Question map
The Deccan Riots Commission was concerned with :
Explanation
The Deccan Riots Commission was established by the British government in 1875 to investigate the causes of agrarian unrest in the Bombay Presidency [1]. The riots were primarily directed against moneylenders (sahukars) who exploited peasants through exorbitant interest rates and fraudulent debt bonds [3]. The commission's report, submitted in 1878, highlighted that the high revenue demands of the Ryotwari system forced peasants into a cycle of chronic indebtedness, leading them to lose their land to moneylenders [4]. The commission recorded extensive evidence from ryots and sahukars, documenting how debt bonds were seized and burnt during the disturbances [3]. As a direct result of the commission's findings, the Deccan Agriculturists' Relief Act was passed in 1879 to regulate moneylending and provide legal protection to indebted farmers [3].
Sources
- [1] THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART III, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 9: COLONIALISM AND THE COUNTRYSIDE > 4. The Deccan Riots Commission > p. 255
- [2] THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART III, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 9: COLONIALISM AND THE COUNTRYSIDE > On that day in Supa > p. 246
- [3] Rajiv Ahir. A Brief History of Modern India (2019 ed.). SPECTRUM. > Chapter 31: Peasant Movements 1857-1947 > Deccan Riots > p. 577
- [4] THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART III, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 9: COLONIALISM AND THE COUNTRYSIDE > 3.3 Revenue demand and peasant debt > p. 248