Though in theory, the Ryotwari settlement was supposed to prove better than the permanent settlement, in practice its impact was far worse.

Lord Cornwallis in 1793 introduced zamindari system through permanent settlement in Bengal Bihar
Orissa and Varanasi. Under the settlement zamindars were made land owners and were given right
to collect rent from present who were the tenants of the land.

Demerit of zamindari system
 Zamindars did not went in agricultural land and only interested in extracting the revenue
 Zamindars were like middleman endless share was left with presents.
 Taxation was fixed which has to be paid by pigeon even in case of famine or low production
 Zamindari in order to maintain their zamindari has arrest tenants (fear of sunset clause)
 Zamindars often tried to extract more than sanctioned revenue so that they are left with more
money after giving Britishers their fixed share.
 In zamindari system even in case of high production Britishers did not get enhanced revenue.
Because the taxation rates were fixed in such situation zamindars were the main gainer.
To overcome the above limitation new Ryotwari system was introduced in Madras Bombay Assam
by Thomas Munro in 1820. It was supposed to be boon for present and improve their condition due
to following features
Features of Ryotwari system
 peasant was made land owner and it can be taken away only for non-payment of revenue
 Freedom was given to give up or acquire new land
 Middlemen were eliminated who often oppressed peasant and provided false assessment of
land being cultivated to the British
Optimistic official has imagined that new system would transform peasant into rich farmers but this
did not happened. Ryotwari settlement seems fair and practical on paper but proved to be worse
than zamindari system.
Reasons
 High taxation rate - levy was not based on actual revenue from produce of land but instead on
estimate of potential of the soil.
 50% for dryland and 60% for irrigated land
 Payment of land tax in cash - cash payment ruined cultivators, exposing them to demands of
money lenders as an alternate to the loss of land and starvation when crop failed
 Revenue officials harassed villages - subordinate revenue officer forgiven much power who's
activities were in adequately supervised they were industries in Harsh measure for non-payment
delayed payment
 Misery of cash crops - in order to gain huge profit farmers fell into the trap of government's
proposal to grow cash crops like Indigo opium which lead to scarcity of food grains and in
fertility of soil.
 Land became commodity - excessive marketing of land for or payment of tax in cash has led to
the loss of sentimental link that existed between land and the farmers.

Many owner-cultivators and occupancy tenants, having a permanent right to hold land, found it
more convenient to lease out land to land-hungry tenants at exorbitant rent than to cultivate it
themselves.
 In time, landlordism became the main feature of agrarian relations not only in the zamindari
areas but also in the Ryotwari ones
 Growth of subinfeudation or intermediaries - Since the cultivating tenants were generally
unprotected and the overcrowding of land led the tenants to compete with one another to
acquire land, the rent of land went on increasing.
Therefore, even though in theory, the Ryotwari settlement was supposed to prove better than the
permanent settlement, in practice its impact was far worse. It became more devilish version of
Zamindari system.