RANKA RAJ - JHARKHAND

Ranka Raj, Jharkhand Founded by Raja Dusashan Shah in around 1560 AD. He belonged to chamar-gaur branch of Gaur rajputs, settled at Sheopur & served as commander in the imperial army.

Descendants of this family are called Surwar taking name from their settlement of Sausonpur.

He made several conquests and obtained from the Emperor some Khilat as a mark of honour and a grant of the talukas of Bagaha, Adulpura, and Pathalgarh, in the District of Mirzapur, and

also the whole of Kirat Pargana and of the Talukas of Dhandand and Tilothu in Sasseram Pargana.

His son, Rajah Sarangdhar, had a castle erected at Dhandand and was also in possession of the royal fortress of Rohtas.

He was succeeded by his son, Rajah Deo Sahi. It was during this time that the Chero Chief, Bhagwant Rai, sustained a defeat by a force despatched by Jahangir at Morang, Tirhut, and Bhojpur respectively, and then took refuge with the Rajput Chief, Deo Sahi, at fort of Dhandand.

Thakurai Puranmal, the younger brother of Rajah Deo Sahi, took Bhagwant Rai with himself and marched to Palamau, which was then ruled by the Raksels, the ancestor of the present Maharajah of Sirguja in the Contral Provinces.

Puranmal conquered Palamau and got Bhagwant Rai installed on the gadi in 1613. An agreement was entered between them, that henceforward it would rest only with the Thakurais to manage the country and to select a future Rajah of Palamau from among the descendants of Bhagwant Rai.

Accordingly the Thakurais of Ranka state continued to exercise the power of virtual king-makers until the British conquest. Ranka Royal family also made a huge donation in the bhoodan initiative of Vinoba bhave.

Courtesy His grandson Govardhan Singh

Raja Bahadur Giriwar Narayan Singh , C.B.E., Raja of Ranka(Garhwa Jharkhand) donated 111,101 acres of land to the Vinoba Bhave Bhoodan initiative which became the highest acreage of land given by any landlord or estate-owner in India .

Source: The Ruling Chiefs Nobles & Zamindars of India