CBSE Class 8 Social Science Chapter 3: Ruling the Countryside NCERT Solutions

Solution: The correct matches are:

• ryot - peasant
• mahal - village
• nij - cultivation on planter's own land
• ryoti - cultivation on ryot's lands

Here, 'ryot' refers to a peasant cultivator, 'mahal' signifies a village or a group of villages, 'nij' cultivation was done on the planter's own land, and 'ryoti' cultivation was carried out on the ryot's land under the planter's system.

Solution: The completed sentences are:

(a) Growers of woad in Europe saw indigo as a crop which would provide competition to their earnings.

(b) The demand for indigo increased in late eighteenth century Britain because of industrialisation.

(c) The international demand for indigo was affected by the discovery of synthetic dyes.

(d) The Champaran movement was against forced indigo cultivation.

These answers highlight the economic competition indigo posed to woad, the rise in demand due to Britain's industrial revolution, the impact of synthetic dyes on the global market, and the specific grievance that fueled the Champaran movement.

Solution: The main features of the Permanent Settlement were:

1. Fixed Revenue: The amount of revenue to be paid by the zamindars to the Company was fixed permanently. This meant the revenue demand would not increase in the future, regardless of changes in agricultural production or prices.
2. Encouragement for Investment: It was believed that fixing revenue permanently would encourage zamindars to invest in improving the land, as they could retain any additional profit generated from increased production.
3. Zamindar's Benefit: Zamindars were expected to benefit from increased production because the state's revenue demand remained constant.
4. High Revenue Demand: However, the revenue demand was often set very high, making it difficult for many zamindars to pay on time.
5. Limited Company Gain: Even if zamindars' incomes increased significantly due to expanded cultivation, the Company could not increase its revenue share because the demand was fixed permanently.
6. Oppressive for Cultivators: The system proved to be oppressive for the actual cultivators (ryots), who had to pay high rents to the zamindars and often faced exploitation.

Solution: The Mahalwari System differed from the Permanent Settlement in several key aspects:

1. Revenue Fixation: Under the Permanent Settlement, the revenue rates were fixed permanently and could not be increased. In contrast, the Mahalwari System stipulated that the revenue rates would be revised periodically, not fixed forever.
2. Revenue Collection Responsibility: In the Permanent Settlement, zamindars were responsible for collecting revenue from the peasants and paying it to the Company. In the Mahalwari System, this responsibility was given to the village headmen, who collected revenue from the entire 'mahal' (village or estate) and paid it to the Company.

Essentially, the Mahalwari system aimed for a more flexible revenue collection that could be adjusted over time, unlike the rigid, permanent demand of the earlier system.

Solution: The new Munro system, also known as the Ryotwari system, faced two major problems:

1. Excessively High Revenue Demand: Revenue officials, in an attempt to maximize income for the Company, fixed the revenue demand at a very high level. This made it extremely difficult for the peasants (ryots) to pay, often leading to debt and hardship.
2. Abandonment of Villages: Faced with the inability to pay the high revenue demands and the harsh collection methods, many ryots were forced to flee their lands. This resulted in the desertion of villages and a decline in agricultural activity in several regions.

Solution: Ryots were reluctant to grow indigo due to several oppressive reasons:

1. Forced Contracts and Debt Cycle: Planters often forced ryots to sign contracts, providing them with cash advances at low interest rates. This loan committed the ryot to cultivating indigo on at least 25% of their land. The planter supplied seeds and tools, but the ryot bore the labor costs. After harvest, delivering indigo often led to another loan, trapping ryots in a continuous cycle of debt that was difficult to escape.
2. Low Prices and Harsh Labor: Despite the hard labor involved day and night, ryots received very low prices for the indigo they produced. This made the cultivation economically unviable for them.
3. Preference for Food Crops: Planters insisted on indigo being grown on the best soils, which ryots preferred for cultivating food crops like rice.
4. Soil Exhaustion: Indigo cultivation, with its deep roots, rapidly exhausted the soil's fertility. After an indigo harvest, the land became unsuitable for cultivating other crops like rice for a considerable period.

These factors combined made indigo cultivation a burdensome and unprofitable experience for the ryots.

Solution: The collapse of indigo production in Bengal was a result of widespread peasant resistance and government intervention:

• Ryot Rebellion: Fed up with the coercive methods and exploitation by planters, ryots across Bengal refused to grow indigo. They actively resisted, refusing to pay rents to planters and attacking indigo factories with weapons.
• Support from Zamindars and Headmen: Local zamindars and village headmen, who initially might have benefited from the system or feared the planters, began to support the indigo ryots. They mobilized peasants and engaged in confrontations with the planters' enforcers (lathiyals).
• Government Intervention: The widespread rebellion and violence worried the British government. They deployed the military to protect planters and established an Indigo Commission to investigate the indigo production system.
• Indigo Commission's Findings: The commission found the planters guilty of using coercive methods and criticized their practices. It declared indigo cultivation unprofitable for ryots.
• Commission's Recommendations: The commission advised ryots to fulfill existing contracts but allowed them to refuse indigo cultivation in the future.

Following these events and the commission's report, indigo production in Bengal significantly declined and eventually collapsed due to the ryots' unified resistance and the unfavorable findings against the planters.

Solution: The Champaran movement, which took place in 1917 in the Champaran district of Bihar, was a significant event in India's struggle for independence. Mahatma Gandhi played a pivotal role in this movement. The peasants of Champaran were forced by European planters to grow indigo on their land under the 'tinkathia' system, where they had to cultivate indigo on three out of every twenty parts of their land. They faced exploitation, high rents, and cruelty from the planters. When Gandhi arrived in Champaran, he investigated the grievances of the peasants and organized peaceful protests, civil disobedience, and non-cooperation against the planters and the British authorities. His involvement galvanized the farmers, leading to a government inquiry and ultimately the abolition of the oppressive 'tinkathia' system and a reduction in revenue demands. This movement marked Gandhi's first major success in applying his philosophy of Satyagraha in India.

Students are encouraged to visit libraries or reliable online resources for more detailed information on this important historical event and Gandhi's leadership.

Solution:

Tea and Coffee Plantations in India:

Tea and coffee plantations were established in India during the British colonial period, primarily in regions like Assam, Darjeeling, and the Nilgiris. These were large-scale agricultural enterprises requiring significant labor. Workers on these plantations, often drawn from distant villages, faced harsh conditions.

Similarities with Indigo Plantation Workers:

• Forced Labor and Debt Bondage: Like indigo ryots, plantation workers were often recruited through contractors who advanced loans. These loans trapped workers in a cycle of debt, compelling them to work on the plantations for long periods, often under coercive conditions.
• Harsh Working Conditions: Both indigo cultivators and plantation workers endured long hours of strenuous labor, low wages, and poor living conditions.
• Lack of Freedom: Workers had limited freedom of movement and were often subjected to strict rules and punishments imposed by plantation managers.
• Exploitative System: The entire system was designed to benefit the plantation owners and the colonial economy, with the labor force bearing the brunt of exploitation.

Differences from Indigo Plantation Workers:

• Nature of Work: Indigo cultivation was primarily an agricultural activity carried out by peasants on their own or leased land (Ryoti system), or on planter-owned land (Nij system). Tea and coffee cultivation involves continuous work in processing factories and fields, often year-round, with specific tasks like plucking leaves or beans.
• Direct vs. Indirect Control: While indigo ryots were directly involved in cultivating the crop, plantation workers were employed laborers performing specific tasks under direct supervision. The control mechanism differed; indigo ryots were often tied by contracts and debt for cultivation, whereas plantation workers were directly employed and managed on the estate.
• Scale and Location: Indigo was cultivated in specific regions like Bengal, whereas tea and coffee plantations were spread across diverse geographical areas with different climatic conditions.

In summary, while both indigo cultivators and plantation workers experienced severe exploitation, debt bondage, and harsh living conditions under the British colonial system, the specific nature of their work, the directness of control, and the geographical spread presented some differences.

Students can gather more detailed information from libraries and historical texts to explore these comparisons further.