Plunder Of Pachet
| Plunder Of Pachet | |||||||||
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| Part of Maratha invasions of Bengal | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
.svg){kind=small} Bengal Subah | |||||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Alivardi Khan |
 Bhaskar Pandit | ||||||||
Battle
A powerful expedition was launched into Orissa and Bengal, beginning on the day of Dasara in 1741, with a force of around ten thousand cavalry. The campaign was led by Bhaskar Ram, who departed from Nagpur in November. Advancing through Ramgad, they plundered the district of Pachet, located about 60 miles east of Ranchi.
The Marathas soon managed to bring Katwa, Dinajpur, and Mushirabad under their control. Mir Habib worked to consolidate their authority across other parts of West Bengal by opening negotiations with local zamindars and dispatching agents to collect customs and rents from the population.
Within two to three months, the Marathas had taken control of Orissa, Midnapur, Burdwan, parts of the Bäjsáhl zamindari, Birbhum, and Rajmahal—essentially, most of West Bengal and parts of Orissa. Only Murshidabad and the northern and eastern regions of Bengal remained under Alivardi Khan's authority. The lull in military operations during the monsoon of 1742 provided the Marathas an ideal opportunity to intensify their depredations across Burdwan, Midnapur, and Orissa, reaching as far as Dalkore. Historian Gengaram lists several key locations in the districts of Burdwan, Nadia, Birbhum, Murshidabad, Bankura, and Midnapur as having suffered from the Maratha invasions.