RAS question
In the Jagirdari system, a 'Tankha Jagir' was characterized by what feature?
Correct answer: (D) Jagir transferable at emperor's will in lieu of salary.
A Tankha Jagir was a transferable revenue assignment given to a mansabdar in lieu of salary, and it could be reassigned at the emperor's will.
Explanation
Tankha Jagir refers to the salary-linked form of jagir. It was a revenue assignment made to mansabdars in lieu of their tankha, or salary, and it was transferable and could be reassigned by the emperor. NCERT's discussion of the Mughal mansabdari system supports the administrative logic: mansabdars formed the military-cum-bureaucratic apparatus of the empire, some were paid in cash, but most were paid through revenue assignments called jagirs in different regions, and these assignments were transferred periodically. That is why a Tankha Jagir is best understood as a service-related, transferable salary arrangement, unlike a Watan Jagir, which was tied more closely to homeland and hereditary claims.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) A frontier location does not define Tankha Jagir; the relevant feature is a salary-linked revenue assignment that could be transferred.
- (B) A grant to religious institutions points to Suyurghal or Inam, not to the mansabdar's salary assignment described as Tankha Jagir.
- (C) A hereditary jagir passing to sons is closer to Watan Jagir, whereas Tankha Jagir was service-related and transferable.
Concept
This tests the Mughal mansabdari-jagirdari system, especially the link between office, salary and revenue assignment. It recurs in RAS because medieval Indian administration often turns on precise distinctions between similar land-revenue terms.