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Peasants, Zamindars And The State

Question
CBSEENHS12027465

What is meant by Mansabdari system? Describe its main features.

Solution

Meaning of Mansabdari system : Mansab is an Arabic word meaning rank or position. Whomsoever Akbar honoured whether he was a military or a civil official was given a mansab which entitled Trim to be termed a, Mansabdar.
These are main features of Mansabdari System as under:

(i)    Classification of Mansabdars : A Mansabdar could possess at least ten soldiers and at the most ten thousand soldiers. But the highest mansab was given exclusively to the people of blue blood or the princes.

(ii)    Appointment etc : The ruler himself appointed, promoted or demoted the mansabdars.

(iii)    Jaat and Sawar : Jaat was the rank whenever the position and monthly salary of the person was fixed. The Sawar rank was based on the number of horse riders. The mansabdars had three categories of first, second and third order and were based on the ranks of Sawars and Jaats.

(iv)    Good salary : The mansabdar got their salary according to their categories just as a mansabdar with one hundred Jaats got Rs.500/-p.m. whereas a mansabdar possessing five thousand Jaats got Rs. 30,000/- p.m. They led a luxurious life.

(v) Responsibilities and duties : It depended upon the emperor’s sweet will whether he appointed a mansabdar to perform military or civil duties or directed him to quell some rising revolt or to conquer some regions.

(vi) The custom of branding the horses : Akbar started the practice of branding the horses and writing the description rolls for indentification ‘huliya of the soldiers’. This made the soldiers disciplined and banned the corruption from Jagirdari system. The emperor inspected the soldiers in personal.