NCERT Solutions for Class 8 Social Science History Chapter 3 Ruling The Countryside contain solutions to the exercises given in the History book Our Pasts -III. These answers have been explained in a manner that you will easily understand all the concepts and get your doubts cleared without even seeking anyone’s assistance.
Class 8 History Chapter 3 Ruling The Countryside Questions and Answers
Question 1: Match the following:
| ryot | village |
| Mahal | peasent |
| nij | Cultivation on ryot’s land |
| ryoti | Cultivation on planter’s own land |
Answer:
| ryot | peasent |
| Mahal | village |
| nij | Cultivation on planter’s own land |
| ryoti | Cultivation on ryot’s land |
Question 2: Fill in the blanks:
(a) Growers of woad in Europe saw_______ as a crop which would provide competition to their earnings.
Answer: (a) Indigo
(b) The demand for indigo increased in the late-eighteenth-century Britain because of _________
Answer: the expansion of cotton production as a result of industrialisation, which in turn created an enormous demand for cloth dyes
(c) The international demand for indigo was affected by the discovery of__________.
Answer: synthetic dyes.
(d) The Champaran movement was against _________.
Answer: indigo planters.
Question 3: Describe the main features of the Permanent Settlement.
Answer: The main features of the Permanent Settlement introduced by the British East India Company in 1793 include:
- The settlement recognized rajas and taluqdars as zamindars, giving them the authority to collect rent from the peasants and pay revenue to the Company.
- The amount of revenue that the zamindars had to pay to the Company was fixed permanently.
- The fixed revenue was often so high that many zamindars found it difficult to pay. Those who failed to pay the revenue lost their zamindari.
- Despite initial expectations, the Permanent Settlement did not lead to significant agricultural improvement or benefit the zamindars as intended.
Question 4: How was the mahalwari system different from the Permanent Settlement?
Answer:
| Mahalwari Settlement | Permanent Settlement |
| The mahalwari system, devised by Holt Mackenzie, came into effect in 1822. | The Permanent Settlement was introduced in 1793 by Lord Cornwallis. |
| It was introduced in the North-Western Provinces of the Bengal Presidency, which is now mostly in Uttar Pradesh, and parts of Madhya Pradesh and Punjab. | It was mainly implemented in Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa |
| The Mahalwari system was devised with the intention of preserving the village as a social institution. | The Permanent Settlement aimed to create a class of loyal zamindars who would have an interest in improving their estates. |
| The village headmen were in charge of collecting revenue. | The rajas and taluqdars were in charge of collecting revenue |
| The revenue amount was not fixed and was to be revised periodically. | The revenue amount was fixed and was never to be increased in the future. |
Question 5: Give two problems which arose with the new Munro system of fixing revenue.
Answer: The Munro system of fixing revenue faced two main problems:
- High Revenue Demand: The system often sets the revenue demand too high, making it difficult for peasants to pay.
- Peasant Distress and Land Abandonment: The inability of peasants to meet the high revenue demands led to widespread distress, with many abandoning their lands.
Question 6: Why were ryots reluctant to grow indigo?
Answer: The ryots are reluctant to grow indigo because:
- Ryots received very low prices for the indigo they produced.
- Planters often insisted on cultivating indigo on the most fertile lands, where ryots preferred to grow rice.
- Indigo cultivation exhausted the soil, as its deep roots depleted the soil’s nutrients. So after growing indigo, the land often became unsuitable for rice cultivation.
Question 7: What were the circumstances which led to the eventual collapse of indigo production in Bengal?
Answer: The end of indigo farming in Bengal happened because of a big protest in 1859 called the “Blue Rebellion.” Farmers didn’t want to grow indigo anymore because they were treated badly. Local leaders and village heads also helped the farmers in their fight. The scale of the protest was so much that the government had to intervene. The Indigo Commission was set up to enquire into the problems. The Commission accepted the faults of the planters and allowed the farmers to grow whatever they wished. Also, new man-made dyes were made, and people stopped needing as much natural indigo, making it less important to grow. This led to eventual collapse of indigo production in Bengal.