The British agrarian policy in India significantly transformed the structure of rural society and contributed to the growth of social and economic differentiation among the peasantry. Before British rule, Indian villages were not completely egalitarian, as inequalities based on caste, landholding, and social status already existed. However, colonial agrarian policies introduced new systems of land revenue collection, commercialization of agriculture, and legal changes in property relations that intensified existing inequalities and created new forms of rural differentiation. The impact of these policies varied across regions, but overall they strengthened the position of landlords, moneylenders, and wealthy peasants while increasing the vulnerability of small cultivators and agricultural labourers. The Permanent Settlement of 1793 introduced in Bengal, Bihar, and parts of Odisha created a class of zamindars who were recognized as hereditary landowners. The British government fixed the revenue demand permanently and made zamindars responsible for collecting it from cultivators. Although the policy was presented as a measure to improve agricultural development, it largely benefited the zamindar class. Many zamindars became absentee landlords who extracted rent from peasants without making significant investments in agriculture. The peasants, who had traditionally enjoyed certain customary rights over land, gradually lost