March 10, 2012
Ranchi: History
The History of Ranchi could be classified into four parts: the early period; the
Mughal period; the British Raj and the Jharkhand Movement period. Ranchi is the
district headquarters of the Jharkhand
State now.
In the Early period Ranchi was a part
of tribal rule. The earliest mention of Ranchi is associated with the stories
related to Mahabharata. This part of the Chota Nagpur Plateau belonged to the
Munda and Oraon tribes. Later the Nagabansi rulers took over the region. Around
1585 Akbar invaded the region which was called as the region of Kokrahs then.
After the Mughal period the British
took over the administration of the Chota Nagpur plateau and the area
comprising Ranchi and Palamu came to be known as Lohardaga district. In 1840
Ranchi was made a separate district and was called as Lohardaga district. The area came under the South Western Frontier
Agency established by the British. A battalion of Ramgarh force was put up at
Ranchi which took part in the 1857 Sipoy Mutiny. During the British Period a
cry for separate identification was raised by the Munda tribes. Birsa Munda, a
leader of Munda tribe had given voice to the revolt. But, the movement was
suppressed by the local authorities. Lohardaga district was renamed as Ranchi
in 1899.
Ranchi witnessed the meeting of
Gandhiji with Edward Gait and the Indigo agitation campaign during
pre-independence movement. In the post independence period the area witnessed the
agitation for a separate state that culminated in forming a separate Jharkhand
State in 2000. Ranchi is now, part of Jharkhand State. The Government of India
has marked the area under the Red Corridor project to take care of the regions
that are vulnerable to Naxalite attacks.
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