Which Governor-General introduced the ‘Permanent Settlement’ in Bengal?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → Charles Cornwallis
The Permanent Settlement fixed the land revenue that each zamindar had to pay to the East India Company, for ever. It was introduced in Bengal in 1793, when Charles Cornwallis was the Governor General of Bengal. Before coming to India, Cornwallis had commanded the British forces in the American War of Independence.
NCERT (2025-26): “1.2 The problem of unpaid revenue … In introducing the Permanent Settlement, British officials hoped to resolve the problems they had been facing since the conquest of Bengal. By the 1770s, the rural economy in Bengal was in crisis, with recurrent famines and declining agricultural output. Officials felt that agriculture, trade and the revenue resources of the state could all be developed by encouraging investment in agriculture.…”
Fig. 9.3 Charles Cornwallis (1738-1805), painted by Thomas Gainsborough, 1785 He was the commander of the British forces during the American War of Independence and the Governor General of Bengal when the Permanent Settlement was introduced there in 1793. |
