It was Sher Shah Suri who introduced the Patwari system in the subcontinent and it was further enhanced by Akbar the Great. Thereafter, the East India Company and then British rule continued the system with some changes. In southern India it was called Talati. It replaced the Kulkarni in Central India. In Telengana it was known as Patwari, as also in Punjab, Haryana and our Union Territory.
Patwari is a land-holding records clerk and a paid government-appointed official. In 1814, the duties were defined as preserving village records and monitoring changes. The 1882 Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency records him as a village accountant, in charge of many villages. He was also required to give each landholder an account with the landholder’s duties.
Duties:
The duties include maintaining village crops, land records, collecting taxes, irrigation dues, maintaining records of crops harvested, recording land rights changes, accounting for the preparation of the above data.
For the protection of the Patwari fraternity, an association was formed many years ago. No doubt the association has done a lot for the uplift of Patwaris and Girdawar Qunoongoes. For a few years, though, the Patwari association is lagging behind.
Collective bargaining refers to the process where byformal negotiations take place between a union representing its workers (here the reference is Patwari) and the management or the government. Collective bargaining will unite Patwaris around mutual goals and enable them to combine their efforts for their betterment. One of the primary responsibilities of the Patwari association involves drafting of proposals to present to the official team during negotiation. But before that it must undertake research and consider the already existing benefits, working conditions, etc.
The Jammu and Kashmir Patwari Association is going to elect its new president for District Anantnag. The Patwari association is conducting elections at the district level to make district bodies but it has failed to help the basic members regarding their problems. The departmental committee has recently promoted a few Patwaris and newly created small districts like Ramban, Kulgam, etc, have been successful in promoting Patwaris. It is the responsibility of Patwari association to consult lawmakers, especially policy makers. This association was once famous among its members as well as govt circles but for the past few years it has lost credibility, especially among its members.
In the newly created districts of the Union territory, most Patwaris of 2009 batch got promoted as Girdawars in the DPC held recently, but what about old districts, especially Anantnag and Baramulla? Girdawar is a divisional post, so why not a promotion list should be prepared on divisional level, so that maximum number of patwaries get adjustment from old districts. This suggestion should be given to the LG administration.

The writer is in charge District Record Room DC Office Anantnag.

Mohd Amin