Page:Gazetteer of the province of Oudh ... (IA cu31924073057345).pdf/495

 MAN 487 The soil in this pargana varies from the bhúr (sandy) and kankar land in the vicinity of the Sarayan to the rich and productive dumat (loan) in the north-east. The irrigation is chiefly from tanks and jhíls, wells being scarce. The cultivators on the whole belong to the more industrious classes. Rents are paid generally in kind. The productive powers of the soil are good, but nothing remarkable is produced: nor are there any manufactures special to the district carried on. No mines or quarries are to be raet with. There are no mountains, valleys, or forests. The pargana as such was formed by Todar Mal, who called it after the town Manwán which already existed there, and the lands round which had been constituted into Tappa Manwan by king Vikramájít, 16 centuries prior to Todar Mal's time. Neither pargana nor town is historically famous for anything which has occurred in modern times. For the legend which identifies it with the Mánipur of the Mahabhárath, the reader is referred to the history of the town. Suffice it to say here, that the former name of the place was Mán- pur, and that to the present day the inbabitants point out the spot one mile from the town where Arjun was slain by his son, Babarbahan, in the village of Ranuápura, which is being interpreted" the place of the battle." The only remains of antiquity existing are the old fort ruins, near which are a dargáh and ídgáh, built about 200 years ago, all of which are at Manwán itself, and within two miles of the main road connecting Lucknow with Sitapur. No melás or fairs take place in the district. This pargana with that of Bári were included by the settlement depart- ment of the emperor Akbar in sarkár Lucknow. MANWAN*-Pargana MANWÁN--Tahsil Bári-District SITAPUR. Though possessing a population of only 1,069 souls, deserves notice on account of its great antiquity and its legendary connection with the Mahá- bhirath. It lies four miles south of Bari still on the Saráyan stream, and is one mile west of the Lucknow and Sitapur high road. The present town is a very wretched place, and altogether without interest for the trader or the artisan. It is said to have been founded 5,000 years ago by Rája Mándháta of the Ajodhya Solar race, but to have fallen away on his death and become waste. Subsequently, the exact date is not known, one man (an Ahír) took the eastern portion, and a Musalman, Mustafa Khan by name, the western. The old town was rebuilt, and was known by the double name Manpur Mustafabad. The remains of old king Mándháta's fort are still extant. It was apparently a massive structure, and was placed on high ground overlooking the river, covering an area of 90 bighas. The bricks are used by the villagers for building in the town which thus presents a curious appearance, being like neither a qasba, nor an ordinary Hindu village, but something between the two. The local legend runs thus:- Before the days when the Pandavas fought with the Kauravás, Rája Mándháta lived in great state in his castle at Manwa (or Manwán). But
 * By Mr. M. L. Ferrar, C.S., Assistant Commissioner.