Question

Q. With reference to the Permanent Settlement, which of the following statements is/are correct?

1. The Zamindar was made not only a landowner in the village, but also a revenue Collector of the state.
2. Sunset laws were associated with permanent settlement.
3. For the first time in Indian History property rights over land was created.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

• A.
  1 and 2 only
• B.
  1 and 3 only
• C.
  2 and 3 only
• D.
  1, 2 and 3

Answer 1

The correct option is C

2 and 3 only
Explanation:

• The Permanent Settlement of Bengal was brought into effect by the East India Company headed by the Governor-General Lord Cornwallis in 1793. This was basically an agreement between the company and the Zamindars to fix the land revenue. First enacted in Bengal, Bihar and Odisha, this was later followed in northern Madras Presidency and the district of Varanasi.
• Statement 1 is incorrect: After a prolonged debate amongst Company officials, the Permanent Settlement was made with the rajas and taluqdars of Bengal. They were now classified as zamindars, and they had to pay the revenue demand that was fixed in perpetuity. In terms of this definition, the zamindar was not a landowner in the village, but a revenue Collector of the state.
• Statement 2 is correct: According to the Sunset Law, if payment did not come in by sunset of the specified date, the zamindari was liable to be auctioned.
• Statement 3 is correct: Before 1793 there was collective ownership over land. With Permanent Settlement British created their property rights over land. Lord Cornwallis introduced Permanent Settlement with the hope that the rule of law and private property rights would liberate individual enterprise from the shackles of custom and tradition, and would bring in modernization to the economy and society.