RAS question
At which level of administration does a Patwari function?
Correct answer: (D) Village-level revenue officer.
A Patwari functions as the village-level revenue officer responsible for maintaining and correcting land records for the Patwari circle.
Explanation
A Patwari is not a senior revenue officer at the state, district, or block tier. The Rajasthan Land Revenue Act, 1956 provides that villages in each district may be arranged into Patwari circles, and that the Collector appoints a Patwari to each circle. The Patwari’s core work is the maintenance and correction of annual registers and records under the land-records chapter, along with other prescribed duties. This fits the standard administrative description of a village-level revenue officer: the Patwari is closest to the village land record, records changes affecting rights or possession, and supports the revenue system from the field level upward.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) A state officer works at the statewide tier, while the Act places a Patwari in a specific Patwari circle formed from villages.
- (B) The cited law does not place the Patwari at the block level; it links the post to Patwari circles and village land records.
- (C) The district level is associated with officers such as the Collector, whereas the Patwari is appointed to a circle within the district for land-record duties.
Concept
This tests the revenue-administration hierarchy in Rajasthan, especially the field-level machinery for land records. RAS repeatedly asks such questions because posts like Patwari, Tehsildar, Collector, and Land Records Officer define how revenue administration actually reaches the village.