Which one of the following is not related to agrarian terminology during the Mughal period?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Halalkhoran
Option (1) Rabi — Agrarian term (Incorrect). Agriculture in Mughal India was organised around two seasonal cycles, the kharif (autumn) and the rabi (spring); rabi is the name of the spring crop season.
Option (2) Do-Fasla — Agrarian term (Incorrect). Because of these two seasons, most regions produced a minimum of two crops a year (do-fasla), and some well-watered areas even gave three.
Option (3) Halalkhoran — Not an agrarian term (Correct). The halalkhoran were menials (scavengers) in Muslim communities, housed outside the boundaries of the village. The word names a social group, not a crop, season or farming practice.
Option (4) Jins-i-Kamil — Agrarian term (Incorrect). Jins-i kamil means “perfect crops”, the cash crops such as cotton and sugarcane that the Mughal state encouraged because they brought in more revenue.
NCERT (2025-26): “1.4 An abundance of crops … Agriculture was organised around two major seasonal cycles, the kharif (autumn) and the rabi (spring). This would mean that most regions, except those terrains that were the most arid or inhospitable, produced a minimum of two crops a year (do-fasla), whereas some, where rainfall or irrigation assured a continuous supply of water, even gave three crops. This ensured an enormous variety of produce. For instance, we are told in the Ain that the Mughal provinces of Agra produced 39 varieties of crops and Delhi produced 43 over the two seasons. Bengal produced 50 varieties of rice alone. However, the focus on the cultivation of basic staples did not mean that agriculture in medieval India was only for subsistence. We often come across the term jins-i kamil (literally, perfect crops) in our sources. The Mughal state also encouraged peasants to cultivate such crops as they brought in more revenue. Crops such as cotton and sugarcane were jins-i kamil par excellence.… 2.1 Caste and the rural milieu … In Muslim communities menials like the halalkhoran (scavengers) were housed outside the boundaries of the village; similarly the mallahzadas (literally, sons of boatmen) in Bihar were comparable to slaves.…” |