Self-made individuals have always earned their share of respect in the course of history and this life sketch deals with the life of someone similar. In nineteenth-century India when the very history of the sub-continent was evolving because of the numerous wars and treaties taking place all around, there lived an army officer who went on to play a crucial role for the very forces which held an upper hand across these vast lands. His name was Lieutenant Colonel Khan Bahadur Sheikh Hedayat Ali, Sirdar Bahadur, CIE, OBI, IOM. He was the first Indian career army officer who reached the rank of a Lieutenant Colonel in the British Indian army.
Origin
The very origin of his life is a little uncertain. An article on his life published in "The Illustrated London News" dated September 4th, 1858 quoted one Major General Carmichael, according to whom Hedayat Ali held the rank of a Duffadar or Cavalry Sergeant in the 4th Regiment Irregular Horse sometime around 1824. Assuming that Hedayat Ali started his career as a Sowar or Cavalry Trooper in his late teens, we can assume that he was at least around thirty years old in 1824, which puts his date of birth around 1794. The article among other things further mentions that he was the son of a popular Risaldar or Cavalry Captain who had died around 1832 in Sagar, present-day Madhya Pradesh and that Hedayat Ali was appointed as the Native Adjutant to the Corps in 1839. Hedayat Ali was himself serving as a Risaldar in the army in 1857 when the uprising took place. An article published in "The Friend of India" of May 6th, 1858 mentions his place of origin. That being the village of Mohna in Gurgaon district, present-day Haryana. This article further mentions how he protected the lives of thirty-two Europeans comprising of many women and children by providing them shelter in spite of receiving repeated threats. He also provided food and clothes and arranged for their safe passage to Agra. As an outcome of this endeavour, he was soon awarded the entire village of Mohna as a hereditary 'Jagir' and presented with a valuable sword.
The Pecking Order
He soon reached the rank of an Honorary Captain and was awarded the first class of the Indian Order of Merit in 1861 and further went on to serve in Sikkim, Sambalpur, Khasi and Jaintia hills. Around this time, we also see him making a transition into many administrative roles alongside his military duties. He served as the Commandant of the Cooch Behar forces and also served in the capacity of an Assistant Commissioner of the Western Dooars. He further went on to serve as the Assistant to the Commissioner of Cooch Behar and also to the Chief Political Officer for Bhutan. Another major appointment was being appointed to the judicial position of Honorary Magistrate for the same region. His service in the Anglo-Bhutan War of 1864-1865 was greatly praised and he eventually went on to lease thousands of acres of land in the Dooars region.
Milestones
In the Lushai expedition of 1871-1872, we find an obviously aged Hedayat Ali as Captain, commanding the Coolie Corps. Around this time he was also serving as an aide-de-camp to the Commander in Chief of India. In those days it was not unusual for officers and soldiers to continue serving in their advanced age. Hedayat Ali was promoted to the rank of a Major sometime soon after, as, during the visit of the Prince of Wales to India in 1875-1876, there is a mention of him, as Major being appointed as an Extra aide-de-camp to the Prince. Hedayat Ali was promoted to the honorary rank of a Lieutenant Colonel sometime around 1880, thus becoming the first Indian career officer in the British Indian army to reach that rank. "The Dictionary of Indian Biography" by C.E. Buckland mentions his other honours which included being appointed a Companion of the Indian Empire, being conferred the title of Khan Bahadur and being awarded the Order of British India(First Class) which further allowed him to use the title of Sirdar Bahadur. The immensely capable officer breathed his last at Dinapur, present-day Bihar on the 3rd of July 1882 after a pretty long and adventurous life. Among his family and heirs, he had a son named Saikh Sakawat Ali who had died sometime before 1903. Large tracts of his estates in Northern Bengal were resumed by the Government by 1901 and with time he was forgotten in many corridors where he was once seriously respected. But his legacy remained. The Dooars region where Lieutenant Colonel Khan Bahadur Hedayat Ali, Sirdar Bahadur once served in the military, administrative and judicial capacities is today known as the Alipurduar district. The prefix of 'Ali' was added to the district name as a tribute to the surname of the legendary officer.
