Statecraft and Public Image in Hyderabad (1941): Decrees, Wartime Propaganda, and Commerce

Sub title : Official Gazettes, Rules for Maashdars, and the 'Hyderabad Information' Bulletin

Subject: Hyderabad State | Nizam Mir Osman Ali Khan | World War II

Date of publication: 1941

Language: English

Page: 84 p.

Source: National Archives of Pakistan

Serial no: 27343

Keyword: Hyderabad State — Nizam — Gazette Extraordinary — Maashdar | World War II — Hyderabad Air Squadron — Heinkel Bomber | Propaganda — Cottage Industries | Taj Glass Works — Princely State Administration

Abstract: This collection comprises official publications from the Hyderabad State in 1941. It includes a "Gazette Extraordinary" outlining strict new rules for Maashdars (holders of state land grants or honors), prohibiting them from political agitation and empowering the government to confiscate their maash for disloyalty—a direct move to control dissent. Alongside this are the first issues of "Hyderabad Information," a government bulletin serving as a propaganda tool. It glorifies the state's contribution to the Allied war effort, notably the "Hyderabad Air Squadron's" success in shooting down a German Heinkel bomber, and promotes local cottage industries and commercial enterprises like the Taj Glass Works, presenting an image of a modern, loyal, and industrious princely state.

Description: This dossier offers a fascinating glimpse into the internal governance and external projection of Hyderabad State during World War II. The documents reveal a two-pronged strategy: internally, consolidating the Nizam's authority by legally curtailing the political activities of the landed and honored classes externally, vigorously promoting its loyalty to the British Empire through war contributions and cultivating a modern, economically vibrant image via its official bulletin. The inclusion of both the restrictive legal decree and the glossy promotional magazine in the same collection perfectly captures the essence of statecraft in a major Indian princely state during a period of global and local political upheaval. SCANNED BY: NATIONAL ARCHIVES OF PAKISTAN.

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