Story from Azam to Nawabs… CM Yogi launched Moradabad Divisional Gazetteer

UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath today released the gazetteer of Moradabad. The CM said that such efforts help us know our history. This is also the way to a better future. According to the definition of gazetteer, gazetteer presents details of the geographical structure, history, political, socio-economic condition and cultural heritage of a particular area. This is the purpose of preparing Moradabad Mandal Gazetteer. Making a slight change in the established tradition of gazetteer, public welfare schemes and development projects have been included in the Mandal Gazetteer.

In the year 2023, the first volume of the Divisional Gazetteer of Moradabad was published. Due to various difficulties and time limits, the first volume of the Divisional Gazetteer could not cover the historical and cultural aspects of Moradabad in detail. The first volume of the Gazetteer contained interesting information related to local governance and administration. Due to the limitations of the first volume of the Gazetteer, the need for its second volume was felt. In the second volume of the Gazetteer, an attempt has been made to find the truth that is getting blurred and extinct, entangled in the threads of stories along with the historical and social aspects of Moradabad.

This effort revealed that the birthplace of King Bharat, who gave his name to Bharatvarsha, is Rishi Kanva Ashram in Bijnor's Mandawar area. Mandawar was a major centre of Buddhism, which has been mentioned by the Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang in his book. According to religious texts, Sambhal is the place where Lord Kalki will appear. Abul Fazal has mentioned the famous temple of Lord Vishnu, 'Hari Mandir', located in Sambhal in 'Ain-e-Akbari'. However, according to the Moradabad Gazetteer (1911), Hari Mandir did not exist, but the temple was replaced by a mosque.

While probing various popular beliefs, new information was found regarding the antiquity of the sites. The Pataleshwar Mahadev temple in Bhamarua of Rampur was built by the Nawabs. However, the Gazetteer (1911) of Rampur State and the documents of Raza Library tell that the temple is older than the Nawab period. The story of Tooti's tomb in Rampur is also similar. In an attempt to solve these stories, the life of Nawab Sardar Dulhan (Tooti Begum) is revealed, who has played a major role in enriching literature and music in Rampur State. She is the only Begum of Rampur whose tomb still exists. The story of another person is also very interesting. That is because their social base is completely different.

Information about tribes and communities in the second section

Sultana was a dacoit but his story compelled Jim Corbett to write about him in a sensitive manner in his book. The life of Sultana Daku points towards a unique dimension of the mutual relations between the exploiting and exploited sections of society. Which was reflected in the form of the Criminal Tribes Act implemented by the British rule. In this sequence, the second section of the Gazetteer also includes details of those castes-tribes-communities which were included in the Criminal Tribes Act.

This journey of exploration of culture and past started from Malin river in search of Kanva Ashram. Signs of existence of rivers are important because rivers have been the center of ancient civilizations. In this sequence, an attempt has been made to match the flow of various small and big rivers flowing in the Mandal recorded in the old gazetteer with the current situation. In this venture, the focus has been on the changes that have taken place in the rivers and lakes etc. water bodies of the Mandal during more than a century, which will prove important for future action plan.

Many people of Mandal are also mentioned in the gazetteer

The search for the origin of different handicrafts and industries prevalent in the Mandal takes us back centuries. In this process, it has been discovered that many special handicrafts have also become extinct in the passage of centuries. For example, Rampur's special cotton cloth - Khes. The contribution of various people associated with the Mandal has been given space in the gazetteer. There are two aspects of this subject. One, preserving the memory of important people and second, trying to analyze their thoughts.

For example, Amjadi Begum, wife of Maulana Mohammad Ali Johar of Rampur, was a member of the Muslim League's Working Committee at the time of the 'Pakistan proposal'. If Maulana Mohammad Ali Johar had been alive till 1940, what would have been his opinion regarding Pakistan? The second part of the Mandal Gazetteer is actually a journey to find answers to multidimensional questions related to the historical, social and cultural existence of the Mandal.