Land System of Manipur in Pre & Post-1891

Abstract

Manipur was an independent princely state before the Anglo-Manipur War in 1891. The princely kingdom lost the war to the British and saw a shift from monarchical rule to British rule. This transition brought about significant changes to Manipur, including the land system. The paper aims to examine the structure and changes in the land system, particularly in terms of ownership, distribution, and taxation, before and after 1891. Secondary data, including colonial records, royal chronicle (Cheitharol Kumbaba), and other published literature, were used. During the monarchical rule, the land belonged to the King. The king, as per his wishes and desire, allocated land to his family members, officials, brahmins, and citizens. Taxation for cultivated land was paid to the King through offerings of harvested
products and also by providing services to him in the lallup system as labour. The land system depicts the political, social, and economic fabric of Manipur. However, after 1891, the British started introducing the house tax and replaced the lallup system. They introduced a cash- based taxation system and initiated a cadastral survey, during which patta and dag chitta were issued to provide landholding security. The study finds that the land system administration and taxation underwent changes after 1891; however, the social fabric and culture associated with the land remained intact.