Shivappa Nayaka - Shivappanayaka's Sist (Sistu System)

Shivappanayaka's Sist (Sistu System)

Shivappa Nayaka is famed for his revenue settlement and this is called as ‘Shivappanayakana Sistu’. This system of his is compared to that of Raja Thodarmal, the Minister of Akbar. Under this system, Shivappa Nayaka divided land into five categories in accordance with the fertility of the soil.

The five categories are as follows:

1. Uttamam (First Class Land) : Black Soil Mixed with Sand
2. Madhyamam (Second Class Land) : Red Soil Mixed with Sand
3. Kanishtam (Third Class Land) : Mixed Black Soil with a little Water
4. Adhamam (Fourth Class Land) : Very Bad waterless hard soil
5. Adhamadhamam (Fifth Class Land) : Barren soil unfit for cultivation.

After continuous cultivation for 12 years, the yield of the soil was valued. A record of the seeds sown and expenditures incurred in cultivation and the value of the yield were calculated. Every type of land having one Khanduga of sowing capacity was taken as a measuring unit and the highest and lowest rates for that unit were fixed for each of the five categories. For this purpose, each category of land was marked in every village and cultivation was carried out on an experimental basis and the rate of assessment was fixed as 1/3rd of the gross revenue. In every village, land was surveyed. The cost of seeds, cultivation expenditure, total produce and its value were all carefully calculated and perfect accounts were maintained. The total produce for five years and its market value were calculated. 1/3rd of the average value was fixed as the government share. With regard to the gardens of Arecanut, he fixed 1000 Arecanut trees as one unit. Every tree was to be not less than 18 feet in height for the purpose of assessment. The assessment was fixed on the area covered by the trees. The assessment was based on the yield of a unit of 1000 trees. It is interesting to note that Shivappa Nayaka planted trees in his own garden and fixed the assessment based on his own personal experience. The phrase ‘Shivappanayakana Sistu’ remains a byword for efficiency and discipline even today. This system remained in vogue for a long time. This revenue system was also praised by the British.