Chapter - 10
Colonialism and the Countryside
2 marks answer questions
Question 1. When was the Burdwan real estate auctioned? Who was the king of Burdwan at that time?
Answer- (i) The land estate of Burdwan was auctioned in 1797 AD.
(ii) At that time the king of Burdwan was Tejchand.
Question 2. What was the event of the auction held in Burdwan?
Answer- In 1797 AD, the land estate of Burdwan was auctioned. Its fixed land revenue could not be paid. It was sold to the highest bidder.
Question 3. Why were the estates of zamindars auctioned off in Bengal?
Answer – In Bengal, the land revenues of the landlords were auctioned, so the demand for land revenue was made. The zamindars failed to give it. The reason was that the king of Burdwan was sold to the planter. Because huge land revenue was demanded from them by the company. The landlord failed to deliver it.
Question 4. Which two duties of the zamindars were fixed during the British rule?
Answer – (i) To collect land revenue in the villages under his control.
(ii) To deposit the collected land revenue with the company.
Question 5. Why was the rural economy of Bengal going through a crisis in the decade of 1770s?
Answer – (i) At this time there were frequent famines in Bengal.
(ii) The yield of agriculture was decreasing.
Question 6. What is meant by commercialization of agriculture?
Answer – Commercialization of agriculture meant that farmers no longer produced their crops for the needs of the villages, but for sale in the market. Therefore, he laid more emphasis on the production of crops like cotton, jute, indigo, tea, sugarcane and oil seeds etc. These crops were in high demand in the market.
Question 7. Write two disadvantages of commercialization of agriculture in India during the British rule.
Answer- (i) Due to the importance of cash crops, the production of food crops decreased.
(ii) This caused a severe blow to rural self-reliance.
Question 8 Who was Amla? Tell him any two problems he faced.
Answer- (1) Amla was a land revenue officer of the zamindar.
(2) The ryots did not pay him the land revenue when the crops were damaged.
(iii) Jotdars who were very influential in the village used to create obstacles in the way of Amla.
Question 9. What do you mean by the word zamindar?
Answer- (1) Zamindars were huge land owners.
(ii) He had control over many villages.
(ii) They collected land revenue from the villages under them and deposited it with the government.
Question 10. What steps did the company take in order to control the power of the landlords?
Answer - (i) Their troops were disbanded.
(ii) Rights of justice and local police system were taken away from them.
(iii) The customs duty charged by them was abolished.
Question 11. What is meant by Ryot and Shikmi Riyat? Or what do you mean by Ryot?
Answer – (1) Ryots were called farmers. They used to cultivate some land themselves and give land revenue to the zamindar.
(ii) The shikmi ryots used to till the land obtained on lease from the raiyats and gave them land revenue.
Question 12. Who were the Jotdars? What other names were they known by?
Answer- (i) Jotdar was the head of the village.
(ii) They were known by the names Havaldar and Gantidar.
Question 13. Why was the Jotdar a powerful figure in many areas of rural Bengal?
Ans- (i) Jotedars had large tracts of land. He was a friend of the farmers.
(ii) They had complete control over local trade and moneylenders.
Question 14: Write any two reasons for the strengthening of the position of landlords in the 19th century.
Answer - (i) During this time the prices of agricultural products had increased significantly.
(ii) The company had made the rules for payment of land revenue somewhat flexible.
Question 15, How did the Zamindars maintain control over their Zamindars?
Answer- (i) The stalwarts of the zamindars used to allow the new buyer to enter the villages. Was .
(ii) The village ryot was also loyal to the zamindar.
Question 16 When did the Great Depression occur in the world?
Answer- Economic Great Depression came in the world in 1929 AD.
Question 17. Why did the artisans get ruined during the British rule? Write any two reasons.
Answer- (1) Due to the Industrial Revolution, the goods of England were cheaper and more beautiful than the Indian goods.
(ii) The British adopted the policy of free trade with India in 1813 AD.
Question 18. Who and when implemented the Isthmari (Permanent) Settlement of Bengal?
Answer – The Isthmari settlement of Bengal was started by Lord Cornwallis in 1793 AD.
Question 19. What is isthmari settlement?
Answer - (i) The Isthmari settlement was started in 1793 AD.
(ii) This was done with the landlord class.
(iii) Under this the farmers were severely exploited.
Question 20. Write any two salient features of Permanent Settlement.
Answer- (i) Zamindars were considered to be the owners of the land.
(ii) The land revenue to be taken from the zamindars was fixed forever.
Question 21. Prove by seeing two reasons that the permanent settlement was not beneficial to the farmers.
Answer – (i) The government had accepted the landlords as the owners of the land. Therefore, the interests of the farmers were completely disregarded.
(ii) The cultivators were left at the mercy of the landlords. As a result, the landlords started committing arbitrary atrocities on the farmers.
Question 22. State two major demerits of Permanent Settlement.
Answer- (i) The interests of the farmers were completely disregarded in the Permanent Settlement.
(ii) The government had to bear heavy economic losses in future due to the permanent settlement.
Question 23. What was the Ryotwari Settlement?
Answer- (i) Ryotwari system was implemented in Madras and Bombay.
(ii) This arrangement was made directly with the peasants rather than the zamindars.
(iii) In this, the land revenue to be taken from the farmers was fixed for 20 to 30 years.
Question 24. When and who implemented the Ryotwari settlement in Madras?
Answer- The Ryotwari settlement was implemented in Madras in 1820 by Thomas Munro.
Question 25. State any two merits of Ryotwari settlement.
Ans- (i) This improved the condition of the farmers as they were the owner of the land. Prove by giving reasons that the permanent settlement was not beneficial to the farmers. was accepted.
(ii) This settlement proved beneficial to the government. This increased the income of the government.
Question 26. What do you mean by Mahalwari system?
Answer – (i) Mahalwari system was done with the entire brotherhood of the Mahal or the village.
(ii) This brotherhood collectively paid the land revenue fixed by the government.
Question 27. In which states Mahalwari system was implemented?
Answer- Mahalwari system was implemented in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab.
Question 28. What were the two main features of Mahalwari system?
Answer- (1) Mahalwari system proved beneficial for the government.
(ii) In this system the peasants were freed from the exploitation of the landlords.
Question 29. State two major defects of Mahalwari system.
Answer - (i) The rate of land revenue fixed in this system was very high.
(ii) In this system it was a difficult task to fix the land revenue properly.
Question 30. Due to which two reasons Indian farmers became poor.
Answer- (i) A lot of land revenue was collected from the farmers.
(ii) Agricultural reforms were neglected by the government.
Question 31. What was the impact of the agricultural policies of the British on the farmers?
Answer- (i) Due to this the condition of the farmers became pathetic.
(ii) Farmers were now forced to grow such crops which could be easily sold in the market.
Question 32. When was the Fifth Report presented in the British Parliament? What was its purpose? Or what is the fifth report?
Answer - (i) The fifth report was presented in the British Parliament in 1813 AD.
(ii) Its purpose was to control the activities of the East India Company in India.
Question 33. Name any two sources used while preparing the fifth report.
Answer- (1) Petitions of zamindars and ryots.
(ii) Reports of the Collectors of different districts.
Question 34. Who were the Paharias?
Answer – (i) Pahariya people lived around the hills of Rajmahal during the British rule.
(ii) They made their living from shifting cultivation and forest produce.
Question 35. Write any two characteristics of shifting cultivation of hills.
Answer- (i) He used to scratch the ground with his spade and put the seeds.
(ii) They used to move to a new area after cultivating in one place for some years.
Question 36. What was the importance of forests in the life of hills?
Answer- (i) They used to make huts in the middle of tamarind trees.
(ii) They used to hunt in the forests and collect Mahua flowers.
(iii) Small plants growing under the trees served as fodder for their animals.
Question 37. Write any two features of the life of the Paharias.
Answer- (i) They used to do shifting cultivation.
(ii) Forests had a special importance in their life.
Question 38. State any two duties of the head of the hills.
Answer- (i) He used to maintain unity in his group.
(ii) He used to decide the disputes arising among the people of the group.
Question 39. What did the zamindars and traders do to protect against the attacks of the Paharias?
Answer- (i) Zamindars used to pay annual kiraj to the hill chiefs.
(ii) Merchants used to give them some road.
Question 40. Why did the British decide to clear the forests and remove the hills from there?
Answer- (i) The British wanted to expand agriculture by clearing the forests.
(ii) He considered the forest dwellers a great headache for himself. So they wanted to get control over them.
Question 41. Who was Augustus Cleveland? What policy did he adopt towards the hills?
Answer – (1) Augustus Cleveland was the collector of Bhagalpur in the 1780s.
(ii) He adopted a policy of friendship towards the hills.
Question 42. When did Francis Buchanan visit the palace? How did the Paharias see him?
Answer – (i) Francis Buchanan visited the palace in 1810-11 AD.
(ii) The Paharias looked at him with suspicion.
Question 43 What was the fight between Plow and Spade?
Answer- The fight between the plow and the spade was a struggle between the Santhals and the hills. The hills used pulses for agriculture and plough for Santhal agriculture. Both the spade and the plow were considered symbols of their own power.
Question 44. When did the Santhals arrive in the Rajmahal hills? What were the two main crops they used to grow?
Answer- (i) The arrival of the Santhals in the hills of Rajmahal took place in 1800 AD.
(ii) They used to grow two main crops of rice and cotton there.
Question 45. When did Francis Buchanan visit Ganjuria mountain? Which two crops quality here he considers to be world class?
Answer- (i) Francis Buchanan visited Ganjuria mountain in 1810 AD.
(ii) He considers the quality of crops called tobacco and mustard to be of world class.
Question 46. Why did the British adopt the policy of settling the Santhals in place of the hills? ,
Answer- The British wanted to get permanent agriculture done by clearing the forests of the hills of the palace. The hills were not prepared for this in any way while the Santhals had no hesitation for it. Therefore, the British adopted the policy of settling Santhals in place of saris.
Q47. What was Damin-e-Koh?
Answer- Damin-i-Koh was a territory under the Santhals in 1832 AD. It was declared the land of the Santhals. They had to do permanent agriculture. Due to this the Santhals gave up their nomadic life. This brought about many important changes in his forest.
Question 48. In what way was the livelihood of the Paharia people different from that of the Santhals?
Ans- (i) The Paharias practiced shifting cultivation while the Santhals practiced permanent farming.
(ii) The Paharias gave special importance to the forests while the Santhals did not think so.
Question 49. How did the Paharias react to the arrival of outsiders?
Answer- Pahadia people strongly protested on the arrival of outsiders.
Question 50. What were the problems faced by the Paharias on the arrival of outsiders?
Answer- (i) Due to the scarcity of new lands, the Paharias could not do Jhum cultivation.
(ii) Clearing of forests by the Santhals caused the problem of hunting for the Paharias.
3 marks answer questions
Question 1. Why did the zamindars make defaults in the payment of revenue? Answer- (i) The land revenue collected by the zamindars under the Isthmari settlement was very fixed. (ii) The prices of agricultural products were very low at the time of implementation of the Istemari Settlement.
(iii) The rights of the zamindars were greatly limited.
Question 2. Why was the Jotdar a powerful figure in many areas of rural Bengal?
Answer - (i) Jotedars had taken control over large areas of land.
(ii) The business of local trade and moneylender was also under his control.
(iii) Villagers were directly under the control of Jotdars.
(iv) Jotedars take full care of the interests of their supporters.
(v) The Jotedars had complete control over the sharecroppers.
Question 3. How did the zamindars maintain control over their zamindaris?
Answer - (1) The landlord's litigant did not allow the new buyer to enter the village land.
(ii) The village ryot was also loyal to the zamindar of the village.
(iii) Zamindars used to put the government in trouble with fake or benami sales.
Question 4. What steps did the company take to control the power of the landlords?
Answer (1) Their troops were disbanded.
(ii) Rights of justice and local police system were taken away from them.
(iii) The customs duty charged by them was abolished.
Question 5. What were any three reasons for the poverty of the farmers during the British rule?
Answer- (1) A lot of land revenue was collected from the farmers.
(2) Agricultural reforms were neglected by the government.
(iii) Peasants were exploited a lot by moneylenders.
Question 6. What were the main reasons for the ruin of artisans during the British rule?
Answer – (1) Due to the Industrial Revolution, the goods of England were cheaper and more beautiful than Indian goods.
(ii) The British adopted the policy of free trade with India in 1813 AD. Due to this the finished goods of England started coming to India without any hindrance.
(iii) The British took their goods to remote villages by developing railways.
(iv) Many European countries imposed various restrictions on the import of Indian goods.
(v) The disintegration of indigenous states had a devastating effect on Indian small scale industries.
Question 7. Write a short note on the British land revenue system.
Answer- The British started three types of land revenue systems in India, their names were - Isthmari Settlement of Bengal, Ryotwari Settlement and Mahalwari Settlement Lord Cornwallis had implemented Isthmari or Permanent Settlement in Bengal in 1793 AD. In 1820, Thomas Munro implemented the Ryotwari Settlement in Madras. The Mahalbari settlement was done with the entire fraternity of the village. It was implemented in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab. These land revenue systems had a profound impact on the rural economy.
Question 8 What is meant by Permanent Settlement of Bengal?
Answer- Lord Cornwallis implemented the Isthmari (Permanent) Settlement of Bengal in 1793 AD. According to this arrangement—
(i) The government considered the zamindars to be the owners of the land. They could not be deprived of this right as long as they continued to give their fixed land revenue to the government.
(ii) The land revenue to be taken from the zamindars was fixed forever. In this, he lived with the zamindar or the zamindar. could not be increased. The government fixed the rate of land revenue as 10/11 part. The remaining part lived with the landlord.
(iii) Even in the event of the destruction of crops due to any reason, the zamindars had to deposit the fixed land revenue on time. Failure to do so, the government could sell part of his land.
Question 9 State the main advantages of the Permanent Settlement of Bengal.
Answer- (1) Due to this the income of the government became fixed every year. Therefore, it became easy to make administrative plans for this.
(ii) To give due attention to other departments. Now the government got rid of the confusion of collecting land revenue. So she could pay due attention to other departments of the administration. (iii) The British had made the zamindars the owners of the land forever. So he became a staunch supporter of the British.
Question 10. What was the Permanent Settlement? State its two properties.
Answer - (i) Lord Cornwallis implemented the Isthmari (Permanent) Settlement of Bengal in 1793 AD. According to this settlement, the government accepted the zamindars as the owners of the land. They could not be deprived of this right as long as they continued to give their fixed land revenue to the government.
(ii) Now the government got rid of the confusion of collecting land revenue. So she could pay due attention to other departments of the administration.
(iii) The British made the zamindars the owners of the land forever. So he became a staunch supporter of the British.
Question 11. What were the consequences of the Permanent Settlement?
Answer- (i) The interests of the farmers were completely disregarded in the Permanent Settlement.
(ii) The government had to bear heavy economic losses in future due to the permanent settlement.
(iii) Because of the permanent settlement, because the government was incurring huge losses every year, it was an unfair and unjust action by imposing heavy taxes on the non-agriculturist classes with the aim of increasing their income.
Question 12. What was the Ryotwari system? Describe.
Answer- In 1820 AD, the Governor of Madras (Chennai) Thomas Munro implemented a new settlement called Ryotwadi. It was called settlement. Later it was also implemented in Bombay (Mumbai). Under this settlement, the government had made a stipulation that they should keep depositing the fixed rent with the government on time. Land revenue to be taken from the farmers or made direct agreement with the farmers. He was considered the owner of the land. For this only one could be extended again after 20 to 30 years.
Question 13. What was the Mahalwari system? What is meant by Mahalwari system?
In some areas of North -West Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, Robert Bard and James Thomson implemented the settlement. Later describe this settlement as the main features of the British Mahalwari Settlement in Punjab. In the north-western north, the settlements were implemented in the village of Mahalwari. This was also done with the whole brotherhood. Groups of villages were called 'Mahals'. Therefore the settlement made with them came to be called Mahalwari settlement. Under this settlement, it was the responsibility of the village brotherhood to give land revenue to the government.
Question 14. What were the effects of British policies on the farmers of India?
Answer – British policies had a devastating effect on the farmers of India. The zamindars were accepted as the owners of the land by the Isthmari Settlement of Bengal. They exploited the farmers a lot. In the Ryotwari settlement, the government replaced the zamindars. The land was now allowed to be sold, mortgaged or transferred. The condition of the farmers had become so deplorable that they could not even get food for two full times.
Question 15. What was the fifth report?
Ans- The Fifth Report is a report which was prepared by a Select Committee. It was the fifth of the reports prepared on the administration and activities of the East India Company in India. It was introduced in the British Parliament in 1813 AD. This report had 1002 pages. It contained more than 800 pages of appendices. These included the applications of the zamindars and ryots, the reports of the collectors of different districts and written comments on the revenue and judicial administration of Bengal and Madras.
Question 16. What do you mean by Jhum cultivation?
Answer – Pahadia people used to do Jhum cultivation for their subsistence. They used to clear the land in a small part of the forest by cutting it from the bushes and burning the weeds. He used to scrape the ground a little with his spade and put seeds in it. They used ash potash to make the land fertile. They used to cultivate in one place for some years and after that they would move to a new area.
Question 17 What was the importance of forests in the life of the Pahadia people?
Answer – Forests had special importance in the life of the Pahadia people. They used to make huts among tamarind trees and rest in the shade of mango trees. They used to hunt in the forests. They used to collect Mahua to eat and silk coco to sell and wood for Kathkoyala. The buns in their forest were inextricably linked. For the small plants growing under the trees were used as fodder. Thus forests were closely associated with the lives of the Paharia people.
Question 18. What do you know about the head of the Pahadia people?
Answer – The Paharias lived in groups. Each group was under a chief. The chief had many. He used to maintain unity in his group. It was the decision of the disputes arising between the people of the group. He used to lead his group when a fight broke out with other groups and the people of the plains. In this way he had wide powers. He remained in power as long as the people of the group were with him.
Question 19. Write any three features of the life of the Paharias.
Answer – (i) Pahariya people lived in groups.
(ii) They used to do shifting cultivation.
(ii) Forests had a special importance in their life.
Question 20. How was the policy of the British government towards the hills?
Ans - The British officers were very upset by the continuous attacks on the plains by the hills. All the attempts made by him so far to gain control of the hills were in vain. Therefore, in the 1770s, the British officers adopted a cruel policy towards the hills. They were chased and put to death in large numbers. But this policy did not yield the desired results. Therefore, in the 1780s, Bhagalpur Collector Augustus Cleveland decided to adopt a policy of friendship with the hills. Under this policy, annual allowance was started to be given to the Paharia chiefs. Instead, it was expected of him. They will maintain law and order in the areas under them and keep their people in discipline.
Question 21. Why did the Paharias attack the plains?
Answer- (i) To get food grains during the days of famine.
(ii) To show his strength to the plaintiffs.
(iii) To forge their political relations with outsiders.
Question 22. How did the Santhals reach the Rajmahal hills?
Answer- Santhals started coming to Bengal in the decade of 1780 AD. The landlords of Bengal used to hire them for the purpose of preparing new land for cultivation and to expand the cultivation. The British officials invited him to settle in the jungle hall. When all attempts by the British authorities to take the hills under their control and persuade them to take up Zyo agriculture failed, they turned their attention to the Santhals. The Jadia people refused to cut forests and use plows. Apart from this, the behavior of the hills was very riotous. On the other hand the Santhals proved to be very ideal dwellers. They had no hesitation in clearing the forests and cultivating there. They plowed the land with full force.
Question 23. What changes came about in the life of Santhals due to Damin-i-Koh?
Answer- (i) The Santhals had now left their nomadic life and settled permanently.
(ii) They started cultivating many types of commercial crops.
(iii) They started dealing with moneylenders and traders.
Question 24. Why did the Santhals revolt against the British rule?
Answer- (1) The atrocities being committed by the landlords on the operations.
(ii) Exploitation of Santhals by moneylenders.
(iii) Exploitation of Santhals by revenue officials.
(iv) Police forcefully sift the property of Santhals and humiliate their women.
Question 25 Who was Buchanan?
Answer- Francis Buchanan was a physician. He worked in the Bengal Medical Service from 1794 AD to 1815 AD. He was for some time a surgeon to the Governor of India, Lord Wellesley. He established the Alipore Zoo in Calcutta during his stay in Calcutta (Kolkata). He conducted a detailed survey of the lands falling under the jurisdiction of the British East India Company at the request of the Government of Bengal. He went back to England in 1815. After the death of his mother, he became the heir to her property. So he adopted the name of his lineage, Hamilton. For this reason he is also known as Buchanan Hamilton.
Question 26. Who was David Ricardo?
Answer- David Ricardo was a noted economist of England in the early 19th century. According to his view, the owner should have the right to take the average revenue prevailing at that time. If from the average revenue from the land then the landowner would have surplus income. The government should tax this. If planted, farmers will turn into renters. Because of this, their surplus income will not be invested in tax reforms if the land is more income.
Question 27. Why were the ryots of the Deccan angry with the creditors?
Answer- (i) Lenders used to give loans to the ryot at very high interest.
(ii) He was very crooked and deceitful. They used to get the signatures of the farmers on the blank bonds and later used to fill in the forged figures.
(iii) They did not give any receipt for the repayment of loans by the farmers.
(iv) They forced the farmers to sell their crops at low prices.
Question 28. What were the main causes of the Deccan rebellion in 1875?
Answer – (1) The end of the American Civil War in 1865 had a devastating effect on the cotton growers of Bombay.
(ii) The demand for land revenue by the company was greatly increased.
(iii) The gross exploitation of farmers by moneylenders.
Question 29. What steps did the British government take to suppress the Deccan rebellion?
Answer- (i) He established police stations in the villages of the rebel peasants.
(ii) He called the army to suppress the rebels.
(iii) He gave severe punishment to the rebel leaders.
Question 30. Why is the Deccan Riots Report considered important for historians?
Answer - The report of the Deccan Riots Commission provides valuable 'material' for historians to study those riots. In this, the commission visited the riot-affected districts. Compiled statements of farmers, moneylenders and eyewitnesses living in these districts. Detailed data was collected regarding rates of revenue, prices and interest in different regions. Apart from these, various reports sent by the district collectors were also compiled.
