ALLAUDDIN KHILJI AGRARIAN REFORMS ALLAUDDIN DID NOT WANT

ALLAUDDIN KHILJI

AGRARIAN REFORMS ALLAUDDIN DID NOT WANT THE TO MUCH WEALTH IN THE HANDS OF THE NOBLES, AS THEY BECAOME PRONE TO REVOLT. HENCE HE BANNED THE ENDOWMENT OF ALL THE LAND GRANTS-----MILK, INAM, IDRAR AND WAQF------AND CONFISCATED ALL OF THEM. THE TAX COLLECTORS WERE INSTRUCTED TO EXTRACT MONEY FROM EVERY KIND OF PRETEXT----80% OF THE PRODUCE IN DIFFERENT TAXES-------AND WITH REGARD TO THE HINDU CHIEFS AND REVENUE COLLECTORS SPECIFIC ECONOMIC PRESSURE(BANNED KISMAT-I-KHOTI) WAS APPLIED SO AS TO GRIND THEM DOWN TO ABJECT POVERTY SO THAT THEY COULD NEVER THINK OF REVOLTING. HE ORDERED STRICT AUDIT, ENQUIRY AND CONTROL ON THE ACCOUNTS OF THE IQTADARS AND PUT THEM INTO ROUTINE SURVEILLANCE AND MADE THEM TO DEPOSIT ALL THE SURPLUS IN THE STATE TREASURY, FAILING WHICH THEY WERE GIVEN HARSH PUNISHMENTS. HE WAS THE FIRST SULTAN OF DELHI WHO THOUGHT OD THE PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM AND TRY TO REGULATE THE PRICES OF THE FOOD ARTICLES MUCH LIKE THE MAURAYANS. FOR THE HINDUS THE REVENUE WAS FIXED AT HALFTHE GROSS PRODUCE OF THE LAND THEIR BURDEN WAS FURTHER UNCREASED BY THE GRAZING AND HOUSING TAXES. HE ALSO INTRODUCED THE PRACTISE OF MEASUREMENT OF LAND AS A PRELIMINARY TO LAND SETTLEMENTS. HE WAS THE FIRST MUSLIM RULER TO DO SO.

ECONOMIC REGULATIONS ALLUADDIN HAD A LARGE ARMY OF 4 LAKH AND 75, 000 STRONG. BUT THE QUESTION ARISES HOW TO PAY THAT SUCH A LARGE ARMY ? ONE WAY WAS TO ENHANCE THE SALARY, WHICH WAS NOT POSSIBLE AS IT WAS A DRAIN ON STATE EXCHEQER. HE HE PURSUED WITH HIS MARKET REFORMS WHICH ULTIMATELY RUINED THE MASSES. HENCE THE SUCCESS OF HIS POLICY DEPENDED UPON THE SUCCESS OF HIS PREVIOUS POLICY.

TO MAKE HIS SOLDIERS HAPPY HE ADMINISTERED THE PRICES OF THE GOODS AND DID NOT CHANGE TILL IT RULES. BUT WHAT WAS GREAT ABOUT IT ? THOUGH ILLETERATE HE HAD THE BRAIN OF THE GENIOUS. HE FORCED THE PEASENTS TO LIVE NEAR YAMUNA AND ASKED THEM TO SELL THEIR “SURPLUS” TO THE MERCHANTS ON THE KHALIYAN ITSELF. THE MERCHANTS TOO HAD TO SELL THIS PRODUCE IN THE STATE MANDI(DIWAN-I-RIYASAT) AT A FIX PRICE. HE ALSO APPOINTED NUMBER OF OFFICIALS TO LOOK INTO THE RULES AND REGULATIONS OF THE MARKET AND ASKED THEM TO SEE HIMEVERY MORNING

HIS POLICIES WERE SUCCESSFUL AS NO REVOLT TOOK PLACE. BUT WILL IT REALLY BENEFIT THE MASSES ?

AFTER EFFECTS IT WAS AN ARTIFICIAL POLICY WHICH INTERFERED IN THE PRODUCTION OF GOODS AND MANIPULATE THE MARKET FORCES. HIS MARKET REFORMS NEITHER BENEFITTED THE PEASENTARY NOR THE SEMI-ARISTOCRATIC CLASSES, ARTISENS, MERCHANTS ETC. BECAUSE BY ADMINITERING THE PRICES HE MITIGATED THE DIVIDEND OF EACH COMMUNITY RELATED WITH TRANSPORTATION AND PRODUCTION OF GOODS, THERBY MAKING THEM WEAK AND HELPLESS. BY PROVIDING CASH SALARIES TO THE SOLDIERS, HE , NO DOUBT, MONETIZED THE ECOMOMY TO SOME EXTENT, BUT AT THE SAME TIME THE MASSES WERE PUT IN A STATE OF DEPRIVATION AS THEY WERE LEFT WITH NO MONEY TO BUY THE PRODUCTS. HENCE WE DOUBTED THAT EVEN SOLDIERS WOULD HAVE BENEFITTED FROM SUCH A POLICY BECAUSE MOST OF THEM WERE RECRUITED FROM THE PEASENTRY.