§ MR. C. J. O'DONNELL (Newington, Walworth)I beg to ask the Secretary of State for India whether the instructions contained in the letter of the Supreme Government, No. 397, of 31st May, 1888, sanctioning in the Central Provinces 60 per cent. on all holdings, and 65 per cent. on some, as the proportion of net profit to be assigned as the Government share to land revenue are still in force; and whether, seeing that the land revenue of the Punjab has increased to £1,925,000 in the past year from £1,500,000 in 1891, in which year the Financial Commissioner of the Punjab declared that in many areas quite half the agriculturists were already ruined beyond redemption, he will refer the question as to how far this increase of 30 per cent. in fifteen years is justified to an independent Committee to be appointed by him.
§ *THE UNDER-SECRETARY OF STATE FOR INDIA (MR. CHARLES HOBHOUSE,) Bristol, E.The rule at present in force in the Central Provinces is that the assessment should not be less than 50 per cent. of the assets, and should not exceed 60 per cent.; but in exceptional cases, if the existing assessment has hitherto exceeded 65 per cent. and been paid with out difficulty, it is provided that the assessment shall be fixed at 65 per cent. In settlements made in recent years, the assessment has been less than 50 per cent. of the rental. In his Answer to the hon. Member's Question of the 13th 1096 May,†the Secretary of State explained the causes for the increase of land revenue in the Punjab, and he also pointed out that the cases of indebted agriculturists reported by Mr. Thorburn, were not attributed by him to the pressure of the land assessment. The Secretary of State sees no sufficient reason for an inquiry such as is proposed.
§ MR. C. J. O'DONNELLIs it a fact that there is also a very heavy tax on the supply of water in the Punjab, which greatly increases the land tax?
§ *MR. HOBHOUSEThe charge for water in connection with irrigation schemes falls particularly on certain land, but not in connection with the land assessment.
§ MR. REES (Montgomery Boroughs)May I ask whether it is not the case that the scale of assessment which has just been referred to is very much smaller than that which was levied by previous Governments in India, and whether the increase in the land revenue of the Punjab is not small compared with the increase of prosperity resulting from these great irrigation works?
§ *MR. HOBHOUSEIt has always been held by the native rulers in India that they have the power of assessing the land for taxation in the way we assess it at present. It is also unquestionably a fact that our assessment for land revenue is anything from 15 to 30 per cent. of the assets lower than that of the native rulers who were there before our time.
§ MR. C. J. O'DONNELLWould it not be advisable to have this reply as the result of an independent inquiry? I entirely deny the accuracy of every statement.