The village community

The village community had three parts: the cultivators, the panchayat, and the village headman (called muqaddam or mandal).

Caste made cultivators unequal. Those who worked the land of others, the menials or agricultural labourers (majur), were often from the lowest castes and were very poor. But in some areas, intermediate castes like the Ahirs, Gujars and Malis could rise as farming became more profitable.

The panchayat was an assembly of elders, usually the important people of the village. It kept a common fund, from the contributions of individuals, for expenses like entertaining officials and community welfare. It made sure that caste boundaries were maintained, and could levy fines or even expel people from the community. Each jati also had its own jati panchayat, which settled civil disputes within the caste.

Peasants sent petitions to the panchayat complaining about excessive taxes, or demands for unpaid labour (begar) by higher-caste officials. If nothing worked, the last resort was desertion: leaving the village.

Artisans, like potters, blacksmiths, carpenters, barbers and goldsmiths, could make up as much as 25 per cent of a village's households. They were paid with a share of the harvest, or with a piece of land. British officials later called the village a 'little republic', but it was not: there was deep inequality, and a cash nexus linked it to towns. Collective, but not equal.