The correct answer is Option (2) → Around the 1780s
The Santhals had begun to come into Bengal around the 1780s, when zamindars hired them to reclaim land and British officials invited them to settle in the Jangal Mahals.
NCERT (2026-27): “2.2 The Santhals: Pioneer settlers …
The Santhals had begun to come into Bengal around the 1780s. Zamindars hired them to reclaim land and expand cultivation, and British officials invited them to settle in the Jangal Mahals. Having failed to subdue the Paharias and transform them into settled agriculturists, the British turned to the Santhals. The Paharias refused to cut forests, resisted touching the plough, and continued to be turbulent. The Santhals, by contrast, appeared to be ideal settlers, clearing forests and ploughing the land with vigour.” |
