NCERT Class 12 History Chapter 8 Peasants, Zamindars and The State

In NCERT Class 12 History Chapter 8, titled "Peasants, Zamindars and The State - Agrarian Society", students explore the structure and dynamics of the agrarian economy in Mughal India. The chapter delves into the relationships between peasants, zamindars, and the state, focusing on agricultural production, land revenue systems, and rural society during the Mughal era.

This article provides a comprehensive resource for exam preparation. It includes sample MCQs and subjective questions for CBSE and CUET, alongside downloadable PDFs of Class 12 History Chapter 8 MCQs and previous year questions for detailed practice of NCERT Class 12 Peasants, Zamindars and The State - Agrarian Society.

NCERT Class 12 History Chapters
Chapter 1: Bricks, Beads and Bones - The Harappan Civilisation	Chapter 2: Kings, Farmers and Towns - Early States and Economies
Chapter 3: Kinship, Caste and Class - Early Societies	Chapter 4: Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings - Cultural Developments
Chapter 5: Through The Eyes of Travellers - Perceptions of Society	Chapter 6: Bhakti-Sufi Traditions - Changes in Religious Beliefs & Devotional Text
Chapter 7: An Imperial Capital: Vijayanagara	Chapter 9: Colonialism and The Countryside - Exploring Official Archives
Chapter 10: Rebels and The Raj - The Revolt of 1857 and Its Representations	Chapter 11: Mahatma Gandhi and The Nationalist Movement
Chapter 12: Framing The Constitution - The Beginning of a New Era

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Class 12 History Chapter 8 MCQs

This question bank includes previous years' CUET and CBSE MCQs, along with questions curated by subject experts. Below are 5 sample multiple-choice questions (MCQs) for Class 12 History Chapter 8: Peasants, Zamindars and The State - Agrarian Society. For the full set of 50 questions, download the PDF using the link provided below.

1- Which of the following crops were considered as ‘Jins-i-Kamil’ in the Mughal Empire?

(a) Maize and Bajra (b) Rice and Wheat

2. The non-resident cultivators who belonged to some other village but cultivated lands elsewhere on a contractual basis were known in the seventeenth century sources as:

(a) Khud-Kashta (b) Raiya (c) Asami (d) Pahi-Kashta

3. Most peasants during the Mughal rule in India produced a minimum of __________ crops.

(a) 7 (b) 4 (c) 3 (d) 2

4. The “Peshkash” levied on forest people often included the supply of________________.

(a) Grains (b) Elephants (c) Wood (d) Horses

5. Which of the following was a class of people in the countryside that lived off agriculture but did not participate directly in the process of agricultural production?

(a) Zamindars (b) Mandals (c) Patidar (d) Jotedars

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Class 12 History Chapter 8 Subjective Questions Without Solutions

This question bank includes previous years' CBSE subjective questions (2 marks and above) without solutions, along with expert-curated questions. Below are 5 sample subjective questions for Class 12 History Chapter 8: Peasants, Zamindars and The State - Agrarian Society. To access all questions, download the PDF from the link provided below.

Examine the sources to know about Mughal rural society.

(CBSE 2023, 3M)

Read the given source and answer the questions that follow:

Irrigating trees and fields

This is an excerpt from the Babur Nama that describes the irrigation devices the emperor observed in northern India:

The greater part of Hindustan country is situated on level land. Many though its towns and cultivated lands are, it nowhere has running waters ... For ... water is not at all a necessity in cultivating crops and orchards. Autumn crops grow by the downpour of the rains themselves, and strange it is that spring crops grow even when no rains fall. (However) to young trees water is made to flow by means of buckets or wheels ...

In Lahore, Dipalpur (both in present-day Pakistan) and those other parts, people water by means of a wheel. They make two circles of rope long enough to suit the depths of the well, fix strips of wood between them, and on these fasten pitchers. The ropes with the wood and attached pitchers are put over the wheel well. At one end of the wheel axle, a second wheel is fixed, and close to it another on an upright axle. The last wheel the bullock turns; its teeth catch in the teeth of the second (wheel), and thus the wheel with the pitchers is turned. A trough is set where the water empties from the pitchers and from this the water is conveyed everywhere.

In Agra, Chandwar, Bayana (all in present-day Uttar Pradesh) and those parts again, people water with a bucket ... At the well-edge they set up a fork of wood, having a roller adjusted between the forks, tie a rope to a large bucket, put the rope over a roller, and tie its other end to the bullock. One person must drive the bullock, another empty the bucket.

(1) Examine the factor that accounted for the expansion of agriculture in Mughal Period.

(2) How did the expansion of irrigation facilities increase the participation of farmers?

(3) Examine the irrigation devices used in agrarian culture.

(CBSE 2023, 4M)

Read the given source carefully and answer the questions that follow :

Peasants on the move

This was a feature of agrarian society which struck a keen observer like Babur, the first Mughal emperor, forcefully enough for him to write about it in the Babur Nama, his memoirs: In Hindustan hamlets and villages, towns indeed, are depopulated and set up in a moment! If the people of a large town, one inhabited for years even, flee from it, they do it in such a way that not a sign or trace of them remains in a day and a half. On the other hand, if they fix their eyes on a place to settle, they need not dig water courses because their crops are all rain grown, and as the population of Hindustan is unlimited it swarms in. They make a tank or a well; they need not build houses or set up walls . . . khas-grass abounds, wood is unlimited, huts are made, and straightaway there is a village or a town!

(1) What is Babur Nama?

(2) How did the peasants meet the needs of water?

(3) Explain the distinctive features of agrarian society.

(CBSE 2023, 4M)

“Chronicles commissioned by Mughal Emperors are the important sources for studying the empire and its court.” Explain the statement with examples.

(CBSE 2022, 6M)

Read the following source carefully and answer the questions that follow:

Irrigating trees and fields

This is an excerpt from the Babur Nama that describes the irrigation devices the emperor observed in northern India:

The greater part of Hindustan country is situated on level land. Many though its towns and cultivated lands are, it nowhere has running waters ... For ... water is not at all a necessity in cultivating crops and orchards. Autumn crops grow by the downpour of the rains themselves; and strange it is that spring crops grow even when no rains fall. (However) to young trees, water is made to flow by means of buckets or wheels ...

In Lahore, Dipalpur (both in present-day Pakistan) and those other parts, people water by means of a wheel. They make two circles of rope long enough to suit the depths of the well, fix strips of wood between them, and on these fasten pitchers. The ropes with the wood and attached pitchers are put over the wheel-well. At one end of the wheel-axle a second wheel is fixed, and close to it another on an upright axle. The last wheel the bullock turns; its teeth catch in the teeth of the second (wheel), and thus the wheel with the pitchers is turned. A trough is set where the water empties from the pitchers and from this the water is conveyed everywhere.

In Agra, Chandwar, Bayana (all in present-day Uttar Pradesh) and those parts again, people water with a bucket ... At the well-edge they set up a fork of wood, having a roller adjusted between the forks, tie a rope to a large bucket, put the rope over a roller, and tie its other end to the bullock. One person must drive the bullock, another empty the bucket.

(1) Explain with examples, the sources of irrigation used in Lahore during Mughal period.

(2) Which systems were used in Agra for irrigating lands? Explain with examples.

(3) How did the irrigation projects receive the support of the Mughal state?

(CBSE 2020, 6M)

Humanities Subjects Table

Sub Areas of Chapter 8: Peasants, Zamindars and The State - Agrarian Society

Chapter Name	Sub Topics
Peasants, Zamindars and The State - Agrarian Society	8.1 Introduction
	8.2 Structure of the Agrarian Economy
	8.3 Role of Zamindars
	8.4 Revenue Systems
	8.5 Challenges Faced by Peasants
	8.6 Agricultural Practices
	8.7 Decline and Legacy

Review of NCERT Class 12 History Chapter 8

In NCERT Class 12 History Chapter 8, "Peasants, Zamindars and The State - Agrarian Society," students examine the intricate relationship between agricultural production, landowners, and the Mughal administration. The chapter highlights the economic and social dynamics of rural India under Mughal rule.

Mastering this chapter is crucial for understanding the agrarian structure of Mughal India and its influence on the Indian economy and society. By practicing MCQs and subjective questions, students can gain a thorough understanding of this essential topic.

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