Pratapgarh district (Rajasthan)

Pratapgarh district (जिला प्रतापगढ़) is the 33rd district of Rajasthan, created on 26 January 2008. It is a part of Udaipur Division and has been carved out from the erstwhile tehsils of Chittorgarh, Udaipur and Banswara districts. Pratapgarh town (Pin Code 312605, STD Code 01478) is the administrative headquarters of the district.

As of 2011 it is the second least populous district of Rajasthan (out of 33), after Jaisalmer.

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History


Sisodia clan is amongst the ancient royal families in India. This family ruled Mewar for more than eight hundred years. The famous Rajputs- Maharana Sangram Singh (also known as Rana Sanga), Maharana Kumbha and Maharana Pratap (May 9, 1540 – January 19, 1597) all belonged to this family. The rulers of 'Partabgadh-Raj' were descendants of Sisodia clan of Mewar Rajputs.

Maharana Kumbha (1433–1468) was the ruler of Chittaurgarh state in 14th century. Legend has it that due to some family dispute on property issues with his cousin Kshem Singh alias Kshemkarna (1437–1473), angry King Kumbha expelled him from his territory. Kshemkarn's family was refugee for some time and lived in the Aravali ranges in the southern most part of Mewar regime. In 1514, Kshemkarn’s son Prince Surajmal (1473–1530) became the ruler of Devalia. Surajmal established his capital of ‘Kanthal-Desh’ at Dewaliya, (also called Devgarh), a small town about 10 km in the west from present Pratapgarh town, where old  temples,cenotaphs, a historical palace and other ruins of bygone Partabgarh regime still can be seen. Thus, historically, Pratapgarh has been an integral part of Mewar Rulers of Udaipur.


 * Etymology

The name of Pratpgarh is after Maharawat Pratap Singh and not Maharana Pratap, as commanly mistaken!

It is said that 'as the climate of Devgarh was not found to be suitable by the royal family', one of the descendants of Surajmal, Maharawat Pratap Singh of 10th generation (1673–1708) started to build a new town ahed of native village Devgarh in 1689–1699 and later named it as Partabgarh, with a fortwall around his new palace and small township with eight entry gates. At that time, the area of Pratapgarh was reported to be about 889 square miles, whereas Dhariyawad, another small town near Pratapgarh, was founded by Rana Sahasmal, the grandson of legendary Maharana Pratap in the mid 15th century.

Family tree
The successive rulers of Pratapgarh after Kshemkarna (1437–1473) were  Soorajmal (1473–1530) Bagh Singh (1530–1535), Rai Singh (1535–1552), Vikram Singh (1552–1563), Tej Singh (1563–1593), Bhanu Singh (1593–1597), Singha (1597–1628), Jaswant Singh (1628) Hari Singh (1628–1673), Maharawat Pratap Singh (1673–1708), Prithwi Singh (1708–1718), Sangram Singh (1718–1719), Ummed Singh (1719–1721), Gopal Singh (1721–1756), Saalim Singh   (1756–1774), Saamant Singh (1774–1844), Dalpat singh (1844–1864), Uday Singh (1864–1890), Raghunath Singh (1890–1929), Sir Ram Singh (1929–1940) and Ambika Pratap Singh (1940–1948) who lives in Pune after leaving his native place.

Foundation
During the regime of Pratap Singh the actual work of establishing a small town at viilage 'Doderiya-ka-Kheda', started in 1699 AD. It was he, who developed the main market (Sadar Bazar) first of all. A detailed and proper planning was done before starting the construction-work. As per the plans, it was decided to build 3 main Markets, 52 Streets, some Hindu temples, etc. in the first instance.

As Pratapgarh started developing, the old capital of Devgarh started getting neglected. The royal palace of Devgarh wore a deserted look and started getting gradually deteriorated. One of successors of Pratap singh, Gopal Singh took over the reins of the partabgarh-raj in 1721. He developed the 'Gopalgunj Mohalla' during his regime. His son Saalim Singh continued the construction work further and developed the 'Saalampura-Mohalla' and founded a new village called 'Saalamgarh' little away from the main town. It was during his rule that Pratapgarh was cordoned off by building up city's fort-walls on all the sides. There were 8 gates of entry provided during that time. Bigger gates were named as 'Sooraj-pole', 'Bhatpura-Baaree', 'Dewaliya-Darwaazaa' and 'Dhamottar-Darwaazaa'. The smaller ones were called 'Taalab Baaree' and 'Qilaa Baaree'. All of these were manned by armed security guards during the day and were closed in the night. Tukoji, the chief of Army of Malhar Rao Holkar made an attack on Pratapgarh in 1761, but could not succeed to overpower it, nor could he get any ransom.


 * History of Pratapgarh in Mughal and British era-

Pratapgarh remained to a large extent unaffected during the Mughal era. At that time the state of Pratapgarh used to pay a ransom of Rs. 15,000 annually to the Delhi-rulers. Saalim Singh obtained written permission from the then Mughal king Shah Alam II to introduce a local currency for his state and named it as Saalimshahi-Sikka (coin), which was made in a local mint-(Partabgarh-Taksal). In 1763, Malhar Rao Holkar (16 March 1693 – 20 May 1766), while proceeding towards Udaipur, extorted some amount from Saalim Singh, who later also sent his troops to assist Ari Singh, the ruler of Mewar, when some local 'Sardaars' revolted against him in 1768. During the regime of Saamant Singh, (the elder son of Saalim Singh), Marathas continued to harass Pratapgarh-state and Saamant Singh had no option but to agree to pay a sum of Rs. 72,720/- annually as "Khiraj" to keep the Maratha-invadors away.

However, to save the state from the regular extortion by Holkers, Saamant Singh entered into an agreement with the English Government in 1804 'to pay the same amount of "Khiraj"(खिराज) to the Britishers instead. But due to new political policies of Lord Cornwallis, this treaty could not sustain for long, resulting into taking over the state of Pratapgarh into the direct control of British rulers.

Saamant Singh handed over the administration to his eldest son Deep Singh, just after the English treaty in 1804, who administered the state in the initial stage more or less satisfactorily, but rebellions against him soon started raising their heads. He got assisinated some persons, who were antagonistic to him and his 'policies'. Displeased by his deed, the British Government asked him to leave Pratapgarh forever to stay in village Devalia for rest of his life, but Deep Singh did not like this 'seclusion'. After some time when he returned back from the confinment to Pratapgarh defying the orders of British, an English army-troop defeated him in a battle and imprisoned him in Achnera-(H.Q. Arnod), where he breathed his last in 1826.

The period of Raja Gopal Singh, between 1827 and 1864 was an epoch of turmoil and polititical instability in Pratapgarh.

Since the early times the major area, especially the north-western part of this region had very dense forests, a separate state forest department in 1828, was created to manage state's exceptionally rich forest-wealth.

In 1865 Uday Singh became the Raja, who introduced some reforms, established civil courts, started relief works during the notorious Great Famine of 1876–78, opened fair price shops for the citizens and also exempted certain civilian taxes. Uday Singh built a new palace in Pratapgarh for himself in the year 1867 AD more or less on the lines of those built by the Britishers and started living there (see picture).

He then started getting involved in the development of Pratapgarh regularly. Uday Singh opened the first Ayurvedic dispensary in Pratapgarh in 1867 AD where conventional medical treatment was given to patients. Thereafter some Pathshallas (schools) were opened in 1875 AD to provide free education all over the state.

He passed away in 1890 without having a son of his own, therefore, his widow adopted one of her  first cousins- Raghunath Singh of Arnod 'Thikana' to be accepted as their legal heir. Finally in 1891 Raghunath Singh was accepted as the Raja by the British.

The state Police was reconstituted, and certain Land reforms especially settlement came into being in 'Khalsa villages' during Raghunath Singh's regime. It was in his tenure in that the 'English currency' was accepted as 'state currency'. The process of modernisation thus began.

A Municipal Committee was formed in 1893 AD in the capital-town during the regime of Raghunath Singh. During this period the Mandsaur-Pratapgarh road was also constructed connecting Central Province with Rajputana. A separate customs department was established. New post offices were opened, administrative departments were reorganized. Slowly the legal-machinery started getting developed and three levels of courts- The Deewani Court, The Zila Court and The High Court started functioning from Pratapgarh. After Small 'thikanas' and 'Jagirdars' were also given certain legal powers, Judiciary was separated from 'Mahakma-Khaas'. The Zila Court had powers up to proclaiming the capital punishment or expelling a person outside the territory "(Shahar-badar-Sazaa)". However, such a 'harsh punishment' required ratification from (the then) 'Maharaja-Saab'.

After Maharawat Raghunath Singh retired, his son (Sir) Ram Singh became the king and during his tenure, new reforms were introduced in Agriculture, Education, Medical and local-self-government sectors. A High Court was also established during this period. Welfare measures like Insurance-scheme, retirement-benefits etc. for the state employees were undertaken. Praja Mandal activities also got a boost. He also received a title of "Sir" from the British Government.

The development continued and by 1900, Patapgarh had a school up to Middle level (8th Standard). This was an achievement for a small town because during that time the bigger towns around like Mandsaur, Neemach, Javra, Chhoti Sadri, Badi Sadri, Nimbahera, and even chittorgarh did not have any high schools or organised hospitals. The hospital of Pratapgarh was cosidered to be the biggest one in the area. It had two wards- one for Males (45 beds) and another for females (30 beds capacity). It had all the facilities for surgery too. Because of the avalable amenities, it was nominated as 'Zila Hospital', which also housed the offices of District Medical and Health Officer of the area.

Pratapgarh – an ancient land
Just after the independence of India in 1947, Pratapgarh remained as an independent district between 1948 and 1952, however, due to reconstitution of district boundaries, Pratapgarh became part of the Nimbahera district and then of Chittaurgarh. Mrs. Vasundhara Raje, the then Chief Minister of Rajasthan, announced Pratapgarh to be an independent district in 2008.



Well known for pure gold and glass-inlay handmade unique jewelry called "Thewa", Pratapgarh, as the 33rd district of Rajasthan, came into existence on 26 January 2008, comprising five Tehsils/ sub-divisions, Pratapgarh, Chhotee Sadri, Dhariyawad, Arnod and Peepalkhoont.

The district is dotted with good number of ancient and historical sites, but in want of a detailed study either by the Archaeological Survey of India or by the Department of Archaeology and Museums, Government of Rajasthan, there are no 'protected monuments' as such. A few important still unexplored archaeological and historical sites include Avleshwara, Ghotaavarshika (Ghotarsi), Sidheriya, Gandharvpur (Gandher) Jaanagarh, Veerpur and many others. Sita Mata sanctuary houses pre-historic rock engravings.

Creation
People of Pratapgarh were demanding to make it an independent district separate from Chittorgarh district, of which it was a part. The Government of Rajasthan declared on 6 July 2006 its intention to create Pratapgarh as a separate district. The process of officially declaring Pratapgarh as a new district took some time. Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje declared Praratapgarh as 33rd district of Rajasthan on 8 March 2007 in legislative assembly's budget session. Pratapgarh, Arnod and Chhoti Sadri tehsils from chittaurgarh district, Peepal Khoont from Banswada district and Dhariyawad from Udaipur district were unified togather to form this new district.

As Pratapgarh already had some district offices (a district session court (since 1944), district hospital, district jail etc.) and also a different vehicle registration code than Chittaurgarh, this was an apt decision. Significant progress in all spheres of economic-socio-cultural life is noticiable after 2008. However, much is to done in creating essential infra-structural facilities and overall literacy.



Geography

 * Location

Pratapgarh is located at 24.03° N 74.78° E with an average elevation of 580 meters (1610 feet above mean sea level). It is said to be the second highest place (?) in Rajasthan after Mount Abu. Situated on the junction of the Aravali mountain ranges and the Malwa Plateau its unique location prominently carries the geological characteristics of these both.
 * Area

The geographical area of Pratapgarh is 4,11,736 hectares, out of which forest area is 1,20,976 hectares (2009-'10). The average annual rainfall is 856 mm. The soil is mainly highly fertile Black Cotton Soil made of magma of volcanos. The major rivers of the district are Jakham, Mahi, and Siwana or shiv. Other seasonal rivers are Som, Era, and Karmoi. Out of five, four sub divisions except Chhoti Sadri, are notified forest blocks, where no major industry or mining activity is allowed under law. However, in non-forest regions of Chhoti Sadri (and part of Pratapgarh and Dhariyawad), small scale mining activities are in operation extracting mainly red ochre, calcite, dolomite, quartz, feldspar and soapstone. Marble, Building-stone and Limestone are also available in small quantities.
 * Climate, Soil, Topography and Minrels

Divisions
Pratapgarh district comprises 5 sub-divisions, Arnod, Chhoti Sadri, Dhariawad, Peepal Khoont and Pratapgarh.

The number of revenue villages in Arnod Tehsil is 178, in Choti Saari Tehsil the number is 141, Dariyawad Tehsil is 249 whereas Peepal khoont Tehsil has 23 and in Pratapgarh Tehsil there are 330 revenue villages.

The major villages of Pratapgarh district include Dhamottar, Kulmipura, Sidhhpura, Rathanjana, Dhaula Pani, Devgarh, Salamgarh, Parsola, Ghantali, Arnod, Gandher, Asawsata, Kulthana, Avleshwar, Rajora, Kuni, Mokhampura, Hathunia, Basera, Basad, Varmandal, Bajranggarh, Suhagpura, Rampuriya, Chiklad, Gyaspur, Barawarda, Bardia, Thada, Panmodi, Jhansadi, Gautmeshwara, Dalot, Ghantali, Peepalkhoont, Rajpuriya, Bambori and Bagwas.

'The old city of Pratapgarh has many narrow streets and congested houses, but in the last decade, the outer parts of the city have developed rapidly. Since 2008, new civil lines quarters, a full fledged police-line (with 120 residential houses), a modern Collectorate-building, District Stadium and Circuit house have been built, in addition to many private and public buildings in and around the town. 10 bighas of land has been earmarked in May 2011 near new collectorate campus for construction of new buildings of Judicial courts.

District administration


Hemant Shesh has been the District Collector of Pratapgarh district from 25/10/2010 to 13/8/2011, Mrs. Teena Soni took over this charge from him on 13/8/2011. The erlier collectors were Dr. Prithwiraj Sankhla (from 26/01/2008 to 01/01/2009) Bhanu Prakash Yeturu (from 07/01/2009 to 16/04/2010) and Rohit Gupta (From 19/04/2010 to 19/10/2010).

The first phase of the new building of collectorate, built with an approximate cost of Rs.8.85 crores (see picture) was inaugurated and dedicated to the public by shri Ashok Gahlot, the chief minister of Rajasthan, on 18 May 2011 in presence of Union surface transport minister Dr. C. P. Joshi and many other public representatives.

This building shall shortly have a separate wing of SP office and the Zila Parishad and DISTRICT STASTICAL OFFICE. added to it, along with a new campus of all district and subordinate courts of judiciary.

Police infrastructure
Praveen Kumar Sharma is the present SP. Pratapgarh has 13 police stations at Pratapgarh (city), Chhotee Sadri, Dhariyawad, Arnod, Peepalkhoont, Dhaula Pani, Dhamottar, Rathanjana, Salamgarh, Suhagpura, Devgarh, Hathuniya and 16 Police-chowkis are under them. One District Jail is located in Pratapgarh and a sub-jail in Chhoti Sadri, where under trial prisoners are housed.


 * Crime

2256 cognizable and 6535 non-cognizable offences under the Indian Penal Code and other acts were registered in the year 2010. The alarming trend in crime is extortion and collecting illegal ransom from businessmen, by organised criminal mafia operating locally as well as from outer cities.

Judiciary
A district and sessions' court was established in Pratapgarh in 1944, followed by the court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, (in Chhoti Sadri) in 1980, Junior Judicial Magistrate’s court in 1983,  Additional Judicial Magistrate’s  court in 1989, Scheduled Castes-Scheduled Tribes Special Trial Court in 1992, Special court for Narcotics Cases in 1994,  a District Consumers' Court,  two ACJM courts (in Arnod and Dhariyawad) in 2008, and recently a “Rural Court”  in  2010. Thirteen revenue courts- those of the  Revenue Appeallate Authority (1), Collector & DM (1), Additional Collector & ADM (1), SDMs(5) Tehsidars (5) are also working in the district.

Culture
Rich in natural beauty and an ideal blend of Malwa, Mewar and Vagad cultures, Pratapgarh known in earlier times as  ‘Kanthal’, is surrounded by Udaipur, Banswada, Chittaurgarh districts of Rajasthan and Neemach and, Mandsaur  districts  of Madhya Pradesh (MP). The people of this region are more linked with MP for social obligations than other parts of Rajasthan, because Neemuch, Mandsaur and Ratlam districts of MP surround Pratapgarh boundaries in about 60% length.

The district includes habitants of all sects, religions and castes including Bhil, Balai, Bhanti, Dhholi, Patidar, Rajput, Brahmin, Mahajan, Sunar, Darzi, Chamar, Luhar, Suthar, Nai, Dhobi, Koli, and above all Mina; major occupants are traditional Meena tribals, exclusively dependent on agriculture, animal husbandry and forestry, who have their own culture, attire, dialect, rituals, fairs and festivals. A good number of native Bohra Muslim families are engaged in overseas trading and business in Middle East countries.



The major attractions of the district are Sita Mata Wildlife Sanctuary and Jakham Dam, however, large number of visitors and pilgrims do visit the old temples at Ambamata Shaktipeethh, Bhanwarmata, Gautameshwara Mahadev Paapmochan Teertha, Sholi Hanuman Temple, Deepeshwar Mandir and many other temples. The magnificent Tomb (Dargah ) of Saiyadi Kaka Saheb is also a popular  destination, especially amongst Daudee Bohra community of Muslims, who gather here in large numbers on the occasion of Annual Urs of Saiyadi Kaka Saheb.

The major fairs of this region are- Ambamata Fair, Sita Mata Fair, Gautameshwara Fair (on 'Vaishak-Poornima') and Bhanwar Mata Fair. Fairs on stipulated dates are also held in small places like Shaulee-Hanumanjee, Gangeshwara-Parsola, Manaa-Gaon, and Gupteshwara Mahadev in and around Pratapgarh.

Although all major Hindu festivals like Diwali, Govardhan Puja, Holi, 'Rang-Teras','Raksha Bandhan', 'Mahashivratri', 'Hanuman Jayanti' and 'Vijayadashami' etc. are celebrated in Pratapgarh, yet 'Sharad Navratri' and 'Vasant Navratri' both are  also celebrated in the city with fun and floric. "Doondhotsava" is celebrated on Holi. The people of city do not celebrate "Dhulendi' on the following day after Holi, as done all over India, but color holi is celebrated  thireen days after on  the hindu day of "Rang Teras". 'Gair'-Dancers can be seen all over the villages during 'Dashaamaataa' festival. A procession of  folk-God Baba Ramdevji is a regular feature on 'Bhag-Dashmee Teej'. 'Sheetalaa Saptmee' is also observed in the district, when only "Makki-Dhoklas" (cooked before a day prior to the festival) are consumed. Some tribals have a tradition of 'second marriage' as an approved social-custom.

Like many other places in the region, the most prominent custom is "Mautana", where as a social-penalty, (mostly in accidental death-cases), heavy cash-fine is imposed on the culprit/s in favor of family of victim and his community. Before any auspecious event, people do organize Gangoj, Ratri-Jagarnaa and also obtain a Paatee (clearance) from 'Devra'- a temple of local God/s.

The prominent language of this region is Hindi, however, "Kanthhalee-Bolee" composed of words from Malwi, Mewari and Vagdee (local dilects) is commonly spoken in villages.

Amongst the local Hindi writers that Pratapgarh has produced, 'Pardeshi' (1923–1977) (Real Name : Mannalal Sharma) was a well known literary figure. 'Pardeshi' indeed was a prolific writer with a contribution of 15 novels, 16 poetry-collections, 8 books for children, 5 story-collections, 3 dramas, and 14 translated books in Hindi. A small public-park, in his memory has been built at Pratapgarh by the local Municipality.

Although the local tribals make different bamboo handicrafts for themselves, the most notable craft evolved by traditional goldsmiths (Raj-sonis) of Pratapgarh is precious jewelry Thewa which is in great demand amongst modern ladies in India and abroad.

Media
Local newspapers include Dainik 'Kaanthal-Jot', 'Jai kaanthal', Dainik 'Kuber', whereas national/ state level newspapers are 'Dainik Bhaaskar contact at 01478-220120,9672996870, 9887149876', 'Rajasthan Patrika'and  Dainik Navajyoti.

Dainik Bhaskar, Dainik Navajyoti, and 'Rajasthan Patrika' are publishing regular featured material on Pratapgarh highlighting its daily news.

One local amateur historian Mr. Madan Vaishnav has done a commendable job by bringing into light lesser known historical sites of the district by writing valuable series-articles in local newspapers and magazines. Similarly local journalist Anupam Pardesi is also raising a voice regularly on electronic media for 'effective protection and conservation' of ignored historical sites in Pratapgarh.

A local news channel “Raj News” has also started functioning since April 2011. Local representatives of channels like E TV, TV99, Sahara, HBC and Doordarshan are highlighting Pratapgarh news on their electronic news channels. An Information Centre or media centre (Soochna Kendra) (with an initial cost of 70 lakhs) has been got sanctioned by Government of Rajasthan that shall have all inhouse necessary facilities for journalists and mediamen.

Cinema halls
There are 5 cinema-halls in Pratapgarh district, three of which are in the town. They are “Archana”, “Pratap” and “Samata”. The ‘Pratap theatre’ was the first cinema-hall in the entire Udaipur zone when it was built in 1945 AD. The former ‘Darpan” cinema has now been shut. There is one small cinema-hall in Chhoti Sadri and one in Dhariyawad.

Demographics
According to the 2011 census Pratapgarh district (Rajasthan) has a population of 868,231, roughly equal to the nation of Qatar or the US state of Delaware. This gives it a ranking of 472nd in India (out of a total of 640). The district has a population density of 211 PD/sqkm. Its population growth rate over the decade 2001-2011 was 	22.84	%. Pratapgarh	has a sex ratio of 	982	females for every 1000 males, and a literacy rate of	56.3	%.

The population of Pratapgarh in 1881 AD was 79,568; whereas it was 1,10,530 in 1951.

Economy
Major crops of this region are wheat, barley, maize, groundnuts, soya beans, gram, mustard, and some pulses.

Opium is also a major crop of Pratapgarh. There are 6,781 license holder-farmers in the district cultivating opium. The production of opium in 2011 in Pratapgarh district was 15,85,373.410 kg precisely as per statistics of District Opium Officer, Pratapgarh, Narcotics Bureau, Government of India.

Irrigation
The major Irrigation project of the district is the Jakham Dam, located in Anooppura village of Pratapgarh Tehsil, 32 km from Dhariawad and 35 km from district headquarters. This dam was built on the Jakham river, which originates from a small village Jakhamia in chhoti sadree subdivision. The Jakham dam's foundation was laid on 14 May 1968 by chief minister Mohan Lal Sukhadia, however, the actual construction-work of the dam started in 1969-70. The dam itself was completed in 1986, but took another twelve years for the completion of this irrigation project in March 2000. Initially the catchment of the Jakham Dam was 5,015 MCft for irrigating 52,354 hectares of land. Out of its total water retention capacity of 5,015 MC ft, the usable water capacity is 4,671 MC ft. The cost of this project is 106.03 crore. The length of this Dam is 253 meters, out of which spillway is in 90 m in length. The area around the dam is hilly and rugged but interesting. 13 km away from the main dam, Nangaliya pick up ware has been constructed with Left main canal (39.90 km) and right main canal(34.12 km). Irrigation facility is being provided in 118 villages in Dhariawad sub-division.

Agriculture
Pratapgarh is one of the greenest districts of Rajasthan. Major crops, as indicated above, are wheat, Maize, Soya bean and opium. Agriculture is practised both in the valleys and on the tableland on the hilltops. Common lands account for 40% of the total geographical area, nearly 30 % of the comman lands fall in the forest land category. The area is a schedule V area, predominantly inhabitaed by the tribal communities.

Meenas are the most numerous comprising about 55% of the entire population. Average landholdings are small and canal irrigation facilities are limited only to Dahriyawad and Peepal Khoont tehsils, therefore agriculture is mostly rain-fed. Besides farming, the tribal communities depend upon the forests for their food, fodder and fuel (wood requirements). Many of the members of tribal communities do migrate to nearby towns in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh to find a job as farm-labourers or construction workers.

The production of wheat in 2009–10 was 1,90,585 MT in the district, of Maize it was 1,28,984 MT followed by Soya bean as 1,69,133, Mustered as 8,296 MT. Small quantity of Rice-production (989 MT) was also recorded.

Public representatives
In 2009 the number of members of the Lok Sabha (the Parliament of India) was 3. Dr. Ms. Girija Vyas represents Pratapgarh in the Lok Sabha.

Members of the Legislative Assembly are Nandlal Meena (Bhartiya Janata Party) (Pratapgarh), Udailal Anjna (Chittaurgarh-Chhoti Sadree-Indian National Congress-) Nanalal Ninama (Banswada-Peepal Khoont-Indian National Congress), ), Nagraj Meena Dhariawad (ST)(Indian National Congress), Prakash Chaudhry (Badi Sadri-Pratapgarh-(Indian National Congress). Out of these five MLAs directly elected from the district are from Dhariyawad and Pratapgarh constituencies.

The duly elected Zila Parishad (2010) headed by Badri Lal Patidar consists of 17 members, whereas the Pratapgarh Municipality (Chairman-Kamlesh Doshi) has 25 and Chhoti Sadri (Chairman-Shyam sundar Agarwal) has 20 elected members (2010).

There are 152 gram panchayats (GPs) in Pratapgarh with 1630 elected members in all. Pratapgarh Block has 42 GPs, with 21 members in Panchayat Samiti (PS), 28 GPs in Arnod Block with 15 members in PS, 24 GPs in Chhoti Sadri with 15 PS members, 31 GPs in Dhariyawad  Block with 17 members in PS; and 27 GPs in Peepalkhoont  Block with 15 members of the PS.

New elections for class 'A' Krishi Upaj Mandi of Pratapgarh have taken place( August 2011).

Transport
Pratapgarh is well connected with major cities in Rajasthan, Gujarat & Madhya Pradesh by road. Daily Bus Services connect Pratapgarh with Chittaurgarh (110 KM ), Banswara (80 KM), Udaipur (165 KM), Dungarpur (95 KM), Rajsamand (200 KM), Jodhpur (435 KM), Jaipur (421 KM) Neemach (62 km ) Ratlam (85 KM), Mandsaur (32 KM) and Delhi (705 KM) and many other cities in Rajasthan. Private Bus operators are also providing regular connectivity to Pratapgarh from nearby places.

The total length of roads in the district is 1879 km, with more than 7,500 registered light and heavy vehicles.

It is the only district without rail-connectivity in Rajasthan state. However, as a result of untiring efforts by ex-district collector Hemant Shesh, the Government of Rajasthan agreed to pursue vigorously with Ministry of Railways, Government of India to connect Pratapgarh with broad-gauge from Mandsaur (32 km), for which appropriate financial contribution to GOI may also be made by the state, if required. It is therefore, presumed that a new railway track ultimately shall be laid from Mandsaur to Pratapgarh, as publicly assured and announced by Shri Ashok Gahlot, the chief minister of Rajasthan on 18 May 2011 at Pratapgarh.

Due to Pratapgarh's strategic location, the Airport Authority of India has installed a VOR station in Pratapgarh on Dariyawad Road for guiding high altitude jet aircrafts. (It is said that Pratapgarh is at the midpoint of the Delhi-Mumbai Air Route.

An airstrip has been approved by the Government of Rajasthan in April 2011 to be constructed  in Varmandal village (13 km from Pratapgarh). Temporary helipads are in operation at four places in Pratapgarh, Dhariyawad, Peepalkhoont and Chhoti Sadri.

Medical and health services
There is one 'District Hospital' at Pratapgarh (with 277 bed-capacity), 7 Community Health Centers and dispensaries, 53 Ayurvedic and homeopathy hospitals and dispensaries, 23 PHCs (Primary Health Centres), 2 allopathic dispensaries and 153 Sub-centers in Pratapgarh. Ambulance on call “Emergency 108–service” is available in Pratapgarh, Dhariyawad, Arnod, Peepalkhoont and Chhoti Sadri with nine such equipped vans. An inbuilt multi-facility Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) has also been added to Pratapgarh Civil Hospital to cater to the medical needs of far-off villages in June 2011.

Postal services and banking
Pratapgarh has 8 post offices at Pratapgarh, Katchahri-Pratapgarh, Arnod, Dalot, Rathanjana, Dhariyawad, Chhoti Sadri, Peepalkhoont, Dhamotar and Bambori (Branch offices).

There are 26 Commercial Banks, 12 Regional Rural Banks, 4 Cooperative sector Banks, and 2 Land Development Banks. The number of ATMs available in Pratapgarh district is 11, out of which 8 are in the town, while one each is at chhoti sadri, Arnod and Dhariyawad.

Telecommunications
Postpaid Telecommunication services are being run only by BSNL (evdo) for 13,502 consumers (9,492 Rural and 4,010 Urban consumers in 2010–11,), but Airtel,  Aircell, Vodafone, Idea, Tata Indicom and Reliance Communication companies are providing 'pre-paid' facilities to other mobile phone users. There are three private cable operators in the city: 'Pratap', 'Chetak' and 'Raj'.

Education
The standard of education in Pratapgarh has risen radically since the late 1990s, however 20,986 children of 6–14 age group were to be linked with school education under sarva shiksha abhiyan(July 2011). The first (so called) English-medium middle school Burhani Baage Naunihal School was opened in 1986. Since then many private educational institutes have come up including St. Paul's (English medium) School in 1989. Educational services are available for primary (up to 5th class), middle (up to 8th class), secondary (up to 10th class), higher secondary (up to 12th class) and graduation (Bachelor's Degree). There are 1453 Government schools in the district: 929 Primary, 325 Middle, 154 Secondary and 45 Senior Secondary Schools, 3 colleges for general education, 4 colleges for vocational education and 6 it is for boys and girls. One private Engineering collegenamed as “Regional Engineering college” located at Dhamottar village and a public sector Industrial training institute in the town are offering technical courses. There is also a Government polytechnic college  offering technical diploma. With the initiative of the ex-district collector, a new graduate Girls' Collge in Public–private partnership mode (PPP mode) is underway in the town like a new Industrial training institute(ITI) in Peepal Khoont. The nearest University is Mohan Lal Sukhadia University at Udaipur, to which, most of the local colleges, including the Government College are affiliated.

Shops and fuel supply
There are 262 Fair Price Shops (FPS) in rural areas, 25 FPS in urban locations, 3 LPG agencies, 12 Petrol Pumps in rural and 7 in urban areas for supply of LPG, Petrol and Diesel with additional 4 barrel points. There are no malls or big departmental stores in the town as yet. Opening of new FPSs in rural and urban areas is underway(2011).

Flora and fauna

 * Sita Mata Wildlife Sanctuary

As indicated above, Since the early times the north-west part of this region had dense forests consisting of valuable Sagwaan, Chandan, Sheesham, Saalar, Dhaak, Dhonk, Kadamb, Mahua, Babool, Imlee and Baans trees in abundance and therefore in 1828 AD, a separate state forest department was created to manage state's exceptionally rich forest wealth.

The thickly wooded Sita Mata Wildlife Sanctuary sprawls over the Aravali ranges and the Malwa plateau, with three seasonal rivers flowing through the forest. Located about 45 km from Pratapgarh and 108 km from the divisional Hqrs. Udaipur, the sanctuary, covering 423 km2. of mainly dry deciduous vegetation has exceptionally rich flora and fauna. It is the only forest region, where more than half the trees are high building value teak. Salar (Boswellia Serrata Rox. ex coleb), Tendu (Diospyros melonoxy Roxb.), Bad (Ficus bengalensis), Peepal (Ficus Religiosa Linn.), Neem (Azadiracta Indica), Siras, Churail, Kachnar, Gulmohar, Amaltas, Bakayan, Ashok, Mahua, Semal, Goondi, Khejadi, Amla, bamboo, Sindoor, chironjee, Rudraksha and Bel trees are also found in abundance.

Two new bird varieties for the first time in Rajasthan were noticed in Sita Mata WL sanctuary about five years ago, they are- White-thorated Ground thrush and Black-necked Monarch.

On the initiative of the earlier District Collector & District Magistrate Hemant Shesh, the Botany Department of the Mohan Lal Sukhadia University, Udaipur has agreed to undertake further various research projects to study in details its rich and varied flora and fauna. Although a tentative checklist of flora and fauna available in the sanctuary has been made by the department of forest, the place offers infinite scope of indepth research in this field. The most striking animal of Sita Mata sanctuary is the vegetarian mammal flying squirrel ('Petaurista-philippensis'), which can be seen gliding from one tree to another just around sunset.

The Sanctuary provides rich pastures for a variety of deer that includes the Chousingha (four-horned antelope). Caracal, wild boar, pangolin, leopard, hyena, jackal, fox, jungle cat, porcupine, spotted deer, wild bear, and neelgai are other animals found here. As per the wild life census conducted on 17 May 2011, the number of wild life animals in the centuary was 1711 (inclusive of 10 leopards,538 Jackals, 38 hyenas,39 foxes, 117 jungle cats etc.)

The best time to visit Sitamata Sanctuary is between October and February. It also houses ancient Valmiki Ashram- the birth place of Luv and Kush (the twins born to Sita and Lord Rama), Hanuman and Sitamata temples and other places of historical and mythological importance.

Another significant place of interest in the Sanctuary 5 km from 'Tikhi Magri' is 'Lakhiya Bhata'- where series of prehistoric animals are engraved on rocks.

Serious efforts have been made by ex-collector Hemant Shesh to get this lovely sanctuary declared as the national park.

Pratapgarh-Towards being e-district
The National Informatics Centre NIC is a part of the Indian Ministry of Communications & Information Technology headquartered in New Delhi. It has offices in all 28 state capitals, 7 union-territory headquarters and at all district headquarters. To cater to the ICT needs at the grassroots level, the NIC has also opened offices at almost all district collectorates of the country.


 * NIC unit at Pratapgarh:

District Pratapgarh is actively making use of computer technology as a decision support system. The NIC Computer Centre at Pratapgarh was set up in August, 2008, to introduce and promote the informatics culture and to create the computer awareness among the masses and government organizations in particular. It provides the facilities of using NICNET and electronic mail. In close cooperation with the district administration, the NIC unit has launched many programmes for computerization in different sectors and is also regularly conducting short-term training courses on the computer related subjects.

1. Assembly / Parliamentary Election: NIC district centre is providing all types of assistance to District Election Officer during Assembly/Parliamentary elections. List of all polling stations, staff working in District, Transport plan with various details have been computerized. Duties of Presiding/Polling officers, Zonal/Sector Magistrates to be assigned to officers/officials during election are the sole responsibility of NIC. Software with randomization technique have been prepared and is being used for assigning various election duties.

2. Land Record Computerisation: LRC focus of work has now shifted to mutation, updating, issuing of record of rights (“Khata nakal”) to land holders, yearly rotational Jamabandies. Entire work is being done at all tehsils HQs. with timely support in respect of software and hardware troubleshootings.

3. TCS (Treasury): To prepare monthly payment schedule. The role of Treasury is to control the budget of various offices / departments. The offices are getting payment through Government Bank.

4. Sub-Treasury: Technical support and services was given to all 5 sub-treasury offices of Pratapgarh district. Data Supplied from sub-treasury is merged and consolidated and soft copy is regularly being prepared for onward transmission to the State Govt.

5. Data Depository System (DDS): Monthly payroll data was checked and validated on Linux clients in treasury for this purpose.

6. Old Age Pension: Data of all 5 tehsils has been fed for generating the automated money orders to the beneficiaries. ATO (Pension) is releasing on-line payment to pensioners.

7. Paybill Software: has been developed to prepare monthly salary bills, payinner, payouter and different reports. More than 65 DDOs are using this software and 200 DDOs are receiving the text data from Computer service providers every month.

8. Public Greviances System : The s/w was redesigned and tailormade programs were developed according to the need of the district administration.

9. SUGAM, Single Window System: SUGAM S/w has been implemented at all 5 Tehsils & District headquarter. The reports generated are – Domicile certificates, Caste certificates, Income tax certificates etc.

10. Video-Conferencing: 80 Successful sessions of Video Conferencing were held up to 30 June 2011 between officials of district with other officials outside the district.

11. Support Services: As directed by the HQ / State-Unit different offices in the district were  periodically visited for resolving their e-problems.

12. Comman Service Centre: Under the CSC project initiated by DOIT, 40 Kiosks have been identified so far. 28 Comman Service Centres are delivering G-2-C services at present.

13. Sugamrpg (PGS Portal): It is an effective portal to deal with online public grivencences.

14. e-mitra: Two kiosks are providing services in urban areas of Pratapgarh town.

Academic sources

 * John Mc Meekin, Arms & Flags of the Indian Princely States, 1990.


 * The court Fee and Revenue Stamps of the Princely States of India, Adolph Koeppel & Raymon D. Manners, New York 1983.


 * www.pratapgarhrajasthan.nic.in/


 * 'Zila Pratapgarh Nirdeshika', Edited and Published by District Administration, Pratapgarh, 2008


 * Col. James Tod, 'Annals and Antiquities of Rajasthan or the Central and Western Rajpoot States of India', 2 vols. London, Smith, Elder (1829, 1832); New Delhi, Munshiram Publishers, (2001). ISBN 8170691281