Subah (country subdivision)

A Subah was a province of the Mughal Empire in South Asia. The governor of a subah was known as a subahdar (sometimes also referred to as a "subah"), which later became subedar to refer to an officer in the Indian Army. The subahs were established by the emperor Akbar during his administrative reforms of 1572-1580; initially they numbered 12, but his conquests expanded the number of subahs to 15 by the end of his reign. Subahs were divided into Sarkars, or districts. Sarkars were further divided into Parganas or Mahals. His successors, most notably Aurangzeb, expanded the number of subahs further through their conquests. As the empire began to dissolve in the early 18th century, many subahs became effectively independent, or were conquered by the Marathas or the British.

History

Province

A province is almost always an administrative division, within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman provincia, which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outside Italy. The term is now used in many countries.

In many countries with no actual provinces, "the provinces" or "the province" means outside the capital city.

Etymology

The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province", which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia", which referred to the sphere of authority of a magistrate; in particular, to a foreign territory.

A popular etymology is from Latin"pro-" ("on behalf of") and "vincere" ("to triumph" or "to take control of"). Thus a "province" would a territory or function that a Roman magistrate held control of on behalf of his government. In fact, the word Province is an ancient term from public law, which means: "office belonging to a magistrate". This agrees with the Latin term's earlier usage as a generic term for a jurisdiction under Roman law.

West Bengal

West Bengal (/wɛst bɛŋˈɡɔːl/; Bengali pronunciation: [pɔʃtʃimbɔŋɡɔ]) is a state in eastern India and is the nation's fourth-most populous state, with over 91 million inhabitants. Spread over 34,267 sq mi (88,750 km²), it is bordered by the countries of Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan, and the Indian states of Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar, Sikkim, and Assam. The state capital is Kolkata. Together with the neighboring nation of Bangladesh, it makes up the ethno-linguistic region of Bengal.

Ancient Bengal was the site of several major janapadas (kingdoms). It was also part of large empires such as the Maurya Empire (second century BC) and Gupta Empire (fourth century AD); and part of the regional Buddhist Pala Empire (8th to 11th century) and Sena dynasty (11th–12th century). From the 13th century onward, the region was controlled by the Bengal Sultanate, Hindu kings and Baro-Bhuyan landlords under the suzerainty of the Mughal Empire, until the British East India company took control of the region from the Mughals in the late 18th century. The company consolidated their hold on the region following the Battle of Plassey in 1757 and Battle of Buxar in 1764 and by 1793 took complete control of the region. Kolkata (or Calcutta) served for many years as the capital of British controlled territories in India. The early and prolonged exposure to British administration resulted in the expansion of Western education, culminating in development of science, institutional education, and social reforms in the region, including what became known as the Bengali renaissance. A hotbed of the Indian independence movement through the early 20th century, Bengal was divided during India's independence in 1947 along religious lines into two separate entities: West Bengal—a state of India—and East Bengal—a part of the newly created Dominion of Pakistan that later became the independent nation of Bangladesh in 1971.

Halwa poori

Halwa poori is a part of traditional Indian Cuisine. The dish consists of poori bread with chana masala, along with halwa.

The food originated in the Indian subcontinent mainly in the Punjab province. The dish is also popular in the Terai region of lowland Nepal, especially in the Madheshi community. It is served as prasada by Hindus and Sikhs in the Indian states of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh. And it is also a popular breakfast item in Lahore. Halwa Poori is eaten at all times, but it is usually a part of breakfast or an early evening meal.

Composition

Halwa poori has developed into a traditional breakfast consisting of a deep fried bread (poori), served with halwa and curries mixed of chickpeas (known locally as 'choley') and potato. Traditional mango pickle and onion pickle are also served along with fresh yogurt. It can also be served with lassi (yoghurt drink). The halwa is typically made with semolina and garnished with nuts.

Murshidabad

Murshidabad (Pron: ˈmʊəʃɪdəˌbɑ:d/bæd or ˈmɜ:ʃɪdəˌ) is a city in Murshidabad district of West Bengal state in India. The city of Murshidabad is located on the southern bank of the Bhagirathi, a tributary of the Ganges River.

Geography

The District Of Murshidabad has an area of 2143 sq. m. It is divided into two nearly equal portions by the Bhagirathi, the ancient channel of the Ganges. The tract to the west, known as the Rarh, consists of hard clay and nodular limestone. The general level is high, but interspersed with marshes and seamed by hill torrents. The Bagri or eastern half belongs to alluvial plains of eastern Bengal. There are few permanent swamps; but the whole country is low-lying, and liable to annual inundation. In the north-west are a few small detached hillocks, said to be of basaltic formation.

History

Murshidabad was a town and district of British India, in the Bengal Presidency. In the Mughal period it was the capital of Bengal. The town of Murshidabad is on the left bank of the Bhāgirathi-Hooghly or main sacred channel of the Ganges.