Mulk-abadi
Topic: Mughal Agrarian Society and Economy · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 4 "Peasants, Zamindars and the State"
Meaning
Mulk-abadi is the third daftar (book) of the Ain-i Akbari. It covers the fiscal side of the empire, meaning its money and revenue. It gives revenue rates and then the "Account of the Twelve Provinces". Each suba (province) is broken into sarkars, parganas and mahals in eight-column tables. The columns show forts, measured area, cash revenue (naqdi), charity grants (suyurghal), zamindars, their castes, and their troops.
Example
Abu'l Fazl completed the Ain-i Akbari in 1598. Its mulk-abadi is still a key source of numbers on Mughal agrarian society around 1600. One gap is that it gives no zamindar-caste details for Bengal and Orissa.
Don't confuse with
- Manzil-abadi: the first book, on the imperial household.
- Sipah-abadi: the second book, on military and civil administration.
Related concepts
- Flow of silver into India
- Silver rupya
- Hundi
- Banjaras
- Mahajan
- Nagarsheth
- Urbanisation in Mughal India
- Urban professional classes
- Manzil-abadi
- Sipah-abadi