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International Journal of Management (IJM) Volume 11, Issue 8, August 2020, pp. 937-940, Article ID: IJM_11_08_084 Available online at http://iaeme.com/Home/issue/IJM?Volume=11&Issue=8 ISSN Print: 0976-6502 and ISSN Online: 0976-6510 DOI: 10.34218/IJM.11.8.2020.084

© IAEME Publication Scopus Indexed

A STUDY ON THE ECONOMIC ASPECT OF THE OF FROM THE BACKGROUND OF THE

Krishna Research Scholar, Department of History, University, Assam,

ABSTRACT The , who ruled in medieval Assam, has brought tremendous changes to the socio- economic and cultural scenario of Assam. In the economic aspect the Ahom introduced several new mechanisms in Assam which brought certain novelties to the agricultural sector that led to the surplus production and thus enriched the state economy. Along with the cultivation of various crops, different and industries were promoted by the Ahom rulers. Hence, this paper tries to make an attempt to reflect the economic aspects of the Ahom rule in Assam with a special reference to the role of the paik system in the economy. Keywords: Ahom dynasty, Assam, wet- cultivation, paik system Cite this Article: Kalita, A Study on the Economic Aspect of the Ahom Kingdom of Assam from the Background of the Paik System, International Journal of Management, 11(8), 2020, pp. 937-940. http://iaeme.com/Home/issue/IJM?Volume=11&Issue=8

1. INTRODUCTION Human migration is a universal phenomenon, which begun with the birth of human civilization. Since the time immemorial, people started to move from one place to another for various reasons and among of them, substantial measures are one of the main objectives behind the migration process of a group of people. Such kind of migration of people from one place to another brought significant changes into the socio-cultural and economic scenario of a particular area or region. As such, the Ahoms, originally a branch of great Tai race of the South-East had migrated to the Brahmaputra of Assam in the early part of the 13th century, who had ruled in Assam for long 600 years. The rule of the Ahoms in Assam has tremendous impact on the socio-political, cultural as well as economic aspects of Assam.

2. METHODOLOGY The approach of this study is analytical in nature. The sources used in preparing this paper is based on secondary sources, collected from various books, articles etc.

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3. OBJECTIVE In this paper an attempt has been made to study the economic aspects of the Ahom rule in medieval Assam with special reference to the impact of the Paik system in the economy.

4. DESCRIPTION The Ahoms came to Assam from a region called Yunan, in the South-East Asia in search of cultivable land. It is to note that Sukapha, the founder of the Ahom dynasty in Assam, came from his homeland with a small group of his followers to Assam. He successfully subjugated several local tribes in the Brahmputra Valley and thus he formed the base of the long lasted rule of Ahom dynasty in Assam. With the expansion of the territory of the Ahom kingdom, the king became as the owner of the all types of land. Epigraphical records suggest that land was classified in the different categories, such as, cultivated, cultivable and uncultivated land with its different sub-categories. The sub-categories include, rupit land i.e., land brought under permanent cultivation and pharingati i.e., lands lying uncultivated, marshy lands and forest lands were called dalani and habi respectively. Rice was the staple food during the Ahom period in medieval Assam. It is noteworthy that the Ahoms were accustomed with the skill of wet rice cultivation and they introduced it in the newly settled region i.e. Assam. The introduction of wet rice cultivation had been the prime mover to the growth of the economy of the state. The fertile plains of the that are being flooded were suitable for wet rice cultivation. The knowledge of wet rice cultivation was gradually earned by the local groups. The rice had three main varieties- Sali , bao and ahu dhan with its various sub-varieties, cultivated in the different seasons. Ahu required no standing water and hence it does not require the making of ridge (locally called ali) in the midst of a particular . Ahu dhan is sown by broadcast system during the autumn season. Bao dhan was also sown by the broadcast system in the low land and cultivated during the winter season. Among of these three types of rice, Sali was proven to be more productive than those of the other two. In the beginning of the 19th century, Hamilton observed that Sali dhan constituted three fourths of the whole crops.[1] Sali dhan requires wet condition and grown by the transplanted system[2]. The cultivation of wet rice had considerable impact not only on the economy of the state but it had brought changes to the socio-economic life the , who already learnt the knowledge of wet rice cultivation. The more cultivation of the wet rice led to the surplus production which enables the non-agrarian classes to engage in various crafts and industries.

5. PAIK SYSTEM AND THE ECONOMY OF THE AHOM KINGDOM The Ahom rulers had adopted several measures to strengthen their administration. Among of these, the Paik or khel system has great political and economical importance. In fact, the society was organized during the Ahom period through the paik or khel system. It is to note that when Sukapha subjugated certain tribes in the south-eastern part of the Brahmaputra Valley, he introduced a system through which the subjugated tribes had to render personal service of various essential commodities to the ruling tribe. Thus, Sukapha made those tribes as the tributaries of then Ahom rulers who had supplied water, honey and other essential article. Hence, it can be assumed that the origin of the later developed paik system lies on the system introduced by Sukapha, the first ruler of Ahom dynasty. With the expansion of territory and increase of daily needs, the Ahom kingdom had to extend the existing system of rendering personal services to the state, which ultimately led to the organization paik system. During the time of Ahom king Pratap Singha, paik system was systematically organized and implemented by Momai Tamuli Barbarua. In the paik system, every male between the age

http://iaeme.com/Home/journal/IJM 938 [email protected] Krishna Kalita group of 16 to 50 had to render services for the state. Initially, there were four members in a unit (got) of paiks, but later on it was reduced to three paiks during the time of Rajeswar Singha. The paiks were divided basically into two calesses- Chamua and Kanri paiks. The chamua paiks were exempted from personal labour by paying a certain amount of money to the state. But, the kanri paiks had to render their personal service to the state either as soldier in time of war or as a labourer in time of peace. Moreover, there were other classes of paiks like bilatiyas, dewaliyas and bahatiyas. The bilatiya paiks were allotted as tenants to the nobles; dewaliyas were assigned to the Satras and temples and the bahatiyas had to render service to their respective hill masters. The bilatiya and the dewaliya paiks were exempted from paying several taxes and they had not to render military service if the situations didn’t demand. It is important to note that each member of a got has to render service to the state rotationally. When a paik in a got rendered service to the state for a period of three or four months then the rest of the members of that got looked after the domestic matters of the paik on duty. The paik system had played significant role in the economy of the state. The state allotted two puras of revenue free cultivable land to each paiks in return of their personal service to the state. Hiteshwar Barbaura mentioned in his book ‘Ahomor din’ that the Paiks had to pay one rupee to the state as revenue for the allotted land to them by the state. But, the paiks had no heredity right over that allotted land.[3] The khel system was closely associated with the paik system. Through this system, a group of paiks or certain communities were organized into different khels, who had to render various professional activities like boat-making industry, arrow-making industry etc. Each khel was placed under the charge of an official. The structure of the Paik system was systematized by Momai Tamuli Barbarua in a unique way. Hence, certain officials like a was placed over twenty paiks, a over hundred paiks, a placed over one thousand paiks and a Phukan was above six thousand paiks. Another important step done by Momai Tamuli Barbarua was the shifting of people from those of the thickly populated area and then placed and organized them in the villages with professionally specialized class like weavers in Suwalkuchi, oil pressures at Ramdiya[4]. This kind of arrangement made their work more productive. He also made it compulsory for every adult male and female to make a basket and to spin a certain quantity of thread every evening respectively. [5] Ahom period was also well known for metal-casting. Various professional groups like Sonaris, Kaharas, Moriyas, Kamars etc were associated with the task of metallic industry. Losaliya khel was responsible for iron-smelting. states that iron was largely found in the Bacha and Dayang region.[6] The silakuti khel or stone engraver was placed under the charge of an officer called Silakuti was the in-charge of this khel. Thus the paiks played significant role in the economy of the Ahom kingdom during medieval Assam. From the agricultural sector to the various crafts and industries the paiks had been engaged by the state which contributed a lot to strengthen the economy of the state. However, certain paiks likes chamuas were exempted from rendering manual labour by paying certain amount of money to the state. Similarly, the dewaliyas, who were allotted for the service of the religious institutions, were free from paying a number of taxes. It is important to note that during the time of his exile, Ahom king Gadadhar Singha, noticed a large number of person were residing in many Satras of Assam, who falsely introduced themselves as dewaliya paiks to the king. This kind of incident certainly affected the state economy. In spite of it, the role of the Paiks, as a whole, had considerable impact on the economy of the Ahom kingdom.

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6. CONCLUSION The introduction of the wet rice cultivation and the paik system by the Ahom rulers of medieval Assam had brought considerable changes to the existing socio-economical structure of the society. The paiks not only meet the military requirements of the state but also it brought self-sufficiency to the economy and hence contributed to the economy of the states. The khel system also gave an impetus to flourish the various and industries throughout the Ahom kingdom. Thus, it can be concluded that the Ahom rulers developed an efficient economy which accelerated the rule of the Ahoms for long 600 years in medieval Assam.

KEY NOTES 1. Baruah, S. L , A Comprehensive , Munshilal Manuharlal Publisher, 2009, p. 438 2. Raychaudhuri, Tapan; Habib, Irfan: The Cambridge Economic , Vo.1,c- 1200-c.1750, Orient Longman Private Limited , 2007 , p. 480 3. Rajkumar, Sarbananda , Ithashe Suwara Sosota Basor,Banalata Publiction,2017, p.152 4. Bhuyan , S. K: Satsari Asam , Bani Mandir, 2014,p.76. 5. Baruah, S. L , op.cit ., p. 438 6. ibid

REFERENCES [1] Acharyya, N.N. The History of Medieval Assam, First Edition, Gauhati, 1966. [2] Barbaruah, Hiteswar, Ahomar Din, Publication Board Assam, 1918 [3] Baruah, S.L, A Comprehensive History of Assam, Munshiram Manoharlal Publishers Pvt. Ltd., 2002. [4] Barpujari, H.K , The Comprehensive History of Assam , vol. 3rd, Publication Board Assam, First edition, 1994 [5] Buragohain, R., Ahom State Formation in Medieval Assam (1226-1714), : Kritagya Publication, Guwahati, 2007. [6] Bhuyan , S.K , Satsari Asam Buranji , Bani Mandir, 2014 [7] Gait, E. A, A History of Assam, Thacker Spink & co, Calcutta, 1967. [8] Guha, Amalendu, Medieval and Early : Society, Polity and Economy, South Asia Books , 1991 [9] Kakoty, Sanjeeb, Technology, Production and Social Formation in the Evolution of the Ahom State, Regency Publication. 2003 [10] Nath, J. Gogoi , Agrarian system of Medieval Assam, Concept Publishing Company New , 2002 [11] Rajkumar, Sarbananda , Ithashe Suwara Sosota Basor, Banalata Publiction, 2017 [12] Raychaudhuri, Tapan; Habib, Irfan: The Cambridge Economic History of India, Vo.1,c-1200- c.1750, Orient Longman Private Limited , 2007

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