Paik system

The "Paik" system was a type of corvee labor system on which the Ahom kingdom of medieval Assam was based. The origin of the word "paik" is unknown and it is believed that the system is based on the South-East Asian legacy the Ahoms brought with them in 1228. The mature structure was designed by Momai Tamuli Borbarua in 1609. The system continued to evolve over time to meet the needs of the Ahom state and in time began to accumulate contradictions. Scholars believe that a major reason for the collapse of the Ahom kingdom was that the Paik system had outlived itself by the 18th century.

Every male in the Ahom kingdom between the ages of fifteen and fifty who was not a noble, a priest, a high caste or a slave was a "paik". According to Guha (1991), about 90% of the population belonged to this class at the time of Rudra Singha, around 1714. The top landed aristocracy was about 1% and the rest constituted the servile class.

"Paik" system

Land holdings

The duty of a "paik" was to render service to the Ahom state in lieu of which he was granted 2 "puras" (2.66 acres) of cultivable land ("gaa mati"), which was neither hereditary nor transferable. In addition he could maintain his tax-free ancestral homestead and garden ("basti" and "bari" respectively). The nobility maintained personal estates called "khats".

Cultivable land called "roopeet" was held communally that was distributed among the "paiks" (called "gaa mati"). Wastelands reclaimed by "paiks" or non-"paiks" not covered by a royal grant are subject to inclusion in the "roopeet" category to be distributed as "gaa mati" in the next "paik" survey. Surplus cultivable land was distributed as "ubar mati" among the "paiks".

Royal service

The royal services that the "paiks" tended to were defense (the Ahom kingdom did not have a standing army till the beginning of 19th century and its army consisted of the militia formed of "paiks"), civil construction (embankments, roads, bridges, tanks etc), military production (boats, arrows, muskets) etc. There were two major divisions of "paiks": (1) "kanri paik" (archer) who rendered his service as a soldier or as a laborer, and (2) "chamua paik" who rendered non-manual service. After the first major survey recorded in the Buranjis which was taken in 1510 under Suhungmung, the "paiks" were organized according to families and lineage called "phoids" and resettled according to their skills. The number of "paiks" rendering royal service at any time followed the principle "ghar muri e-powa" or one-fourth the number of "paiks" in a household. The "paik" rendering service was rotated and the other "paiks" in his household tended to his "gaa mati" during his absence.

In the 1609 restructuring by Momai Tamuli Borbarua the "phoid" organization was replaced by the "got". A "got" consisted of four "paiks" who lived close together. The "paiks" in a "got" were numbered "mul" (first), "duwal" (second), "tewal" (third) etc. In times of peace, generally one of the "paiks" in a "got" rendered royal service at any given time. In times of war, a second or even a third "paik" from a "got" could be asked to render service simultaneously. As before, the "gaa mati" was tended to by the remaining "paiks" of the "got". This ensured that economic production did not suffer when a large section of the population was not involved in it and contributed to the resilience of the Ahom kingdom in the 16th to 18th century.

During the time of Rajeswar Singha (1752-1789) as the pressure on the "Paik" system increased, the number of paiks in each "got" was decreased from four to three.

Organization of the "paiks"

The "paiks" in their "phoids" were organized under "khels" according to the locality in which they belonged. Momai Tamuli Borbarua reorganized many such "khels" functionally according to the specific service the "paiks" in the khel rendered. Some of the "khels" were thus similar to professional or trade guilds. The organization of the "khel" was extended later by his son Lachit Borphukan into self contained ones by incorporating "paiks" of different professions into each "khel".

"Khels" were further organized under a "mel" or a "dagi". A group of such divisions was attached to each of the three great Gohains, which is then called the "hatimur" of the particular "Gohain". A second group of divisions was placed under the "khel" officers ("Phukan", "Rajkhowa" and "Barua") that rendered service to members of the royal family. The third and the largest group of "dagis", organized under "khel" officers, rendered service to the king or the state.

"Paik" officials

The "paiks" in a khel were organized under a gradation of officials who commanded a set number of them. They were: "Bora" (20 "paiks"), "Saikia" (100) and "Hazarika" (1000). More important "khels" were commanded by a "Phukan" (6000); a "Rajkhowa" (a governor of a territory) or a "Barua" (a superintending officer) each of whom could command between 2000 and 3000 "paiks".

The "Phukans", "Rajkhowas", "Baruas" and "Hazarikas" were nominated by the king, and appointed in concurrence with the three great "Gohains" (Burhagohain, Borgohain and Borpatrogohain). The "Boras" and "Saikias" were appointed by their respective "Phukans" and "Rajkhowas". The "paiks" had the right to reject a "Bora" or a "Saikia" and request another officer of their choice.

"Kanri paiks" could rise to become "chamua paiks" and then to higher "paik" officials. Appointments were made irrespective of the "paik"'s religion or ethnicity.

Ahom justice

The Ahom justice system was also based on the "Paik" system. Each "Paik" official offered justice to the "paiks" and each appeal was heard by the next higher officer in the "khel" system. The system of appeals could go right up to the "Nyayxodha Phukan".

Challenges to the "Paik" system

The "Paik" system was a method by which the Ahom king obtained service from the people and also provided service back to the people. By the 17th century it had evolved into a robust system that gave the Ahom kingdom a resilience in the face of a long protracted war against the Mughals. But soon it met challenges.

Over time, the nobles began to appropriate the services of "kanri paik", who as a "likchou" began to work for these high officials instead of the king. After the end of Ahom-Mughal conflicts, the Ahom kingdom extended the "Paik" system to the regions earlier held by the Mughals but where the royal service was now payable in cash, following the "pargana" system that was left behind. The increased production of "paiks" and the growth of an internal market over time in the entire kingdom demanded a monetization of the economy, which the "Paik" system was unable to handle. This gave rise to the "apaikan chamua" a class of "paik"s who were released from their "khels" and who paid a cash tax in lieu of the service to the king. The satras too attracted "paiks" who wanted to escape the compulsory service. The satras, in addition, came into competition with the Ahom kingdom by expanding into new social groups that the Ahom kingdom would have expanded into otherwise and providing an alternative economic production process. This conflict with the satras led to the Moamoria rebellion which further weakened the Ahom kingdom.

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