Bundelkhand: Bundelkhand covers the gently rolling country between river Yamuna on the north and Vindhyachal mountain ranges on the south. There are a number of hill streams and rivers, which flow through the area, rising from the southern mountain ranges and flowing in north easterly direction, ultimately meeting river Yamuna. The prominent rivers of the area are Kali Sindh, Betwa, Ken, Bagahin, Tons, Dhasan and Chambal. The whole terrain is hilly forestland with ravines and deep gorges. Bundelkhand covers the towns of Jhansi, Jalaun, Lalitpur, Hamirpur, Mahoba, Banda and Chitrakut in Uttar Pradesh and Datia, Tikamgarh, Chhatarpur, Panna, Damoh and Sagar in Madhya Pradesh. Due to its rugged terrain and inhospitable living conditions, local satraps, chieftains and warlords ruled the roost during most of its chequered history. Bundelkhand continues to be one of the poorest and most undeveloped parts of Uttar Pradesh.
Hindu and Jain temples at Khajuraho were built during the reign of Chandela Rajputs from 950 A.D. to 1150 A.D. and are a prominent landmark of Bundelkhand in Chhatarpur District. These temples have been classified as world heritage sites by UNESCO and are a popular destination of tourists from all parts of the world. Kalinger fort located in Banda district had a tremendous strategic value and was almost like a gateway to south-east during the medieval period. It carries the scars of unending attacks and assults by powerful invaders, warlords and high and mighty of the land in their feverish bids for supremacy. Bundelkhand is a land of prince Chhatrasal and Alha Udal. It is a land of Rani Laxmibai of Jhansi and Rani Durgawati of Gondwana. It is a land of Goswami Tulsidas the author of Ramcharitmanas, who was born at Rajapur in Banda district. It is also a land of well known Hindi poets Maithili Sharan Gupt and Vrindavan lal Verma. It also happens to be the land of Phullan Devi and other ruthless dacoits operating from the ravines of river Chambal. It is heartening to see that the winds of change have gradually started blowing and most of the towns of Bundelkhand have been able to develop universities and prestigious institutions of higher learning.
Banda: Banda is one of the districts of Bundelkhand in Uttar Pradesh. It is in the form of irregular upland with outcrops of rocks and a scattering of lowlands. River Ken is a perennial river. It rises from Madhya Pradesh, flows through Banda and ultimately meets river Yamuna. Ken Canal was constructed in the year 1906. It originates from Bariarpur Weir in Panna district of Madhya Pradesh and provides irrigation facilities in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. During its flow through Banda, river Ken runs through rocky terrain, with deep gorges and all types of falls, making it unsuitable for utilization of its water for run of the river projects in Banda. All other rivers and streams in Banda are monsoon fed. As such, Ken Canal is the only major source of irrigation in Banda district. The areas which are not covered by Ken Canal System are covered by tanks and reservoirs, which collect monsoon waters of local rivers and streams and can be found dotted almost everywhere in the countryside. The economy of the area is primarily agricultural. The soil, cultivated area, water requirements and productivity of the crops varies from place to place.
My first assignment as Sub-Divisioal Officer: Jhansi is a prominent railway station on the main line from Delhi to Bombay. Banda is located midway on the branch line from Jhansi to Manikpur. Banda is a neat little city, standing on the right bank of River Ken. It is a pre-historic city with a glorious past. Offices of Ken Canal Division at Banda were located at Nawab Tank which was a neat and clean locality on the outskirts of the city. I joined Ken Canal Division Banda in May 1946 as Sub-divisional Officer in the rank of assistant engineer. That was British Period. The officers enjoyed substantial initiative, powers and freedom in almost all administrative, financial and revenue matters. Second world war had ended but the scars could be seen almost everywhere. Foodgrains, cloth and almost all essential items of consumption were rationed. There was widespread unemployment and acute shortage of food throughout the country. Under the context, grow more food compaign of the government was taken up as a challenge at all administrative and professional levels. Collectors and other administrative officers of the district were moving from village to village in almost all types of available transport, including bullock-carts for bringing most of the fallow land under cultivation. Possibilities of raising Zaid Crops ( extra crops ) during non-seasonal or slack periods were being studied. Role of irrigation officers was critical during the period. Apart from their commitment for meeting the normal irrigation requirements of the lands in the command areas of the canal system, they were expected to cater to the emerging needs of additional areas brought under cultivation all over the district.
The system: Rivers commence their journey from totally unknown and remote areas in the hills, finding and cutting their own path, through valleys and meeting a number of streams and tributaries on their way, as they swell and surge ahead. In the mountaneous country, they go through a rough and rugged path with steep bed slopes and all types of ups and downs and waterfalls. Rivers are the main drainages of the country and they are also the conduits for the movement and transfer of life giving waters to the remotest parts of the country. Rivers provide opportunities to store, share and divert bulk of their waters to man-made channels for proper utilization of waters for agriculture and drinking watersupply, thereby, making a significant contribution in sustaining human life on the planet.
The rivers, streams and drainages follow the lowest lines of levels in the valley. This enables them to collect surface water and water from springs and seepage from both sides. Canals run on the ridge or high land between valleys to enable them to distribute water on both sides of the ridge or watershed. The command area of a canal is in the form of big network of rivers, streams and drainages and highlands, ridges and watersheds. For every two rivers, streams or drainages, there is a highland, ridge or watershed between them. Weirs, barrages and dams are constructed across the path of the perennial rivers for raising the levels of water and storage and diversion of waters in the main canals. In hilly areas the path of the main canal from the point it takes off from the river valley to the watershed involves lots of hurdles in the form of crossings of hill streams and local rivers. However, as soon as the main canal reaches the watershed, it clings to it and keeps flowing along the ridge. As and when the main watershed meets the local watersheds on either side, a branch or branch canal takes off from the main canal and follows the local watershed. Similarly, distributaries and minors take off from the main canal or the branches, wherever, they meet the subsidiary watersheds. Outlets are mainly provided in distributaries and minors, but they are also provided in main canals and branches in areas not covered by distributaries and minors. Every outlet has a specific area to serve and watercourses or field channels are provided to enable the water to flow from the outlet to each and every plot of land included in the command area of the outlet.
My short stint at Banda: Every subdivision in the irrigation department had eight to ten inspection houses located on the banks of canals, branches or distributaries for the stay of the officers. The inspection houses were very conveniently spaced, ten to twelve miles away from each other. The inspection houses had dedicated lines of canal telephones and telegraphs, to keep the officers in touch with the head-quarters and revenue and field staff of the sub-division during their tours. Dak runners used to run daily along their beats from one inspection house to another for the movement of official dak. All this may look very strange in the context of fast communications, mobile phones and all types of electronic gadgets that are available to-day. No such facilities were available in 1946. Every month, the sub-divisional officers were expected to stay for atleast twenty nights in the field, with atleast two to three nights at every inspection house to facilitate inspections and to enable them to remain in live touch with conditions in the sub-division. Naturally, the whole camp staff and all official files, records and cash chest moved from place to place, almost every alternate day. It is difficult to imagine, how it worked smoothly and comfortably during that period. The camp staff, which moved from place to place, with the sub-divisional officer, included: One english clerk for maintenance of accounts, establishment records and official correspondance, one urdu clerk known as peshkar for maintenance of revenue records and related correspondence, two peons, five guards, two runners and three bullock-carts with three cartmen. Apart from this, regular staff of the inspection house and some regulation staff of the nearby irrigation works became available to the camp staff at the inspection house. Wholetime signallers were also available at most of the prominent inspection houses for the operation of canal telegraphs and telegraph lines.
Main canal, branches and most of the distributries had motorable service roads. Public traffic on the service roads was restricted and barriers with chains and locks were placed at all entry, exit and junction points. Some of the distributaries and minors did not have motorable service roads. Motor vehicles were not manufactured in India at that time. Ford and Cheverolet tourer cars were popular choice of canal officers at that time, for rough and tough conditions on district and canal roads. Apart from a motor vehicle, the officers were required to maintain a good horse for facilitating the inspection of distributaries and minors and irrigated areas. Shajra Sheets or command area maps were prepared by tracing village maps on big sheets of long cloth, showing the network of canals, branches, distributaries, minors, outlets and watercourses and all irrigated and unirrigated plots of land. All permanent works like dams, weirs, barrages, regulators, falls, siphons, roads, railways, bridges and culverts were also marked on the shajra sheets. When spread on the floor, shajra sheets provided a bird’s eye view of the whole system. During inspections the shajra sheets were folded to expose the areas in view and were very helpful in identifying the command areas of channels, position of permanent works and outlets, flow of water through the watercourses and the type of crops sown and irrigated in the fields. There was a general sense of excitement, satisfaction and relief, when the channels were seen running full, during inspections and were meeting the water requirements of crops in the remotest parts of the command areas. Inspections during closures threw all the challenges for normal maintenance and repairs in a limited time.
Field staff: The field staff was divided into two streams: Supervisory staff for running, maintenance and construction of irrigation channels and revenue staff for recording details of crops and plots of land irrigated from canal water and for the preparation of revenue records for the collection of irrigation charges from the cultivators. The sub-division was divided into four to five sections for purposes of running, maintenance and construction of irrigation channels and irrigation works. Each section was headed by a section officer of the rank of an overseer. The revenue staff was headed by a ziledar, who was assisted by Amins and Patrols in revenue work. Patrols had clearly marked beats and they moved from field to field for maintaining cropwise details of areas actually irrigated. Their work was checked and supervised by the amins under the overall control and supervision of the ziledar. Whenever, the sub-divisional officer was out on inspections, he was accompanied by the ziledar or section officers in the motor vehicle or on horseback. Amins and patrols were available during inspections in their beats. Trotting on the horseback, with shajra sheets in hand, it was always very exciting to have a look at the physical features of the countryside, with all the ups and downs and contours of the gently rolling lands, punctuated by the mildly murmuring sounds of water, gushing out of the outlets and flowing through the watercourses, taking all the twists and turns, for meeting the water requirements of crops in fields, huddled together in far flung areas.
Khoob Ali: Khoob Ali was a peon attached to the sub-division. He was the first person to greet me, when I joined Ken Canal Division Banda as Sub-Divisional Officer in May 1946. While I was busy in completing the paperwork and other formalities for assuming charge of the subdivision, he took control of all my belongings and arranged them in a room in the inspection house. He also made arrangements for the procurement of common provisions for meeting the requirements for meals for a week and got the lunch prepared. He also shuffled through the clothes and the bedding and passed on the used linen to the washerman and arranged rest of the clothes in the wardrobe. Those were good old days, when the staff, did not need any help, guidance, support or orders in such matters. They provided comfortable and homely environment to the officers, day in and day out, in the remotest places and thereby contributed substantially to the sustained dedication, devotion and hard work of the officers.