– Mohammed Atherulla Shariff
Mandya: Chief Minister Siddaramiah on Friday recalled the contributions of Mysore ruler Tipu Sultan for the development of Mandya.
Tipu Sultan (Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu; 1 December 1751-4 May 1799) commonly referred to as Sher-e-Mysore or “Tiger of Mysore”, was a ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery.
Speaking at the launch of Akhila Bharata Kannada Sahitya Smmelana, Siddaramiah also recalled the services of great Kannada writers like Pu Ti Narasimhachar, KS Narasimhaswamy, HL Nagegowda and others. He also used the occasion to send a message that the country’s constitution is under threat. There is an urgent need to fight for the protection of constitution, he stressed.
In a copy of Tipu Sultan’s Revenue Regulations that the British found in Coimbatore, Article 3 mentions: “An equal proportion of lands, which are dry or watered, and of those which are Ijara or Hissa, shall be equally distributed for cultivation among the old and new Ryuts…”
Tipu Sutan also stopped the ancient custom of awarding entire villages and talukas as Jagirs to noblemen and all noblemen in the court including ministers, army commanders, etc. received payments in cash. However, Tipu Sultan went one step ahead by ensuring that soldiers serving in the army, even the junior most among them and across religion and caste received some land for him and his family to thrive upon after retirement. This also ensured a steady growth of land being farmed across Mysore and contributed to increased revenue especially in the last decade of his reign.
