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PLACES
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DEULGHAT
Deulghat (Chikhli T., 20° 31' N., 76° 10' 30" E., p. 6915): A village famous for ruined Hemadpanti temples is situated on the Penganga, 6 miles to the south-west of Buldhana, the district headquarters. It appears originally to have been a very small village though the place is of considerable antiquity. Its oldest name of Devli was probably derived from Hemadpanti temples, the ruins of which still remain. From the fact that such temples, for whatever object, have almost invariably been built in retired places, it is to be supposed that the present village is of a later date than these ruins, and possibly this village was first built during the troubled period of the Muhammedan invasions, which caused the people of the plains to disperse and seek shelter in secluded parts of the hilly country.
The weekly market is held at Deulghat on Friday.
In the time of the Emperor Aurangzeb the village was considerably augmented (about A.D. 1700). One of his chiefs, Nasar-ud-din, had been sent into the Deccan to quell disturbances. The seat of the paragana was Girda, on the hills, about 8 miles from Devli. Nasar-ud-din on his arrival found Girda quite unsuited for headquarters, and looking out for a better place, the extensive plains of Devli at once led to a decision in its favour; and he settled there with his whole army and retinue. The intolerant proselytizing spirit of the master was not absent in the deputy and Nasar-ud-din displayed his hatred of Hindu institutions by imme-diately pulling down the magnificent temples near his residence; the materials were utilised in constructing private buildings, and a small fort on the boundary of the village. The memory of the old boundary was preserved in the ceremony of killing a buffalo on the Dasara holiday every year. The place has been called Deulghat at the least from the end of the seventeenth century, as it is mentioned by Thevenot, who passed by it on his way from Golconda to Burhanpur. The pass up the hills just south of the town is evidently, of some antiquity, and was once much more frequented than it is now.
It was an able Tahsildar named Sakhanand who raised the rampart round the town to keep out marauders, who planted the numerous mango trees round the village, and who laid out most tasteful gardens. In the time of Sakhanand the population of the village was mostly of the Rajput caste, whom he enlisted as good soldiers. After the death of their patron the Rajputs were supplanted by Muhammedans, who had then great political preponderance.
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