Page:Gazetteer of the province of Oudh ... (IA cu31924073057345).pdf/9

A GAZETTEER OF THE PROVINCE OF OUDH. H. TO M. HAIDARABAD Pargana Tahsil NIGHSAN—District KHERI.—This pargana has been recently separated from Kukra Mailáni ; it lies between the Kathna on the west, dividing it from Magdapur and Atwa Piparia, and the dried-up course of an old river which once flowed east of Gola Gokarannáth. Haidarabad is a part of the old pargana Bhúrwára, belong, ing to the Ahbans and Pásis; it was afterwards seized by the Sayyads, and then probably occupied by the Gaurs. A zamindari settlement was made with them at the expulsion of the Sayyads about 1,200 Fasli. Various branches of the old Ahban family have recovered possession since 1,200 Fasli; the rest of the zamindars are retainers or followers of the Sayyads and the chakladars, and none boast more than four generations of proprietary pos- session except the qánúngos. It may be mentioned that the pargana owes its prosperity to Mansa Rám, chakladar, who settled Kurmis all over the pargana, bestowing on them a proprietary right which many of them have preserved, and their struggles with the restored Ahbans form the prominent feature of the settlement. The surface along the Kathna lies very low, and is covered at a little distance from the river with mixed jungle containing a good proportion of sál. It slowly rises, and the border of cultivation commences at about two miles from the bank on the average. This jungle has not been broken up, partly because the grantees expect more profit from growing, sál timber, partly because the zamindars defer making any increase to their cultivated area till assessment shall be over; where they were more eager for immediate profit, as in Paraili, the land has turned out most pro- ductive. Where cultivation commences the soil is a rather light dumat, becoming at the south-west comer even bhúr; it rapidly improves, and about half a mile from the edge of the cultivation is of the very highest quality, yielding every crop and very high rents. It is nearly level. Where there is a slight depression the matiár yields fine crops of rice, and the dumat magnificent sugarcane, but the centre is swampy in places. From some unexplained reason, the belt of villages which lies along the centre of the pargana—Bilwa, Chitaunia, Dheráwán, Gurthemia--most of which are the property of Government, yield a sugar of so great purity that it requires hardly any refining to make the clearest candy, and it bears a considerably higher price than any other in the Shahjahanpur market. As a result of this the rent of sugarcane land in these villages was formerly Rs. 2-8-0 per local bígha, or Rs. 15 per acre. Beyond these villages the level rises, the soil becomes lighter as the eastern boundary is approached, and along the old course of the now van- 1