Mughal Administration c14.s3.4

c14.s3.4

Shams-i-Afif writes thus about Firuz Shah’s *karkanahs* from personal observation: “The Sultan had 36 *karkanahs* and tried his utmost to collect materials in them, each of them being filled with many kinds of valuable goods and things,—[*i.e.*, plant, furniture and materials],—the number of which cannot be computed......Every year a large sum of money was spent in each *karkanah*. Some of these stores were *rātibi*, *i.e.*, they had fixed annual money grants; such were the elephant stables, cavalry stables, mule stables, camel stables, kitchen, lamp-room, butlery, and mattress store. One lakh and sixty thousand *tankas* per month was the fixed grant of these *ratibi* stores taken together, besides the price of their plant and the wages of their accountants and other officers,—making a total of one lakh and sixty thousand silver *tankas* ...In the *ghair-ratibi karkanahs*,—such as the *jamdar-khanah*, *ilm-khanah*, *farash-khanah*, *rikab-khanah*, &c.—the expenditure every year varied with the amount of the new goods ordered to be made in each (*farmaish*) ......Each *karkanah* was placed in charge of a great lord (*Khan*) or notable chief (*malik*)......A general superintendent (*mutasarrif*) was placed over them all, and he was Khwajah Abul Hasan......When the Sultan wanted anything to be made, he first of all wrote to this general superintendent, and the latter sent the order to the superintendent of the *karkanah* concerned, and the work was very quickly done......