AZRUDDIN: The Colorful History Of Chhota Udepur State :: Few areas of the world are more evocative than

the Indian subcontinent, with its exotic natural beauty and extraordinary contrasts. The princely rulers of India with their opulent palaces and extravagant lifestyles have been a source of fascination for centuries. Before India's independence in 1947 AD, the 565 Maharajas, Rajas, Maharaos, Maharanas, Nawabs, Thakore Sahebs and other rulers held sway as absolute sovereigns over one third of India's land surface and a quarter of her population. Many of the ruling dynasties had been in power, uninterrupted for hundreds of years. Even after Independence, when all the princely states were asked to join the Indian union by signing the Act of Accession, relinquishing their authority, they still maintained their pomp and pageantry, their dignity and ingenuity and their grandeur of their past in form of their palaces and jewelry. Gujarat has been a state rich with royal heritage, so to speak. Gujarat is India's westernmost state, bound to the west by a 1600 kilometers long coastline, to the north by deserts and to the east and south by mountain ranges including Aravalis, Satpuras and the Western Ghats. Historically this state comprises three cultural and geographical areas - Gujarat, which was the eastern belt of the state, Saurashtra that comprised the Kathiawad peninsula and Kutch, the area between the Gulf of Kutch and Sindh. The Hindu Rajputs, who ruled the majority of the princely states in India were prominent in Gujarat as well. The various Rajput clans Jadejas, Gohils, Jhalas, Chauhans, Vaghela-Solanki and Jethwa accounted for a considerable number of princely states. The Hindu Marathas ruled the strongest state in Gujarat, Baroda. There were some Muslim nawabs too namely in Junagadh, Balasinor, Cambay, Radhanpur and Palanpur. These states were stratified in gun salute states. The sovereigns of these states received the number of gun salutes based on several criteria. Baroda was the only 21 gun salute state whereas Kutch was a 17 gun salute state. Bhavnagar, Jamnagar, Junagadh, Porbandar, Rajpipla were some of the 13 gun salute states. Balasinor, Chota Udepur, Palitana, Rajkot, Limbdi etc were some of the 9 gun salute states. There were some other non gun salute states. Chota Udepur was a small state with 525 villages, an income of Rs 2.5

million, cavalry, infantry, bodyguards and cannon, situated in the hills between Gujarat and Malwa (current day Madhya Pradesh). The state was ruled by the Khichi Chauhan dynasty, which was reputed to be one of the bravest Rajput clans in India. The Chauhans colonized eastern Rajasthan in the 8th century AD, and were a