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{{Short description|Famine Relief Fund}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2026}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = Indian People's Famine Trust
| formation = {{start date and age|1900|07|25|df=y}}
| type =
| tax_id =
| registration_id =
| status =
| purpose =
| board_of_directors =
| key_people =
}}
The '''Indian People's Famine Trust''' is an [[India]]-based relief fund, founded in 1900 by [[Madho Singh II]], the [[Maharaja]] of [[Kingdom of Amber|Jaipur]], to help aid [[Indian people|Indians]] in combating calamities such as [[famine]].
==History==
{{Main|Indian famine of 1899–1900}}
[[File:Wilson - Voyage autour du monde, 1923 (page 352 crop).jpg|thumb|[[Madho Singh II]]|271x271px]]
In 1899–1900, much of [[India]], including [[Western India]] and [[Central India]], was afflicted by a terrible [[famine]], and the [[Kingdom of Amber|State of Jaipur]] also suffered from it.<ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Gupta |first=R. K. |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Dalit_Literature/DLQeSBLpUwsC |title=Dalit Literature: Our Response |last2=Bakshi |first2=S. R. |date=2012 |publisher=Sarup & Sons |isbn=978-81-7625-841-8 |pages=324–325 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Hunter |first=William Wilson |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/A_Brief_History_of_the_Indian_Peoples/dVsLAAAAIAAJ |title=A Brief History of the Indian Peoples |date=1907 |publisher=Clarendon Press |pages=241–242 |language=en}}</ref> [[Madho Singh II]], the then ruler of [[Kingdom of Amber|Jaipur]], undertook energetic and effective measures to deal with it.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Solomon |first=R. V. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=47sfj8DUwNgC |title=Indian States: A Biographical, Historical, and Administrative Survey |last2=Bond |first2=J. W. |date=2006 |publisher=Asian Educational Services |isbn=978-81-206-1965-4 |pages=179 |language=en}}</ref> He initiated various [[Relief work|relief works]], chiefly [[irrigation]] projects.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last=Jain |first=kesharlal Ajmera |url=http://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.66091 |title=The Jaipur Album Or All About Jaipur |date=1935 |pages=3,25}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Vadivelu |first=A. |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Ruling_Chiefs_Nobles_and_Zamindars_o/LfoxAQAAMAAJ |title=The Ruling Chiefs, Nobles and Zamindars of India |date=1915 |publisher=G.C. Loganadham |pages=60–61 |language=en}}</ref> He also spent about Rs. 5,000,000 for constructing bunds and [[Dam|dams]] at various places, for cutting [[Canal|canals]], and to provide work to the [[Laborer|labourers]] and poor classes.<ref name=":3" /> He spent Rs. 1,900,000 to relieve 20,000,000 people, and another Rs. 100,000 in the villages and poor houses of his dominions, which helped save nearly 1,500,000 lives.<ref name=":0" /> He threw open the forests of [[Kingdom of Amber|Jaipur]] for free grazing, and permitted people to remove and sell grass and firewood.<ref name=":0" /> He also remitted land revenue amounting to nearly Rs. 1,200,000, and gave his subjects money free of cost to enable them to carry on cultivation of crops.<ref name=":0" />

Seeing the devastating effects and suffering caused by the [[Indian famine of 1899–1900|famine of 1899–1900]] throughout [[India]], he realised the necessity and importance of having funds in advance to mitigate and relieve the suffering of the people promptly, should such circumstances ever occur.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Showers |first=H. L. |url=http://archive.org/details/cu31924051211179 |title=Notes on Jaipur |date=1916 |publisher=[S.l. : s.n.] |others=Cornell University Library |pages=12–13}}</ref> Realising this, he laid the idea of founding a permanent, all-India Famine Fund before [[George Curzon, 1st Marquess Curzon of Kedleston|Lord Curzon]], the then [[Governor-General of India|Viceroy and Governor-General of India]], who approved of it.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> [[Madho Singh II]] initially endowed Rs. 16,00,000 towards the establishment of the fund, but later increased it to Rs. 25,00,000.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> These contributions of his, paid between 1900 and 1906, formed the fund's kernel, and the interest on them was to be available for helping famine‑stricken people in any part of India.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> The fund was established on 25 July 1900 under the Charitable Endowments Act, 1890 (VI of 1890), by the [[Governor General in Council|Governor‑General in Council]], and came to be known as the Indian People's Famine Trust.<ref name=":2" /><ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=India |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/General_Rules_and_Orders_Made_Under_Enac/1CsbAAAAYAAJ |title=General Rules and Orders Made Under Enactments in Force in British India |date=1907 |publisher=Office of the superintendent, government printing |pages=C 1, 1260–1265 |language=en}}</ref> The senior wife of [[Madho Singh II]], Jadonji, contributed to the fund twice: firstly, in 1903, she gave Rs. 100,000, and later, she gave another Rs. 100,000 when the then [[Princess of Wales]] paid a visit to [[Kingdom of Amber|Jaipur]].<ref name=":0" />
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
! colspan="4" |Contributions of Madho Singh to the Fund
|-
! width="8%" |No.
! width="15%" |Year
! width="15%" |Amount
!Reference
|-
|1
|1900
|Rs. 16,00,000
| rowspan="5" |<ref>{{Cite book |last=Showers |first=H. L. |url=http://archive.org/details/cu31924051211179 |title=Notes on Jaipur |date=1916 |publisher=[S.l. : s.n.] |others=Cornell University Library |pages=152}}</ref>
|-
|2
|1901
|Rs. 4,00,000
|-
|3
|1904
|Rs. 1,00,000
|-
|4
|1906
|Rs. 4,00,00
|-
| colspan="2" |'''Total'''
|Rs. 25,00,000
|}
By the agreement reached between [[India]] and [[Pakistan]] in [[Karachi]] on 12 June 1955, following the discussion of the Indo-Pakistan Financial Conference on 10 June and 11 June 1955, it was agreed that the assets of the fund were to be divided between the two countries in the ratio of 82½ : 17½ respectively.<ref>[https://www.mea.gov.in/Portal/LegalTreatiesDoc/PA55B1326.pdf AGREEMENT BETWEEN PAKISTAN AND INDIA ON CERTAIN OUTSTANDING FINANCIAL ISSUES (Karachi, 12 June 1955)]</ref>

==Purpose==
The original purpose of the Indian People's Famine Trust was the alleviation, by grants of money or otherwise, of general distress caused by failure or destruction of crops, or by any calamity of a like nature, either in [[British India]] or in any [[Native States]].<ref name=":4" /><ref>{{Cite book |last=Eleonor Marcussen |url=http://archive.org/details/acts-of-aid |title=Acts Of Aid |pages=160–161}}</ref>

==References==
<references />
[[Category:Organisations based in India]]
[[Category:Organizations established in 1900]]
[[Category:1900 establishments in India]]
[[Category:Funds]]

Indian People's Famine Trust - Revision history

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