Fall of the Mughal Empire v4.c44.s2.27

v4.c44.s2.27

After the overthrow of Ghulām Qādir the financial difficulties of Sindhia could no longer be evaded; they at last overwhelmed him. So he was driven to raise money by every possible means and also to break his promise of giving aid to his subordinates, such as Ismail Beg. His first fiscal measure was to demand revenue from the jāgirs of his captains on behalf of the Delhi Emperor. In March 1789, it was ordered that out of the collections made in the jāgir lands, one-third must be paid to the State and only two-thirds to the assignees, and settlement officers were sent from the Central Government to every village to carry out this order. In a land devastated by war and brigandage for over a generation, this meant a sudden impoverishment of the grantees, the Hindusthani military officers, whom it was impossible to pay in cash (DY. Sup. 49).