Baro'da

Baro'da, the second city of Guzerat, and third in the Presidency of Bombay, capital of the territory of the Guicowar (Gâekwâr), in the state of the same name. It is 248 miles N. of Bombay, with which it is connected by railway. It stands to the east of the Viswanidri, which is here crossed by four stone bridges, one of which is of singular construction—an upper range of arches resting on a lower one. It has several palaces, Hindu and other temples, contains the chief court of the state, a high-class school, and two vernacular schools. The majority of the houses are mean and overcrowded. Baroda occupies an important position between the coast and the interior, and the trade is considerable. Pop. (1881) 101,818.—The Mahratta state of Baroda, the political control of which in 1875 was transferred from Bombay to the government of India, includes the territories of the Guicowar in various parts of the province of Guzerat. Area of these territories, 8570 sq. m. (larger than Wales). The northern districts, which form a wide plain, are drained by the Nerbudda, Tapti, Mahi, and other rivers. The soil is fertile here; ruined temples, deserted towns, and tanks half filled with mud, are a witness of former prosperity. A military force of about 3000 is maintained. In the northern division there is a famous breed of large white cattle; grain, cotton, opium, tobacco, sugar-cane, and oil-seeds are the chief agricultural products, and grow luxuriantly. The Guicowar, Malhar Rao, installed in 1871, was deposed by the British government for obvious misrule (1873-75) and a suspected attempt to poison the British resident, and another member of the Baroda family was, in 1881, appointed in his stead. Pop. (1891) 2,415,396, of whom 2,137,568 were Hindus, 188,740 Mohammedans, 50,332 Jains, and 8206 Parsees.