Administration and Revenue under the Marathas
Maratha administration in Chhattisgarh: khalsa and zamindari areas, garhs to 27 parganas, kamavisdars and gaontias, and taxes such as takoli, sayer and pandhari.
Prerequisites
- The Suba System (1787–1818): the subedars who ran this machinery
- Kalachuris of Ratanpur and Raipur: the older garh system the Marathas reorganised
- Bhonsle Conquest and Bimbaji Bhonsle: how Maratha rule began
The Hook: From Forts to Parganas
The name Chhattisgarh is popularly explained as “thirty-six forts” (छत्तीस गढ़): the garhs into which the Kalachuri kingdom was traditionally divided, 18 under Ratanpur and 18 under Raipur. Today we speak of districts, tehsils and villages instead. Part of that change happened under the Marathas, who replaced the garhs with parganas (परगना) run by revenue officers.
How was Chhattisgarh governed and taxed under the Marathas, and who actually collected the money in a village?
Why it matters: Prelims tests the terms (kamavisdar, gaontia, takoli, sayer, pandhari) and the 27 parganas. Mains GS-I asks you to explain the pargana system and assess Maratha revenue administration.
Two Kinds of Territory: Khalsa and Zamindari
| Area | Who governed | Revenue paid to the Marathas |
|---|---|---|
| Khalsa (खालसा) | Directly administered by Maratha officials (subedar, kamavisdars) | Land revenue and other taxes, collected through village heads |
| Zamindari (ज़मींदारी) | Local zamindars and chiefs ran their own estates | A fixed annual tribute called takoli (टकोली) |
The Chain of Administration
graph TD
A["Bhonsle ruler at Nagpur"] --> B["Bimbaji at Ratanpur (1758-1787)
or a Subedar (1787-1818)"]
B --> C["Kamavisdar
in charge of a pargana"]
C --> D["Gaontia
village head, collects revenue"]
D --> E["Cultivators"]
B --> F["Zamindars
pay takoli"]| Level | Official | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Region | Bimbaji, later the subedar (सूबेदार) | Overall civil, military, revenue and judicial authority |
| Pargana | Kamavisdar (कमाविसदार) | Revenue collection, law and order and local administration of the pargana |
| Village | Gaontia (गौंटिया) | Village headman responsible for collecting the village’s revenue and passing it up |
| Estates | Zamindar | Ran his estate and paid takoli |
The Pargana System
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Before | The Kalachuri garh (गढ़) system: 36 garhs, 18 each under Ratanpur and Raipur |
| Reform | Subedar Vitthal Rao Dinkar (1790–1796) reorganised the territory into 27 parganas |
| Head of a pargana | Kamavisdar |
| Later change | The British superintendent Colonel Agnew (after 1818) regrouped the 27 parganas into a smaller number of larger units (eight in most accounts), still under kamavisdars |
- A garh was a fortified chief’s domain, partly military and partly hereditary. A pargana was a revenue and administrative unit under an appointed official.
- It gave the Marathas a uniform grid for assessing and collecting revenue.
- It shifted power from hereditary local chiefs towards appointed officers answerable to the subedar.
- It provided a territorial framework the British could reorganise later.
Revenue: What Was Taxed
| Tax / levy | What it was |
|---|---|
| Land revenue | The main source of income. Assessed on each village and collected through the gaontia |
| Takoli (टकोली) | Annual tribute paid by zamindars to the Maratha government |
| Sayer / Sair (सायर) | Tax on trade and the sale of goods (customs and excise-type duties) |
| Pandhari | Tax on non-agriculturists, such as artisans and traders |
| Sewai | Miscellaneous fines and penalty-type levies |
Justice and Order
- There was no codified law of the modern kind. Most accounts describe disputes in villages as being settled by village panchayats (पंचायत) and local custom.
- Serious civil and criminal matters went before the kamavisdar or the subedar, with the ruler as the final authority.
- Because the subedar also collected revenue, judicial and revenue powers were concentrated in one office. Fines (such as sewai) were also a source of income, which created an incentive to impose them.
Language and Culture of Administration
- Marathi in the Modi script, along with Urdu, became languages of court and records, a change associated with Bimbaji.
- Maratha officials, festivals and temple patronage (for example the Ramtekri temple at Ratanpur) left a Maratha imprint on towns like Ratanpur and Raipur.
Evaluation (Mains material)
| Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|
| A single administration for the whole region | Extractive revenue demands, especially in the Suba period |
| Pargana system: a uniform revenue grid | Contract appointments encouraged short-term squeezing |
| Appointed officials reduced the power of hereditary garh chiefs | No separation of revenue and judicial powers |
| Zamindari areas kept local autonomy, limiting conflict | Little investment in irrigation, roads or public works |
| Created a base later adapted by the British | Burden on cultivators passed down through gaontias |
Memory Tricks
Don’t Confuse
| This | vs | That |
|---|---|---|
| Takoli: tribute from zamindars | Sayer: tax on trade and sale of goods | |
| Pandhari: tax on non-agriculturists | Land revenue: tax on cultivators via the gaontia | |
| Kamavisdar: pargana officer | Gaontia: village head | |
| Khalsa: directly administered | Zamindari: estates paying takoli | |
| Garh: Kalachuri unit (36) | Pargana: Maratha unit (27) | |
| Vitthal Rao Dinkar: created 27 parganas | Agnew: regrouped them into fewer, larger parganas |
Common Mistakes
Practice
These are original practice questions written in CGPSC style. They are not previous-year questions.
Level 1: Foundation
- Under the Marathas, a pargana was headed by a ________, while a village’s revenue was collected by the ________.
- The annual tribute paid by zamindars to the Maratha government was called ________.
- Vitthal Rao Dinkar reorganised Chhattisgarh into ________ parganas.
Answers
- Kamavisdar; gaontia
- Takoli
- 27
Level 2: Prelims MCQs
Q1. Consider the following statements about Maratha administration in Chhattisgarh:
- Khalsa areas were administered directly by Maratha officials.
- Zamindars paid an annual tribute called takoli.
- The kamavisdar was the village-level revenue collector.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only (b) 1 and 2 only (c) 2 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer and explanation
Q2. Match List-I (Levy) with List-II (Description):
| List-I | List-II |
|---|---|
| A. Takoli | 1. Tax on non-agriculturists |
| B. Sayer | 2. Fines and penalty-type levies |
| C. Pandhari | 3. Tribute from zamindars |
| D. Sewai | 4. Tax on trade and sale of goods |
(a) A-3, B-4, C-1, D-2 (b) A-4, B-3, C-1, D-2 (c) A-3, B-1, C-4, D-2 (d) A-3, B-4, C-2, D-1
Answer and explanation
Q3. The Kalachuri garh system in Chhattisgarh was replaced by the pargana system under:
(a) Bimbaji Bhonsle (b) Vitthal Rao Dinkar (c) Colonel Agnew (d) Mahipat Rao Dinkar
Answer and explanation
Q4. Which feature made Maratha revenue administration in Chhattisgarh especially burdensome in the Suba period?
(a) Permanent settlement of land revenue with zamindars (b) Appointment of officials on a contract (revenue-farming) basis (c) Abolition of the gaontia system (d) Separation of judicial and revenue powers
Answer and explanation
Level 3: Mains Answer Writing
Q1. What was the pargana system under Maratha administration in Chhattisgarh? (60 words)
Intro: The pargana system replaced the Kalachuri garh structure as the unit of Maratha administration.
Body:
- Created by subedar Vitthal Rao Dinkar (1790–1796), who organised the region into 27 parganas.
- Each pargana was headed by a kamavisdar, responsible for revenue, order and local administration; gaontias collected revenue in villages.
- British superintendent Agnew later regrouped them into fewer, larger parganas.
Conclusion: It moved power from hereditary garh chiefs to appointed revenue officers.
Q2. Critically examine the revenue administration of the Marathas in Chhattisgarh. (150–200 words)
Intro: Maratha rule (1741–1854, with a British interlude in 1818–1830) gave Chhattisgarh a centralised revenue system built on parganas and village heads.
Structure:
- Khalsa vs zamindari: direct collection in the plains; takoli from zamindars on the fringes.
- Hierarchy: subedar → kamavisdar (pargana) → gaontia (village) → cultivator.
- Levies: land revenue, takoli, sayer (trade), pandhari (non-agriculturists), sewai (fines).
Strengths: a uniform pargana grid (Vitthal Rao Dinkar, 27 parganas); appointed officials in place of hereditary chiefs; a framework later used by the British.
Weaknesses: contract appointments and short tenures encouraged over-extraction; revenue and judicial powers were concentrated; fines doubled as income; little was reinvested in irrigation or roads.
Conclusion: The system was administratively coherent but fiscally extractive, especially in the Suba period. That helps explain both peasant distress and the ease of the British takeover after 1818.
Quick Revision Table
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Two types of area | Khalsa (direct rule) and zamindari (estates paying takoli) |
| Pargana officer | Kamavisdar |
| Village revenue head | Gaontia |
| 27 parganas | Vitthal Rao Dinkar (subedar, 1790–1796) |
| Earlier unit | 36 garhs (Kalachuri) |
| Later regrouping | Colonel Agnew: fewer, larger parganas (eight in most accounts) |
| Takoli | Tribute from zamindars |
| Sayer | Tax on trade and sale of goods |
| Pandhari | Tax on non-agriculturists |
| Sewai | Fines and penalty-type levies |
| Justice | Village panchayats; kamavisdar and subedar above them |
| Court languages | Marathi (Modi script) and Urdu |
Key Takeaways
- Maratha Chhattisgarh had khalsa areas under direct rule and zamindari areas paying takoli.
- The chain ran subedar → kamavisdar (pargana) → gaontia (village) → cultivator.
- Vitthal Rao Dinkar replaced the garhs with 27 parganas; Agnew later reduced their number.
- Main levies: land revenue, takoli, sayer, pandhari, sewai.
- Contract appointments and concentrated powers made the system extractive, especially in the Suba period.
What’s Next
- Decline and British Supervision: how the British took over this machinery
- British Rule, Princely States and Zamindaris: what became of the zamindaris
- Economy, Budget and State Schemes: the land and revenue questions in today’s economy
- Public Administration: concepts such as separation of powers to frame Mains answers