31 | Kutch State

The ruling family of Kutch traces its history back to the fourteenth century, when the region was conquered by the Samma Rajputs. Historically, Kutch maintained an isolated existence, and its administration was considered backward, despite its people being known for extensive overseas trading and their entrepreneurial spirit. 

The British presence in Kutch began in the early nineteenth century following a prolonged period of disorder caused by the invasion of the state by Muslim rulers of Sind. In 1924, the Kutch Agency merged with the Kathiawar and Palampur Agencies to form the Western India States Agency (Jeffrey, 1978).

Spanning over an area of 8,461 square miles, with a population of just over 500,000 and an annual revenue of nearly Rs 80 lakh, Kutch was considered an important state and its ruler held higher status compared to other Kathiawar rulers. It was part of the Kathiawar cluster of states and was linguistically and culturally considered part of Kathiawar (Menon, 1956). A significant portion of its territory, the Rann of Kutch, is covered by water for most of the year (White Paper, 1950). 

After the Partition of India in 1947, Kutch became a frontier state bordering Pakistan. Reports of Pakistani troop movements in Sind, adjacent to Kutch, during the Junagadh crisis in October 1947, raised security concerns. The Rann of Kutch, which separates the mainland from Sind, dries up for several months of the year, and the loyalty of its nomadic Muslim tribes to the Indian Union was considered doubtful. Units of the Central Reserve Police were sent to Kutch for protection, in addition to military measures. Kutch was also prone to severe periodic famines, necessitating financial aid from the Central Government. Lastly, with the loss of Karachi to Pakistan, India was planning to develop the Khandla Port in Kutch. Due to these reasons and its backward administration, direct central control was deemed necessary for its development (Menon, 1956).

In response to the Praja Parishad's agitation and the state's strategic importance, the Maharao of Kutch approached V.P. Menon for mediation in mid-March 1948. He proposed to him two primary solutions: either amalgamating Kutch with the neighbouring Union of Saurashtra or having the Centre take it over as a Chief Commissioner's province. Ultimately V.P. Menon suggested that Kutch should be kept directly under the control of the Central Government. This decision was backed by Sardar Patel. Consequently, the Maharao of Kutch signed the merger agreement on 4 May 1948 and the administration of the state was taken over by the Government of India as a Chief Commissioner's province on 1 June 1948 (Menon, 1956).

Kutch was one of five states that were individually taken over as Chief Commissioners' provinces (Part C states) under the direct control of the Government of India. The Government of India aimed to retain supervisory power over Kutch for a specified period to ensure its developmental pace. Following its merger, Kutch was no longer considered an ‘Acceding State’ under the Government of India Act of 1935, effective from 1 August 1949 (Menon, 1956)

There was a significant territorial dispute between India and Pakistan regarding the claims over the boundaries between Sindh which went to Pakistan and Greater Rann of Kutch which was part of India, after the merger of Kutch state.

Pakistan contested the validity of Kutch's accession to India on 11 August 1947, arguing that India only acquired the territory Kutch legitimately possessed on 4 May 1948, the date of its full merger. It contended that any independent exercise of jurisdiction by Pakistan in the disputed area between August 1947 and May 1948 would negate Kutch's claims. This territorial dispute, exchanged through diplomatic notes from July 1948, escalated into hostilities in April 1965. In 1968, an international tribunal resolved this dispute, which awarded 90% of disputed territory to India. While the boundary dispute did not prevent Kutch from acceding to and merging with India, it was a pivotal factor in the decision to integrate Kutch as a centrally administered Chief Commissioner's province (United Nations, 1968).

References:

Jeffrey, R. (Ed.). (1978). People, princes and paramount power: Society and politics in the Indian princely states. Oxford University Press.

Menon, V. P. (1956). The Story of Integration of the Indian states. Orient Blackswan.

Ministry of States. (1950). White Paper on Indian States. Government of India. https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/White_Paper_on_Indian_States_(1950)

United Nations. (1968). The Indo-Pakistan Western Boundary (Rann of Kutch) between India and Pakistan (India, Pakistan) (No. Vol. XVII; REPORTS OF INTERNATIONAL ARBITRAL AWARDS, p. 579). United Nations.