Maratha Ditch (archaic spelling: Mahratta Ditch) was a three-mile long moat excavated around
Kolkata (then known as Calcutta) in the present
Indian
state of
West Bengal, in 1742, as a protection against possible attacks by marauding
Bargis, as the
Marathas were known locally. The Bargis, however, never came to the city. Later, the ditch proved to be useless when the
Nawab of Bengal,
Siraj ud-Daulah, came and ransacked the British settlement in 1756. The ditch was never completely built. It was mostly filled up in 1799 to build the Circular Road and the balance was filled up in 1892–93. It earned Kolkatans the sobriquet "Ditchers". The area bounded by the ditch was considered to be the original town of Kolkata.
Bargi invasions
For about ten years (1741–1751) the spectre of Bargi invasion and large scale plundering of the countryside dominated the western part of
Bengal. Bargi invasions took place almost as an annual event.
Bargi is corruption of a
Marathi word which meant horsemen who were provided with horses and arms by the
Maratha Empire in contrast to the
siladars, who had their own horses and arms.
The Bargi invasions played on the creative impulse of the people. Even to this day, mothers in Bengal sing the cradle song to put their children to sleep -
:chhele ghumalo, pada judalo bargi elo deshebulbulite dhan kheyechhe, khajna debo kise?
:When the children fall asleep, silence sets in, the Bargis come to our landsBulbulis (birds) have eaten the grains, how shall I pay the tax?
Alivardi Khan became Nawab of Bengal in April 1740, after defeating and killing Sarfraz Khan. His rule was challenged by Sarfraj Khan’s brother-in-law Rustam Jung, who was naib nazim (deputy governor) of Orissa. Alivardi defeated him in a battle at Falwaei, near Balasore, placed his own nephew as naib nazim of Orissa and left for his capital, Murshidabad. Rustam Jung sought the assistance of the Maratha ruler of Nagpur, Raghoji I Bhonsle. He regained control of Orissa with the assistance of Marathas, who in the process discovered how easy it was to plunder the rich countryside in Bengal. Alivardi returned to Orissa and again defeated Rustam Jung, but before he returned to Murshidabad, a Maratha cavalry under Bhaskar Padit was sent to Bengal by Bhonsle. They entered through Panchet and started looting the countryside.
The original plan of the ditch extended for seven miles but in six months three miles of it were finished. When it was found that the Bargis did not approach Kolkata, further excavation stopped. Except for a detour on the north-east at Halsibagan, to enclose the garden houses of Gobindram Mitter and Umichand, it followed the later day Circular Road (Upper Circular Road has been renamed Acharya Prafulla Chandra Road, and Lower Circular Road has been renamed Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Road) from Perin’s Point at the north-west extremity of Sutanuti (in present day Bagbazar), where the Chitpur Creek met the river, down to a spot near the present Entally corner. It was planned to excavate it to the south of Govindpur, but that was stalled.
Siraj ud-Daulah succeeded Alivadi Khan as the Nawab of Bengal. Till 1756, the legal status of the English was that of zamindar. In 1756, Siraj decided to attack Kolkata. On 16 June 1756, the Nawab reached the outskirts of Kolkata with some 30,000 troops and heavy artillery. The major part of Siraj’s troops crossed the Maratha Ditch near Sealdah on 18 June and the Battle of Lal Dighi was fought..
Subsequent to the Battle of Plassey, the British settled down as rulers. For about forty years, the Maratha Ditch was the receptacle of all the filth and garbage in Kolkata. The Marquess of Wellesley, as Governor-General of India, ordered that it be filled up.
References
Category:History of Kolkata
![Korlai Fort (also called El Morro or Castle Curlew[1]) is a Portuguese fortification in the town of Korlai,[2] Maharashtra, India. It was built on an island (Morro de Chaul)[3] which guards the way to the Revdanda Creek. It was meant as a companion to the fort at Chaul. At this strategic position the Portuguese could use it to defend their province which stretched from Korlai to Vasai. Vestiges of the Portuguese occupation are manifested in the distinct dialect of the Korlai villages inhabitants](http://web.archive.org./web/20110820141749im_/http://cdn9.wn.com/pd/cf/07/0973ea895d797373beef4a22722a_grande.jpg "Korlai Fort (also called El Morro or Castle Curlew[1]) is a Portuguese fortification in the town of Korlai,[2] Maharashtra, India. It was built on an island (Morro de Chaul)[3] which guards the way to the Revdanda Creek. It was meant as a companion to the fort at Chaul. At this strategic position the Portuguese could use it to defend their province which stretched from Korlai to Vasai. Vestiges of the Portuguese occupation are manifested in the distinct dialect of the Korlai villages inhabitants")
![Korlai Fort (also called El Morro or Castle Curlew[1]) is a Portuguese fortification in the town of Korlai,[2] Maharashtra, India. It was built on an island (Morro de Chaul)[3] which guards the way to the Revdanda Creek. It was meant as a companion to the fort at Chaul. At this strategic position the Portuguese could use it to defend their province which stretched from Korlai to Vasai. Vestiges of the Portuguese occupation are manifested in the distinct dialect of the Korlai villages inhabitants](http://web.archive.org./web/20110820141749im_/http://cdn8.wn.com/pd/cf/07/0973ea895d797373beef4a22722a_thumb.jpg "Korlai Fort (also called El Morro or Castle Curlew[1]) is a Portuguese fortification in the town of Korlai,[2] Maharashtra, India. It was built on an island (Morro de Chaul)[3] which guards the way to the Revdanda Creek. It was meant as a companion to the fort at Chaul. At this strategic position the Portuguese could use it to defend their province which stretched from Korlai to Vasai. Vestiges of the Portuguese occupation are manifested in the distinct dialect of the Korlai villages inhabitants")
