Dhuwankheri

Origin and Ancestral Lineage

The estate of Dhuwankheri was a notable jagir (fiefdom) located within the princely state of Narsinghgarh in the Malwa region of Central India. The ruling family of Dhuwankheri belongs to the Umat clan, a prominent branch of the historic Paramara (Parmar) dynasty of Rajputs, who famously ruled Dhar and Ujjain during the medieval period.

The state of Narsinghgarh itself was established in 1681 by Rawat Paras Ramji, who carved it out of the joint territory of Umatwara (which also gave rise to the sister state of Rajgarh). Under the feudal setup of Narsinghgarh, several estates or thanas were granted to close kinsmen of the ruling family (known as bhayyads) to secure the borders and manage revenue collection. Among these, the estate of Bhatkhera held a prominent position. The original grantee of Dhuwankheri was a younger son of Thakur Pratap Singhji, the 7^th Thakur Saheb of Bhatkhera, who was granted this land as an appanage for his maintenance, thereby establishing a new junior branch of the Umat Parmars in the region.

Feudal Administration and the British Period

During the 19^th and early 20^th centuries, Narsinghgarh operated under the British Raj as an 11-gun salute princely state administered under the Bhopal Agency of the Central India Agency. As a sub-fief of a major state, the Thakur of Dhuwankheri was responsible for maintaining local order, collecting land revenue, and presenting ceremonial allegiance to the ruling Durbar of Narsinghgarh.

The administration of such jagirs in Central India was characterized by traditional agrarian systems. According to the Central India State Gazetteer, these local thakurs exercised limited judicial and administrative powers within their estates, while major criminal cases and external relations were referred directly to the Narsinghgarh Durbar and the British Political Agent.

Post-Independence and Modern Era

Following India's independence in August 1947, the ruler of Narsinghgarh, Maharaja Bhanu Prakash Singhji, signed the Instrument of Accession, merging the state into the Union of India. In June 1948, Narsinghgarh, along with its subordinate jagirs including Dhuwankheri, became part of the newly created state of Madhya Bharat.

The feudal privileges, revenue rights, and landholdings of the Umat Parmar thakurs of Dhuwankheri were formally abolished under the Madhya Bharat Abolition of Jagirs Act of 1951. Consequently, the family transitioned from feudal lords to private citizens and agriculturalists. In 1956, Madhya Bharat was merged to form the modern state of Madhya Pradesh, within which the territory of the former Dhuwankheri Jagir is now situated.