PLACES

ACHALPUR TAHSIL

Physical Features.

Acalpur Tahsil, formerly the headquarters tahsil of the Achalpur district but since August 1905 a tahsil of the Amravati district lying between 21°9' and 21°24' N. and 77°23' and 77°53' E. with an area of 1269.10 km." (490 sq. miles), contains 329 villages and towns. It lies in the Payanghat at the foot of the Satpuda hills and is bounded on the north by the Melghat tahsil of Amravati district and the Betul district of the Madhya Prades; on the west by the Daryapur tahsil, the Amravati and Morsi tahsils forming the boundary on the south and east. The tahsil is compact in shape, and is the smallest of all the tahsils in point of size. The face of the country is perfectly level, although here and there deeply indented by the rivers and freshets that find their way down from the Satpuda hills. Here are the best camping grounds in the district. The soils are very fertile, quite equal to those in Akot and Daryapur. In spite of the great demand for wood fuel in recent years, many parts of the tahsil arc still well wooded. There is scarcely a village which cannot boast of its grove of trees, and the general prosperity and high standard of cultivation prevailing afford a satisfaction to the eye which verges on monotony. Water in many places lies close to the surface and maintains a certain amount of moisture in the soil, by which the country has been enabled to weather the severe famines of the last decade with comparative success. With the advent of electricity, pumps have been installed on wells and a considerable area brought under well irrigation. Pakalnala project under way, when completed would irrigate 151.875 hectares (375 acres) of land of this tahsil. The climate in the greater part of the tahsil is healthy throughout the year, though the heat is very trying in April and May; the villages in the north of the tahsil lying under the hills are feverish during the last three months of the year.

The principal rivers which drain the tahsil are the candrabhaga and the Purna. The banks of both are too high to make irrigation practicable unless very large works are undertaken for which again the supply of water would not suffice. Such as they are, however, they are a great boon to the country as the water is good and lasts throughout the hot season. The Sarpan, a tributary of the Candrabhaga, flows past the city of Acalpur and formerly supplied the city with water by an aqueduct. There is an old and ruined drain of similar construction known as the Satbudki, or seven wells, near the village of Datura, which was formerly used for the irrigation of garden lands in the neighbourhood. Legend connects its origin with the supply of water to the Hauz Katora.

Population.

The population of the tahsil as per the 1961 Census is 209,189 as against 178,312 in 1951 which shows a rapid increase over the last ten years. In the original settlement report it was pointed out that the population was more than the land could fairly bear, and emigration to less cultivated tracts was predicted. At that time the Settlement Officer's report did not receive any attention and there was actually no need of taking any measures as Acalpur was capable of supporting that much population. But the increase in population over the past decade is so rapid that the productive capacities of Acalpur tahsil have fallen short and hence even food stuffs have largely to be brought from outside. The tahsil contains the towns of Acalpur, Paratvada and Candur Bazar, and 326 villages of which 75 are uninhabited according to village lists.

Agriculture.

The culture of the ground is carried on somewhat more carefully here than in Amravati, in consequence perhaps of the greater value of land. The principal crops grown are jovar, colton and tur. On a large extent of the land bordering on the hilly country to the north, cotton and jovar are the only crops grown, the soil being too shallow to retain sufficient moisture for rabi cultivation. The demand on account of land revenue including cess in 1961-62 was Rs. 7,25,534, while the amount actually collected according to treasury figures during the same year was Rs. 4,33,030.

Miscellaneous

For purposes of land records the tahsil has been divided into four Revenue Inspectors' circles with headquarters at Acalpur, Paratvada, Candur Bazar and Sirasganv Kasba. It constitutes with Melghat a single Police Circle under one Inspector and contains six station houses, each under a Sub-Inspector at Acalpur Candur Bazar, Pathrot, Sirasganv Kasba, Paratvada and Ase-ganv.

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