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Home , Pune, Pune Camp

Chapter -2

The Origin and Development of town : A historical-spatial perspective.

2.0 Location and Origin of Pune Situated just under 200 kilometres south-east of on the , 'the native town' of Pune developed under the rale of , who made it their base and brought with them great political power. With its political and geographical centrality, Pune soon assumed cultural leadership of the region; be it in the field of education, social reform or freedomstruggle . Pune has helped shape the culture of the entire region and is popularly thought of as the core of Maharashtraian identity. — By the end of the eighteenth century, the classical Cantonment town with a distinct stamp of the British colonial society developed adjacent to the 'native city'. Pune or Punyapur of yore, holds within its fabric the vestiges of urban form of several centuries. Its origin dates back to at least two thousand years when it developed as a fishing hamlet on the confluence of two rivers : Mula and Mutha. (Fig. 2:1). Like all places at confluence, Pune has religious sanctity, more so because it was close to Bhimashankar- an important place of and it was located along the routes that connected the vast agricultural lands of the Deccan Plateau through the mountain passes of and Nane to the ports in the on the . (Fig. 2:2) Pune throughout its career has had a violent

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* —^L —L-—rt * T history, starting with the early Hindu period, when it was ruled by Chalukya, Rashtrakuta and Yadav kings. With Muslim rule which began in 1246 AD, a period of instability set in when Pune was ruled by successive dynasties of , Gulbarga and the Moghuls. By late sixteenth century, Pune was consolidated under the chieftain, Maloji Bhonsale, and as Pune's imperial stature grew, it integrated into a city by the year 1800 with eighteen peths, three forts, a major temple complex (Parvati) a wooden bridge (Lakdipool) across the river, the imperial palaces or wadas and aqueducts which supplied potable water to the city from a system of reservoirs. At this time the peths provided an urban structure out of well defined wards, just as the wada form of house gave a pattern to Pune's neighbourhoods. Before 1818, when the British forces overran Pune, it had emerged as an indigenous Indian Capital, sustaining a system of relatively sovereign cities. Though Pune of 1800s was described as an impressive inland capital, it never saw the opulence of the Moghuls or Nizams nor the commercial importance of cities like or . Therefore, why Pune rose to such prominence remains an enigma because it neither had a strong production base nor a rich agricultural hinterland, nor was it located on any major strategic routes, yet it was politically the most important city in in the eighteenth and the nineteenth centuries. After the British conquered the city in 1818, the population of Pune was over a hundred thousand. This declined to 75,000 by 1851 in the early British period. The two military camps or were set up during this period. (Fig. 2:3). The was to guard the entrance to the city from the south-east, while the Kirkee camp was set up to guard the roads

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Paithan

w» GHAT OR SADDLE -f. FORT ^-N KONKAN

Fi.5- 2:3 Important Trade Routes of Wetern Around Pune Region

Source: Geographical Factors in the Rise and Fall ofMarathas, Ph.D. Thesis, April 1966, University of Pune, DM. Wash leading to the city from Konkan. Each of these two Cantonments grew with the expansion of roads, bungalows and social and recreational facilities over the next century. The indigenous city deteriorated from 1818 to the early decades of the present century, while the Pune Cantonment town flourished into a well planned garden suburb. With the growth of Pune Cantonment town, wealthy Parsi and Gujarati families constructed impressive bungalows in the buffer zone between Pune Cantonment town and the old city. At the same time, enhanced artisan and trading activity gave a fillip to development in and Nana Peth- the peths adjacent to the Cantonment town. By the time of Independence, the working class population of Pune spread up to the borders of the Cantonment in squatter settlements and single room tenements, as Pune's colonial importance grew with the expansion of military, administrative and judiciary activities. Thus a dual character of city and Cantonment entrenched itself under the British.

2.1 The Origin of Pune Cantonment town: In order to trace the origin of the Pune Cantonment town, a brief history of how Pune was conquered by the British would provide a suitable background and set the stage for the ensuing discussion on the limits of the Pune Cantonment town. After the accession of the last - Bajirao, there followed a period of great disturbances, extortion and cruelty. As a result of this in 1802, the city of Pune became the target of plunder and the Peshwa was

39 expelled. It was at this stage that General Wellesfcley, appeared on the - scene and saved the city from destruction and restored the rule of Peshwa. It was in the year 1803, when the British captured the fort of Ahmednagar and after the conquest of the surrounding places, it placed its army at Ahmednagar, Pune and Sirur. Its supremacy, ultimately burst into war, which is known as the battle of Kirkee 1817. (Fig. 2:4). The result of this confrontation was the routing of the Maratha army and the flight of the Peshwa (Fig. 2:5). The scene of the battle then shifted to in the following year, where Captain Staunton routed the Maratha force of 30,000 men thus, giving Bajirao a second defeat. Bajirao surrendered and the fort of Purandar was captured by the British, where their flag was hoisted for the first time on 16th March 1818 after the surrender of by the Peshwa. Thus, this is how the British came into the picture and conquered Pune, the city of historical events. Formerly, in 1803, when Lord Wellesley arrived in Pune to re­ establish Bajirao n, he had then opined that Garpir, i.e., the eastern part of Pune city was the most suitable site for the establishment of Cantonment.1 Even before the battle of Kirkee 1817, the Subsidiary Forces were put up in the area between and Ganeshkhind- which can be called the earliest Cantonment of the Deccan region. Both, this and the encampment of Garpir were close to the British Resident's house at Sangam, i.e., the point of confluence of Mula and Mutha rivers. When the Residency was attacked, Lord Elphinstone, the then Resident, abandoned the place as indefensible.2 But with the final defeat of the Marathas, Pune within a short period became a large administrative unit and the headquarter

40 References

A Camp and Village defended by a Detachment of the 6th Bo Native Infantry and MO Guns Dapodi Battalion under Capt. Ford to join the by a detachment Commanded by line Lt. Col. Burr and the Army of the Dapodi Battalion throws Back the Right Wing i. repulses the Peshwa:Bajee Rao Enemy Third and the Last Position of the British Troops when the Endmy were beaten and were retreating towards Poona COLOURING Enemy's encampment British Infantry ED bb Enemy's horse advancing Enemy Horse ^E3 Detachment of Enemy's Infantry advancing to Charge the 7th Enemy's Infantry Bombay Native Infantry d Zeere-Pat Flag charged the 7th Bombay Native Infantry Si Enemy's Horse threatening Captain Ford's Dapodi Batallion. Mor Dixit killed. 0 Scale of Miles Mite IT Enemy repulsed by two Guns in position at Kirkee Remaining Enemy's Infantry advanced to meet the English but rur LI II 1 1% speedily compelled to retreat

ir-1 Asirrrr n„~4 111 Lhirtf* D/c/r/W : NEWASE At-

THANA

PANVEL

tf> • CHOUK

hi SrNHAGAD to

RAIGAD

MAHAD

WASOTA

> THE MARCHES OF THE 4th DIV. < • THE MARCHES OF THE RESERVE. X . LT. COL. DEACON'S DETACHMENT. V ROUTE FOLLOWED BY THE PESHWA

0 16 32 48 64 ^ J_ , • -J ' ' 0 10 20 30 40 Miles -/tYNAPUR

F ig. 2:5 The Last Peshwa's desperate Flight In West Maharashtra (November 1817 -April 1818)

Source: Geographical Factors in the Rise and Fall of M&rathas, Ph.D. Thesis, April 1966, University of Pane, DM. W&gh of the Army. As Dennis Kincaid remarks, "long the seat of Hindu Orthodoxy, (Pune), became in an extraordinary short period, Pune of Anglo-Indian Saga".3

2.2 Demarcation of the Limits of Pune Cantonment Town: On the termination of war against the Marathas and the Pindharis in 1819, it was considered by the British Government that the military had passed the state of war to that of peace. It was at this time that the Government thought of fixing the limits of Pune Cantonment town and the administration of the civil population whjiich was assigned land for the - purpose of constructing dwelling places and shops. The civil population, mainly comprised of business people who were commonly known as 'camp followers' and catered to the needs of army. On 15th April 1819, Regulation I of 1819 was published in this respect and the General Officer (also called as the criminal magistrate) was ordered to fix the limits of Pune Cantonment town in consultation with the civil authority. The boundaries of Pune Cantonment Town were first settled by Colonel Gifford and then Collector of Pune, H.D. Robertson. Later on, in the year 1822, on the arrival of freshtroops , regiments and battalions including cavalry, it was deemed necessary to expand the boundaries of the Pune Cantonment town and to spread it further, including even the villages of and Wanorie. These areas were acquired from the owners-Inamdars, Mirasdars and Jagirdars, by March 1827, after paying adequate compensation. Thereafter, the boundaries of Pune Cantonment were finally settled an^T) -

41 Western Limit: From the north-west angle of Captain Nutt's compound, the line runs south along the street and then takes a direction round a small village occupied by some camp followers and touches the Nulla making it a boundary for three furlongs and eighty yards; it then runs south along the street and then runs south until it reaches the Nulla which it follows until intersected by a line drawn west of the Pagoda on Practice Hill. Southern Limit: The above mentioned line drawn from the Pagoda continued to the distance from the last extreme point towards the east, as far as the Horse Artillery Wells. Eastern Limit: From the Horse Artillery Wells, taking the Nulla for the boundary to a native garden, from which it changes at and runs to the Pagoda, on the Ghorpuri Road. Northern Limit: Runs from the above mentioned Pagoda in a north­ west direction six furlongs eighty yards, from which the western boundary is completed by a line drawn to the north-west angle of Captain Nutt's compound.4

2.3 Location of Pune Cantonment Town: The Pune Cantonment town is located in the eastern section of Pune city and has an area of about 4.25 square miles. It is a rectangular plot of land, about 2.72 miles from north to south and varying from 1.36 miles to 1.62 miles from east to west. It is bounded on the north by the Peninsula Railway, on the east by Bahiroba's stream, on the south by a line drawn from Vanavadi Hay Stacks and the Military Prison to the Cemetery on

42 •i CIVIL AREAS ~S BARRACKS C_J BUNGALOW AREAS BUI LANOMARKS AND BAZAARS

Fig. 2:6 Cantonment and Lines - Poona 1865 Vc~..-^. t \* /-aL.ifia/7 riawH^r nf Rr,mUav Prtirtpnrv Vnl YV7ff Part TIT Piirtfi• Tlisfrict Railway, on the east by Bahiroba's stream, on the south by a line drawn from Vanavadi Hay Stacks and the Military Prison to the Cemetery on Road, on the south and west by the Bhavani Peth and Nana Peth of the city, and on the north-west by the line of Council Hall Road which separates it from the Suburban Municipality. (Fig. 2:7). Almost along its whole length to the Right Flanks Lines in the extreme south, the central belt of the military Cantonment, with an area of 130 acres, is kept open for parade and other military purposes. Beyond this central open belt to the north-east are the Ghorpadi Lines and Barracks, to the south-east are the Vanavadi Lines, to the south are the Right Flank Lines so called because they are on the Right Flank of the Cantonment, to the west the Neutral Lines and the Petty Staff Lines, to the west the Native Infantry Lines and behind the Sadar Bazaar, to the north-west the Ordinance Lines and behind them the Staff lines. Beyond the natural limits of the Cantonment, but under the control of the Cantonment magistrate, in the extreme north-east on the right bank of Bahiroba's stream, between the Peninsula Railway and the river are the Native Cavalry Lines. The land in the Cantonment forms two parts, the central belt, most of it of poor soil and rock, bare of houses, and with few trees except those that line the roads which cross and encircle it; and the groups and lines of residences of European civil and military officers in the Ghorpadi Lines in the north-east, in the Vanavadi Lines in the south-east, in the Right Flank Lines in the south and in Neutral, Native Infantry and the Staff Lines in the west and north-west.5 (Fig. 2:8)

43 Great India Peninsula Railway

References

1 Ghorpadi Bazaar 2 Arsenal 3 Bazaar 4 Bazaar 5 Petty Staff Lines (north; \ 6 Petty Staff Lines (south) j* 7 Sholapur Bazaar 8 Military Prison 9 Vanavadi Bazaar t Church 0Hospital Sindhia's Chhatri

Yards Fi2 2-7 Pune Cantonment About 1890. BVMM /#9/,> ^ MAr the Plan of Cantonment and part of Suburban limits, Poena, 1KW Source: British Library. London tfcacA. vT7> KOOK- 8*^4 fM- lilj-r^S 2. 4 Pune Cantonment Town: Geographical Attributes Pune Cantonment town is located on the east of Pune city and is on a slightly elevated plain. The absence of alluvial deposits, the trap formation of the surrounding country, the general prevalence of westerly breeze, good water, dry and invigorating climate of Pune Cantonment town suited the Europeans better than most other parts of India. The air being lighter, the cold more bracing and the heat less oppressive. The conditions were healthy all the year round. The languor, which is in almost every season of the year found in most parts of India is hardly experienced. Green, in his book, "The Deccan Ryots and their Land Revenues" remarks - " We also made our principal civil and military station in the Deccan and discovered too that during the five rainy months it possesses a much more agreeable climate than that of Bombay".6 Thus Pune had all the attributes required to make it a proper Cantonment and therefore was a natural choice of the British Authorities. For decades it had been the centre of the . The location on a plain surrounded by hills gave it a natural protection. The Peshwas had developed a strong communication network with the surrounding areas, so that, he who controlled Pune, could also control the entire surrounding region. The city also occupied a special place in the psyche of the indigenous population, which had long considered it as the centre of their political, administrative and religious life. Above all, Pune was close enough to Bombay, so that, once a line of communication was established through the Bhor pass, the Bombay Government could establish total control over the Maratha territory both militarily and economically.

44 2.5 Pune Cantonment Town: Its Raison-de-etre Pune Cantonment Town, like any other Cantonments, was the institutionalized form of settlement for the military representatives of the British colonial power in India from the eighteenth to the nineteenth century. As such, it developed as a culture-specific environment- a system of built forms and spatial arrangements organized by a particular culture, for a particular purpose and at a particular time. It represented a limited area of territory modified by British culture, yet situated in the larger geographic area of another (India) - thus a fine example of how environments are modified according to culture-specific criteria. (Fig. 2:9).

45 OHORPUW BAZAAR

WEST END THEATRE { ,.

CANNAUOHT LINES

N fc

1M5LE

Fig. 2:9 Layout of Pune Cantonment References

[1] Gadgil, D.R.,(1945): Poona: A Socio-economic Survey Part I (Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics Publication Series, No. 12, Part I, Poona pp. 17.

[2] Gupta Samita., (1985): Architecture and the Raj: Western Deccan, 1700-1900, BR., Publishing Corporation, , pp. 62.

[3] Kincaid, D., (1973): British Social Life in India, 1608-1937, Routledge & Kegan Paul, London, pp. 172, as quoted by Gupta Samita,(1985) pp. 62.

[4]Moledina M.H., (1953) : History of Poona Cantonment 1818-1953, Poona, pp. 5.

[5] Campbell, J.M., (1885) Gazetteer of Bombay Presidency, Poona District, Vol. Xm, Part m, Bombay, pp. 350.

[6] Green H., (1852) : The Deccan Ryots and their Land Revenue, pp. 70, as quoted by Gadgil, D.R., (1945) op cit. pp. 12.

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