The Princely State of Nimkhera, also known as Ninkhera, was one of the prominent princely states of India which was administered by a native prince under the guidance of the British authorities. The princely state was under the indirect control of the British Empire in India. The territory covered a total area of 107 sq miles and had a total population of 8,276 in the year 1931. The Bhumiat of Nimkhera was formed up of the pargana of Hindola and various villages seized from the princely state of Dhar, princely state of Indore and the princely state of Gwalior. The Nimkhera estate consisted of around 94 villages, including Nimkhera itself. The region was originally known as Tirla, and was situated in the Vindhya mountain range, around 14 miles towards the southwest of Dhar state.
The Princely State of Nimkhera was under the administrative control of the Central India Agency, which was a political office of the British Empire in India that spanned over the northern half of current Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. The Central India Agency was surrounded in the south by Berar and the Central Provinces; in the east by the Chota Nagpur princely states that were reassigned to the Central Provinces and Berar from Bengal in the year 1905; in the north by the United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. Nimkhera state was also incorporated as a part of the erstwhile Bhopawar Agency.
History of Princely State of Nimkhera
The native ruler of the princely state of Nimkhera, who held the title of Bhumia, was a Bhilala of the Anjana sept. The ruling family of the state descended from the Chauhan Rajputs who settled in the region during the 16th century. Later, as a result of inter-marriage, the ruling family lost caste and became Bhilala. Nimkhera state was a guaranteed bhumiat of the princely state of Dhar. Under the agreement of 1820, which was arranged and guaranteed by the British East India Company, the Bhumia of Nimkhera state held the village of Tirla in hereditary succession. He was also accountable for all robberies between the territories of Sultanpur and Dhar under penalty of forfeiture to Dhar. The native ruler of Nimkhera received tanka payments from the princely state of Gwalior, the princely state of Indore and the princely state of Dhar.
In the years 1886 and 1903, the British Government of India recognized the right of the local government of Dhar to implement jurisdiction in the guaranteed thakurats and bhumiats subordinate to it. After the of the local government was recognized, the administration of Dhar state conceded limited civil and criminal jurisdictional authority to the estateholders who were deemed competent of exercising them, including the territory of Nimkhera (Tirla).
The last ruler of the princely state, Thakur Saheb Ganga Singh, who was the 19th in his line since the establishment of the estate, acceded his state to the newly formed Union of India, also known as Dominion of India, after the nation gained independence on 15th August 1947.
Rulers of Princely State of Nimkhera
The chronology of the rulers of the princely state of Nimkhera were mentioned below-
* Bhumia Sheo Singh
* Bhumia Bhima Singh
* Bhumia Kanak Singh (1853- 1864)
* Bhumia Dhario Singh (1864- 1894)
* Bhumia Thakur Indrajit Singh (1894- 1919)
* Bhumia Thakur Daulat Singh (1919- 1922)
* Bhumia Thakur Saheb Ganga Singh (1922- 1947)
* Bhumia Thakur Saheb Surendra Singh (1947)
