Pratapgarh district, Rajasthan

The rulers of 'Partabgadh-Raj' were descendants of Sisodia clan of Mewar Rajputs.[2]

Vasundhara Raje, the then Chief Minister of Rajasthan, announced Pratapgarh to be an independent district in 2008.

District Map of Pratapgarh, Rajasthan, India

Well known for pure gold and glass-inlay handmade unique jewelry called "Thewa", Pratapgarh, as the 33rd district of Rajasthan, came into existence on 26 January 2008, comprising five Tehsils/ sub-divisions, Pratapgarh, Chhotee Sadri, Dhariyawad, Arnod and Peepalkhoont.

The district is dotted with good number of ancient and historical sites, but in want of a detailed study either by the Archaeological Survey of India or by the Department of Archaeology and Museums, Government of Rajasthan, there are no 'protected monuments' as such. A few important still unexplored archaeological and historical sites include Avleshwara, Ghotaavarshika (Ghotarsi), Sidheriya, Gandharvpur (Gandher) Jaanagarh, Veerpur and many others. Sita Mata sanctuary houses pre-historic rock engravings.

Ghotarasi village is located around 10 km from the town, which has an Old Suryanarayan temple, Gotameswara is an anacient lord Shiva temple situated 18 km from Pratapgarh near Arnod town. It is believed that this temple has a secret tunnel made by Pandvas during their 'agyatwaas' period, which connects this place to Ujjain city.

Creation

People of Pratapgarh were demanding to make it an independent district separate from Chittorgarh district, of which it was a part. The Government of Rajasthan declared on 6 July 2006 its intention to create Pratapgarh as a separate district. The process of officially declaring Pratapgarh as a new district took some time. Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje declared Praratapgarh as 33rd district of Rajasthan on 8 March 2007 in legislative assembly's budget session. Pratapgarh, Arnod and Chhoti Sadri tehsils from chittaurgarh district, Peepal Khoont from Banswada district and Dhariyawad from Udaipur district were unified together to form this new district.

As Pratapgarh already had some district offices (a district session court (since 1944), district hospital, district jail etc.) and also a different vehicle registration code than Chittaurgarh, this was an apt decision. Significant progress in all spheres of economic-socio-cultural life is noticeable after 2008. However, much is to be done in creating essential infra-structural facilities and overall literacy.

Princely flag of the state of 'Paatabgarh'

Location

Pratapgarh is located at 24.03° N 74.78° E with an average elevation of 580 meters (1610 feet above mean sea level). It is said to be the second highest place (?) in Rajasthan after Mount Abu. Situated on the junction of the Aravali mountain ranges and the Malwa Plateau its unique location prominently carries the geological characteristics of these both.

Area

The geographical area of Pratapgarh is 4,11,736 hectares, out of which forest area is 1,20,976 hectares (2009-'10).[3]

Climate, Soil, Topography and Minerals

The average annual rainfall is 856 mm. The soil is mainly highly fertile Black Cotton Soil made of magma of volcanos. The major rivers of the district are Jakham, Mahi, and Siwana or shiv. Other seasonal rivers are Som, Era, and Karmoi. Out of five, four sub divisions except Chhoti Sadri, are notified forest blocks, where no major industry or mining activity is allowed under law. However, in non-forest regions of Chhoti Sadri (and part of Pratapgarh and Dhariyawad), small scale mining activities are in operation extracting mainly red ochre, calcite, dolomite, quartz, feldspar and soapstone. Marble, Building-stone and Limestone are also available in small quantities.

Pratapgarh district comprises 5 sub-divisions, Arnod, Chhoti Sadri, Dhariawad, Peepal Khoont and Pratapgarh.

The number of revenue villages in Arnod Tehsil is 178, in Choti Saari Tehsil the number is 141, Dariyawad Tehsil is 249 whereas Peepal khoont Tehsil has 23 and in Pratapgarh Tehsil there are 330 revenue villages.

The major villages of Pratapgarh district include Dhamottar, Kulmipura, Sidhhpura, Rathanjana, Dhaula Pani, Devgarh, Salamgarh, Parsola, Ghantali, Arnod, Gandher, Asawsata, Kulthana, Avleshwar, Rajora, Kuni, Hathuniya, Pratappura, Mokhampura, Barotha, Basera, Basad, Varmandal, Bajranggarh, Suhagpura, Rampuriya, Chiklad, Gyaspur, Barawarda, Bardia, Thada, Panmodi, Jhansadi, Gautmeshwara, Dalot, Ghantali, Peepalkhoont, Rajpuriya, Bambori and Bagwas & Kherot, Badhi Shakthali.

Collectorate, Pratapgarh, photo: Hemant Shesh

The district is overseen by a District Collector.

The population of Pratapgarh in 1881 AD was 79,568; whereas it was 1,10,530 in 1951. According to the 2011 census Pratapgarh district (Rajasthan) has a population of 867,848,[5] roughly equal to the nation of Qatar[6] or the US state of Delaware.[7] This gives it a ranking of 472nd in India (out of a total of 640).[5] The district has a population density of 211 inhabitants per square kilometre (550/sq mi) .[5] Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 22.84%.[5] Pratapgarh has a sex ratio of 982 females for every 1000 males,[5] and a literacy rate of 56.3%.[5]

Pratapgarh District Overview An official Census 2011 detail of Pratapgarh, a district of Rajasthan has been released by Directorate of Census Operations in Rajasthan. Enumeration of key persons was also done by census officials in Pratapgarh District of Rajasthan.

Pratapgarh District Population 2011 In 2011, Pratapgarh had population of 867,848 of which male and female were 437,744 and 430,104 respectively. In 2001 census, Pratapgarh had a population of 706,807 of which males were 359,021 and remaining 347,786 were females. Pratapgarh District population constituted 1.27 percent of total Maharashtra population. In 2001 census, this figure for Pratapgarh District was at 1.25 percent of Maharashtra population.

Pratapgarh District Population Growth Rate There was change of 22.78 percent in the population compared to population as per 2001. In the previous census of India 2001, Pratapgarh District recorded increase of 27.09 percent to its population compared to 1991.

Pratapgarh District Density 2011 The initial provisional data released by census India 2011, shows that density of Pratapgarh district for 2011 is 195 people per km². In 2001, Pratapgarh district density was at 172 people per km². Pratapgarh district administers 4,449 square kilometers of areas.

Pratapgarh Sex Ratio 2011 With regards to Sex Ratio in Pratapgarh, it stood at 983 per 1000 male compared to 2001 census figure of 969. The average national sex ratio in India is 940 as per latest reports of Census 2011 Directorate. In 2011 census, child sex ratio is 933 girls per 1000 boys compared to figure of 953 girls per 1000 boys of 2001 census data.

Pratapgarh Child Population 2011 In census enumeration, data regarding child under 0-6 age were also collected for all districts including Pratapgarh. There were total 150,518 children under age of 0-6 against 142,692 of 2001 census. Of total 150,518 male and female were 77,856 and 72,662 respectively. Child Sex Ratio as per census 2011 was 933 compared to 953 of census 2001. In 2011, Children under 0-6 formed 17.34 percent of Pratapgarh District compared to 20.19 percent of 2001. There was net change of -2.85 percent in this compared to previous census of India.

At the time of the 2011 Census of India, 77.26% of the population in the district spoke Hindi, 20.18% Bhili and 1.75% Punjabi as their first language.[8]

Major crops of this region are wheat, barley, maize, groundnuts, soya beans, gram, mustard, and some pulses.

Opium is also a major crop of Pratapgarh. There are 6,781 license holder-farmers in the district cultivating opium. The production of opium in 2011 in Pratapgarh district was 15,85,373.410 kg precisely as per statistics of District Opium Officer, Pratapgarh, Narcotics Bureau, Government of India.

In 2009 the number of members of the Lok Sabha (the Parliament of India) was 3. Dr. Ms. Girija Vyas represented Pratapgarh in the 15th Lok Sabha. In 2014 general elections to the Lok Sabha, Chandra Prakash Joshi is the present MP of the Chittorgarh Constituency replacing Ms. Girija Vyas.

In the 13th Assembly Members of the Legislative Assembly were Nand Lal Meena (Bhartiya Janata Party) (Pratapgarh), Udailal Anjna (Chittaurgarh-Chhoti Sadree-Indian National Congress-) Nanalal Ninama (Banswada-Peepal Khoont-Indian National Congress), ), Nagraj Meena Dhariawad (ST)(Indian National Congress), Prakash Chaudhry (Badi Sadri-Pratapgarh-(Indian National Congress). Out of these five MLAs directly elected from the district are from Dhariyawad and Pratapgarh constituencies.

In 2013 general elections to the Assembly were held electing the following MLAs-

Pratapgarh- NANDLAL MEENA, BJP Dhariawad- GAUTAM LAL MEENA, BJP

The duly elected Zila Parishad (2010) headed by Badri Lal Patidar consists of 17 members, whereas the Pratapgarh Municipality (Chairman-Kamlesh Doshi) has 25 and Chhoti Sadri (Chairman-Shyam sundar Agarwal) has 20 elected members (2010).

There are 152 gram panchayats (GPs) in Pratapgarh with 1630 elected members in all. Pratapgarh Block has 42 GPs, with 21 members in Panchayat Samiti (PS), 28 GPs in Arnod Block with 15 members in PS, 24 GPs in Chhoti Sadri with 15 PS members, 31 GPs in Dhariyawad Block with 17 members in PS; and 27 GPs in Peepalkhoont Block with 15 members of the PS.

New elections for class 'A' Krishi Upaj Mandi of Pratapgarh have taken place( August 2011).

Pratapgarh is well connected with major cities in Rajasthan, Gujarat & Madhya Pradesh by road . Daily Bus Services connect Pratapgarh with Chittaurgarh (110 km ), Banswara (80 km), Udaipur (165 km), Dungarpur (95 km), Rajsamand (200 km), Jodhpur (435 km), Jaipur (421 km) Neemach (62 km ) Ratlam (85 km), Mandsaur (32 km) and Delhi (705 km) and many other cities in Rajasthan. Private Bus operators are also providing regular connectivity to Pratapgarh from nearby places.

The total length of roads in the district is 1879 km, with more than 7,500 registered light and heavy vehicles.

It is the only district without rail-connectivity in Rajasthan state. However, as a result of untiring efforts by ex-district collector Hemant Shesh, the Government of Rajasthan agreed to pursue vigorously with Ministry of Railways, Government of India to connect Pratapgarh with broad-gauge from Mandsaur (32 km), for which appropriate financial contribution to GOI may also be made by the state, if required. It is therefore, presumed that a new railway track ultimately shall be laid from Mandsaur to Pratapgarh, as publicly assured and announced by Shri Ashok Gahlot, the chief minister of Rajasthan on 18 May 2011 at Pratapgarh. Shri Dinesh Trivedi, Minister of Railways, introducing the Railway Budget 2012-2013 on 14 March 2012 has declared to undertake a survey of laying railway track between Mandsaur and Pratapgarh. This new line includes in the GOI list of 111 New Line Surveys to be taken up during 2012-13.[9]

An airstrip was approved by the Government of Rajasthan in April 2011 and being constructed in Varmandal village (13 km from Pratapgarh). Temporary helipads are in operation at four places in Pratapgarh, Dhariyawad, Peepalkhoont and Chhoti Sadri.

There is one 'District Hospital' at Pratapgarh (with 277 bed-capacity), 7 Community Health Centers and dispensaries, 53 Ayurvedic and homeopathy hospitals and dispensaries, 23 PHCs (Primary Health Centres), 2 allopathic dispensaries and 153 Sub-centers in Pratapgarh. Ambulance on call "Emergency 108–service" is available in Pratapgarh, Dhariyawad, Arnod, Peepalkhoont and Chhoti Sadri with nine such equipped vans. An inbuilt multi-facility Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) has also been added to Pratapgarh Civil Hospital to cater to the medical needs of far-off villages in June 2011.

Pratapgarh has 8 post offices at Pratapgarh, Katchahri-Pratapgarh, Arnod, Dalot, Rathanjana, Dhariyawad, Chhoti Sadri, Peepalkhoont, Dhamotar and Bambori (Branch offices).

There are 26 Commercial Banks, 12 Regional Rural Banks, 4 Cooperative sector Banks, and 2 Land Development Banks. The number of ATMs available in Pratapgarh district is 11, out of which 8 are in the town, while one each is at chhoti sadri, Arnod and Dhariyawad.

Postpaid Telecommunication services are being run only by BSNL (evdo) for 13,502 consumers (9,492 Rural and 4,010 Urban consumers in 2010–11,), but Airtel, Aircell, Vodafone, Idea, Tata Indicom and Reliance Communication companies are providing 'pre-paid' facilities to other mobile phone users. There are three private cable operators in the city: 'Pratap', 'Chetak' and 'Raj'.

The standard of education in Pratapgarh has risen radically since the late 1990s, however 20,986 children of 6–14 age group were to be linked with school education under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan(July 2011). The first (so called) English-medium middle school Burhani Baage Naunihal School was opened in 1986. Since then many private educational institutes have come up including St. Paul's (English medium) School in 1989. Educational services are available for primary (up to 5th class), middle (up to 8th class), secondary (up to 10th class), higher secondary (up to 12th class) and graduation (Bachelor's Degree). There are 1453 Government schools in the district: 929 Primary, 325 Middle, 154 Secondary and 45 Senior Secondary Schools, 3 colleges for general education, 4 colleges for vocational education and 6 it is for boys and girls. One private Engineering college named as "Regional Engineering college" located at Dhamottar village and a public sector Industrial training institute in the town are offering technical courses. There is also a Government polytechnic college offering technical diploma. With the initiative of the ex-district collector Hemant Shesh, a new graduate Girls' College in Public–private partnership mode (PPP mode) is underway in the town like a new Industrial training institute(ITI) in Peepal Khoont. The nearest University is Mohan Lal Sukhadia University at Udaipur, to which, most of the local colleges, including the Government College are affiliated.

Pratapgarh Literacy Rate 2011

Average literacy rate of Pratapgarh in 2011 were 55.97 compared to 48.25 of 2001. If things are looked out at gender wise, male and female literacy were 69.50 and 42.35 respectively. For 2001 census, same figures stood at 64.27 and 31.77 in Pratapgarh District. Total literate in Pratapgarh District were 401,515 of which male and female were 250,122 and 151,393 respectively. In 2001, Pratapgarh District had 272,149 in its district.

• Sita Mata Wildlife Sanctuary

Sita Mata Wildlife Sanctuary : Photo: Hemant Shesh

The National Informatics Centre NIC is a part of the Indian Ministry of Communications & Information Technology headquartered in New Delhi. It has offices in all 28 state capitals, 7 union-territory headquarters and at all district headquarters. To cater to the ICT needs at the grassroots level, the NIC has also opened offices at almost all district collectorates of the country.

• John Mc Meekin, Arms & Flags of the Indian Princely States, 1990.
• The court Fee and Revenue Stamps of the Princely States of India, Adolph Koeppel & Raymon D. Manners, New York 1983.
• 'Zila Pratapgarh Nirdeshika', Edited and Published by District Administration, Pratapgarh, 2008

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Pratapgarh district (Rajasthan).

• Official site