System Who and Where Features Consequenses

Permanent Cornwallis, 1. All the land belonged to the state and was at their disposal.
Settlement John Shore. 2. British designated zamindars (local tax collectors), as owners of the land in their district. This
system was adopted in several forms such as Zamindari, Jagirdari, Inamdari, etc.
Bengal 1793, 3. These zamindars:- Collect revenue from farmers and deliver to the British.
Bihar. 4. Converted Zamindars into landlords. The right to the land conferred on the zamindars.
5. Revenue amount was fixed at the beginning and remained the same permanently.
6. Zamindar were given freedom to decide how much to demand from the cultivators. Stiff
penalties on defaulters.
7. There was a provision of keeping a portion of taxes for the zamindar himself.
8. Zamindar’ s right over land was:-
a. Alienable: meaning British could take it away and give it to another Zamindar, if first
Zamindar did not meet the Revenue collection ‘targets’.
b. Rentable: Zamindar could further outsource his work among smaller zamindars.
c. Heritable: Zamindar dies, his son/brother etc would get it.
9. Farmers became tenants. Two types:-
a. Tenants-at-will: Cultivated Zamindars land. Had no rights. They could be evicted by
Zamindar.
b.Occupancy Tenants: Owned land. Their occupancy rights were heritable and transferrable
and were not tampered with as long as they paid their taxes.
1. For British
a. Gave financial security to the British administration.
b. Cost of administration decreased because British had to collect Revenue from only a
few Zamindars instead of lakhs of farmers.
c. British got new political allies (Zamindars). They would keep own militia to suppress
peasant revolts, and act as informers and remained loyal to British rule.
2. Learning from Mistake
a. Permanent settlement system led to many agrarian revolts.
b. Government’s income declined over the years, because Revenue was permanently
fixed + number of intermediaries kept increasing.
c. Hence, British learned from the mistake and did not extent this system to the whole of
India. Instead, established Ryotwari & Mahalwari systems in remaining parts.
3. Farmers lose bargaining power
a. Textile industry was the driver of industrial revolution in Britain. = raw cotton
imported + finished textile exported to India.
b. To prevent any ‘competition’ from Desi textile industries, the British imposed variety
of taxes and tariffs on them=desi textile business collapsed. Lakhs of weavers became
unemployed, migrated to villages in search of work.
c. Since they did not own any land, they had to become tenants-at-will for Zamindars.
d. Now Zamindars had the monopoly of controlling livelihood of thousands of people.
They extorted more and more taxes.
e. Moreover, the “ begar”, unpaid work which the tenants were forced to perform on the
zamindar’ s land, took larger proportions. On the average, it amounted to 20-25 % of
the lease.
f. Western Bengal: Farmers got divided into two categories i) Jotedars (Rich farmers) ii)
Bargadar (Sharecroppers)
g. Eastern Bengal: Jute cultivation. Independent farmers with small to middle size land
holdings.

4. More outsourcing
a. Permanent settlement system created landed aristocracy for the first time in India.
Zamindars used to chow down part of the land Revenue collected. Thus they became
wealthy and lazy. They ‘outsourced’ their work to more intermediaries / sub-tenants.
b. It became quite common to have 10 to 20 intermediaries, more or less without any
specific function, between the government and the farmers, they all had a share in the
cultivation yield + other illegal taxes.
c. As a result, 70-80% of farmer’s produce went to just Revenue and commissions
only=poverty, debts.
d. None of these middlemen or Zamindars invested money in agricultural improvement or
new technology. They just kept increasing rents. Hence traditional agriculture did not
shift to capitalist agriculture, unlike other economies.
Ryotwari Thomas Munro Why:- 1. Farmers had to pay revenue even during drought and famines, else he would be
Read 1. In permanent settlement areas, land Revenue was fixed. But over the years, agriculture evicted.
1. Madras 1820, prices/exports showed increase but government’s income did not increase. (Because 2. Replacement of large number of zamindars by one giant zamindar called East India
middlemen-zamindars chowed it down) and revenue fixed. Company.
Wingate and 2. Zamindars oppressive- frequent agrarian revolts in the permanent settlement areas. 3. Although ryotwari system aimed for direct Revenue settlement between farmer and the
Goldsmid 3. In Bihar, Bengal, there existed Zamindar/feudal lords since the times of Mughal government but over the years, landlordism and tenancy became widespread. Because
2. Bombay 1835 administration. But Madras, Bombay, Assam did not have Zamindars / feudal lords with textile weavers were unemployed= they started working as tenant farmers for other rich
large estates. So, hard to ‘outsource’ work. farmers. I n many districts, more than 2/3 of farmland was leased.
 3. Assam 4. No middlemen in tax collection=farmer had to pay less taxes=increased purchasing 4. Since Government insisted on cash revenue, farmers resorted to growing cash crops
power=will improve demand for readymade British products in India. instead of food crops. And cash crop needed more inputs=more loans and
indebtedness.
Consequently, all subsequent land tax or revenue settlements made by the colonial rulers were 5. After end of American civil war, cotton export declined but government didn’ t reduce
temporary settlements made directly with the peasant, or ‘ryot’ the revenue. As a result most farmers defaulted on loans and land was transferred from
farmers to moneylenders.
Features:-
1. Government claimed property rights to all land, but allotted it to the cultivators on the
condition that they pay taxes. It established a direct relation between the landholder and
the government.
2. Farmers could use, sell, mortgage, bequeath, and lease the land as long as they paid
taxes. In other words Ryotwari system gave a proprietary right upon the landholders.
3. No tax payment=evicted
4. Taxes were only fixed in a temporary settlement for thirty years and then revised.
5. Government retained right to enhance land revenue whenever it wanted.
6. Provided measures for revenue relief during famines but they were seldom applied in real
life situation.

Mahalwari 1. Gangetic Why:- 1. Since Punjab, Northern India = fertile land. So British wanted to extract maximum
valley In North India and Punjab, joint land rights on the village were common. So, British decided to Revenue out of this region. Land Revenue was usually 50% to 75% of the produce.
2. NW provinces utilize this utilize this traditional structure in a new form known as Mahalwari system. 2. As generations passed- fathers would divide land among sons=fragmentation=farms
1822, became smaller =productivity declined.
3. Parts of Features:- 3. But still British demanded Revenue in cash. So, farmers had to borrow money to pay
central India 1. Unit of assessment was the village. taxes in the case of crop failures.
4. Punjab 2. Taxation was imposed on the village community since it had the rights over land. 4. As a result, more and more farms passed into the hands of moneylenders. When farmer
3. The village community distributed these tax collection targets among the cultivators. failed to repay debt, Moneylender would take away his farm but he has no interest in
4. Each individual farmer contributed his share in the revenue. self-cultivation so he’ d leasing it to another farmer.
5. Everyone was thus liable for the others’ arrears. 5. Thus, sub-leasing, indebtedness and landlessness became more and more common in
6. Farmers had right to sell or mortgage their property. Mahalwari region.
7. The village community meant group of elders, notables of high castes. 6. Called Modified Zamindari system.
8. A village inhabitant, called lambardar, collected the amounts and gave to the British.
9. British periodically revised tax rates

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1.References:-
mrunal.org (just copy paste but in proper revision friendly structure)

2.Swaraj Chhallani