Who prepared the ‘Report of the Land Revenue settlement of the Kangra District, printed in 1874’?
(A) J.B. Lyall
(B) G.C. Barnes
(C) J.D. Cunningham
(D) Victor Jacquemont
The correct answer is (A) J.B. Lyall.
Explanation 📜
Sir James Broadwood Lyall prepared the ‘Report of the Land Revenue Settlement of the Kangra District,’ which was printed in 1874. This was a revised settlement report, meaning it was a comprehensive update and reassessment of an earlier report. Lyall’s work is considered a classic and highly detailed account of the customs, land tenures, and social structures of the Kangra district during that period.
Analysis of Other Options
- (B) G.C. Barnes (Incorrect): This is a common point of confusion. George Carnac Barnes conducted the first regular land revenue settlement of the Kangra district. His highly influential report was published much earlier, around 1850-1852. Lyall’s report was the revision of Barnes’s original work.
- (C) J.D. Cunningham (Incorrect): Joseph Davey Cunningham was a historian and author of the famous book “A History of the Sikhs.” He was not involved in the land settlement of Kangra.
- (D) Victor Jacquemont (Incorrect): Victor Jacquemont was a French botanist and naturalist who traveled through India, including parts of the Himalayas, in the early 1830s. His work was scientific, not administrative.