Tekkali Copper-plate Grant of Devendra Varma
Summary
A newly discovered copper‑plate charter from the Tekkali estate contains three plates on a ring recording a land grant by Maharaja Devendra Varma of Kalinga. Dated year 192 of the Vijaya (conquest) era, equivalent to 816 Śaka or 894 A.D., the charter donates the village Navatula to a Brahmacari named Pilla and his sister during a lunar eclipse. It specifies boundaries, grants tax exemption “as long as the sun and moon endure,” and includes verses from the Vyāsa Gītā. The article situates Devendra Varma within the Eastern Ganga genealogy, noting he was son of Gunarnava and an early predecessor of the later powerful Ganga kings. The document illustrates Eastern Ganga administrative practices, such as precise boundary descriptions, ritual phrasing and the role of ministers in drafting and inscribing charters.
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Conclusion
The Tekkali charter enriches knowledge of Eastern Ganga history and land‑grant rituals. It confirms Devendra Varma’s rule in the late 9th century, details the formal language of donations and demonstrates how kings legitimised Brahmin endowments through copper‑plate charters.