Q122
History of IndiaDelhi Sultanate
Who among the following paid his soldiers in cash?
- a.Balban
- b.Alauddin
- c.Muhammad BinTuglaq
- d.Iltutmish
Answer: (B) Alauddin
Alauddin Khalji (1296-1316) was the first Sultan of Delhi to keep a large permanent standing army paid in cash from the royal treasury instead of by iqta (land assignments); a trooper with one horse received 234 tankas a year. To make this pay sufficient he fixed prices through his market regulations, and to prevent fraud he introduced dagh (branding of horses) and chehra (descriptive rolls of soldiers). The others are known for different things: Iltutmish organised the iqta system and issued the silver tanka and copper jital; Balban created the Diwan-i-Arz (military department) and followed a policy of 'blood and iron'; Muhammad bin Tughlaq tried token currency and shifted the capital to Daulatabad.