Sawai Man Singh II as the Maharaja of Jaipur began his glorious reign in 14th March 1931 when Lord Irwin formally invested complete powers of the Maharaja of Jaipur in Sawai Man Singh. Though not many records are available regarding his coronation yet the Maharaja prepared a self congratulating speech which claimed a lot of contribution from his countrymen. His tenure is mainly known for the contributions he made in the field of administration, economy of the state, army, state sports and some more places which brought modernisation in the state. As he was large brought up in England his reforms were immensely influenced by the western education and modernization. The tenure of Sawai Man Singh II is largely marked by the relation ship of the Rajputs with the British paramount. As a maharaja the prime concern was to look after his local people at one side and to develop better relationship with the British paramount on the other side.
Sawai Man Singh II as the Maharaja of Jaipur introduced a number of reforms during his tenure. While the steps were a real example of scientific innovations, a major concern of the Maharaja was to conserve the Rajput customs and traditions which was the primary concern of the Maharaja. With this he introduced some of the innovations which headed big and positive changes in the state. Among his most prominent reforms a major responsibility was to reshape the army. To achieve the aim he introduced a number of regiments. He introduced the first Jaipur Infantry which is composed of nearly 800 men for imperial services. Along with this there was the Second Infantry which had 330 men which was built for state defence and internal security. Along with this Jaipur lancer was also launched under the command of Ajmer Singh that was meant for imperial services. With the existing regiments Man Singh II introduced the transport corps with nearly 280 men and the Sawai Man Guard. Nearly 2000 men were included in the army. As such this was some of the strongest armies among all the native states of India which ascertained the security of the state.
Along with this his tenure was marked with some of the post peaceful relations among the ruler and the jagirdars and the country men. With his strong speeches and appealing personality maharaja always claimed the cooperation of his local people in running the administration of the state. H e was careful enough to built a balance between the Sardars and Jagirdars who gave full support to the royal highness in running a smooth administration.. It was during his reign when he introduced reforms in the revenue of Jaipur. While the Sardars and the Jagirdars simply ignored to pay any dues or taxes during the reign Sawai Madho Singh, Man Singh took special interest in compelling the sardars to pay promptly if they want t o avoid harshness from the Maharaja. This was supported with friendly communication between them which shall avoid all harshness.
Along with Sawai Man Singh introduced his favourite game of Polo as the state game which was played by riding a giant elephant. This was not only entertaining but also glamorous that would narrate the glamour of the Rajput rulers in the modern age. As soon as he came from England he built a team for polo which won three championships with British in 1933 and won the world cup for Polo in 1933. Besides this the state saw some of the glorious days under Sawai Man Singh when electricity was introduced in the state. Along with this Maharaja paid a lot of attention towards the water supply when the irrigation dam was built in Rambagh. Some practical attention was also paid towards the healthy and child infanticides. These have been some of the major social problem of Jaipur. As the state was suffering from Plague it became important to pay attention towards this.
Thus with these innovations the reign of Sawai Man Singh is some of the most glorious phase of Jaipur.
