British introduced three main land revenue systems in India. These are called the Permanent Settlement (also known as the Zamindari System), the Ryotwari System (putcut system), and the Mahalwari System. How was the Mahalwari System different from the Permanent Settlement and Ryotwari system in many areas. These areas are introducers, methods of revenue collection, land ownership, in terms of revenue collection revision, and in specific regions. Before knowing the differences, it is necessary to briefly understand these three Land Revenue System.
Permanent Settlement
Permanent settlement was introduced by Lord Cornwallis on March 22, 1793 AD. He first introduced Permanent settlement system in Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa, and later it was implemented in Madras and Varanasi. Permanent Settlement is also mainly called the “Zamindari System” because of this agreement between the British East India Company and landlords of Bengal to fix the land revenue.
Cornwallis was optimistic that loyal zamindars would invest money in agriculture and ensure the amount of government revenue. Besides Cornwallis, Alexander Dow, Henry Patullo, Philip Francis, Thomas Law, John Shore, and James Grant were involved with this settlement.
The main feature of this system was that the zamindar was the owner of the land. According to the ‘Sun-Set Law’, if the zamindar paid the fixed amount of revenue before sunset on a specific day, the zamindar could enjoy his zamindari hereditarily; otherwise, his right to the land would be taken away. 10/11 of the revenue had to be given to the government, and they could keep 1/11 for themselves.
Ryotwari System
The Ryotwari System was introduced by Alexander Reed and Thomas Munro in 1820 AD. However, this system was first experimented with by Alexander Reed in Bara Mahal in 1792 AD, and Thomas Munro continued it until 1801 AD. This system was prevalent in the southern and southwestern regions, especially in Madras, Bombay, Assam, and Coorg. Besides Alexander Reed and Thomas Munro in Madras, Mountstuart Elphinstone, R.K. Pringle, G. Wingate, and H.E. Goldsmith were involved in Bombay.
In the Ryotwari Settlement, revenue collection agreements were established directly with the village, i.e., with the farmers, instead of with zamindars. The main feature of this system was to collect revenue through direct contact between the government and the farmers. There was no role for intermediaries. The tax rates were fixed high. It was 50% for dry lands and 60% for wetlands. In this case, land was settled for long terms of 20 to 30 or 30 to 40 years.
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Mahalwari System
The Mahalwari system was introduced by Holt Mackenzie in 1822 AD. This settlement was made with the entire community, or mahal. This settlement was prevalent in the northern and northwestern frontier provinces and the Ganges-Yamuna Doab region. Besides Holt Mackenzie, R.M. Bird was involved with this settlement.
The main feature of the Mahalwari System was that after surveying the land and assessing the productive capacity of the land, the amount of revenue was determined for each village or mahal, and the land was settled for 20 to 30 years.
How was the Mahalwari System different from the Permanent Settlement and Ryotwari System?
Here are the primary key points that makes these Mahalwari System different from the Permanent Settlement and Ryotwari System:
Introduction and creators:
The Permanent Settlement was introduced by Lord Cornwallis in 1793.
The Ryotwari System was introduced by Alexander Reed and Thomas Munro in 1820.
The Mahalwari System was introduced by Holt Mackenzie in 1822 and brought to India by Lord William Bentinck in 1833.
Revenue collection:
In the Zamindari System, intermediaries called Zamindars collected revenue from peasants.
In the Ryotwari System, peasants paid revenue directly.
In the Mahalwari System, the village headman collected revenue from all peasants in the village.
Land ownership:
The Zamindari System made Zamindars the owners of the land.
Both the Ryotwari and Mahalwari System gave peasants ownership of the land.
Revenue revision:
The Zamindari System fixed the revenue permanently.
Both the Ryotwari and Mahalwari System revised the revenue periodically.
Areas of prevalence:
The Zamindari System was prevalent in Bengal, Orissa, Bihar, and Varanasi.
The Ryotwari System was prevalent in Madras, Bombay, and parts of Assam and Coorg.
The Mahalwari System was prevalent in the North West Frontier Province, Punjab, Gangetic Valley, and Central Province.
