By a regulation in 1793, the District Collector was deprived of his judicial powers and made the collecting agent only. What was the reason for such regulation

By a regulation in 1793, the District Collector was deprived of his judicial powers and made the collecting agent only. What was the reason for such regulation ?

(a)

Lord Cornwallis felt that the District Collector’s efficiency of revenue collection would enormously increase without the burden of other work

(b)

Lord Cornwallis felt that Judicial power should compulsorily be in the hands of Europeans while Indians can be given the job of revenue collection in the districts

(c)

Lord Cornwallis was alarmed at the extent of power concentrated in the District Collector and felt that such absolute power was undesirable in one person.

(d)

The judicial work demanded a deep knowledge of India and a good training in law and Lord Cornwallis felt that District Collector should be only a revenue collector

Answer:

(c)

Core Books/NCERT

Explanation

The correct answer is option (c) Lord Cornwallis was alarmed at the extent of power concentrated in the District Collector and felt that such absolute power was undesirable in one person. The District Collector in India during the British colonial period was vested with enormous power, being responsible for both revenue collection and administration of justice. This was seen as a problem by Lord Cornwallis, who was the Governor-General of India at the time. He felt that such absolute power should not be concentrated in one person, as it could lead to abuse of power and corruption. Therefore, he passed a regulation in 1793 that deprived the District Collector of his judicial powers and made him a collecting agent only. This was done to increase efficiency in revenue collection and to reduce the concentration of power in one individual.