Administrative System of the Marathas c18.s15.1

c18.s15.1

Fryer and Broughton's censures were meant for the officers of the court. Our friends in the districts—the Kamavisdars and the Mamlatdars were not above the common temptation; and as a check upon them were utilised the hereditary officers. Of these we have already come across one set—the district officers, known as Deshmukhs and Deshpandes, and we know they were used as a check on the Mamlatdars, and no accounts were passed, unless corroborated by corresponding accounts from them (Elphinstone). The other set may be conveniently described as the provincial hereditary officers generally known as Darakhdars or feemen. These Darakhdars were always used as a check on the chief officers of every department, the army and the navy included. None of these hereditary officers could be dismissed by the Mamlatdar, nor could he compel them to perform any duties except those specifically assigned to them by long practice and custom. Not that the Mamlatdars never tried to do away with their independent subordinates; but in such cases the Darakhdar could confidently look towards the Peshwa's authority to back him and reinstate him in his ancestral office, and the peremptory order always ended with the usual phrase "that the work of the office should be taken from his hands." On the provincial staff besides twelve Karkuns there were (1) Dewan or Minister, (2) Auditor or Mazumdar, (3) the Registrar or Fadnavis, (4) Secretary or Daftardar, (5) Treasurer or Potnis, (6) Assay clerk or Potdar, (7) Petty Registrar or Sabhasad and (8) Under-Secretary or Chitnis. As these officers had not to depend on the Mamlatdar for their pay, they were in every respect independent of him. It was, therefore, quite natural that they were expected to be efficient checks on any intended malpractice on the part of the Mamlatdar and to report to the central government all lapses on his part if any ever happened. Moreover their duties were divided and assigned in such a manner that the Mamlatdar could not act independently of them. "The *divan* as the chief factor under the *mamlatdar* countersigned all letters and orders. The Auditor or *majumdar* approved deeds or accounts before they went to the registrar or *fadnavis*. The *fadnavis* dated all deeds and orders, prepared a daily waste book, fastened notes to the money-bags, dated the yearly village rent settlements, and brought the books to the head-quarters. The *daftardar*, from the registrar's waste book, made up the ledger and sent a monthly abstract to the head-quarters. The *potnis* kept a record of collections and the balance of cash, and helped in writing the waste book and the ledger. The *potdar*, of whom there were always two, examined the coins. The *sabhasad* kept a register of petty suits and reported them to the *mamlatdar*. The *chitnis* wrote and answered despatches." ¹³ A ninth officer the Jamenis is mentioned in a document of the time of the first Madhava Rao and his duties are enumerated as follows: