The Cambridge History of India, Vol. IV: The Mughul Period v4.c22.46

v4.c22.46

It will be obvious that the success or failure of this system must have depended entirely on the quality of the administration. The amount of detailed work, to be accomplished season by season under the strict time limit imposed by agricultural conditions, was very great; opportunities for extortion and oppression of individuals were numerous; and if there was dishonesty or inefficiency at the centre, the system must soon have broken down. There is no record of a collapse, or of a recurrence of scandals like those which occurred before the year 1581; but it must be borne in mind that our information regarding the closing years of the reign is much less detailed than for the earlier period. The most probable view is that, while the system worked reasonably well under Akbar, it disappeared under his successor, but definite evidence on this question is wanting.