Jagirdari system

 During Akbar’s reign, the territory was broadly divided into two: Khalisa and Jagir. The
revenue from the first went into the imperial treasury and the jagir was assigned to Jagirdars
in lieu of their salary in cash (naqd) according to their rank.
 The assignments were known as jagirs or tuyuls, though the term iqta was used in the time
of the Delhi sultan. The officers paid in cash were known as naqdi, and land assignments
were called tuyuldars or jagirdars.
 The estimated revenue was called Jama or jamadami. The Jama included land revenue,
inland transit duties, port customs, and other taxes which were known as sair jihat.
 In the 31st year of Akbar’s reign, the jama of the khalisa in the province of Delhi,awadh, and
Allahabad amounted to less than 5% percent of the total revenue. Under Jehangir, almost
9/10th of the territory was assigned in jagir and only 1/10th was available for khalisa. The ratio
of jagir and khalisa kept fluctuating. Under Shah Jahan, it rose to 1/11th and by the 20th year,
it was nearly 1/7th.
 Jagirdars were shifted from one place to the other for administrative reasons Which checked
the jagirdars from developing local routes. At the same time, it discouraged them from
taking long time measures for the development of their areas. They were mainly interested
in extracting as much revenue as they could in a short time
 Jagirs that were given in lieu of pay were called jagir tankha, jagirs given to a person on
certain conditions were called mashrut jagirs, and jagirs independent of rank were called
inaam jagirs.
 Akbar enhanced the strength of the Center about its officers by frequently changing the size
and location of jagirs according to an officer’s performance. The jagirdar thus had
considerably less power than the quasars of the Delhi sultanate.
 An estimated 80% of all revenues during Akbar’s reign were allocated to the salaries and
jagirs of mansabdars.
 Further refinements made by Akbar’s revenue minister Todar Mal, in the revenue system by
bringing tax reforms according to to yield rate and area measured, and tax rates were
established with more uniformity and accuracy.

 There is evidence that the emperor claimed the right to the property of his deceased officers
and disposed of it as he chose.
 Watan jagirs originated from the admission of territorial chiefs into the Mughal service.
 The jagirdars had to employ their agents to collect revenue and taxes. The jagirdar was
allowed to collect only authorized revenue ( mal wajib) in accordance with imperial
regulations.
 The diwan of the suba was supposed to prevent the oppression of the peasants by jagirdars.
In the 20th year of Akbar amin was sent to check on jagirdars.
 Jagirdari system had worked with reasonable efficiency down till the middle of Aurangzeb’s
reign but during the last 26 years of his reign, owing to the increasing strain of the Deccan
wars on the financial resources, dislocation of the administration from north India it started
to lose its efficiency.
 There was also the influx of a large number of decani nobles whom Aurangzeb granted
mansabs on a large scale to prevent them from rebelling.
 As a consequence of a number of disparate but interconnected reasons, the Mughal Empire
declined dramatically within a few decades of Aurangzeb's death.