page_title: Pudukkottai State
section_title: Administration
hierarchical_section_title: Pudukkottai State / Administration
caption_attribution_description: English: Durbar of Puddukottai Maharaja with British officials. മലയാളം: ബ്രിട്ടീഷ് ഉദ്യോഗസ്ഥർ ഉൾപ്പെട്ട പുതുക്കോട്ട മഹാരാജാവിന്റെ ദർബാർ.
context_page_description: Pudukkottai was a kingdom and later a princely state in British India, which existed from 1680 until 1948.
  The Kingdom of Pudukkottai was founded in about 1680 as a feudatory of Ramnad and grew with subsequent additions from Tanjore, Sivaganga and Ramnad. One of the staunch allies of the British East India Company in the Carnatic, Anglo-Mysore and Polygar wars, the kingdom was brought under the Company's protection in 1800 as per the system of Subsidiary Alliance. The state was placed under the control of the Madras Presidency from 1800 until 1 October 1923, when the Madras States Agency was abolished, and until 1948 it was under the political control of the Government of India.
  Pudukkottai State covered a total area of 1,178 square miles and had a population of 438,648 in 1941. It extended over the whole of the present-day Pudukkottai district of Tamil Nadu. The town of Pudukkottai was its capital. The ruler of Pudukkottai was entitled to a 17-gun salute.
context_section_description: The Raja of Pudukkottai was the paramount head of the state and no bill became law without his assent. He was assisted by a Prime Minister designated as Sirkel till 1 July 1885 and Diwan from 1 July 1885 till 17 November 1931 and Administrator from 17 November 1931 till 1948. The Diwan was assisted by a Councillor and the Diwan acting with the assistance of the Councillor was known as the Diwan-in-Council.
  A representative assembly of 30 nominated members was created in 1902. Elections were introduced in 1907 and from then on, 18 out of the 30 representatives were elected. The number of elected members was reduced to 13 in 1913 but was raised to 25 in 1916. The representative assembly was replaced by the Pudukkottai Legislative Council in 1924 and its first session was inaugurated by C. W. E. Cotton, the Governor's agent for the Madras states on 29 September 1924. At the time of the dissolution of the state in 1948, the assembly had a total of 50 members of whom 35 were elected and the rest, nominated by the government. However, as per the Pudukkottai Legislative Council Resolution of 1924, the creation of the council did not affect the right of the Raja to enact laws and issue proclamations on his own; nor did it allow its members to debate on the activities of the royal household.
  The Government of Madras was represented by a political agent. From 1800, when the first Political agent was appointed, till 1840, the Political Agent was usually the District Collector of Tanjore, from 1840 to 1865, the Agent was the Collector of Madurai and from 1865 to 1947 the agent was the Collector of Trichinopoly. All the decisions made by the Diwan are passed to the Madras Government for approval before they become the law.
caption: Puddukotai Durbar painted by Raja Ravi Varma
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