The Ancient Geography of India. I. The Buddhist Period, including the Campaigns of Alexander, and the Travels of Hwen-Thsang c11.30

c11.30

In later times several of the Muhammadan kings established other values of the kos, founded on various multiples of different *gaz*, which they had called after their own names. Our information on this subject is chiefly derived from Abul Fazl, the minister of Akbar.* According to him, Shir Khan fixed the *kroh*, or kos, at 60 *jarîbs*, each containing 60 Sikandari *gaz*, of 41½ Sikandaris, which was still in use about Delhi when Abul Fazl wrote. This kos would be equal to 9042·66 feet, or rather less than 1¾ mile. Another kos was established by Akbar, composed of 5000 Ilâhi *gaz*, the value of which is said to be equal to 41 Sikandaris. But this is certainly a mistake, as the existing Ilâhi *gaz* measures vary from 32 to 33 inches, and are therefore equal to 44 or 45 Sikandaris. Sir Henry Elliot has attempted to ascertain the value of this kos from the measurements of distances between the existing kos *minârs* on the royal road "from Agra to Lahor of Great Mogul." But as the people generally attribute the erection of the present kos *minârs* to Shah Jahân, who had established another *gaz* of his own, no dependence can be placed on his value of the Akbari kos. Sir Henry has also given undue prominence to this kos, as if it had superseded all others. That this was not the case is quite certain, as Akbar’s own minister, Abul Fazl, uses the short kos throughout his descriptions of the provinces of his master’s empire, Even Akabar’s son, Jahângîr, has discarded the Akbari kos in his autobiography, where he mentions that he ordered a Sarai to be built at every 8 kos between Lahor and Agra.†