Bihar, Unnao

Bihar Bihār
Village
Map showing Bihar (#850) in Sumerpur CD block
26°17′10″N 80°49′47″E / 26.285985°N 80.829623°E / 26.285985; 80.829623[1]
Country India	India
State	Uttar Pradesh
District	Unnao
Area [2]
• Total	6.226 km2 (2.404 sq mi)
Population  (2011)[2]
• Total	5,952
• Density	960/km2 (2,500/sq mi)
Languages
• Official	Hindi
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
Vehicle registration	UP-35

Bihar is a village in Sumerpur block of Unnao district, Uttar Pradesh, India.^[2] Located on the main Unnao-Raebareli road, just to the east of the Loni river and near its confluence with the Kharahi, Bihar was briefly the headquarters of a tehsil in Raebareli district from 1860 until 1862, when it was moved into Unnao district.^[3] As of 2011, the population of Bihar is 5,952, in 1,088 households, and it has 5 primary schools and no healthcare facilities.^[2]

History

According to tradition, Bihar was founded by Birbhan, ancestor of the Bais taluqdars of Patan-Bihar, and named "Birhar" after himself.^[3] More realistically, the name was probably derived from a vihara or Buddhist monastery.^[3] Bihar was made the seat of a pargana under the Mughal emperor Akbar.^[3] At some point during the 1700s, it was the site of a battle between the Raos of Daundia Khera, the Raja of Maurawan, and the chief of Shankarpur, all from the Bais clan.^[3] It was chosen as the seat of a tehsil by the British in 1860, but when it was moved into Unnao district two years later the tehsil was dissolved and Bihar was put under Purwa tehsil instead.^[3]

At the turn of the 20th century, Bihar was described as a small town with several historical monuments, surrounded by a rich agricultural countryside.^[3] There had previously been two marketplaces, Radhaganj and Durgaganj, but Durgaganj had not held a market since the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and had fallen into disrepair.^[3] Radhaganj, which had been built by the taluqdar Shiudin Singh in 1846 and named after the goddess Radha, held markets on Wednesdays and Saturdays.^[3] Shiudin Singh had also built a temple to Radha in Bihar.^[3] The fair held in honour of Biddhia Dhar had an average attendance of about 14,000 people then.^[3] A masonry tank was built in 1862 by Ikram-ullah, who was a tehsildar of Bihar, and financed in part by a subscription collected from the taluqdars.^[3] Near the old tehsil buildings, there was also a mud-built sarai, and to the south of the Rae Bareli road were the ruins of an old fort.^[3] There was a police station and a middle vernacular school with 106 students.^[3] The population of Bihar in 1901 was 1,853, including a Muslim minority of 147.^[3]

The 1961 census recorded Bihar as comprising 9 hamlets, with a total population of 2,278 (1,027 male and 1,251 female), in 535 households and 450 physical houses.^[4] The area of the village was given as 1,557 acres, and it had a post office at the time.^[4] Bihar then had the following small industrial establishments: 2 places producing edible fats/oils, 4 miscellaneous food processing establishments, 2 garment manufacturers, 1 place making shoes, 4 makers of sundry hardwares, 1 bicycle repair shop, and 1 maker of jewellery or precious metal objects.^[4]

Culture

Bihar holds a fair in honour of Biddia Dhar, a Hindu faqir who died in the village of Bakra Khurd.^[3] Arjun Singh, the taluqdar of Patan-Bihar, had been a follower of his, and he had his kundi (i.e. mortar and pestle buried at Bihar and had a platform raised on the site in his honour.^[3] The fair takes place during the month of Pus (i.e. December and January), and vendors bring various items including cloth, brass, copper, iron utensils, and gur.^[3]

References