Ludhiana the most populous metropolis of Punjab has a rich heritage that dates back to 15^th century. From a small village called Meer Hota in 1481, it grew in all spheres especially in textile industry that it came to be called as Manchester of India in 20^th century. From 100 AD to 400 AD, Yodhas were dominating this place until it came under the rule of Samudragupta. Many people including Rajputs, Turks, Afghans, Sidhus, Gills, Grewals and Sandhus started inhabiting this region in ninth century.

The people of the village turned to the Emperor Sikandar Lodi to save them from the plundering Baluchis. An army under the leadership of Yusuf Khan and Nihang Khan was sent to the place. Nihang Khan gave the name of Lodiana to the town after the king Lodi and later it came to be called as Ludhiana. His grandson Jalal Khan was in charge of Lodiana after him. When Jalal Khan died, his two sons, Aloo Khan and Kizhar Khan divided the town among them. When Babar put an end to the Lodi dynasty by defeating it, the state of Ludhiana became independent.

Rais of Raikot ruled the place in 18^th century. When Akbar the great died in 1705, the region came under complete control of Rais. Raja Ala Singh of Patiala held supremacy over the region when he had to face threats from Ahmed Shah Durrani. Ahmed Shah Durrani appointed Zain Khan as the chief of the place. But Rais did not like this and they killed him.

Roshan and Gujar were administering Ludhiana on behalf of the child king Rai Alias. They had to fight a battle against Bedi Sahib Singh and Roshan lost his life for the country. However with the help of British and Phulkians they were able to safeguard their rights. Guru Gobind Singh the tenth Sikh guru traveled through the villages of Ludhiana in 1806 and it was during that time that he wrote the famous book Zafarnama.

The three expeditions of Maharaja Ranjit Singh only added trouble to the region. He at last gifted 54 villages to the Raja Bhag Singh of Jind and thus Jind family started to rule over the place. When Shah Shuja was expelled from Afghanistan as a result of the First Afghan War, he sought refuge in Ludhiana. According to the Treaty of 1809, British troops were permanently positioned at the place.

Jind family ruled over the place until 1835 though British were the real rulers and they were puppets in the hands of British. In 1835, the last ruler Rajah Sangat Singh died without an heir and so according to the Doctrine of Lapse, Ludhiana and 80 villages surrounding it came under the direct control of British. There was a rebellion in Ludhiana too during the Revolt of 1857. The British deputy commissioner Ricketts with the help of the chiefs Nabha and Maler Kotla crushed the rebellion. In 1921 about 3000 freedom fighters from Ludhiana were arrested and put in jail.

After the independence of India, when Punjab province was divided between Pakistan and India, Ludhiana became the Indian Part of Punjab. It continued to be a part of Punjab when the new states of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh were carved out of it in 1966. Ludhiana photos and Ludhiana videos speak of its rich and varied heritage.

Article Posted By : Sumazla  On February 10, 2012lView All Articles

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Ludhiana , Ludhiana photos , Ludhiana videos