THE ZAMINDARS OF KOMBAI

The Kombai zamindars of Vaigai District belonged to Kambalattu  Tottiya Nayakar community. In the Vijaya Nagar kingdom, the rulers employed the kambalattar as military peons. When the Vijayanagar invasion took place in Madurai, they came to the south and settled in Madurai Dindigul,Tinnevelly and  Manapara regions.The Kambalattar was subdivided into nine castes, six of whom established themselves in the southern districts of Tamilnadu. The Kamabalattar bore the appellation of Nayak as Ammayanayok Bodinayak etc. Another subdivision "Vullakuar " who were copiliar had the appellation of Gounden as Appachi Gounden, Tombache Gounden etc. This copiliar Kambalattar ruled Kombai for several centuries. Their language was Telugu blended with canarese.

      

     The name Kombai is derived from a canarese word which means a village at the foot of a hill.Kombai was one of the twenty six palayams in Dindigul region created during the time of a Vijayanagar chief in Madurai named Viswanadha Nayak. It is situated at the head of the Cumbum valley and historically consisted of five villages ( 47 cheys of Nunjah 542 kuli of punjay 47 kuli of arable lands ). The Palayams were ruled by poligars which literally means the chief of armed camp. The poligars of Dindigul district accompanied Viswanatha Nayak ( 1529 - 1564 ) when he invaded Madurai. As faithful dependents   and adherents they looked for reward after    the completion of the conquest . Viswanatha Nayak pacified these adventurous adherents and the old discontent chiefs by conferring on them a dignified status and definite proprietorial right over a portion of the land. They were responsible for the management of estates assigned to them. In this way one " Apajee Goundan " received the assignment of land around Kombai Village.

       The poligar collected money from the palayam assigned to him, paid one third to the sovereign and were under the obligation to assist the  Madurai king with all their forces in times of war. It was the Nayak's government which created the local Chiefs for the protection of the country and support of the sovereign . According to the family tradition these poligar developed the country in those days by finding new villages, building Temples and Dams and construction of tanks.

     The Nayak rule of Madurai was ended in 1736 by the Nawab of Arcot led by Chanda Sahib. Subsequently Dindigul came under the rule of Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan of Mysore. During the Mysore rule Kombai was a part of the Dindigul province. In 1788 Tipu Sultan himself came down to Dindigul and resumed most of the palayams for arrear of tribute. As  the poligar of Kombai promptly paid tribute to Tipu Sultan, the palayam escaped from the resumption. However the poligars of Dindigul exercised military powers and acted independently as substitutes of the government, challenging the Mohammedan administrators. In the confusion that followed the relation became strained which brought about frequent violence and political turmoil.

        When the third Mysore war between the English and Tipu Sultan started in 1790, the former's army under Col.James Stuart captured Dindigul. Kombai as a part of Dindigul, became a permanent part of the British Government. In 1795 the British Collector of Dindigul in his letter to the Board of Revenue stated that the name of the poligar in Kombai was Appajee Gounden and he attended the Cutcherry of the Collector. However after the company acquired Dindigul province, poligar Appajee Gounden became troublesome and in May 1795 he was stirring up disturbances in the Cumbum Valley. Eventually the estate was resumed and allowance was granted to the dispossessed proprietor. The poligars of the several palayams in Dindigul withheld the tributes to the English East India Company. The poligar of Kombai organised rebellion against the British rule.

In 1794 Appajee Gounden , the poligar of Kombai, captured Gudalur after the death of Poonjar Raja and declared that British Company had no business in Gudalur . In 1795 the British recaptured the place. The well equipped British army brought all the areas under their control.

After the suppression of the rebellion,the poligari system was abandoned and peaceful condition was created for revenue settlement.The poligars had special influence and authority in their palayams. The British found it convenient to entrust the revenue collection to them. On 1 st December 1801 the Madras Government announced its intention to establish a permanent assessment of land revenue in respect of their Palayams upon the Principle of Zamindari tenure. In accordance with the Principle , the poligars became Zamindars and their ancestral estates became Zamindars estates in the changed circumstances.

         This proclamation was following by the assessment of land in the palayams and the amount fixed  by the government was considered as the permanent peshcush ( fixed tribute to Government ) payable to the Government. Kombai was assessed by the British Collector Thomois Boyer Hurdis and he implemented the principle of Zamindari tenure there.In 1803 - 1804 the peshcush fixed for Kombai was Rs. 6,506/- at 70 %  of the total collection of Rs. 9,252/-. The introduction of Zamindari tenure on the basis of the survey and settlement of the Collector turned out to be incorrect as proved by subsequent experiments. All lands were over assessed. Collector Parish, the successor of Hurdis , reported to the government that most of the Zamindaries  in the District of Dindigul fell into arrear to the company . In 1815 the Zamindar of Kombai expressed his desire to relinquish his claim of Zamindari as it suffered due to over assessment and he found hard to pay the arrear of peshcush to the government.

            In 1817 the government assumed Kombai for arrears and in the year of assumption the total collection of revenue was Rs. 4,966/- .In the period between 1817 and 1832 , the average of the first sixteen years , the total collection was Rs. 5,612/- .The balance due by the Zamindari at the time of assumption was Rs. 19,703/-.Adding  the interest together with the arrears and collection charges the amount rose to Rs. 78,944/-. It was required that the Zamindari remit the amount to restore the Zamindari to him.

          As the Zamindari had hereditary claim over the Zamindari , the Board of revenue recommended that it would be unjust to hold the Zamindari answerable in person and property for the arrear due to over assessment . The ejected Zamindars of the attached estates had local influence and status. The attachment without allowance would create resentment in the minds of the hereditary chiefs . So the Madras Governor - in - Council , in 1821, sanctioned an allowance of ten percent of the total collection of tax from the respective Zamindaries known as Malikhana.

            During the period of British assumption , the government officials calculated the real value of Zamindaries in Dindigul province . The Government called upon all those Zamindaries who were under attachment either to pay their arrears or to surrender their territories. In case of surrendered Zamindaries they were allowed to continue the Malikhana which they had been enjoying. Some Zamindaries in this district were unable to administer the Zamindaries due to arrears or the trouble of Collection . They executed deed of surrender of the Zamindaries. It was legally carried out to prevent the claim of the descendants in the future. However they received ten percent (10 %) Malikhana of the total collection for the maintenance in their families.

           On 28 th September 1841 , the Zamindar of Kombai petitioned for restoration of the estate on payment of Rs . 2,000/- of the original balance and 500 per annum till the liquidation of the original interest. The offer was rejected as the Zamindar was unable to clear his arrears . Consequently on 9th July 1842 he gave formal surrender of the Kombai Zamindars to the Government.Thus Kombai became one of the Malikhana holders in Madurai district. Again on the petition of the Zamindar to government , the legality of the issue if assumption of Kombai Zamindars was taken to the court of Directors. The Court of Directors in England remarked in June 1844 that it would be competent to the District Collector to restore the estate or enter other arrangement which required the preservation and protection of the rights of the cultivators. Mean while the Zamindar of Kombai linked the arrears of revenue with the loss of land in the border disputes between the two Zamindaries . In this settlement Kombai lost 5500 kurkams of punjah lands .It resulted in the reduction of peshcush amounted to 530 pons or Rs.1,035. However the reduction of the amount did not bring any major change in the original arrears and the government assumption of Kombai.

         In 1847 once again the Kombai zamindar explicated , exceeding anxiety for the restoration of the Zamindar. He stated that the surrender of the Zamindari done earlier, was in fear of declining the Board's ultimatum either to surrender the Zamindari or pay the arrears for the reinstation  of the position. However the Board if Revenue considered that the Zamindari of the Kombai was incorporated with government lands and the district revenue authorities collected the reasonable land tax as existed in the neighboring government land for a long time. The restoration of the Zamindari to the proprietor was disadvantageous to the ryots after a long period of government management. After attachment of the Zamindari , the Zamindar become a titular Zamindar as he was not entrusted the official function of collection of Revenue from the people.Thus Kombai zamindar enjoyed the status of titular zamindar from 1842 to the present day. In Madras Presidency, the Zamindari system was abolished 1949 by enacting a law in the Madras state Legislature. The government converted the Zamindari estate into a Ryotweriland  by paying compensation to them.

            However the Malikhana holders like Kombai were not touched by the law. The descendants still draw the pension of ten percent ( 10%) Malikhana, fixed in 1821 from the government amounted to Rs.49.50 /-  every month.