Mahalwari Settlement: Land Revenue System in British India | History Optional for UPSC (Notes) PDF Download

Mahalwari Settlement

Introduction:

• The North Western Provinces and Oudh, which roughly correspond to modern-day Uttar Pradesh, came under British rule at different times.
• In 1801, the Nawab of Oudh surrendered the districts of Allahabad and surrounding areas to the British East India Company. These areas were known as the ‘Ceded Districts’.
• After the Second Anglo-Maratha War, the Company acquired territory between the Jamuna and the Ganges, referred to as the ‘Conquered Provinces’.
• Following the last Anglo-Maratha War (1817-1818), Lord Hastings expanded British territories in Northern India.
• The concept of the ‘village community’ was not present in the Permanent Settlement or the Ryotwari system.

Expansion of British Territory (1801-1806):

• Between 1801 and 1806, vast stretches of territory in north and north-western India were overrun, including the Ganga-Jumna Doab.
• In the agrarian structure of this area, there were:
• Taluqdars: A small group of magnates, described by Nurul Hasan as “intermediary zamindars” who contracted with the state to collect revenue for a given territory.
• Primary Zamindars: A large group of “holders of proprietary rights over agricultural as well as habitational lands”.
• With the Bengal model in mind, the British initially collected revenue from the taluqdars.
• Henry Wellesley, the first Lieutenant Governor of the Ceded Districts, made a land revenue settlement with taluqdars for three years, setting the State demand significantly higher than that of the Nawab of Oudh.
• Unlike the Nawab, whose revenue collection varied with actual production, the Company’s demand was rigid and consistent.
• Similar land revenue settlements were established for the conquered provinces.
• The initial short-term settlements, which were eventually made permanent, were based on flawed estimates of productivity and often resulted in abnormally high revenue assessments.
• As a result, the British shifted their preference from taluqdars to primary zamindars and village communities.

Mahalwari System:

• The Mahalwari System was first experimented in Awadh in 1801 and later in territory acquired from the Marathas in 1803-04.
• Under this system, the unit for revenue settlement is the village or mahal (estate).
• The village land belongs jointly to the village community, technically known as ‘the body of co-shares’.
• The body of co-shares is collectively responsible for the payment of land revenue, although individual responsibility also exists.
• If any co-sharer abandons his land, it is taken over by the village community as a whole.
• The village community owns the village ‘common land’, including forest land, pastures, etc.

Introduction in North-West Provinces (1822):

• The Mahalwari System was introduced in the North-West Provinces (Upper Provinces) in 1822, based on the Holt Mackenzie Plan of 1819.
• The Regulation of 1822, formulated by Holt Mackenzie, emphasized the existence of village communities in Northern Indiaand recommended:
  • A survey of land
  • Preparation of records of rights in land
  • Settlement of land revenue demand mahal by mahal
  • Collection of land revenue through the village headman
• Regulation VII of 1822 gave legal sanction to these recommendations, making land revenue settlements based on 80% of the rental value, payable by the zamindars.
• In cases where estates were held by cultivators in common tenancy, the State demand was fixed at 95% of the rental.
• The system faced breakdown due to excessive state demand and harsh implementation.
• The new settlement was marred by confusion and corruption, as the survey, a crucial part of the arrangement, failed due to its complexity.
• This led to over-assessment and the system's eventual collapse.

Modification in 1833 by Bentinck:

• The Government of William Bentinck reviewed the scheme of 1822 and found it to cause widespread misery and fail due to its harshness.
• The Regulation of 1833, based on the Robert Marttines Bird Plan, provided for a detailed survey to assess the revenue of an entire mahal or fiscal unit, based on the net value of potential produce of the field.
• Land in a tract was surveyed, showing field boundaries and both cultivated and uncultivated land.
• The assessment for the entire tract was fixed, followed by setting down the demand for each village, allowing the mahal powers to make internal adjustments.
• The introduction of average rents for different classes of soil was a significant change.
• The use of field maps and field registers was prescribed for the first time.
• The rate was reduced to 66% of the net income of the land, with assessments made for 30 years.
• The new scheme was supervised by Mentins Bird, known as the Father of Land Settlements in Northern India.
• The settlement work under this scheme began in 1833 and was completed under the administration of James Thomson (Lt. Governor, 1843-53).

Modification based on James Thomson Plan, 1844:

• The James Thomson Plan of 1844 was a comprehensive land settlement code approved by the court of directors in 1851.
• However, the village settlements initiated by Bird and completed by James Thomason were based on imperfect surveys and inaccurate calculations, leading to over-assessment.
• The settlements were characterized by a clear hostility towards the taluqdars, who Bird considered unproductive.
• The village communities faced ruin due to high revenue demands, mounting debt burdens, revenue arrears, and dispossession through civil court decrees.
• Land often passed into the hands of moneylenders and merchants.
• Even the 66% rental demand formula proved to be harsh and unworkable.

Introduction of New Rules in 1855:

• In 1855, Lord Dalhousie recognized the need for fresh directions for Settlement Officers, particularly concerning the re-settlement of Shaharanpur district.
• The revised Saharanpur Rules of 1855 limited the State revenue demand to 50% of the rental value.
• Unfortunately, Settlement officers often evaded these new rules, interpreting the 50% rental value as half of the “prospective and potential” rental of estates rather than the “actual rentals”.
• This interpretation placed a heavy burden on the agricultural classes and contributed to widespread discontent, culminating in the Revolt of 1857.
• The Mahalwari System was later introduced in Punjab and Central India.

Malgujari Settlement (1863)

• Introduced in the Central Provinces, created in 1861.
• Settlement was made with Malgujars, who were traditional land revenue collectors.
• Malgujars were granted proprietary rights.
• Rate was fixed at 50% according to the Saharanpur rules.
• Settlement was made for 30 years.
• This settlement was a variant of the Mahalwari Settlement, and Richard Temple was a key figure behind it.

Taluqdari Settlement (1860-1878)

• Introduced in Awadh during this period.
• Settlement was made with Taluqdars as a response to their discontent following the revolt of 1857.
• Taluqdars were granted proprietary rights over their estates.
• Sub-proprietary rights were vested in village communities concerning Taluqdars.
• Settlement was made for 30 years.

Conclusion

• By the mid-19th century, the British East India Company had established three systems of land revenue administration, creating private property in land and granting proprietary rights to different groups:
• The Permanent Settlement was made with zamindars, primarily in the northern districts of the Madras Presidency.
• The Ryotwari Settlement was introduced for ryots or peasant proprietors in regions like Sind, Assam, and Coorg.
• The Mahalwari Settlement was applied to village communities, particularly in Punjab and central India as those areas were conquered.
• By 1928-29, approximately 19% of cultivable land was under zamindari settlement, 29% under Mahalwari settlement and 52% under Ryotwari system.
• All settlements shared a common issue of over-assessment, as the Company aimed to maximize revenue, leading to arrears of payment, mounting debt, increased land sales, and dispossession.

Disintegration of Village Economy

• The East India Company's revenue systems, heavy state demands, and new judicial and administrative setups disrupted the Indian rural economy.
• The village Panchayats lost their key roles in land settlements and judicial functions.
• The Patel became a mere government official responsible for revenue collection, leading to the breakdown of the traditional village community structure.
• The introduction of private property in land transformed land into a market commodity.
• New social classes emerged, including landlords, traders, moneylenders, and the landed gentry, while the rural proletariat, poor peasant proprietors, sub-tenants, and agricultural laborers increased in number.
• The shift from cooperation to competition and individualism set the stage for capitalist agricultural development.
• British imperial rule introduced significant changes in agrarian structure, including new land tenures, ownership concepts, and heavier state demands for land revenue.
• The colonial state had a mixed record in generating resources in India, with limited initiatives to develop agricultural production and public investment driven by profitability and contingency factors.
• Regional irrigation developments primarily benefited the more prosperous peasantry, with high canal rates limiting access for many.
• Agricultural yields remained static in colonial India, with food crop production lagging behind population growth, leading to near-famine conditions and significant famines, such as the one in Bengal in 1943.