Match the following:
1. Ryot (i) village
2. Mahal (ii) pleasants
3. Nij (iii) cultivation on ryot’s land
4. Ryoti (iv) cultivation of planter’s own land .
Answers:
1. Ryot (i) peasants
2. Mahal (ii) village
3. Nij (iii) cultivation on planters land
4. Ryoti (iv) cultivation of ryots land
Fill in the blanks:
(a) Growers of Europe saw ________ competition in Europe to their earnings.
(b) The demand for indigo increases in late eighteenth century Britain because of _______ revolution.
(c) The international demand for indigo was affected by the discovery of _______ .
(d) The Champaran movement was against ________ .
Answers:
(a) Indigo (b) Industrial (c) Wood (d) Indigo planters
1. Describe the main features of the permanent settlement.
Ans: The main features of the permanent settlement are as follows:
i) This system was introduced in Bengal and Bihar. The company decided to fix the land revenue on a permanent basis.
ii) Charles Cornwallis was the Governor-General of India when the permanent settlement was introduced.
iii) This new system ensured to the company a regular income.It created a new class of zamindars which were loyal to the Britishers.
iv) Zamindars were required to pay a fixed amount of revenue to the British government every year within a specified period of time.
v) In 1799, they were empowered to evict the tenants and also confiscate their property for non-payment of their dues to the landlord.
2. How was the Mahalwari system different from the permanent settlement?
Ans:
(i)The permanent settlement was introduced first in Bengal and Bihar. Later on it was extended to Orissa .On the other hand,the system of Mahalwari was introduced in the western parts of Uttar Pradesh , Punjab and Delhi.
(ii) Mahalwari system came into effect in 1822, while the permanent settlement was introduced in 1793.
(iii)The government officials inspected the land from village to village they measured the fields and recorded the customs.The estimated revenue of each pilot within a village was added up to calculate the revenue that each village had to pay.
(iv)The demand of land -revenue was to be revised in Mahalwari system, it was not permanently fixed.
3. Give two problems which arose with the new Munro system of fixing revenue.
Ans: The problems fixed in Munro system was as follows:
i) Revenue officials captain Alexander Read and Thomas Munro fixed too high revenue demand.The peasants were unable to pay, ryots fled the countryside and villages became deserted in several areas.
ii) Optimistic officials had imagined that the new system would transform the peasants into rich enterprise which was not possible.
4. Why were ryots reluctant to grow indigo?
Ans:
(i) In 1859 thousands of ryots in Bengal refused to grow indigo because the system was oppressive.
(ii) They pressurized the village headmen to sign the contract on behalf of the ryots. Those who signed the contract got cash advances from the planters at low rates of interest to produce indigo.
iii) In many villages,headmen who had been forced to sign indigo contracts, mobilised the indigo peasants and fought pitched battles with the lathiyals.
iv) In other places even the zamindars went around villages urging the ryots to resist the planters.
v) After the revolt of 1857,the British government was particularly worried about the possibility of another popular rebellion.When the news spread the Lieutenant governor toured the region in the winter of 1859.The ryots saw the tour as a sign of government sympathy for their plight.
vi) Then when Ashley issued a notice stating that the ryots would not be compelled to accept indigo contracts Queen Victoria declared that indigo need not be sown.
5. What were the circumstances which led to the eventual collapse of indigo production in Bengal?
Ans: The eventual collapse of indigo production were due to following circumstances:-
i)In March 1859 thousands of ryots in Bengal refused to grow indigo.As the rebellion spread, the ryots refused to pay rents to the planter.
ii) Indigo factories armed with swords and spears, bows and arrows.Women turned up to fight with pots, pans and kitchen implements.
iii) Those who worked for the planters were socially boycotted ,and the gamasthas (agent of planters) who came to collect the rent were beaten up. Ryots swore they would no longer take advances to sow indigo nor be bullied by the planters.
iv) In many villages headmen who had been forced to sign indigo contracts , mobilised the indigo peasants and fought pitched battles with the lathiyals .
v) Worried by the rebellion,the government brought in the military to protect the planters from assault and set up the indigo commission to enquire about indigo production system.
vi) The indigo commission declared that indigo production was not profitable for the ryots, and also told them that they could refuse to produce indigo in future.
6. Find out more about the Champaran movement and Mahatma Gandhi’s role in it.
Ans: After the revolt or great Rebellion of 1857 the European planters of indigo shifted their operations to Bihar. With the discovery of synthetic dyes in the late nineteenth century their business was severely affected,but they managed to expand production .When Mahatma Gandhi returned from South Africa, a peasant from Bihar persuaded him to visit Champaran and see the plight of the indigo cultivators there.
Role of Mahatma Gandhi:
-Mahatma Gandhi ‘s visit in 1917 marked the beginning of the Champaran movement against the indigo planters.The European planters oppressed the peasants and forced them to grow indigo and sell their product at a lesser rates.When Gandhiji witnessed Champaran in 1917,district officials ordered him to leave but he started a satyagraha. A commission was appointed to examine the activities of the plantation owners in which Gandhiji was also appointed as a member.
6. Look into the history of either tea or coffee plantations in India see how the life of workers in these plantations was similar to or different from that of workers in indigo plantations.
Ans :
(i) Accounts of earlier Indian history do not mention the use of tea or its cultivation. We get a mention by a Dutch sea-traveller in 1598 that tea is being eaten as well as drunk in India.
(ii) In 1824, tea plants were discovered in the hills of the Indian state of Assam. The British introduced tea culture into India in 1836. India had been the top producer of tea for nearly a century.
(iii) The workers in the tea plantations were oppressed. They were given low wages. There were poor housing and lack of social mobility. For making more profits, the tea planters reclaimed wastelands where the workers had to labour hard to develop plantation. For this, the planters introduced indentured labour system. The local as well as outside laboureRs were employed under contract.
(iv) There were two types of indentured labour system- Arkatti and Sardari. Under Arkatti system, unlicensed recruitment was carried from Chotanagpur and other tribal areas of the sub-continent. Under the Sardari system new labourers were employed by those who were already employed in the plantation gardens.
(v) The labourer’s had to work hard. The outside labourer’s had to stay at the garden for a longer period. They were not permitted to meet their family, even on occasions. They were exploited in many ways. They were not allowed to leave the plantation garden during the contract period.
(vi) The labourers in the tea plantations and indigo farming were similar in the way that they were exploited heavily. The profit was made by the owners and the labourers got almost nothing. They were different in the way that, however, there was a contract with the planters, but indigo workers were not under indentured labour system.
7. Imagine a conversion between a planter and a peasant who is being forced to grow indigo. What reasons would the planter give to persuade the peasant?What problems would the peasant point out? Enact their conservation.
Ans: The peasants would ask for reasonable basic requirement for his living that is good house to live in.There should be a hospital for the workers ,also it would include demands like all medical facilities should be provided to the labourers school for his children for proper education .The duty hours should be fixed. The salary should be paid either daily or at weekends.Land tax should be charged directly from zamindars and the contracts should be renewed every yearly.
The planter would negotiate to some terms and agree to the terms for smooth work culture.Planter would make a point to earn enough profit for his living and for paying off salary or wages.The cost of production should be decided and settled with each one agreeing to the others terms.