Class 8 Social Science Notes Chapter 3 (Ruling the Countryside) – Our Pasts - III (Part-1) Book

Alright class, let's delve into Chapter 3, 'Ruling the Countryside'. This is a crucial chapter because it explains how the East India Company, after winning battles, cemented its control over India not just politically, but economically, especially in the villages where most people lived. Understanding this is vital for many government exams as it forms the bedrock of British economic policy in India.

Chapter 3: Ruling the Countryside - Detailed Notes

1. The Company Becomes the Diwan

• Date: 12 August 1765.
• Event: The Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II appointed the East India Company (EIC) as the Diwan of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa.
• Significance: This was a landmark event.
  • The Company gained control over the revenue administration and financial resources of these vast territories.
  • It solved the EIC's major problem: financing its trade and expenses. Before 1765, the EIC imported gold and silver from Britain to buy Indian goods (cotton, silk, spices).
  • After becoming Diwan, the EIC could use the revenues collected from India to:
    • Purchase Indian goods for export.
    • Maintain its troops (army).
    • Finance the cost of administration (building offices, forts, etc.).
    • Fund its wars against Indian rulers.
• Initial Problems: Although the EIC became Diwan, its primary identity was still that of a trader.
  • It lacked experience in systematic revenue assessment and collection.
  • Its initial methods were often crude and aimed at maximizing extraction, leading to hardship for artisans and peasants.
  • The Bengal economy suffered, production declined, and the devastating famine of 1770 killed nearly one-third of the population.

2. The Need to Improve Agriculture & Ensure Regular Revenue

• The EIC realized that ruined agriculture and impoverished peasants meant declining revenues.
• They needed a system that guaranteed a regular flow of income to meet their ever-increasing expenses.
• This led to debates on how to encourage investment in land and improve agriculture.

3. The Permanent Settlement (1793)

• Introduced by: Lord Cornwallis (Governor-General).
• Region: Primarily Bengal, Bihar, Orissa.
• Key Features:
  • Rajas and Taluqdars were recognized as Zamindars.
  • They were responsible for collecting rent from the peasants (ryots) and paying a fixed revenue amount to the Company.
  • This revenue amount was fixed permanently – it would not be increased in the future.
• Aims (from the EIC's perspective):
  • Ensure a stable and regular income for the Company.
  • Encourage Zamindars to invest in improving the land (since any increased production beyond the fixed revenue would be their profit).
  • Create a loyal class of landowners (Zamindars).
• Problems/Consequences:
  • The fixed revenue demand was often very high, making it difficult for Zamindars to pay, especially during poor harvests.
  • Failure to pay meant the Zamindari was auctioned off. Many traditional Zamindars lost their lands.
  • The system was extremely oppressive for the cultivators (ryots). They faced high rents, insecurity of tenure, and often had to take loans from moneylenders at high interest rates. The Zamindar had little incentive to improve the land; they were mainly interested in rent collection.
  • The Company couldn't benefit from any increase in agricultural prices or expansion of cultivation later, as the revenue was fixed permanently.

4. The Need for a New System

• By the early 19th century, Company officials realized the limitations of the Permanent Settlement.
  • The fixed revenue meant loss of potential income in areas where agriculture expanded.
  • It wasn't suitable for newly annexed territories with different landholding traditions.
• This led to the development of temporary settlement systems in other parts of India.

5. The Mahalwari System

• Devised by: Holt Mackenzie (an Englishman). Came into effect in 1822.
• Region: North-Western Provinces of the Bengal Presidency (modern-day parts of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab).
• Key Features:
  • The unit of assessment was the village or a group of villages, called a Mahal.
  • Officials estimated the revenue of each plot within a village, summed it up to calculate the revenue demand for the entire Mahal.
  • This demand was revised periodically, not permanently fixed.
  • The village headman (Lambardar) was given the responsibility of collecting the revenue from the ryots and paying it to the Company (unlike the Zamindar in the Permanent Settlement).

6. The Ryotwari (or Munro) System

• Pioneered by: Captain Alexander Read (in areas captured after wars with Tipu Sultan) and later developed by Thomas Munro (Governor of Madras).
• Region: Primarily South India (Madras and Bombay Presidencies).
• Key Features:
  • There were no traditional Zamindars in the South.
  • The settlement was made directly with the cultivators (ryots).
  • Their fields were carefully surveyed and assessed.
  • The revenue demand was fixed for a period (usually 20-30 years) and then revised.
• Problems:
  • Driven by the desire for high income, officials often fixed the revenue demand too high.
  • Peasants were unable to pay, fled the countryside, and villages became deserted in many areas.

7. "All Was Not Well" - Overall Impact of Revenue Systems

• All systems, despite variations, generally led to:
  • High revenue demands.
  • Rigid collection methods.
  • Peasant indebtedness (forced to borrow from moneylenders).
  • Land alienation (peasants losing their land upon failure to pay revenue or repay loans).

8. Crops for Europe: Commercialization of Agriculture

• The British realized India could grow crops needed in Europe.
• They forced or persuaded cultivators to produce cash crops instead of food grains.
• Key Crops:
  • Opium (Bengal, Bihar) - For trade with China.
  • Indigo (Bengal, Bihar) - For dyeing cloth blue.
  • Cotton (Maharashtra, Punjab) - For British textile mills.
  • Jute (Bengal) - For sacks and ropes.
  • Tea (Assam, Bengal hills).
  • Sugarcane (United Provinces - now UP).
• This often involved providing loans (advances) to cultivators, trapping them in a cycle of debt.

9. The Case of Indigo - "The Blue Rebellion"

• Demand: Huge demand for Indian indigo in Europe due to its rich blue colour. Used by cloth dyers in Italy, France, and Britain.
• Systems of Cultivation:
  • Nij System: The planter produced indigo on land they directly controlled (owned or rented).
    • Problems: Required large fertile areas (often already populated), needed huge amounts of labour and ploughs exactly when peasants were busy with rice cultivation. Difficult to expand.
  • Ryoti System: Planters forced ryots to sign contracts (satta) or pressured village headmen to sign on behalf of ryots.
    • Ryots got cash advances (loans) at low interest but were forced to cultivate indigo on at least 25% of their best land.
    • Planters provided seeds and drills, but cultivators did the hard work.
    • Problems: Price paid for indigo was very low, the loan cycle was vicious (never-ending), indigo exhausted soil fertility, indigo cultivation timings clashed with rice cultivation.
• The Blue Rebellion (March 1859):
  • Where: Bengal.
  • What: Thousands of ryots refused to grow indigo. They attacked indigo factories, planters were socially boycotted, gomasthas (planters' agents) who came to collect rent were beaten up. Ryots refused to take advances.
  • Support: Village headmen and some Zamindars (unhappy with planters' increasing power) supported the ryots. Intellectuals from Calcutta wrote about the misery of the ryots and supported the rebellion.
  • Government Response: The government brought in the military but also set up the Indigo Commission (1860) to inquire into the system.
  • Outcome: The Commission found planters guilty of coercion, declared that ryots could not be compelled to grow indigo, and honoured existing contracts. This led to the collapse of indigo production in Bengal. Planters shifted their operations to Bihar.

10. Conclusion

• The EIC's rule drastically transformed the Indian countryside.
• Revenue policies aimed primarily at maximizing Company income, leading to widespread peasant distress.
• The push for cash crops altered agricultural patterns but often deepened poverty and dependence.
• Peasant resistance, like the Blue Rebellion, showed their agency and highlighted the oppressive nature of colonial policies.

Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs) for Exam Preparation:

1. When did the East India Company acquire the Diwani of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa?
   a) 1757
   b) 1764
   c) 1765
   d) 1773

2. Who introduced the Permanent Settlement in Bengal in 1793?
   a) Warren Hastings
   b) Lord Cornwallis
   c) Thomas Munro
   d) Holt Mackenzie

3. Under the Permanent Settlement, the revenue demand was fixed:
   a) Annually
   b) Periodically (every 10 years)
   c) Permanently
   d) Based on annual production

4. The Mahalwari System of land revenue was predominantly implemented in:
   a) South India
   b) Bengal and Bihar
   c) North-Western Provinces
   d) Bombay Presidency

5. In the Mahalwari system, the unit of revenue assessment was the:
   a) Individual peasant (Ryot)
   b) Zamindar's estate
   c) Village or group of villages (Mahal)
   d) Plantation

6. The Ryotwari system involved direct settlement between the Company and the:
   a) Zamindars
   b) Village Headmen
   c) Cultivators (Ryots)
   d) Moneylenders

7. Which system was primarily associated with Thomas Munro and Alexander Read?
   a) Permanent Settlement
   b) Mahalwari System
   c) Ryotwari System
   d) Nij System

8. The 'Blue Rebellion' of 1859 in Bengal was a revolt by cultivators against the forced cultivation of:
   a) Cotton
   b) Opium
   c) Jute
   d) Indigo

9. What were the two main systems of indigo cultivation mentioned in the chapter?
   a) Satta and Ryoti
   b) Nij and Ryoti
   c) Mahalwari and Nij
   d) Zamindari and Satta

10. What was the outcome of the Indigo Commission set up after the Blue Rebellion?
    a) It declared indigo cultivation illegal.
    b) It blamed the ryots for the violence.
    c) It found planters guilty of coercion and allowed ryots to refuse indigo contracts.
    d) It increased the price paid to ryots for indigo.

Answer Key:

1. c) 1765
2. b) Lord Cornwallis
3. c) Permanently
4. c) North-Western Provinces
5. c) Village or group of villages (Mahal)
6. c) Cultivators (Ryots)
7. c) Ryotwari System
8. d) Indigo
9. b) Nij and Ryoti
10. c) It found planters guilty of coercion and allowed ryots to refuse indigo contracts.

Make sure you understand not just the facts, but the reasons behind these policies and their impact on the lives of ordinary people in the countryside. That's key for a deeper understanding and for tackling analytical questions in exams. Good luck with your preparation!