Relief
Having been criticized for the badly bungled relief effort during the Orissa famine of 1866, British authorities began to discuss famine policy soon afterwards, and, in early 1868, Sir William Muir, Lieutenant-Governor of Agra Province, issued a famous order stating that:
"every District officer would be held personally responsible that no deaths occurred from starvation which could have been avoided by any exertion or arrangement on his part or that of his subordinates."
The Government of British India organized famine relief works in the British territory of Ajmer and in neighboring Agra Province of British India. In Ajmer, Rs. 49 lakhs were spent in the relief effort, Rs. 5 lakh in revenue remission, and Rs. 21 lakhs in a new scheme for agricultural credit. In Agra, another Rs. 30 lakhs were spent in relieving 29 million units (i.e. one person for one day). The princely states of Rajputana, however, provided very little relief: only Udaipur State spent Rs. 5 lakhs. Consequently, the immigration from the princely states into British India in the later stages of the famine began to overwhelm British efforts, and, in spite of Sir William Muir's newly defined responsibility for each district officer, the resulting mortality was great. It is thought that over 1.5 million people died all over Rajputana during the famine.
Read more about this topic: Rajputana Famine Of 1869
Famous quotes containing the word relief:
“When offense occurred, Slaughter took the trail, and seldom returned with a live prisoner. Usually he reported that he had chased the suspect “clean out of the county”; these suspects never reappeared in Tombstone—or anywhere else.”
—Administration in the State of Ariz, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)
“In Tsegihi,
In the house made of dawn,
In the house made of the evening twilight,
In the house made of the dark cloud, ...
Oh, male divinity!
With your moccasins of dark cloud, come to us.”
—Administration in the State of Ariz, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)
“If, during his daily walk, he met any children flying kites, playing marbles, or whirling peg tops, he would buy the toys from them and exhort them not to gamble or indulge in vain sport.”
—For the State of Rhode Island, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)