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| Article Name : | | | BRITISH AGRARIAN REVENUE POLICY: LANDLESS AGRICULTURAL LABOURERS AND CAPITALIST LAND LORDS- A TRINGLE RELATIONS IN THANJAVUR DISTRICT | | Author Name : | | | C.VELUCHAMY | | Publisher : | | | Ashok Yakkaldevi | | Article Series No. : | | | GRT-2563 | | Article URL : | |  | Author Profile View PDF In browser | | Abstract : | | | After the assumption of power in Tamil Country in the beginning of the Nineteenth Century, the British introduced many revenue settlements either with intermediaries like Zanindars and Mirasdars or directly with the ryots. Their interest changed from trade activities to the agrarian activities which they began to realize that it would give a fixed revenue to the Government. The Land revenue became the prime motive of the British Government. The suppression of the rebellious Poligars provided a loyal Zamindars to the Government. The Zamindars came forward to accept new revenue settlements which allowed to collect excess revenue from the peasants but fixed payment to the Government. Mostly the Zamindars were Land-holding communities which constituted castes belonged to the higher ranks in the social and economic ladder. In case of Thanjavur District, mostly the Zamindars belonged to the Brahmin and Vellalar Castes. In the second half of the Nineteenth Century, the western education and liberal ideas made the higher caste land holding communities to move to cities in seeking new professions like law , medicine and teaching. They left their lands to the control of Middle classes for Kuthagai (fixed rent). They cultivated the lands with the help of landless labourers. The condition of the labourers was continuous economic suffering . As the motive of the Government was increasing revenue, it did not bother about the welfare of the landless laboures who were indebted to capitalist land lords in many ways. Agrestic slavery continued till the end of Colonial rule in Thanjavur. Thus the paper attempts to highlight the triangle agrarian relation among the Government, Capitalist Land Lords and the landless agricultural labourers. | | Keywords : | | |
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