The death of Sher Shah Suri and his Significant Reforms-Founder of Suri Daynasty in India

 

On this day, 22 May 1545 CE, the founder of Sur Empire in India, famously known as Farid Khan, was died while besieging the fort of Kalinjar in 1545 in an accidental blast of gun powder. He established the empire with its capital in Sasaram in modern-day Bihar. Also he introduced the currency of rupee. Sher Shah of Sur took control of the Mughal Empire in 1540.

Sher Shah Suri established the Sur Empire in North India. After seizing control of the Mughal Empire in 1540, he established a new civic and military administration as well as several financial and postal reforms. He reorganised the empire and resurrected Patna, the historical city of Pataliputra that had declined since the 7th century CE.

Sher Shah Suri introduced these major Reforms:

His government was highly centralised.

Some important ministers who assisted him in building a remarkable empire:

1.Diwan –i- Wizarat – also called as Wazir – in charge

of Revenue and Finance.

2. Diwan-i-Ariz – in charge of Army.

3. Diwan-i-Rasalat- Foreign Minister.

4. Diwan-i-Insha- Minister for Communications.

Sher Shah’s empire was divided into forty seven sarkars. Chief Shiqdar (law and order) and Chief Munsif (judge) were the two officers in charge of the administration in each sarkar. Each sarkar was divided into several parganas. Shiqdar (military officer), Amin (land revenue), Fotedar (treasurer) Karkuns (accountants) were in charge of the administration of each pargana. Malik Muhammad Jayasi wrote the famous Hindi work Padmavat during his reign. He started building a new walled city in Delhi, which later came to be known as Purana Qila (Old Fort).

Sher Shah also improved communications by constructing four major highways: 1. Sonargaon to Sind 2. Burhampur to Agra 3. Jodhpur-Chittor and 4. Lahore-Multan (present day- GT road). He extended the Grand Trunk Road from Chittagong in the province of Bengal in northeast India to Kabul in Afghanistan in the country's far northwest.

He built his own mausoleum in Sasaram.

Sher Shah Suri's tomb is located in the town of Sasaram in the Indian state of Bihar. The tomb is dedicated to Emperor Sher Shah Suri, a Pathan from Bihar who defeated the Mughal Empire and established the Suri Empire in northern India. The tomb was constructed during the reigns of Sher Shah and his son Islam Shah. This tomb is an example of Indo-Islamic architecture, designed by the architect Mir Muhammad Aliwal Khan and built between 1540 and 1545, this red sandstone mausoleum (122 ft high), which stands in the middle of an artificial lake, is known as India's second Taj Mahal.