The Princely State of Kalsia was an erstwhile native state in east Punjab, India. It was established in the year 1760 by Gurbaksh Singh. The state covered a total area of 497 sq km and had a total population of 62,000 in 1901 and the total population rose to 67,393 in the year 1941. Kalsia state was a part of the Punjab States Agency and was a non-salute state. The princely state of Kalsia was divided into a number of small segments of territory, including the enclave of Chirak in Firozpur stretching across the Punjab from Faridkot in the west to Sirmur in the east. The territory included 181 villages and 2 towns. The native ruler of the state held the title of Sardar until the year 1916, after which the ruler of the Indian princely state was addressed as Raja.
History of Princely State of Kalsia
The princely state was founded by Gurbaksh Singh in the year 1760. He was the commander of the troops of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, who granted him the estate of Chhachhrauli. He named the region as Kalsia and Chhachhrauli became the capital city. During the great revolt of 1857, Lahna Singh, the grandson of Jodh Singh and the son and successor of Maharaja Sobha Singh, supported the British Government of India. Later peace was restored around 1858 and eventually Lahna Singh assumed authority under the protection of the British administration, which kept the territory intact. The region was later ruled by Ranjit Singh Kalsia, Ravi Sher Singh and Ravi Karan Singh.
Princely State of Kalsia was segregated into 2 tahsils, namely Basi and Chhachhrauli and also included the isolated sub-tahsil of Chirak. Kalsia state was one of the original constituent members of the Chamber of Princes, a number of smaller states indirectly represented by 12 princes who were elected periodically by them. In the year 1943, the Raja of Kalsia was admitted to the Chamber in his own right. The ruler of the state took charge of the administration and exercised full civil and criminal jurisdiction, excluding the capital cases which involved his own subjects.
The Kalsia Rajas held their estate until the year 1947, when the nation achieved independence after the withdrawal of the British. The princely state of Kalsia was cceded to the Union of India, also known as the Dominion of India, on 20th August 1948.
Rulers of Princely State of Kalsia
Sardar Gurbaksh Singh (1763- 1785)
Sardar Jodh Singh (1785- 1818)
Sardar Sobha Singh (1818- 1858)
Sardar Lahna Singh (1858- 1869)
Sardar Bishen Singh (1869- 1883)
Sardar Jagjit Singh (1883- 1886)
Sardar Ranjit Singh Sahib Bahadur (1886- 1908)
Raja Ravi Sher Singh Sahib Bahadur (1908- 1947)
Raja Karan Sher Singh Sahib Bahadur (1947- 1961)
Raja Himmat Sher Singh Sahib Bahadur
