Lang batai
Topic: Mughal Agrarian Society and Economy · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 4 "Peasants, Zamindars and the State"
Meaning
Lang batai was a way of collecting land revenue in kind (in grain, not cash) under the Mughals. It is described in the Ain-i Akbari. The grain was cut and formed into heaps. The heaps were then divided between the state and the cultivator, and each took its share home. It let the state take its share of the actual harvest.
Example
Under Akbar, after harvesting wheat, a cultivator's grain was heaped and divided. The state's portion was taken as revenue, and the peasant carried the rest home.
Don't confuse with
- Khet-batai: Here the field itself was divided after sowing, before the harvest.
- Batai (bhaoli): Here the crops were reaped and stacked, then divided by agreement in front of both parties.
Related concepts
- Mughal land revenue system
- Jama
- Hasil
- Amalguzar
- Kankut
- Batai
- Khet-batai
- Classification of lands under Akbar
- Polaj
- Parauti