Mal, Lucknow

Mal Māl
Community Development Block
Map of Mal CD block
Mal Location in Uttar Pradesh, India Show map of Uttar Pradesh Mal Mal (India) Show map of India
Coordinates: 27°01′18″N 80°44′09″E / 27.02156°N 80.73584°E / 27.02156; 80.73584[1]
Country	India
State	Uttar Pradesh
District	Lucknow
Area [2]
• Total	2.619 km2 (1.011 sq mi)
Elevation [1]	130 m (430 ft)
Population  (2011)[2]
• Total	6,429
• Density	2,500/km2 (6,400/sq mi)
Languages
• Official	Hindi
Time zone	UTC+5:30 (IST)
PIN	226104
Vehicle registration	UP32

Mal, also spelled Mall, is a village and corresponding community development block in Lucknow district of Uttar Pradesh, India.^[2] It is part of the tehsil of Malihabad.^[2] As of 2011, the population of Mal was 6,429, in 1,199 households, while the population of Mal block was 170,962, in 31,429 households.^[2]

Mal was historically the seat of a tribe of Gaharwar Rajputs, whose family tradition states that they came from Manda-Bijaipur near Varanasi under one Rai Paitawan, a brother of the ruler of Varanasi.^[3] The story goes that Rai Paitawan had gone on a pilgrimage to Nimkhar, in what is now Sitapur district, and after encountering a good omen on the way back, he decided to stay in this area.^[3] He drove out the ruling Jhojhas from their forts at Mal and Ant to become ruler himself.^[3] The Gaharwars' territory later became divided among seven estates: Mal, Atari, Salinagar, Amlauli, Masira, Hamirpur, and Nabipanah.^[3] By the turn of the 20th century, the Gaharwars' influence had declined, and they only owned about a quarter of the village lands in Mal.^[3] The remainder of the lands were held by Pandit Bakht Narain.^[3]

At the turn of the century, Mal had a population of 1,775, and it had a marketplace called Ramnarainganj after its founder, Pandit Ram Narain (Bakht Narain's father), which hosted markets twice a week, on Thursdays and Sundays.^[3] There was also a weekly cattle market.^[3] Three fairs were held here annually: the Athon fair during the month of Chait, the Mahabir fair in Jeth, and the Janamashtami fair in Bhadon.^[3] Mal's soil was described as highly fertile, and wheat was the main crop grown.^[3] Irrigation was provided by wells, tanks, and also some from the Jhingi nala, which flows to the east of the village.^[3] There were at the time two Hindu temples, one mosque, and also the mausoleum of a saint named Gulmir Shah.^[3]

Mal block comprises the following 87 villages:^[2]