Question

What measures did Raja Todar Mal, the Revenue Minister, take for upgrading the land revenue system during Akbar’s reign?

Answer 1

Instructions: The answer to this question can be broken down into two parts:

1. Give a brief explanation of the zabt system.
2. Enlist the areas where this system was implemented.

Solution: Todar Mal, the Revenue Minister under Akbar, surveyed the lands and their crop yields for a period of ten years, and then fixed the taxes on each crop. Furthermore, the empire was divided into revenue circles, each of which had their own revenue rate schedule to follow for individual crops. This system came to be known as the zabt system.

This revenue system was applicable to those areas where the land could be surveyed. However, there were some other areas such as that of Gujarat and Bengal where such a survey was not possible.