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{{anchor|Parth}}Patwari: Tweak

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{{short description|Administrative government position found in rural parts of the Indian sub-continent}}

A '''village accountant''', or '''patwari''', is an administrative government position in rural areas of the [[Indian subcontinent]]. Introduced during the early 16th century, it was maintained by the [[British Raj]]. The accountant primarily keeps agricultural records.

==History==
The ''patwar'' system, introduced to the Indian subcontinent during the rule of [[Sher Shah Suri]], was further enhanced by the emperor [[Akbar]]. The British colonists made minor amendments, but maintained the system.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Butt|first=Waseem Ashraf|date=2021-04-24|title=Punjab revives old patwar system by replacing ARCs|url=https://www.dawn.com/news/1620062|access-date=2021-08-03|website=DAWN.COM|language=en}}</ref> Known as [[lekhpal]] in [[Uttar Pradesh]], the word is derived from the [[Sanskrit]] root ''tal'' (to accomplish a vow, to establish or to fix) and has the same meaning in [[Marathi language|Marathi]].<ref name="williams">{{cite book|title=A Sanskrit-English dictionary|pages=440|first=Sir Monier |last=Monier-Williams|year=1963|publisher=Motilal Banarasidas|ISBN=81-208-3105-5}}</ref> It denotes the office of the ''talati'' in rural [[Gujarat]], [[Maharashtra]] and [[Karnataka]]. The office and its holder are known as Talatis, and holders of the office have adopted it as their family name. The duties of a ''talati'' include maintaining village crop and land records and collecting taxes and irrigation dues.<ref name="heredia">{{cite book|title=A patriot for me: a biographical study of Sardar Patel|first=Susana |last=Heredia|pages=239|year=1972}}</ref><ref name="registrar" /><ref name="nakane" /> The ''talati'' replaced the ''kulkarni'' in Gujarat and Maharashtra.<ref name="shukla">{{cite book|title=State and district administration in India|last=Shukla|first=J. D|pages=xii, 63|year=1976}}</ref> The duties of a ''talati'' are performed under a different title in other Indian states; a ''talati'' is known as a ''patwari'' in [[Telangana]].<ref name="shukla" /> Originally a land-holding clerk, the ''talati'' is now a paid, government-appointed official.<ref name="registrar">{{cite book|title=Census of India, 1961, Volume 5, Part 6, Issue 6|year=1962|volume=5|issue=6|author=India Office of the Registrar General}}</ref><ref name="atre">{{cite book|title=The village cart: translation of T.N. Atre's Gaav gada|first=Trimbaka Nārāyaṇa |last=Ātre|pages=65, 78|ISBN=978-81-7154-863-7}}</ref> A ''[[Patil (title)|patil]]'' (''[[patel]]'' in Gujarat) is an outsider who assists the ''talati'' in collecting revenue. It has been alleged that records maintained by the ''talati'' do not reflect actual positions, because the ''talati'' did not take into account the tribal custom of using the name of the adult male family member for land possession.<ref>{{cite book|title=Tribal land systems: land reform measures and development of tribals|last=Trivedi|first = Harshad R.|pages=154}}</ref>

Among the administration, the ''talati'' has the closest connection with the villagers.<ref name="gazetteer">{{cite book|title=Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency: Thana|pages=573|volume=VIII|year=1882}}</ref> Generally in charge of a group of villages known as a ''saza'', they are required to reside in the ''saza'' unless authorised by the [[District magistrate|Collector]]; however, most ''talatis'' were found to be in violation of the rule.<ref name="shah">{{cite book|title=Evaluation of Land Reforms: General report|first1=Mohanlal Lalloobhai|last1=Dantwala|first2=C. H.|last2=Shah|pages=167, 179–180|year=1971}}</ref> Part of the [[Brahmin]] caste in most cases,<ref name="nakane">{{cite book|title=The socio-economic structure of the Indian village: surveys of villages in Gujarat and West Bengal|first1=Tadashi|last1=Fukutake|first2=Tsutomu|last2=Ōuchi|first3=Chie|last3=Nakane|pages=76–77|year=1964|publisher=Institute of Asian Economic Affairs}}</ref> the ''talati'' is generally considered a representative of the government.<ref name="forrest">{{cite book|title=Writings of Mountstuart Elphinstone|first1=Mountstuart |last1=Elphinstone|first2=Sir G. W. (George William)|last2=Forrest|pages=490, 479|year=1884}}</ref>

==={{anchor|Duties of the Talati}}Duties===
In 1814, duties of the ''talati'' included preserving village records, monitoring daily activities, and gathering information about individuals (including ''[[mukhi]]s'' and other village elites).<ref name="Chaturvedi">{{cite book |title=Peasant pasts: history and memory in western India|pages=40|first=Vinayak|last=Chaturvedi|year=2007|publisher=University of California Press|ISBN=978-0-520-25078-9}}</ref> The 1882 ''Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency'' records the ''talati'' as a village accountant, in charge of eight to ten villages, whose annual salary was £12-£18 (Rs. 120–180). The ''talati'' was expected to live in one of the villages and visit each village every month to learn villager needs and report them to the sub-divisional manager at the sub-divisional office. The ''talati'' was also required to give each landholder an account with the landholder's dues.<ref name="gazetteer"/> In August 1891, a ''talati{{'s}} salary was recorded as low.<ref name="shelly">{{cite book|title=Transactions of the Seventh International Congress of Hygiene and Demography|first = C. E.|last=Shelly|pages=116|volume=11|year=1892}}</ref>

In 1884, [[Mountstuart Elphinstone]] was reported as saying that the ''talati'' promoted the government but reduced the authority of the ''patel''; Elphinstone recommended minimising the interference.<ref name="forrest"/> The appointment of a ''talati'' was viewed negatively by village chiefs, who saw him as a government representative in the absence of a ''kulkarni'' or ''[[Vatandar|watandar]]''.<ref name="powell">{{cite book|title=The Indian village community: examined with reference to the physical, ethnographic, and historical condition of the provinces; chiefly on the basis of the revenue-settlement records and district manuals|first=Baden Henry|last=Baden-Powell|year=1896|pages=598, 735–736}}</ref> The ''talati'' was also involved in collecting annual census data after [[Mrigashīrsha]].<ref name="baines">{{cite book|title=Imperial census of 1881: Operations and results in the Presidency of Bombay including Sind|last=Baines|first=J. A.|volume=I|year=1882|pages=260}}</ref> ''Talatis'' are known as ''patwari'' in Bengal, ''[[Karanam|karnam]]'' in Andhra Pradesh and North India, and ''kanakku pillai'' in Tamil villages.<ref name="powell" />

=={{anchor|Parth}}Patwari==
{{see also| Zaildar | Lambardar | Munshi}}
Patwari (or ''patel'') are terms used in [[South Asia]] for a land-records officer at the [[tehsil]] level. As the lowest state functionary in the revenue-collection system, their job encompasses visiting agricultural lands and maintaining a record of ownership and [[tilth]]. The [[government of India]] has developed a Patwary Information System (PATIS), software which was deployed in at least two districts by 2005; deployment at the tehsil level is underway.<ref name="ahuja">{{cite book|title=Land Reforms in India: Computerisation of Land Records|editor-first1=Wajahat|editor-last1=Habibullah|editor-first2=Manoj|editor-last2=Ahuja|pages=42, 195, 197–198, 202|volume=10|ISBN=978-0-7619-3347-2|year=2005|publisher= Sage Publications India}}</ref> A patwari reports to the [[tehsildar]], a higher-level tax officer.<ref name="gur"/> A patwari can wield significant power and influence,<ref name="dawn">{{cite journal|url=http://www.dawn.com/2004/01/14/op.htm|title=Power of the patwary|publisher=Dawn}}</ref> and corrupt patwaris have escaped punishment due to their political connections.<ref name="dawn2">{{cite journal|url=http://www.dawn.com/2007/11/01/nat42.htm|title= Corrupt Patwarys go scot-free : ACE helpless|publisher=Dawn}}</ref> They have three main duties:
* Maintaining records of crops harvested
* Recording land-rights changes
* Accounting for the preparation of the above data<ref name="gur">{{cite web|url=http://gurdaspur.nic.in/html/district_administration.htm|title= District administration - Naib Tehsildar}}</ref>

=={{anchor|Khewat number|Khatoni number|Girdawary|Jamabandi|Lal Dora|Land and revenue terminology}}Terminology==

The ''khewat'' number ([[Urdu]] کھیوٹ ) is assigned to village land, and changes when the land is sold. The ''khatoni'' number ([[Urdu]] کھتونی نمبر ), an additional number assigned to village land after the ''khewat'' number, also changes when the land is sold. ''Girdawary'', the record of land cultivation (crops and ownership), is maintained by the ''patwari'' in [[Andhra Pradesh]], by the ''talati'' in [[Maharashtra]], [[Gujarat]] and [[Karnataka]], and similar officials in other Indian states.<ref name="ahuja"/> If a non-owner cultivates land for an extended period, they may claim possession of the land.<ref name="powell"/>

In India and Pakistan, ''jamabandi'' are land records maintained for each village in a tehsil (township).<ref name=jam1>[http://web1.hry.nic.in/jamabandihry/Terms_u.aspx Jambandi Haryana], Haryana Revenue Department.</ref><ref name=jam2>[http://www.regional-commissioner-belgaum.gov.in/jamabandi.html Belgaum Jamabandi].</ref> A ''jamabandi'' includes the name of the owners, the area of cultivation (or land), owner shares, and other rights. It is revised periodically. A ''jamabandi'' is prepared by a ''patwari'', and certified by the division revenue officer. Two copies are made: one for the government's record room, and the other for the ''patwari''. In a number of states, land records have been computerised and are available on the Internet.

''Lal Dora'', a term introduced by the [[British Raj]] in 1908, is a red line drawn on revenue maps which delineates the village population from nearby agricultural land. It enables villagers to build houses without the Change in Land Use (CLU) authorisation which would otherwise be needed to convert agricultural land to commercial or residential use.<ref name=jam3>[http://www.dailypioneer.com/city/what-is-lal-dora.html What is Lal Dora], [[Daily Pioneer]], 11 June 2013.</ref>

==See also==
*[[Khasra]]
*[[Haryana Land Record Information System]]
*[[Adverse possession]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
* [http://gurdaspur.nic.in/html/district_administration.htm ''Patwaris'']
* [http://www.tribuneindia.com/2002/20020326/haryana.htm#1 'Proposal to abolish 59 posts of Patwari' - News item]- ''[[The Tribune (Chandigarh)|The Tribune]]''

{{DEFAULTSORT:Village Accountant}}
[[Category:Indian feudalism]]
[[Category:Hindi words and phrases]]
[[Category:Local government in Pakistan]]
[[Category:Tehsils of India]]
[[Category:Land management in India]]
[[Category:Types of administrative division]]
[[Category:Crops]]
[[Category:Real property law]]
[[Category:Local government in India]]
[[Category:Government occupations]]
[[Category:Indian words and phrases]]
[[Category:Feudalism in Pakistan]]
[[Category:Agriculture in Pakistan]]
[[Category:Pakistani words and phrases]]

Village accountant - Revision history

imported>Miniapolis: /* {{anchor|Parth}}Patwari */Tweak