Read the passage and answer the question:
From the Fifth report
Referring to the condition of zamindars and the auction of lands, the Fifth Report stated:
The revenue was not realised with punctuality, and lands to a considerable extent were periodically exposed to sale by auction. In the native year 1203, corresponding with 1796-97, the land advertised for sale comprehended a jumma or assessment of sicca rupees 28,70,061, the extent of land actually sold bore a jumma or assessment of 14,18,756, and the amount of purchase money sicca rupees 17,90,416. In 1204. Corresponding with 1797-98, the land advertised was for sicca rupees 22,66,191, the quantity sold was for sicca rupees 22,74,076 and the purchase money sicca rupees 21,47,580. Among the defaulters were some of the oldest families of the country, Such were the rajahs of Nuddea, Rajeshaye, Bishenpore (all districts of Bengal),... and others, the dismemberment of whose estates at the end of each succeeding year, threatened them with poverty and ruin, and in some instances presented difficulties to the revenue officers, in their efforts to preserve undiminished the amount of public assessment.
'The Fifth Report' was produced by ___________.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → A Select Committee
The passage is from the Fifth Report, which the British Parliament obtained to keep a check on the East India Company. It was one of the reports produced by a Select Committee appointed to enquire into the affairs of the Company.
NCERT (2026-27): “1.6 The Fifth Report … Many political groups argued that the conquest of Bengal was benefiting only the East India Company but not the British nation as a whole. Information about Company misrule and maladministration was hotly debated in Britain and incidents of the greed and corruption of Company officials were widely publicised in the press. The British Parliament passed a series of Acts in the late eighteenth century to regulate and control Company rule in India. It forced the Company to produce regular reports on the administration of India and appointed committees to enquire into the affairs of the Company. The Fifth Report was one such report produced by a Select Committee. It became the basis of intense parliamentary debates on the nature of the East India Company’s rule in India.” |