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Amritsar district

District in Punjab, India

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Through India, Sikhs and British Raj

As of 2011, it is the second most populous district of Punjab (out of 23), after Ludhiana. It is a border district of Punjab and lies along the India-Pakistan border. Amritsar district borders the Pakistani Punjab districts of Lahore, Kasur, Shiekhupura along the Ravi river, Tarn Taran district to the south along the Sutlej river, Kapurthala district along the Beas river, and Gurdaspur District to the north.

History

Sur Empire (1540 - 1554)

Sher Shah Suri, an Afghan monarch, defeated Kamran in 1540 and conquered Punjab, including Amritsar, which remained part of the Sur Empire until 1554.

Sikh Empire

The control of Amritsar was fully taken by Maharaja Ranjit Singh by 1802, after bringing all the Misls under his control. He also fortified Gobindgarh Fort along modern lines.

British

Amritsar district was annexed by the British from its former Sikh rulers after the Second Anglo-Sikh War of 1848–1849. During British Rule Amritsar District was part of Lahore Division and was administratively subdivided into 3 tehsils namely - Amritsar, Ajnala and Tarn Taran. However, as part of the partition of India in 1947, Amritsar district was separated from the rest of the division and awarded to India. Some areas 186 villages, Patti and Khem Karan falling in the Lahore District (Kasur Tahsil) became part of Amritsar District at partition. During the partition period, the Muslim population of the district, some 46%, left for Pakistan while Hindus and Sikhs from West Punjab in newly created Pakistan migrated in the opposite direction. The Sikhs and Hindus (37% and 15.38%) were a majority in the Amritsar district jointly constituting about 52% of the total population before the partition of 1947.

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