The Ryotwari Settlement, in which cultivators had to pay annual taxes directly to the government, was primarily introduced in which of the following provinces?

The correct answer is Madras and Bombay.Key Points

• The Ryotwari Settlement was introduced in Madras and Bombay provinces during the British rule in India.
• Under this system, cultivators or farmers had to pay annual taxes directly to the government, unlike the Zamindari system where they paid taxes to intermediaries or landlords.
• The Ryotwari system was considered more beneficial for small and marginal farmers as they had direct access to the government and could negotiate the amount of taxes based on their produce and income.
• The system also helped in increasing agricultural productivity and revenue for the government.
• However, the system was criticized for being exploitative towards farmers in some cases, especially during famines and crop failures.

Additional Information

• The Central province was mainly governed under the Zamindari system, where intermediaries collected taxes from farmers and paid a fixed amount to the government.
• Assam and Bengal provinces had a mix of Zamindari and Mahalwari systems, where taxes were collected either by intermediaries or directly from farmers through village-level committees.
• Punjab province had a predominantly Mahalwari system, where large landlords or Zamindars collected taxes from farmers and paid a fixed amount to the government.