Patwari

Patwari an official who kept the land revenue papers or records of the village during the Sultanate and Mughal period. His bahis (book) or registers contained accurate records of cultivation, particular of holdings, types of crops, and revenue due, which were indispensable to the government for revenue administration. Alauddin Khalji institutionalised the post and it was in vogue during the rule of sher shah and akbar. This petty official maintained, apart from other papers, an account of payments made by every peasant in village. On receipt of any complaint, the officer concerned was removed, and a bara-madnawis was appointed to check the papers of the patwari and compare them with the record maintained by the officers realising the revenue. The office of patwari was abolished under the cornwallis code. A patwari was quite an influential person in the village society. [Abdul Karim]