The Legacy of Muslim Rule in India c9.s3.17

c9.s3.17

Individual cases of corruption and embezzlement apart, the sure and perennial sources of extra income of the nobles were two-what they could save on their troops and what they could collect in addition to the nominal value of their assignments - and able and unscrupulous men made as much extra wealth as possible from both these. In the words of Shihabuddin Ahmad, The *khans, maliks, amirs*, and *isfah-salars* receive the revenues of the places assigned to them by the treasury Generally speaking they bring in much more than their estimated value Some of the officers receive double, and even more than that, in excess of the estimated value of their grants.⁵⁹ What this practice meant to the poor peasant would be discussed later.⁶⁰ The irony of the matter was that everyone knew about it, including the king himself. The king was even a party to the system for he allotted good lands to his favourites nobles. Even Sher Shah Suri, who is regarded as a friend of the agriculturists, changed his *amils* (revenue collectors) every year, or second year, and sent new ones, for he said that there is no such income and advantage in other employments as in the government of a district. Therefore I (Sher Shah) send my good old loyal experienced servants to take charge of districts, that the salaries, profits, and advantages, may accrue to them in preference to others; and after two years I change them, and send other servants like to them, that they also may prosper⁶¹