Origins of debt, mortgage and alienation of land in early modern Punjab

Abstract

The agrarian structure of the Punjab in Pakistan and India was fashioned by the socio‐economic and legal institutions established by the British after their annexation of the Province in 1849. One of the consequences of this was an increase in usury/money‐lending capital and a resultant rise in endemic debt among the peasantry and alienation of proprietors’ land by money‐lenders. These changes alarmed the colonial authorities who attempted to deal with the situation simply through legislation, without addressing the complexities of Punjab's political economy. The problem of debt and the reliance of cultivators on the moneylenders for finance continued after 1947. Based on evidence from settlement reports and other original documents this article explores the origin of this problem.