Pusad’s Untold History: Ancient Temples, Tribal Roots, and Colonial Crossroads

thenewsdirt
Nov 27
10 min read

Pusad, nestled in the Yavatmal district of Vidarbha, represents a peculiar convergence of ancient traditions and contested political histories. The town's name carries its geography within it, derived from the Pus River that flows through the region and has shaped settlement patterns for centuries.

Positioned at an elevation of 315 metres and surrounded by hills from nearly all sides, this geographic isolation has made Pusad a repository of historical narratives that are often overlooked in broader accounts of Indian history.

The second largest municipal council in Yavatmal district, Pusad, possesses a density of cultural and religious sites that few towns of comparable size can claim. Yet despite this accumulation of historical significance, Pusad remains marginally placed in scholarly and public consciousness, a condition that deserves examination.

The history of Pusad extends far deeper than the administrative structures imposed upon it during the colonial period. In ancient times, the town was known as Pushpawanti or Pushpad, names that reflect a florescence that inhabitants long associated with the settlement. The Pus river, the life source of the region, features in ancient texts, including the Vatsagulyam Mahatmya, indicating that people recognised the significance of this geography in recorded history.

Archaeological investigations carried out by the Archaeological Survey of India in 1874 documented ruins of several temples scattered across the Pusad area, alongside remnants of tanks and water management systems. These discoveries point to sustained habitation patterns extending back multiple centuries, with communities organising themselves around water sources and sacred spaces.

The medieval period witnessed significant religious and architectural development in the Pusad vicinity. Approximately 85 kilometres southwest of Pusad stands the Aundha Nagnath temple complex, a site of considerable pilgrimage importance.

Historical records and architectural analysis indicate that the temple structure visible today was built during the 13th century by the Seuna, also known as the Yadava dynasty, during their dominion over the Deccan region. The temple exemplifies hemadpanti architecture, a distinctive style developed during the Yadava period that utilises interlocking stones without mortar, creating structures of considerable durability.

According to local traditions recorded in texts, an earlier temple at this location was believed to have been constructed during the Mahabharata period by Yudhishthira, the eldest of the Pandavas, during their forced exile from Hastinapur.

The original structure was reportedly seven storeys tall before it sustained damage during Aurangzeb's campaigns in the region. Later reconstructions by Rani Ahilyabai Holkar, the Maratha queen, restored portions of the temple and preserved its sacred character.

The temple's significance extended to spiritual figures of considerable renown, as Sant Namdev, the medieval saint and poet, is recorded to have visited and sung devotional compositions here, reportedly experiencing miraculous events that became part of regional spiritual memory.

Within Pusad proper, temple architecture bearing the hemadpanti stamp continues to mark the urban landscape. The Dankeshwar temple, dedicated to Shiva, remains an active place of worship frequented by devotees who gather particularly during significant religious observances.

Approximately 15 kilometres from Pusad, in the village of Wanwarla, the Kondeshwar temple represents another architectural manifestation of ancient construction techniques and spiritual devotion. Built with black marble in Hemadpanti style and situated within dense forests, this temple draws pilgrims, particularly during the Mahashivratri festival, when devotees offer elaborate ritual observances.

The Karla Jatra represents another significant religious tradition observed in Pusad, with communities gathering to commemorate religious and seasonal occurrences through structured public celebration.

The Tribal Tapestry and Early Settlement

The tribal populations of Pusad constitute a crucial dimension of the region's history, one that remains inadequately documented in mainstream historical narratives.

The dominant tribal community comprises Banjaras, whose presence in the area reflects broader migration patterns spanning centuries.

Oral traditions preserved within Banjara communities of Pusad recount their migration from Rajasthan toward central and south India beginning in the 12th century, following the defeat and death of Prithviraj Chauhan in the Battle of Tarain in 1191 at the hands of Muhammad Ghouri.

This narrative aligns remarkably with the oral histories of Romani communities in Europe, who similarly record the 12th-century Islamic invasions of India as catalysts for their ancestral migrations westward. This convergence of oral traditions across vast geographic distances offers compelling evidence of how political upheaval and military conquest generated population movements that reshaped demographic patterns across continents.

Within the broader Banjara community, Pusad hosts several distinct subgroups, each with specific occupational and social designations.

The Dhalya Banjaras, traditionally drum beaters and musicians, represent a subgroup distinct from other Banjara clans in that they lack Rajput-derived surnames, instead bearing names suggestive of native Maharashtra populations who were incorporated into Banjara social structures as service providers.

Rare sonar Banjara clans such as Medran exist alongside the mainstream population, representing specialised economic functions within tribal society.

Beyond the Banjaras, Pusad supports populations of Nand Gawali, Komati caste members, Marwadi traders, and Maratha communities, creating a socially complex environment reflecting long centuries of migration, trade, and settlement. The religious composition similarly reflects this diversity, with Hindu, Jain, Buddhist, and Muslim populations coexisting within the settlement.

Medieval to Colonial Transitions

Between the 16th and 20th centuries, Pusad functioned as part of Berar Province, a region that repeatedly changed hands between competing powers.

From 1760 to 1795, the Maratha Bhonsla rajas of the Nagpur kingdom held the area under their authority, establishing administrative structures and collecting revenue.

The Marathas ceded these territories to the British following their military defeats at the battles of Assaye and Argaon in 1803. The post-1803 period brought relative stability but also intensified British colonial administrative control.

In 1804, the Nizam of Hyderabad signed a treaty with the East India Company, and through this arrangement, Berar remained nominally under Nizam authority whilst being administered by the British.

This arrangement persisted until 1902, when an agreement signed between the Nizam and the British resulted in permanent British control of Berar. On 17 September 1903, the British formally merged Berar with the Central Provinces to form the Central Provinces and Berar, a new administrative entity under British colonial rule.

The administrative reorganisations under British rule directly shaped Pusad's development. Initially, Pusad taluka had been located within Western Varhad during the early British period, but was transferred to Wani district in 1864. Between 1870 and 1905, Pusad functioned as part of the Washim district.

In 1905, when the Yavatmal district was formally established, Pusad was incorporated into this new administrative division.

Crucially, Pusad taluka itself was not established until 1876, indicating that the settlement required several decades of British colonial reorganisation before achieving taluk status within the administrative hierarchy.

The railway emerged as a transformative technology during this period. The Central Provinces Railway Company built a narrow-gauge line in 1903 to transport cotton from the cotton-rich interior regions of Vidarbha toward Murtiapur Junction on the broad-gauge line leading to Mumbai, from where cotton was shipped to Manchester in England.

Pusad received railway connectivity through this system, but the line from Darwha to Pusad was dismantled in 1920, isolating the town from this transport network.

Participation in Freedom Movements

The town of Pusad occupies a historically significant position within India's independence struggles, yet this role remains substantially underrepresented in mainstream historical accounts.

During the Civil Disobedience Movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi in 1930, Pusad became the site of the historic Forest Satyagraha, a form of non-violent resistance particularly suited to the forested terrain and resource-dependent economy of Vidarbha.

The movement commenced on 10 July 1930 under the leadership of figures including Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, a prominent nationalist who served as secretary of the Vidarbha Provincial Congress Committee and who would later establish the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh at Nagpur in 1925.

The Forest Satyagraha represented a region-specific response to British colonial policies, as Vidarbha's population relied substantially on forest produce and local commodities. The British imposition of new taxation on these forest resources generated widespread grievance, and the Satyagraha provided an organised outlet for this discontent.

The leadership council meeting in Akola resolved on 19 June 1930 to commence the movement from Gahuli in Yavatmal district on 10 July.

Substantial preparatory work preceded the actual action, with numerous rallies and public meetings organised across Pusad and surrounding areas to mobilise popular support.

Picket lines formed in front of liquor shops as part of the broader non-cooperation dimension of the movement.

When Bapuji Ane, a prominent Satyagrahi, was arrested on 12 July following the initial forest march, Shankarrao Sarnaik assumed leadership of the Pusad branch. Prominent participants included Brijalal Biyani, P.B. Gole, and Shivajirao Patel, whose names appear in historical records of the movement.

The British response proved characteristically stern. Activists faced arrest under provisions of the colonial penal code, with sentences of six months imprisonment imposed on figures such as Abdul Rafik, Laxman Narayane, and others who led the non-cooperation dimension of the struggle.

These arrests, rather than suppressing the movement, triggered wider participation and geographic expansion of the Satyagraha across Vidarbha.

Post-Independence Administrative Changes

Following India's independence on 15 August 1947 and the implementation of the Constitution of India on 26 January 1950, Pusad experienced yet another administrative transformation.

The town, as part of the Central Provinces and Berar region, was incorporated into the newly formed state of Madhya Pradesh.

This arrangement proved temporary. In 1956, political pressure from Marathi irredentists seeking to unite Marathi-speaking regions resulted in the transfer of Berar and Nagpur divisions from Madhya Pradesh to Bombay State.

The reorganisation of Bombay State in 1960 through the Bombay Reorganisation Act led to further administrative restructuring, with Bombay State divided into two separate states: Gujarat and Maharashtra. Pusad and Yavatmal districts were incorporated into Maharashtra as part of this 1960 reorganisation, establishing the territorial configuration that persists into the present.

The post-independence period saw deliberate efforts to develop Pusad as an educational centre. The town acquired a reputation in the surrounding region as an "Educational City" due to the establishment of multiple schools and colleges over an extended period.

Phulsing Naik Mahavidyalaya, established in 1961, represented an attempt to provide advanced educational opportunities to students from the rural hilly regions of Vidarbha.

The college was designed specifically to serve the educational aspirations of students from disadvantaged backgrounds, offering instruction in traditional streams of arts and commerce before later expanding to include science faculties and vocational training.

By the 21st century, Pusad had developed a substantial educational infrastructure with primary schools, secondary institutions, and higher education facilities dispersed throughout the municipality.

The 2011 census recorded that Pusad municipality proper contained a population of 73,046 persons, comprising 37,366 males and 35,680 females, yielding a sex ratio of 955 per thousand males.

The taluka of Pusad, encompassing both urban and extensive rural areas, recorded a significantly larger population of 341,186, distributed across 72,470 families. Urban areas within the taluka displayed a literacy rate of 91.6 percent, substantially exceeding the rural literacy rate of 76.4 percent. The municipality recorded a particularly high urban literacy rate of 91.3 percent overall, exceeding the district average of 82.8 percent. This educational development reflects deliberate investment in institutional infrastructure following independence.

The elevation of Pusad to the status of a taluka in 1876 and its subsequent administrative developments reflect broader patterns of British colonial reorganisation designed to establish hierarchical administrative structures facilitating revenue collection and governance.

The establishment of Pusad Sessions Court on 26 February 1990 marked a significant development in judicial infrastructure, providing the taluka with its own sessions-level court for adjudication of serious criminal matters.

This institutional development represented an effort to bring judicial services geographically closer to populations spread across rural Vidarbha.

The contemporary position of Pusad represents a complicated nexus of historical forces and administrative decisions spanning more than a millennium. The town contains within its geography and institutions traces of ancient habitation, medieval religious devotion, colonial extraction, nationalist struggle, and post-independence development.

The temples that dot the region, built with techniques refined across centuries, continue to serve devotional populations. The tribal communities whose ancestral memories preserve narratives of 12th-century migrations maintain distinct identities within contemporary urban structures. The river Pus, source of the town's name and sustenance, continues its flow through changed circumstances.

Yet Pusad remains substantially marginal to broader narratives of regional and national development, a condition that reflects patterns whereby peripheral locations accumulate history without securing corresponding recognition.

The demands for district status that have persisted for decades reflect aspirations for administrative recognition commensurate with the settlement's actual historical and demographic significance. The various reorganisations of the colonial period and post-independence transitions have repeatedly positioned Pusad within larger administrative units where its specific character remains obscured by aggregation with larger regional centres.

This historical geography deserves fuller documentation and sustained scholarly attention to understand how particular places accumulate meaning through overlapping temporal layers of human activity and institutional development.