Mahalwari System- Origin, Development, Problems

 Mahalwari System

• Holt Mackenzie established the Mahalwari method in 1822. Later, in 1833 during the reign of William Bentick, the British overhauled the system.
• In North-West India, the Mahalwari system was the dominant land revenue system.
• The Mahalwari system was implemented in the North-West Frontier, Agra, Punjab, the Gangetic Valley, and the Central Provinces, among other places. This system combined components from both Zamindari and Ryotwari systems.
• The land revenue was collected from the farmers by the village headmen on behalf of the entire village under the Mahalwari system (and not the zamindar).
• The entire village was converted into one bigger unit called ‘Mahal’ and was treated as one unit for the payment of land revenue.
• The Mahalwari system required the revenue to be reviewed on a regular basis rather than being set in stone.
• The village headman of village leaders were in charge of collecting the tax, and the peasants were the sole owners.
• The State’s portion of the revenue was sixty-six per cent of the rental value, with a thirty-year agreement. The Mahalwari system established the concept of average rentals for various soil types and classifications.

The British land revenue system as a whole had disastrous repercussions. Initially, the land was used to generate revenue. The land was treated as though it were private property, which it had never been before. Because of the high levies, farmers resorted to producing cash crops rather than food crops. Famines and food shortages resulted as a result of this. Farmers also became indebted to moneylenders because taxes had to be paid in cash, and the latter became the landowners. Farmers became bonded labourers as a result of this. When India gained independence, barely 7% of the villagers, known as zamindars, controlled 75% of the land.

In British India, there are several different types of land revenue systems. 

• Zamindari system: During the British administration, the divisions of Bihar, Bengal, Banaras, and the NWFP amounted to around 19% of the total land.
• Ryotwari system: During the British administration, the Assam, Bombay, and Madras Presidencies covered roughly 51% of the territory.
• Mahalwari system: During the British administration, the Mahalwari System covered 30% of the country, including important areas of the NWFP, central provinces, and Punjab.

Origin Of The Mahalwari Settlement

The East India Company acquired two key regions in contemporary Uttar Pradesh: the North-Western Provinces and Oudh (Awadh). The Company received the districts of Allahabad from the Nawab of Awadh in 1801. After the Second Anglo-Maratha War, the British took control of the [Jamuna] and Ganges valleys. After the Third Anglo-Maratha War in 1820, Governor-General of India Francis Rawdon-Hastings, 1st Marquess of Hastings, captured further areas in North India.

All of the recommendations, as well as the survey of lands, the production of records of land rights, the settlement of land revenues, demand in the Mahals, and the collection of land income, were the responsibility of the village headman or lambardar. These recommendations were given legal authority by Regulation VII of 1822. The state demand might be set at 95 per cent of the rental in circumstances where estates were not held by landlords but by farmers under the common tenancy. However, because the State’s demand was high and the system’s operation was rigorous, it broke down. The amount that the cultivators had to pay was more than they could afford.

Development Of Mahalwari System

The Governor-General, William Bentinck (1828-1835), updated the Regulation of 1822 and introduced the Mahalwari System. They saw that the Regulation of 1822 had resulted in nothing but widespread sorrow.

Bentick’s government passed a new regulation in 1833 after extensive deliberation. Holt Mackenzie and Robert Merttins Bird established the Mahalwari System of land revenue, which made the system more flexible. The process of preparing produce and rent estimates was also made easier. It also established the fixation of average rents for various soil classes. Under Mettins Bird, this approach worked. The techniques for measuring land and analysing soil quality have been considerably enhanced. The State’s demand was set at 66 percent of the rental value, with a 30-year settlement.

Under James Thompson’s administration, the Mahalwari land revenue system, which had been in place since 1833, was completed. The 66 per cent rental demand was also extremely tough. Governor-General James Broun-Ramsay, 1st Marquess of Dalhousie, amended it to 50% in the Saharanpur Rules of 1855. The British officers, on the other hand, were unconcerned with the rules. The Indians were extremely dissatisfied as a result of this.

Problems With The Mahalwari System 

• One of the system’s major flaws was that the survey was based on erroneous assumptions, which allowed for manipulation and corruption.
• It caused the Company to spend more on collection than the revenue it received at times. As a result, the system was deemed a failure.

Conclusion

In British India, there are several different types of land revenue systems. We hope the article has provided you with the relevant details about Mahalwari System. For any queries, contact us at Oliveboard.

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