From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Fully- or semi-autonomous administrative region of British India
An
agency
of British India
was an internally autonomous or semi-autonomous unit of
British India
whose external affairs were governed by an agent designated by the
Viceroy of India
.
[1]
[
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Description
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The agencies varied in character from fully autonomous self-governing dependencies such as
princely states
, where the agent functioned mainly as a representative of the Viceroy, to tribal tracts which were integral parts of the
British Empire
and where the agent was completely in charge of law and order. The agent of a protected tract or princely state usually lived outside the territory in his charge, as opposed to a Resident who usually lived within his confines and was frequently the
District Collector
of the adjoining British district.
Civil and criminal justice in agencies were usually administered through locally made laws, and the
Indian Penal Code
was not applicable by default in these agencies.
List of agencies
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Political agencies were created, merged or abolished at different times during the history of the
British Raj
.
[2]
This list includes all agencies, regardless of the historical period.
See also
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References
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Sources and external links
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