NCERT Solutions for Class 8 Social Science History Chapter 3 Ruling The Countryside contain solutions to the exercises given in the History book Our Pasts -III. These answers have been explained in a manner that you will easily understand all the concepts and get your doubts cleared without even seeking anyone’s assistance. You can read and download all the questions and answers in PDF format.
Class 8 History Chapter 3 Ruling The Countryside Questions and Answers
Question 1: Match the following:
| ryot | village |
| Mahal | peasent |
| nij | Cultivation on ryot’s land |
| ryoti | Cultivation on planter’s own land |
Answer:
| ryot | peasent |
| Mahal | village |
| nij | Cultivation on planter’s own land |
| ryoti | Cultivation on ryot’s land |
Question 2: Fill in the blanks:
(a) Growers of woad in Europe saw_______ as a crop which would provide competition to their earnings.
Answer: (a) Indigo
(b) The demand for indigo increased in the late-eighteenth-century Britain because of
_________
Answer: the expansion of cotton production as a result of industrialisation, which in turn created an enormous demand for cloth dyes
(c) The international demand for indigo was affected by the discovery of__________.
Answer: synthetic dyes.
(d) The Champaran movement was against _________.
Answer: indigo planters.
Question 3: Describe the main features of the Permanent Settlement.
Answer: The Permanent Settlement was a land revenue system introduced in 1793 by East India Company. By the terms of this settlement, the rajas and taluqdars were recognised as zamindars. They were asked to collect rent from the peasants and pay revenue to the Company. The main features of the Permanent Settlement system were:
- The amount of the revenue was fixed permanently, that is, it was not to be increased ever in future.
- Since the revenue demand of the state would not be increased, the zamindar would benefit from increased production from the land.
- The revenue that had been fixed was so high that the zamindars found it difficult to pay. Those who failed to pay the revenue lost their zamindari.
- Even when the income of the zamindars increased due to increased cultivation, there was no gain for the Company since it could not increase a revenue demand that had been fixed permanently
- Exorbitant prices of land which zamindars had to pay to the company (which they failed.)
Question 4: How was the mahalwari system different from the Permanent Settlement?
Answer:
| Mahalwari Settlement | Permanent Settlement |
| The mahalwari system, devised by Holt Mackenzie, came into effect in 1822, in the North Western provinces of the Bengal Presidency. | The Permanent Settlement was introduced in 1793 by Lord Cornwallis. |
| It was devised as an alternative to the Permanent Settlement. | It was aimed at ensuring stable revenue for the East India Company. |
| The village headmen were in charge of collecting revenue. | The rajas and taluqdars were in charge of collecting revenue |
| The revenue amount was not fixed, and was to be revised periodically. The estimated revenue of each plot within a village was added up to calculate the revenue that each village or mahal had to pay. | The revenue amount was fixed and was never to be increased in the future. |
Question 5: Give two problems which arose with the new Munro system of fixing revenue.
Answer: The new Munro system of fixing revenue posed two problems:
a. The revenue demand was fixed way too high for peasants to pay
b. Peasants were unable to pay the rent which culminated into villages getting deserted.
Question 6: Why were ryots reluctant to grow indigo?
Answer: The ryots reluctant to grow indigo because:
(i) The planters paid a very low price for indigo.
(ii) The ryots were not in a position to even recover their cost, earning a profit was a far- fetched idea. This meant that the ryot was always under debt.
(iii) The planters insisted that the peasants cultivate indigo on the most fertile parts of their land, but the peasants preferred growing rice on the best soils after an indigo harvest. The land could not be used for sowing rice, the ryots were reluctant to grow indigo.
Question 7: What were the circumstances which led to the eventual collapse of indigo production in Bengal?
Answer: The ryots began to refuse to grow indigo. They were supported by the village headmen and some zamindars in their fight. The scale of protest was so much that the government had to intervene. The Indigo Commission was set up to enquire into the problems. The Commission accepted the faults of the planters and allowed the ryots to grow whatever they wished. This led to eventual collapse of indigo production in Bengal.