ALLAUDDIN KHILJI

AGRARIAN REFORMS
ALLAUDDIN DID NOT WANT THE TO MUCH WEALTH IN THE HANDS OF THE NOBLES,AS
THEY BECAOME PRONE TO REVOLT.HENCE HE BANNED THE ENDOWMENT OF ALL THE
LAND GRANTS-----MILK,INAM,IDRAR AND WAQF------AND CONFISCATED ALL OF THEM.
THE TAX COLLECTORS WERE INSTRUCTED TO EXTRACT MONEY FROM EVERY KIND OF
PRETEXT----80% OF THE PRODUCE IN DIFFERENT TAXES-------AND WITH REGARD TO
THE HINDU CHIEFS AND REVENUE COLLECTORS SPECIFIC ECONOMIC
PRESSURE(BANNED KISMAT-I-KHOTI) WAS APPLIED SO AS TO GRIND THEM DOWN TO
ABJECT POVERTY SO THAT THEY COULD NEVER THINK OF REVOLTING.
HE ORDERED STRICT AUDIT,ENQUIRY AND CONTROL ON THE ACCOUNTS OF THE
IQTADARS AND PUT THEM INTO ROUTINE SURVEILLANCE AND MADE THEM TO DEPOSIT
ALL THE SURPLUS IN THE STATE TREASURY,FAILING WHICH THEY WERE GIVEN HARSH
PUNISHMENTS.
HE WAS THE FIRST SULTAN OF DELHI WHO THOUGHT OD THE PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
SYSTEM AND TRY TO REGULATE THE PRICES OF THE FOOD ARTICLES MUCH LIKE THE
MAURAYANS.
FOR THE HINDUS THE REVENUE WAS FIXED AT HALFTHE GROSS PRODUCE OF THE
LAND AND THEIR BURDEN WAS FURTHER UNCREASED BY THE GRAZING AND HOUSING
TAXES.
HE ALSO INTRODUCED THE PRACTISE OF MEASUREMENT OF LAND AS A PRELIMINARY
TO LAND SETTLEMENTS.HE WAS THE FIRST MUSLIM RULER TO DO SO.
ECONOMIC REGULATIONS
ALLUADDIN HAD A LARGE ARMY OF 4 LAKH
AND 75,000 STRONG.
BUT THE QUESTION ARISES HOW TO PAY
THAT SUCH A LARGE ARMY ?
ONE WAY WAS TO ENHANCE THE
SALARY,WHICH WAS NOT POSSIBLE AS IT
WAS A DRAIN ON STATE EXCHEQER .HE HE
PURSUED WITH HIS MARKET REFORMS
WHICH ULTIMATELY RUINED THE MASSES.
HENCE THE SUCCESS OF HIS POLICY
DEPENDED UPON THE SUCCESS OF HIS
PREVIOUS POLICY.
TO MAKE HIS SOLDIERS HAPPY HE ADMINISTERED THE
PRICES OF THE GOODS AND DID NOT CHANGE TILL IT
RULES.BUT WHAT WAS GREAT ABOUT IT ?
THOUGH ILLETERATE HE HAD THE BRAIN OF THE GENIOUS.
HE FORCED THE PEASENTS TO LIVE NEAR YAMUNA AND
ASKED THEM TO SELL THEIR “SURPLUS” TO THE
MERCHANTS ON THE KHALIYAN ITSELF.THE MERCHANTS
TOO HAD TO SELL THIS PRODUCE IN THE STATE
MANDI(DIWAN-I-RIYASAT) AT A FIX PRICE.
HE ALSO APPOINTED NUMBER OF OFFICIALS TO LOOK INTO
THE RULES AND REGULATIONS OF THE MARKET AND ASKED
THEM TO SEE HIMEVERY MORNING
HIS POLICIES WERE SUCCESSFUL AS
NO REVOLT TOOK PLACE.
BUT WILL IT REALLY BENEFIT THE
MASSES ?
 AFTER EFFECTS
IT WAS AN ARTIFICIAL POLICY WHICH INTERFERED IN THE
PRODUCTION OF GOODS AND MANIPULATE THE MARKET FORCES.
HIS MARKET REFORMS NEITHER BENEFITTED THE PEASENTARY
NOR THE SEMI-ARISTOCRATIC CLASSES,ARTISENS,MERCHANTS
ETC.
BECAUSE BY ADMINITERING THE PRICES HE MITIGATED THE
DIVIDEND OF EACH COMMUNITY RELATED WITH TRANSPORTATION
AND PRODUCTION OF GOODS,THERBY MAKING THEM WEAK AND
HELPLESS.
BY PROVIDING CASH SALARIES TO THE SOLDIERS,HE ,NO DOUBT,
MONETIZED THE ECOMOMY TO SOME EXTENT,BUT AT THE SAME
TIME THE MASSES WERE PUT IN A STATE OF DEPRIVATION AS
THEY WERE LEFT WITH NO MONEY TO BUY THE PRODUCTS.
HENCE WE DOUBTED THAT EVEN SOLDIERS WOULD HAVE
BENEFITTED FROM SUCH A POLICY BECAUSE MOST OF THEM
WERE RECRUITED FROM THE PEASENTRY.