Kutch District
At 45,692 square kilometres (17,642 sq mi), is the largest
district in India. The administrative headquarters is in Bhuj which is
geographically in the center of district. Other main towns are Gandhidham, Rapar, Nakhatrana, Anjar, Mandvi, Madhapar, Mundra and
Bhachau. Kutch has 969 villages. Kala Dungar (Black Hill) is the highest point
in Kutch at 458 metres (1,503 ft).
The district is also famous for ecologically important Banni grasslands
with their seasonal marshy wetlands which form the outer belt of the Rann of
Kutch.
Kutch District is surrounded by the Gulf of Kutch and the Arabian Sea in
south and west, while northern and eastern parts are surrounded by the Great
and Little Rann (seasonal wetlands) of Kutch. When there were not many dams
built on its rivers, the Rann of Kutch remained wetlands for a large part of
the year. Even today, the region remains wet for a significant part of year.
The district had a population of 1,583,500 of which 30% were urban as of 2001.
Kutch Gurjar Kashtriya’s
Kutch Gurjar Kshatriya also known
as Mistri or Mestri are a minority Hindu community of
the Kutch district of Gujarat state
in India. They are a group of various Kshatriya clans
who are an artisan community related with Kadia works.
They were known for their artistic and master craftsman skills in constructing
forts, temples, palaces, ornate decorations, idols and other buildings and
statues that led to them being referred to as Mistri by
the Portuguese.This term was later used to refer to
them as a separate caste known as the Mistri a.k.a. Mistris
of Kutch.
History
Kshatriya clans who migrated
from Rajasthan in the early 7th century AD. Kadia Kshatriyas first
entered into Saurashtra at that time and founded thirty-six villages in the
area, while others moved further into Kutch. Around 1177–78 AD (VS 1234),
a major group migrated to Kutch from Saurashtra under the leadership of
Patel Ganga Maru. They settled in the village of Dhaneti. There are
several Parias of the community, located near village pond of
Dhaneti, standing as memorials of the war that was fought in 1178 AD. The
community members still go once every year to offer pooja and
their respects to their fore-fathers.
This group, later, made their distinct identity
not only by building historical forts, palaces, temples and architects in Kutch
but also all over British India primarily in the fields of railways and coal
mining.
The Kutch Gurjar Kshatriyas left Dhaneti and
went on to establish eighteen villages in Kutch which were granted to them
by the King: Anjar, Sinugra, Khambhra, Nagalpar, Khedoi, Madhapar, Hajapar, Kukma, Galpadar, Reha, Vidi, Jambudi, Devaliya, Lovaria, Nagor, Meghpar, Chandiya and Kumbharia.
Over the centuries, they have been known or
identified by names like Mistri, Mistry, Mistris of Kutch, Kutchi Contractor,
Kadia, Kadia Kshatriyas, Gurjar Kshatriyas, Kumar Gnati, Kutch Gurjar
Kshatiryas, Kutch Gurjar Kshatriya Samaj, KGK Samaj, Kgk community, etc.
Some of the Rajput clans belonging to their
group have been the rulers of Kutch, beginning with Ajepal Chauhan of the Chauhan dynasty. This was
followed by the Solanki, Kathis,
Vaghelas,
Chawdas and finally the Jadeja dynasty came
to rule Kutch until the independence of India.
Culture
They are a Hindu community. Some are followers
of Swaminarayan sect of Hinduism. They are vegetarian in diet
and avoid consumption of alcohol. The staple food is khichdi,
vegetables, pulses and butter-milk.
The community consists of clans: like Rathod, Chauhan,
Yadav, Chawda, Jethwa,
Padhiar, Yadav, Chudasama, Parmar, Taunk, Solanki, Sawaria,
Vegad, Varu, Maru, Bhalsod, etc., who enjoy same
status. However, most of people prefer to pre-fix Mistri to their name.
The community are
an endogamous community who practice the principle of clan exogamy. Dowry is
generally not asked for, neither practice of bride price is
there in community. Divorce is generally not encouraged, however, divorce
can be claimed in certain cases.
Betrothal ceremony generally precedes marriage,
which is held usually within one year of engagement and marriage is observed as
per Hindu rites by taking seven circumambulation of fire.
Widow
remarriage (ghargenu) is allowed, where the women is usually married outside
husband's family.
In Kutch
A Chabutro built
by Seth Khora Ramji Chawda in year 1900 standing at village Sinugra, shows the
unique architect and skill of Mistris of Kutch. Such huge Chabutra are rare to
be found in whole of India
The Kutch Gurjar Kshatriyas were master
craftsmen, architects and contractors and have played a major role in erection
and construction of the majority of forts, palaces and architecture of Kutch.
It was because of this quality that around the mid 16th century they came to be
known as Mistri in Kutch.
The word Mistri (or Mistry)
means "skilled artisan" in Gujarati. The
Portuguese were present in Gujarat from around 1500 AD and theBattle of Diu was
fought in 1509 where the Portuguese later built Diu Fort.
They also acknowledged the expertise of Kadia Kshatriyas in building fortress
and called them mestre. Even the Muslim rulers accepted the expertise of
the Kadias and were always sought after for building forts and fortress. The
community was also known to travel far and wide for building such forts,
palaces, etc. Their original roots were in Rajasthan and these group of Rajput
or Kshatriyas were the people who were patronized by kings for their ability of
design fort building with members of the community holding the post ofGaidher or Raj Mistry.
Not only the Kutch Gurjar Kshatriyas were expert
and specialized in stone cutting and construction of forts, palaces, temples
and buildings but they were also skilled architects and artisans who could do
articulate carvings of doors, windows, pillars, and statues of gods and
goddesses and ceilings. They have been the main engineers of almost all
historical monuments of the Princely State of Cutch. They have been
involved in construction of forts of Tera, Kanthkot, Bhujia Fort and
fortification of towns of Anjar, Mandvi, Lakhpat and Rapar.
The KGK community were major land holders
and jagirdars (or
garasdars) in Kutch from many centuries. They also farmed and maintained large
land-holdings with vadis and khetars in and around the nineteen
villages they settled. They were once a prosperous community and there was a
proverb in Kutch "Mafa-vara Gada to Mistri-na-j hoy" meaning
"Such decorated bullock-carts/camel-carts can only belong to Mistri
community"
The
temple of Ashapura Mata at Mata no Madh, the
Kuldevi of Jadeja rulers of Kingdom of Kutch has been built by Mistri
community. Similarly, the Temple at Dhrang over
the Samadhi of Mekan Dada and Akhara were
also erected by craftsman of the Mistri community.The renovation and
reconstruction of Bhadreshwar Jain Temples, Koteshwar Mahadev Temple,
and Narayan SarovarTemples, Mata-no-Madh; after
devastating earthquakes of 1819, 1844–45 and 1875 all have been done
by Kutch Gurjar Kshatriyas. TheChhatri of
Rao Lakhpatji in Bhuj built
in eighteenth century in 1761 AD and Chhatris of other royal family members
have been built by this community.
Maistry
Pitambar Padma was Gaidhar in 18th century. Later his son 'Gaidher' Jagmal Pitamber of
Anjar was Gaidher of the Kutch Raaj in early to middle of 19th
century during time of Deshalji II, when the forts of Bhuj, Anjar, Mandvi, Lakhpat and Mundra were
constructed under Jagmal Pitamber and other Mistri of the eighteen
villages. The community also built other historic forts such as Lakhpat and
Sindri Fort. The Lakhpat Gurudwara built by them in the 17th century resembles the
houses in their villages. The beautiful carvings of elephants, idols,
pillars and wooden ceilings in the Gurudwara housing are similar to those found
in the Thakor Mandir of their villages in Sinugra, Chandiya, Madhapar and
architecture of Gurudwara, similar to their houses in their villages.
The Aina Mahal of
Bhuj was built around 1750 during the reign of Jadeja King, Rao Lakhpatji
(1741–1761). The main architect of the palace was Ramsinh Malam who had spent
seventeen years in Holland and Belgium learning the techniques of making
clocks, enameling, tiles, architecture and glass works. Rao Lakhpatji appointed
him as main architect for Aaina Mahal. The Kadias of Kutch worked with him in
on Aaina Mahal quickly grasped the art of making tiles, tiling, enameling and stained glass works
and later used these techniques in building other palaces and majestic houses
of their own.
Next in line of succession to Jagmal Pitamber
was his son Ruda Jagmal Gajdhar and later his son Jairam Ruda Gajadhar Rathod,
who became Gaidher in the reign of Maharao Shree Pragmalji II of Kutch who built Prag Mahal in
Bhuj in 1865 to 1878 AD (V.S. 1922 to 1935). The main designer of Prag Mahal
was the British architect Colon Wilikins, who designed it in the Italian Gothic
style and the Kadias of Kutch worked with him in its construction. Started by
Rao Pragmalji, who died in 1875, the construction was completed by his
son Maharao Shree Khengarji Bawa in
1878. His Assistant Engineer was "Giadher" Devshi Gova of
Khedoi. Maharo Shree Pragmalji and later Maharao Shree Khengarji Bawa held special
affection for Gaidher Jairam Ruda and the Mistris of the nineteen villages were
hired on the recommendation of Gaidher. the Alfred High School, the Fergusson Museum,
library, embankment of Hamirsar Lake, AaraGhat in
Bhuj, were all constructed during the reign of Maharao Shree Pragmalji when
Gaidher Jairam Ruda of Anjar was the Gaidher for
the State. Also the Mistris were involved in construction of Sharad Baag
Palace of Bhuj built in 1867 commissioned during the reign of Rao Dashalji II
in 1859–60 and completed during the reign (1860–1875) of Rao Pragmalji II.
Mistri Kanji Gova Rathod of Khedoi was Gaidher in
the court of Gagubha, the Darbar of Kothara,
from 1855 to 1895 and the Jain Dersar (now
known as one of Abdasa-ni-Panchtirthi), the Derasarof
Kothara and other Palaces of Kothara Darbar were built under the supervision of
Mistri Kanji Gova of Khedoi with help of other Mistris of the nineteen villages
in 1858. The other Jain temples ofNaliya, Tera, Jakhau and Suthari also
have been built by artisans of Mistri community of Kutch, along with their
counterparts from Saurashtra.
The Brother of Kanji Gova, Mistri Ruda Gova
Rathod of Khedoi was also the Gaidher, who constructed in Nagalpar,
the beautifully carved Dargah of
Hussain Pir Shah also known as the Aga Khani Kubo of the Khoja community,
which was inaugurated by Hasan Ali Shah, the Aga Khan I him-self. Ruda Gova Rathod
of Khedoi started construction in 1860 and completed it in about five years.
The Mistris of Kutch were also involved in
construction and erection of Vijay Vilas Palace built on sea-beach
of Mandvi by Khengarji III of
Kutch, as summer palace for his son and yuvraj Vijayaraji.
The carved stone works of Jalis, Jharokas, Chhatris, Chhajas, murals and many other
artistic stone carvings, colored glass work on
windows and door panels all have been done by them, an art in which they were
expert. The architect and craftsman from other places like Jaipur, Rajasthan,
Bengal and Saurashtra, were also involved. The construction started in 1920
completed in 1929.
The Sanatan Thakor Mandir, the Juna
Vaas and many new infrastructures at Madhapar were built by Mistris of the
village. Renovation work and expansion of the Suralbhit – Jadeshwar
Mahadev Temple near Bhuj was done by Mistris Manji Jeram Rathod and Valji
Bhimji Rathod of Madhapar Village in 1914 (V.S. 1971)
financed by Maharao Sri
Khengarji Bawa of Kutch. In year 1943 (V.S.2000)
Manji Jairam Rathod of Madhapar again did the renovation of Suralbhit –
Jadeshwar Temple. The Step-wells popularly known as Sellor Vaav near
Dhorava and the adjacent Hanuman Temple were built by father-son Mistri Jeram
Madhavji & Manji Jeram Rathod of Madhapar in 1927 from his personal
finance. Mistri Valji Bhimji Rathod of Madhapar was among the few persons
who, apart from Royal family, owned a car by special permission of the King of Kutch.
Besides being in construction works Mistris were
also entrepreneurs and many of them owned fleets of ships used to import and
export dry fruits and spices as well as trading in Muscat,Mombasa, Mzizima, Zanzibar and
other countries. Notable among them were Seth Raja Narayan Chawda of Kumbharia,
Seth Khora Ramji Chawda of Sinugra, Kachrani Varu of Anjar and Jairam Teja
Chawda of Sinugra in 1880–1900.
Mistris were a major revenue earner for
the Princely State of Cutch. Besides being major
land holders jagirdars of Anjar, Bhuj and Mandvi Taluka of Kutch the
majority of them worked as railway contractors and public works contractors
in British India. They were paid in Indian Rupees which they bought
to Kutch and converted into Kutchi currency (Koris).
British Indian Rupees were paper currency and Kori were Silver Coins and on
conversion the Koris had to be loaded into many bullock-carts and brought to
the villages of the Mistris. The bullock carts were guarded by rifle and sword
bearing guards from Bhuj to their houses. Many Mistris also kept Miyana as their
guards. Many Miyana families were patronized by Mistirs and they were employed
to work as guards for the whole village and also to work and look after their
farmhouses and farms. KGK Community paid their tax on their huge income earned
from Railway and other Contracts job to the Princely State of Cutch, instead of to British India and
were therefore respected by the Jadeja kings of Kutch. Many families of the
Mistri community held friendly relationships with the Kings of Kutch.
Many of them also worked as private bankers,
notable among whom were Seth Khora Ramji Chawra of Sinugra, Jetha Lira Jethwa
of Sinugra, Seth Raja Narayan Chawda of Kumbharia,
Jairam Teja Chawra of Sinugra, Patel Mandan Ramji Vegad of Anjar etc. Some of
them were so rich that their children studied at the prestigious Rajkumar College, Rajkot and the Rajkumar College, Raipur between 1920 and
1950.
Docks,
dams and canals in British India
The KGK contributed to the building of docks,
dams, barrages and irrigation canals between 1850 and 1980, and they in
the eighteenth century had been among the communities who built the first ports of Bombay and Hornby Vellard.
Other docks were developed in Bombay during 1870–1895 (Prince's Docks built in
1885 and Victoria Docks built in 1891) in which many Mistris of Kutch and Kadia
Kshatriyas of Saurahstra worked.
In 1883 the Mandvi Port Docks and a bridge over
the Rukmavati River at Mandvi were
built by Vishram Karman Chawda of Chandiya.
It is the longest stone bridge of its kind in India.In 1924 the extension
of Calcutta Port Trust at Khiddirpore in Calcutta was
made by building a new dock named the "King George Dockyard" and was
done by Rai Bahadur Jagmal Raja Chauhan with Bhimjee Pancha Chauhan and Mavji
Punja Chauhan, all from Nagor.
This work was completed in 1927and the dock has now been renamed as
"Netaji Subhas Docks".
Jairam Karsan Chauhan of Nagor, stationed at Sambalpur,
was one of the major contractors who worked in construction of the Hirakud Dam,
construction of which started in 1948 and was completed in 1957.
In 1956, when construction of Tawa Dam began
on Tawa River near Hoshangabad,
one of the major Contractor for the work was Mavji Ruda Chawra of Madhapar, who
was son of Late Rai Sahib Ruda Laddha Chawra. The Dam was completed in 1974.
Narayan Bhawan Maru and Amarshi Pragji Maru
of Devaliya were the contractors
who built the Parola
Dam near Hingoli,
construction of which began in 1964 and was completed in 1971.
Mining Coal mining
In the regions of British India known as Bengal, Bihar and Orissa, the Kutch
Gurjar Kshatriyas pioneered Indian involvement in coal mining from 1894. They
broke the previous monopolies held by British and other Europeans, establishing
many collieries at locations such as Khas
Jharia, Jamadoba, Balihari, Tisra, Katrasgarh, Kailudih, Kusunda, Govindpur, Sijua, Sijhua, Loyabad, Dhansar,Bhuli, Bermo, Mugma, ChasnalaBokaro, Bugatdih, Putki, Chirkunda, Bhowrah, Sinidih, Kendwadih,
and Dumka. Seth
Khora Ramji Chawda of Sinugra was the first Indian to break the British
monopoly in the Jharia Coalfield Natwarlal Devram Jethwa says that The
East Indian Railway in 1894-95 extended its line from Barakar
to Dhanbad via Katras and Jharia. Messrs.
Khora Ramji in 1894 was working on railway lines contract of Jharia branch line
and with his brother Jetha Lira was also building Jharia Railway Station, when
he discovered coal in Jharia belt. The location of his three collieries
named Jeenagora,
Khas Jherria, Gareria is mentioned also in 1917 Gazetteers of Bengal, Assam,
Bihar and Orissa.
Other Indian communities followed the example of
the KGK in the Dhanbad-Jharia-Bokaro fields after the 1930s. These included
the Punjabis, Kutchis,
Marwaris, Gujaratis,
Bengalis and
Hindustanis. Encyclopaedia of Bengal, Bihar and
Orissa -1920 mentions:- "Out of 92 collieries belonging to Gujaratis in Jharia Coalfields
Area during 1920s - 50 belonged to Mistris of Kutch with
Seth Khora Ramji as Head of them all." Seth Khora Ramji of Sinugra was
also honored by King of Kutch by giving him a Paghdi.
Contribution in architects and development of cities of India
Apart from laying first Railway lines and
building docks of Bombay, the Mistris of Kutch and Kadias of
Saurashtra were also involved in construction of Victoria Terminus for Great Indian Peninsula Railway, Bombay Central and Colaba Terminus both
for Bombay, Baroda and Central India
Railway, Bombay High Court, Taj Hotel, J. J. School of Art, Town Hall, Wilson College, Apollo Bundar to
name a few in city of Bombay. Cutch
Castle of Bombay, the royal palace belonging to Rulers of Kutch was
erected by Rai Bahadur Jagmal Raja Chauhan of Nagor of KGK
Community for Maharao Shri Khengarji Bawa, who shared a personal friendship with
Jagmal Raja.
The huge Chabutro,
just outside Railway Station at Raigarh, a landmark of town, was built and
donated by Shyamji Gangji Savaria of Kumbharia in
1910.
In Raipur,
the Ramdev Market was built by Madhavji Kunvarjee Vadher of Sinugra
in 1930s. Also the Ramji Building housing many Hotels and Restaurants
at Jai Stambh Chowk in Raipur was built by Ramji Karaman Rathod
of Khambhra in
1940s and the Raja Bhawan at Fafadih Chowk, built like a royal palace
was built by Lira Raja Rathod of Khambhra in
1935.
Lira Raja Rathod of Khambhra erected
many buildings in Calcutta in decades of 1925 to 1945 namely Raja
Bhawan at Central Avenue, Raja Court and Raja
Terrace at Mission Row, Raja Mansionand Raja Chambers near
Strand Road and Godavari Bhawan at Bhawanipur and gained a name as a
Real Estate owner in city. Many of these buildings are now land-marks of the
city.
In Dhanbad the
present day Rathod Market and Chawda Market both standing
adjacent to each other in heart of the city were built in decade of 1930-40 by
Kanji Premji Rathod of Khambhra and Ghela Devraj Chawda of Devaliya,
respectively.
At Rameshwaram,
while working on Pamban Bridge the Mistris Lakhu Devji Vegad of
Anjar and Gangji Narayan of Khedoi also built Temple
of Neel-Mandir having seven domes, construction which, they started
in 1899 and completed in about five years by 1905.
In 1923 by request of Commissioner, Kadia Bhanji
Dhanji Rathod of Devaliya had done repair and rehabilitation of Dwarakadheesh temple with Ranchhod Ramji
Chauhan of Nagalpar,
as per tablet in Temple's records.
In 1932 upon completion of Bally Bridge,
Rai Bahadur Jagmal Raja Chauhan of Nagor was recommended
by the erstwhile Viceroy of India, The Earl of
Willingdon to Rana of Nepal,
Shree Juddha Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana, who needed Contractor of repute to do
renovation and rehabilitation of his Palaces and temples. He was given the
Contract for the same and Parbat Harji Chauhan, Karaman Devji Chauhan both
of Kukma and
Manji Shivjee of Madhapar were delegated by Jagmal Raja to go to Kathmandu, Nepal with a team of
artisans and masons to supervise and complete the work. It took about two and
half years for the job to be completed.
Downturn in fortunes
The fortunes of the KGK community were damaged in the post-independence
years by two tranches of legislation:
- The
various land reform acts passed between 1947 and 1958, such as
the The Saurashtra Land Reforms Act (1951) and The Bombay
Tenancy and Agricultural Lands (Vidarbha Region and Kutch Area) Act
(1958), caused the loss of large landholdings in Kutch and Saurashtra: the
law provided that the "land belongs to he whom tills it"
("Khede teni jamin"). Most of the male KGK were entrepreneurs
and so their agricultural lands were transferred out of their ownership by
the government.
- In
1971–73 coal mines all over India were nationalized by an emergency act
passed by Parliament. The Coking Coal Mines (Emergency Provisions)
Act (1971), followed by the Coking Coal Mines (Nationalisation) Act
(1972) and the Coal Mines (Nationalisation) Act (1973) came
into effect and the Coal mines assets of the community were all taken over
by the government.
The KGK community continues to struggle as their
land holdings and coal mines have gone. Further, the skills of their
fore-fathers in building and erecting railway lines and bridges is also gone as
young generations are neither interested nor are there opportunities as railway
contracts are now given to big engineering conglomerates. At present they are
mainly involved in small time business and services.
The majority of the once-prosperous KGK
community living in Kutch and Saurashtra today are devoid of agricultural land
and have been included in the list of Other Backward Classes for
Gujarat. Those who migrated from the state cannot take advantage of this reservation.
Social organization and activities in present times
KGK associations exist today in various Indian
states, and there are meetings and events organised at local, state and
national level. These include match-making events,
called Sagpan-Sanmmelan, and the traditional dispute resolution by
elected community elders continues with the Panch. There is an annual
gathering in Kutch, their native state and their national President is elected
every three years by way of voting.
They also have a woman's wing called Mahila
Mandal at state and national level. Every three years a woman president is
also elected by ladies of the community. The woman's wing works independently
and in co-operation with the president of the community.
Similarly, they also have a youth wing at state
and national organizational levels called All India Kutch Gurjar Kshatriya
Samaj Yuva Mahamandal. The young generation helps in organizing major
national and state level events and the youths also organize a sports event
every three years called Kutchyad, taking cue and inspiration from
the Asiad of 1982 Asian Games.
The event also coincides with Dance, Music and match-making event. Every
year a mass-marriage event is also held called Samuh-Lagna where the
marriages of financially weak families or couples are held with blessings and
financial co-operation of the whole community. The first such event by the
community was held on 10 May 1966, with six marriages at Dhanbad and
later on a larger scale in 1972 at Raipur. It continues
to be held every year since then at different locations in India.
Religious customs and beliefs in present days
Community members are still carrying forward the
religious customs and beliefs embedded in them since many centuries ago and
continue to follow Hindu religious customs. They are still followers of
different sects of Hinduism.
The newly wed couple come at least once to bow
to their Kuldevi at
the temples which are located in the eighteen villages in Kutch originally
founded by their ancestors. The newly weds also go and offer their respects at
the Parias of
their Satis and Shurapuras located
in Kutch.
There is a custom the KGK follow to offer
special prayers and pooja called Kar to their
Kuldevis whenever a boy is born in the family.
Re-organization of KGK in post-independence India
Around 1942 onwards the historic
"Naat" and "Patel" system came to an end due to some
internal problems as well as national level turbulence including World War-II,
the Indian Independence movement, the partition of India, merger of the
princely states and formation of the Union of India. The community, most of
which were involved in railway "Thekedari" and lay scattered across
the various states of India could not re-organize themselves and for almost
three decades the Kutch Gurjar Kshatriyas lost their unity and leadership. The
Patel system and Moti-Naat started to collapse around 1945 and was
ended by 1950.
In Raipur a
community organization called Kshatriya Seva Sangh was established in
1935 and later a greater organization called Shree Kutch Gurjar Kshatriya
Ganti Samaj was established in 1948 and in 1954 the community center was
built in Raipur.
Although the Moti-Naat went into a
state of limbo around 1950 the Dhanbad and
Raipur organizations were considered an extended part
of Moti-Naat and were given the status of Gaam or village
in addition to the 18 villages of Kutch. This status was given to them in view
of the large population of KGK members living in both cities. Until 1960 both
Dhanbad and Raipur units continued to pay their community taxes and
subscription to the Moti-Naat in Kutch.
Later on a Yuvak Mahasabha, or Young Man's
Association, of the community was formed in 1954 in Dhanbad.
This Yuvak Mahasabha worked until 1968, with blessings from elders of
the community, to bring a form a unity in Samaj but
it could not replace Panch, Naat and the Patel system
of historic times and the need for a greater organization was always needed. A
community center was built by members of community during 1959–60 in Dhanbad at
which later a Samuh-Lagna event was also organized by them in 1968,
which can be said to be first such mass-marriage event before much publicized
1972 event held at Raipur.
Finally in 1971 the community re-organized
themselves and first some leaders with good wishes of elders of community, met
at Jaipur and
a resolution was passed to contact all families of the community spread
throughout India and unite to elect a new leader by the next year.
Accordingly in 1972 the community again got
together at Raipur and
at a huge gathering at their Samaj Bhawan on
3 June 1972, they unanimously elected their first
President – Mahasabha Pramukh of post-independence India. The
pre-independence Moti Naat was re-christened as Mahasabha and Patel was
rechristened as Pramukh and the Panch system was
re-established. The new constitution of the community, charitable trusts and
state and national level units were formed. A detailed a census with a list of
community members was carried out. The community name Shree Kutch
Gurjar Kshatriya Mahasabha was registered under The Societies Registration
Act with its registered office at Calcutta in
1972.
In the 2001 Gujarat earthquake, which had its
epicenter in Kutch, the following villages of Mistris were largely affected and
destroyed – Anjar, Sinugra, Khambhra, Devaliya, Chandiya, Nagalpar,
Lovaria, etc. Many heritage houses and havelis belonging
to rich Mistri families, built almost 100 years ago, with ornate facades,
intricate door carvings and metal grill windows and verandas depicting the life
of Queen Victoria were all razed to the ground. There were also huge wall and
ceiling paintings depicting scenes from Mahabharata and Ramayana which are no
more. The majestic interiors, doors and window panels of some of the houses
were similar in design, which can still be seen in Prag Mahal.
Along with other communities of Kutch, the KGK
suffered significant casualties as a result of the earthquake of 26 January
2001. In many cases whole families of the KGK community were buried alive. The
houses built by their fore-fathers were also lost, all being razed to the
ground.
