Question

How was the mahalwari system different from the Permanent Settlement?

Answer 1

In Permanent Settlement, the revenue collection was fixed permanently by the British, whereas in the Mahalwari System the revenue collection was not fixed permanently.

Mahalwari System

• Many company officials wanted to change the system of revenue by the nineteenth century.
• They did not want to permanently fix the revenues as the expenses of trade and administration had increased.
• A new system was devised which had come into effect in 1822. It was devised by Holt Mackenzie.
• This new system came into effect in the Bengal Presidency (majority of the area will come under the current state of Uttar Pradesh) and in the North Western Provinces.
• He wanted to preserve villages as he was under the impression that it was a social institution which was very important in the society of North India.
• Customs and rights of different groups, measuring the fields, inspecting the lands; these tasks were assigned to the collectors who travelled from village to village.
• The revenue that each village (Mahal) had to pay was estimated after adding the estimated revenue of each plot within a village.
• This revenue demand was not fixed and it had to be revised periodically.
• Zamindar, who was also the village headman, was assigned the responsibility of collecting the revenue from the village and paying it to the company.
• This is known as the mahalwari settlement.

Permanent Settlement

• Cornwallis the Governor General of India, when Permanent Settlement was introduced.
• The British introduced the Permanent Settlement in 1793.
• The taluqdars and the rajas were appointed as the Zamindars as per the Permanent Settlement system.
• Zamindars were asked to pay revenue to the company after collecting rent from the peasants.
• In the future, the amount that was to be paid to the company would not be increased, as the amount to be paid would be fixed on a permanent basis.
• This was done to encourage the zamindars to improve their land as well to ensure that the Company would have a steady flow of revenue.
• This also ensured that zamindars would reap the benefits when production is increased in the land.