Production and productivity of medicinal and aromatic plants in mughal India: A study of contemporary texts

Abstract

Mughal India in the 17th century had a vast area of land cultivated by peasants residing in this geographical territory. The accounts given by European travelers tell us that Indian peasants followed similar methods in agricultural production as their counterparts in Europe. Though the Indian peasant was illiterate, the technology employed by him was similar or even superior to the one used by his counterpart in Europe. His knowledge was based on tradition and it got transmitted from generation to generation. This paper attempts to analyze the production of medicinal and aromatic plants in Mughal India keeping in view the information contained in contemporary sources namely, Babur-Nama, Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri, Vishvavallabha, and Nuskha Dar Fanni-Falahat. It attempts to look into the description given about the plant and its usage in the medieval era.