How did the jagirdar system pay Mughal officials?

While early Mughal emperors preferred to pay their officials with cash salaries, the Mughal dynasty eventually relied on the jagirdar system to compensate most of their senior officials, known as mansabdars.12

Under this system, officials were not paid directly in cash. Instead, they were granted temporary revenue assignments called jagirs. As jagirdars, these officials were entitled to collect specified land revenues from designated territories in lieu of a salary. The state carefully calculated the estimated revenue of each jagir to match the official's assigned salary.2

To ensure that jagirdars remained dependent on the emperor and did not develop independent local authority, these assignments were frequently transferred. It is important to note that jagirdars held no ownership rights over the land; they were only authorized to collect state-sanctioned taxes, and administrative control remained with the state. Over time, the reintroduction and expansion of this system contributed to the weakening of the Mughal state.21