Peasants, Famine and the State in Colonial Western India This page intentionally left blank Peasants, Famine and the State in Colonial Western India David Hall-Matthews © David Hall-Matthews 2005 Softcover reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 2005 978-1-4039-4902-8 All rights reserved. No reproduction, copy or transmission of this publication may be made without written permission. No paragraph of this publication may be reproduced, copied or transmitted save with written permission or in accordance with the provisions of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, or under the terms of any licence permitting limited copying issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency, 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1T 4LP. Any person who does any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages. The author has asserted his right to be identified as the author of this work in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. First published in 2005 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 6XS and 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010 Companies and representatives throughout the world. PALGRAVE MACMILLAN is the global academic imprint of the Palgrave Macmillan division of St. Martin’s Press, LLC and of Palgrave Macmillan Ltd. Macmillan® is a registered trademark in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries. Palgrave is a registered trademark in the European Union and other countries. ISBN 978-1-349-52538-6 ISBN 978-0-230-51051-7 (eBook) DOI 10.1057/9780230510517 This book is printed on paper suitable for recycling and made from fully managed and sustained forest sources. A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Hall-Matthews, David (David Nicolas John) 1967– Peasants, Famine and the State in Colonial Western India / David Hall-Matthews. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. 1. Famines – India – Ahmednagar (District) 2. Peasantry – India – Ahmednagar (District) 3. Agriculture – Economic aspects – India – Ahmednagar (District) 4. Farmers – India – Ahmednagar (District) – Social conditions. 5. India – History – British occupation, 1765–1947. I. Title. HC440.F3H35 2005 363.8Ј0954Ј79—dc22 2004061722 10987654321 14 13 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 For Mum, Dad and Shruti with much love and thanks This page intentionally left blank Contents List of Tables ix List of Abbreviations xi Glossary xii Acknowledgements xiv Maps xvi Introduction 1 1 Landholding, Peasant Production and Rainfall 19 Introduction 19 The agrarian structure of Ahmednagar district 22 Distribution and fluctuation of land ownership 24 Extent of cultivation and peasant farming strategies 30 Livestock 35 Levels of production 36 Rainfall and drought 39 The impact of the famine crisis 44 Government agendas for rural development 48 Conclusion 56 2 Market Opportunities, Risks and Failures 57 Introduction 57 Cotton production for export 59 Knock-on benefits of the cotton boom 61 The degree of integration of Ahmednagar with external markets 64 Transport and communication infrastructure 70 Peasant poverty and rational caution 78 Free trade during the famine 82 Conclusion 88 3 Rural Moneylending, Credit Legislation and Peasant Protest 92 Introduction 92 The extent and causes of agricultural indebtedness 93 vii viii Contents The nature of rural lending 95 Credit legislation and British self-criticism 97 Land transfers from peasants to moneylenders 100 The Deccan riots 104 The Deccan Agriculturists’ Relief Act 107 The nexus of colonial revenue with peasant indebtedness 111 State credit schemes 114 A proposed agricultural bank in Ahmednagar 123 Conclusion 126 4 Land Revenue Rigidity, Revisions and Non-remission 128 Introduction 128 The importance of land revenue 129 The history of the Bombay ryotwari assessment 134 Difficulties in meeting the land revenue demand 138 Calculation of the revised revenue settlement 143 Revenue revisions in Ahmednagar district 150 Land revenue collection during and after the famine crisis 157 Conclusion 167 5 Peasants and Relief Labour 168 Introduction 168 British relief criteria 170 Relief costs 174 The nature of relief 179 Tests of eligibility for relief 184 Responses to famine policy by ryots and individual officers 195 Mortality 204 Conclusion 208 Conclusion 212 Notes 222 Bibliography 257 Index 264 List of Tables 1.1 Sizes of occupancies (acres) in annual jamabandi reports and 1884 Ahmadnagar Gazetteer 26 1.2 Average holding sizes by district, 1876 27 1.3 Take-ups and resignations of government land (acres), 1872–82 29 1.4 Total cultivation (acres), Ahmednagar district, 1869–83 31 1.5 Livestock totals, Ahmednagar district, 1871–81 36 1.6 Extent of cultivation (acres) and production (maunds) of key crops, 1871–83 37 1.7 Average yields (maunds and seers) per acre cultivated, 1874–75 38 1.8 Range of average annual rainfall measurements (inches), 1869–82 40 1.9 Rainfall figures as a percentage of monthly average, Eastern Deccan, 1876–77 43 2.1 Cotton production, Southern Division, Bombay Presidency, 1869–70 60 2.2 Annual average jowar prices, Ahmednagar city 64 2.3 Annual average prices for bajri and jowar in Ahmednagar, Poona and Bombay markets, 1873–74 and 1877–78 (rupees, annas and pice per maund)65 2.4 Net stamp receipts (rupees), 1861–72 69 2.5 Ahmednagar stamp receipts (rupees), 1871–81 70 2.6 Cart totals in Ahmednagar district, 1876–80 74 2.7 Ahmednagar famine retail prices (rupees, annas and pice per standard maund)83 3.1 Total government loans, Ahmednagar district, 1877–82 (rupees) 120 4.1 Incidence of land revenue as a percentage of produce value, Deccan, 1830–75 131 4.2 Sanctions for revenue arrears, Ahmednagar, 1873–82 142 4.3 Land revenue remission, suspension and collection, Ahmednagar district, 1867–83 158 4.4 Anticipated land revenue losses due to the 1876–78 famine, Bombay Presidency 160 5.1 Estimated scale of the 1876–78 famine 171 5.2 Famine balance sheet, Bombay Presidency 177 ix x List of Tables 5.3 PWD relief wages payable in Bombay Presidency, December 1876 189 5.4 Average market rates for unskilled labour, Ahmednagar, 1869–78 189 5.5 Famine relief wages and rations, Bombay Famine Code (1885) 194 5.6 Offences and convictions, Ahmednagar district, 1874–78 199 5.7 Migration between British India and the Nizam’s Dominions during the 1876–78 famine 201 5.8 Monthly statement of registered deaths, Ahmednagar district, 1876–77 206 5.9 Mortality by age group and gender, Ahmednagar district, 1876–77 207 5.10 Mortality per thousand of population, Bombay Presidency, 1877 207 5.11 Rural population of Ahmednagar (village returns), 1872–81 208 List of Abbreviations AARA Annual Administration Reports, Ahmednagar CD Central Division (of Bombay Presidency) DRCR Deccan Riots Commission Report EPW Economic and Political Weekly FCR Famine Commission Report GOB Government of Bombay GOI Government of India GRABP General Report on the Administration of the Bombay Presidency HRAD Government of India, Home, Revenue and Agriculture Department IESHR Indian Economic and Social History Review LRSB Land Revenue and Settlements Branch MAS Modern Asian Studies MSA Maharashtra State Archives, Bombay NAI National Archives of India, New Delhi ND Northern Division (of Bombay Presidency) NNR Compilations of Native Newspaper Reports, Bombay Presidency OIOC Oriental and India Office Collections, British Library PSS Poona Sarvajanik Sabha PWD Public Works Department (Government of Bombay) RACD Government of India, Revenue, Agriculture and Commerce Department RAD Government of India, Revenue and Agriculture Department RB Revenue Branch RD Revenue Department (Government of Bombay) SD Southern Division (of Bombay Presidency) SOSI Secretary of State for India xi Glossary Anna unit of currency; sixteen to the rupee Annewari system for estimating the relative yield of crops Bagayet irrigated land Bajri spiked millet, a cheap foodgrain Bandhara communal dam Bania grain trader Bhil member of tribal ethnic group Brahmin high caste Hindu, part of the traditional social elite Candy unit of measurement for raw cotton; 784 bales Dacoit bandit Deshmukh landholder of high social status; village representative Dharmsala roadside rest lodge Dharna fast before an adversary to demand repayment of a debt Dufterdar village clerk Durbar courtly assembly and celebration Fellah Egyptian peasant Ghat hill Gram type of pulse, a medium quality foodgrain Inam land granted at concessional revenue rates Jagirdar holder of an assignment of land revenue Jamabandi land revenue levy and collection in a given year Jerayet unirrigated land Jowar type of sorghum, a cheap foodgrain Kharif main annual harvest Kharpadra crop-destroying insect Khyri foodgrain disease Koli member of tribal ethnic group Kulkarni village accountant Kunbi peasant member of majority ethnic group in the Bombay Deccan Lakh one hundred thousand Mamlatdar revenue official responsible for a taluka Manuti interest charge calculated in grain Maratha member of majority ethnic group in Maharashtra, of which Kunbis are part Marwari member of ethnic group associated with moneylending Maund unit of measurement for grain; 80 seers Mhar member of low caste Mofussil interior; area away from town or headquarters xii Glossary xiii Munsif subordinate civil judge Nizam prince Nulla drain or stream Octroi levy on carriage of goods Panchayat village council Parsi member of ethnic group in Bombay Patel village leader Pice units of currency; 12 to the anna Pot