Ryotwari system, one of the three principal methods of revenue collection in British India. It was prevalent in most of southern India, being the standard system of the Madras Presidency (a British-controlled area now constituting much of present-day Tamil Nadu and portions of neighboring states). Explanation & Key Takeaways: The system was devised by Capt. Alexander Read and Thomas (later Sir Thomas) Munro at the end of the 18th century and introduced by the latter when he was governor (1820–27) of Madras (now Chennai). • The principle was the direct collection of the land revenue from each individual cultivator by government agents. • For this purpose, all holdings were measured and assessed according to crop potential and actual cultivation. • The advantages of this system were the elimination of middlemen, who often oppressed villagers, and an assessment of the tax on land actually cultivated and not merely occupied. • Offsetting these advantages was the cost of detailed measurement and of individual collection. This system also gave much power to subordinate revenue officials, whose activities were inadequately supervised. • This system was in operation for nearly 5 years and had many features of the revenue system of the Mughals. • It was instituted in some parts of British India, one of the three main systems used to collect revenues from the cultivators of agricultural land. • These taxes included undifferentiated land revenue and rents, collected simultaneously. • Where the land revenue was imposed directly on the ryots (the individual cultivators who actually worked the land) the system of assessment was known as ryotwari. • Where the land revenue was imposed indirectly—through agreements made with Zamindars the system of assessment was known as zamindari. In Bombay, Madras, Assam, and Burma the Zamindar usually did not have a position as a middleman between the government and the farmer. Hence, the correct answer is Thomas Munro.