 The majority of colonists hailed from the seven most densely populated districts of Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Jullundur, Hoshiarpur, Ludhiana, Ambala and Sialkot, and consisted primarily of Jats, Arains, Sainis, Kambohs and Rajputs.The movement of many highly skilled farmers from eastern and central Punjab to the new colonies, led to western Punjab becoming the most progressive and advanced agricultural region of the province.The period also saw significant numbers of Punjabis emigrate to other regions of the British Empire.