Upari refers to which one of the following ?

In the Maratha administrative and agrarian system, 'Upari' refers to a specific category of tenancy tenure. Historically, the Maratha land system distinguished between two primary types of cultivators: the 'Mirasi' and the 'Upari'. While Mirasidars were permanent resident settlers with hereditary ownership rights, Uparis were migrant or tenant cultivators who did not possess permanent rights to the land. The government assigned land to Uparis to ensure maximum cultivation and revenue collection. These tenants often held land on a temporary basis, paying rent in cash or kind to the state or superior landholders. Unlike occupancy tenants who enjoyed security of tenure, Uparis were essentially tenants-at-will or sub-tenants under the broader Maratha regime. This classification was a fundamental part of the indigenous administrative and land tenure institutions of the Maratha state.

Sources

1. [1] https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/6803361.pdf