Colonialism and the countryside Test - 1

Within the villages of Bengal, jotedars  were more powerful than the zamindars. They were most powerful in North Bengal.

The English East India Company (E.E.I.C.) established its raj in the countryside of Bengal and implemented its revenue policies there.

Rajas and  taluqdars  of Bengal were classified as zamindars. They had several villages under their control. They were responsible for paying revenue to the Company, distributing the revenue demand over villages.

Francis Buchanan was a physician who came to India and served in Bengal Medical Service from 1794 to 1815. He published reports on several districts of Eastern India.

The Santhals were given land and persuaded to settle in the foothills of Rajmahal. By 1832, a large area of land was demarcated as  Damin-i-Koh . This was declared to be the land of the Santhals.

Ryotwari system was first introduced in  Madras Presidency, later it was extended to Bombay Deccan. Under this system, the revenue was directly settled with the  ryot   (cultivator).

Taluqdar  refers to one who holds a  taluq  or a connection. Taluq  also refers to a territorial unit. After the Permanent Settlement, a new variety of  taluqs  were created by zamindars.

Village headmen were called  Jotedars  and  Mandals . They controlled local trade as well as money lending. They were too happy to see the zamindar in trouble. The zamindar could not easily assert his power over them.

The  Ryotwari  system was instituted in some parts of British India. This system was used to collect revenues from the cultivators of the agricultural lands. Under this system, land was surveyed every 30 years.

The life span of Maharaja Mehtab Chand was 1820-1879. He was born in 1820 and ruled from 1832-1879. He was the Raja of Burdwan.