Life and Conditions of the People of Hindustan (1200–1550 A.D.) c6.s3.t1.28

c6.s3.t1.28

Let us now consider some facts about the pay and the emoluments of the nobles, for a better appreciation of their expenditure and general extravagance. We have spoken of their revenue-assignments in an earlier part. We have also had occasion to mention the emoluments of certain officials. The pay and emoluments of officials were personal and not in virtue of their office. It is therefore difficult to lay down a uniform rule of incomes. However, the few facts we have gathered will give some idea. Sultan Jalal-ud-din Khalji was pleased to appoint an old friend as his *vakil-i-dar* and assigned for him the sum of 100,000 Jitals.² Under Muhammad Tughluq, the *Naib* of the Sultan enjoyed the income of a province as large as Iraq; the *wazir* was paid a similar amount; the *four ministers* received from 20,000 to 40,000 Tankas each, every year; the *secretarial staff*, of about 300 persons, received the minimum salary of 10,000 Tankas per year, some of them getting as much as 50,000 Tankas; the *Sadr-i-Jahan* and the *Shaikh-ul-Islam* were paid 60,000 a year; even the *Muhtasib* or the Public Censor had a whole village assigned to him.¹ Now, let us examine some figures from the reign of Sultan Firuz Tughluq. The wazir of the Sultan, the famous *Khan-i-Jahan* was paid a million and a half Tankas on the revenue-assignment and a separate personal allowance. He had a few thousand females in his *haram* and was prolific in children. The State assigned separate allowances to all his sons and sons-in-law whose number was unusually large.²