NCERT Solutions For Class 12 History Ch 10 Colonialism and the Countryside (Exploring Official Archives)
- The Jotedars controlled trade and commerce including money lending business at the local level.
- In order to weaken the Zamindars, Jotedars would mobilise ryots not to pay or delay payment towards land revenue.
- The Jotedars opposed the moves of Zamindars to increase the Jama of a village.
- The Jotedars lived in villages only. Hence they were in a better position to interact with and influence the peasants.
- Jotedars were rich and owned big areas of land under cultivation. Many a time they would buy estates of Zamindar. That would be auctioned due to failure to pay up land revenue.
1. Fictitious sale : It involved series of manoeuvres. For example, Raja of Burdwan, first transferred some of his zamindari to his mother because the company had decreed that property of women would not be taken over by the company. Secondly, his agents manipulated the auctions by buying the property, outbidding other purchasers. Subsequently, they refused to pay up the purchase money. As a result of it, the Estate was again resold at auction. But as the zamindar’s agents used to purchase it again and again, and did not pay the purchase amount, the auctions were repeated endlessly. Ultimately, the estate was sold at a lower price back to the zamindars, who never paid the full revenue demand. Such transactions took place on a large scale in Bengal including Burdwan.
2. Attack on outsiders : Whenever outsiders purchased an estate at an auction, they could not always take possession because their agents would be attacked by lathyals of the former zamindar.
3. Sometimes even the ryots resisted the outsiders due to their close relations with the zamindar. The ryots considered themselves to be the proja (subjects) of the zamindar.
Thus, the zamindars could not be displaced. Thereafter the rules of revenue payment were made flexible. As a result of that, the zamindar’s power over the villages were strengthened. It was only during the Great Depression of 1930s that their power collapsed and the jotedars consolidated their power in the countryside.
- Paharias resisted the settlement of Santhals initially but had to accommodate them in course of time.
- The Paharias shifted to deeper areas into the hills.
- They were confined to more barren and rocky areas of the hills in course of time.
- The paharias did shifting cultivation. Now shifting cultivation was becoming more and more difficult as proper and stable settlements.
- As forest began to be cleared, the paharis could not depend on it for livelihood. Thus, the lifestyle and living of Paharias underwent change due to coming of outsiders.
- Cotton production in America revived and the Indian cotton exports to British steadily declined.
- Export merchants and sahukars in Maharashtra refused to give long-term credit. They restricted the advances to peasants and demanded repayment of outstanding debts.
- At the same time as the term of first revenue settlement was over, the demand for revenue was increased from 50 to 100 per cent.
As a result of above, the ryots were not in position to pay the inflated demand because the prices were also falling. Thus, they had no option except to take a further loan from the moneylender who also refused to loans. This enraged the ryots. The moneylenders became insensitive to their plight. They were violating the customary norms of the countryside. For example, general norm was that the interest charged could not be more than the principal. They were not charging fair interest. In one of the cases, investigated by the Deccan Riots Commission, the moneylender charged over ? 2000 as interest on a loan of ? 100. There were complaints of injustice of such extractions and the violation of custom. A new law – Limitation Law – was passed in 1859 where validity of loan bonds was fixed for three years but the
moneylenders manipulated new systems to exploit the ryots. Under these circumstances, the ryots’ anger against the moneylenders increased.
- The paharias were nomads. They lived a wandering life. They, however, sometimes did shifting cultivation.
- Their another important source of livelihood of forest resources and animals.
- They extracted mahua and used it. Colonialism and the countryside: Exploring official archives
- Paharias used to look at outsiders with suspicion and even were hostile with them.
- The Santhals were different from them on many counts.
- The Santhals took to agriculture fast and soon got into settled life.
- They had better relation with the outsiders including the East India Company.
- In the beginning, as a result of civil war, the imports of cotton from America fell from over 2,000,000 bales in 1861 to 55,000 bales in 1862. The Britain looked towards to fill the gap. Thus, export merchants in Bombay were keen to avail this opportunity to earn maximum. The advances to urban sahukars, moneylenders and ultimately to the ryots were provided. This led to increase in cotton production. The ryots were given ? 100 as advance for every acre they planted with cotton. The cotton export to Britain increased but this did not bring prosperity for all. Some rich peasants gained but for the majority of cotton producers including the ryots, cotton expansion led to heavier debt.
- The end of war again affected the ryots badly because with the revival of cotton production in America, the Indian exports declined. The sahukars were no longer interested in extending long-term loans. The demand for cotton had reduced, cotton prices slided downwards. It hit the ryots badly.
- At the same time, under the new settlement for revenue, the demand was increased from 50 to 100 per cent. Under the conditions of falling prices and reduction in the growth of cotton in the absences of loans, it was not possible for the ryots to make payment of the inflated demand. Once again they had no option except to take loan from the moneylender but they refused to extend loans. This made the condition of ryots miserable and ultimately led to riots.
