MUGHAL ADMINISTRATIVE APPARATUS AND MANSABDARI SYSTEM ADMINISTRATIVE APPARATUS

MUGHAL : ADMINISTRATIVE APPARATUS AND MANSABDARI SYSTEM

ADMINISTRATIVE APPARATUS THE MUGHALS RULED INDEPENDENTLY WITHOUT RECOGNISING OUTSIDE AUTHORITY. LIKE THE SULTANS OF DELHI , THE MUGHAL EMPEROR WAS THE FOUNTAIN OF ALL HONOURS. HE WAS THE HEAD OF THE EXECUTIVE , THE FOUNTAINHEAD OF ALL JUSTICE , THE COMMANDER-IN- CHIEF OF THE ARMY AND THE FINAL ARBITOR IN EVERYTHING. THE NEXT IN LINE WAS THE WAZIR AND THE DIWAN. NEARLY ALL THE WORK WAS LIABLE TO REVISION BY THE WAZIR AND THE ROYAL ORDERS WERE OFTEN TRANSMITTED TO THEM THROUGH HIM. THE DIWAN WAS MAINLY RESPOSIBLE FOR THE REVENUE MATTERS. BESIDES THEM THERE WERE OTHER OFFICIALS……. . DIWAN-I-ALA: HEAD OF THE IMPERIAL HOUSEHOLD. IMPERIAL BAKSHI: HEAD OF THE MILITARY PAY AND ACCOUNTS OFFICE. CHIEF QAZI: CANON LAW, BOTH CIVIL AND CRIMINAL. MUHTASIB: CENSORSHIP OF PUBLIC MORALS. MIR ATISH: HEAD OF THE ARTILLERY. DAROGA-I-DAK CHAUKI: HEAD OF INTELLIGENCE AND POST.

OTHER OFFICIALS NAZIR BURJUTAT: CHIEF ENGINEER MIR BARR: IN-CHARGE OF IMPERIAL FORESTS. KHANSALAR: SUPERINTENDENT OF THE ROYAL KITCHEN.

SIGNIFICANCE A SIGNIFICANT FEATURE OF THE WORKING OF THESE DEPARTMENTS WAS THAT EVERYTHING HED TO APPEAR SOUND ON PAPER AND COPIES OF ALL PAPERS GOING OUT OF DIFFERENT DEPARTMENTS HAD TO BE SENT TO THE PRIME MINISTER. THAT WAS THE MAIN REASON WHY THE MUGHAL KINGDOM WAS CALLED KAGAZIRAJ.

ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS THE EMPIRE WAS DIVIDED INTO THE PROVINCES CALLED THE SUBAHS. (PROVINCES). THEIR HEAD WAS CALLED NIZAM, SIPAHSALAROR SUBEDAR. THE SUBEDAR WAS ASSISTED BY THE PROVINCIAL DIWAN WHO WAS DIRECTLY APPOINTED BY THE EMPEROR OR THE IMPERIAL DIWAN. HE WAS NOT SUBORDINATE TO THE SUBEDAR BUT TO THE IMPERIAL DIWAN. THE PROVINCES WERE DIVIDED INTO THE DISTRICTS CALLED THE SARKARS. FAUJDAR WAS THE HEAD OF THE DISTRICT WAS DIVIDED INTO THE PARGANAS WERE COMPOSED OF NUMEROUS VILLAGES. THE HEAD OF THE PARGANA WAS CALLED SHIQDAR. KOTWAL----WAS PLACED IN-CHARGE OF THE TOWN. HE PERFORMED SUCH DUTIES AS THE PRESERVATION OF PEACE, MAINTENANCE OF LAW AND ORDER. , PATROLLING OF THE CITY AT NIGHT, TAKING NOTE OF NEWCOMERS AND ALIENS WATCHING THE CONDUCT AND MORALS OF THE CITIZENS , REGULATING COMMERCIAL TRANSACTIONS. THE CONDUCT OF THE KOTWAL DETERMINE THE NATURE OF THE GOVERNMENT.

THE MUGHAL EMPIRE CONSISTED OF TWO KIND OF VILLAGES ----LANDLORD VILLAGES AND THE RYOTWARI VILLAGES. VILLAGE ADMINISTRATION WAS PLACED IN THE CHARGE OF MUQADDAMS. IN THE CASE OF THE LANDLORD VILLAGES THEY ARE APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNMENT. IN BOTH THE CASES THE HEAD OF THE VILLAGES WERE ASSISTED BY THE PATWARI(REVENUE), MUNSIFF, THANEDAR ETC.

MANSABDARI SYSTEM A MANSAB IS A NUMERICALLY EXPRESSED RANK DENOTING THE POSITION OF THE MUGHAL OFFICIAL , i. e, THE MANSABDAR IN THE MUGHAL HIERARCHY INDICAYES THE TROOOPS THE MANSABDAR WAS REQUIRED TO MAINTAIN BUT NECESSARILY DID NOT MAINTAIN IT. IT WAS IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE MANSAB, THE MANSABDAR SALARY WAS FIXED. A MANSAB DID NOT GIVE ANY INDICATION OF THE POWER, POST, RIGHTS, DUTIES, RESPONSIBILITIES OR WHETHER THE OFFICIALS ARE CIVIL, MILITARY OF FOR THE PEACEFUL PURPOSES. THE OFFICIALS COULD BE ASSIGNED ANY DUTY CIVIL, MILITARY, PEACEFUL PURPOSES , HENCE IT WAS A SORT OF TROIKA-----ALL IN ONE. TO FIND OUT THE EXACT NUMBER OF IMPERIAL SOLDIERS ENTERTAINED BY THE IMPERIAL MANSABDAR, THERE WAS THE INTRODUCTION OF THE ZAT AND SWAR RANKS FOR EACH MANSABDAR ZAT WAS SIMPLY REFERRED TO THE ORIGINAL MANSABENJOYED BY THE AN OFFICER AND THE SWAR REFERRED TO THE ACTUAL NUMBER OF SOLDIEARS HELD BY THE OFFICER UNDER HIS COMMAND. THE MANSABDAR WHOSE ZAT AND SWZR RANKS ARE EQUAL WAS THE FIRST CLASS MANSABDAR. THE MANSBDAR WHOSE SWAR RANK IS LESS THAN THAT OF THE ZAT RANK BUT MORE THAN THE HALF OF THE LATTER WAS CALLED SECOND CLASS MANSABDAR. AND THE MANSABDAR WHOSE SWAR RANK WAS LESS THAN HALF OF THE ZAT RANK WAS GIVEN THE STATUS OF THIRD CLASS MANSABDAR.

THE INSTITUTION OF DO-ASPA AND SI-ASPAWAS INTRODUCED DURING THE REIGN OF JAHANGIR. IT WAS A VERY RARE RANK GIVEN TO RARE MANSABDAR WHO HAS TO HOLD ADDITIONAL HORSES UNDER HIS COMMAND IS BEING GIVEN ADDITIONAL ALLOWANCE FOR THAT. . FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF PAYA AND MILITARY OBLIGATIONS, THE RANK OF 4000 SWAR OF WHOM 1000 WAS DO-ASPA AND SIHA ASPA MEANS 5000 SWARS. HENCE WHENEVER THE EMPEROR WNTED TO INCREASE THE SWAR RANK WITHOUT INCREASING THE ZAT RANK, HE CAN DO SO BY GRANTING DO-ASPA AND SIH-ASPA. THIS MODEL WAS APPLIED CONSIDERING THE FINANCIAL BANKRUPTCY OF THE STATE. THIS SYSTEN SERVED THE STATE WELL DURING THE INITIAL PART OF THE MUGHAL EMPIRE. BUT LATER ON ALONG WITH THE JAGIRDARI SRISES, CORRUPT ADMINISTRATION AND THE SHORTAGE OF PAIBAQI LANDS , IT BECAME ONE OF THE REASON OF THE DOWNFALL OF THE MUGHAL EMPIRE.