Tag: sher shah suri

Diwan-i-Ariz-: This department was under the Arz-i-Mumalik who was the army minister. He was not the commander-in-chief of the army but looked after the recruitment, organisation, discipline, disbursement of the salaries of the soldiers and officers and all sorts of supplies to the army.

Diwan-i-Rasalat- The minister in charge of this department may be called foreign minister. His duty was to be in close touch with ambassadors and envoys sent to and received from foreign states. He must also have been in charge of diplomatic correspondence, and sometimes the charity and endowment department too, was placed under him.

The last expenditure of Shershah Suri was Kalinjar in Bundelkhand where he died at in an accidental explosion of gunpowder in 1545. Though he ruled India for a short period of five years but changes made by him had the everlasting impact on the lives of people. He is considered to be the most successful ruler of medieval India.

The Battle of Chausa took place between Mughal Emperor Humayun and Sher Shah Suri on 26 June 1539 in Chausa. Humayun was defeated in Chausa War by Sher Shah Suri.

Sher Shah reconstructed following highways:-

(a) The first which ran from Sonargaon (near Dacca) via Agra, Delhi and Lahore to the Indus,

(b) The second which ran from Agra to Jodhpur and the fort of Chittor,

(c) The third which ran from Agra to Burhanpur, and

(d) The fourth which ran from Lahore to Multan.

In the short span of a 5-year rule (1540-1545), Sher Shah established the foundations of a mounted post or horse courier system, wherein conveyance of letters was also extended to traders. This is the first known record of the postal system of a kingdom being used for non-State purposes, i.e. for trade and business communication. Sher Shah’s administrative reforms were so well integrated with the postal system, that it rightly earned the place of the first officially recorded mounted post  in India.

Sher Shah left the administration of villages in the hands of their hereditary officers like Chaukidars, Patwaris, etc. The village-panchayat (assembly) also enjoyed a large measure of independence in looking after the welfare of the people. All of them assisted state officials in collecting revenue and maintaining law and order.

Mir Bakshi was the head of the military and intelligence department. He was not the Commander-in-Chief but was the paymaster-general. All intelligence officers {bands) and news-reporters (Waqia-navis) reported to him.

Sher Shah Suri was born in 1486. He was the founder of Suri Empire in north India with his capital In Delhi. An ethnic Pashtun , Sher Shah took control of the Mughal Empire in 1540.

Muhtasib  looked after the moral development of the subjects. He also checked drinking of liquor, gambling and illicit relations between men and women.