HistoryMedieval India: Peasants, Zamindars and the State

Along with the departments of Akbar's government, the Ain-i Akbari gi…

Along with the departments of Akbar's government, the Ain-i Akbari gives elaborate descriptions of the various provinces of the empire. What were these provinces called?

Answer & explanation

Correct answer: option 2

The correct answer is Option (2) → Subas

Option (1) Sarkars — Incorrect. Sarkars were the divisions below the suba; the Ain gives tables for them after the suba-level details.

Option (2) Subas — Correct. The provinces of Akbar's empire were called subas, and the Ain describes each and gives its quantitative information.

Option (3) Parganas — Incorrect. Parganas were smaller administrative and fiscal divisions within a suba, below the sarkar.

Option (4) Mahals — Incorrect. Mahals too were small fiscal units inside a suba, given with the parganas in the first column of the sarkar tables.

NCERT (2026-27): “8. The Ain-i Akbari of Abu’l Fazl Allami …
The Ain gives detailed accounts of the organisation of the court, administration and army, the sources of revenue and the physical layout of the provinces of Akbar’s empire and the literary, cultural and religious traditions of the people. Along with a description of the various departments of Akbar’s government and elaborate descriptions of the various provinces (subas) of the empire, the Ain gives us intricate quantitative information of those provinces.”

“… This section has detailed statistical information, which includes the geographic, topographic and economic profile of all subas and their administrative and fiscal divisions (sarkars, parganas and mahals), total measured area, and assessed revenue ( jama ).”