Ruling the Countryside

Background

• East India Company received Royal Charter to trade in India.
• Appointed as Diwan of Bengal on 12th August 1765 by the Mughal Emperor.
• Robert Clive accepted the title on behalf of the company.
• As Diwan, became chief financial administrator, with rights to collect revenue.

Revenue Collection and Economic Impact

• Company's aim: Increase revenue, buy fine cotton and silk cheaply.
• Value of goods bought doubled in five years post-1765.
• Used Bengal's revenue for purchases, rather than importing gold and silver.

Agricultural Crisis and Permanent Settlement

• Bengal's economy hit by the 1770 famine, killing millions.
• Permanent Settlement introduced in 1793 under Lord Cornwallis to improve agriculture.
• Rajas and talukdars became zamindars, tasked with collecting revenue.
• Revenue was fixed permanently, not increasing in future.
• Encouraged zamindars to invest in land improvement.

Problems with Permanent Settlement

• Zamindars uninterested in land improvement; crop production reduced.
• Fixed high revenue difficult for zamindars to pay.
• Farmers faced high rents, exploitation, and eviction.

New Revenue Systems

• Mahalwari System (1822):
  • Introduced by Holt Mackenzie.
  • Land revenue collected by village headmen, not zamindars.
  • Whole village treated as a unit (Mahal) for revenue collection.
  • Revenue revised periodically.
• Ryotwari System:
  • Introduced by Sir Thomas Munro in Madras (1820).
  • Direct settlement with peasants who were deemed landowners.
  • Allowed to sell, mortgage, or gift land.
  • Fields surveyed before revenue assessment.

Cultivation of Cash Crops

• Focus on expanding cultivation of indigo, opium, and other crops.
• Indigo suited to India’s climate, demanded for European textiles.

Indigo Cultivation Methods

• Nij Cultivation:
  • Planters directly controlled land, employed laborers.
  • Faced issues with land availability and labor.
• Ryoti System:
  • Peasants signed contracts, received cash advances.
  • Faced perpetual debt and land fertility issues post-indigo harvest.

The Indigo Rebellion

• March 1859: Peasants in Bengal rebel against indigo planters.
• Refused to pay rents, attacked factories.
• British government used military to protect planters.
• Queen Victoria's order allowed peasants to refuse indigo contracts.
• Indigo Commission declared it unprofitable for peasants.

Aftermath

• Indigo production in Bengal ceased; planters moved to Bihar.

This lecture provides insight into the revenue systems and agricultural policies implemented by the East India Company, their impacts, and the subsequent socio-economic consequences, highlighting the struggles and changes in rural India under colonial rule.