Bhomat (also referred to as Bhumat; Hindi: भोमट or भूमट) is a mountainous and forested area in southern Rajasthan, covering all or parts of the tehsils of Kotra, Jhadol and Kherwara in Udaipur district.[1] During British rule, the region was also referred to as 'Hilly Tracts of Mewar'.[2][3][4]
Name
The name 'Bhomat' is based on the understanding that land tenures known as bhum were held by jagirdars in the region.[2]
Geography
The Bhomat region is Template:Convert wide in the east-west direction and stretches approximately Template:Convert in the north-south axis. It covers approximately Template:Convert.Geographically, Bhomat is divided in three sub-regions: its western area is called Bhader (Hindi: भाडेर), the central area is called Wakal (after the Wakal River; Hindi: वाकल) and the eastern area is called Khadak (Hindi: खड़क).[5] Primary rivers of the Bhomat are Sabarmati, Vakal, and Som.[5]
History
In the 15th century, Rana Kumbha is credited with building fortresses in the Bhomat region with the goal of containing revolts among the Bhils of the area.[6] In the 16th century, the Bhomat region was the shelter for the Ranas of Mewar when times of military crises caused by the Mughals.[7][8]
The Bhomat is recognized as a geographical or cultural region, but it was a unified political entity for only a short term - a century - under British paramountcy. Prior to accession of the Mewar State to the Republic of India in 1949, the region was ruled by several jagirdars, the important ones being: Jawas, Pahara, Madri, Thana, Chhani, Juda, Panarwa, Oghna, Umariya, Patia, Sarwan, and Nainbara.[2] These jagirdars were known as bhumias (i.e., ones holding a bhum land tenure) and owed only nominal allegiance to the Mewar State.[9]
For approximately a century during British paramountcy over Mewar State, the Bhomat represented a political unit divided in two sub-divisions - Kherwara Bhomat to the east and Kotra Bhomat to the east.[10]
Population
Adivasis comprise the majority of the population in the Bhomat.[2]
References
- ↑ Patterns of Religious Observance in Three Villages of Rajasthan in 'Aspects of Religion in Indian Society,' edited by L.P. Vidyarthi.{{#if:Carstairs|, Carstairs}. Kedar Nath Ram Nath(1961)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Report on the Administration of Mewar State for Years 1940, 1941 and 1942{{#if:|, }. The Madras Law Journal Press(1944)
- ↑ A Handbook of the Fighting Races of India{{#if:Bonarjee|, Bonarjee}. Thacker, Spink & Co.(1899)
- ↑ The Bhil and the Rajput Kingdoms of Southern Rajasthan in Narratives from the Margins: Aspects of Adivasi History in India{{#if:Fattori|, Fattori}. Primus Books(2012). ISBN 978-93-80607-10-8
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 पानरवा का सोलंकी राजवंश{{#if:Paliwal|, Paliwal}. Janak Prakashan(2000)
- ↑ State Formation in Rajasthan: Mewar During the Seventh-Fifteenth Centuries{{#if:Kapur|, Kapur}. Manohar(2002). ISBN 81-7304-429-5
- ↑ Mewar and the Mughal Emperors (1526-1707 A.D.){{#if:Sharma|, Sharma}. Shiva Lal Agarwala & Co. Ltd.(1951)
- ↑ Gazetteer of India: Rajasthan - Udaipur{{#if:Agarwal|, Agarwal}. Directorate of District Gazetteers, Government of Rajasthan
- ↑ Rajasthan Through the Ages: Marwar and British Administration{{#if:|, {{{last}}}}. Sarup & Sons(2008). ISBN 978-81-7625-841-8
- ↑ Mewar History{{#if:|, }. The Times of India Press(1938)