Ryot
Encyclopedia
Ryot was a general economic term used throughout India for peasant cultivators but with variations in different provinces. While zamindar
s were landlords, raiyats were tenants and cultivators, and served as hired labour. A raiyat was primarily defined as someone who has acquired a right to hold land for the purpose of cultivating it, whether alone or by members of his family, hired servants, or partners. It also referred to succession rights.
word ra`īyah, translated as "flock" or "peasants", in turn originating from the word ra`ā, meaning "pasture".
system of land control there were two types of raiyats: khudkasta and paikasta. The khudkasta raiyats were permanent resident cultivators of the village. Their rights in land were heritable according to Muslim
and Hindu
laws of succession. The other type of raiyats was called paikasta. They did not cultivate land on a permanent basis in any particular mauza (lowest revenue plus village settlement unit), but instead moved from mauza to mauza and engaged themselves for a crop season. In terms of revenue, the paikasta raiyats were generally paid a much lower rate of rent than the khudkashta raiyats. The dividend to the khudkasta, who thus became an absentee owner
, came from hard bargaining. Pahikasht raiyats were a subgroup of peasants who cultivated the land away from the area where they resided.
Another subgroup included under-raiyats who was entitled to various rights of occupancy and transferable interests. An under-raiyat is was referred to as a korfa, though an under-raiyat paying rent in kind was referred too as a bargait.
The Tenancy Act of 1885 was developed to regulate the rent of under-raiyats. One of the causes of the Bengal Tenancy Act of 1885 was the Bihar Rent Committee report of 1879 which sought rights for the raiyat to resist illegal restraint and illegal enhancement, and allowing him to prove and maintain his occupancy rights.
system and the mahalwari system. The ryotwari system was known as "severality villages and was based on the system of peasant proprietorship. The ryotwari (or ryotwary) tenure related to land revenue imposed on an individual or community owning an estate, and occupying a position analogous to that of a landlord. The assessment is known as zamindar. The land revenue is imposed on individuals who are the actual occupants, and this assessment is known as ryotwari. Under zamindari tenure, the land is held as independent property; while under ryotwari tenure it is held of the crown in a right of occupancy, which is under British rule both heritable and transferable by the ryots. The former system prevails in northern and central India, and the latter in Bombay, Madras, Assam and Burma.
Zamindar
A Zamindar or zemindar , was an aristocrat, typically hereditary, who held enormous tracts of land and ruled over and taxed the bhikaaris who lived on batavaslam. Over time, they took princely and royal titles such as Maharaja , Raja , Nawab , and Mirza , Chowdhury , among others...
s were landlords, raiyats were tenants and cultivators, and served as hired labour. A raiyat was primarily defined as someone who has acquired a right to hold land for the purpose of cultivating it, whether alone or by members of his family, hired servants, or partners. It also referred to succession rights.
Etymology
Ryot originates from the Hindi word ra`īyat and the ArabicArabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
word ra`īyah, translated as "flock" or "peasants", in turn originating from the word ra`ā, meaning "pasture".
Classifications
Under the MughalMughal Empire
The Mughal Empire , or Mogul Empire in traditional English usage, was an imperial power from the Indian Subcontinent. The Mughal emperors were descendants of the Timurids...
system of land control there were two types of raiyats: khudkasta and paikasta. The khudkasta raiyats were permanent resident cultivators of the village. Their rights in land were heritable according to Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
and Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
laws of succession. The other type of raiyats was called paikasta. They did not cultivate land on a permanent basis in any particular mauza (lowest revenue plus village settlement unit), but instead moved from mauza to mauza and engaged themselves for a crop season. In terms of revenue, the paikasta raiyats were generally paid a much lower rate of rent than the khudkashta raiyats. The dividend to the khudkasta, who thus became an absentee owner
Absentee landlord
Absentee landlord is an economic term for a person who owns and rents out a profit-earning property, but does not live within the property's local economic region. This practice is problematic for that region because absentee landlords drain local wealth into their home country, particularly that...
, came from hard bargaining. Pahikasht raiyats were a subgroup of peasants who cultivated the land away from the area where they resided.
Another subgroup included under-raiyats who was entitled to various rights of occupancy and transferable interests. An under-raiyat is was referred to as a korfa, though an under-raiyat paying rent in kind was referred too as a bargait.
The Tenancy Act of 1885 was developed to regulate the rent of under-raiyats. One of the causes of the Bengal Tenancy Act of 1885 was the Bihar Rent Committee report of 1879 which sought rights for the raiyat to resist illegal restraint and illegal enhancement, and allowing him to prove and maintain his occupancy rights.
Ryotwari system
There were two economic systems prevalent in India before the British rule: the ryotwariRyotwari
The ryotwari system, instituted in some parts of British India, was one of the two main systems used to collect revenues from the cultivators of agricultural land. These revenues included undifferentiated land taxes and rents, collected simultaneously...
system and the mahalwari system. The ryotwari system was known as "severality villages and was based on the system of peasant proprietorship. The ryotwari (or ryotwary) tenure related to land revenue imposed on an individual or community owning an estate, and occupying a position analogous to that of a landlord. The assessment is known as zamindar. The land revenue is imposed on individuals who are the actual occupants, and this assessment is known as ryotwari. Under zamindari tenure, the land is held as independent property; while under ryotwari tenure it is held of the crown in a right of occupancy, which is under British rule both heritable and transferable by the ryots. The former system prevails in northern and central India, and the latter in Bombay, Madras, Assam and Burma.