Colonialism and the Countryside — Exploring Official Archives — Class 12 History

This chapter examines what colonial rule meant in the Indian countryside, using official archives — revenue records, surveys, journals and enquiry reports — while warning that these were produced by the colonial state and reflect its concerns. In Bengal the East India Company introduced the Permanent Settlement of 1793, fixing revenue demands on zamindars; many failed to pay and lost their estates at auction, while jotedars and other rich peasants grew powerful and the Company's rigid demands caused hardship. In the Rajmahal hills the Paharias practised shifting cultivation and resisted outsiders; the Company encouraged the Santhals to settle and clear forests for cultivation, but heavy revenue, moneylenders and dispossession led to the Santhal rebellion of 1855-56, after which a separate Santhal Pargana was created. In the Bombay Deccan the ryotwari settlement assessed revenue directly from peasants (ryots); high demands, falling prices and indebtedness to moneylenders (sahukars) produced the Deccan riots of 1875, when peasants attacked moneylenders and burnt bonds and deeds. A Deccan Riots Commission investigated the causes. The chapter shows how historians read such records critically — recognising the biases of surveyors and officials, comparing official accounts with other evidence, and recovering the experiences of peasants who both suffered under and resisted colonial laws.