Context:
500th birth anniversary of the 16th century tribal queen Durgavati.
Rani Durgavati:
- Born in Chandel Dynasty of Mahoba in Banda, Uttar Pradesh.
- Married to Dalpatshah of Gond Dynasty of Garha-Katanga.
- She took reins of the Gond Dynasty in 1550 after Dalpatshah’s death as the guardian of her son Veer Narayan.
- Contributions –
- Reservoirs like Ranital, Cherital, and Adhartal were constructed
- Capital was shiftred from Singaurgarh to Chauragarh on the strategically important Satpura Hill Range.
- Granted permission to Acharya Bitthalnath to establish a Pushtimarg Cult center in Garha.
- Others –
- Tarikh-i-Firishta mentions Durgavati defeated Baz Bahadur, the ruler of Malwa.
- During her reign, Akbar attacked the Gond Empire under the leadership of Asaf Khan.
- Story of Durgavati was chronicled by Abul Fazl (Akbar’s chronicler)
Gond Dynasty:
- Established by – Yadavrai
- Location – Gondwana region of Central India around the 13th century CE.
- Their influence spread from eastern Madhya Pradesh to western Odisha and parts of Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
- Governed 4 major kingdoms – Garha-Mandla, Deogarh, Chanda, and Kherla.
- Queen Avantibai was an important Gond ruler.
- Architecture – Singaurgarh Fort, Chauragarh Fort and Ramnagar Fort
- Played an important part in the 1857 Revolt.
Source: The Hindu
Previous Year Question
Who among the following rulers advised his subjects through this inscription?
“Whosoever praises his religious sect or blames other sects out of excessive devotion to his own sect, with the view of glorifying his own sect, he rather injures his own sect very severely.”
[UPSC Civil Services Exam – 2020 Prelims]
(a) Ashoka
(b) Samundragupta
(c) Harshavardhana
(d) Krishanadeva Raya
Answer: (a)
