Collector
Also called: District Collector · Topic: Colonial Economy: Land Revenue, Drain, Deindustrialisation · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 1 "Colonialism and the Countryside"
Meaning
The Collector was the East India Company's official in charge of collecting revenue in a district. After the Permanent Settlement of 1793 in Bengal, zamindars lost their troops and their customs duties. Their courts (cutcherries) were placed under the Collector's supervision, so they also lost control of local justice and police. The collectorate, the Collector's office, became a rival centre of power. This shows that the zamindar was not a true landowner but a revenue collector who answered to the state.
Example
In the 1790s, a Bengal zamindar who once judged local disputes himself now had to accept the authority of the Company's Collector in his district. If the zamindar did not pay revenue on time, he could lose his estate at auction.
Don't confuse with
- Zamindar (under the Permanent Settlement): the zamindar collected rent from ryots and paid a fixed revenue. The Collector was the Company official who supervised the zamindar.
Related concepts
- Izaradari system
- Lord Cornwallis
- Permanent Settlement
- Mahal
- Amlah
- Cutcherry
- Sunset law
- Bengal Tenancy Act 1885