Bathinda
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Bathinda is a district of the State of Punjab, situated in the northwestern part of India. The "district capital" or popularly known as the "seat of the district" is also called Bathinda. It is bounded by Faridkot district on the north, Mukatsar district to the west, the Sangrur & Mansa districts on the east and the State of Haryana on the south. The district encompasses an area of 3,344.05 Square Kilometers.
Climate: Summer temperatures can be as high as 49 °C (120.2°F); and winter temperatures as low as 0 °C (32°F). The weather is generally dry. Rainfall is primarily from the southwest, due to the monsoon, and lasts from mid-July to mid-September.
The City of Bathinda boasts of one of the largest Railway Junctions and is known as Sharjah of Punjab due to sand dunes. Bathinda is located in the Indo-Gangetic alluvial plains. An alluvium is a rich mixture of clay, kankar, sandy clay and sand.
History
It is believed that Rao Bhatti established the modern town of Bathinda in the Lakhi jungle area in the 3rd century, and it was captured from him by the Barars.
Bala Rao inhabited this city in 965 AD, naming it Bhatinda after his caste name. The city also remained the capital of Raja Jaipal.
In 1004 CE, Mahmud of Ghazni besieged the local fort, which was located on the route from the northwest into the rich Ganges valley. In 1189, Muhammad Ghori attacked and occupied the fort of Bathinda. Prithvi Raj Chauhan, the illustrious ruler of this region, managed to recover the posssesion of the fort 13 months later, in 1191, after a fierce battle.
Razia Sultan, the first female ruler of India, was imprisoned here in April, 1240. She was released in August of that year through the efforts of Altunia, the local governor. Both Altunia and Razia married but were killed by robbers near Kaithal on October 13.
The Sidhu-Barars were thrown out of Bathinda during the Lodhi's rule, but restored to the area by Babar.
A few years later Rup Chand, a staunch Sikh, came onto the scene of Punjab history. Phul, the second son of Rup Chand, started the practice of langar (community kitchen) for the people in the Lakhi jungle area, and built a fort around 1654.
Ala Singh, son of Rama, another Sikh, attacked Bathinda when it was in possession of Sardar Jodh Singh Saboke, and conquered a large area around the city.
Ala Singh, who died in August 1765 at Patiala, was succeeded by Amar Singh, his grandson. In 1770, Amar Singh sent a large force to capture the fort of Bathinda from Sukhchen Singh Sabo. The fort was reacquired in 1771. Raja Amar Singh died in 1781 at the age of 35.
After the death of Amar Singh, Raja Sahib Singh, who was six, was made the Chief of Patiala. However, the affairs of the state were managed by Diwan Nanun Mal. Raja Sahib Singh died on March 26, 1813, and was succeeded by his son Karam Singh.
During the First Anglo-Sikh War of 1845-46, Maharaja Karam Singh of Patiala fought on the side of the British. He died during the war, but his son and successor Maharaja Narinder Singh also helped the British Government. Narinder Singh was succeeded by Rajinder Singh, Bhupinder Singh, and finally (in 1938) Yadavindera Singh.
With the formation of the Patiala and East Punjab State Union (PEPSU) on May 5, 1948, Bathinda district came into existence on August 20, 1948. Its headquarters was originally at Faridkot, but relocated to Bathinda in 1953.
After 1953, many changes were made to Bathinda district's geographical boundaries. Muktasar and Mansa districts were separated from Bathinda.