was decided in 1866 1[1] that this cess should be levied under the recent Village Service Cess Act of 1864 at the rate of 8 pies in every rupee of the land revenue on Government lands and of water-rate on inams. It was ordered that the inam lands which had up to then formed part of the remuneration of the village servants should be enfranchised (i.e., surrendered to the then holders) at a quit-rent of five-eighths of the land revenue assessment which would have been charged upon them had they not been inams. The proceeds of the cess and the quit-rents on the inams were set aside to constitute a fund (since abolished) for the future payment of the village establishments.
Before these changes were introduced, the existing establishments were revised. The number of villages was greatly reduced by clubbing small ones with larger ones adjoining, and the establishments were greatly modified, being in every case much reduced, A munsif, a karnam, a talaiyári (called in this district a náyak) and one or more vettis (according to the amount of the revenue demand) were allowed to each village; an additional talaiyári was sanctioned for 29 large villages; and nírgantis (distributors of irrigation water) were largely increased in number, but were only employed for tanks in upland villages in which the ryots applied for them, and were not allowed in delta villages. The payment of munsifs and karnams varied, with the revenue demand of the village, from Rs, l½ to Rs. 12, and from Rs. 5 to Rs. 20 a month, respectively. The lower rates for munsifs (Rs. 1½, Rs. 2, Rs. 3 and Rs. 4) were confined to villages where the revenue demand was small and the work of the headman consequently light. The pay of the talaiyáris, nírgantis and vettis was fixed at a uniform rate of Rs. 4 a month. The old village shroffs were abolished.
Village barbers and Chamars (leather-workers) had also been formerly remunerated with land inams. These were not enfranchised, but were left to their holders to be enjoyed as service inams on condition that the holders rendered to the villagers the services, as barbers and leather-workers, which had been customarily required of them. Specific services were usually specially paid for in grain by the villagers, and these payments formed an addition to the income obtained from the inams.
In 1885 a new scheme of village establishments was sanctioned. The essential alterations effected by this were the increase of the munsifs' pay and the appointment of monigars to help them; the appointment of assistant
- ↑ 1 See G.O. No, 1237, Revenue, dated 23rd May 1866, and also Nos. 963, dated 29th June 1870, and 1097, dated 26th July 1885.
