chapter-2 rise of arya samaj and educational...

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35 CHAPTER-2 RISE OF ARYA SAMAJ AND EDUCATIONAL MOVEMENT IN HARYANA India in the 19 th century looked like a shadow of a once vibrant civilization. Politically, it was a period of servility, intellectually, a period of blind imitation of the west and spiritually, a time of confusion and despair. The country struggled under a crushing load of unreason, in abject slavery to circumstances. Indian society was steeped in superstitious, obsolescent rituals and prejudices. It had, more or less, become fossilized with a crumbling heritage and with no rock to stand upon 1 Swami Dayanand founded the Hindu reform organization called Arya Samaj on April 14,1875 2 in Mumbai, and also created its 10 principles, which are quite distinct from Hinduism, yet based on the Vedas. These principles aimed at advancing the individual and society through physical, spiritual and social betterment of the human race. 3 His aim was not to found a new religion, but to re-establish the teachings of the ancient Vedas. 4 He envisaged a society which would provide equal opportunities to all, irrespective of their caste, creed or sect, and give due regard to womenfolk who were being ill treated in the post Vedic period. 5 At the time of the establishment of Arya Samaj Swami 1. Bashkar Mashik Patrika, 1907, pp. 9-11. Aryamitra, 1916, pp. 6-10, and Aryodya 1963, p. 12 2. Gurukula Patrika, 1937 Ank 6 April, p. 4 3. Prahalad, 1983, NO. 3, pp. 45-46 fo|k foykleulks /k` fr'khyf'k{kk% lR;oz rk jfgrekueykigkjk% la lkj nq %[knys u lq Hkw f"krk ;s /kU;k ujk fofgr deZ ijks idkjk% AA 4. Ibid. 5. Arya Heritage – Monthly Journal, Nov. – 1985.

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35

CHAPTER-2

RISE OF ARYA SAMAJ AND EDUCATIONAL

MOVEMENT IN HARYANA

India in the 19t h

century looked like a shadow of a once

vibrant civilization. Politically, it was a period of servility,

intellectually, a period of blind imitation of the west and

spiritually, a time of confusion and despair. The country

struggled under a crushing load of unreason, in abject slavery to

circumstances. Indian society was steeped in superstit ious,

obsolescent rituals and prejudices. It had, more or less, become

fossilized with a crumbling heritage and with no rock to stand

upon1

Swami Dayanand founded the Hindu reform organization

called Arya Samaj on April 14,18752 in Mumbai, and also created

its 10 principles, which are quite distinct from Hinduism, yet

based on the Vedas. These principles aimed at advancing the

individual and society through physical, spiritual and social

betterment of the human race.3 His aim was not to found a new

religion, but to re-establish the teachings of the ancient Vedas.4

He envisaged a society which would provide equal opportunities

to all, irrespective of their caste, creed or sect, and give due

regard to womenfolk who were being ill treated in the post Vedic

period.5 At the time of the establishment of Arya Samaj Swami

1. Bashkar Mashik Patrika, 1907, pp. 9-11. Aryamitra, 1916, pp. 6-10, and Aryodya 1963, p. 12

2. Gurukula Patrika, 1937 Ank 6 April, p. 4

3. Prahalad, 1983, NO. 3, pp. 45-46 fo|k foykleulks /k̀fr'khyf'k{kk% lR;ozrk jfgrekueykigkjk% lalkj nq%[knysu lqHkwf"krk ;s /kU;k ujk fofgr deZ ijksidkjk% AA

4. Ibid.

5. Arya Heritage – Monthly Journal, Nov. – 1985.

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Dayanand Sarswati said:

“ftanxh dks eSa rik;s ns jgk gw¡]

Lo.kZ dks dqUnu cuk;s ns jgk gw¡A

vkaf/k;ksa dks jks'kuh feyrh jgsxh]

vkt og nhid tyk;s ns jgk gw¡AA”6

For Dayanand, education did not mean the study of letters

alone. He took a broader and more comprehensive view of

education. It means knowledge that builds character, develops

various sides of human personality, sharpens intellect and gives

critical, cool headed and calm decision taking power, patience

and will power.7 He wanted the students to practice five Yamas :

namely – Ashima (Non-violence), Satya (truth), Brahamacharya

(self-control), Asteya (No greed for wealth). Also, the student

practiced five niyam as:- namely – shucha (cleanliness of body,

purity of mind and soul), Tapa (penance), Swadhyaya (self-

study), Santosha (contentment and ishwara pranidhana, love and

devotion for God). Also the student should not take to wine, meat

eating, scents or perfumes, flowers, company of women and

killing of living beings.8

Swami Dayanand wanted students to achieve proficiency in

diverse fields of knowledge including patriotism, love and

affection for the society at large. He started many schools in the

country, adopting the scheme of learning discussed above but

could not, however, achieve much in this direction during his life

time.9 After the death of Swami Dayanand in 1883 people

believing in the principles founded by him, made meaningful

6. Propkari – Dec. - Jan. 1978, p. 24

7. Aryamitra, 1916, pp. 10-13, Prahalad Patrika 1983 No.3, pp. 14-15. Bhaskar, 1907, p. 59,

Bhaskar, 1908, p. 74-76.

8. Ibid.

9. Gurukula Patrika, Dec. 1974-75, pp. 441-445.

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efforts in the field of education having long lasting impact

towards social change.10

There was wider spread ill iteracy and ignorance causing

many social evils. Swami Dayanand emphatically tried to bring

solutions to these problems by introducing educational reforms

which were both formal and informal in nature. These reforms

provided an alternative to the Christian missionary education

prevalent at that t ime. It was a blend of Vedic and modern system

of learning.11

The initial model of education proposed by Swami

Dayanand was followed by Anglo Vedic and Gurukula systems to

face contemporary challenges. A large chain of educational

institutions managed by Arya Samaj came into being in the

country which brought about many changes at the social

economic and political fronts.12

FACTOR FOR THE SPREAD OF ARYA SAMAJ IN HARYANA

Since the beginning of the 19t h

century there have been

many socio-religious reform movements in India but Haryana

remained almost unaffected by them. However, Arya Samaj took

the region into its fold. I t made untiring efforts to raise the

socio-religious status of agricultural communities, to spread

education, remove untouchability and to raise the social status of

women. It also launched a crusade against social evils like child

marriage and female infanticide. With the beginning of the 20t h

century Arya Samaj emerged as a vital force in Haryana for

agricultural development. The movement played a very important

role in the history of the Haryana region. It had a great impact on

the life and thinking of the people, particularly of the Hindus in

10. Gurukula Patrika 1982, pp .15-17.

11. Propkari 1973, pp. 36-40.

12. Arya Sansar, 1972 (Varshik Visheshank, Dec. 1970) pp. 14-16.

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19t h

and 20th

centuries. I t was a Revivalist Movement in form and

reformist in content.

Ambala was the first place of Haryana visited by Swami

Dayanand on 17th

July 1878. He halted there for sometimes while

going from Punjab to Roorkee in U.P. Here he condemned the

social and religious weaknesses of the orthodox Hinduism. In

1880 Swami Dayanand visited Rewari at the request of Rao

Yudhister, the Ahir leader and the descendent of Rao Tula Ram.

At the appeal of Swami Dayanand a Goshala was established at

Rewari. Perhaps, it was the first Goshala in Northern India.13

Among the earlier followers in the region were Lala Lajpat

Rai, Pandit Lakhpal Rai, Lala Churamani, Hiralal and Chandu

Lal, who set up a branch of Arya Samaj in Hissar in 1889, and

built a temple there in 1893.14

During 1880s, they intensified

their activities among the Jats especially in Hissar, where Lala

Lajpat Rai practiced law. After sometime, the message of Arya

Samaj spread to other districts -Ambala, Karnal and Gurgaon.15

The main reasons for propagation of Arya Samaj in Haryana :-

(i) The first reason was the origin of the Vedas in Haryana.

The Rishis conduced Vedic researches on the bank of the

the river Saraswati. Though with the passage of time the

process of research might have been lost, its influence was

ever felt. That is why, the faith of the inhabitants of

Haryana has remained intact in the Vedas. Hence they were

tempted to look back to the Vedas, and naturally felt drawn

13

Ranjit Singh, Haryana Ke Arya Samaj ka Itihas, Acharya Printing Press, Rohtak, pp. 6-10.

14. Proceeding, Role of Arya Samaj in Education on March 28-29, 2014, Dayanand Postgraduate

College Hissar, p. 89

15. K.C.Yadav, Modern Haryana : History and Culture 1803-1966, Manohar Publication, New

Delhi, pp. 132-133.

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towards Arya Samaj and they continue to be a part of this

revolution of Arya Samaj.16

(ii) Haryana is an agricultural state, at that time all activities

related to agriculture depended upon bullocks. Bullocks are

the offspring of cows. The status of a person was evaluated

on the basis of the number of bullocks his household had.

The families got nourished by the milk of cows. The cow

and the bullock were the backbone of the family and

agricultural industry respectively. When Dayanand

Saraswati raised the issue of cow protection and showed the

importance of cow in his book ‘Gau Karunanidhi ,17

this

principle was appreciated very much by the people of

Haryana. Due to the spread of Islam, the cow had been

losing its importance among the people of Haryana too.

Some followers of traditional Hinduism i.e. Sanatans, too,

were against Maharishi Dayanand’s cow protection

principle but the people of Haryana by and large had been

in favour of cow-protection.18

(iii) In Haryana large cities were yet to came into being. The

whole state had abundance of villages. In the village people

used to live amicably through the Panchayat system

wherein discussions followed before ideas being accepted

or rejected. The economic condition of the village depended

on the cow. People were vegetarians. Maharishi’s

opposition to non vegetarianism was favoured by the

16. Dharamdev Vidarthi, Arya Samaj Ka Itihas Vishesh Sandarbh Haryana, Panchkula, 2010, p. 60

17. Ibid.

18. Ibid

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people. In this context Maharishi said as follows – “with

the non-vegetarian and wine-taking foreign officers feeding

themselves on beef, and the flesh of other animals the

miseries of Aryans steadily increased. Agriculturalists of

Haryana considered it a sin to kill creatures such as cows,

bullocks, deer, peacocks etc.” This was very close to the

hearts of people of Haryana.19

(iv) Casteism was not very rigid in Haryana. Brahmins too were

not very rigid. Here Brahmins along with other castes used

to cultivate land. Due to agricultural work they came in

contact with the people of lower castes because the work

pertaining to agricultural labour was done by lower caste

people. Owing to it, there prevailed an amicable

relationship between all the castes and the Brahmins were

not very dogmatic vis-à-vis these castes.20

The second main

caste was that of Jat. Due to the lack of Pauranic

knowledge, Jats and Brahmins did not indulge in such

serious issues. So when the Arya Samaj treated Jats as

Brahmins and gave them the right to wear the sacred thread

alongwith other castes, it was no less than a religious

ceremony. Dayanand while describing the story of Jats in

the 11t h

Samullas of his book ‘Satyarth Prakash’

honorifically addressed them as Jats. As a result, a good

number of them became followers of Arya Samaj.21

(v) During the Mughal period inspite of compulsions they did

not agree to convert. Their belief in the Vedic religion was

steadfast.

19. Aryodya – 1960 (Sunday July -3) pp. 5-7

20. Ibid .

21. Ibid, 12 Sept. 1960, p. 6

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(vi) The people of Haryana understood simple and logical

matters. They liked the things stated by Dayanand which

were based on logic. Hence on conceptual level too, they

were very close to Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati.22

(vii) At that time in many parts of Punjab the propagation of

Christianity was as its peak. Christian missionaries used to

propagate Christianity in cities. Due to it the Vedic Hindu

followers always remained suspicious. Earlier, the Mughals

converted Hindus into Islam and now the Britishers were

trying to make them Christians. Maharishi Dayanand

proved to be a great reformer. It was natural that they

regarded Arya Samaj as a powerful protecting institution.

People of the region thus, welcomed its ideology and

agreed to become Arya Smajists.23

(viii) During the period of his stay at Rewari, Dayananda came in

contact with Yadavs. Seeing that their Chief, Rao

Yudhisther Singh had be come Arya Samajist, Yadavs

agreed to become the members of Arya Samaj. Preachings

of Mahrishi Dayanand regarding Shri Krishna as Yogiraj

and Mahapurush, influenced them to a great extent, they

became Arya Samajists in a huge number.24

(ix) On the eve of Delhi Darbar, Swami Dayanand was present

in Delhi. At that time he met Sardar Vikram Singh

Ahulwalia, who invited him to the Punjab. On his insistence

Swami Ji stayed in Punjab. There were many relatives of

the family residing in Haryana, and as a result the

Ahulwalias of Haryana became Arya Samajists who

22. Ibid.

23. S.C.Sharma, Punjab The Crucial Decade, Nirmal Publication, New Delhi, 1987, pp. 129-136.

24. Dharm Dev Vidyarthi, op.cit., pp. 60-62.

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established Arya Samaj in the area of Ambala, Kaithal,

Yamunanagar, Fatehpur, Pundri etc. Among them Sh.

Mansha Ram Ahulwalia of Fatehpur was the main person

who left his police service and established Arya Samaj. His

colleague master Mukhandi lal, rendered great service to

Arya Samaj.25

(x) The biggest work of the propagation of Arya Samaj was

done by many dedicated Arya Samaj workers and leaders.

The name of Pandit Basti Ram is foremost, who conversed

with Maharishi Dayanand Saraswati. He met Dayanand in

Rewari. He was a great singer as well as a logician. He

sang a song in praise of Maharishi Dayanand.26

His book of

religious songs ‘Pakhandkhandi’ and ‘Agmarshan

Prarthana’ gained great popularity. The preachers of Arya

Samaj still sing his religious songs.

Table given below shows the spread of Arya Samaj in

Haryana in 19t h

and 20t h

centuries:-

In 1880s, a branch of the Arya Samaj was established in

Rohtak by Rai Sahib, Sansar Chand, who succeeded in spreading

Arya Samaj in Sanghi, Maham Jhajjar, Mahra and Kiloi villages

in Rohtak.27

Arya Samaj was established in Jhajjar in 188528

and

in 1894 at Thanesar29

In 1898, Arya Samaj was established at

Jind. This was the result of the efforts of an enthusiastic worker

Bhagwan Das, who brought about the establishment of Arya

25. Ranjit Singh, op.cit. pp. 17-18, and S.C. Sharma, op.cit., p. 130

26. Dharm Dev Vidyarthi, op.cit., pp. 196-97

27. Arya Jan-Dec. 1954 (30 May, 1954), p. 5

28. Ibid, 17 June (Sunday 1954) pp. 28

29. Ibid, Sunday 5 to 12 Dec. p. 13

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Table 2.130

Establishment

year

City/Town Name of Persons Members

1880 Rohtak _ 10

1880 Rewari _ 21

1883 Karnal Swami Omanand _

1885 Jhajjar _ 13

1886 Jagadhari Pandit Lekh Ram _

1889 Hissar Lala Lajpat Rai,

Lala Khabi Rai and

Ramji Lal

59

1890 Hathin _ 5

1890 Bhiwani _ 36

1890 Ambala City Sardar Kala Singh 14

1891 Ambala Cantt Gurdyal Singh 21

1892 Sirsa Lala Shiv Naryana,

Lala Kesiram,

Master Shivaji Ram

19

1893 Sahabad _ _

1894 Thanesar Lala Kaka Ram,

Lala Bhagirathmal

15

1896 Ballabhgarh

(Faridabad)

_ 10

1897 Kaithal Pandit Atama Ram, 30

1898 Jind Bhagwan Das -

1900 Ladwa _ 8

1900 Pundri _ 20

1900 Kaithal _ 30

1901 Gurgaon Chandulal _

30. Punjab Administration Report 1917-18 p. 75, S.C.Sharma op.cit, p. 136. Aryapatrika Jan-Dec.-

1957-59 (17 Feb. 1957) pp 4-5, Arya Patrika April 1953-54 (13 Dec. 1953) p. 11, Arya – Jan-

Dec. 1950- p.9, Aryodya 1963 (6 May, 1960) p. 10, Aryodya-1964 (17 March) p. 13 Arya

Patrika, Jan-Dec.1954 (Sunday 30 May, 1954) p. 5, Ibid. (17 June Sunday 1954) pp. 2-8, Ibid

Sunday 5 to 12 Dec. p.13, Ranjit Singh, op.cit., pp. 17-19.

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Samaj in Jind.31

In 1891, Arya Samaj was established at Ambala

Cantt. The first chief of this Samaj was Sardar Kala Singh and

later on Gurdyal Singh worked for the progress of Ambala

cantonment.32

In the establishment of Jagadhri unit, Pandit Lekh Ram had

a major role. In the Kaithal unit, Pandit Atama Ram and Swami

Bhaskaran preached the gospel of Vedic religion. Lala Kalaram

and Lala Bhagirath Mal were the main figures among the initial

workers of Thanesar.33

In 1893, Arya Samaj split into two in the Punjab, one

section was led by Lala Hansraj and Lala Lajpat Rai. They

retained control over D.A.V. College, Lahore, while the radical

section was under the leadership of Pandit Lekh Ram and Lala

Munshi Ram, the latter came to be known as Swami

Sharddhanand. They formed, Punjab Arya Samaj and led Arya

Pratinidhi Sabha. Lala Lajpat Rai played a very important part in

popularizing Arya Samaj in the rural areas of Haryana. Chaudhari

Matu Ram and his descendants ardently appreciated the value of

education, and laid a network of schools and colleges both for

boys and girls.34

Arya Samaj played a great role in removing

backwardness among the farming community of Haryana,

especially Jats.35

In the late 19th

century, the success of Arya Samaj among

Jats was due to the fact that they especially appreciated

Maharishi Dayanand’s hostility to Brahmins. The first Jats to join

Arya Samaj were those of Hisar and Rohtak. One of the first Jat

31. Aryodya – 1964, (17 March, 1916) p. 13

32. Arya – Jan-June 1957-59 (17 Feb. 1957) pp. 4-5.

33. Arya, April (1953-54), 13 Sept. 1953, Aryodya, 1963, ( 6 May, 1960), p. 10

34. Aryodaya 1964, p.11-13, Aryodaya, Sunday 3 July 1960 p. 5

35. Aryodaya, Sunday 11 Sept., 1960, pp. 7-11

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converts to Arya Samaj was Dr. Ramji Lal Hooda. Lala Lajpat

Rai called him the first jat spokesman of Arya Samaj. He spread

his religion among a huge chunk of his community.36

He

organized Jat Sabhas and Mahasabhas for spreading the ideology

of Arya Samaj among his fellows. In 1921, he became the

President of the Arya Samaj in Hisar and contributed to the

development of Shuddhi Sabhas. These associations worked to

bring back those people who had converted to Islam or

Christianity, to the Vedic fold. In 1923, he became the President

of Shuddhi Sabha in the districts of Hisar and Rohtak. But, in

fact, these Sabhas purified many Jats and lower castes people

even when they were Hindus in order to transform them into

twice-borns.37

Arya Samaj exerted a strong morally and culturally

uplifting effect over the Jats. They were asked to abstain from

consuming alcohol and meat, restrict their expenditure on

wedding and other ceremonies, and refrain from singing cheap

songs and watching vulgar pictures during fairs.38

In the 20t h

century Arya Samaj became more popular. And by the 1920s it

spread to almost every town and big village of Haryana.

The number of the members also increased manifold. Since

its inception Arya Samaj has been preaching strongly against

superstit ions, omens useless rites, ceremonies and customs. It

exercised deep influence over the Jats, a unique feature of which

is that the Jat womenfolk are usually left free to adopt any

religious ceremony. It stressed on the establishment of

educational institutions and the removal of the evil of

untouchability. The movement created a new social consciousness

36. Ranjit Singh, op.cit pp. 21-24 37

Proceeding, op.cit, pp. 89-90.

38. Nonica Datta – Forming And Identity : A Social History of the Jat, New Delhi, 1999, p. 74

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Haryana 1985

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and spread gradually to the urban areas of Haryana. It also

attracted public attention to its anti-cow slaughter programme”.39

Thus, we see that with the efforts of Lala Lajpat Rai, Seth

Chandulal, Brahmanand Pandit, Sambhu Dayal, Pandit Basti Ram,

Pandit Lekh Ram, Lala Som Nath, Dr. Dhani Ram, Dr. Ramji Lal

Hooda, Arya Samaj achieved tremendous success in Haryana.40

It

gave a new message to the people of this area. The worker of

Arya Samaj went from village to village for popularizing Arya

Samaj through speeches.

EDUCATION IN HARYANA:

Education in Haryana was good in the ancient times, but

unfortunately, owing to its typical location, it could not retain

the tradition. When the British came to Haryana in 1803 the

position of education was far from satisfactory41

even in towns.

The history of education of this period is divided into three sub-

periods.

(i) 1800-1857 (under the East India Company rule)

(ii) 1858-1900 (under the Crown)

(iii) 1900-1947 (under the Crown in the age of National

Awakening)42

The first period 1800-1857

In the beginning of this period we find the word education

being taken in a very different sense in Haryana. It stood for

nothing more than the knowledge which would make a child

39. Sharma, Suresh Kumar, Haryana : Past and Present, Mittal Publications, New Delhi, 2006, pp.

115-124.

40. S.C.Mittal, A Historical Perspective, Delhi, 1980, p. 66

41. Sarwan Kumar, Education in Haryana 1854-1911 in K.C. Yadav, Haryana Studies in History

and Culture (1968) p. 103

42. Uday Shankar & C.L. Kundu – Education in Haryana : Retrospect and Prospect, K.U.K. 1970,

p. 1

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proficient in his parental profession.43

Only a few people sent

their sons to the so called indigenous schools - the Maktab and

Madrassas (For Muslims)44

and Chhatshalas, Pathshalas (for

Hindu) and Gurumukhi schools (For Sikhs).45

The Maulvis,

Pandits and Granthis in the schools imparted some religious

education and nominal instructions in language and arithmetic.

There were some Mahajans or ‘Landi’ schools which were meant

for the children of the trading communities46

, imparting

knowledge of accounts.

The school buildings were primitive such as private

dwelling, the village chaupal, the shade of a tree, a temporary

shed, or the courtyard of a temple. The Muslim schools were

nearly all connected with village mosques. In such cases, the

same endowment would support both the institutions. The

remuneration of the teacher was variable and precarious. It

frequently consisted of presents, grains and sweetmeats, given by

scholars and their parents. But occasionally the whole community

subscribed to provide financial aid to the school, each member

contributing a specified quantity per plough, which was

considered to represent his means: not infrequently, cash

payments were also made.47

Charter Act of 1813 provided in section 43 that

education should be taken up as one of the functions of the

government. Consequently, one lakh rupees was to be spent for

the revival and improvement of literature and for introduction

and promotion of the knowledge of western science among the

43. Gurukula Patrika, July-Aug-1938, pp. 19-20

44. Punjab Education, Report, 1873-74, p. 6

45. Gurukula Patrika, May-March 1938-40 (23 June 1938) p. 23 46 G.W. Letiner, History of Indigenous Education in Punjab Since Annexation and in 1882, (1922

Patiala ppt. ) P.11. 47

G.S.Chhabra, Advanced History of the Punjab, Ludhiana, 1972, p. 347.

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49

inhabitants of the British territories. Unfortunately, no serious

efforts were made for quite some time by the government to

implement the above clause of the Act and the money allocated

remained unutilised. However, William Frazer, an Assistant of

the East India Company established several schools for the

children of peasants in the Pargana of Sonipat on his own.48

Since these schools were started only for the wards of

peasants who would not spare them to be taught "without rations,

because their labour would be lost to the family," Frazer found a

way out. He allured both the teacher and the taught. He gave the

teacher an allowance of a rupee per month per pupil and the

pupils ' one seer of wheat flour per pupil. He, in fact, wanted to

give more useful knowledge to the pupils through English,

Persian and Hindi. languages but could not do this satisfactorily

for his means were not adequate.49

In 1823, a General Committee of Public Instruction50

was

established to take charge of the government educational

institutions and give educational grants to others. Making use of

this development, Frazer appealed to the Court of Directors and

the Committee to patronize the schools started by him in the

following words:

"The establishment of schools in cities and

towns is, comparatively speaking, of

secondary consideration-the majority of

children of the classes that inhabit cities and

48

Sharp, Selection from Educational Records, Delhi. 1965, Vol, 1

m , 13-15, and H.R. Mehla. A History of the Growth and Development of Western Education in

Punjab 1946-49,Punjab Govt. records monographic. No. 5, (Fisted 1929),Patiala, 1971, pp. 14-

15. 49

Ibid. 50

Ibid.

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towns are educated by their parents. It is the

children of the zamindars, of the peasantry.. .

the mass of the people; thousands to one of

the people that require this instruction and

will benefit by it".51

However, the General Committee of Public Instructions

turned down his appeal on November 29, 1823 since the intention

of the Company was contrary to his views. The Committee

maintained that

" fund- assigned for the purpose of public

education should be chiefly directed to the best

means of improving the education of the

respectable members of. the Indian Society"52

.

Obviously, the rulers considered the urbanites to be, the

more faithful section, which ought to be rewarded. It was in spite

of the fact that the government collected about-25 lakh rupees per

annum mostly from the villagers but it did not spend even a

single pie on their education: In these conditions Frazer

discontinued supporting the schools started by him since monthly

expenses of about Rs.200/- was too heavy for him to support

from his own resources and, ultimately, these schools were

closed.53

As such during the period under report education was

imparted by indigenous schools only, which taught Rs.3 to the

children. As per the reports for the years 1826 and 1827, in the

"Lower region" i.e. the district of Rohtak, Hissar and Gurgaon,

51

Frager to William, dated 25 September, 1823, vide Sharp, op. cit, Vol.1., pp. 13-15and C.L.Kundu

and Uday Shankar, op. cit. p.3. 52

K.C. Yadav, Modern Haryana, History and Culture, 1803-1966, New Delhi,2002,p. 250. 53

Uday Shankar and C.L. Kundu, op.cit. pp. 1-3.

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there were 27 Muslim schools with 28 pupils and 24 teachers, and

70 Hindu schools with 886 pupils and 70 teachers. In the district

of Delhi, there were 247 schools, most of them being in the city

itself. In the "Upper region," i.e. the district of Panipat etc. the

position was equally bad. In pargana Sonipat, there were three

schools. In the town of Panipat, there were several ill-supported

and thinly attended-schools. In the town of Karnal (20,000

inhabitants) there was only one school. Elsewhere in 18 mosque

schools, there were 227 pupils.54

The situation was bad in both the regions. However,

some foreword looking members of the society set up indigenous

institutions for higher learning, viz. Sanskrit Vidyalayas at

Thanesar (Kurukshetra) and Julana, and Shekhawati

Brahamcharya Ashram at Bhiwani for higher study of the

Sanskrit li terature, grammar, astrology and Indian philosophy.

Muslim Institutions were started at Jhajjar and Panipat for higher

teaching of Arabic, Persian, Holy Quran, Muslim Law, History,

etc.55

When William Bentick came to India as the Governor

General, he gave a serious thought for spreading education

among the Indians. On June26, 1829, he wrote to the General

Committee of Public Instruction,

"cordially disposed to promote the great object of

improving India by spreading abroad the lights of

European knowledge, morals and civilization, his

Lordship in Council has no hesitation in stating to

your committee and in authorizing you to announce

54

Ibid. 55

Karan Singh, Haryana Research Journal, Vol. No. 3,pp.21-22.

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to all concerned in the superintendence of your

native seminaries that it is the wish and admitted

policy of the British Government to render its own

language gradually and eventually the language of

public business throughout the country, that it will

omit no opportunity of giving every reasonable and

practical degree of encouragement to the execution

of this project."56

However, a serious controversy started as to whether

instructions should be given through English or through oriental

languages. The Anglicists maintained that all instructions should

be given through English. The Orientalists insisted on teaching

through the oriental languages. Owing to serious groupism in the

committee between Orientalists and Anglictsts, the suggestion of

the Governor-General remained unimplemented for more than

five years until the decision of spending government funds purely

on the spread of western education was taken. The-resolution of

March 7,1835 said;

"His Lordship is of the opinion that the great

object of the British Government ought to be

the promotion of European literature and

science among the natives of India, and that all

the funds appropriated for the purpose of

education, would be best employed on English

Education alone; . . .That all the funds at the

disposal of the government would henceforth be

spent in imparting to the Indians a knowledge

of English literature and science".57

56

C.L. Kundu and Uday Shankar, op.cit, p.4. 57

Ibid.

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In 1833 certain administrative changes were effected and

the region constituting Haryana was made as a separate division

of the newly formed North-Western Province. Moreover, the

Supreme Government in 1840 vide its resolution dated 29 April,

1840 changed the central subject of education into a provincial

subject and all the educational institutions in the N.W.P. were

placed in the charge of the local Government. However, even

these changes did not improve the position of education in the

region as envisaged by Macaulay.

It was only in 1843 when James Thomason took over as

Lt. Governor of N.W.P., the situation began to improve. He was a

progressive person who liked the idea of educating the general

masses, which formed the bulk of the population and whose

plight was very formidable as compared to the higher strata of

the society. He was considerate towards the Kisans whose

ill iteracy and ignorance were exploited by one and all viz. the

government Officials, the money lenders, the Zamindars as well

as the lawyers for their own benefits. He wanted them to be able

to understand everything about their land records so that nobody

could exploit them any more.58

The following table shows the

position of indigenous schools in Haryana.

James Thomson (1843-53) first of all paid attention to the

indigenous schools and issued strict instructions to all his

subordinate officers to encourage people to receive education in

the indigenous schools. He submitted a detailed report-to the

government, for opening new schools in the villages on 18

November 1846 which was rejected. He was asked to submit a

58

Ibid.

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Table 2.2

Indigenous School’s in Haryana in 188059

Schools District

in Towns in Villages

Villages without Schools

Panipat

Hissar

Delhi

Rohtak

Gurgaon

56

13

297

22

50

50

20

24

24

50

416

587

386

275

1230

revised report which he submitted on 19 April 1848. The revised

scheme was approved by the Court of Directors. On the

experimental basis, the scheme was put into effect in eight

districts in February 1850. Haryana was, however, again ignored

owing to financial constraints.60

In Haryana region, only the indigenous schools

functioned during this period. Their description has been given

by A. Roberts in his report for the year 1849 in the following

words: Panipat district in 1849 had 105 schools. It was composed

of the Parganas of Sonipat, Panipat and Karnal. Of 105 schools,

13 were Persian, 15 Arabic, 27 Hindi or rather Mahajani, Sanskrit

32.. . Mr. Johanson, the Deputy Collector, estimated that

proportion of the school taught children to the whole population

was 1.8 percent. Delhi district had 321 schools of which 270

were in the city, 8 in suburbs and 43 in the interior district.

Rohtak had 46 schools while Gurgaon had 100 schools.61

59

Leither, G.W. op.cit, p. 18, Thornton, Memorial on the Statistics of Indigenous Education within

the North West Province, 1850,pp. 18-19. 60

Lt. Governor’s Circular letter dated June 1845, vide Richey, Selections from the Educational

Records, Part-II, pp. 236-39. 61 Lt. Governor N.W.P. to the Govt. of India, dated 18 November 1846, vide Home Public

Proceeding, No. 11, 5 December 1946; Richey, Vol II, pp. 250-42, Thomson, Dispatched, Vol. 1,

pp. 329-33.

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The vernacular education had been greatly neglected

before Dalhousie. In 1853, he introduced the Thomasonian

system of vernacular education in the whole of N.W.R However,

his most important contribution in the field of education was the

famous education dispatch of Charles Wood, popularly known as

"Wood's Dispatch", which is called as "The Magna Carta of

English Education in India." This Dispatch laid down a definite

educational policy for the country, which continued to be the

basis for many years to come.62

Wood's Dispatch,

fortunately, solved the financial

problem to some extent. It proposed a grant-in-aid system so that

private institutions could take over the burden of higher

education and released government funds for the education of the

predominantly rural masses. A separate Department of Education

was established. On the recommendation of the Wood's Dispatch

in 1855, the Department of Education with the money thus saved

opened many Tehsildari schools in the districts of Delhi, Gurgaon

and Rohtak in 1856. After sometime Tehsildari schools were also

opened in the remaining districts.63

The functioning of the Tehsildari schools was

satisfactory. The course of instruction in them consisted of

"reading, writing, grammar, composition, arithmetic, mensuration,

algebra up to quadratics, the first four books of Euclid, the

history and geography of India, general geography, ancient

history the elements of political economy and plane-table

surveying. ' ' The medium of instruction was "either Hindi or Urdu

and in many instances both the ' vernaculars".64

Middle schools, on the pattern of Tehsildari schools,

were opened in towns, such as Shahabad, Ladwa, Thanesar,

62 Ibid. 63

K.C. Yadav, op.cit., p.251. 64

S.C.Mital, Haryana: A Historical Perspective, NewDelhi, 1986, pp. 71-72.

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Kaithal, Sadhoura, Sonipat, Gurgaon , Palwal, Panipat, Hansi,

Hissar, Jhajjar, Bahadurgarh and Rohtak .65

High schools were

established at Karnal and Rohtak in 1856 and at Bhiwani, Rewari,

and Jagadhari in 1857.66

In 1856-57 eight Zila or superior schools

were also opened at Thanesar, Karnal, Gurgaon, Rohtak, Jhajjar

and Hissar, the last had 411 students on its rolls. The government

also set up halkabandi or circle schools financed jointly by the

Government and the public i.e. one school in every circle (halka)

comprising 10 to 20 villages to cater to the needs of people living

in remote areas. Since the halkabandi schools catered to the

needs mostly of the peasantry the subjects taught here were

closely connected with agricultural pursuits and requirements.67

Nevertheless, education was still not popular with the

masses. The' peasants usually did not send their boys to schools,

as their help was required in agriculture. On the whole the

percentage of the number of scholars to the total number of male

children fit to go to the schools has been given in the table

below:

Table 2.3 68

Percentage of school going

children in Haryana in 1856-

57 Districts

Percentage of total number of

scholars to the number of male

children fit for schooling

Panipat 6.4

Rohtak 2.8

Gurgaon 3.4

Hissar 2.2

Delhi 10.95

65

The Punjab Education Report, 1866-67, pp.15-16. 66 Ibid. 67

C.L. Kundu and Uday Shankar,Op.cit.,P. 6,and S.C. Mittal, op.cit. pp. 72-73. 68

The Calcut ta Review, Vol . XIX,1850, p . 175.

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Though the colonial regime had started new education in

the Punjab since its annexation, yet there was very slow progress

in this regard. The reasons for its educational backwardness were

many. First of all, the region of Haryana was prominently

dominated by peasantry, which were hand to mouth at that t ime,

and were not in a position to pay high fees for the new education.

Secondly, though the new education was quite liberal and there

was no barrier for getting it, parents had lack of interest in

imparting education to their wards. Thirdly, there was a lapse on

the part of the government, which did not deem it fit to make it

popular among the rural folk. Fourthly, The volunteer

organizations, agencies and individuals were also not very active.

Moreover, the value of the new education was not properly

understood by the people of Haryana at that t ime.

The Second - 1858-1900

After the Uprising of 1857 was suppressed, the territory

comprising Haryana was detached from the North West Province

and merged with Punjab. The administration of Sir John

Lawrence69

was very harsh towards the ‘Native States’. Except

for the petty states of Pataudi, Dujana and Laharu, all others were

confiscated.70

Ballabhgarh and Farukhanagar were merged with

Gurgaon District and Jhajjar, Dadri were parceled out among the

loyal chiefs of Punjab. Maharaja Narender Singh of Patiala got

the Paragana of Narnaul.71

Maharaja Sarup Singh of Jind was

given the confiscated estate of Dadri and some village in the

69. Buddha Prakash, Haryana Through The Age, 1967 (Kurukshetra) p. 93

70. K.C.Yadav – The Revolt of 1857 in Haryana, 1977, p. 122

71. Griffin, The Rajas of the Punjab.

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58

Khurd (Mahendergarh)72

Paragana. Raja Bahadur Singh of Nabha

received the Paragana of Bawal (Jhajjar State).73

Post Revolt the Haryana region was divided into two

divisions (1) Delhi Division, comprising the district of Delhi,

Gurgaon and Panipat with Divisional headquarters at Delhi and

(2) Hissar Division, comprising the district of Hissar, Sirsa and

Rohtak, alongwith a portion of the confiscated Jhajjar state with

divisional headquarter at Hissar.74

The spread of education in Haryana after the revolt of 1857

was suppressed and the rule of East India Company was replaced

by that of the Crown. The new government became interested in

education and therefore, the period of later 19th

century

witnessed a growth in public instruction.75

In 1860 the modifications introduced were that the

Vernacular schools which formed the great majority, were

transferred to the charge of Deputy Commissioner. To begin with

the situation was dismal in almost all the districts comprising the

Haryana region. Ambala had 54 schools imparting education to

2894 scholars.76

It was the maximum number in Haryana. Karnal

had 34 schools educating 1130 students only. Gurgaon also had

34 schools. However, the number of scholars was 1895. The

situation was almost similar in Rohtak where 1068 students got

education in 32 schools.

72. Ibid, pp 393-408

73. Ibid, pp 465-468

74. Gazetter of India, Haryana district for different districts and different years.

75. Foreign Miscellaneous, no 365, National achieves of India, p. 305. 76

Foreign Miscellaneous, No. 365, National Achieves of India, p. 305.

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Table- 2.477

District wise Distribution of Schools and Students

in Haryana 1860-1901

District Year No of

schools

Students

attending

schools

English

Govt.

schools

Vernacular

Govt.

schools

Vernacular

Aided

schools

English

Govt.

aided

schools

Ambala 1860-61 54 2894 — — — —

1870-71 73 4929 — — — —

1877-78 — — — — — —

1880-81 124 8319 3 95 24 2

1890-91 136 10277 3 108 23 2

1900-01 180 9133 — — — —

Karnal 1860-61 34 1137 — — — —

1870-71 52 1399 — — — —

1877-78 49 2750 1 42 6 —

1880-81 43 1961 7 35 1 —

1890-91 69 2,483 6 — — —

1900-01 203 5393 — — — —

Rohtak 1860-61. 32 1,068 — — — —

1870-71 34 1,791 — — — —

1877-78 48 2,680 — — 4 1

1880-81 48 2,798 8 40 — —

1890-91 132 3,380 — — — —

77

Imperial Gazetteer of India, Punjab-Vol I, District Gazetteer of different districts and different

years.

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1900-01 98 5,097 — — — —

Hissar 1860-61 23 976 — — — —

1870-71 27 1,846 — — — —

1877-78 24 1,294 1 20 3 —

1880-81 30 742 9 21 — —

1890-91 112 3,636 — — — —

1900-01 105 5,085 — — — —

Gurgaon 1860-61 34 1,895 — — — —

1.870-71. 34. 2,224 — — — —

1877-78 67 3,655 1 59 6 1

1880-81 76 3,199 8 68 — —

1890-91 116 4,693 — — — —

1900-01 128 5,139 — — — —

However, Hissar was the most neglected district having

976 scholars on roll in the 23 schools. The table gives the

consolidated picture of the number of schools for each districts

of Haryana from 1860-61 – 1900-01.

In 1863-64 a separate inspectorate of schools was

established to supervise the progress of education in Haryana in

1863-64. The Punjab Education Department launched a scheme

for the development of education in the areas acquired after

1857. The scheme envisaged improvement of indigenous schools

and the establishment of a school at the center of six villages in

Haryana region.78

78

Foreign Miscellaneous, p. 305.

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61

Since no time limit was fixed for the completion of the

project, it moved at a very slow pace upto 1870. But after 1870

when political normalcy had been achieved development of

education also got escalated.

In 1870-71 Ambala showed a remarkable increase in

both the number of schools and the number of scholars. The

number of schools increased to 73 and that of the scholars rose to

4929. Karnal also did not lag behind in the number of schools,

which rose to 52. However, the scholars only marginally

increased to 1399. In Gurgaon the number of schools remained

the same. But there was an appreciable increase in the number of

scholars to 2224. Rohtak also showed only a little increase in the

number of schools, which rose to 34, but the number of pupils

showed an immense rise to 1791. There was a marginal increase

recorded in Hissar in the number of schools, which rose to 27.

However, there was a two fold increase in the number of scholars

which increased to 1846.79

Before 1871 the main difficulty of the education

department was financial crunch. The funds mainly came from,

the imperial revenues and the local revenues, the latter consisting

of Educational Cess, Endowments, Subscriptions and Donations,

Fees and Private Contribution. Sunder Mayo's Financial

Decentralisation Scheme of 1870 and the Punjab Local Rates Act

of 1871, in the course of next few years, the amount hitherto

received from the Educational Cess was doubled, and there was.

Also increase in assignments made by municipalities. In 1876 the

annual expense borne by the state in teaching one student was

79

Punjab Annual Report, 1867-68, p.9.

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estimated at Rs.813-10-7 which rose yet further in the following

years80

In the Haryana region English teaching schools were

opened in 1877-78. Karnal had one English Govt School,

Gurgaon also had one English Govt, school along with another

English Govt. aided school. Same was the situation in Rohtak,

whereas in Hissar there was one English Govt. School. During

this period the number of schools had shown an appreciable

increase to 48 in Rohtak and 67 in Gurgaon, whereas the number

declined to 24 in Hissar and 49 in Karnal.81

An Education Commission was set up in 1882. The

recommendations of the Commission continued to supply

guidelines in all parts of the educational movement. In 1883-84 a

sum of Rs.8000/- from Provincial Revenue was assigned for the

establishment of new Primary Schools on the condition that an

equivalent amount should be devoted to the same purpose from

Local Fund. In 1886-87 a further allotment of over a lakh of

rupees from Provincial Revenue was made for the extension and

improvement of Primary Education All these developments

resulted in the increase of Primary Schools in an appreciable

number in all the districts of Haryana.82

As a result Ambala had 136 schools, with 10277

scholars; Karnal had 69 schools with 2483 scholars; Gurgaon had

116 schools with 4693 scholars; Rohtak had 132 schools with

3380 scholars and even Hissar had 112 schools imparting

education to 3636 scholars, in 1890-91.83

80

Punjab Annual Report, relevant years. 81 Punjab Administrative Report 1888-89, p. 167. 82

Report of the National Council on Women’s Education, 1958-59, para-17. 83

Journal of Haryana Studies Vol. I, No. 2, 1969,p. 15.

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It is difficult to estimate the pecuniary contribution of the

provincial revenues for each district separately. The study,

therefore, is restricted to the expenditure on Education as borne

by the district boards and municipal boards which are supposed

to be the main sustenance for school education in their respective

areas.

The performance of the local bodies may be judged better

with the help of the following table which can claim to be

representative for the period of our study for there was no

significant shift in administrative policy in regard to the role of

the local bodies after 1889 the year for which the figures are

given.

Table 2.584

Statement of Expenditure on Education from District Board

Funds 1889-90

District 25% of district

fund income

exclusive of

excluded for

education

Minimum

Provision made

By Govt. made

Actual gross

expenditure

Other than that

on sch. Building

Ambala 26510 29982 25983

Karnal 26363 27463 23376

Kaithal 20077 32593 288665

Hisar 36393 37661 17626

Gurgaon 31468 33373 24459

The table 3.5 shows that the district boards were required

to spend 25% of their income on education. Column III in the

table includes 25% of District. Board’s income plus the grant

84. Report on the Progress on Education of Punjab 1889-90, p. 12.

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obtained from the state treasury and amount earned through fees

etc. The table reveals that no District Board spent the required

amount of money among all the Haryana districts. Hissar present

the most dismal picture as it spent only about 50% of the

required amount.

The third 1901-1947

Various Hindu organizations opened the maximum number

of schools, as many as 33 in five districts, 11 each in Ambala and

Hissar, 6 in Gurgaon, 4 in Karnal and 1 in Rohtak. The table

given below highlights it.

Table 2.685

Private organizations working for promotion of education

Haryana during 19th

century

District Hindu

Organizations

Muslim

Organizations

Sikh

Organizations

Christian

Organizations

Ambala 11 1 1 1

Gurgaon 6 - - -

Hissar 11 2 - 2

Rohtak 1 1 - -

Karnal 4 1 - -

Table 2.786

District Expenditure

Ambala District Rs, 72,615

Karnal District Rs, 53,650

Hissar District Rs. 44,863

Rohtak District Rs. 44,047

Gurgaon Rs. 46,83

85

Gazetteer of Haryana district relevant years

86. S.C.Mittal, Haryana : A Historical Perspective, New Delhi, 1986, p. 74

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65

To sum up, it can be said that the slow development in

education greatly affected the progress of the region in various

fields. Even the total expenditure on education was very low.87

The condition of education in Haryana by 1901 was far

from satisfactory. The major factors responsible for the

backwardness were as follows. Haryana was economically poor

which witnessed drought or famine every three third or fourth

year. The government had administrative apathy towards the

people of Haryana. The private institutions also did not play any

effective role here in this field and there was social in difference

towards education.88

Table 2.8

Literacy rate in 1900-1901 in Haryana89

District Total

percentage

Male

Percentage

Female

Percentage

Ambala 4.3 7.5 0.4

Karnal 2.4 4.3 0.1

Hissar 2.7 5.0 0.1

Rohtak 2.7 5.0 0.1

Gurgaon - -

Table 2.9 90

PRIMARY SCHOOL IN HARYANA 1903-04

District Total School

Hisar 122

Karnal 234

Rohtak 109

Ambala 172

Gurgaon 125

87. Punjab Education Report, 1900-01, Appendix, Table 62

88. K.C.Yadav, op.cit., 103-104.

89- The table based on the various district Gazette of Haryana.

90. Imperial Gazetteer of India, Provisional Series 1908, p 273-330.

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The table shows that the condition of Karnal district was

very good and that of Rohtak district was very pitiable condition

was very pitiable in education in 1903-04.

Table 2.10

Progress of education Haryana 1910-191191

District Total

Population

Number of

school

going

student

Student School

Ambala 689970 87498 9559 221

Hissar 804889 67074 6529 154

Karnal 779787 66649 5831 169

Gurgaon 643177 53598 6308 142

Rohtak 541489 4524 6746 162

By the end of the First World War (1914-18) the

government became serious regarding primary education by

passing the Punjab Primary Education Act, 1919. In the district

Rohtak alone there came up 271 school for boys and one for

girls.92

Many primary schools were raised to the middle standard

and one to the high school standard. Two dozen high schools

were started in the region. To satisfy the needs of the people in

the field of higher education the government started an

intermediate college at Rohtak in May 1927.93

91. Census of India-1911, vol. 1, part II, Census of India 1921, Vol. 1, Part-I, K.C.Yadav, Haryana

studies History and Culture, p. 108

92. Rohtak District Gazetteer, 1970. P. 256

93. Ibid.

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Table 2.1194

Subsidiary 1930-31

Schools Scholars Districts

or Tehsils Male Females Males Females

Average number

of Scholars per

schools Total

1 2 3 4 5 6

Hisar 465 42 25565 1605 54

Hisar 111 14 6377 603 56

Hansi 90 7 5484 278 59

Bhiwani 79 11 4932 410 59

Fatehabad 77 6 3081 146 39

Sirsa 108 4 5691 168 52

Rohtak 415 55 36634 4821 82

Rohtak 114 15 10566 732 88

Jhajjar 144 17 13300 461 85

Gohana 70 8 5359 306 73

Sonepat 87 15 7409 322 76

Gurgaon 357 22 25641 1052 70

Gurgaon 58 5 4827 275 81

Ferozpur

Jhirka

61 2 4151 71 63

Nuh 51 2 3895 78 75

Palwal 58 6 3935 348 67

Rewari 80 4 5787 170 71

Balabgarh 45 3 3046 110 66

Karnal 528 40 27634 1478 51

Karnal 172 14 9139 622 52

Panipat 118 10 5842 272 48

Kaithal 145 9 7124 363 49

Thanesar 93 7 5529 221 58

Ambala 390 46 38014 2810 94

Ambala 75 18 9256 1152 112

Kharar 114 12 10231 689 87

Jagadhari 57 4 5195 252 89

94. Report, The progress of education in Punjab different years, Haryana district gazetter different

states and different years.

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The table shows the number of schools and scholars in

Tehsils and districts, according to the return as supplied by the

director, public instructions region for the year 1930-31

After the Second World War (1939-45) the government

opened some more primary and middle schools and almost every

big village of note was given a high school. Besides, a number of

religious and cast organizations also played quite a good role in

providing the people with educational facilities of these all, Arya

Samaj did the most useful work by founding a number of schools

and Gurukulas, and it also opened one college each at Ambala

and Hissar. The Sanatan Dharm Sabha followed it and started a

number of high schools and a college at Ambala.95

The Jat

Mahasabha started a high school and a college at Rohtak, the

Yadav Mahasabha similarly founded a high school and a college

at Rewari, the Vaishyas opened schools and colleges at Bhiwani

and Rohtak. At Bohar (district Rohtak) an Ayurvedic institute

was started by the Head of the Asthal at that place.96

Yet the percentage of il literacy was very high, the quality

of education in the primary middle and high schools was very

poor, the facilities for colleges and higher education were

inadequate, and the study of medical science, engineering,

agriculture, and other professional subjects was badly neglected.

Thus on the whole the state of education in this region till 1947

was quite dismal.

95. Ibid, C.L.Kundu and Uday Shankar.

96. Report of the Haryana Development Committee, pp 136-137. And Haryana D.G. for different

year.