Peasantisation of Adivasis in Thane District

Ashok K Upadhyaya This paper attempts to trace the historical process and patterns of tribal exploitation in Thane district.
When British colonialism assumed political power over western India in 1818, it inherited two principal problems in Thane district. On the one hand, a multiple, often confusing revenue system; and, on the other, a large tribal population which fell outside the pale of any regular revenue system, practised slash and burn cultivation and sometimes indulged in what the British called 'gang wars'. Over a short span of three decades the British introduced in this region the raiyatwari land settlement and settled the tribals to a semblance of regular cultivation.