Entrepreneurs of Shimla: Chapters 11 & 12
Chapter 11: More Suds/Soods Enterpresises Take shape in Shimla - (1843 - 1861)
Roadmap of future expansion of commerce in Shimla and in the hill states was handicapped by lack of communications. The British were eager to grab the wool trade, as it no longer followed the River Beas to Kangra. Maharaja Ranjit Singh had forced it via Ladakh into his own territory but the British planned to re-route it back but not thru Kangra but thru Shimla. That was one of the original route wool followed for centuries. Before this could be done, communications to Tibet via Shimla, Bushahar had to be improved. Hence planning was at the advance stages, first to re-route the Kalka (Pinjore)-Shimla road for the wheeled traffic, second extend this road all the way to the Tibet border.
The two Political Officers Kennedy (1822-35), Tapp (1836-42) had done their best to improve this road. They would routinely requisition roadwork labour (called Begari) along the new route and consider it Rajah's responsibility to pay them. It was part of the treaty documents, which the Rajahs had signed with the British in 1830. The Rajahs were bitterly complaining about this high handedness to the higher officers, but nobody was listening. At places all along from Kalka-Bushahar, the road was making progress for wheeled traffic, but it was still a primitive effort.
A few strategic changes were taking place in the area also. The British in 1842 fixed Sabathu as the principal cantonment for their own troops[1]. They transferred all Gorkha units to Jutog. This was in preparation for the upcoming Anglo-Sikh war. This transfer would prove to be their undoing as during the 1857 Mutiny[2], these Gorkha units would mutiny and lay siege to the white population in Shimla. Docile Gorkhas then relented and lifted the siege and the British women & children left the town.
Another administrative change occurred because of the above, that the job of political officer was split in 1842-43, and J Erskine was appointed as Deputy Commissioner of Shimla & the hill states with head quarters in Shimla and another serving military officer was given the independent charge of Sabathu garrison. The new Deputy Commissioner in J Erskine was no pushover; although he did not have the same bent towards commerce as his predecessors had yet with Anglo-Sikh war looming he had a lot of cajoling to do to the hill rajahs to keep them out of this fight.
The Suds/Soods seeing the British preoccupied went on a mission to explore the interior of Shimla Hill states, which they previously had not done. Nidha and Surdha went to Bushahar and met the Rajah their. Nihala and Jalla met the Rajah of Jubbal. Both these Rajahs presented contrasting personalities. Where as the Rajah of Jubbal wished the Suds/Soods to come to his state, the Bushahar King needed a lot more cajoling over a longer period of time to welcome them in his state. Hence the Nidha and Surdha concluded that they would become part of the wool trade only if the British wished so, not at the behest of the Rajah. On the other hand Rajah of Jubbal wished to exploit his only asset i.e. timber and hence wished to use the Suds/Soods for the purpose.
During this time of uncertainty, the four Sud/Sood partners stayed put at Shimla and waited for opportunities to emerge.
The above strategic and military changes in Shimla's fortunes did not discourage other fortune seekers from Kangra/Jaswan arriving in Shimla, seeking fortune. Young Sud/Sood men without previous warning began arriving at Shimla. Artisans seeking better opportunities were arriving to build houses and other private and public buildings. Hundreds of porters/coolies began arriving from Bilaspur & Kangra district.
By 1848 there were at least three-dozen Sud/Sood boys seeking opportunities in Shimla. Their number had swelled to forty and most of them had no money and were paying guests of the four original settlers. By then Nidha and Surdha had completed the construction of their new location at Edward Gunj. They housed the new comers there. Some of them were put to work in weighing and auctioning of the local produce, which was arriving in greater amounts at the Edward Gunj. Others were sent to the interior of Shimla to seek opportunities there. A smaller number returned home to wait for opportunities to arrive at a later date.
The business at Upper Bazaar had markedly improved. There were greater numbers of shoppers there. The original Suds/Soods had expanded and had two locations there. Business at Edward Gunj also began to brighten-up, as it was the only wholesale depot for supplies arriving from Hoshiarpur. But it was expected that it would have better future, once the local produce began arriving in greater amounts. That began happening soon as the local farmers got the hang of commission agency system.
Transportation of supplies was also improving as the Suds/Soods began using wheeled bullock carts in greater numbers. A year before 1848, they used bullock cart runs, four times instead of regular two in the previous years. A caravan of 20 carts carried a lot more grain/flour than mules' train of fifty mules. Both had their perils. A bullock cart travelled slow, but carried six times more than what a single mule could carry. Lately the danger of supply pilferage had increased hence they had put two Sud/Sood boys to act as security guards on top of the mule herder and bullock cart drivers travelling with the caravan. They were stationed at Nadaun and Bilaspur and travelled with the caravan all along. Wild animal danger was also of great concern. The travel especially from Bilaspur to Shimla was full of jaguars, snakes, panthers and other wild animals. An incident related thru the generations is narrated below:
Business Takes-off at Edward Gunj
Until 1844-45, there were only one wholesale cum commission agency in operation at Shimla. The local farmers had got used to the agency concept and had begun bringing their produce to the Gunj. During the summer, the farmers brought potato, vegetables and any other produce either on farmers back in "Kiltas"[3] or on mules. The retailers, boarding house owners, and other homeowners would come everyday to pick up whatever they needed. The rising population ensured that everything was sold quickly. That ensured good business at the Sud/Sood enterprise. At times the farmer wished to explore competition, but there was none. This was affecting the farmer's confidence in one commission agency. Hence the British wished to create a controlled competition by inviting other communities from the plains to relocate to Shimla. Concerned about the competition, the Suds/Soods made one of the arriving men from the their villages to open a commission agency in competition to them but dealing not in imported supplies from Hoshiarpur but in local produce only. They lent him money to get started and helped him get lease for the space. A year later they obtained one additional lease in Edward Gunj for themselves. By the beginning of 1846/47 seasons there were three commission agents but only one wholesaler. The farmer now picked a choice of going to one or the other. The same was true for the buyer. Each of the other agencies had also their start up capital borrowed from them. In a way the four original partners were full-fledged bankers.
With successful operation in 1846/47, they started to think in terms of retail operation at Edward Gunj also. But getting a lease proved to be difficult. The Deputy Commissioner did not wish retail operation there. But a season later he relented and granted two more retail leases. These retail operations they would keep to employ Sud/Sood boys arriving from their villages. In all, they had three operations in Edward Gunj and two in the Upper Bazaar. In total about 40 people were employed in all these enterprises. Twelve others were employed to run the transportation business and man new stores opened in Jutog, Sanjauli and Mashobra. The latter three also acted as weighing stations for farmer's produce from farther than 5-6 miles. These weighing stations then shipped via mules to Shimla. This innovation in operation created a network to collect and sell local produce. In next several decades this network would become the most successful operation.
Sir William Edwards becomes the Deputy Commissioner (1848-52)
He was reformist for some and scourge for the others. He did his best to reform the "Begar"[4] system in the hills. Old practices die-hard and if they had to be abolished then the people had to rebel against it. William Edward was no reformer but a civil servant. The best Edwards could do then was to pay for labour in the British territories, which his predecessors had refused. That was an incremental improvement. He expected the same elsewhere but his vision ran into resistance, as the princely states were not ready to dump the practice all together as yet. At Kuthar, Keonthal, Theog, Khaneti, Kumarsain, Dhami (as per MS Ahluwalia) etc. saw a rebellion against it (1895-1937). That is when these practices were discontinued. That was long after William Edwards was at Shimla as Deputy Commissioner. But still Edwards have endeared himself to some modern writers. On the other hand he is described as a domineering personality who wished to upset the apple cart by interfering with the steady flow of commerce to Shimla. Hence the business community, especially Suds/Soods called him a scourge.
Somehow William Edwards figured that the commission agents were overpricing the local produce as well as the wholesale grain arriving from the plains. That may be true, but in his calculations he ignored the cost of transportation, physical risks, financial risks and market conditions in the plains where post British victory over the Sikhs (1848-49) the balance of power had been upset. The latter had resulted in prices shooting up two fold. Hence he decided to side step the commission agents and go into the commission agency business himself. His other motivation to do what he did was to raise some revenue for the newly formed Shimla Municipal Committee (1851). He ordered the closure of the commission agencies for those reasons. Although, the commission agents were instrumental in getting the produce to the market yet he figured that 6% commission (one Anna per Rupee) they charged was too high. Not being a businessman, Edwards had created a monster and a business mess. He appointed municipally approved weighers and auctioneers to replace the operation conducted by the Suds/Soods. Edwards would supervise the operation himself from time to time. The weigher was under strict instructions not to breach his rules. He once levied a huge fine of Rupees 40 on one of the weigher for not being present for the service. That was year 1850, when it all happened. The Suds/Soods and others for the time being were out of the commission agency but not out of business.
Whether it had any impact on the prices locally, has not been recorded anywhere. But his stupidity of involving government in a strictly private enterprise has been laughed at thru the generations.
Not to be left out, the Suds/Soods and other wholesalers adopted other tactics. By 1850/51, they had their tentacles spread fairly wide in Shimla area. They had operations in Jutog, Sanjauli and Mashobra. Thus they began conducting their business in greater earnest at these locations and prevented more than half of the produce from reaching the government weighing station in Shimla.
For three years this cat and mouse game was played between commission agents and William Edwards. As a punishment he stopped granting leases at the weighing locations also. Later he got this area renamed as Edward Gunj[5]. The commission agents and wholesalers were in no hurry. They would wait until Edwards is out. This impacted a few new comers who were planning a move to Shimla. The Aggarawal community from Ambala also developed cold feet after learning about Edward's actions.
The forgoing did not impact the supplies and transportation business in Suds/Soods hands. They were very good at it, hence continued as usual.
Realising that in three years he had failed both in curbing the prices and putting the Suds/Soods and others out of business, he wished to do away with the system, but waited for his successor to do that. His successor William Hays in 1852 in his first act, withdrew the municipal weighing system from the Edward Gunj. He started granting additional leases in that area too. William Hays was relying on competition to keep prices in check. In this dispute the Suds/Soods had come out ahead. They had successfully compromised the municipal weighing system but also bypassed it by locating dealers on the incoming routes to Shimla. Hence the commission agency business had survived a major assault by a mislead government officer.
Edward Gunj[6]
As described before the Edward Gunj in 1836 was the small clearing on the sunny southern slopes of Shimla, where Lt/Major Kennedy and Col Tapp had wished the mule trains unloaded. Their additional suggestion was that the Suds/Soods build a warehouse in the vicinity. There, on the 45-degree slope, a water stream and a flat ground existed that was enough space to build a mule/horse enclosure. Additional ground could be cleared to build shops and stores. The mule enclosure was essentially to protect the load carrying animals from the wild animals at night. Kennedy/Tapp also promised to provide an access way for the mules to reach this spot. At their own expense they would also clear the additional area of trees and level the uneven place. In return the Suds/Soods would build their own warehouse on the leased space.
Within a year or two, the British persuaded the Suds/Soods to begin conducting bulk business from there. Soon the mule/horse service men also moved into this area. (Some animals after difficult travel required being re-shoed). Later Colonel Tapp turned it into a profitable enterprise by demanding yearly lease charges in advance. In turn the government continuously improve the services including access roads both in the east as well in the west.
Within ten years after the first establishment opened its doors at the new location, there were five more. Three of them were sponsored by the original Sud/Sood bunch. Two others came from Bilaspur area. They soon converted this space into auction cum commission agency for the local produce. As the farmers in the area got the feel of better prices by auction, they slowly began to flock to the place. An average 50-60 Kilta carrying farmers would show up initially during the formative years, later by 1861, that number had multiplied four fold.
The real impetus to this bazaar (Edward Gunj) came in 1876 when the Upper Bazaar burnt down and the British prohibited native reconstruction in that area. They mandated that all native retail operations relocate to the new bazaar(s) the Lower Bazaar or the Edward Gunj. They also mandated that the grain businesses both wholesale and retail, relocate to the new Edward Gunj. Later retailers preferred to locate themselves to the Lower Bazaar and made Edward Gunj into the wholesale trade hub. The latter not only would supply 14,000 Shimla residents in 1881 but also shipped grain and other foodstuff to the hill states too.
The Sanatan Dharam Mandir in the area was built in 1889 to meet the spiritual needs of the residents. Later Sanatan Dharam School was added to the area.
The area always remained in the hands of Shimla Municipal Committee, which from time to time rebuilt it and improved it. As its importance grew and supplies shipment to the princely states exceeded expectations then the Lower Bazaar Tunnel was built to route the mule traffic to the Longwood Loop directly in 1905.
As the business in Edward Gunj kept growing, there was a huge influx of porters/coolies to Shimla. They came from Kashmir (Hatoes) and Jats from the plains of Punjab (Pale Daar). In early twenties of the last century, the porter population was about one third of the total population of Shimla (that included rickshaw pullers also). To limit that influx of porters, the Shimla Municipal Committee built a ropeway in about 1930 from "Maal Godaam" to the Edward Gunj to directly lift supplies to the main market. It was dismantled a year later as safety concerns became the issue. By mid 1930s, the British had lost jest to build anything. Indian independence movements had gained support and days of British presence in Shimla and India were numbered.
Edward Gunj or simply Gunj began loosing its importance as growing number of trucks on the Hindustan-Tibet road began bypassing Shimla. As it stands today, it reminds of a great business centre, which it was for the past 150 years.
Hindustan - Tibet Road and Re-routing Supplies from Punjab
The energetic Lord Dalhousie (Governor General) in 1847 made a daring trip to Bushahar state, to explore trade ties with Tibet and prevent Russian influence percolating any further in Tibet. He used the non-existent pathways all the way to Chinni border (Kinnaur) to travel. To make trade situation worst, the local Rajahs, since time immemorial, had used a transit tax on goods passing thru their territory. This raised them the much-needed cash. The forgoing made any further trading difficult. Lord Dalhousie concluded[7] that to improve trade potential further, a better pathway had to be built and all the transit tax and duties abolished. That is what he did soon after the collapse of Sikh Kingdom's in Punjab. The British ordered withdrawal of all duties in British and British supported territories and decided to build a 200-mile road from Kalka to Chinni. This would re-route the wool and other trade back to its original route of Shimla & Kalka.
With that urgency in mind, Lord Dalhousie ordered the construction of Phase 1 of the project i.e. re-route the Shimla-Kalka portion of the road for the wheeled traffic. Survey for this work had been undertaken from 1842-48 and work began in earnest in 1850. As stated earlier "Begar" labour was used at minimal cost to the state. The road took a slightly different route i.e. via Dharampore instead of Kasauli and followed the mountain contours to Solan and then to Kandhaghat and onwards to Shimla. In-spite of William Edwards effort to abolish "Begar" system, it was extensively used to build and re-align this new road. Lord Dalhousie handed over this work to the Commander-in-Chief Sir Charles Napier to expeditiously complete it. It would be 12 feet wide road and at places as wide as 20 feet. Two Ekkas coming from the opposite directions could cross it with ease.
First Phase of the roadwork to Shimla was completed in record time. Later work to link up to Bushahar and Chinni was undertaken at a much slower pace. It was altogether abandoned in 1858, to be undertaken at later date. Hence from Shimla to Bushahar, the road remained as a "bridle path".
In 1873 Andrew Wilson[8] traversed on this road beyond Shimla and described it as follows:
“The cut bridle-path, which has been dignified by the name of "The Great Hindustan and Tibet Road," that leads along the sides of the hills from Simla to the Narkanda Ghaut, and from Narkanda up the valley of the Sutlej to Chini (now Kalpa) and Pangay (now Pangi), is by no means so exasperating as the native paths of the inner Himalaya. It does not require one to dismount every five minutes…..Nevertheless, the cut road, running as it often does without any parapet, or with none to speak of, and only seven or eight feet broad, across the face of enormous precipices and nearly precipitous slopes, is even more dangerous for equestrians than are the rude native paths.”
Later, after finishing the Shimla-Kalka road Lord Dalhousie gloated:
"I returned to Simla by the new road, which I commenced one year ago, and which when it shall be finished will not be surpassed, I flatter myself, by any mountain road in the world".
The finished road of 56 miles was a boon to the Sud/Sood commercial aspirations. With wheeled traffic on the road, they would get supplies to Shimla in three days as opposed to 12 days via Nadaun & Bilaspur. Transportation costs would be less hence products arriving in Shimla would be cheaper.
With the completion of this road a lot more British entrepreneurs from Agra, Delhi & Calcutta began opening up branch operations in Shimla.
Aggarawala community of near plains began opening retail operations in Shimla. Lack of road had prevented them from starting operations earlier.
1857 Shimla and the Sud/Sood Community
The 1857 Mutiny[9] was great event in the five thousand years Indian History. In historical terms this event could be described as comparable to Mohamed of Ghor setting foot in India in 1191-92 AD or Babur coming to India in 1525 AD. Although the British had managed to unite all of India under one rule in last one hundred years, yet its high-handed capture had irritated most of the masses. Over one hundred years since Plassey (1757), the British Indian army was the face of India. All cross-sections of the society were represented in it. Any displeasure of the masses became the displeasure of the army. This current situation spilled over into an open rebellion when the unpleasant task of using (cow & pig) greased bullets for their rifles fell upon them. A Brahmin named Mangal Pandey on April 8, 1857 was hanged for revolting and inciting revolt for refusing to use the bullets supplied. Hardly did the British know that hanging would spark a revolt. Unrest spread to Meerut, Ambala, Lucknow, Barrackpore, Delhi, Agra, Kanpur, Allahabad, Jhansi, Ajmer and many other towns. From April till September in 1857, the situation was out of control. A few thousand British soldiers were unable to control two hundred thousand Indian soldiers. The former triumphed ultimately because the Indian soldiers lacked a credible leader and few of the Indian soldiers, mostly from Cis-Sutlej region remained loyal to the British. Cut off from supplies, the Mutineers, fell one by one to the British guns. The captured local leaders were blown up with 12-pounder guns in full public view as a lesson to the others. Palaces like Red Fort and many other princely palaces were looted by the British. Slowly the rebel soldiers surrendered and the Mutiny was over.
Shimla was at front and centre during the currency of this event. The news of the Mutiny reached General George Anson, the Commander-in-Chief in Shimla two days later via a horse despatch rider from Ambala. There were about a thousand British citizens in Shimla when the news of trouble in Meerut arrived. General Anson immediately left for the plains. But with no credible leader in Shimla, the British were at the mercy of Gorkha troops at Jutog & Kasauli, who had sided with the rebellion and captured the treasury and the armoury. Panic spread in mostly British women and children who remained in Shimla. The local princes sided with the British and gave women & children shelter. They also persuaded the Gorkha troops to relent, to which they agreed. Towards the end of the year, events in the plains were coming to close with the British triumph. It was all over for the Indian aspirations of independence.
That year from business point of view was a disaster. All goods movement on Hindustan-Tibet Road to Shimla stopped. The British owned businesses shuttered their stores and left. The Bishop Cotton School halted operation as much of the British gentry left town. All construction activity came to a halt. The deserted Shimla would not recover for next two or three years from the sock it had received. The Suds/Soods unable to find customers for their goods and services also thinned out of Shimla. They returned to their home villages and waited out the unfolding events.
Once the British were confident that they had hanged all the leaders in every city, they rejoiced and began returning to Shimla. Now they had the newly built road to make their travel easier. The Suds/Soods also returned. This time they brought a much bigger crop of new entrants to Shimla. From now onwards the Suds/Soods Shimla and Sarkar would be synonymous.
In 1857-58 Britain became the largest colonial power. It had conquered all of India and there was none to match it in the world. It was also Queen Victoria's era. She had been ruling Briton since 1837. The conservative Victorian era was at its zenith when Britons were gloating with the poem, penned earlier and put to music during her era “Rule, Britannia, Rule the waves; Britons never will be slaves.” It was coming out true as Britain's sun was never setting. They had beaten all the other colonial powers of Europe and got over the loss of American territories (1775-83), because they now had India to exploit.
India in 1860 was all quite. Losses of Mutiny had been counted and tears shed, but of no avail. The British had taken this oppourtunity to hang leaders & sympathisers under the pretext of mutiniers. Hence for several decades to come, Indian masses were without a credible leader until Gandhi arrived on the scene early in the twentieth century. One lesson learnt from 1857 war was that the next war of independence would be a peaceful one. Immediate task at hand for the British was to govern 220 million people with diverse ethnicity. Although the British took care to eliminate the leadership of the country yet it was facing the problem of unifing and governing it. One benefit of the Mutiny (First War of Independence) was that the rabble rouser Christian missionaries had gone and now the Crown was ruling by a remote control thru a Viceroy. Queen Victoria in 1877 had declared herself as the Empress of India, hence with that there was nothing more left for the British to do in India. Bigger problems in Europe were looming for them. Across the English Channel, German Chancellor Bismark (1860-90) had made his presence felt and most of Europe was afraid of him. The rivallery between France and Britain had vanished but a new one with the Germans had emerged. At home, their was industrial unrest with unjust exploitation of labour.
In India other than battles for a few forts on Afghanistan border, the British wished to go back to slumber. This was the era when, Britain sat down to transfer massive amount of wealth from India to Britain via trade imbalances. With textiles in Bengal completely wiped out in favour of imports, they turned their attention to wipe out the agricultural surplus. Capital to agriculture was denied, as most was leaving its shores to England. One by one they politely replaced Indian manufactured goods with imports and would jail anybody who interfered with their policy. Hence in twenty years after 1857, they were transferring close to a billion dollar a year in 1860 dollar value to England. The country began to have a look of poverty with famine visiting it many times from 1857 to 1945. As the country was reeling under loss of capital, there was no shortage of pomp and show at official functions. This was clearly visible at Shimla. In 1864 Lord Sir John Lawrence declared Shimla the summer capital of India. From that day onwards, the government would move back and forth to Calcutta and Shimla twice a year. This move would add about 1,400 British citizens and about 6,000 others to the Shimla population every summer. Population base at Shimla would grow from about 7,600 in 1868 to 13,200 in 1881. The forgoing was business opportunity for Suds/Soods in Shimla who numbered about 400 in 1881.
All these incoming souls in April each year had to be housed and supplied with food & clothing. There was also a massive increase in construction activities. Retail and wholesale business also took off. The overjoyed Suds/Soods began to bet big on business outlook. The successive Deputy Commissioners and Municipal Committee of Shimla began to segregate the population base into native and European areas. Areas they liked were declared out of bound for the natives. They merrily built cottages and Bungalows all along the six miles of the Mall Road. The latter itself had a country road look with just enough room for horse drawn carriage to negotiate. In 1866 there were 290 British Bungalows/Houses completed. It was quite a jump from 100 in 1841. By 1881 there would be 1141 completed.
But temporarily, they did not disturb the haphazardly growing retail Upper Bazaar on the Ridge until 1876. Other entrepreneurs of Indian origin were encouraged to set up enterprises at "Lower Bazaar" and Edward Gunj. By 1864, there were 100 Sud/Sood businessmen in Shimla, by 1881; there numbers had escalated to 400. All of them were involved in one business or the other. They were also shipping supplies to the population base along the Hindustan-Tibet Road. It was a business opportunity galore for Suds/Soods in Shimla.
New Sud/Sood Faces Arriving in Shimla, Post 1864
The influx of Suds/Soods to Shimla from 1861 onwards never abated. Most came to explore opportunities; others came with money to set up their own new enterprises. To gain experience, they began to work behind the counter as employee for some already established entrepreneurs; others invested and became partners in established firms. The original Sud/Sood bunch of four was now middle-aged men and was also searching for additional help. They preferred help from within the family and relatives. Most of their cousins arriving, after a bit of training, were sent to man the weigh stations they had established in and around Shimla where produce was weighed and the farmer paid on the spot. These owners were independent franchisee under the loose control of the main commission agents at the Edward Gunj. The commission agent would set price he would pay to the weigh station owner, which determined price the farmer would get for his produce. Within a short span there were about ten weigh stations in and around Shimla. They were shipping the collected produce to seven commission agents in the Gunj Market. Some of the produce from the vicinity came directly to the Gunj Market also. In a given day the Shimla population base of say 10,000 souls would require about 300 Maunds[1] of fresh vegetables and potatoes. During summer influx of the Britishers and their clerks, the requirement of fresh produce almost doubled. The local farmers had begun to plant that much potatoes and vegetables yet any shortage was purchased in Ambala and shipped to Shimla on the newly built road.
The 10-12,000 resident of Shimla by 1876 were dependent upon the commission agents for their supplies as well as produce. By 1881, Shimla area was a major producer of this commodity. The farmer now was a happy lot as he got the ready cash for his produce at the weigh station, which improved his economic lot. This economic advantage spread all along the Hindustan-Tibet Road. As its cultivation grew Sud/Soods merchants spread their tentacles to as far as the farmers needed them. It was an opportunity Suds/Soods were waiting for to penetrate the interior. In this way the new faces arriving in Shimla were kept gainfully employed by the commission agents.
Prosperity Back in Kangra/Jaswan Villages
Sud/Sood population in Kangra as reported by Gazetteer of Kangra District of 1883-84 was 5,775 of which 2,880 were males and 2805 were females[2]. All of them were Hindus. Leaving aside women, children and old men, there were about 2,000 able bodied males engaged in professions from trade, wholesaling, store owners, money lenders and local commission agents (Aarhatiis) etc. Of these about 400 were in Shimla. Much of this population base was of a prosperous kind. In their one hundred years existence in Jaswan/Kangra they had changed from being refugees to business owners. The poor people of Jaswan were too poor to be their good clients; hence Shimla opportunity was God sent blessing for them. Now high prosperity was within reach.
In the middle of nineteenth century it was customary in any business and trade related businesses away from hometown that you leave your families behind and return every now and then. Rest of the family takes care of your family back home as long as you return and enrich them with cash. If a father has two or three sons, he would like one of them to engage locally in the profession, he would send the others to a city to earn money. Extra money earned by the latter enriched the whole family. With the opening of Shimla in the last 30 years, young men were crowding over to go there as a preferred choice. In this way the population of able-bodied men was distributed around in various activities.
As success came their way, the first thing that came to their mind was to build palatial homes for their families, which they did. The villages of Pargpur, Girlie, Rakkar, Pirsaluhi, Dehra, Dharamsala, Nagrota etc. are testament of that. Homes in these villages, almost all belonging to Suds/Soods are of unique kind with three floors, built of stone and slate roof with a stone courtyard. For safety, these were built in groups. These homes are testament of their high status and prosperous living. Women, children and old men stayed at home as young men went to work in far flung places. Every year they returned with money, gold and silver which the brother(s) who was left behind used it to lend money or undertake bigger business undertakings. The social nature of this arrangement was never ideal in the end. Fights about the money happened in most families. Hence they separated and built a new larger house and undertook bigger and larger business deals. This was not always successful and also resulted in pain and bankruptcies. The forgoing was not a common sight but happened occasionally and became a lesson for the future generations.
Men who came to Shimla earned more money, as it was a growing town with the British as the masters. To succeed you needed luck as well as right connections. If you entered the line of business, which was an urgent requirement, chances of success were greater. Other than grain import and commission agencies, professions in greater demand were: hardware and timber trade, wool trade originating from Tibet and supply agents (Modis) to the British and Indian princes. All of these required high start-up capital and connections; hence a number of them pooled their resources together and started the supply businesses. This was very common. Already established businessmen preferred Young and promising entrepreneurs to join them.
Transfer of Power by the Four Original Sud/Sood Partners - (1842-1861)
Since the original partners Nidha, Surdha, Jalla & Nihala by 1861 were about fifty years old men; they were considering transfer of working control to the next generation. They wished a smother transfer, hence planned accordingly. By 1861, all of them had involved their children in the business. That was the norm at that time, even if the children were young adults. In their mind they thought that the supply and commission agency business was the best for Shimla. Hence they had taken leases for three other locations in Edward Gunj in 1846, 1856 and 1861. At that time they were pre-emptying competition from the other communities. After the completion of Hindustan-Tibet road, other communities were threatening competition and they had local British Administration support, hence the four Sud/Sood partners took additional leases to dominate the market. Two competitors from Bilaspur and other four from Kalka/Ambala had also taken leases. In total there were 10 commission agents (Aarhatiis) in Shimla, eight of them in Gunj Bazaar and two in surrounding areas, which later would be named as Lakkar Bazaar and Boileauganj. All the first four partners although connected thru financially, gave an appearance of competition. The British knew about these arrangements and a few others in the market place may also have known but it was not a common knowledge. Deputy Commissioner Lord W.M. Hays of early 1860s did not mind this as long as they operated under different names, which they were and did not give the appearance of monopoly.
The original location at Edward Gunj belonged to a partnership of Lala Nidha Mall & his associates. This business at this location had been in operation since 1836, the name and registration of this partnership was undertaken in about 1842-43. All the four partners had equal share in it. Partners also ran the other three locations there. Also, Surdha Mall and his family ran the first location in the Upper Mall since 1832-33 vintages. Long before diversification, they had realized that presence of the owner at each location was essential; hence they had split up responsibilities with each running a particular location. As mentioned Nidha Mall ran the first location in the Edward Gunj. Later Nidha Mall's son joined the partnership in 1860s and it was renamed as Lala Nidha Mall and Sons. (Years later it would be renamed as Lala Nidha Mall Puran Mall. Later after the grant of title of Rai Sahib to Lala Puran Mall, a new partnership emerged with the name Rai Sahib Puran Mall & Son.) Lala Nidha Mull left his other sons back at Jaswan. They were needed to look after family interests there. One big thing in their mind was to relocate to another town from Garlie as expanding family was running out of places to build palatial houses in Girlie. Their eye was on land the Raja of Jaswan had granted them much earlier. With profits from Shimla operations, and peace after complete British victory in 1857, the whole clan en-mass moved to the new location of Haroli/Raulia near Una in Jaswan. Hence Nidha Mall had wisely decided to leave his other sons back home to look after the family interests.
Other three partners also had named three locations after their own names and had involved their children in their businesses. They pooled their resources privately and outwardly gave the impression of competition. The retail operation at the Upper Bazaar stayed as is as a partnership of four but under Surdha Mall's control. It was a profitable operation; hence they wished not to mess with it.
Now the partners jointly and separately were looking to make bigger and bigger deals.
The European portion of the Upper Bazaar[3] was expanding too. They were servicing about a thousand well placed Englishmen & Europeans by 1871. The latter would buy anything from high-end textiles to jewellery; shoes, hats and other fancy merchandise. There was one minor problem; most of them left at the start of the winter hence business dropped to nil for 4-5 months. Although the British gentry were happy with high-end high-flying merchandise at the Upper Bazaar yet they turned to Suds/Soods for their food on the table. They got their meat items from the local butchers thru M/s Hamilton & West but for everything else they turned to the Suds/Soods. The forgoing was an opportunity, which cannot be left unexploited. As the need for regular supplies grew in 1870s, the Suds/Soods explored the idea of filling orders on demand and collecting monies once a month on presentation of the bill. The Suds/Soods were prepared to wait for their payments as long as the British customers did not go elsewhere for supplies. In other words they wished monopoly and would become Modis (Master Grocers) for this high society. It was a prestigious line of work and needed a more dynamic type of person to run it from one or their location. After careful deliberation, their choice fell on Puran Mall, who since coming to Shimla at the age of 17 was showing signs of greater maturity and business acumen. He like his father and father's associates would go to Kalka/Ambala to pick up supplies and travel on Ekkas with merchandise to Shimla. Whenever the British had dealings with him, they found him honest and dynamic. Other children of the other partners were equally dynamic and would go on assignments to the princely states to make deals, but dealing with the British they picked Puran Mall to spearhead the operation.
Modi (The Master Grocer) Business Takes off
One key element for the supply business (Master Grocer) to succeed was the location. Their target customer base shopped at the Upper Bazaar and would not come to the unhygienic Edward Gunj. Although the Deputy Commissioner from time to time would order clean up, but the nature of business was such that hygiene was hard to maintain. Hence the four partners decided to conduct the master grocer operation from their retail operation in the Upper Bazaar. To the customers also, this was a convenient location to place their orders and check on the quality of supplies. Hence for Puran Mall to conduct this business successfully, he had to locate himself at the Upper Bazaar. He would be assisted by a number of employees.
To begin operation like the one they had in mind; the firm of Nidha Mull Puran Mull had to open a bank account, maintain a perfect service record and honesty at every level of operation. In addition they must readily get supplies or items, which the customer wished and as soon as possible. Hence they needed dealings with a lot of suppliers in Ambala, Lahore, Delhi and Agra. With their known honest dealings in the past and ample display of customer service, quite a few suppliers in the plains were prepared to deal with them. Hence the first act to become master grocers to the British gentry they renewed all their contacts. Second, they registered the business under the name of Nidha Mull Puran Mull. Also a bank account followed. Later Puran Mull and another partner went to suppliers to negotiate future supplies. These suppliers would prefer cash on delivery, which meant that somebody had to travel to them in person to pick up goods and pay cash. Alternative was to deal thru a bank. The latter i.e. dealing thru a bank was acceptable to the suppliers. Hence in the future, the bill of lading would be sent thru the bank and the bank (for a fee), would collect money on goods delivered. It was a win-win situation for the future king of supply in Shimla, although it would add to the working capital required to start the business yet additional capital was never the issue.
By early seventies, the master grocer (Modi) business took off after a slow start of first three years. It was a period when learning to deal with the British, their customer service habits and their likes & dislikes were to be known to be successful. Young Puran Mall was going thru the paces and learning them all.
Puran Mull and his father needed additional qualified help to run this business. They went back to their home villages to pick up promising young talent. Cousins' even if distant cousins were preferred as long as they had the usual business skills. If they knew business accounting and were well versed in reading and writing both vernacular (Tankri) and Urdu/Persian, they would be a preferred. A Master Grocer dealing with the British had to keep the books differently. He had to maintain account of all the orders received by date and by name, account for all deliveries and at month end make paper statement to be presented to each client for payment. Hence other than salesmanship, auctioneering and money collection skills the new entrants needed customer service skills also.
A number of candidates emerged with these qualifications. Some of them showed up in Shimla for employment. One amongst them was a young man from Pirsaluhi, a distant cousin of Puran Mall with the name Buta Mall[4]. At eighteen years of age he showed up at Shimla in 1873. He was given a job with a wage of Rupees four per month as a helper to the morning auctioneers. In three years he would make his talent known as an accountant and as an administrator of diverse activities at the enterprise. Hence he was overdue for promotion. The latter happened immediately after the fire of 1875/76 when the business was relocated to the Lower Bazaar/Edward Gunj.
Other cousins also joined the operation and all of them were given different assignments.
Other Sud/Sood Businesses in the Upper Bazaar -1876/1899
The four hundred or so Suds/Soods in Shimla were not only grain merchants and commission agents but also involved in other enterprises, although commission agency by 1876 was the main line of business. Other Suds/Soods in Shimla included:
Sarafa Mall Rairu Mall (1876), Sunder Mall Chaudhari Mall began (1867), Rama & Co (1876 & prior), Jalla Mal Jawahar Mall (1876), Gobind Mall Chuha Ram, Mauja Mall Sant Ram, Kiru Mall Naval Kishore, Hakam Mall Tani Mall, Luder Mall Jai Bhan, Thunia Mall Ghunghar Mall, Nihala Mall enterprises; Buta Mall enterprises (popularly known as Butails) etc.[5]
Another big break occurred during the 1890s when the railway extension to Shimla was in progress. A number of timber merchants like Gopi Mall, Gajjan Mall, Hakam Mall & Tani Mall and other family enterprises emerged. At a later date they would become the front runners of a big empire of forest lessees in Shimla and elsewhere.
Success Visits the Merchants in Upper Bazaar until the Fire of 1875/1876
All Sud/Sood merchants were doing well in the Upper Bazaar. The rising population shortly after Shimla was declared as the summer capital in 1864 was the key reason. Greater the numbers, greater was the requirement of grains, fruits & vegetables and other consumables. Population in Shimla had increased dramatically in last five years. As per records of July 1869 - 14,848 souls lived in Shimla (of which 1,434 were European) - (Imperial Gazetteer Of India 1887 Volume 12). This population was a dramatic increase from estimated 6-7,000 in 1861. Housing construction had seen a rise as more and more homes were built. The native population mostly lived in hotchpotch housing on the southern slopes. The British upper class society lived in a scattered cottages/bungalows all along the Mall Road. The Viceroy had himself moved to Peterhoff (Lord Elgin was first to move there in 1863). That set the tone for future high-end construction. All the high officials of the Raj would occupy a spot where the view was best and land was in plentiful and start building there. They would seek all other official permissions and clearances later. Shimla Municipal Committee was making sure that the natives did not begin housing in areas reserved for the Europeans.
The newly arrived natives who were either businessmen or labour lived either in or around Upper Bazaar until 1875/76 or on the southern slopes without an organized housing. Shimla Municipal Committee wished to set it right. As stated earlier, the British wished better-organized bazaars & housing and they had a plan in mind. They would not act on this plan unless forced to act. By mid 1870s, Shimla had developed an acute water shortage. All the springs and Baolis in the area were unable to cope with the sudden influx of people. Alternative was to pipe water to Shimla from streams in the vicinity. One source seven miles away would require a tank in Sanjauli and a tank in Shimla. There was no problem locating the Sanjauli Tank, but locating Shimla tank was a big problem. AS said earlier in the text, most suitable of all spots was where the native Upper Bazaar was located. Shimla Municipal Committee wanted this area badly but could not have it, until an act of God (or deliberate) started a fire on May 16, 1875 in a British owned enterprise. It spread quickly and engulfed the whole area. In a day of burning, it reduced the whole bazaar to a heap of cinder. People cried especially who lost everything in the fire. The Government promised to help, provided the Bazaar for the natives is moved elsewhere. So much so that the Shimla Municipal Committee President prohibited re-building by the natives in the area.
Worst affected were the Suds/Soods. They all had operations in the Upper Bazaar which they could not rebuild. Promised area, segregated by race, ethnicity and profession was on the southern slopes. In the midst of despair, the British began to extend the motley existing Lower Bazaar and Middle Bazaar (planning of Chor Bazaar- Ram Bazaar was far away). This Lower Bazaar where the natives would shop in the future would be centred just above the Edward Gunj. As a starter a 20-foot wide road would be built. It would be carved out of the mountain face. This was about 5-700 yards long road directly connected to the Edward Gunj. It began where the western end of the ingress to the Edward Gunj was located and ended where the eastern end of the ingress ended. A mule path connected it to the Boileauganj in the west and a dirt pathway connected it to the Churail Baoli in the east. The British plan was not to connect it to the Mall shopping promenade. The only connection this bazaar had with the Mall was thru difficult pathways on the mountain slopes.
As an act of goodwill, Shimla Municipal Committee paid compensation to all who lost their property and merchandize on the Upper Mall. Business owner with government help began building on land allocated to them in the newly planned Lower Bazaar. First the construction was shabby, but with the setting up of a new brick kiln works, well made shop-cum-flat appeared. Within three years the Lower Bazaar began to take shape.
In the fire episode, the British had the Upper Bazaar for themselves and very cleverly ejected the natives out of there. It is said that the present panoramic view of the snow-covered mountains owes its debt to vacating the upper Bazaar completely. It may be true but was not part of the plan.
Suds/Soods relocate to the Lower Bazaar & elsewhere
Post fire episode, the Suds/Soods had only two choices, the first to accept the British offer and relocate to the Lower Bazaar/Edward Gunj. Second choice was to leave town and relocate to Chota Shimla and Boileauganj area or within the city limits, relocate to Lakkar Bazaar. Land was allocated to build and no one was denied this municipal allocation. They were discouraged to build temporary structures, but that is what they built initially. Later these were replaced with brick, stone and mortar construction. With the availability of the corrugated sheets, much of the roofs were built with that. The heights of the structures were limited to two floors. It was a carefully arrived conclusion, as building anything higher than 30 feet on a 45-degree sloped mountain would block the sunlight of the buildings behind them. The construction was designed in such a way that the ground floor opened directly to the newly built road.
These newly built shop-cum-flat had diversified businesses. These included grain retailers, textiles sellers, general merchandisers, leather goods stores and any items, which the native population needed. By about 1880s this construction work was complete. Municipal Committee realizing that hygiene had to be maintained at all cost, dug up drains, laid sewage pipes and made provision for future fresh water piping which was coming in next few years. In the beginning there were not more than 75-100 shops and stores at the Lower Bazaar, but these would undergo extension on both east and west side. It ran parallel to the Mall Road and Middle Bazaar above it. As business environment improved more and more stores opened. This area later would become headquarter of shopping for locals of Shimla but also for people coming from Shimla Hills (Mahasu District).
Fearing native interference with their own shopping on the Mall, the British refused it to be connected to the Mall Road both on east as well as west side. The only connection between the two was thru pathways used previously to descend and climb from the Edward Gunj to the Ridge.
Another major fire incident of a wooden structure, which housed British owned businesses right in front of the Telegraph Office on the Mall, forced the reconstruction of the burnt out building with stone and mortar. To connect the ground floors of this new building, the Municipal Committee was left with no choice but to extend the Lower Bazaar road and connect it to the Mall. This how the west end of the Lower Bazaar got connected to the Mall. The eastern end had to wait a while before it is connected to the Mall.
Others, who preferred to relocate at the Edward Gunj, were mostly grain dealers and grocers. The Edward Gunj was further extended to lease additional space hence it extended as far above as the Lower Bazaar on both sides. The Middle Bazaar, which was above the Lower Bazaar, had a great beginning but the Municipality developed cold feet. Its proximity to the European shopping district bothered them. Hence they halted its extension after its promising start.
The Mall shopping promenade of about a mile and a bit was given 100% European look. By 1880, Britain had become rich country. It had so many colonies to loot. Manufactured goods of the British factories were everywhere in India, Shimla including. This shopping mile would have British owned stores, selling British made goods to mostly to Britishers. Its construction was not unique, it followed the pattern of European shopping design with large show windows for display, and glass counters to conduct business and no more than two floors height. For India it was a unique design. Countless writers have discussed its uniqueness. Edward J Buck writing in 1905 says it all (he quoted another author about thirty years earlier):
" What cannot be purchased at Simla? Here is an abstract of the business portion of Simla, and as the wares are displayed in a most tempting manner to the eyes of passers-by on the Mall, what wonder that the number of ' jhampanis[6] ' are numerous at almost every shop at the time of 'eating the air' in the evening."
Chapter 11: More Suds/Soods Enterpresises Take shape in Shimla - (1843 - 1861)
Chapter
11
More
Sud/Sood Enterprises Take Shape in Shimla - (1843-61)
Roadmap of future expansion of commerce in Shimla and in the hill states was handicapped by lack of communications. The British were eager to grab the wool trade, as it no longer followed the River Beas to Kangra. Maharaja Ranjit Singh had forced it via Ladakh into his own territory but the British planned to re-route it back but not thru Kangra but thru Shimla. That was one of the original route wool followed for centuries. Before this could be done, communications to Tibet via Shimla, Bushahar had to be improved. Hence planning was at the advance stages, first to re-route the Kalka (Pinjore)-Shimla road for the wheeled traffic, second extend this road all the way to the Tibet border.
The two Political Officers Kennedy (1822-35), Tapp (1836-42) had done their best to improve this road. They would routinely requisition roadwork labour (called Begari) along the new route and consider it Rajah's responsibility to pay them. It was part of the treaty documents, which the Rajahs had signed with the British in 1830. The Rajahs were bitterly complaining about this high handedness to the higher officers, but nobody was listening. At places all along from Kalka-Bushahar, the road was making progress for wheeled traffic, but it was still a primitive effort.
A few strategic changes were taking place in the area also. The British in 1842 fixed Sabathu as the principal cantonment for their own troops[1]. They transferred all Gorkha units to Jutog. This was in preparation for the upcoming Anglo-Sikh war. This transfer would prove to be their undoing as during the 1857 Mutiny[2], these Gorkha units would mutiny and lay siege to the white population in Shimla. Docile Gorkhas then relented and lifted the siege and the British women & children left the town.
Another administrative change occurred because of the above, that the job of political officer was split in 1842-43, and J Erskine was appointed as Deputy Commissioner of Shimla & the hill states with head quarters in Shimla and another serving military officer was given the independent charge of Sabathu garrison. The new Deputy Commissioner in J Erskine was no pushover; although he did not have the same bent towards commerce as his predecessors had yet with Anglo-Sikh war looming he had a lot of cajoling to do to the hill rajahs to keep them out of this fight.
The Suds/Soods seeing the British preoccupied went on a mission to explore the interior of Shimla Hill states, which they previously had not done. Nidha and Surdha went to Bushahar and met the Rajah their. Nihala and Jalla met the Rajah of Jubbal. Both these Rajahs presented contrasting personalities. Where as the Rajah of Jubbal wished the Suds/Soods to come to his state, the Bushahar King needed a lot more cajoling over a longer period of time to welcome them in his state. Hence the Nidha and Surdha concluded that they would become part of the wool trade only if the British wished so, not at the behest of the Rajah. On the other hand Rajah of Jubbal wished to exploit his only asset i.e. timber and hence wished to use the Suds/Soods for the purpose.
During this time of uncertainty, the four Sud/Sood partners stayed put at Shimla and waited for opportunities to emerge.
The above strategic and military changes in Shimla's fortunes did not discourage other fortune seekers from Kangra/Jaswan arriving in Shimla, seeking fortune. Young Sud/Sood men without previous warning began arriving at Shimla. Artisans seeking better opportunities were arriving to build houses and other private and public buildings. Hundreds of porters/coolies began arriving from Bilaspur & Kangra district.
By 1848 there were at least three-dozen Sud/Sood boys seeking opportunities in Shimla. Their number had swelled to forty and most of them had no money and were paying guests of the four original settlers. By then Nidha and Surdha had completed the construction of their new location at Edward Gunj. They housed the new comers there. Some of them were put to work in weighing and auctioning of the local produce, which was arriving in greater amounts at the Edward Gunj. Others were sent to the interior of Shimla to seek opportunities there. A smaller number returned home to wait for opportunities to arrive at a later date.
The business at Upper Bazaar had markedly improved. There were greater numbers of shoppers there. The original Suds/Soods had expanded and had two locations there. Business at Edward Gunj also began to brighten-up, as it was the only wholesale depot for supplies arriving from Hoshiarpur. But it was expected that it would have better future, once the local produce began arriving in greater amounts. That began happening soon as the local farmers got the hang of commission agency system.
Transportation of supplies was also improving as the Suds/Soods began using wheeled bullock carts in greater numbers. A year before 1848, they used bullock cart runs, four times instead of regular two in the previous years. A caravan of 20 carts carried a lot more grain/flour than mules' train of fifty mules. Both had their perils. A bullock cart travelled slow, but carried six times more than what a single mule could carry. Lately the danger of supply pilferage had increased hence they had put two Sud/Sood boys to act as security guards on top of the mule herder and bullock cart drivers travelling with the caravan. They were stationed at Nadaun and Bilaspur and travelled with the caravan all along. Wild animal danger was also of great concern. The travel especially from Bilaspur to Shimla was full of jaguars, snakes, panthers and other wild animals. An incident related thru the generations is narrated below:
There were hidden
dangers in their journey, which could not be anticipated. In one of their last
segment of travel, a snake bit one of the Sud/Sood boys. A dangerous situation
developed, as there was no cure for this type of incident. They could not tell
whether the snake was harmless grass snake or a more poisonous kind. With no
help possible the other Sud/Sood boy hit upon an idea. He knew that, if the
snake were poisonous, he would have dropped dead within the hour or two. But if
it is a non-poisonous kind then no big harm has been done. He convinced the boy
who had been bitten and the rest of the caravan to carry on. He told them that
at the Devi Temple near Shimla, a certain Brahmin has a God's gift to suck the
poison out (this has been said many times in Indian mythology). Hence the
sooner they get to him the better it is. Shimla was about a day's march from
the place of the incident; hence the whole caravan quickened its pace to reach
the Temple sooner. All the time the
other boy kept a constant watch on him. Nothing bad happened for the first couple
of hours. By then they were convinced that the snake probably was of the
non-poisonous kind. Still they kept their pace and kept their opinions to
themselves. A day later when they were at the outskirts of Shimla, they noticed
that the boy, who had been bitten, looked healthy, they knew that the danger
has passed. They let the caravan proceed but two of them headed to the Temple.
They waited for the Brahmin to do the Puja of the affected area and among the
other things bandaged the area. They both waited for the night at the temple.
Additional help from Shimla also arrived. They all joined in the prayer in the
evening. Next day the affected boy woke up and found everything all right. That
is when the Brahmin and the other Sud/Sood boy told him that they had just
tricked him. If it were a poisonous snake, he would be dead by now. Since he is
alive and well, the danger has passed.
Business Takes-off at Edward Gunj
Until 1844-45, there were only one wholesale cum commission agency in operation at Shimla. The local farmers had got used to the agency concept and had begun bringing their produce to the Gunj. During the summer, the farmers brought potato, vegetables and any other produce either on farmers back in "Kiltas"[3] or on mules. The retailers, boarding house owners, and other homeowners would come everyday to pick up whatever they needed. The rising population ensured that everything was sold quickly. That ensured good business at the Sud/Sood enterprise. At times the farmer wished to explore competition, but there was none. This was affecting the farmer's confidence in one commission agency. Hence the British wished to create a controlled competition by inviting other communities from the plains to relocate to Shimla. Concerned about the competition, the Suds/Soods made one of the arriving men from the their villages to open a commission agency in competition to them but dealing not in imported supplies from Hoshiarpur but in local produce only. They lent him money to get started and helped him get lease for the space. A year later they obtained one additional lease in Edward Gunj for themselves. By the beginning of 1846/47 seasons there were three commission agents but only one wholesaler. The farmer now picked a choice of going to one or the other. The same was true for the buyer. Each of the other agencies had also their start up capital borrowed from them. In a way the four original partners were full-fledged bankers.
With successful operation in 1846/47, they started to think in terms of retail operation at Edward Gunj also. But getting a lease proved to be difficult. The Deputy Commissioner did not wish retail operation there. But a season later he relented and granted two more retail leases. These retail operations they would keep to employ Sud/Sood boys arriving from their villages. In all, they had three operations in Edward Gunj and two in the Upper Bazaar. In total about 40 people were employed in all these enterprises. Twelve others were employed to run the transportation business and man new stores opened in Jutog, Sanjauli and Mashobra. The latter three also acted as weighing stations for farmer's produce from farther than 5-6 miles. These weighing stations then shipped via mules to Shimla. This innovation in operation created a network to collect and sell local produce. In next several decades this network would become the most successful operation.
Sir William Edwards becomes the Deputy Commissioner (1848-52)
He was reformist for some and scourge for the others. He did his best to reform the "Begar"[4] system in the hills. Old practices die-hard and if they had to be abolished then the people had to rebel against it. William Edward was no reformer but a civil servant. The best Edwards could do then was to pay for labour in the British territories, which his predecessors had refused. That was an incremental improvement. He expected the same elsewhere but his vision ran into resistance, as the princely states were not ready to dump the practice all together as yet. At Kuthar, Keonthal, Theog, Khaneti, Kumarsain, Dhami (as per MS Ahluwalia) etc. saw a rebellion against it (1895-1937). That is when these practices were discontinued. That was long after William Edwards was at Shimla as Deputy Commissioner. But still Edwards have endeared himself to some modern writers. On the other hand he is described as a domineering personality who wished to upset the apple cart by interfering with the steady flow of commerce to Shimla. Hence the business community, especially Suds/Soods called him a scourge.
Somehow William Edwards figured that the commission agents were overpricing the local produce as well as the wholesale grain arriving from the plains. That may be true, but in his calculations he ignored the cost of transportation, physical risks, financial risks and market conditions in the plains where post British victory over the Sikhs (1848-49) the balance of power had been upset. The latter had resulted in prices shooting up two fold. Hence he decided to side step the commission agents and go into the commission agency business himself. His other motivation to do what he did was to raise some revenue for the newly formed Shimla Municipal Committee (1851). He ordered the closure of the commission agencies for those reasons. Although, the commission agents were instrumental in getting the produce to the market yet he figured that 6% commission (one Anna per Rupee) they charged was too high. Not being a businessman, Edwards had created a monster and a business mess. He appointed municipally approved weighers and auctioneers to replace the operation conducted by the Suds/Soods. Edwards would supervise the operation himself from time to time. The weigher was under strict instructions not to breach his rules. He once levied a huge fine of Rupees 40 on one of the weigher for not being present for the service. That was year 1850, when it all happened. The Suds/Soods and others for the time being were out of the commission agency but not out of business.
Whether it had any impact on the prices locally, has not been recorded anywhere. But his stupidity of involving government in a strictly private enterprise has been laughed at thru the generations.
Not to be left out, the Suds/Soods and other wholesalers adopted other tactics. By 1850/51, they had their tentacles spread fairly wide in Shimla area. They had operations in Jutog, Sanjauli and Mashobra. Thus they began conducting their business in greater earnest at these locations and prevented more than half of the produce from reaching the government weighing station in Shimla.
For three years this cat and mouse game was played between commission agents and William Edwards. As a punishment he stopped granting leases at the weighing locations also. Later he got this area renamed as Edward Gunj[5]. The commission agents and wholesalers were in no hurry. They would wait until Edwards is out. This impacted a few new comers who were planning a move to Shimla. The Aggarawal community from Ambala also developed cold feet after learning about Edward's actions.
The forgoing did not impact the supplies and transportation business in Suds/Soods hands. They were very good at it, hence continued as usual.
Realising that in three years he had failed both in curbing the prices and putting the Suds/Soods and others out of business, he wished to do away with the system, but waited for his successor to do that. His successor William Hays in 1852 in his first act, withdrew the municipal weighing system from the Edward Gunj. He started granting additional leases in that area too. William Hays was relying on competition to keep prices in check. In this dispute the Suds/Soods had come out ahead. They had successfully compromised the municipal weighing system but also bypassed it by locating dealers on the incoming routes to Shimla. Hence the commission agency business had survived a major assault by a mislead government officer.
Edward Gunj[6]
As described before the Edward Gunj in 1836 was the small clearing on the sunny southern slopes of Shimla, where Lt/Major Kennedy and Col Tapp had wished the mule trains unloaded. Their additional suggestion was that the Suds/Soods build a warehouse in the vicinity. There, on the 45-degree slope, a water stream and a flat ground existed that was enough space to build a mule/horse enclosure. Additional ground could be cleared to build shops and stores. The mule enclosure was essentially to protect the load carrying animals from the wild animals at night. Kennedy/Tapp also promised to provide an access way for the mules to reach this spot. At their own expense they would also clear the additional area of trees and level the uneven place. In return the Suds/Soods would build their own warehouse on the leased space.
Within a year or two, the British persuaded the Suds/Soods to begin conducting bulk business from there. Soon the mule/horse service men also moved into this area. (Some animals after difficult travel required being re-shoed). Later Colonel Tapp turned it into a profitable enterprise by demanding yearly lease charges in advance. In turn the government continuously improve the services including access roads both in the east as well in the west.
Within ten years after the first establishment opened its doors at the new location, there were five more. Three of them were sponsored by the original Sud/Sood bunch. Two others came from Bilaspur area. They soon converted this space into auction cum commission agency for the local produce. As the farmers in the area got the feel of better prices by auction, they slowly began to flock to the place. An average 50-60 Kilta carrying farmers would show up initially during the formative years, later by 1861, that number had multiplied four fold.
The real impetus to this bazaar (Edward Gunj) came in 1876 when the Upper Bazaar burnt down and the British prohibited native reconstruction in that area. They mandated that all native retail operations relocate to the new bazaar(s) the Lower Bazaar or the Edward Gunj. They also mandated that the grain businesses both wholesale and retail, relocate to the new Edward Gunj. Later retailers preferred to locate themselves to the Lower Bazaar and made Edward Gunj into the wholesale trade hub. The latter not only would supply 14,000 Shimla residents in 1881 but also shipped grain and other foodstuff to the hill states too.
The Sanatan Dharam Mandir in the area was built in 1889 to meet the spiritual needs of the residents. Later Sanatan Dharam School was added to the area.
The area always remained in the hands of Shimla Municipal Committee, which from time to time rebuilt it and improved it. As its importance grew and supplies shipment to the princely states exceeded expectations then the Lower Bazaar Tunnel was built to route the mule traffic to the Longwood Loop directly in 1905.
As the business in Edward Gunj kept growing, there was a huge influx of porters/coolies to Shimla. They came from Kashmir (Hatoes) and Jats from the plains of Punjab (Pale Daar). In early twenties of the last century, the porter population was about one third of the total population of Shimla (that included rickshaw pullers also). To limit that influx of porters, the Shimla Municipal Committee built a ropeway in about 1930 from "Maal Godaam" to the Edward Gunj to directly lift supplies to the main market. It was dismantled a year later as safety concerns became the issue. By mid 1930s, the British had lost jest to build anything. Indian independence movements had gained support and days of British presence in Shimla and India were numbered.
Edward Gunj or simply Gunj began loosing its importance as growing number of trucks on the Hindustan-Tibet road began bypassing Shimla. As it stands today, it reminds of a great business centre, which it was for the past 150 years.
Hindustan - Tibet Road and Re-routing Supplies from Punjab
The energetic Lord Dalhousie (Governor General) in 1847 made a daring trip to Bushahar state, to explore trade ties with Tibet and prevent Russian influence percolating any further in Tibet. He used the non-existent pathways all the way to Chinni border (Kinnaur) to travel. To make trade situation worst, the local Rajahs, since time immemorial, had used a transit tax on goods passing thru their territory. This raised them the much-needed cash. The forgoing made any further trading difficult. Lord Dalhousie concluded[7] that to improve trade potential further, a better pathway had to be built and all the transit tax and duties abolished. That is what he did soon after the collapse of Sikh Kingdom's in Punjab. The British ordered withdrawal of all duties in British and British supported territories and decided to build a 200-mile road from Kalka to Chinni. This would re-route the wool and other trade back to its original route of Shimla & Kalka.
With that urgency in mind, Lord Dalhousie ordered the construction of Phase 1 of the project i.e. re-route the Shimla-Kalka portion of the road for the wheeled traffic. Survey for this work had been undertaken from 1842-48 and work began in earnest in 1850. As stated earlier "Begar" labour was used at minimal cost to the state. The road took a slightly different route i.e. via Dharampore instead of Kasauli and followed the mountain contours to Solan and then to Kandhaghat and onwards to Shimla. In-spite of William Edwards effort to abolish "Begar" system, it was extensively used to build and re-align this new road. Lord Dalhousie handed over this work to the Commander-in-Chief Sir Charles Napier to expeditiously complete it. It would be 12 feet wide road and at places as wide as 20 feet. Two Ekkas coming from the opposite directions could cross it with ease.
First Phase of the roadwork to Shimla was completed in record time. Later work to link up to Bushahar and Chinni was undertaken at a much slower pace. It was altogether abandoned in 1858, to be undertaken at later date. Hence from Shimla to Bushahar, the road remained as a "bridle path".
In 1873 Andrew Wilson[8] traversed on this road beyond Shimla and described it as follows:
“The cut bridle-path, which has been dignified by the name of "The Great Hindustan and Tibet Road," that leads along the sides of the hills from Simla to the Narkanda Ghaut, and from Narkanda up the valley of the Sutlej to Chini (now Kalpa) and Pangay (now Pangi), is by no means so exasperating as the native paths of the inner Himalaya. It does not require one to dismount every five minutes…..Nevertheless, the cut road, running as it often does without any parapet, or with none to speak of, and only seven or eight feet broad, across the face of enormous precipices and nearly precipitous slopes, is even more dangerous for equestrians than are the rude native paths.”
Later, after finishing the Shimla-Kalka road Lord Dalhousie gloated:
"I returned to Simla by the new road, which I commenced one year ago, and which when it shall be finished will not be surpassed, I flatter myself, by any mountain road in the world".
The finished road of 56 miles was a boon to the Sud/Sood commercial aspirations. With wheeled traffic on the road, they would get supplies to Shimla in three days as opposed to 12 days via Nadaun & Bilaspur. Transportation costs would be less hence products arriving in Shimla would be cheaper.
With the completion of this road a lot more British entrepreneurs from Agra, Delhi & Calcutta began opening up branch operations in Shimla.
Aggarawala community of near plains began opening retail operations in Shimla. Lack of road had prevented them from starting operations earlier.
1857 Shimla and the Sud/Sood Community
The 1857 Mutiny[9] was great event in the five thousand years Indian History. In historical terms this event could be described as comparable to Mohamed of Ghor setting foot in India in 1191-92 AD or Babur coming to India in 1525 AD. Although the British had managed to unite all of India under one rule in last one hundred years, yet its high-handed capture had irritated most of the masses. Over one hundred years since Plassey (1757), the British Indian army was the face of India. All cross-sections of the society were represented in it. Any displeasure of the masses became the displeasure of the army. This current situation spilled over into an open rebellion when the unpleasant task of using (cow & pig) greased bullets for their rifles fell upon them. A Brahmin named Mangal Pandey on April 8, 1857 was hanged for revolting and inciting revolt for refusing to use the bullets supplied. Hardly did the British know that hanging would spark a revolt. Unrest spread to Meerut, Ambala, Lucknow, Barrackpore, Delhi, Agra, Kanpur, Allahabad, Jhansi, Ajmer and many other towns. From April till September in 1857, the situation was out of control. A few thousand British soldiers were unable to control two hundred thousand Indian soldiers. The former triumphed ultimately because the Indian soldiers lacked a credible leader and few of the Indian soldiers, mostly from Cis-Sutlej region remained loyal to the British. Cut off from supplies, the Mutineers, fell one by one to the British guns. The captured local leaders were blown up with 12-pounder guns in full public view as a lesson to the others. Palaces like Red Fort and many other princely palaces were looted by the British. Slowly the rebel soldiers surrendered and the Mutiny was over.
Shimla was at front and centre during the currency of this event. The news of the Mutiny reached General George Anson, the Commander-in-Chief in Shimla two days later via a horse despatch rider from Ambala. There were about a thousand British citizens in Shimla when the news of trouble in Meerut arrived. General Anson immediately left for the plains. But with no credible leader in Shimla, the British were at the mercy of Gorkha troops at Jutog & Kasauli, who had sided with the rebellion and captured the treasury and the armoury. Panic spread in mostly British women and children who remained in Shimla. The local princes sided with the British and gave women & children shelter. They also persuaded the Gorkha troops to relent, to which they agreed. Towards the end of the year, events in the plains were coming to close with the British triumph. It was all over for the Indian aspirations of independence.
That year from business point of view was a disaster. All goods movement on Hindustan-Tibet Road to Shimla stopped. The British owned businesses shuttered their stores and left. The Bishop Cotton School halted operation as much of the British gentry left town. All construction activity came to a halt. The deserted Shimla would not recover for next two or three years from the sock it had received. The Suds/Soods unable to find customers for their goods and services also thinned out of Shimla. They returned to their home villages and waited out the unfolding events.
Once the British were confident that they had hanged all the leaders in every city, they rejoiced and began returning to Shimla. Now they had the newly built road to make their travel easier. The Suds/Soods also returned. This time they brought a much bigger crop of new entrants to Shimla. From now onwards the Suds/Soods Shimla and Sarkar would be synonymous.
Chapter 12
Business Realignment 1861-1881
In 1857-58 Britain became the largest colonial power. It had conquered all of India and there was none to match it in the world. It was also Queen Victoria's era. She had been ruling Briton since 1837. The conservative Victorian era was at its zenith when Britons were gloating with the poem, penned earlier and put to music during her era “Rule, Britannia, Rule the waves; Britons never will be slaves.” It was coming out true as Britain's sun was never setting. They had beaten all the other colonial powers of Europe and got over the loss of American territories (1775-83), because they now had India to exploit.
India in 1860 was all quite. Losses of Mutiny had been counted and tears shed, but of no avail. The British had taken this oppourtunity to hang leaders & sympathisers under the pretext of mutiniers. Hence for several decades to come, Indian masses were without a credible leader until Gandhi arrived on the scene early in the twentieth century. One lesson learnt from 1857 war was that the next war of independence would be a peaceful one. Immediate task at hand for the British was to govern 220 million people with diverse ethnicity. Although the British took care to eliminate the leadership of the country yet it was facing the problem of unifing and governing it. One benefit of the Mutiny (First War of Independence) was that the rabble rouser Christian missionaries had gone and now the Crown was ruling by a remote control thru a Viceroy. Queen Victoria in 1877 had declared herself as the Empress of India, hence with that there was nothing more left for the British to do in India. Bigger problems in Europe were looming for them. Across the English Channel, German Chancellor Bismark (1860-90) had made his presence felt and most of Europe was afraid of him. The rivallery between France and Britain had vanished but a new one with the Germans had emerged. At home, their was industrial unrest with unjust exploitation of labour.
In India other than battles for a few forts on Afghanistan border, the British wished to go back to slumber. This was the era when, Britain sat down to transfer massive amount of wealth from India to Britain via trade imbalances. With textiles in Bengal completely wiped out in favour of imports, they turned their attention to wipe out the agricultural surplus. Capital to agriculture was denied, as most was leaving its shores to England. One by one they politely replaced Indian manufactured goods with imports and would jail anybody who interfered with their policy. Hence in twenty years after 1857, they were transferring close to a billion dollar a year in 1860 dollar value to England. The country began to have a look of poverty with famine visiting it many times from 1857 to 1945. As the country was reeling under loss of capital, there was no shortage of pomp and show at official functions. This was clearly visible at Shimla. In 1864 Lord Sir John Lawrence declared Shimla the summer capital of India. From that day onwards, the government would move back and forth to Calcutta and Shimla twice a year. This move would add about 1,400 British citizens and about 6,000 others to the Shimla population every summer. Population base at Shimla would grow from about 7,600 in 1868 to 13,200 in 1881. The forgoing was business opportunity for Suds/Soods in Shimla who numbered about 400 in 1881.
All these incoming souls in April each year had to be housed and supplied with food & clothing. There was also a massive increase in construction activities. Retail and wholesale business also took off. The overjoyed Suds/Soods began to bet big on business outlook. The successive Deputy Commissioners and Municipal Committee of Shimla began to segregate the population base into native and European areas. Areas they liked were declared out of bound for the natives. They merrily built cottages and Bungalows all along the six miles of the Mall Road. The latter itself had a country road look with just enough room for horse drawn carriage to negotiate. In 1866 there were 290 British Bungalows/Houses completed. It was quite a jump from 100 in 1841. By 1881 there would be 1141 completed.
But temporarily, they did not disturb the haphazardly growing retail Upper Bazaar on the Ridge until 1876. Other entrepreneurs of Indian origin were encouraged to set up enterprises at "Lower Bazaar" and Edward Gunj. By 1864, there were 100 Sud/Sood businessmen in Shimla, by 1881; there numbers had escalated to 400. All of them were involved in one business or the other. They were also shipping supplies to the population base along the Hindustan-Tibet Road. It was a business opportunity galore for Suds/Soods in Shimla.
New Sud/Sood Faces Arriving in Shimla, Post 1864
The influx of Suds/Soods to Shimla from 1861 onwards never abated. Most came to explore opportunities; others came with money to set up their own new enterprises. To gain experience, they began to work behind the counter as employee for some already established entrepreneurs; others invested and became partners in established firms. The original Sud/Sood bunch of four was now middle-aged men and was also searching for additional help. They preferred help from within the family and relatives. Most of their cousins arriving, after a bit of training, were sent to man the weigh stations they had established in and around Shimla where produce was weighed and the farmer paid on the spot. These owners were independent franchisee under the loose control of the main commission agents at the Edward Gunj. The commission agent would set price he would pay to the weigh station owner, which determined price the farmer would get for his produce. Within a short span there were about ten weigh stations in and around Shimla. They were shipping the collected produce to seven commission agents in the Gunj Market. Some of the produce from the vicinity came directly to the Gunj Market also. In a given day the Shimla population base of say 10,000 souls would require about 300 Maunds[1] of fresh vegetables and potatoes. During summer influx of the Britishers and their clerks, the requirement of fresh produce almost doubled. The local farmers had begun to plant that much potatoes and vegetables yet any shortage was purchased in Ambala and shipped to Shimla on the newly built road.
The 10-12,000 resident of Shimla by 1876 were dependent upon the commission agents for their supplies as well as produce. By 1881, Shimla area was a major producer of this commodity. The farmer now was a happy lot as he got the ready cash for his produce at the weigh station, which improved his economic lot. This economic advantage spread all along the Hindustan-Tibet Road. As its cultivation grew Sud/Soods merchants spread their tentacles to as far as the farmers needed them. It was an opportunity Suds/Soods were waiting for to penetrate the interior. In this way the new faces arriving in Shimla were kept gainfully employed by the commission agents.
Prosperity Back in Kangra/Jaswan Villages
Sud/Sood population in Kangra as reported by Gazetteer of Kangra District of 1883-84 was 5,775 of which 2,880 were males and 2805 were females[2]. All of them were Hindus. Leaving aside women, children and old men, there were about 2,000 able bodied males engaged in professions from trade, wholesaling, store owners, money lenders and local commission agents (Aarhatiis) etc. Of these about 400 were in Shimla. Much of this population base was of a prosperous kind. In their one hundred years existence in Jaswan/Kangra they had changed from being refugees to business owners. The poor people of Jaswan were too poor to be their good clients; hence Shimla opportunity was God sent blessing for them. Now high prosperity was within reach.
In the middle of nineteenth century it was customary in any business and trade related businesses away from hometown that you leave your families behind and return every now and then. Rest of the family takes care of your family back home as long as you return and enrich them with cash. If a father has two or three sons, he would like one of them to engage locally in the profession, he would send the others to a city to earn money. Extra money earned by the latter enriched the whole family. With the opening of Shimla in the last 30 years, young men were crowding over to go there as a preferred choice. In this way the population of able-bodied men was distributed around in various activities.
As success came their way, the first thing that came to their mind was to build palatial homes for their families, which they did. The villages of Pargpur, Girlie, Rakkar, Pirsaluhi, Dehra, Dharamsala, Nagrota etc. are testament of that. Homes in these villages, almost all belonging to Suds/Soods are of unique kind with three floors, built of stone and slate roof with a stone courtyard. For safety, these were built in groups. These homes are testament of their high status and prosperous living. Women, children and old men stayed at home as young men went to work in far flung places. Every year they returned with money, gold and silver which the brother(s) who was left behind used it to lend money or undertake bigger business undertakings. The social nature of this arrangement was never ideal in the end. Fights about the money happened in most families. Hence they separated and built a new larger house and undertook bigger and larger business deals. This was not always successful and also resulted in pain and bankruptcies. The forgoing was not a common sight but happened occasionally and became a lesson for the future generations.
Men who came to Shimla earned more money, as it was a growing town with the British as the masters. To succeed you needed luck as well as right connections. If you entered the line of business, which was an urgent requirement, chances of success were greater. Other than grain import and commission agencies, professions in greater demand were: hardware and timber trade, wool trade originating from Tibet and supply agents (Modis) to the British and Indian princes. All of these required high start-up capital and connections; hence a number of them pooled their resources together and started the supply businesses. This was very common. Already established businessmen preferred Young and promising entrepreneurs to join them.
Transfer of Power by the Four Original Sud/Sood Partners - (1842-1861)
Since the original partners Nidha, Surdha, Jalla & Nihala by 1861 were about fifty years old men; they were considering transfer of working control to the next generation. They wished a smother transfer, hence planned accordingly. By 1861, all of them had involved their children in the business. That was the norm at that time, even if the children were young adults. In their mind they thought that the supply and commission agency business was the best for Shimla. Hence they had taken leases for three other locations in Edward Gunj in 1846, 1856 and 1861. At that time they were pre-emptying competition from the other communities. After the completion of Hindustan-Tibet road, other communities were threatening competition and they had local British Administration support, hence the four Sud/Sood partners took additional leases to dominate the market. Two competitors from Bilaspur and other four from Kalka/Ambala had also taken leases. In total there were 10 commission agents (Aarhatiis) in Shimla, eight of them in Gunj Bazaar and two in surrounding areas, which later would be named as Lakkar Bazaar and Boileauganj. All the first four partners although connected thru financially, gave an appearance of competition. The British knew about these arrangements and a few others in the market place may also have known but it was not a common knowledge. Deputy Commissioner Lord W.M. Hays of early 1860s did not mind this as long as they operated under different names, which they were and did not give the appearance of monopoly.
The original location at Edward Gunj belonged to a partnership of Lala Nidha Mall & his associates. This business at this location had been in operation since 1836, the name and registration of this partnership was undertaken in about 1842-43. All the four partners had equal share in it. Partners also ran the other three locations there. Also, Surdha Mall and his family ran the first location in the Upper Mall since 1832-33 vintages. Long before diversification, they had realized that presence of the owner at each location was essential; hence they had split up responsibilities with each running a particular location. As mentioned Nidha Mall ran the first location in the Edward Gunj. Later Nidha Mall's son joined the partnership in 1860s and it was renamed as Lala Nidha Mall and Sons. (Years later it would be renamed as Lala Nidha Mall Puran Mall. Later after the grant of title of Rai Sahib to Lala Puran Mall, a new partnership emerged with the name Rai Sahib Puran Mall & Son.) Lala Nidha Mull left his other sons back at Jaswan. They were needed to look after family interests there. One big thing in their mind was to relocate to another town from Garlie as expanding family was running out of places to build palatial houses in Girlie. Their eye was on land the Raja of Jaswan had granted them much earlier. With profits from Shimla operations, and peace after complete British victory in 1857, the whole clan en-mass moved to the new location of Haroli/Raulia near Una in Jaswan. Hence Nidha Mall had wisely decided to leave his other sons back home to look after the family interests.
Other three partners also had named three locations after their own names and had involved their children in their businesses. They pooled their resources privately and outwardly gave the impression of competition. The retail operation at the Upper Bazaar stayed as is as a partnership of four but under Surdha Mall's control. It was a profitable operation; hence they wished not to mess with it.
Now the partners jointly and separately were looking to make bigger and bigger deals.
The European portion of the Upper Bazaar[3] was expanding too. They were servicing about a thousand well placed Englishmen & Europeans by 1871. The latter would buy anything from high-end textiles to jewellery; shoes, hats and other fancy merchandise. There was one minor problem; most of them left at the start of the winter hence business dropped to nil for 4-5 months. Although the British gentry were happy with high-end high-flying merchandise at the Upper Bazaar yet they turned to Suds/Soods for their food on the table. They got their meat items from the local butchers thru M/s Hamilton & West but for everything else they turned to the Suds/Soods. The forgoing was an opportunity, which cannot be left unexploited. As the need for regular supplies grew in 1870s, the Suds/Soods explored the idea of filling orders on demand and collecting monies once a month on presentation of the bill. The Suds/Soods were prepared to wait for their payments as long as the British customers did not go elsewhere for supplies. In other words they wished monopoly and would become Modis (Master Grocers) for this high society. It was a prestigious line of work and needed a more dynamic type of person to run it from one or their location. After careful deliberation, their choice fell on Puran Mall, who since coming to Shimla at the age of 17 was showing signs of greater maturity and business acumen. He like his father and father's associates would go to Kalka/Ambala to pick up supplies and travel on Ekkas with merchandise to Shimla. Whenever the British had dealings with him, they found him honest and dynamic. Other children of the other partners were equally dynamic and would go on assignments to the princely states to make deals, but dealing with the British they picked Puran Mall to spearhead the operation.
Modi (The Master Grocer) Business Takes off
One key element for the supply business (Master Grocer) to succeed was the location. Their target customer base shopped at the Upper Bazaar and would not come to the unhygienic Edward Gunj. Although the Deputy Commissioner from time to time would order clean up, but the nature of business was such that hygiene was hard to maintain. Hence the four partners decided to conduct the master grocer operation from their retail operation in the Upper Bazaar. To the customers also, this was a convenient location to place their orders and check on the quality of supplies. Hence for Puran Mall to conduct this business successfully, he had to locate himself at the Upper Bazaar. He would be assisted by a number of employees.
To begin operation like the one they had in mind; the firm of Nidha Mull Puran Mull had to open a bank account, maintain a perfect service record and honesty at every level of operation. In addition they must readily get supplies or items, which the customer wished and as soon as possible. Hence they needed dealings with a lot of suppliers in Ambala, Lahore, Delhi and Agra. With their known honest dealings in the past and ample display of customer service, quite a few suppliers in the plains were prepared to deal with them. Hence the first act to become master grocers to the British gentry they renewed all their contacts. Second, they registered the business under the name of Nidha Mull Puran Mull. Also a bank account followed. Later Puran Mull and another partner went to suppliers to negotiate future supplies. These suppliers would prefer cash on delivery, which meant that somebody had to travel to them in person to pick up goods and pay cash. Alternative was to deal thru a bank. The latter i.e. dealing thru a bank was acceptable to the suppliers. Hence in the future, the bill of lading would be sent thru the bank and the bank (for a fee), would collect money on goods delivered. It was a win-win situation for the future king of supply in Shimla, although it would add to the working capital required to start the business yet additional capital was never the issue.
By early seventies, the master grocer (Modi) business took off after a slow start of first three years. It was a period when learning to deal with the British, their customer service habits and their likes & dislikes were to be known to be successful. Young Puran Mall was going thru the paces and learning them all.
Puran Mull and his father needed additional qualified help to run this business. They went back to their home villages to pick up promising young talent. Cousins' even if distant cousins were preferred as long as they had the usual business skills. If they knew business accounting and were well versed in reading and writing both vernacular (Tankri) and Urdu/Persian, they would be a preferred. A Master Grocer dealing with the British had to keep the books differently. He had to maintain account of all the orders received by date and by name, account for all deliveries and at month end make paper statement to be presented to each client for payment. Hence other than salesmanship, auctioneering and money collection skills the new entrants needed customer service skills also.
A number of candidates emerged with these qualifications. Some of them showed up in Shimla for employment. One amongst them was a young man from Pirsaluhi, a distant cousin of Puran Mall with the name Buta Mall[4]. At eighteen years of age he showed up at Shimla in 1873. He was given a job with a wage of Rupees four per month as a helper to the morning auctioneers. In three years he would make his talent known as an accountant and as an administrator of diverse activities at the enterprise. Hence he was overdue for promotion. The latter happened immediately after the fire of 1875/76 when the business was relocated to the Lower Bazaar/Edward Gunj.
Other cousins also joined the operation and all of them were given different assignments.
Other Sud/Sood Businesses in the Upper Bazaar -1876/1899
The four hundred or so Suds/Soods in Shimla were not only grain merchants and commission agents but also involved in other enterprises, although commission agency by 1876 was the main line of business. Other Suds/Soods in Shimla included:
Sarafa Mall Rairu Mall (1876), Sunder Mall Chaudhari Mall began (1867), Rama & Co (1876 & prior), Jalla Mal Jawahar Mall (1876), Gobind Mall Chuha Ram, Mauja Mall Sant Ram, Kiru Mall Naval Kishore, Hakam Mall Tani Mall, Luder Mall Jai Bhan, Thunia Mall Ghunghar Mall, Nihala Mall enterprises; Buta Mall enterprises (popularly known as Butails) etc.[5]
Another big break occurred during the 1890s when the railway extension to Shimla was in progress. A number of timber merchants like Gopi Mall, Gajjan Mall, Hakam Mall & Tani Mall and other family enterprises emerged. At a later date they would become the front runners of a big empire of forest lessees in Shimla and elsewhere.
Success Visits the Merchants in Upper Bazaar until the Fire of 1875/1876
All Sud/Sood merchants were doing well in the Upper Bazaar. The rising population shortly after Shimla was declared as the summer capital in 1864 was the key reason. Greater the numbers, greater was the requirement of grains, fruits & vegetables and other consumables. Population in Shimla had increased dramatically in last five years. As per records of July 1869 - 14,848 souls lived in Shimla (of which 1,434 were European) - (Imperial Gazetteer Of India 1887 Volume 12). This population was a dramatic increase from estimated 6-7,000 in 1861. Housing construction had seen a rise as more and more homes were built. The native population mostly lived in hotchpotch housing on the southern slopes. The British upper class society lived in a scattered cottages/bungalows all along the Mall Road. The Viceroy had himself moved to Peterhoff (Lord Elgin was first to move there in 1863). That set the tone for future high-end construction. All the high officials of the Raj would occupy a spot where the view was best and land was in plentiful and start building there. They would seek all other official permissions and clearances later. Shimla Municipal Committee was making sure that the natives did not begin housing in areas reserved for the Europeans.
The newly arrived natives who were either businessmen or labour lived either in or around Upper Bazaar until 1875/76 or on the southern slopes without an organized housing. Shimla Municipal Committee wished to set it right. As stated earlier, the British wished better-organized bazaars & housing and they had a plan in mind. They would not act on this plan unless forced to act. By mid 1870s, Shimla had developed an acute water shortage. All the springs and Baolis in the area were unable to cope with the sudden influx of people. Alternative was to pipe water to Shimla from streams in the vicinity. One source seven miles away would require a tank in Sanjauli and a tank in Shimla. There was no problem locating the Sanjauli Tank, but locating Shimla tank was a big problem. AS said earlier in the text, most suitable of all spots was where the native Upper Bazaar was located. Shimla Municipal Committee wanted this area badly but could not have it, until an act of God (or deliberate) started a fire on May 16, 1875 in a British owned enterprise. It spread quickly and engulfed the whole area. In a day of burning, it reduced the whole bazaar to a heap of cinder. People cried especially who lost everything in the fire. The Government promised to help, provided the Bazaar for the natives is moved elsewhere. So much so that the Shimla Municipal Committee President prohibited re-building by the natives in the area.
Worst affected were the Suds/Soods. They all had operations in the Upper Bazaar which they could not rebuild. Promised area, segregated by race, ethnicity and profession was on the southern slopes. In the midst of despair, the British began to extend the motley existing Lower Bazaar and Middle Bazaar (planning of Chor Bazaar- Ram Bazaar was far away). This Lower Bazaar where the natives would shop in the future would be centred just above the Edward Gunj. As a starter a 20-foot wide road would be built. It would be carved out of the mountain face. This was about 5-700 yards long road directly connected to the Edward Gunj. It began where the western end of the ingress to the Edward Gunj was located and ended where the eastern end of the ingress ended. A mule path connected it to the Boileauganj in the west and a dirt pathway connected it to the Churail Baoli in the east. The British plan was not to connect it to the Mall shopping promenade. The only connection this bazaar had with the Mall was thru difficult pathways on the mountain slopes.
As an act of goodwill, Shimla Municipal Committee paid compensation to all who lost their property and merchandize on the Upper Mall. Business owner with government help began building on land allocated to them in the newly planned Lower Bazaar. First the construction was shabby, but with the setting up of a new brick kiln works, well made shop-cum-flat appeared. Within three years the Lower Bazaar began to take shape.
In the fire episode, the British had the Upper Bazaar for themselves and very cleverly ejected the natives out of there. It is said that the present panoramic view of the snow-covered mountains owes its debt to vacating the upper Bazaar completely. It may be true but was not part of the plan.
Suds/Soods relocate to the Lower Bazaar & elsewhere
Post fire episode, the Suds/Soods had only two choices, the first to accept the British offer and relocate to the Lower Bazaar/Edward Gunj. Second choice was to leave town and relocate to Chota Shimla and Boileauganj area or within the city limits, relocate to Lakkar Bazaar. Land was allocated to build and no one was denied this municipal allocation. They were discouraged to build temporary structures, but that is what they built initially. Later these were replaced with brick, stone and mortar construction. With the availability of the corrugated sheets, much of the roofs were built with that. The heights of the structures were limited to two floors. It was a carefully arrived conclusion, as building anything higher than 30 feet on a 45-degree sloped mountain would block the sunlight of the buildings behind them. The construction was designed in such a way that the ground floor opened directly to the newly built road.
These newly built shop-cum-flat had diversified businesses. These included grain retailers, textiles sellers, general merchandisers, leather goods stores and any items, which the native population needed. By about 1880s this construction work was complete. Municipal Committee realizing that hygiene had to be maintained at all cost, dug up drains, laid sewage pipes and made provision for future fresh water piping which was coming in next few years. In the beginning there were not more than 75-100 shops and stores at the Lower Bazaar, but these would undergo extension on both east and west side. It ran parallel to the Mall Road and Middle Bazaar above it. As business environment improved more and more stores opened. This area later would become headquarter of shopping for locals of Shimla but also for people coming from Shimla Hills (Mahasu District).
Fearing native interference with their own shopping on the Mall, the British refused it to be connected to the Mall Road both on east as well as west side. The only connection between the two was thru pathways used previously to descend and climb from the Edward Gunj to the Ridge.
Another major fire incident of a wooden structure, which housed British owned businesses right in front of the Telegraph Office on the Mall, forced the reconstruction of the burnt out building with stone and mortar. To connect the ground floors of this new building, the Municipal Committee was left with no choice but to extend the Lower Bazaar road and connect it to the Mall. This how the west end of the Lower Bazaar got connected to the Mall. The eastern end had to wait a while before it is connected to the Mall.
Others, who preferred to relocate at the Edward Gunj, were mostly grain dealers and grocers. The Edward Gunj was further extended to lease additional space hence it extended as far above as the Lower Bazaar on both sides. The Middle Bazaar, which was above the Lower Bazaar, had a great beginning but the Municipality developed cold feet. Its proximity to the European shopping district bothered them. Hence they halted its extension after its promising start.
The Mall shopping promenade of about a mile and a bit was given 100% European look. By 1880, Britain had become rich country. It had so many colonies to loot. Manufactured goods of the British factories were everywhere in India, Shimla including. This shopping mile would have British owned stores, selling British made goods to mostly to Britishers. Its construction was not unique, it followed the pattern of European shopping design with large show windows for display, and glass counters to conduct business and no more than two floors height. For India it was a unique design. Countless writers have discussed its uniqueness. Edward J Buck writing in 1905 says it all (he quoted another author about thirty years earlier):
" What cannot be purchased at Simla? Here is an abstract of the business portion of Simla, and as the wares are displayed in a most tempting manner to the eyes of passers-by on the Mall, what wonder that the number of ' jhampanis[6] ' are numerous at almost every shop at the time of 'eating the air' in the evening."
[1] Final Report
of the First Regular Settlement of the Simla District in the Punjab - E G Wace;
1981-83
[2] The British
Empire - Indian Mutiny and British Revenge
[3] A conical
bamboo container carried on the back of a person.
[4] Or
"Beggar" A system of
forced labour in India in 1820s and later, where the prince is bound by his
treaty obligation to provide labour for community work. It was prevalent before
the British captured the north-western hills. They exploited it even further.
This practice as described by MS Ahluwalia (Social Cultural & Economic
system of Himachal Pradesh) operated thru the the local official (Patwari or
Lambardar), would list families who would provide this free labour. Families
with one male child were exempt. British had incorporated the Begar System in
their treaties with the princes. Whenever they wished they would requisition
people in the surrounding villages to build a pathway or road (community
activity) but also requisition people as load carries and coolies wherever they
came to Shimla or left Shimla. Lord Combermere in 1830 had 1,300 begaries with
him when he and his troops travelled around in Shimla and other hill states.
Lt/Major Kennedy would routinely requisitioned begaries during his tenure as
Shimla Political Officer. A few complaints were summarily dealt with by the
higher ups in the hierarchy. They all supported it. But with economic lot of
people improving in the middle of the nineteenth, they began to resent it. It
was in the middle of the nineteenth century that modifications were made to the
system. They would still be requisitioned but paid.
[5] Author's
Grandfather in 1873, uncle in 1897 and father in 1907 began their careers from
Edward Gunj.
[6] It is
dispute among the historian that who built this Gunj Bazaar. The present
construction is much later than 1846-47. When the latter day builders re-built
it, they decided to honour it by giving it its original founder's name.
[7] British
India & Tibet 1766-1920 by Alastair Lamb
[8] Abode
of Snow (Andrew Wilson)
[9] First War of
Independence
interesting post
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