Dangs was known as
“Dakaranya or Dandak” during the period of
Ramayana, and this is why its folksongs are
filled with stories of Ram and Sita. And Even
today, the people of Dangs greet each other
saying “Ram-Ram”. However stranger a person
may be, a greeting with “Ram-Ram” would come
naturally to its people. Pandavas are also believed to have roamed and
stayed in the Dangs. Even today one can find
a
cave in Pandava village near Dangs. The kings of
Maurya dynasty, King San Praas, King Satya
Vahan, and the kings of Kahatra and Abhir
dynasties have ruled this district. Its neighbours,
the kings of Chanakya dynasty have also ruled it. In the 14th century, the kings of Dangs got
separated from the Mughals and established
their independent rule and this was the place
where Shivaji established its military base when
he attacked Surat in 1664 AD. Even today,
Shivaji’s military establishment is known as
“Lashkari Amba”. During the era of British rule,
with the help of the Marathas, the British
convinced the rulers of Dangs to give them the
protection in the forests in return for a good
administration in their state. In this way, the
rulers of the Dangs were deceitfully made the
puppets in the hands of the British. In order to use the high quality timber
produced in the Dangs for the purpose of
architectural and military ship building, the
British convinced the rulers of the Dangs by
paying them a certain annual amount and got
the entire forest of the region for lease. In this
way, they stopped the supply of timber from
Dangs to Surat and the towns of the kingdom
Gayakwad. The British considered the Dangs as a foreign
territory under administration as per the Indian
Foreign Jurisdiction Act. Forests in return for a good administration in
their state. In this way, the rulers of the Dangs
were deceitfully made the puppets in the hands
of the British. The British considered the Dangs as a foreign
territory under administration as per the Indian
References::
Website: http://dangdp.gujarat.gov.in/dang/
english/jilla-vishe/history.htm
Foreign Jurisdiction Act.
