Name and discuss about the general assemblies of the Cholas.
Answers
The administrative unit was the village and the nature of village administration was certainly of a very different order. The degree of autonomy at village level was something quite remarkable for the times.
democratic
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Chola officers participated in village affairs more as advisers and observers than as administrators. The Chola pattern of government was based more or less on democratic principles and most of the business was carried on by the popular assemblies. The most important assemblies were of four kinds:
1. The Nattar was the assembly of a whole district or Nadu and decided all the cases pertaining to that unit.
2. The second popular assembly was nagarattar which was an assembly of the merchants and traders and looked after trade and commerce.
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3. Ur was the general assembly of the village where local residents discussed their matters without any formal rule or procedure.
4. The Sabha or Mahasbha was the most popular assembly where only the selected few and elders of the village took part and carried on the business by following a regular procedure. It wielded a great authority in the administration of the rural areas.
The Cholas did not believe in centralization of the administration, on the other hand they had allowed vast powers to their local units. The Kurrans or unions of villages enjoyed self-government and were allowed vast powers. The famous Uttaramerur Inscriptions of 919 and 929 A.D. of the period of Parantaka gives details of how the local self-government and village administration functioned.
The Chola pattern of committees was called variyam. There were three types of village assemblies existed in the Cholamandalam: Ur, Sabha or Mahasabha and Nagaram. The Ur consisted of the tax-paying residents of an ordinary village. The Sabha was restricted to the brahmanas. But the nagaram was found more commonly in trade centers, since it catered almost entirely for mercantile interests. In some villages the Ur and the Sabha are found together. Very large villages had two Urns if this was more convenient for their functioning.
Explanation:
There were two general assemblies of the villages during the Chola rule. They were: the Ur and the Sabha. The Ur is the general assembly of all the villagers of the village. The Sabha is the gathering of all the adult males of the village. The affairs of the villages such as measurement of land under cultivation, calculation of tax and it's collection, sharing of water, settlements of disputes, irrigation canals and so on were discussed in these assemblies.
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