UPSC Prelims 2021 Q45: Mughal Pargana, Sarkar and Suba — Explained
With reference to medieval India, which one of the following is the correct sequence in ascending order in terms of size?
- Paragana—Sarkar—Suba
- Sarkar—Paragana—Suba
- Suba—Sarkar—Paragana
- Paragana—Suba—Sarkar
Answer: (a) Paragana—Sarkar—Suba
Statement-wise explanation
- a: correct — This is the right ascending order. The pargana was the smallest of the three, a sub-district unit for revenue and administration. Several parganas made up a sarkar (district), and several sarkars made up a suba (province), the largest unit under the emperor. Akbar set this structure up in his reforms of the 1570s and 1580s.
- b: incorrect — This order puts the sarkar below the pargana, which reverses the two. The sarkar was the district, and the pargana was a smaller unit inside it. A sarkar was run by a faujdar (law and order) and an amalguzar (revenue). A pargana was run by lower officials such as the shiqdar, amil and qanungo.
- c: incorrect — This order runs from largest to smallest: province, then district, then sub-district. The hierarchy itself is right, but the question asks for ascending order, so the sequence is backwards.
- d: incorrect — This order puts the suba between the pargana and the sarkar. The suba was the province, the top territorial level, and it contained many sarkars. It cannot be smaller than a sarkar.
How to eliminate
Two facts solve this question. First, the suba was a Mughal province, the biggest unit. Its head was the subadar (governor). So the suba must come last in an ascending order. That rules out the option that starts with the suba and the one that puts it in the middle. Second, the pargana was smaller than the sarkar. A modern clue helps here: West Bengal has districts called North 24 Parganas and South 24 Parganas. A district named after a group of parganas shows that a pargana is smaller than a district, and the Mughal district was the sarkar. Also read the words 'ascending order' carefully. The option that lists the units from largest to smallest is the trap for anyone who reads too fast.
Know more
Mughal territorial administration (Akbar onwards)
Akbar divided the empire into subas (provinces) in his reforms of the 1570s and 1580s. Abul Fazl's Ain-i Akbari (written 1590s) describes each suba, sarkar by sarkar and pargana by pargana. For each unit it records the measured area and the assessed revenue (jama). Akbar began with 12 subas. More were added after the Deccan conquests, and the number grew further under Aurangzeb.
| Level | Unit | Key officials |
|---|---|---|
| Province | Suba | Subadar (governor), diwan (revenue/finance), bakhshi (military pay), sadr (religious grants), qazi (justice) |
| District | Sarkar | Faujdar (law and order, military), amalguzar (revenue) |
| Sub-district | Pargana (also called mahal) | Shiqdar (administration), amil (revenue), qanungo (keeper of revenue records), chaudhuri (local revenue collector) |
| Base | Village (mauza) | Muqaddam/headman, patwari (accountant) |
| Town | City | Kotwal (order in the town) |
Points examiners like:
- Each province had paired officers with separate lines of reporting: the subadar to the emperor, the diwan to the central diwan. Each checked the other's power.
- The pargana was the main unit for revenue records. Zamindars and the qanungo worked at this level.
- The terms outlived the Mughals. The British kept 'pargana' and 'sarkar' in revenue records, the 24 Parganas districts of Bengal still carry the name, and the amalguzar's job is often compared to the modern District Collector's.
- Sher Shah Suri used similar divisions earlier (sarkars and parganas). Akbar built on them and added the suba level on top.
NCERT Concepts to Revise
- Pargana: The pargana is one of the three units you must place by size. Its definition shows its rank in Mughal revenue administration.
- Sarkar: The sarkar is one of the three ranked units. Knowing it was a district-level unit lets you place it against the other two.
- Subah: The suba is the third unit in the sequence. Knowing it meant a province tells you where it sits in the order.
- Faujdar: The faujdar headed a sarkar inside a province. That one definition links two of the units in this question.