Administration under Shivaji: Shivaji was not only a conqueror and founder of a Kingdom but also a good administrator. He employed people of all castes and tribes, to maintain a balance. In his administration, he was the sole authority of the government,and he assigned separate responsibilites to ministers and also ensured that no official post turned out to be hereditary. He gave special attention towards administation. He carried on his administration with the help of his ministers called “The Ashtapradhans’. There were 18 departments in Shivaji’s administration.
Shivaji was assisted by Ashtapradhans, the eight ministers. They were:
1. Peshwa -The Prime minister, who attended to all types of Government activities.
2. Amatya- Finance Minister.
3. Mantri – Minister dealing with information, diplomacy, war etc.
4. Sumant-In charge of foreign affairs of the state.
5. Sachiva – Home minister who took care of the correspondence of the King.
6. Pandit Rao – dealt with religious matters and ceremonies (Chief priest)
7. Senapati or Sar-i-Navbat- Commander in Chief of the Army.
8. Nyayadhisha – (Chief Justice) who dealt with both civil and criminal Justice.
1. Divisions of the Kingdom: (Provincial Government): Shivaji divided his Kingdom into four Provinces which were called ‘Swarajya’. Each province was controlled by a Viceroy called ‘Sardeshmukh’.Each Swarajya was divided into Deshas whose head was ‘Deshmukh’. Deshas were further divided into ‘Paraganas’. Desai was the head of a Paragana. Village was the last unit of administration. The village administration was looked after by the village assembly (panchayat). Patel was the executive officer of the village. Shivaji abolished the practice of granting Jagirs.
2. Military Administration : Shivaji’s Kingdom was a military state. The army consisted of infantry, cavalary and navy. He maintained a well equipped, disciplined army. Senapathi was the incharge of the army. The foot soldiers were specially trained in guerilla and mountain warfare. The soldiers were paid regular fixed salary. 25 soldiers were placed under a Havaldar, 5 Havaldars were under the control of a Jamladar, 10 Jamladars were under a Hazari, and 5 Hazaris were commanded by a Panjhazari. Shivaji had a fleet, which was stationed at Kolaba. He checked and limited the power of Jinijras the militant tribals. His troops were armed with swords, spears, bows, arrows, daggers, muskets, etc. Hindus and Muslims were recruited in to the maratha army without any discrimination.
3. Judicial System: The King was the highest court of appeal. The civil causes were decided by the village panchayat and criminal cases were decided by Governors. The Judgements of the village court had royal recognition. The King and Nyayadhisha heard over the appeals. Nyayadhisha was responsible for civil and military justices.
4. Revenue System: Shivaji established an excellent revenue system. The assessment was made after a survey and classification of the land according to its fertility and yield. The state demand was fixed at 30% of the total produce. The revenue was to be paid either in cash or kind. In the time of famine, the land revenue was exempted. Landowners were given, a ‘Patta’ and the Jahagir system was abdishod. Regular payment of salary was introduced. Shivaji arranged loans for peasants to encourage cultivation. He levied taxes called ‘Chauth and Sardeshmukhi’.
Assessment: Shivaji occupies an important place in the Indian history. He was brave, adventurous and a bom leader of men. He founded the Maratha Kingdom, and gave to it a very fine rule of administration. He was a good judge of men and tolerant of other religions. He restored Hindu religion and culture. According to K.M. Panicker, “Shivaji was one of the greatest nation builders of the world”.
