites on Rakh and Mian Ali Branches l 2. Plan of Peasant Village Sites on Jhang and Bho- wana Branches u- w 3. Plan of Peasant Village Sites on Gugera and • ••

Burala Branches • • • • 111 4., Plan of Peasant Village Sites on Extension of

Canals • • •• •• • 0 IV 5. Plan of Peasant Village Sites for Camel Service

Grantees • • • • V 6. Graphs showing Progress of Cultivation and Eainfall in the Colony ...... vi 7. Graphs showing Expenses, Gross Eevenue, and • • Profits on the Canal • • Vll 8. A Map showing Distribution of castes on Eakh and Mian Ali Branches .. .. viii 9. General Changes in Administration .. .. ix 10. Glossary of Vernacular Terms .. .. xi 11. Bibliography xm h FOREWORD. I HAVE been asked by the author to write a foreword to this Monograph. It deals with the early development of coloniz­ ation in the Punjab, by irrigation by canals from the Chenab River, of the great desert known as the Rechna Doab. Apart from being one of the earliest of the Punjab irrigation colony schemes, the Lower Chenab Colony is also the largest purely colony scheme ever undertaken in the Punjab, and is indubitably the most successful. The problems and difficulties which were encountered were such as inevitably confront pioneers in schemes of this magnitude. These were overcome, one by one, by the vigilance and assiduity of a succession of Engineers and Colonization Officers and by the indomitable and adven­ turous spirit of the Punjab peasant farmer. Their solutions have become the common-places of irrigation and colony admini­ stration at the present day; but what now seems so simple, was at one time full of novelty and complexity; and the best method has only emerged as a rule of practice by long experience of less satisfactory means and ends. Above all, the labours of those who made the desert blossom were illumined throughout, as all pioneer work must be, with a spirit of confidence and hope. Parts of the Lower Chenab Canal Colony are now absorbed in the districts of Jhang and Sheikhupura; but the new Lyallpur District stands out as an entity by itself as the most complete self-expression of a colony which made good. Those who visit the district at the present time, with its two parallel railway systems, with its metalled roads, with its well- wooded and fertile countryside and prosperous well-ordered villages, with its go-ahead market towns of Lyallpur, Gojra, Toba Tek Singh, Chak Jhumra, Jaranwala and Tandlianwala, with its colleges and hospitals and high schools and agricultural research station, with its factories and administrative amenities, 11 and mark that it has a population of a million people, must find it difficult to realize that within the memory of some of the present generation the whole of this area was one of the most waterless, inhospitable and trackless deserts in North- West India, where a handful of Nomads for some months in the year wrested with difficulty a scanty livelihood for their flocks and herds, but which was otherwise wholly devoid of life or production ; to them this account of the early stages of the transformation will be at once informative and interesting. As for me, who spent more than eight years of my service in assisting colonists to settle on the land and develop their villages, and who was their companion in their daily round of difficult­ ies and shared the hopes and fears incidental to their great adventure, the Monograph takes me back to both the busiest and pleasantest days of my official life in India. The generation that came from the congested districts of the Punjab and rooted out the stumps of the desert brushwood and levelled the lands of the Bar for its first virgin crops is beginning to pass away and join the majority. The original Jangli Nomads, who had so suddenly to change a traditional mode of live­ lihood and wandering shepherd for the more arduous, if more remunerative, life of a tiller of the soil, are beginning to be only memories and names to the present generation; but they have left behind rich acres and comfortable homes to their successors; and, as I look around the Lyallpur District to-day, the line runs in my head. " Statfortuna domus et am numerantur avorum. "

GEOEFBEY DEMONTMOBENCY, August 26th, 1929. Governor, Punjab. PREFACE.

THERE is a tradition among historians that, since history- deals with the past, the further a subject is removed from the present, the more historical it is. The exclusion of recent events from the field of history is justified by the historians upon the plea that, only as events receded into the past, could their proper perspective be seen. There is much force in this con­ tention, but, if carried out to its logical conclusion—that one must wait for facts to be dead before the historian can deal with them—history would cease to have interest or value for any but antiquarians. There is fortunately no need to accept such a conclusion. The history of one's own time is as proper a theme for the modern historian as it was with Thucydides or Polybius. Whatever future historians may recast of what we write or teach, if we bring to the task the scientific temper and the patient labour of scholarship, we need not hesitate to correct that worst blunder in education, which, by cutting off the past from the present, made the one unreal and robbed the other of its true meaning.

Colonization in the Kechna Doab—the subject of this thesis— presents peculiar difficulties. Strange to say, that a history of this comparatively modern movement has to be reconstructed from an insufficient and muddled data. One of the chief handi­ caps is the fact that parts of the colony in the first decade of the present century were amalgamated with the adjoining districts and the individuality of the colony has been lost in various districts in which it has been partitioned. After the amalgamation, the records available are of the district as a whole, and the border-line between the history of the parts and that of the district is very obscure.

Since the inauguration of the Triple Project in 1914 and the opening of the Upper Chenab Canal, the colony in question 11 has been termed as the Lower Chenab Colony. There is no attempt on my part to describe the second colonization effort in the Recbna Doab—the Upper Chenab Colony. I feel great pleasure in acknowledging my deep obligations to Colonel H.L.O. Garrett, Principal, Government College, Lahore, Professor Sita Ram Kohli and Professor Amolak Ram Khanna who supervised my work from its very inception. I feel also indebted to Khan Bahadur Shaikh Khurshaid Mohammad, Junior Secretary to the Financial Commissioner, Punjab, for his valuable suggestions; and to J.M. Downey, Esquire, late Assistant Secretary to the Financial Commissioner, and CO.O'Brien, Esquire, Assistant Secretary to the Financial Commissioner, for their very kindly providing me with facilities to see the records in their office library. I have also to express my thanks to Rai Sahib Lala Sohan Lai, Lecturer, Central Training College, Lahore, who has been directing me in my research from time to time.

GOVERNMENT COLLEGE, LAHORE :

The 5th March 1929.

• CHAPTER I

PHYSICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURES OF THE COLONY.

Man's Conquest over Nature.—Some thirty years ago the south­ west part of the Punjab was one large expanse of desert waste. Water lay more than a hundred feet below the surface of the soil, while the rainfall was scanty and uncertain. The only living creatures to be seen consisted of poisonous snakes and lizards ; the vegetation, such as it was, consisted mainly of things ' rank and gross/ of little use to either man or beast. The only inhabit­ ants of the country were the indigenous nomads, who eked out a very precarious existence almost independent of any form of diet. Such was the wilderness which the imagination and skill of the engineers and the enterprise of the colonists were to make blossom like the rose. It is as if the energy of the virgin soil of the Bar had passed into their veins and made them almost a part of the forces of nature which they have conquered. The Punjab canals have literally created the four flourishing districts of Shahpur, Lyallpur, Jhang and Montgomery. In the sixties 89 per cent, of Shahpur was waste land ; and thirty years ago Lyallpur did not exist at all. Early Colonization Endeavours.—The earliest recorded attempt by the British Government to found a colony within the confines of the Punjab dates as far back as the year 1818, when, on the conclusion of the Pindari campaign, it was essayed by means of the so-called " Sukhlambri " grants of land in Harriana and Bhat­ tiana (Hissar) both to provide for the troops of the nine disbanded regiments of Eohilla cavalry and irregular horse and at the same time to establish a quasi-military colony along the frontier of British territories in imitation of the Eoman plan of empire- building. This endeavour to found a colony, however, proved a failure, as Bhattiana then was in a disturbed state and the grantees—being natives of Hindustan, Eohilkhand and Central B 2 COLONIZATION IN THE India—little relished the idea of jeopardizing their lives and property in so distant and so unsettled a country. With the annexation of the Punjab in 1849, the military frontiers shifted to Peshawar and for many years to come Government was busily occupied in restoring law and order in its new territories. The potentialities, however, of the vast tracts of uninhabited waste stretching across the west Punjab did not escape all notice and occasional reference is to be found in official records to the feasibility of spreading the waters of the Punjab over these arid deserts. It was not till the eighties (1886—88) that the first attempt to colonize parts of the Multan and Montgomery districts was made. Here another one hundred and seventy-seven thousand acres of waste land were covered by the Sidhnai and Sohagpur Canals of the Sutlej river and colonized with immigrants from the surrounding country. The experiment proved but a qualified success, as a perennial supply of water could not be guaranteed. Meanwhile great strides had been made in science, and engineers became increasingly ambitious. The next experiment was therefore on a totally different scale. The Chenab was to be harnessed and over a million acres were to be irrigated and colonized. This experiment proved a brilliant success, and the opening of the Lower Chenab Canal in 1892 is the turning-point in the economic history of the Punjab. The Chenab Colony a Prototype of the Punjab Colonies.—The scheme of colonization adopted in the Chenab Colony remains the prototype to be followed in all subsequent colonies with the necessary modifications of principle and of detail suggested by experience. To recognize the share of the native inhabitants in the colonization of the new land, to call only the agricultural classes to settle, to ensure that the immigrant settlors were men of good character, to arrange that so far as possible a colony village should be composed of one body of men headed by their leader, to foster the growth of tidy villages and towns and to provide speedy means of communication—all these remain the chief principles of the Chenab Colony system. We cannot exaggerate KECHNA DOAB. 3 the importance of the Eechna Doab scheme as being the basic ground for the latter colony proposals in other parts of the Punj ab. which the Government >/

have had in view in colonizingw th~^e~ vas- ~^~t heritag^-^—,0e of waste lands in the western Punjab, to which it succeeded when it took over from the Sikhs the administration of the Punjab, have been different from those which prompted the attempt to found the colony in Hissar. In the latter case the motives had been the desirability of rewarding generously bodies of soldiers who had been somewhat hastily disbanded and an anxiety to establish on a warlike and disturbed frontier the nucleus of a friendly population trained to the profession of arms and therefore readily available on emergency for military service. The new canal colonies were intended to relieve the pressure of popula­ tion upon the land in those districts of the province where the agricultural population had already reached or was fast approaching the limit which the land available for agricul­ ture could support, and to colonize the area in question with well-to-do yeomen of the best class who would constitute healthy agricultural communities of the best Punjab type. The whole scheme postulated great ingenuity, skill, patience and persever- ance on the part of those who undertook the work. The disposal of the colony land, its survey and its assessment, the settlement of the immigrants, the planning of villages, markets and towns, the provision of the means of communication and the general development of the colony, were some of the intricate problems which called for the utmost care on the part of the British Government. Their labours were rewarded, and there is not an atom of doubt that the colony thrived under their guidance and opened for the Punjab an era of prosperity undreamed of in the past. Colonization Experiments.—To obtain healthy agricultural communities of the best Punjab type, the bulk of the land was given to well-to-do agricultural peasants who would cultivate their B2 4 COLONIZATION IN THE own holdings with the aid of their families and of the usual menials, but as much as possible without the aid of tenants. The peasant class forms three-quarters of the population of the colony. It was soon found necessary, however, to provide the peasant community with men who with better means and more abundant capital would guide them and undertake costly experi­ ments relating to agriculture in the colony. This led to the fusion of the capitalist interest in the colony, and yeomen and capitalists were thus by no means an unimportant part of the population. In the subsequent scheme of colonization another object appeared. The South African War brought the needs of the army vividly to the fore. It was feared that, if ever India became involved in a great war, the supply of horses, mules or camels might fail. Accordingly it was proposed that land should be given to those who would undertake to maintain mares and camels for breeding purposes. This object, predominant in the Jhelum and Lower Bari Doab Colonies, holds quite a signifi­ cant place too in the colonization of the Eechna Doab. Latterly conditional grants have been developed further. Land has been given for the growing of plantations, for the breeding of special strains of cattle, for the supply of cantonments with milk or butter, for the growth of selected seed, for experiments in fruit farming, and even for the introduction of steam ploughs. The colony therefore is made not only to serve the primary needs life, but also to supply the requirements of the army and to develop a high standard of agriculture; and, in the grants that have been made to the societies for the depressed classes and criminal tribes, there is even a note of the reformatory influence at work. It is too soon to judge the results of most of these experi- ments. Some have bee>enn hotly disputed, and othersothers—fo— r instance, the grant of land for the breeding of camels—have definitely failed.

Superiority of the Colony.—It was intended also to create villages of a type ' superior in comforts and civilization to any­ thing which had previously existed in the Punjab,5 and it is EECHNA DOAB. 5

interesting to note how successfully this intention has been real­ ized. Villages and towns were beautifully planned : the utmost care was taken to ward off all the unhygienic congestion and the uncleanliness of the old homes of the colonists. The colony now presents beautiful and healthy sites both in rural and in urban areas. We meet here with a new life brought in by Pax Britan- nica : prosperous, progressive and modern, in contrast to what was in their native homes primitive, isolated and fatalistic. Culture, thought and civilization in the colony to-day are decided­ ly far more advanced than in the case of their brethern in the older districts. "With great satisfaction is it also observed that the constant efforts of various departments—Education, Medical, Co-operation, etc.—have been attended with relatively more speedy success in the colony than elsewhere in the province. Greater India once again.—A considerable part of the suc­ cess of the colonization scheme may be without overstatement attributed to the colonizing characteristics of the people of the Punjab. The manner in which they adapted to the environments and needs of the colony, jeopardized their property and their lives and made a variety of experiments on the new soil, suggests to our mind the colonizing virtues of the people. It is no wonder that they have shown themselves as the true descendants of those who in the ancient days of greater India had carved out new destinies for themselves in the alien regions of Cambodia, Siam, Indo-China, Java and other parts of the Eastern Oceans. We could have little expected these achievements in the field of colonization, had the people of the Punjab been con­ servative ' stay-at homes,' attached to their soils and little carina for ' fresh fields and pastures new.'

PHYSICAL AND GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURES OF THE COLONY.

The Bar.—The Bar (waste land), the colonization of which is under review in the following pages, lies between the Eavi and the Chenab, and is known as the Sandal Bar. This name is said to have been derived from a notorious dacoit, Sandal, a Chuhra 6 COLONIZATION IN THE by caste. The Sandal Bar is also spoken of sometimes as the Tatar Bar, or as ' Dulla-Bhatti-ki-Bar '—Dulla having been also a noted dacoit leader who was one of the founders of the stron Bhatti Colony on the eastern fringe of the Bar. The Bar itself includes approximately the lower half of the alluvial plain of the Eechna Doab, and its northern boundary is defined roughly by the road running from Lahore to Shahpur via Sheikhupura, Khangah Dogran and Pindi Bhattian. Below this lies the whole tract of the Doab, including that part of the Sheikhupura District which once formed the Sharakpur Tahsil of the Lahore District and the low-lying belt of riverain land. Looking backward.—The Sandal Bar does not seem to have been such a barren waste in the remote past as it was found- to be immediately previous to colonization. Sufficient evidence of this is afforded by the existence of a large number of pottery- strewn mounds called ' thehs ' which once formed the sites of well-populated villages. Within the area of the colony there are indeed no fewer than 113 such mounds, the largest of which is ' Pacca Mari' near Lyallpur. The existence of such thehs has been taken by some authorities to indicate that artificial irrigation must once have been in vogue, for otherwise the scanty rainfall and the great depth of sub-soil water in that region would hardly have rendered it possible for human beings to subsist at all, especially in settled habitations of considerable magnitude. It has been argued that probably in those days the Chenab and the Eavi followed courses which brought them much nearer to each other and that their waters were conducted for irreation in canals which followed the natural drainage lines of the country. One of these drainage lines, running through the centre of the tract, is known as Nandan Wah and is one of the ancient inundation canals of the Punjab. Configuration.—The whole Bar is an alluvial plain sloping gently from the north-east to the south-west, the height falling from 670 feet at the head of the It is high at the centre throughout and drops gradually towards EECHNA DOAB. 7 the rivers. There are certain rocky eminences which jut out fro n the level plain. There is a small group of these hills in the neighbourhood of Shahkot. They occur again at Sangla, reputed to have been the place of Alexander's conflicts, and again at Chiniot on the Chenab, while Koh Kerana on the borders of the Jhang and Shahpur Districts (1,000 feet high) seems to form a connecting link in the chain. They appear to be the off­ shoot of the Arwali ranges which crop out again in the Delhi and Gurgaon Districts.

Soil.—The soil of the Simdal^Baris mostly of excellent quality and fit for the cultivation of all kinds of crops. In some places, however, there are patches of a clay (known as Kallar), which is by no means good soil. The standard soil expanding through the Sheikhupura, Lyallpur, Jaranwala and Samundri Tahsils is a light loam (Maira), which is evidently suitable for canal irrigation. This soil in depressions assumes a stiffer and richer quality (Eohi) and occasionally deteriorates into an excess of sand (Eetli). Where this has an admixture of Kankar, it is termed ' Eohr.' In the Toba Tek Singh Tahsil an inferior soil is encountered. There is an increasing proportion both of ' Kallarathi,' which needs heavier watering and is less suitable for Kharif crops, and of an excessively light and sandy land ill adapted for anything except gram. In the proprietary villages a peculiarly stiff clay is found along the Deg Nala and a similar clay known as Dikadi (from Deg Khadir) stretches from Bahlak to Kiliawala along what is described as the ancient course of the Deg Eiver below its present confluence with the Eavi.

Rainfall.—What the rainfall in the Bar was in pre-colony lays can only be a matter of speculation. In the colony " Gazetteer " it has been estimated that, while the average on the Chenab at Jhang was 9*97 inches per annum, it can seldom have exceeded 5 inches in the centre of the Bar and in bad years 8 COLONIZATION IN THE might have been nothing. Since 1898 the following quinquennial averages have been recorded :—

1898 1903 1908 1913 1918 Situation of Gauge. to to to to to 1903. 1908. 1913. 1918. 1923.

Inches. Inches. Inches. Inches. Inches. Lyallpur 10*60 10*10 18-18 16-39 10-06

Sarnundri • • 7-58 13*90 12-50 8-78 Toba Tek Singh 5-60 5-54 11-61 12-00 7-06

These figures illustrate some important tendencies worthy of note. First, the rainfall diminishes as the locality recedes from the sub­ montane region. Secondly, rainfall has apparently increased with the progress of colonization. In the arid wastes, of which the Bar consisted prior to its reclamation, it seldom exceeded 5 inches per annum and in bad years might be nil. Irrigation and the growth of trees are generally responsible for this increase. Nevertheless nowhere in the colony is the present rainfall enough to mature Barani crops except for a small area of gram in abnormal years. Pre-colony Vegetation.—The principal trees in the pre-colony times were the Jand (prosopis Spisigera), Van (Salvadora Oleoides) and Karil (capparis appylea). The farsh (Tamarix articu- lata), also known as Pharaman and Ukhan, was not so common. The Ber (zizyphus Jujuba) and the Mallha (zizyphus Numularia) were to be found on the best soil, while the Kikar (acacia arabica) and Shishm or Tahli (Dalbergia sissu) were only found near the Hithari wells. In seasons of good rainfall grass also grew; 6 chimber ' and ' lonak ' were the common grasses. Present Vegetation.—Of the old trees the Jand has almost disappeared ; Van, Karil and small stunted trees still exist in the waste land reserved for grazing in the villages. Camels, sheep and goats like the foliage of these trees. Karil is also common in the Government waste. Of modern plantation, KECHNA DOAB. 9 Shishm and Kikar are the most common ; both of them are useful to the agriculturists in several ways. Pipal, Bohr and Sirash are other trees which have also been introduced by the colonists.

Sub-soil Water.—The depth of sub-soil water is too great to permit of well irrigation. Since the opening of the inundation canal, however, in 1887 the effect of water percolating into the ground from flowing channels and from irrigated fields has been markedly seen in the gradual rise of the spring-level and recently an increase of wells in some parts of the district had been noticed—a feature which cannot but cause satisfaction. The following figures ilustrate the rise :—

Depth to ivater. Level in feet in October. Situation of well. 1905. 1910. 1915. 1920.

Salarwala (6 miles west of Bakh Branch) .. 71-90 67-80 59-25 56-20 Lyallpur (4 miles east of Bakh Branch) .. 87-69 79-00 70-00 63-40 Toba Tek Singh (Jhang Branch) 57-16 49-36 45- 52 42- 80 Satiana (Gugera Branch) 70-47 62-57 53- 72 45- 87 Sarwarwali (Nahra Extension) 70-37 60-27 49-97 40-82 Jhamra (Proprietary Villages) .. •* 25-94 22-14 21-39 20-84

In the villages close to the banks of the canal the distance to the water-level is low, but it increases as we recede from the main channel. Though the spring-level is too low to raise serious apprehensions of water-logging, the efforts that are being made on the Upper Chenab Canal region to ward off the menace have an interest even for Lyallpur. The evil of water-logging should not be allowed to enter the colony and various methods, such as improvements in surface drainage, the application of steam excavators for clearing the drains even under running water and the lining of the canal with water-proof material, may be pursued to check an undesirable tendency and save the colony from its attendant destruction. 0 10 COLONIZATION IN THE

CHAPTER II. THE CHENAB CANAL AND THE PROGRESS OF COLONIZATION. Preliminary Remarks.—The history of the projects of the Chenab Canainal possesses features of peculiapeculiarr interest. Magnificent as this canal is—one of the finest in India, perhaps in the world few works ever started with fortunes at so low an ebb, and passed through vicissitudes to such remarkable success. Favourable Circumstances for a Canal in the Doab.—The Eechna Doab is as nearly an ideal a situation for an irrigation work as is ever likely to be obtained. The Chenab Eiver is a splendid source of water-supply, commanding a perennial ingress of water from the snowy sources on the Himalayas. The Doab is of considerable size, the soil is for the most part very fertile and a large proportion of the whole was Crown waste in regard to which Government had an absolutely free hand. The rainfall was small, the cultivation very precarious and more than half the whole area was absolute and uninhabitable desert. The physical contours of the colony area were exceptionally favourable to canal irrigation. The vast plain of which it consisted had a fall of about 181 feet, though its surface appeared level to the naked eye. Its central portion formed a kind of water-shed, from which the ground sloped gently to the river-beds on both sides. With the exception of some occasional high upland banks, known as ' Dhayas,'* there is little to interrupt the steady flow of water from the Chenab Eiver over the .length and breadth of the coun- try. Such a combination of circumstances is of course favour­ able for a canal. History of the Project.—Early Proposals for a Canal.—The first record of any proposal to construct a canal for this Doab dates back to 1862, when levels were taken in a portion of the S ovid •These Dhayas formed the old banks of the rivers or smaller streams called - Nalas. EECHNA DOAB. 11 ing irrigation from the Tawi Kiver. In the following year other beg Sialkot and G nial canal from the Chenab Kiver. Two reports on this proposal were furnished—one in 1863, and the other in 1864—but the data collected were felt to be untrustworthy and the whole question of the irrigation of the Kechna Doab remained in abeyance until autumn of 1872 when orders were issued for the preparation com view to the elaboration of a project for its irrigation. Two years later, on the conclusion of the survey, a project (including one perma­ nent, and ubmitted for the orders of Government. This scheme, which wras esti­ mated to cost 345 lakhs of rupees, was, however, negatived by the Government of India on the ground that the estimates were insufficient and the financial results uncertain. In 1877 a modified scheme, known as the Ghiniot Inundation project, was put forward. Under these circumstances only an individual pos­ sessed of verv remarkable insight could have imagined in 1876 the enormous strides which Punjab irrigation was destined to make during the next three decades. The Chenab Canal Project—This state of affairs continued till 1882 when the Government of India called for a rapid submission ation schemes which would be sufficiently remunerative to be classed as productive public works.* In response to these orders three projects were drawn up for the Sidhnai Canal from the Eavi, the Lower Sohag and Para Canal from the Sutlej and the Kamnagar (afterwards known as the Chenab) Canal from the Chenab. The first two are beyond our subject and concern us only in that both required the colonization of Crown waste lands. and that the experience derived on these schemes paved the way for the colonization of the Eechna Doab The Chenab Canal project of 1882 differed from other similai schemes inasmuch as it contemplated the irrigation of the high •Government of India letter No. 87-A. J., dated 22nd May 1882. o2 12 COLONIZATION IN THE plateau of the Doab and not the irrigation of the low riverain lands to which the inundation canals are generally confined. maximum supply of 1,800 cubic feet b %j per second. With command which square miles were Government waste), it was estimated that the canal would be able to irrigate 144,000 acres, or 25-4 per cent, of the whole area. The forecast of the net income was about Es. 2| lakhs, equivalent to 7*89 per cent, on the estimated total cost of nearly Es. 32 lakhs. Failure of the Inundation Canal.—This scheme received the sanction of the Secretary of State on the 28th August 1884, the work of hand the canal was opened for irrigation on the 9th July 1887. From the outset, it must be admitted, it proved a failure. It never irrigated more than 52,000 acres; the channel silted in the flood season ; and, as the river fell, there was no means of forcing water into the canal to mature the crops sown. Further­ more, the civil officers refused to attempt the colonization of the Crown waste as long as the uncertainty of supply lasted. The Project for a Perennial Canal.—In 1889 therefore a fresh project was prepared, which provided for a weir across the river and considerable extension of the canal system. The new project was sanctioned in 1890* and construction was immediately com­ menced. Further Extension of the Revised Project.—This revised project was further extended with a view to distribute all the available water of the Chenab Eiver over the whole area of the Doab ; the Middle Branch, or Eakh Branch, was to be enlarged and two other branches—the Northern, afterwards known as the Jhang, and the Southern, known as the Gugera Branch—were to be construct­ ed. These final provisions received the approv.il of the Secretary of State in 1892. Profits of the Canal—The revised project was estimated to cost Es. 2,65,15,966 and the area commanded was 3,823 square Secretary of State's despatch No. 2 P.W., dated 9th January 1890 V Chenab harnessed.—Khanki Head Works w

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RECHNA DOAB. 13 miles. It was anticipated that the canal would actually irrigate 528,500 acres in 1899-1900, 993,000 in 1909-10, and that it would reach a full development of 1,100,000 acres in 1914-15. It was ex­ pected, moreover, that the canal would give a return from direct and indirect revenue of 11-96 percent, in 1909-10 and of 15-64 per cent, in 1914-15. How cautiously this forecast was prepared is evidenced by the results. At the close of the capital account at the end of the financial year 1899-1900 the savings on the original estimate of 265 lakhs of rupees were computed to be nearly 13£ lakhs. By the end of 1918-19 the total capital invested had amounted to Rs. 325 lakhs and the accumulated profits (after defraying interest charges) to Rs. 1,519 lakhs, the average profit during the previous seven or eight years having been over 40 per cent, on the capital outlay.

Colonization of the Rakh Branch.—The Rakh Branch, named after the main source of its water-supply, irrigates the middle ridge of the colony. It was here that the first scenes of colonial ac­ tivity were laid. As early as 1890, the land had been allotted to Mazhabi pensioners of the 23rd, 32nd and 34th Pioneers in Mauzas 11, 12 and 13, near Khangah Bogran, but it was then irrigable only by the inundation canal, and the grantees were by no means prosperous. The real work of colonization began in February 1892, when Mr. (afterwards Sir) Edward D. Maclagan (later Governor of the Punjab) was appointed Colonization Officer. Peasants, yeomen, capitalists and auction purchasers were all represented in due proportions. But the prospects of would-be infra settlers were not entirely attractive. The difficulties describ­ ed on page 16, little encouraged the new settlers. The early hardship once surmounted, augury of success smiled- upon the infant colony; immigration became swift, especially after the construction of the Wazirabad-Khanewal Railway, when much economic stress was relieved. A new market town was built on the railway line at Lyallpur and the headquarters of the colony were transferred to it from Shahkot, where they had been at first located, Sangla and Jhumra were also founded in the same vear 14 COLONIZATION IN THE

(1896). The establishment of these three market towns, connected by rail with the main line, marks the conclusion of the active operations on the Eakh Branch. Colonization of the Jhang Branch.—The Jhang Branch of the canal irrigates the north-western part of the colony. Land was first distributed in 1896. The settlers were mostly peasants, for Government had recognized the unsatisfactory colonizing habits of the capitalists and yeomen. The bulk of the work was completed by the end of 1898, when 390,066 acres had been disposed of. The arrangements for irrigation were better from the first, and most of the usual hardships of colonists were largely obviated. By 1899 the railway had reached Toba Tek Singh and prepared the way for the founding of Gojra (1899) and Toba Tek Singh (1900), which are now amongst the most flourish­ ingO towns of the colonvt/ . / the Gi Guger Branch, including the Bhurala Branch, commanding the south­ eastern part of the colony, was estimated to contain an allotable area of 700,000 acres. Long before the completion of allot­ ments on the Jhang Branches, colony officers were at work on the Gugera lands. Between 1899 and 1902 about 709,570 acres were distributed. The period was one of uninterrupted progress and of little change in the colony policy. Large numbers of soldiers and pensioned officers obtained allotments on this branch, and capitalists and yeomen were more generously treated than on the Jhang Branch. In 1900 the system of camel service grants was introduced on the Bhurala Branch and the tail of the Lower Gugera. In the matter of markets and communications, the Gugera Branch was at first somewhat handicapped, for the Ohichoki-Shorkot Koad Eailway had not yet come into existence, nor had the market towns of Jaranwala and Tandlianwala sprung up ; these were subsequent developments designed in due course to meet the growing needs of the tract. On Extensions.—Colonization being almost complete after 1902, the area for allotment on the three main branches was com- EECHNA DOAB. 15

paratively small, but the extension of the branches was under­ taken and colonization continued on these ' extensions/ which were six in number—Nahra, Nupewala, Dungali, Bahlak, Killian- wala, Bhangu. All except the last named were watered from the Gugera Branch of the canal ; Bhangu is a Jhang Branch extension. The new regions were colonized between 1903 and 1905, with peasants (including a number of camel men) and normal Later on, when the area Mahal ome pose s The new Pir Mahal Distributary was constructed in 1927, nd the area in question is still being colonized to-day. Progress of The following table shows the pro- gress of the allotments on each branch, including extensions up to the end of September 1909, when the colonization work had almost ceased and further allotments were nothing but the sale of isolated plots of land on precisely the same terms as io other districts :—

Eakh Jhang To the end of September. Gugera Branch. Branch. Branch. Total

Acres. Acres. Acres. Acres.

1892 • • 230,761 • * • • 230,761

1893 • • 386,626 • • • • 386,626

1894 • • 422,774 422,774

1895 * * 421,335 • • 421,335

1890 • • 428,803 82,654 • • 511,457

1897 • • 430,418 193,670 • • 624,088 1898 431,022 390,066 • • 821,088 189!) • • 436,490 414,178 325,751 1,176,419 1900 • • 439,248 437,597 509,760 1,386,605 1901 440,991 502,155 637,400 1,580,546 1902 • • 444,378 547,182 709,570 1,701,130 1903 • • 445,692 569,522 758,184 1,773,398 1904 451,033 568,749 789,212 1,808,994 1905 • • 453,732 572,586 790,479 1,816,797 1906 453,754 574,213 801,913 1,829,880 1908 • • 454,699 575,599 S08,069 1,838,367 1909 • • 455,613 575,768 810,557 1,841,938 16 COLONIZATION IN THE

CHAPTER III IMMIGRANTS.

Difficulties of the Early Settlers.—The early settlers in the colony had no path of roses to tread. The country was wide, empty and desolate; its nomad population was hostile to in­ truders, and the climate in summer was of the fiercest. The tract could only be reached by bullock cart, camel or horse, and, even when the first harvest was won, there was no railway to take it to market. Nor was the first harvest by any means an easy undertaking. Methods of irrigation were in their infancy ; levels had not in all cases been rightly calculated and colonists were allowed to arrive before all the main channels were ready. The land too had to be cleared of bush and scrub ; fields to be levelled and embanked, and water courses had to be excavated. Sometimes the water refused to run and nothing could be sown. Meanwhile, the indigenous nomads, resenting the alien intrusion into their solitude, gave the settlers no peace, stealing their cattle and preying upon them in every possible way. A severe epidemic of cholera made things worse; and it was not till an abundant harvest appeared that the excellent qualit}^ of the soil lay revealed and the spirits of the new­ comers revived. Even then difficulties were not at an end. Labour was scarce and large quantities of cotton remained unpicked. When harvested too, the produce had to be conveyed to market by the same perilous ways by which the settlers came. No wonder then that many returned in disgust to their homes, little realizing the El Dorado which the wilderness was to become. Land Hunger facilitates Colonization.—This was, however, a transitory phase. Once the fertility of the virgin soil of that water­ shed had been demonstrated, there was no lack of fresh settlers ; the news of the magnificent crops which had converted the poorest EEOHNA DOAB. 17 colonists into men of substance within the space of a couple of har- vests spread quickly over the province. A land hunger arose which was not easily to be appeased. The applications for grants were far in excess of those which could be accepted and it became possible to pick and choose desirable colonists. The nomads soon found the colonists more than their match ; their resistance became feeble and in course of time disappeared altogether, and the colony became even more attractive to people all over the pro­ vince. Careful Selection of C'olonists.—The aims of Government with regard to the type of the colonists they required, the districts from which they were to be drawn and the method of their selec­ tion, periodically formed the theme of Government notifications. Though people who were struggling with an insufficiency of land in their native districts were accepted, care was taken nevertheless to choose only those who could meet the initial expenses without seriously involving themselves. The settlers had to trans­ port or to buy cattle, to house themselves, to break up the land, and, pending the first harvest, to feed themselves, their families, their menials and their cattle. Paupers, dotards or mere boys, the physically and mentally unfit, the village loafers and the like were excluded and the selection was confined to landowners, and occupancy tenants. They should be good agriculturists, and not poor needy men unable to stand the labour and expense of bringing the land into cultivation. Such agriculturists were generally Jats, Sainis, Arains, Kambohs, Gujars and Kajputs. The districts to be relieved were those in which the population was already congested, and in which the land was insufficient to provide a subsistence for all. The eastern districts of the Punjab formed the chief recruiting grounds from which the colonists were obtained.*

•Letter No. 885, dated 26th January 1883, from the S trio* Secretary to the Financial Commissioner (then Mr. Lyall) to the Joint Secretaries to Government: ' In the eastern part of the Punjab and in the sub-Himalayan tracts there not infrequently are found villages peopled by agriculturists of the best type who have increased in number until the lands which they own are insufficient for their support. (Amritsar, Jullundur, Hoshiarpur, Gurdaspur and Ludhiana classed supreme in the scheme.') 18 COLONIZATION IN THE Distribution of Colonists by Beligion and Tribe.—There was no general plan for the allocation of colonists on the Eakh and Mian AH Branch. All sorts and conditions had to be provided for at once and the nomads refused to shift from their old ' rahnas ' or wait for land on the other branches. Of the later branches, it may be said that approximately the centre of the colony is occupied by Sikh Jats, the inner ring by Muhammadan Jats, Arains, Gujars and Kajputs, and the outer ring by nomads of the Bar (Janglis), including camel service grantees and men from the riverain villages generally known as Hitharis. Thus on the north-west—the Upper Jhang Branch, west of the canal—the whole of the Bhowana Branch and the tail of the Dhaulpur Distributary are devoted to nomads and Hitharis ; and on the south-east the Bhurala Branch is mainlv occupied by individuals of the same clans, while both branches are generally fringed within their own boundaries by villages belonging to other Muhammadan grantees. The main reason for such an allocation was that the proximity of Sikhs or Hindus and Muhammadan nomads would not be conducive to peace, while the presence of the Muhammadans alongside the original Muhammadan tribes would be tolerated on the ground of a common Faith. The policy so followed has been justified by the insignificance of the mutual feuds, raids and reprisals which have taken place in this region. Generally speaking, the peasant grantees (abadkars) in each village belong to the same tribe, profess the same religion and originate from the same home district, though the necessity of exchanges has occasioned a large number of exceptions to the rule. Other considerations too prevailed at the time of grouping the colonists in a colony village, with the result that in some mauzas men of different tribes and religions have been bunched together. So far as the allocation of peasant pensioners is concerned, the policy at first adopted was to give them grants in villages occu­ pied by other peasant colonists of the same tribe and district; but their unpopularity with the villagers was soon discovered, and EECHNA DOAB. 19 at a later period on the Jhang and Gugera Branches they have usually been given separate villages to themselves, being grouped together with due reference to regiments, as well as tribes, re­ ligions and districts. There are thus some particularly homo­ geneous pensioner villages in the colony. In some cases the regi­ mental hero has given his name to the estate ; for instance, there are villages named Fanepur (19th Lancers, Fane's Horse), Eattray- abad (45th Kattray's Sikhs) and Hodsonabad (9th Hodson's Horse), etc. The yeomen grantees too were discovered to be unsuitable for the peasant village, and so they have been grouped usually with the capitalists—an arrangement which was thought desirable also from the administrative standpoint. Nevertheless religious compatibility was the primary consideration in the group­ ing of the colonists, and it was only after this had been fulfilled that the yeomen and the capitalists have as far as possible been located together. The Tribes selected.—Jats.—Nearly all the hereditary cultivator tribes of the province are represented in the colony. The Jats are the most important community in the colony and occupy the major part of the tract. Their fine physique, their thrifty habits and their capacity for patient toil make the Jat Sikh the most desirable amongst the colonists. They are possessed of a sturdy independ­ ence and a spirit of enterprise. Their fine physical qualities are, however, often marred by grosser traits, as when their martial courage and their dogged nature exhibit themselves in crimes of violence. Their character as agriculturists, however, is above reproach. The Amritsar Jats, spread out on the west side of the Nesrana Distributary, have shown a marked tendency to take to newer methods of agriculture and to add to the general welfare of the colony. They numbered 79,653 in 1901 ; and in their various capacities as peasants, capitalists, yeomen and purchasers they held an area of 448,565 acres in 1904 and 445,445 acres in 1913. Amritsar contributed by far the largest number of these settlers ixi the colony. D2 20 COLONIZATION IN THE Muslim Jats.—A large number of Mussalman Jats belong to local nomad tribes which are dealt with elsewhere in the thesis. As regards the extent of their holdings, they come next to the Sikhs and the Hindus. They are inferior to these, however, in physique intelligence, courage, enthusiasm and adventurous instinct. In the scale of efficiency in cultivation they may be spoken as toler- "able. Mussalman Jats are a prolific race and have multiplied marvellously during the last two decades, with the result that their holdings have been much divided and the quality of their tillage had deteriorated owing to their incapacity to use improved methods of cultivation. They numbered 150,602 in 1901, and held in all capacities 234,432 acres of land in 1903 and 230,135 in 1913. They mainly emigrated from the Sialkot and Gurdaspur Districts. Arains.—The Arains are good agriculturists—second only to the Sikh Jats. Submissive, hardworking and frugal, addicted neither to crime nor to extravagance, they represent a good agricultural community. The Arains of the Chenab Colony have far excelled their brothers in their home districts. Like the Mussal­ man Jats, they too are the most philoprogenitive, and in this connection their value in a nascent colony, which needed above all an abundant agricultural population, can hardly be overrated. The current proverb about them,' mal gaen te raiayat rain ' (cows are the best of cattle and Arains the best of tenants), is a just and well-merited compliment. They are good arboriculturists and their villages are characterized by an ample growth of trees. They supply a considerable number of tenants as any grantee is always willing to hire their services in that capacity. They numbered 70,246 in 1901, and held 191,794 acres in 1903 (mainly as peasants) and 201,162 acres in 1913. They have been drawn mostly from the Hoshiarpur, Ludhiana and Jullundur Districts. Bajputs.—The Kajputs of the colony are mainly Muham- madans. Since the bulk of them are pensioners, yeomen, capitalists and auction purchasers, nearly every district has contributed to their number. Eajputs are generally absentees and cannot be expected to interest themselves in their holdings in the colony. KECHNA DOAB. 21 They are large owners in their home districts and their pride of race handicaps their agricultural pursuits. Their number in 1901 was 40,129 (inclusive of the indigenous Rajputs). They held 35,288 acres in 1903 and 61,867 acres in 1913. The Ambala District con­ tributed the largest number of Rajput immigrants. Others.—The other agricultural communities of the colony hold a comparatively small share in the colony population and may briefly be dismissed. The Kambohs, practically all of whom come from the Amritsar and Jullundur Districts, are both Muhammadans and Sikhs, the Sikhs forming a majority. They hold mainly as peasants and most of them are the tenants of other grantees. They are good cultivators, famous for their love for arboriculture. Their origin as a landowning class is recent, and they therefore command little social respect either in their original home or in the colony. As agriculturists pure and simple, however, they are very desirable col­ onists. They were 15,238 strong in 1901. Their holdings amounted to 55,665 acres in 1901 and 56,731 in 1913. The Sainis are a Hindu tribe contributed by the Hoshiarpur, Jullundur and Ambala Dis­ tricts ; they held 14,175 acres in 1903 and 16,236 acres in 1913. As grantees, they are mostly peasants. The Gujars are nearly all Mu­ hammadans and hold chiefly as peasants. They held 20,350 acres in 1903 and 22,015 in 1913. In their home districts they were gen­ erally a pastoral race, mostly inhabiting the riverain tracts. They have been drawn chiefly from the Gurdaspur and Hoshiarpur Dis­ tricts. They were once notorious for their persistent absenteeism, but of late they have effected considerable improvements in their abadis and have begun to show an interest in the colony holdings. COLONIZATION IN THE

CHAPTER IV. INDIGENOUS POPULATION. Pre-colony Days.—The Bar, before its colonization, was in­ habited by pastoral races who often fought amongst themselves under their leaders and parcelled out its pastures. Their leader, called Eat (a powerful man, or dacoit), enjoyed promi­ nence and suzerainty over his dependents ; the relationship be­ tween them was of a distinctly feudal character. Before 1860 they had no separate ' rahnas' or nomad settlements. The Rats only moved slowly over the portion of the Bar which they claimed to rule; they were accompanied by the whole of their clan followers and all their ' riaiyas.' These hordes called ' Jan ' seldom stayed more than one or two months at one spot in even the richest pasture-grounds. The Rats provided protection to their dependents and received in return a tax called ' pawanji.' The whole tract was infested with these nomad feudatories; for strangers the Bar was almost impenetrable. As, however, the country became gradually settled under British rule, their free raids were checked and the practice of grazing in hordes was therefore abandoned, and that of forming ' quasi' permanent settlements was substituted. These settle­ ments were ordinarily called ' rahnas ;' but, if any such settle­ ment was formed by camel- owning graziers, it was called a ' jhok.' The rahnas and jhoks were made to pay a grazing tax, termed ' tirni.' Though the tirni system detracted much from the powers of the old ' Rats,' yet the latter, so long as the Bar was not colonized, continued to possess enormous influence over their dependents. The Indigenous People to be dealt with in the Colonization Scheme.—The Bar, though sparsely populated, was occupied by a variety of nomad tribes. They were mostly Muhammadans, and often Jats, though some of them were Rajputs. They were EECHNA DOAB. 28 (and remain) split up into an enormous number of small com­ munities distinguished by various names, derived as a rule from some common ancestor. All of them, however, owed allegiance to one or the other of the four influential landowning tribes—the Bhattis, the Virks, the Kharrals and the Sials—which used in olden days to dominate the land. The Bhattis were established on the north-eastern side of the Bar and claim to be ' Suraj Banshi ' Eajputs. Being extensive landowners, they did not embark on a nomadic life. Their influence at one period prevailed as far as Shahkot. The Virks, practically all Sikhs and claiming to be Eajputs, were also found in the Khangah Dogran and Gujranwala Tahsils. The Kharrals were Muhammadans, and still call themselves in origin ' Poar ' Eajputs, though they may be Jats. They were scattered mostly on the south-western side and owned a number of villages on the Eavi; a considerable number of them also took their residence in the Bar. The Sials were large landowners on the Chenab ; those who possessed no land inhabited the north-western part of the Bar and adopted pastoral occupations. minor classes, perhap known of which include the following :— Wagah, Wasir, Uthwal, Chadhar, Vains, Kajla, Mutamal, Bar, Khichi, Wattu, Suna, Sipra, Eajoka, Haral and Samil. The nomad population of the Bar during the census of 1891 was returned as 70,000 ; but, as that calculation was made during the cold weather, the regular nomad population must have been largely augmented by graziers from the riverain villages. The nomad population was probably not more than 55,000 ; a figure which is to a certain extent borne out by the number of people (64,610) who recorded themselves as speaking ' Jangli' at the census of 1901. Janglis : Hitharis.—The nomads are generally known as Janglis and the people derable found established in t] 'b are known as Hitharis. broad technical distinction between these two consists of the 24 COLONIZATION IN THE Hitharis owned land and dependent cultivation livelihood and were selected as colonists by Deputy Commis- fs, while the nomads, who resided in the Bar, did not usually and and depended on flocks and herds for a livelihood and selected by the Colonization Officer. The nomads who were chosen and re to be rec( nized Janglis, though now every noma himself a Jan Both classes, however, have no tribal distinctiveness, for, as a matter the same tribes are almost presented in both Janslis and Hitharis Biloches.—The Biloches, who owned more camels than cattle, belong to all the five great tribes of Eind, Hoi, Kmai Lishari and Jatoi. In 1904 they numbered 17,433, but the Jatoi tribe was numerically by far the most prominent in the colony Some of the Biloches were treated as ordinary nomads and re ceived grants on the Rakh and Jhang Branches. Later on, however Major Popham Young, finding a great majority of them residing on the Ravi side, gave them land on the Gugera Branch on camel service terms. They held 79,633 acres of land on these terms, and their chaudharis or lambardars held an additional area of 5,344 acres. The following was the distribution of the tribes in the colony as given in t le census of 1901 Sialfs 15,453 Kharrals 7,233 Chaddrars 8,678 Vattus 2,466

Khichis • • 1,983 Waghas 612

Wasirs • • 1,112 Biloches 17,433 Sipras 3,454 Qureshi 1,667 Total 60,091 Others 4,519 Total 64,610

Jangli tribes reading in the Government High SchooL Jaranwala.

•S

/

\ v 7XA

: Jangli village (Sammu*ki-Jhoke Chak352G. B.). EEOHNA DOAB. 25 Disposal of Land to the Nomads.—The Bar nomads offered severe opposition to the colonization of the tract. They regarded the advent of colonists as an invasion of their ancestral grazing - grounds. They had little faith in the permanency of the canal and little inclination to abandon their old vagrant habits and settle down to the business of serious cultivation. They regarded the introduction of settlers from other parts of # the country with extreme jealousy and for some time continu­ ously harassed and worried the new-comers, making perpetual attacks on the colonists and stealing their cattle. But, as fresh immigrants continued to flock to the Bar, the prosperity of the new arrivals became evident, and the nomads began to show an inclination to receive land. Accordingly grantees from amongst the nomads were selected and established on the Jhang and Eakh Branches. They were then treated with great liberality. The nomads were considered to be very prolific, so nearly all the males in the family obtained their share of grants and the family holdings became greater than those of the immigrant colonists. Forty-one villages wholly, and fifteen partly, were held by nomads of the Bar, the aggregate area of their tenancies being 70,811 acres in the year 1900 and 253,752 in 1903. The Hitharis were left intact with their land already owned by them and their proprietary rights recognized. The area owned by the Hitharis by the end of 1903 reached the total of 135,578 acres.

The Civilizing Effect of Colonization on the Nomads.—The success of the nomad allotments is a striking instance of the triumph of environment over heredity. Their native habits of cattle theft, of barbaric attacks on their neighbours, of neglect of cultivation, and their lawless propensities became repressed in the course of time. They learnt a good deal relating to agricultural methods and processes from the immigrant settlers, and Government were soon gratified to discover that the old cattle-breeding class of Bar nomads had become largely the self- cultivating class in the colony. The landless nomad of the Bar made an admirable colonist because he had no temptation B 26 COLONIZATION IN THE to reside elsewhere, and because he generally cultivated hia land in person. The principal weakness of the immigrants was the want of natural leaders, whereas the heads of the Jangli class proved of immense assistance both to Government and to their followers in the work of their peaceful settlement. The reclamation of this class is an administrative achievement of the first magnitude. Their Agriculture Below the Mark.—There remains, however, the possibility of making too much of their merits as colonists. Though many tribes have reformed in this respect, individuals are still prone to cattle theft ; many yet remain strangers to any but primitive forms of agriculture; in this respect they are indeed much behind the abadkars. They have neverthe­ less surpassed their Hithari kinsmen and are likely to show steady progress in future. They are unfortunately still handi­ capped by an excessive taste for cattle, but, with the restric­ tion of grazing land, their attentions are now being diverted to agricultureo . The Hitharis as a cultivating•to class are still adly backward and their old villages present a marked contrast o the neat ' chaks ' of the colony. EECHNA DOAB. 27

CHAPTER V. DISPOSAL OF THE COLONY LAND. I A.—General Policy and Ordinary Grantees. Developme7it of Colonization Policy.—The original objects of Government in the colonization of Government waste were simple. It was intended to relieve the pressure of population in the congested districts of the province and to establish in the new colony healthy agricultural communities of the best Punjab type.* Accordingly the early colonies of Sidhnai and Sohagpur were peopled by peasant zamindars attracted thither from other districts; they were encouraged to retain as far as possible ' the conditions which obtained in their old homes.' It was soon found desirable, however, to create villages of a type superior ' in comforts and civilization to anything which had previously existed in the Punjab, 'f Accordingly yeomen and capitalist grantees and general purchasers were also permitted to settle in the colonies. Further it was intended ' to combine the essential features of the colony with the require­ ments of the Imperial Government in connection with horse- breeding and the provision of transport in India.' A part of the tract was accordingly to be granted on service terms, i.e., for supplying the Imperial Government with mules, horses and camels for transport purposes. The Chenab Colony fully represents all these three phases of the Punjab Government's colonial policy. The peasant, the yeoman, the capitalist, and the horse and mule-breeding are still prominent among landowners in the colony to-day. Principles underlying the Disposal of Land.—Before proceed ing to analyse the different classes of grantees among whom the Crown land in the Eechna Doab was divided, it seems worth •Letter of the Financial Commissioner, Sir James Lyall, 1883. fReport of the Colonies Committee, 1907-08. E2 28 COLONIZATION IN THE while to enumerate the various principles that underlay the disposal of land in the colony—though not all of these principles were adopted from the start, for some of them were embodied only when the varying circumstances suggested their adoption. It was held that the great bulk of the colonists should be resident in order that the evils necessarily associated with absentee landlords might be avoided. Partly for this reason, and partly to avoid speculation in land, but mainly in the interest of the colonists themselves, it was determined, while giving security of tenure in occupancy rights, to make rights in the lands as a rule inalienable. The land being absolutely at the disposal of Govern­ ment, it was possible to select the colonists without regard to vested interests—except those of the comparatively small body of nomad graziers, originally resident in the Bar, and of those neighbouring landlords who were adversely affected by the colonization scheme. With a view to preserve the tradition of the Punjab as a country of peasant farmers, the bulk of the land was therefore allotted to peasant settlers from congested districts in the province. To enable such colonists to start free of debt, it was decided that no preliminary payment should be required of them, but that they should pay an annual malikana for the rights conferred on them, rights with which they had been familiar in their own districts. Larger grants were to a limited extent to be given to intelligent and enterprising men of good credit drawn from yeomen families of agricultural castes and possessed of ample resources. Finally an area was left for capitalists of whom an infusion was considered desirable because such individuals furnished natural leaders to the new community ; furthermore this measure enabled Government to reward deserving servants and to encourage the more enterprising of the provincial gentry. permitted to acquire period It was also essential to avoid the reproduction of insani­ tary villages of the type usual in the Punjab. Where a village site was selected and laid out, and colonists were requested to BECHNA DOAB. £9 build houses and reside in them, or to join in constructing tanks, they were also obliged to submit to certain elementary rules of sanitation. Another consideration which influenced Government policy of colonization was that, in view of the clearing away of natural tree growth in the country, the price of timber and fuel was likely to rise, and it was therefore thought to be necessary—in the interests of the colonists themselves—to require them to plant and maintain a small number of trees. These were the original conditions under which peasant grants were made. At a much later stage in colony history the peasant was allowed to purchase his grant at a rate of Es. 12-8-0 per acre. The Peasant Settlers.—The peasant settler figured prominently in the early schemes of colonization of Government waste. At the launch of the Lower Chenab venture the Punjab Govern­ ment, in submitting the scheme to the Government of India, declared: ' It seemed essential to preserve the traditions of the Punjab as a country of peasant farmers. No other general frame of society is at present either possible or desirable in the province. The bulk of available land has therefore been appro­ priated to peasant settlers."* In pursuance of this policy, the bulk of land was allotted to small agriculturists of the best type from the congested districts of the Central and East Punjab. In this manner, Amritsar, Lahore, Gujrat, Sialkot, Gurdaspur, Hos- hiarpur, Jullundur, Ludhiana and Ambala contributed each its own quota to the colony ; and of the immigrants from districts Hindu or Sikh peasants formed a considerale propor­ tion. The selection of the immigrant peasants rested with the District Officer. As a rule, hereditary landowners, possessed of enterprise, self-reliance and endurance, were the ones to be selected—though a few pretenders and peasants of inferior qaulity also found their way into the colony. The peasant settlers quickly proved themselves very efficient and desirable colonists and amply justified the selection. As was to be expected,

* Government of Punjab letter No. 327, dated 22nd July 1891. 30 COLONIZATION IN THE however, they varied in their capacity as agriculturists according to their districts and antecedents—but these facts are discussed in detail elsewhere in this monograph. Peasant Grants.—The object of Government was to fix a unit of grant not too large to be managed by a single grantee with the assistance of members of his own family, and of the usual menials, but without the assistance of tenants—and not so small as to reproduce on the Chenab, after two or three generations, the state of affairs now existing in the congested districts which Government was relieving. There was no desire on the part of Government to create a class of large property-owners living on rents from land which was in reality cultivated by tenants-at-will.* The area of a peasant grant was at first fixed at from half a square to three squares, or from 14 to 83 acres.f A whole square was the usual grant, as half a square was too small. Few peasants—and then if they were leaders—held three squares each. As a rule, grants were given to separate individuals, though a system of joint peasant grants (so long as the maximum per grantee was not exceeded) was tried in the case of some of the grantees from Mult an and Jhang ; but this latter experiment did not succeed. In the case of Montgomery grantees, peasant grants of an area as small as three killas (or a little over three acres) had been given. These grants too proved failures. Mazhabi Sikhs received allotments on special terms which fixed two-thirds of a square as the unit for a sepoy, and two squares for an officer. The Mazhabis on the Eakh Branch are pensioners of the 23rd, 32nd and 34th Pioneer Eegi- ments.J The Nomad Peasant.—Subsequently grants were also extended to the nomads of the Bar. The task, however, was one that presented many difficulties. The Janglis were not agriculturists *Demi-official by Financial Commissioner to the Deputy Commissioners, Lahore, and others. fEach square included about 28 acres and carried with it rights ill about 14 acres more of shamilat. JMazhabi grants conditions. EECHNA DOAB. 31 by nature and it was feared that they would prove unsatisfactory cultivators. They themselves had at first little inclination to abandon their old vagrant habits and settle down as peaceful and law-abiding tenants of Government. They regarded the imported settlers as interlopers and never lost an opportunity of stealing their cattle and harassing them by grazing down their standing crops with their herds. At first possessing numer­ ical strength on their side, they were not long in finding them­ selves falling into a minority hemmed in on all sides by sturdy peasants. Their only choice therefore was to come to terms. Moreover, the belief that the canal had come to stay began to force itself upon them. Liberal Treatment of Nomads.—The nomads were liberally treated, their grants being proportioned rather to their prolific qualities than to their actual present needs. The area of grant varied from a few killas to two squares, but a square was generally the unit. They paid nothing for their land ; but, like other grantees, had to defray the cost of its survey and the cost of the construction of water-courses. They could not at first pur­ chase or alienate their land ; but, on fulfilment of the conditions of grant, they were given the privilege of acquiring occupancy rights after the lapse of five years without any payment. Over two lakhs of acres were allotted to Janglis, the former grazier tribes of the Eechna Doab, and more than 75,000 acres went to aboriginal camel-grazing tribes. Military Peasant Settlers.—The primary object in the selec­ tion of colonists was to secure industrious and experienced cultivators, and the fact that an individual had been for some years in the army was not necessarily a good reason for supposing him to be a good cultivator. Government, however, admitted the claims of soldiers as recognition of their loyal services, and of their physical and moral qualities; and a certain amount of land was accordingly reserved in the colony for pensioned soldiers. The first allotment of this kind was made on the Jhang Branch. The J? inancial Commissioner decided the claims of the applicants, 32 COLONIZATION IN THE and also the nature of the conditions on which land was to be given (peasant, yeoman, capitalist) ; but later on another proced­ ure, which was thought to be simple and just, came into vogue. It was decided that the selection of military grantees should be entrusted to the military authorities, to whom a lump allotment of 70,000 acres on the Gugera Branch was assigned for the purpose. Of this, one-fifth was to be appropriated to yeomen, and four-fifths to peasant grants. As a rule, to people below commissioned rank, peasant grants were made. Length of service—not less than 20 years—and zamindari connections were a sine qua non for all military allotments. Military pensioners were not at first very successful colonists. Their real life's work had been done in the army and they naturally sought to rest on their laurels. The Amritsar District was the home of the majority of them, and most of them were Sikh Jats. It could not be exactly determined how much land was allotted to them, as they had invariably merged in other grantees. It is interesting to note that Government gave peasant grants to all the men of the 36th Sikhs who fell at Saragarhi. The Depressed Classes as Peasants.—Humanitarian motives led Government to give the depressed classes a share in the new land, and therefore, certain peasant villages in the colony were settled with Indian Christians. The system of making grants was peculiar. Christian bodies of definite standing were held responsible for the selection of the individual colonists and for the management of the colony so far as the Christians were concerned. In special cases the Christian bodies were made Lambardars in their respective villages so as to give them a direct interest in the internal economy of the settlement. > The Yeoman Ch-antees.—Superior classes of peasants were also admitted into the colony. Government declared their intention of granting land to the men, ' who, without aspiring to the ranks of the richer gentry, were still well above the ordinary level of the peasant land-owner, who had good credit and re­ sources, and who, if they could be attracted to the land, should EECHNA DOAB. 33 form most useful members of the new colony.' Government further desired to create a class of grantees to open up a source from which well-deserving servants of the state might be re­ warded, and the majority of the latest grants in this colony were made from this standpoint. The unit of grant was from two to five squares. The yeomen were charged a nazrana (payment upon entry) of Es. 6 per acre, payable half upon entry and half within the next five years. Upon the expiry of this period (five years), the yeomen tenants were permitted to purchase proprietary rights by paying a sum equal to ten times the owner's rate, land revenue and malikana taken together, provided the conditions of allotment had been duly fulfilled.* Yeomen grantees belonged to zamindar families : Eajputs, Jats, Sainis, Arains, Kambohs and Malis were the castes from which the yeomen (like the peasant grantees) were to be drawn. They were, however, men of more substantial means and of better status than the peasants, and were not expected to cultivate their grants with their own hands, but with the help of their tenants. Consequently, the residence condition was not obligatory on them. It was considered that to require personal residence from yeomen would prevent persons of the landlord and big zamindar classes from applying for grants. But the evils of absenteeism forced Government later to make the conditions compulsory on the Jhang and Gugera Branches. The yeomen came from all districts, they included a considerable number of pensioned Indian officers—usually commissioned officers chosen by their commanding officers.f Such yeomen (inclusive of military pensioners) up to the end of December 1903 held altogether 142,406 acres. The main yeomen agricultural tribes consisted of Hindu Jats who occupied 53,243 acres; Mussalman Jats 20,670 acres; and Mussalman Eajputs 10,388 acres. The Government of India had been reluctant to proceed with the creation of this class,:}: and that diffidence proved largely justifiable. Early in 1895 Captain Popham Young remarked that the nazrana-paying grantees were unsatisfactory Government •Statement of Conditions, Colony Manual, volume 11, page 44. -\Ibidj, page 32 supra. %Government of India, Revenue and Agricultural Department No. 2385-101, dated 24th October 1891, F 34 COLONIZATION IN THE tenants,* and Sir Lewis Tupper, the Financial Commissions recommended the abolition of the yeomen grants.! The grants, however, continued. Although not deliberately intended, it is nevertheless a fact that a yeomen class, intermediate between the peasant and the capitalist classes, sprang up in the colony— not because of conscious selection, but by a gradual evolutionary process which was inevitable in a tract of such great economic potentialities. The Capitalist Grantees.—Similar motives, as in the case of yeomen grantees, underlay the capitalist grants. It was thought that this class of grant would attract men who could command the services of considerable bodies of tenants, whose influence, example and wealth would promote agricultural improvements and who would supply natural leaders for the new society. An area was consequently reserved for the capitalists, who received grants of six to twenty squares, or 166 to 556 acres, subject to the payment of a ' nazrana ' wholly in advance at the rate of as many rupees per acre as there are integral squares in a grant, subject to a minimum of Es. 10 per acre. The conditions for the acquisition of proprietary rights were the same as for yeomen. In theory, there was no restriction to the class or the district from which these grantees might be drawn. The possession of wealth, meritorious Government service and the ability to introduce good cultivators were generally considered fit qualifications for the grants. Besides the ordinary capitalists, there were special reward grantees—usually native officers of the Indian Army who obtained grants of land in lieu of jagirs under the orders of the Government of India in the Military Department. An area of two squares was taken to be the equivalent of a jagir of Es. 400 per annum. These grantees were subject to the ordinary capitalist conditions, but they paid no nazrana, and could obtain proprietary rights after five years, without payment on their fulfilment of the conditions. In 1903 the capitalists, among whom

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^"^^^^^^ ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^W^^^^^^^M^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^-——-^^—^^— *• ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^_ ^^^^^^^ ^^^_^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ •Report on the colonization of the Rakh and Mian Ali Branches, 1896, page 11. j*Revenue (Irrigation) Proceedings, May 1901, No. 4. EECHNA DOAB. u5 might be included special reward grantees and auction purchasers, held 122,393 acres.* Hindu Jats obtained 12,775 acres, but the great bulk of the area has been acquired by very heterogeneous congeries of Brahmans, Aroras, Sheikhs, Pathans, Christians, etc. The Auction Purchasers.—Government had intended from the outset to dispose of some of the land by auction. The objects were to open colony areas to non-agriculturists, to introduce into the colony an element other than the peasant and also to obtain a speedy return for the vast capital expenditure. It was also thought that such a disposal would give an indication of the value of colony lands in the open market. Obviously, to fulfil the objects of colonization,! this class of grantees had to be small. The Colonies Committee in their report of 1908 definitely re­ cognized the desirability of auction grants, laying down that the landholders of the colony should not be on one dead level, and that, if a capitalist element was necessary in the colony, it was as far as possible to be introduced by auction sales. The first auction of Government waste land was held on the Eakh Branch in 1892, when only 8,783 acres were disposed of at an average price of Es. 43-6-0 per acre, the land auctioned being in the Khangah Dogran Tahsil. The second auction was held on 16th and 17th January 1899, the land selected being close to Lyallpur. The area sold was 5,107 acres at an average of Es. 134 per acre. In 1900 9,913 acres were sold by auction on the Gugera Branch at an average price 'of Es. 109-14-2 per acre. In 1903 the land disposed of by auction amounted to 24,627 acres. Sales by auction were not guided by any particular policy. The grants obtained by auction could not Acres.

*Capita lists • • • • 89,174

Special reward grantees • • • t • • 8,692

Action purchasers t • • • 24,627

Total 122,393 (•Page 27 supra. .F2 36 COLONIZATION IN THE subsequently be exchanged, for facilities "were invariably afforded for the prior inspection of the parcels of land offered for sale. Auction purchasers were on practically the same footing as capitalists who had acquired proprietary rights. In 1900 the Alienation of Land Act checked the acquisition of agricultural land by non-agriculturists. Their use to the colony has nevertheless not proved to be great. Large auction purchasers are almost invariably absentees; and, as such, they do not contribute materially to the social and economic development of a colony. BECHNA DOAB. 37

CHAPTER VI. DISPOSAL OF THE COLONY LAND. B.—The Service Grantees. Camel Service Grants.—Original Purpose.—The scheme owes its inception to a suggestion of Khan Bahadur Aurangzeb Khan for the giving of " Grants of land on service conditions under which Government would obtain fit camels and fit ' sarwans' (attendants) for employment on any transfrontier emergency." The colonization of the Bar appeared likely to lead to the ex­ tinction of the camel-breeding industry carried on by the Biloches who formed a considerable proportion of the nomadic population of the Bar before colonization. The industry was one of import­ ance to Government. Some provision in the terms of the grants to these Biloches appeared necessary for the maintenance of camels and sarwans (camel-drivers) fit for service. The Gov­ ernment of India provisionally accepted the scheme in 1898.* The earlier conditons of the grant contained some inherent defects, especially the inadequacy of the grants (one square). Final conditions, however, were sanctioned in 1901,f and were more complete. There were three classes of camel service grantees— (a) first-class Biloches, who were to produce one camel per square; (b) second-class Biloches, who maintained a camel for half a square; and (c) certain reward grantees, who received 5 to 10 squares on second-class terms. If a tenant was entitled to consideration aS a Jangli who would have received land as a nomad of the Bar, he was placed in the first class; otherwise, one camel for each half-square was the * Government of Ind ia, Revenue and Agricultural Department, No. 1723-158-3, dated 23rd August 1898. f Government of India , Revenue and Agricultural Department, No. 547-210-4, dated 7th March 1901. » 38 COLONIZATION IN THE general tenure. Each grantee was bound to produce his camels on 15 days' notice in the case of war service, and of one month's notice in any other case, and to provide at the same time an attendant (sarwan) for every three, or smaller number of camels. On war service for each camel a payment of Ks. 18 per mensem was made to the owner. Free rations and clothing for the sarwans were also provided. Also during annual training a wage of Es. 7 per mensem was given. The selection of an heir the death of the grantee lay with the local Government. The grantee also undertook to plant twice as many trees as he nossessed acres in his holding. The grantees had the lorivileee of free graz ng not only for their registered camels, but other camels in respect of each registered camel in all unap­ propriated Government waste or unclassed forests in the districts of Jhang, Multan and Montgomery. The grants were nominally leases for a term of 20 years, but they were renewable on the expiry of each term, though occupancy rights could not be acquired. To avoid the sub-division of camel service grants, the selection of a single heir to the grant of the deceased (or of a man otherwise deprived of the grant) was left with Government. Camel Chaudhris.—The iambardars of the camel service estates were called chaudhris. They were to supervise the observance of the service conditions by the camel-owning grantees in their estates, for which service they received an allotment of land up to a maximum of three squares each. They had also to supply, when necessary, any deficiency in the number of camels or of attendants caused by the default of any camel service tenant in his estate. Administration.—The camel corps were under the charge of a Supply and Transport Officer whose headquarters were at Lyallpur. He was to register camels, enlist sarwans and hold regular inspections of men and animals. The camel grantees were allowed takavi loans to replace casualties among the registered animals. The camel corps were first formed in 1900. There were four whole camel corps—the 59th, the 60th, the 61st and the 62nd EECHNA DOAB. 39 with headquarters at important camel service villages. Each was under the immediate charge of a resaidar, assisted by a daffadar, a salotri and a clerk. The nominal strength of a corps was 1,068 camels. The total number of camels actually borne on the registers was, at the end of 1906, the full strength of 4,272. The Working of the Scheme.—In 1901 the 60th Corps was sent to the Mahsud blockade, on the Dera Ismail Khan Frontier, where it acquitted itself very creditably ; and in 1902 the 59th Corps was sent to Delhi to assist in the manoeuvres which preceded the Darbar. During the Great War too the corps remained on active service, though the nominal strength of 1,068 camels each was seldom reached. In years when the corps were not called on for Government service they were embodied for an annual training which lasted for fifteen days. With the permission of the Begistration Officer, the registered camels were also employed in peace time by civil officers. The System breaks Down.—In spite of the utility of the scheme, both in war and in peace, doubts lurked in the minds of the authorities with regard to the success of the scheme. Early in 1905 the Colonization Officer had questioned, ' Whether the stalk-fed camels of the plains will successfully cope with the hardships of expeditions among rocky mountain passes ? ' The canal irrigation unfavourably affected the physique of the camels. The casualties among the animals due to the surra epidemic were considerable. The grantees' holdings were small ; the number of Jangli tribes who failed to secure succession to grants increased ; the Biloch became a confirmed debtor, and takavi advances were heavy. All these factors led to evasions of the conditions, and consequently to frequent fines and punishments. The success of the scheme seemed precarious. The Colonies Committee in 1907 condemned the camel grant system, remarking that ' In a richly cultivated country, the camel, confined as to his movements, becomes sickly and infertile and that he is expensive to keep, railways and roads provide 40 COLONIZATION IN THE easier means of communications and he becomes a superfluity and an anachronism.' In 1911 the Camel Browsing Committee recommended the ultimate abolition of the scheme. Government undertook to abolish one of the four corps in 1913* ; but, before effect could be given to these orders, the Great War intervened and the matter was deferred. In 1921 the GOth and 62nd Grantee Camel Corps were disbanded. The entire dis- bandment was completed in 1923, the grantees being permitted to purchase proprietary rights. Mule-breeding Scheme.—The mule-breeding scheme embraces nearly the whole area of the colony, but its application was origin­ ally restricted to the headmen of peasant villages. The lambar­ dari grants provided a machinery for the working of the mule- breeding scheme. The Government of India in 1902 accepted the proposal of Mr. J. Wilson, the Settlement Commissioner, to attach conditions for the maintenance of mares for mule-breeding to lambardari grants. The lambardars, to whom grants had already been made unrestricted by such terms, were not to be compelled ; but all newly sanctioned lambardari grants were made subject to the maintenance of a mare fit for the breeding of army mules. Working of the Scheme.—Lambardars, before 1900, when their grants were made impartible and tenable only with office, holding grants on personal terms only, were given the option to receive additional grants on mule-breeding conditions. The majority of such peasant lambardars made use of the gift. In the case of those who did not accept the conditions, their successors were automatically bound by the mule-breeding conditions. In this manner, eventually all lambardari grants—with the exception of those under camel service conditions—were made subject to these conditions. By 1906, 2,450 out of 2,628 lambardars undertook the breeding of mares. Evasion Overcome.—Mule-breeding is controlled by the Super­ intendent of the Army Kemount Department, who passes and brands approved mares, inspects the progeny and reports infringe- * Government of India letter No. 306, dated 24th February 1913. Stock breeding in the Colony.

•

_<*

! **

EECHNA DOAB. 41 ments of the conditions. Here and there attempts were made by- grantees to evade the conditions by keeping bad mares or breed­ ing from mares other than their own. Such attempts were punished with fines, confiscations, etc. The unbending attitude of Govern­ ment, however, frustrated such subterfuges, and the future observance of the conditions remained perfectly satisfactory. The grantees eventually recognized the profitable nature of the grants and thereafter displayed far greater enthusiasm, especially as their stock affected their social status.

A Prophetic Vision.—The Colonies Committee in 1907, though they admitted the excellent results of such service grants, were not optimistic as to the future of the grants. They pointed out: ' It has yet to be ascertained how the working of service grants in future generations will be affected by the continual ex­ clusion of younger sons from lands held by their fathers Although the average circumstances of a number of service grantees may warrant the assumption that the maintenance of a mare will be no great tax, there must be cases in which, owing to a series of misfortunes, the pecuniary circumstances of some will fall far below that average. In these cases inability to part with a mare in order to tide over a temporary difficulty will certainly involve some hardship.' While the majority of the committee held this view, there was one member who attached a separate note resounding with unbounded optimism regarding the future of the grants. Colonel - Rivett-Carnac will stand out pre-eminently for the preciseness of his prophetic note. He saw even through the mist and cloud that shrouded the evidence before the committee that ' there was nothing to justify any misgiving for the future.' Optimism Justified.—Mule-breeding became a profitable and popular pastime of the grantees in the colony, a large number of whom kept mares and bred mules on their own account. A mare was useful for the daily performance of the zamindar's duty, and at the same time added to his income when a mule was bred G 42 COLONIZATION IN THE from her. Government, recognizing the popularity of the grant, further amended the conditions of tenure so as to enable grantees other than lambardars to hold land on mule-breeding terms. Com­ petition to breed good mares became very keen; conditions remained an easy obligation ; and the benefit was seen when the demand of remounts due to the Great War was admirably met by the Chenab Canal Colony. Tree-planting Conditions.—The fuel famine was at one time the chief dread of the colony authorities in the earlier years. To ward off the menace, however, and to encourage successful tree- planting, Government provided the grant of small additional areas of land, generally of 5 killas' extent each, to certain colonists. Besides these, half-squares were at one time set aside from the grazing reserve (charagah) of each village to be devoted to nurs­ eries or plantations. The scheme, however, failed because no adequate provision of water could be made where no individual responsibility could be enforced. Later on, a definite scheme for nurseries in most villages was introduced. Grants of generallv five killas were to be given to lambardars for the establishment of a village nursery on the same conditions as other ' abadkari' grants, except that no occupancy rights would be acquired. Nurseries and trees were to be disposed of as the Colonization Officer directed. Half the area allotted on these terms was to be devoted to arboriculture ; the other half could be cultivated by the owner for his own benefit. The nursery was further exempt from land revenue and received water free in both harvests—at first for five years and afterwards in perpetuity. System Outlives its Utility.—The number of these nurseries increased and by 1905 about 2,000 village nurseries were in a flourishing condition. The zamindars continued the work of creat­ ing plantations along water-courses and village roads and on agricultural land, and so made good the loss of the jungle trees which had been destroyed as a result of the land coming under the plough. But the futility of the tree-planting grant became apparent, for the majority of the grantees evaded the conditions. EECHNA DOAB. 43

The water intended for the plantations was invariably misused on the cultivated lands of the grantees. The trees were generally too large for plantations, too small for firewood and too thickly grown to develop for any purpose whatever. Also the necessity of the grants no longer appeared to exist in view of the large areas already planted and the growth of trees everywhere. Accordingly the grants were discontinued, and the areas occupied by plant­ ations were escheated to Government and were thrown into the ' charagah. ' The system had served its purpose and had pro­ vided seedlings to be planted out in grantees' squares. The Lower Chenab Canal is now one of the best-wooded parts of the plains of the Punjab.

G2 44 COLONIZATION IN THE

CHAPTER VII.

VILLAGE HOMESTEADS.

Pre-colony Settlements.—Prior to the advent of British rule in the Punjab, there were no separate nomad settlements in the Bar. The Kharral or Sial' Eats ' (leaders) moved slowly over the portion of the Bar which they claimed to rule, accompanied by the whole of their followers, seldom staying longer than one or two months even in the richest grounds. The Sikh Government did not inter­ fere much with their nomadic and free ways of life so long as the uncertain grazing tax, called ' tirni,' came in their coffers. As the country became gradually more settled under British rule, however, it was no longer possible for the nomads to raid with quite their former immunity from supreme interference. The practice of grazing in herds was abandoned, and that of forming quasi- settlements was substituted. Each such settlement was ordinarily called a * rahna.' The immense herds of cattle which roamed about in the Eechna Doab remained in the vicinity of these rahnas from the commencement of the rains till the end of February. On the approach of the hot season the scanty herbage of the upland tracts became generally insufficient for their support, and they were thus driven down to the banks of the rivers where the vegetation afforded them ample pasturage till the commencement of the next rainy season. The ' rahna ' dwellings varied considerably in character. Some of them were of a fairly substantial character ; the hovels, called ' sahl,' consisted of mud walls with thatched roofs bending down and overlapping the side walls. The thatch was made of * sar ' grass strengthened by ' kana ' bands and was often in one piece. The usual forms of the ' rahna/ however, were the ' pakhi' and the ' Kurha.' The ' pakhi' could be easily shifted and it formed the common dwelling. It consisted solely of a movable roof and a ' tili/ or grass thatch, propped on four or five poles. It had no walls. The Kurha was simply a reed EECHNA DOAB. 45 thatch supported by three sticks—one in the middle, and one at each end. The sides of the thatch fell down on either side to the ground. The dwelling of a band of camel graziers was called a 1 Jhoke.' The sheds were a bigger type of ' pakhi' with screen walls. They were always rectangular in shape and the sheds faced a courtyard which the camels occupied. Early Colony Days.—With the advent of the canal, regular abadis became necessary ; consequently in each village an area of one square was usually set apart in the middle of the estate for the actual village site, which was generally located on high ground, where canal water would not collect. A further area of about a square, adjacent to the village site, was reserved for the domestic needs of its inhabitants. A simple abadi would suffice in a central situation, or there would be two, separated by a consider­ able distance, according to the shape of the mauza. The square was partitioned into a number of blocks, each large enough for the accommodation of six or eight families, after provision had been made for two main cross-roads, 40 feet by 20 feet (vide map—append­ ix 1). The internal distribution of land was at first left to the rantees who carved out their own irregularly shaped com­ pounds at will. No provision was made for tanks, menials and shopkeepers. But, within four years of the first settlement on the Bakh Branch, the need for a standard plan of village became clear because the existing villages were unsightly and unhygienic and were even the cause of frequent disputes among the peasants. Such abadis were common on the Bakh Branch. Standard Plan for Villages.—It was intended early to stop the recurrence of confusion on the later established branches of the Lower Chenab. A standard plan was therefore devised for the es of all peasant grantees of the Jhang Branch ; this plan is shown in appendix 2. The limits of each compound were fixed beforehand and the allotments were made accordingly. The eight sites which surround the central choak or square, where the four cross-roads meet in the middle of the village, were reserved for shopkeepers. The menials too were provided with quarters 46 COLONIZATION IN THE separate from the zamindar abadi. But this plan was open to one objection, namely, that the numerous cross-roads afforded too many facilities for the ingress of thieves. The immigrants, who were accustomed to life in the densely packed villages of their home districts, looked upon the site of these villages with apathy. Consequently another plan had to be drawn up for the Gugera Branch and the more recently colonized portion of the Jhang Branch in which the more patent defects of the Jhang Branch plan were avoided (appendix 3). No doors are permitted, except the front entrance on the main road, so that the compounds are entirely enclosed and the village presents the appearance of a square fort encircled with mud walls. But even in this plan various defects later became visible. The proximity of tanks and the mixing of menials and grantees required changes in the village plan. Accord­ ingly, in a plan devised for the extensions, these mistakes were remedied. More room was now allotted for menials, as their num­ ber had been multiplying, and the village tanks were relegated to regions further removed from the residential areas. Special areas are provided in the adjoining ' charagah' for manure (appendix 4). The camel service grantees have been given a separ­ ate plan of their own (vide appendix 5), designed on the model of their old ' jhoks.' de com camels

Separate Hamlets.—In the case of the earlier capitalists and yeomen, grantees were allowed to build their houses on their own lands, with the result that numerous puny and ill-arranged ham­ lets sprang up in the capitalist mauzas. The small homesteads were in no way ounded deep and irregular borrow-pits partly filled wTith refuse. Further­ more, such a system of scattered hamlets placed difficulties in the ipervision by the revenue, police, excise and sanitary authorities. •5 deprived of many of the amenities of life obtainable in larger commun­ ities. The secluded hamlets, owing to the absence of cohesion EECHNA DOAB. 47 and union, were more exposed to theft and piracy. The cost of well-sinking, moreover, fell entirely on a single grantee. For all these reasons it was decided that village sites should be pro­ vided on the Jhang and Gugera Branches for the nazrana-paying grantees as for the peasants. The standard plans were adopted for them on these branches. The original design for this class of grantee consisted of little more than four blocks, intersected by broad thoroughfares, but without even a boundary line. An improv­ ed plan on the Gugera Branch was decided. There were circular roads built within and without the residential area and the blocks were sub-divided into smaller compartments. The arrangement of the interior area was left to the caprice of the grantees. Each of the grantees was provided with residential space proportioned to his holding. Further interference was not thought desirable. The village sites occupied by the capitalists and yeomen grantees are not very creditable, and they do not compare favourably with peasant villages, though of course in some cases, individual grantees have raised beautiful structures and planted pleasing gardens.

Inadequacy of Chenab Types.—These Chenab types of villages cannot be regarded as ideal. Their biggest drawback is that a simple square is not large enough to provide for every contingency ; the unit of grant was insufficient, and insufficient provision was made for the multiplication of the village abadis. It was but natural that the demand for further compounds should become imperative. Government has consequently been liberal in granting * ahatas ' (compounds) ; in the year 1909 about 6,378 compounds were given in the colony portion of the Lyallpur District and 212 in that of the Jhang District. They were given alike to abadkars, tenants, shopkeepers and menials. The de­ mand for ahatas continued to increase, and even the enhancement of the price from Bs. 5 to Es. 10 per marla did not in this respect act as a deterrent.* The authorities were further embarrassed by the colonists' habit to grab at more land than they really required.

* Punjab Government letter No. 5713 (Rev. and Agri.—General), dated 28th February, as amended by Punjab Government letter No. 721-799-9427, dated llth Novem­ ber 1922, 48 COLONIZATION IN THE

* Some attempts have been made on the extensions to obviate these hand-to-mouth allotments which had spoiled the lay-out of jp the whole village. * Charagah or the Grazing Area,—About 20 per cent, of the gross area of each peasant village was reserved as a grazing and fuel reserve for the benefit of the colonists. The number of head of cattle possessed by the colonists was usually large, and the roaming of cattle over village culturable land would have interfered with the progress of cultivation. Even in the case of the bulk of the popula- I tion, including the menials and those who were not owners, some provision was necessary for their large flocks and herds. The charagah also served to facilitate the system of exchange, whereby discontented colonists were allowed freely to exchange their rants for equal areas taken from the grazing reserve. A contented settlement of the colonists, which was a primary consider­ ation aimed at, was thus made possible through the reservation of the grazing area. In course of time, however, the original ex­ pectations were not so well realized. The charagah usually con­ sisted of the highest and the worst land. Water for the grazing land was seldom found available, while trees were subjected to con­ stant denudation ; and the result was that the charagah failed to be of further use as a fodder and fuel reserve. Accordingly this area was reduced from 20 per cent, to 10 per cent. There was never- theless an ample area left dry, open and uncultivated in each village. The maintenance of such dry tracts was important for the health of both man and beast. Peopling of the Villages.—It was some time before settlers had money to spend on building or sufficient confidence in their new undertaking to commit themselves to the very considerable expenditure of constructing good houses. Generally nothing more than enclosing the compound and raising a thatched hut was attempted. There was no compulsion to build a house on the Kakh and Mian Ali Branches ; but, later on in accordance with all the statements of conditions, every Government tenant had to build a house in the estate in which he held his grant. With the Ludhiana Jat and his family (Chak No. 227 G. B.),

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EECHNA DOAB. 49 improved prospects of the colony, however, the permanency of the new settlement became assured and the construction of suitable houses, surrounded by spacious an4 well-stocked enclosures, be­ gan. Early, that is, by the end of 1896, about 34,267 completed be The rate of con­ struction was further accelerated by the fact that the credit of the settlers was established, the substantial zamindars, and even the Maghiana Khatri or Chiniot Khoja, offered loans to the settlers at moderate interest. Government too advanced ' takavi' loans for the purpose. Magnificent and ambitious ' havelis ' in the villages appeared—to such an extent indeed that Government had to instruct the Colonization Officer that the colonist' should not begin with too grand ideas.' There was a large ingress of shop­ keepers and menials into the colony. The peasants brought their carpenters, blacksmiths, potters, water-carriers, etc., from the old villages ; and the villages in the colony became very densely populated. In 1898 the population of the Eakh Branch alone stood at 400,000 souls. Improvement of the Village Site.—A time at length came when apprehensions were experienced by Government that the colonists would repeat in the colony the congestion, the insanitary state and the irregular aspect of their old villages in their home districts. This expectation was but natural and it lasted until Government took precautionary measures to avoid the recurrence of the old con­ ditions which had prevailed in their original homes. Government had already provided a sufficiently large area adjacent to each vil­ lage for tanks, manure-pits, a school dispensary, a ' patwarkhana ' and other local needs. Tanks.—The construction of tanks was very necessary, both for drinking and bathing purposes, especially when there existed few wells in the colony. Difficulties of labour in the work of excavating the tanks were very great in the Bar. The villagers were forced to contribute their share of labour in turn. It was with great O pains that the colony officers succeeded in providing one or more tanks in every village. In most of the cases the tanks have been H 50 COLONIZATION IN THE located outside the abadi. They have been banked with burnt bricks, and in some cases special arrangements to enable women to bathe in seclusion have been made. On the Eakh Branch some of the tanks were rather irregular, but in the later established portions of the colony they were dug within prescribed limits. Wells.—The supply of drinking water was another difficult problem which Government had to face. As the sub-soil water was very deep, the sinking of a well was an expensive opera- tion in the colony, and people would not undertake it with eagerness. There were only a few scattered masonry wells in the colony, and some wells had been built by the Canal Depart­ ment in the compounds of their rest-houses. The settlers habit- ually used canal water for all domestic purposes, but the closing of the canal for any length of time caused immeasurable inconvenience to them. Government was obliged eventually to resort to making well-sinking a condition of the grant and ' takavi' loans were liberally advanced, to the extent of even half the cost of the well. Except on the Kakh and Mian Ali Branch, the grantees were bound to sink a well for drinking purposes near to or in the village site. The progress of well-sinking operations became so fast that, by the end of September 1903, 842 new wells had been sunk in the colony. In the course of time the rise in the sub-soil water de­ creased the sinking expenses and the problem no longer appeared to be very acute. By the end of 1906 it was reported there was practically no estate in which a well had not been sunk. Village Arboriculture.—The promotion of tree-planting was an- other undertaking which soon drew the attention of the colony authorities. Village roads were to be provided with avenues, and the colonists were induced to take up the work. Special grants were given to successful tree-planters, areas were set aside from the grazing reserve (charagah) of each village to be devoted to nurseries or plantations. Later on, a condition was imposed on each grantee that he should plant two trees for each acre in his grant. A special nursery scheme was also introduced. It was soon discovered that the colony villages rejoiced in the possession m v*r • • * t r—T

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EECHNA DOAB. 51 of shady avenues, which immensely improved their appearance and the comfort of the colonists. Other Improvements.—Areas were reserved oustide the abadi for the deposit of the manure of the cattle. The settlers were even encouraged to make their cattle-stalls outside the village, and in this respect the Jangli villages held the palm. Their example was followed by others, and to-day the visitor finds in practically every grant a steading of some sort for the cattle. Spaces for bur­ row-pits have been provided at a short distance from the village site, and generally a killa or so has been reserved for the purpose. The system of grants-in-aid was also instituted; and successful villages which showed advanced improvement in village sanitation were given grants for the purpose by Government. Later on, ground rents, or ' malba,' formed a permanent fund in some vil­ lages for the improvement of the general conditions of life. These villages are much superior to those from which the colonists came. No testimony could be of greater strength than that of the Colo­ nies Committee, who (in 1907) remarked that there was abundant evidence to support the view that the clear and orderly surround­ ings of the colony villages were having an educative effect on the people and that the settlers generally took a great pride intheir well- planned and comfortable villages.

H2 52 COLONIZATION IN THE

CHAPTER VIII.

MEANS OP COMMUNICATION. Pre-colonization Roads.—Before colonization the whole Bar was an open plain, and such roads as existed were only well- defined tracks, with the exception of the Tonga Mail Eoad from Chichawatni on the Lahore-Multan Eailway line to Jhang. The road from Gugera through Samundri and Gojra (or Ghapni, as it was then called) to Jhang was used by troops going to the frontier, and the road from Gugera to Chiniot was also fairly well known, but other roads, as a matter of fact, were only alignments connect­ ing the police stations scattered over the Bar, It is scarcely too much to say that the success of the colonization scheme was serious- threatened by the difficulty which the settlers experienced in conveying their enormous quantities of produce to the market. Colony Bailways.—The first railway in the Bar was opened in the year 1896 from Wazirabad, a station on the main North Western Kailway line, 62 miles north of Lahore, to Lyallpur. In 1899 it was extended to Toba Tek Singh, and linked with Khanewal in 1900. Nevertheless there yet remained a large area of the colony in which agricultural produce could not find easy access to the railway stations. The lower portion of the colony suffered a good deal from the absence of good railway transport. The construc­ tion of the Sangla-Shahdara line began in 1905, and two stations fell in the colony area. This line was practically complete in 1906 and was opened for traffic from Sangla to Chichoki. Another railway line, which was built in the same year to connect the Jheluni Colony with Karachi, passed through the western portion of this colony and two stations Vary am and Khanora fell on this route—the Jech-Doab Kailway. This line was opened for traffic in 1906 and afforded an immense outlet for the north-western part of the Toba Tek Singh Tahsil. The North Western Kailway author­ ities also took in hand a system of flag stations between colony EECHNA DOAB. 53 stations on the Wazirabad-Khanewal line, and five such stations were planned during the year 1906. Another line from Chichoki to Shorkot Eoad was planned in 1907 and was practically com­ pleted by the end of 1909 up to Jaranwala, the headquarters of the sub-tahsil, and opened for traffic in the same year. The remaining portion of the same line beyond Jaranwala to Shorkot Eoad was completed in 1911. This line afforded a big stimulus to agriculture in the southern part of the colony. These four railway lines—the Wazirabad-Khanewal line for 104 miles between Sukheki and Shorkot Eoad, the Shahdara line for 16 miles between Bahalike and Sangla, the Chichoki-Shorkot Eoad line for 105 miles between Nankana and Shorkot Eoad, and the Jech-Doab line for 12 miles between Wary am and Shorkot Eoad—brought almost every part of the colony near the railway station. The prosperity of the colony may be largely attributed to the network of railway lines with which the colony has thus been provided. Boads.—The want of a complete system of metalled roads in the early years of the colony imposed a real pecuniary loss on the colonists at a time when it was most important that they should get the best prices possible for their produce. The construction of roads proceeded slowly as there were terrific difficulties in the way of transporting stone from the distant hills of Sangla and Shahkot. Eoads in the colony differ in regard to their size and management ; they may be classed as follows : (1) Provincial roads ; (2) District Board roads ; (3) Canal boundary roads ; (4) Inter-village roads ; and (5) Inter-village zamindari roads. The Provincial Boads.—The road running from Pandianwali on the south-western border of the colony via Khurianwala to Chiniot Eoad station, the road from Eokhanuwana to Lyallpur, and a small portion near Sukhekhi of the Lahore-Sheikhupura 54 COLONIZATION IN THE line, are provincial. The management rests with the Public Works Department. These roads were almost completely metalled by 1902. District Board Boads.—Other roads were soon planned to connect the important grain markets with the interior of the colony. Work on the routes from Sangla to Shahkot, Chiniot Eoad to Panliani, Khannava to Satiana, and Lyallpur to Eodukom was begun in 1903 and was almost completed by 1905. Three other feeder roads—Lyallpur to Narwala, Lyallpur to Miranwala, and Gojra to the Lower Gugera Branch—were taken in hand. It was felt early by Government that the improvement of road com­ munications in this colony was proceeding slowly and even lagged behind that in the Jhelum Colony, though it had a start of ten years. A conference of the local officers was called by the Fin­ ancial Commissioner in 1905 in connection with the communica­ tions in the Chenab Colony ; it was agreed that metalling was chiefly required on the main arteries close to the railways, on to which numerous roads converged, and that great lengths of metalling were not necessary. It was also decided to increase the width of all feeder roads metalled to a uniform breadth of 10 feet. After the decisions of the conference, metalling, which was very expen­ sive in the colony on account of the cost of transport of stone from the furthest ends of the colony (near Sangla and Shahkot hills), the energies of the District Board were mainly diverted tokacha roads throughout the colony, and metalling was confined to shorter distances near the market towns.*

A kacha road from Lyallpur to Jaranwala was completed in 1910, and other kacha roads were similarly begun; and there ap­ peared to be quite a net work of kacha roads within the colony metalled for three or four miles near the trading centre where the traffic converged ; complete metalling was done only on import­ ant roads. The Sheikhupura-Chuharkana and Tandlianwala- Samundri roads were metalled in 1914. It was estimated that the

^^«——•^i^ _ * It was estimated in 1904 that the cost per mile amounted to about Rs. 7,000. EECHNA DOAB. 55

O metalled For lowing table may be consulted with advantage :

District. Locality. Miles metalled.

Lyallpur Lyallpur—Narwala • • 7* Ditto Lyallpur—Satiana 17

Ditto Lyallpur—Rodukom • • 18 Ditto Lyallpur—Jaranwala 4

Ditto Lyallpur—Risalewala • • 1* Ditto Jhumra—Kot Khuda Yar 7 Ditto Jhu mra—Jaranwala 22

Ditto Gojra—Samundri .. • • 18

Ditto Gojra—Mungi • • 2

Ditto Gojra—Jhang • • • • 2

Ditto Gojra—Khiwa • • • • 2 Jhang Jhang—Toba Tek Singh 2

I Ditto Chiniot—Kot Khuda Yar 8 Gujranwala Sangla—Shahkot .. 12

Ditto Sukheki—Ohuharkana • • 22 Total 145J The building of both kacha and pakka roads and their up­ keep were matters which entailed a serious charge on the finances of the District Boards, and it is doubtful whether the boards could single-handed have completed even so much of road work in spite of the daily growing prosperity of the colony. Help from the pro­ vincial Government, however, came to relieve the boards from time to time. The Colonies Committee recommended this financial assistance ' to enable them from the first to place colonists in matters of education and road communications on equal level with their brothers in other districts of the Punjab.' Other Roads.—Other important roads follow the lines of railways and principal distributaries. The latter, however, are the 56 COLONIZATION IN THE property of the Irrigation Department, who only allow free access to the public to the boundary road on one side of the dis­ tributary. The other side is reserved for inspection purposes. Besides, there is a network of smaller roads, called inter-village or' Dehati' roads, which connect the villages in the colony ; all these roads are three 'karams,' or 16| feet, wide. Communication is also provided between the village and the colonists' individual allotments. They are generally two ' karams,' or 11 feet, wide. These roads are the property of Government, and cultivation on them is an offence punishable under the grant conditions—the penalty being the confiscation of the grant of the encroacher. KECHNA DOAB. 57 CHAPTER IX.

PEOGEESS AND PEOSPEEITY. Humanistic Asjiect of Colonization.—It is edifying to turn to the humanistic aspect of the history of colonization and to estimate the benefits of this great venture to the people. Whatever may be said of the political importance of colonization, the fact remains that the civilizing influence is by far the most significant feature of the movement. Space forbids a detailed survey of all the re­ forms in the colony and one has to be content only with the most outstanding of them. Education in the Colony.—For some time education had to remain in abeyance owing to several difficulties. There existed no schools of any kind. The question of putting up suitable school buildings was one of time and money ; and local boards had not then been adequately organized to undertake the heavy responsibi­ lities, nor could teachers from the advanced parts be attracted to take up the work in the out-of-the-way parts of the province. The hands of Government were too full with multifarious activities connected with rapid colonization. But the greatest difficulty was the overcoming of the local prejudices of the people against edu­ cation. The first school was built at Shahkot in 1896 and the same year five other schools were started, for which temporary accommod­ ation was provided by the lambardars. The progress was so slow that in the period of ten years the colony could only have 46 pri­ mary schools and 27 indigenous schools. At the end of this period one high school was opened in 1905. The demand for education rapidly increased, and Government soon felt the necessity of accelerating this work. Teachers were secured by offering higher salaries, and the District Boards of Lyallpur, Jhang and Gujranwala, with the improvement in their finances, could find sufficient funds for education. In 1907 a special Clerical and Commercial Class was opened at the Government High School, Lyallpur. The year 1910 saw another high school, as a result of i 58 COLONIZATION IN THE the efforts of the local Khalsa community. In the year 1915 the opening of the Normal School at Lyallpur successfully solved the problem of providing efficient teachers for the school in the colony. Since then, there has been a steady increase of educational insti­ tutions both Government and private. With the growth of pro­ sperity in the colony, Government efforts, especially in the sphere of Secondary Education, were aided by large private enterprise. The local zamindar community became sufficiently well off to efficiently maintain and manage their educational institutions. Lyallpur now has an Agricultural College, a Government Inter­ mediate College and a vast number of flourishing high schools. The following table shows the progress of literacy in the colony since 1901 as compared to that of the whole province :— Number of Literates "per mille.

1901.* 1911. 1921.

a I a O a I tfl to o8 2 3 C3 a 0 - P3 (fl •d Xi t-< Ea fc- a a o xi CO CD E > P > H w. s S S3 a *4 S 53

Lyallpur • • • • 26*2 59 57*5 10*5 42-3 78 47 17 47-3

Punjab .. 30-3 51 53 14-5 39 5 02 20 5 45-2 Co-operation.—The idea of co-operation is of recent growth in the Punjab and was practically worked out only in 1904. The movement in the beginning went at a comparatively slow pace. With the spread of literacy and the growth of prosperity, the pace became quicker, so that within a short neriod of about ten vears the compare favourably the advanced dis­ tricts of the province. The following figures illustrate the quin­ quennial progress of rural societies, membership and the working capital in the Lyallpur District of the colony :—

1907. 1912. 1917. 1922. 1927.

Number of Agricultural Societies 44 99 155 340 532 Number of Members 2,186 5,481 6,678 7,945 16,154 Working Capital, Rs. 26,244 6,17,280 12,58,221) 16,65,823 45,59,946

* For 1901, the figure 26-2 is for the whole colony. EECHNA DOAB. 59 We thus find that the increase in the number of societies every five years was about 200 per cent., while members increased to about eight times and the capital to about 173 times within a period of twenty years, which is a very splendid achievement indeed. Hospitals.—The years 1892 and 1893 in the colony were charac­ terized by a virulent outbreak of cholera and smallpox. This frightened the settlers so much as to check for a time the new in­ flux of settlers. The necessity for means to provide medical help to the distressed became imperative. Dispensaries were opened at Shahkot in Gujranwala and at Khurianwala in the Jhang District. In the next year was constructed at Lyallpur a hos­ pital at the expense of the Jhang District Board. By the end of the year 1905 there were eight dispensaries maintained by the District Board, viz., at Gojra, Toba Tek Singh, Samundri, Khurianwala, Kot Earn Chand, Sangla and Shahkot, and one municipal hospital at Lyallpur. The population of the colony according to the census of 1911 being 786,367, there was one dispensary for every 87,374 souls. This was a notable achievement at that period and was regarded with a sense of gratitude by the colonists. Nothing better could have been done to win the affections and loyalty of the settlers than medical relief made accessible to every individual in the colony. There are at present 19 rural dispensaries in the Lyall­ pur District for the rural population of 979,463 persons- This gives us one dispensary for every 51,550 persons. Growth of Population.—In the census of 1901 the Chenab Colony area was regarded as a separate district and the census was 786,367. It was estimated at that time that the number would increase to something like 1,500,000 by the end of the next decade, and that utlimately, allowing 400 souls per square mile, the colony would have a population of over two and a half millions. This to-day appears to be an over-estimate, and the prophesied number was never reached in the colony. In 1906 the population stood at 857,829 ; in 1911 it was 1,115,628. The estimate after the first decade was 1,500,000 against the actual number of 1,115,628. The deficiency is ascribed to the fact that a part of the i2 60 COLONIZATION IN THE grantees did not reside on their land and that tenants originally employed for clearance had been dispensed with. The coloniz­ ation of other tracts in the Punjab, and the improved agricultural conditions there, also were doubtless among other contributing causes. The returns of population in the census of 1921 was 979,463 for the Lyallpur District only for an area of 3,254 square miles, giving us 301 as the mean density of population per square mile as compared to 272 per square mile in 1911.

Agriculture.—The coloiry from its inception has been regarded as a suitable arena for trying new agricultural experiments. In 1906 an association was formed—known as the Chenab Colony Agricultural Association—with the object of promoting the cause of agriculture in the colony. The business of the association was to discuss matters regarding the selection of seeds, the wider culti­ vation of red Australian wheat, of American cotton, the growing of jute and linseed for fibre, and the use of simpler forms of agricul­ tural machinery, such as reapers, winnowers, bullock ginning plant, etc. The association has rendered great service to the cause of agriculture both within and without the colony. It represented among others the European and Indian exporting firms, the Director of Agriculture, the Superintending Engineer, Lower Chenab Canal, the Circle Veterinary Officer and the Deputy Com­ missioner, Lyallpur.

Another great step in this direction was the establishment of the Agricultural College at Lyallpur in 1909, with the object of training the educated youths of the province in the use of scientific agricultural methods and enabling them to apply them on their own farms. The college to-day stands as a very flourishing institution, with over three hundred and fifty students on its roll and a com­ petent staff. With such institutions to further the cause of agriculture, it is no wonder that agriculture in the colony has steadily increased and unprecedented and surprising results have been obtained. About 91 per cent, of the colony area has been made cultivable, and -^^

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KBCHNA DOAB. 61

about 68 per cent, is annually put to cultivation,* most of which is doubly cropped. Value of Agricultural Land,—The great prosperity of the colony is evidenced by the prices which purchasers paid from time to time for agricultural land in it. These prices increased with the general growth of the colony and the demand for land which, prior to the construction of the canal, was practically nil. In March 1892 the Punjab Government, mainly, with a view to ascertaining the market value of land in the canal tract, sold by auction 8,783 acres situated in various parts of the Crown waste. The average price obtained was about Es. 43 per acre. In 1899 5,212 acres were put up to the hammer and fetched an average of about Es. 134 per acre. The value steadily increased since then, as demand for land, competition amongst the new-comers and pro­ sperity of the colony increased. - The pre-war prices of land ranged between Ks. 200 and Es. 210 per acre. In 1925 the auctioned price went up to Es. 305, and in 1927 to Es. 477, per acre. Value of Town Sites.—Town sites were from the very beginning more in demand. Sixty-six acres sold at Lyallpur in 1896 fetched 1,87,860, or a rate of about Es. 2,864 per ac Chiniot d in the same year sites, aggregating to about t the rate of about Es. 2,744 per acre. At Sangla, in the same year the average rate per acre was about Es. 33,000. Three years later, in 1899, sites sold at Gojra fetched an average of Es. 5,991 per acre. In 1900, at Toba Tek Singh, the purchasers did not hesitate paying Es. 11,626 per acre. As an instance of the value attached to important sites at the same place, Es. 57,925 were realized for an area of 5 kanals and 14 marlas yield­ ing an average of Es. 80,982 per acre. About a decade later sites sold at Jaranwala realized a rate of Es. 5,000 per acre, though the land was waste and uncommanded by the canal and not forming- part of any existing town. The prices prevailing now-a-days for town sites range between Es. 40,000 and Es. 70 per acre. •The area of different crops cultivated is as follows: (1927-28) 7 per cent, rice, 39 per cent, wheat, 9*1 per cent, pulses, 51 • 2 per ent. other crops. 62 COLONIZATION IN THE Prosperity Reflected in Country Ballads.—It is interesting to note that the prosperity of the colony is even proclaimed in the native ballads, and its praises sung by the common people of the colony. As an instance, I may quote an extract from a Punjabee ballad, composed by a blind poet, Kahna, some quarter of a century ago. The ballad gives some idea of the impression which the colony made on the native mind j I ! (J I; ^ ar e^ J?' &)) yy? u^rH^J^ u/U 3* vj"^ l\ )b. L>. w

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J* 3 V I* J- 1^1 J<* 3 Je *i>> J" •3to* v**3 *J U3 »_jX* bt> I •^>^« & •3 )y TKANSLATION. First I will praise the true Lord, I will tell a new tale to-day. How of old the Bar was the prey of thieves, The shelter of deer, jackals and rats, Now no barren jungle is left, Young Sahib has peopled the land. The true Lord has given His ordinance, He put it into the hearts of the English, Who made a map of the Bar, And summoned the contractors, The proclamation went round, Young Sahib, etc. Behold the unity of the English, Their promise is true, their word stable, There at Wazirabad, Where the whirlpools churn, A weir has been made and the river dammed Young Sahib, etc. Hard by run trains, Whereon those who pay may Telegraph wires have been extend* Babus came and occupied the Praise to thy power, 0 God, Young Sahib, etc. COLONIZATION IN THE The English have measured the whole land, Here a patwari, there a patwari, Zilladars galore and mighty munshis, To them has been given the authority, Water where they will they give, Young Sahib, etc. Behold the gifts of my Lord, To the Sikh Jats have been given lands, But now up to their ankles in poverty, They prosper before mine eyes, Drink wine and roam with curled moustache, Young Sahib, etc. Most mighty heroes are the English, Who have now turned aside the river, They digged a canal straight as an arrow, And planted groves on its banks, Brush and brushwood has been swept away, Young Sahib, etc. Behold the power of the English, Partly rulers, partly traders, Wealth they do not greatly prize, Money they lavish with a free hand, Princes they are who stint not, Young Sahib, etc. The English are very saints, Believe it true, it is no lie, In a moment they made the waste to vanish, Contractors and labourers became rich, Wages were paid in thousands, Young Sahib, etc. Hear you the tale of Lyallpur, WTiere grain and water abound, The canal runs by the gateways, Trees have been planted in rows, And green grass comes sprouting up, Young Sahib, etc. BECHNA DOAB. 65

The Colony and the Empire.—An ingenious scheme to colonize the Eechna Doab, suggested to some of the authors of the coloniza­ tion, was to make it a military settlement—land was to be given to men bound to render military services to Government. The scheme attracted little notice of Government, but it was always re­ garded desirable that the colony should be settled on by sturdy and warrior communities of the province. Consequently, the chosen colonists were mainly drawn from the Jats, the Eajputs, the Arains and other martial races of the Punjab. With the increase of wealth and prosperity the colony came to be regarded as a suitable area upon which Government could draw both for men and money in the time of need. In his well-known book " The History of the War, Lyallpur District " Mr. (now Sir ) Geoffrey Fitzhervey deMontmorency, then Deputy Commissioner, Lyallpur District, now the Governor of the Punjab, has given some interest­ ing facts to show the rich contributions the colony made during the Great War. The figures convince us that the colony's contributions during the troublous times did not belie the expectations of Government. There were some 6,507 men in the army from the district along with 2,000 sarwans supplied by the Biloches and camel- owning Jats of the district. The amount collected up to the 28th February 1919 was Es. 1,02,552 for the ' Imperial Belief Fund/ Es. 53,319 for the ' Aeroplane Fund,' Es. 99,223 for ' Our Day Fund/ Es. 39,180 for the ' Eed Cross Fund/ Es. 23,093 for the 1 Comforts of Troops Fund.' The total collections for various pur­ poses of the war came up to Es. 3,17,367. Besides, money was bor­ rowed on interest; and, consequently, when the first War Loan was instituted in 1917, the total investments of the colony were Es. 7,66,755 in stock, Es. 24,80,445 in Postal Certificates and Es. 2,88,912 in Postal Bonds. The total investments amounted to Es. 35,36,112. When the second War Loan was instituted in 1918, the colony again rose to the occasion and invested Bs. 31,82,269 in stock, Postal Bonds and Postal Certificates. Assistance in Transport and Animal Supply.—There were 85 villages in which land was held on camel service conditions. E 66 COLONIZATION IN THE The camels and men maintained on these conditions were formed into the 59th, 60th, 61st and 62nd Grantee Camel Corps, which rendered useful service during the war. The 59th, embodied in October 1915, proceeded on field service to Egypt. In January 1916 out of this unit many camels died and the residue was taken over by the Eygptian Government. It was re-embodied in 1917 and despatched to Eawalpindi to be employed in military operations. The 60th, embodied in 1916, served in the Seistan and Waziri- stan Field Forces. The 61st embodied in November 1915, was des­ patched to Nushki, where it served on the Eastern Persian Cordon. The 62nd went to Egypt in February 1916, out of which unit 75 per cent, camels died and the remainder was again taken over by the Egyptian Government. The corps was again raised in 1917 and despatched to Eawalpindi to be in readiness for active service. The above facts and figures clearly show that the colony's share in rendering help to the cause of the Empire during the Great War was in no way insignificant. The colonists availed themselves of the opportunity to demonstrate their loyalty and gratitude to the benign Government that had provided them land, when in their ori­ ginal homes they were being reduced to abject poverty, and that conferred on them the unbounded benefits of canals when at home famine stared them in the face. Conclusion.—After the foregoing brief review of the history of the colony, it will not be out of place for the historian to take a pro­ spective view of the future of the colony. And in this connection, although it is not meet for him to play the role of a prophet, yet it is within his province to draw certain inferences from the past tendencies, and thus to predict with a certain amount of probabil­ ity the future development of the colony.

Water-logging and exhaustion of the land by intensive cul­ tivation are the two problems that may threaten to embarrass the colonist in future. But it may be confidently hoped that the State, that has laid out colossal amounts of capital in the coloniz- EEOHNA DOAB. 67 ation scheme, will not be slow to find a satisfactory solution of these problems. In fact, Government has already set itself earnestly to tackle the problem of water-logging, and is harnessing all scientific knowledge at its command to-day to find its solu­ tion. With improved and scientific means of adding artificial manure and education of the agriculturist in scientific agriculture, the second problem of ' diminishing returns ' also is sure to be satisfac­ torily solved. With the elimination human foresight can predict. We contented progressive bumper harvests, spanned with good and effi means of communications to carry its surplus produce to the market In the wake of these are sure to follow education and civilization, accompanied by health, prosperity and general happiness. If we visualize this picture of our future colony, and compare it to what it was a few decades ago, we cannot but feel grateful to our benevolent Government that has converted these vast barren wastes into a veritable garden.

K2

IX APPENDIX 9.

GENERAL CHANGES IN ADMINISTRATION. THE general changes in administration occasioned by the develop­ ment of so vast a scheme as the Chenab Colony, which completely altered the face of a huge expanse of country and converted it from a desolate waste into a thickly populated tract, have necessarily been numerous and important; and for the convenience of reference they are collected and outlined below in chronological order. The colony area originally formed a part of three districts—Gujran- wala, Jhang, Montgomery. With the progress of reclamation, fresh administrative changes ensued. The first of these was the formation, in 1893,* of the Khangah Dogran Tahsil, which includes practically all the colony villages of the Gujranwala District. In June 1896f the com­ pletion of colonizing work on the Rakh Branch and the advance of the canal down the Bar led to the formation out of the colonized villages in the Chiniot and Jhang Tahsils of a new tahsil, with its headquarters at Lyallpur (then in the Jhang District), whither the Colonization Officer's headquarters were transferred from Shahkot in the Gujranwala District. In February 1899J a sub-divisional outpost was constituted and placed in charge of an Assistant Commissioner, and in May§ of the same year the whole of the Sandal Bar assessment circle of the Montgomery District an area of about 605,586 acres—was transferred to the Jhang District, necessitating a year later the creation of two new tahsils—Samundri and Toba Tek Singh||. In October 1902 a second European officer was appointed as Assistant Colonization Officer in order to relieve the heavy pressure of work occasioned by the enormous expansion of the coloniz­ ation scheme.^ The climax was reached when, on the 1st December 1904,** a new district named Lyallpur was formed out of the tahsils of Lyallpur, Samundri and Toba Tek Singh, which had formerly been included in the Jhang District. In the tahsil of Samundri a sub-tahsil

•Punjab Gazette notification No. 462, of 22nd August 1893. fPunjab Gazette notification No. 442, of 11th June 1896. ^Punjab Gazette notification No. 93, of 1st February 1899. §Punjab Gazette notification No. 370, of 4th May 1899. ||Punjab Gazette notification No. 413, and 414 of 2nd May 1900. ^Punjab Gazette notification No. 123, of 12th November 1901. ••Punjab Gazette notification No. 1333, of 15th November 1904, was constituted at Jaranwala, the boundaries of the Montgomery Dis­ trict having by that time receded to the line of the Eavi. A little later Jaranwala was constituted a separate tahsil. With effect from April 1st, 1907,* the Chenab Colony as an integral administrative charge ceased to exist, the estates in the Khangah Dogran and Sharakpur Tahsils respectively being placed under the control of the Deputy Commissioner of Gujranwala and Lahore. The entire administra­ tion of the Lyallpur District was assumed by the Deputy Commissioner who also retained the revenue administration of the colony villages of the Jhang District. The Deputy Commissioner, as Colonization Officer, was aided by the Assistant Colonization Officer. The colonization work in the colony had almost ceased by 1909 ; nearly all the land available had been allotted, and the further allotments were nothing more than the sale of isolated plots of land on precisely the same terms as in a large majority of the other districts ; peasants had been granted proprietary rights, and Crown proprietorship had fast been decreasing. The colony had been supplied with communications, schools, markets and other amenities of civilization on a scale at least as generous as that of the other districts of the province. Consequently there remained no special characteristics to distinguish its administration from that of the ordinary districts in the colony. There began a process of absorption of the colony in the ordinary districts. The administration of the colony villages in the Jhang District, which had remained in the charge of the Deputy Commissioner, Lyallpur, was completely transferred to the Jhang Deputy Commissioner in 1909. The Sharakpur Tahsil estates of the colony were transferred in 1910 to the Khangah Dogran Tahsil of the Gujranwala District. The colony thus became divided into three parts. The Lyallpur District was the centre of the colony, and contained entire colony estates larger in number than those in the other two districts combined. The two minor parts of the colony both on the east and the west went respectively to form parts of the Gujranwala and Jhang Districts. Later on, with the constitution of the Sheikhupura District in 1919, the Khangah Dogran Tahsil of the Gujranwala District was transferred to the new district of Sheikhu­ pura ; such then is the division as it stands up to the present time. The Lyallpur District, however, still constitutes the primary and major part of the colony, in as much as, in the common parlance of the amateur, the Lyallpur District passes for the old colony.

•Revenue and Irrigation Proceedings, February 1907, No. 4. APPENDIX 10.

GLOSSARY OF VERNACULAR TERMS. Abadi Village site. Abaclkar Colonist (Particularly a peasant grantee). Abiana Water-rate. Ahata Compound in a village site. Bar Waste land. Barani Land dependent on rain. Batai Division of produce between landlord and tenant. Biloches A Mussalman tribe which generally keeps camels. Chahi Land irrigated by well. Cliak Block of land, colony village. Charagah Pasture land. Dehati Pertaining to a village. Dhaya Old river-bank. Doab Land between two rivers. Havelis Splendid houses. Hithari Inhabitant of the riverain. Jangli Aboriginal grazier of the Bar. Jlioka Nomads' settlement. Kacha road Unmetalled road. Kallar Saltpetre. Kallarathi Land impregnated with kallar. Kamin Menial. Kana Beed. Kanal £th of an acre. Khadir Low land by a river. Kharaba Failed crop. Kharif Autumn harvest. Khatri Hindu caste. Khoja Mussalman caste. Khud kasht Cultivated by owner or tenant of Government in person.

Killa T2Vt5 h of a square. (One acre and 18 marlas), or a rectangle (one acre). Lambardar Village headman. Maira Light loam. Malikana Fee paid to landlord in recognition of his proprietary title. Xll

Man di Market town. • Maria f^-fl-th of an acre. Mauza Village revenue estate. Mazhabi Sikh military caste, regarded as low. Murraba Square. Naliri Land irrigated by canal. Nala E a vine. Patwari Village accountant. Bobi Spring harvest. Balina A habitation. Bats Leaders of the nomads of the Bar. Betli Sandy. Bolii Stiff rich soil. Sar A kind of grass. Sukhlambari A system of granting land followed in the military colony in the Hissar District. Surra Camel disease.

Tahsil Eevenue sub-division of a district. Tahavi Svstem of Government loan to agriculturists Thehs Sites of ruined villages. Till Eeed. Tirni Grazing tax. Zamindar Cultivator or owner of land. 1

APPENDIX 11.

BIBLIOGRAPHY. 1. Annual Colony Reports (Government of Punjab Publications). 2. Punjab Administration Reports. 3. Annual Reports on Agriculture. 4. Annual Administration Reports (Irrigation Department). 5. Revised Settlement Report of the Jhang District, 1874—80, by E.B. Steadman, B.C.S., Settlement Officer. 6. Settlement Report of the Jhang District, 1906, by E. R. Abbott, I.C.S. 7. Revision of Settlement ,1892—99, of the Montgomery District, by P. J. Fagan, I.C.S., Settlement Collector. 8. Pinal Report of the 4th Revised Settlement, 1923—27, of the Gujranwala District, by Khan Sahib Khurshaid Mohammad, M.A., P.C.S., Settlement Officer. 9. Final Settlement Report of the Sheikhupura District, 1923—27, by Sheikh Nur Muhammad M.A., P.C.S. 10. Final Report of the Revised Settlement, Sirsa District, 1879—83, by J. Wilson. 11. Final Settlement Report of the Chenab Colony, by B.H. Dobson, I.C.S. 12. Final Settlement Report of the Jhang and Gugera Branch Circle, 1924, of the Lyallpur District, by J. D. Penny, I.C.S. 13. Colonization on the Chenab Canal, by D. J. Ibbetson, 1890. 14. Report on the Colonization in the Rechna Doab, by Ph. Young. 15. Completion Report and Schedules, Chenab Canal, 1904. 16. Colonies Committee Report, 1908. 17. Punjab Peasant in Prosperity and Debt, by M. L. Darling. 18. Census of India, 1911, Punjab, Parts I and II, by Hari Kishan Kaul. 19. Census of India, 1921, Punjab and Delhi, Parts I and II, by L. Middleton, I.C.S., and S. M. Jacob, I.C.S. 20. The Punjab Colony Manual, by L. French, I. C. S., Volumes I and II. L XIV

21. The Punjab Colony Manual (revised edition), by J. G. Beazley and F. H. Puckle, I.C.S. (Volumes I and II). 22. Punjab District Gazetteer, Jhang District, 1884. 23. Punjab District Gazetteer, Jhang District, 1908. 24. Punjab District Gazetteer, Chenab Colony, 1904. 25. Punjab District Gazetter, Lyallpur District, Part B, 1913, 26. Punjab District Gazetteer, Montgomery District, 1898. 27. Punjab District Gazetteer, Gujranwala District, 1893-94.

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