Question

Explain how the land revenue system of the British affected the Indian farmers.

Answer 1

Hint: A tax or revenue levied on agricultural production on land is known as land revenue. It is either collected as a percentage of the overall crop or as a monetary value on the land that the farmer must pay. It has historically been an important source of income for civilizations.

Complete answer:
The impact of the British land revenue system on Indian farmers -
i) The British introduced the Zamindari, Ryotwari, and Mahalwari systems.
ii) Farmers' rights to land ownership were taken away under the Zamindari regime.
iii) Land tax was calculated based on the size of the parcel of land.
iv) Zamindars extorted more money from farmers and collected more taxes.
v) In the Ryotwari system, farmers who did not pay their taxes lost their land rights.
vi) The government had the power to sell the land.
vii) All land conflicts had to be resolved through the courts.
viii) Mahaldars collected extra taxes and mistreated farmers under the Mahalwari system.
ix) The goal of all of these regimes was to exploit farmers and gain wealth.

The effects of a British emperor's land revenue settlements -
The revenue was fixed at a fairly high rate in all of these land revenue regimes. The Company set the income so high in the Permanent Settlement that it became difficult for zamindars to pay revenues to the Company. The people were oppressed by the settlement because they had to pay hefty rent to the zamindars. Their land rights were protected until they paid the taxes. They had to borrow money from moneylenders at exorbitant interest rates to pay for the high land revenues. Cultivators were expelled from the farms that they had been cultivating for generations after failing to pay the hefty rent. Most peasants were unable to pay the revenues in other land taxation schemes as well and hence lost their lands.

Note: Different land revenue schemes were introduced by the British in different sections of the country. Permanent Settlement, for example, was adopted in Bengal, while the Ryotwari system was mostly introduced in South India. In the Central provinces, the North-West Frontier Provinces, Agra, Punjab, and the Gangetic Valley, the Mahalwari system of land tax was implemented.