Mughal Administration Central, Provincial AND Local PDF

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MUGHAL ADMINISTRATION: CENTRAL, PROVINCIAL AND LOCAL...

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MUGHAL ADMINISTRATION: CENTRAL, PROVINCIAL AND LOCAL Administration Under Sher Shah The Afghan interlude (1540-1555) had a significant role in the development of Mughal administrative machinery. The attempt in the development of a bureaucracy under a centralised tyranny had taken place under Sher Shah Suri. It was given a certain shape by Akbar. As a result, we might argue that Sher Shah foresaw Akbar's arrival. Let's start with Sher Shah's administrative events.

We have very little information about Sher Shah's central administration's operations. He was an autocrat, however, and everything was under his authority and inspection. So long as he was alive, things ran well: his successors were no match for him. The smallest administrative entity was the village. A pargana was made up of a group of villages, and a few parganas made up a shiqq, which was the Mughal counterpart of a sarkar. Many shiqqs were placed under an officer who can be compared to the Mughal subadar in a select location, such as Punjab, Bengal, and Malwa. Muqaddam, the village chief, was considered as the only link between the government and the village. Despite the fact that he was not a government employee, he was in charge of preserving order in his community. The patwari, a village record-keeper, follows next. He was also a member of the village community rather than a state employee.

The pargana was in charge of the shiqqdar. His main responsibility was to collect revenue at the pargana level. Sher Shah had him transferred on a regular basis. Two karkuns (clerks) assisted him in keeping the records in both Hindi and Persian. The munsif was in charge of land measurement and other duties. Both (shiqqdar and munsif) were appointed by the government directly. At the pargana stage, the qanungo kept track of the records. He was a semiofficial hereditary position. The pargana's treasury was handed to the fotadar. A sarkar (shiqq) formed by a number of parganas went through shiqqdar-i shiqqdaran. In a sarkar, he was the supervisor and executive officer over all the shiqqdars of all the parganas (shiqq). At the sarkar (shiqq) stage, the munsif-i munsifan performed the functions of amin (established later by the Mughals). In Sher Shah's empire, there were 66 sarkars (shiqqs).

The administration of justice was extremely important to Sher Shah. The civil cases of Muslims were handled by the qazi, while criminal cases were handled by the shiqqdar. Muqaddams bore the brunt of the burden for detecting crimes. If the muqaddam of the hamlet where the incident took place failed to apprehend the perpetrator, he faced harsh punishment.

Central Administration: Its Evolution The Mughal Empire was truly pan-Indian. Because of their limited reigns and their preoccupation with military affairs, Babur and Humayun were unable to focus on developing a specific system or pattern in administration.

We see the construction of ornate offices with specific tasks to the heads of offices towards the conclusion of Akbar's reign. The officials' public and private behaviour had been governed by a set of rules and regulations, transforming them into'what can be referred to as Empire's Tools.

The Emperor is a powerful figure.

A strong monarch had always been favoured by ancient Indian traditions. Muslim jurists and writers shared this viewpoint. As a result, the belief of monarchy's divine origins could readily gain acceptance among the Indian people. It is unsurprising that the Mughals publicised their jharokha darshan with great pomp and show how the irrigation system worked. The Emperor appeared in front of the general populace at a certain hour, with the legend that just seeing his majesty would alleviate their concerns. Given the Emperor's popular image, it's no surprise that all officers in the Mughal government owed their position and power to him. The ruler's personal preferences and whims determined their appointment, promotion, demotion, and firing.

Wakil and Wazir are two brothers.

According to some reports, the Abbasi Caliphs established wizarat (or wikalat, since the two terms were used

interchangeably). The wazir had both civil and military powers under the Delhi Sultans. However, when the Sultan divided the military authority between diwan arz and Balban, his power was weakened. Under the Afghans, Sher Shah's office was essentially dormant. Under the early Mughals, the wazir's role was reinstated. Nizamuddin Muhammad Khalifa, Babur's wazir, had both civil and military authority. Hindu Beg, Humayun's wazir, had almost unlimited power.

The development of the wakilwazir with unrestricted powers during Bairam Khan's regency (1556-60) was witnessed during Bairam Khan's reign. In the eighth regnal year (156465), Akbar took away the wakil's financial responsibilities and handed them to the diwan kul (Finance Minister). The wakil's power was shaken by the separation of finance. Despite his diminished powers, the wakil continued to hold the top position in the Mughal bureaucracy. Diwani Kul We've already seen how Akbar bolstered the diwan's position by entrusting the diwan with revenue powers. Revenue and money were assigned to the head diwan (diwani kul). His main responsibility was to oversee the imperial treasury and audit all finances. In all areas, he personally inspected all transactions and payments. He kept in close communication with the provincial diwans, and he kept a close eye on their operations. All official paperwork affecting revenue need his seal and signatures for authentication. He was in control of the Empire's entire tax collecting and expenditure mechanism. Without his signature, no new appointment or promotion could be made. The Mughal Emperor requested the

diwan to give a daily report on state finances to check his power.

To meet the Empire's specialised needs, the central income ministry was separated into several divisions. Diwani khalisa, diwani tan (cash salary), diwani jagir, diwani buyutat (royal household), and so on. Each branch was further broken into numerous divisions, each of which was staffed by a secretary, superintendents, and clerks. The auditor was the mustaufi, and the chief accountant was the mushrif. The Imperial Treasury was looked after by the khazanadar. Mir Bakhshi The Mughals altered the name of the Delhi Sultanate's mir arz to mir bakhshi. He endorsed and handed through all mansabdar appointment orders as well as their salary papers. He personally oversaw the branding of the horses (dagh) and the troops' muster rolls (chehra). The amount of the salary was certified based on his verification. The diwan then entered the information into his records and presented it to the monarch. All topics concerning the military department were presented to the Emperor by Mir Bakhshi. The Emperor was introduced to the new entrants seeking service through the mir bakhshi. He dealt with provincial bakhshis and waqainavis on a one-on-one basis. He went on tours, pleasure trips, hunting expeditions, battlefields, and so forth with the Emperor. His job was to make sure that the mansabdars were assigned proper positions in the court based on their status. His darbar responsibilities increased his stature and power significantly. -

At the central stage, the mir bakhshi was supported by other bakhshis. The first three were labelled as 1st, 2nd, and 3rd

bak-hshi, respectively. There were also separate bakhshis for the ahadis (special imperial troopers) and the royal household's domestic servants (bakhshi-i shagird pesha). Mir Saman The officer in command of the royal karkhanas was known as the mir saman. Khan Saman was another name for him. He was the royal household's principal executive officer, in charge of the procurement and storage of all types of items. Another important responsibility was to oversee the production of various items, whether they were weapons of war or luxury items. He was immediately under the Emperor, but he was to contact the diwan for money sanction and account auditing. Many officers served under the mir saman, including the diwani buyutat and tahvildar (cash keeper). Sadr-us Sudur The ecclesiastical department was led by Sadr-us Sudur. His primary responsibility was to uphold the shari'at laws. He was also associated with charitable giving, both in cash (wazifa) and in the form of land donations (suyurghal, in'am, madad-i ma'ash). He oversaw the selection of qazis and muftis as the director of the judicial department at first. The roles of chief qazi and sadr-us sudur were amalgamated prior to Shah Jahan's reign, and the same individual was in control of both departments. The chief qazi (qazi-ul quzzat) and the sadr-us sudur were split during Aurangzeb's reign. Sadr's power was severely curtailed as a result. Now that he had attained the rank of sadr, he oversaw the distribution of allowances and was in charge of charity gifts. He also checked to see if the grants were handed to the correct people and put to good use. He evaluated all such grant applications, including new and renewals, and presented them to the Emperor for approval. He was also in charge of distributing alms.

Qazi-ul Quzzat Qazi-ul quzzat was given to the principal qazi. He was the Supreme Court's chief justice. His main responsibility was to apply sharia law in both civil and criminal cases. He investigated the appointment of qazis at the suba, sarkar, pargana, and town stages, according to the top qazi's abilities. There was also a qazi for the army. Mir adl, in addition to the qazi-ul quzzat, was an important judicial figure. Abul Fazl emphasised the importance of having a mir adl in addition to a qazi, because the qazi was responsible for hearing and deciding cases, while the mir adl was responsible for carrying out the court's instructions. The muhtasibs (censor of public morals) was in charge of ensuring that the norms of morality were followed by all. His task was to keep the forbidden practises under control, such as drinking wine, using bhang and other intoxicants, gambling, and so on. He also had some secular responsibilities, such as examining weights and events, regulating fair prices, and so on. Provincial Administration Akbar split the Empire into twelve subas in 1580. Each suba was subdivided into a number of sarkars, which were subdivided further into parganas and mahals. Another administrative subdivision, the cbalda, was established during Shah Jahan's reign. It was a conglomeration of several parganas. Provincial Governor A suba's governor (subadar) was selected directly by the Emperor. A subadar's term of service was typically three years. The most important of the subadar's responsibilities was to watch after the wellbeing of the population and the army. He was in charge of the suba's general law and order issue. Agriculture, trade, and commerce were all encouraged by a successful subadar. He was meant to engage in

charitable works such as the construction of sarais, gardens, wells, and water reservoirs, among other things. He was supposed to take initiatives to increase the state's revenue. Diwan Through the Emperor, the provincial diwan was appointed. He was a self-employed officer who reported to the Centre. In the suba, he was the head of the revenue department. The provincial diwan was in charge of overseeing tax collection in the suba and keeping track of all expenditures, such as pay for officials and subordinates. The diwan was also expected to take steps to increase the amount of land under cultivation. Peasants were offered advance loans (taqavi) in numerous situations through his agency. Through the diwan, a roznamcha (daily register) was kept, which accepted entries of money put in the royal treasury by tax officials and zamindars. He was in charge of a huge number of clerks. The Mughals were successful in preventing the subadar from becoming independent by creating the diwan, which was independent of the subadar, and placing financial affairs under the former. Bakhshi On the proposal of the mir bakhshi, the bakhshi was appointed by the imperial court. He carried out the same military tasks as his counterpart at the Centre. He was in charge of inspecting and checking the horses and men kept in the suba by the mansabdars. He was in charge of both the mansabdars and the troops' pay. It was his responsibility to compile a list of deceased mansabdars, although news reporters from the parganas frequently conveyed information directly to the provincial diwan (waqai navis). His office was frequently coupled with waqa'inigarl. His job in this capacity was to keep the Centre up to date on what was going on in his province. He stationed his mediators in the parganas and many important offices to help him with his duties.

Darogha-i Dak and the Secret Services To rule a huge Empire, it was critical to develop a communication network. This important responsibility was delegated to a separate department. The imperial mail system was well-known for delivering messages to far-flung parts of the Empire. Information was obtained through the same channel. Every suba headquarters has a darogha-i dak assigned to this task. His job was to deliver letters to the court via postal runners (mewras). A number of dak chowkis were established across the Empire for this purpose, where runners were stationed to accept the post to the next chowk. Horses and boats were also used to aid in the delivery of goods quickly.

Waq'ai navis and waq'ai nigars were selected at the provincial level to deliver the reports directly to the Emperor. There were also sawanih nigar to provide the Emperor with confidential reports. We have access to several reports from these secret service mediators. They are important historical documents from the time era. As a result, the Mughals kept a close eye on their officials in the provinces through offices and institutions that were separate from one another. Furthermore, the Mughal Emperors' regular trips to each suba, as well as the system of frequent transfers of officials after an average of three years, aided the Mughals in keeping track of the officials. However, the risk of insurrection was always present, necessitating constant vigilance through an organised intelligence network. Local Administration Sarkars At the safjkar stage, there were two significant functionaries, the faujdar and the amalguzar.

Faujdar He was the sarkar's executive director. However, his sphere of influence appears to be more complicated. He was not only appointed at the sarkar level, but there were sometimes multiple faujdars within a sarkar. Their jurisdiction spanned more than two whole sarkars at times. We've also heard that other faujdars have been appointed to chaklas. It appears that his primary responsibility was to deal with rebellions and law and order issues. His authority was established based on the needs of the area. His principal responsibility was to protect the lives and property of the people who lived in the area under his control. He was supposed to make sure that traders in his authority were safe. The faujdar's job as the region's main executive was to keep watch over the obstinate zamindars. He was to assist the amalguzar in areas of revenue collection in exceptional circumstances. Amalguzar The amil or amalguzar was the most important revenue collector. His main responsibility was to examine and manage income collection via subordinate personnel. A good amil was designed to increase the amount of land available for agricultural and encourage peasants to pay taxes cheerfully and without force. He was to be the one in charge of all accounting. He was in charge of sending daily receipts and expenditure reports to the provincial diwan. Thanedar. The thana was a location where the army was stationed to maintain law and order. They were also in charge of securing supplies for the soldiers. These thanas woes are most commonly found in tumultuous areas and close to cities. Thanedar was the name given to its head. He was appointed

on the subadar and diwan's suggestion. He was usually assigned to the area's faujdar. Pargana Administration Under the sarkar, the parganas were the administrative units. The shiqqdar served as the pargana's executive officer and aided the amils in revenue collection. At the pargana level, the amil was also in charge of income collection. At the sarkar stage, his responsibilities were identical to those of the amalguzar. All of the records pertaining to the land in his area were held by the qanungos. He was supposed to keep track of the pargana's various crops. The village was the lowest level of government. The village headman was the muqaddam, while the patwari was in charge of the village revenue records. The pattern of village governance remained roughly the same during the Mughals as it had been under Sher Shah.....