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{{Use Indian English|date=May 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2017}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name = Raja Syed Ekram Ali
| royal house =
| burial_place = Shahi [[Qabristan]], Barundai, [[Tarakote State]]
| burial_date =
| death_place = [[Tarakote State]]
| death_date = 11 July 1890
| birth_place = Santasahi, Qila Tarakote, [[Tarakote State]]
| birth_date = 1842
| mother = Salihaa Bibi Sahab
| father = Raja Syed Nuruddin Ali
| dynasty = [[Sayyid]]
| issue =
| title = 11th [[Raja]] [[Mian (title)|Miyan]] of [[Tarakote Raj]] <br> Taajdar e Tarakote
| spouse = 3 including Bibi Badi Begum Saheb
| queen = Bibi Badi Begum Saheb
| successor = Choudhury Mohammed Dabiruddin (''adopted'')
| predecessor = Raja Miyan Syed Nuruddin Ali Choudhury
| full name = Taajdar e Tarakote Meherban Raja Miyan Syed Shamsuddin Mohammed Ekram Ali Choudhury Saheb
| coronation =
| house = [[Sayyid| Hussain Jahi]]
| reign = 21 January 1869 – 11 July 1890
| caption =
| image =
| religion = [[Islam]]
}}

'''Raja Syed Ekram Ali''' was the 11th hereditary ruler of the quasi-princely state of [[Tarakote State|Tarakote]] in [[Odisha]].<ref name=":3">{{cite book |last1=Lethbridge |first1=Sir Robert |title=The Golden Handbook |page=246}}</ref> He is known for the wide social reforms that he had brought in his state. He was a staunch advocate of female education and took concrete steps to promote formal learning for girls. In 1886, he established the very first girls’ school in [[Jajpur]], which at the time was part of the undivided [[Cuttack district]].<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=RATH|first=SRINIBAS|title=Some Socio-Economic Aspects of Abolition of Zamindari System in Orissa|date=1992|journal=Proceedings of the Indian History Congress|volume=53|pages=436–439|jstor=44142822|issn=2249-1937}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=TARAKOT URDU GIRLS MAKTAB TARAKOTE BARUNDEI KORAI JAJPUR|url=http://www.odishahelpline.com/schools-TARAKOT-URDU-GIRLS-MAKTAB-BARUNDEI-JAJPUR-district-ODISHA232126194066196031053068|access-date=2020-07-11|website=www.odishahelpline.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=|title=Tarakote Raj|url=https://www.icbse.com/schools/tarakot-urdu-girls-maktab-e6yg79|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=|website=}}</ref>

== Early life ==

Miyanzada Syed Ekram Ali was born on 21 January 1869 into the ruling family of [[Tarakote State]] to Raja Miyan Syed Nurrudin Ali. At the age of 8 he contracted [[small pox]] which took away his vision. Following his father’s death, he ascended the throne at the age of twenty-seven, becoming the 11th ruler of [[Tarakote State]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|date=2015-11-04|title=Top 3 Land Tenure Systems during the British Rule in India|url=https://www.historydiscussion.net/history-of-india/economic-history/top-3-land-tenure-systems-during-the-british-rule-in-india/5977|access-date=2020-07-11|website=History Discussion - Discuss Anything About History|language=en-US}}</ref>

== Reign ==

Raja Miyan Ekram Ali suffered considerable territorial losses during his reign, as a majority of the villages under Tarakote State were transferred to British control under the provisions of the [[Ryotwari|Land Revenue Settlement Act]]. Several of these villages were subsequently auctioned and sold to outsiders by the colonial administration. Earlier, during the reign of his great-grandfather, Raja Zulfiqar, a substantial portion of [[Tarakote Raj|Shergarh-Tarakote]] had been annexed by the [[Maratha Empire|Marathas]] including the fort of Pacchikote, resulting in the formation of a separate Maratha polity in the region known as Pacchikote Raj. The newly established Raja of Pacchikote, a contemporary of Raja Ekram Ali, is recorded in local tradition to have engaged in an armed conflict with Tarakote near the Purbakot Haat in Kantore. Raja Ekram Ali is said to have personally led his forces in this confrontation and emerged victorious.<ref name=":1" />

Oral accounts further suggest that the immediate cause of hostilities stemmed from an incident in which the Diwan of the Raja of Pacchikote, while transporting essential provisions back to Pacchikote Garh, inadvertently crossed into Tarakote territory. Mistaken for a dacoit by the Tarakote garrison, he was apprehended for unlawful entry. This act provoked the Raja of Pacchikote, who retaliated by attacking Tarakote. Raja Syed Ekram Ali, however, successfully defended his dominion, reportedly with the assistance of Pathan soldiers from Bhadrak.<ref name=":2" /><ref>{{Cite book|last=Chaurasia|first=Radhey Shyam|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MS_jrForJOoC&dq=sunset+law+india&pg=PA74|title=History of Modern India, 1707 A. D. to 2000 A. D|date=2002|publisher=Atlantic Publishers & Dist|isbn=978-81-269-0085-5|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1" /> The confrontation culminated in the decisive ''Battle of Kantor'', where Raja Ekram Ali’s forces defeated the invading army of Pacchikote.

The British authorities eventually had to intervene to pacify the two rulers, resulting in a truce agreement. According to the terms, the Raja of Pacchikote was allowed to pass through Tarakote territory to reach the railway station, but during such passages, his entourage was required to remain completely silent and make no announcements contrary to the common practices.<ref name=":3" />

== Social Reforms ==
Raja Ekram Ali promoted female education, he himself was a great patron of [[Arabic]] and [[Odia language|Odia]] languages. In 1880 he commissioned [[Jajpur]]'s first girls school. He was successfully able to suppress the [[Qadi|Qazi]]s voice who was against the idea of starting a 'girls school'. In 1886, the school was constructed and opened to impart education to girls. Presently it is known as Tarakote girls' school Makhtab.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|title=TARAKOT URDU GIRLS MAKTAB, KORAI|url=http://www.schoolsworld.in/schools/showschool.php?school_id=21130804103|access-date=2020-07-11|website=www.schoolsworld.in}}</ref>

==References==

<references />

[[Category:People from Odisha]]
[[Category:Indian monarchs]]
[[Category:1842 births]]
[[Category:1890 deaths]]
[[Category:19th-century Indian royalty]]

Raja Syed Ekram Ali - Revision history

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