Who is Lord Mayo?

Richard Southwell Bourke or Lord Mayo was the fourth Viceroy of India who held office from 1869-1872.

He was the eldest successor of Robert Bourke, the Fifth Earl of Mayo and Anne Charlotte and was born on 21st February, 1822.

Educated at the illustrious Trinity College in Dublin, he was thrice elected as the Chief Secretary of Ireland from 1852 to 1866.

In 1869, he was appointed as the Viceroy of British India by Benjamin Disraeli, the then British Prime Minister.

Mayo’s political orientation owed allegiance to the Conservative Party of Britain and the few years of his viceroyalty display extensive reformative policies which are proof of his excellent administrative proficiency.

As Viceroy of India Lord Mayo was responsible for the following actions:

• Lord Mayo stabilised the northwestern frontier of India by cultivating closer relationships with Sher Ali, the emir of Afghanistan. He did this with the hope of negating Russian influence in the region and ensure a buffer state would exist between the Russian and British Empire.
• He ordered the first census of India in 1871 which produced a general picture of various peoples of the subcontinent and their population size.
• Setting up of Department of Revenue, Agriculture and Commerce
• Introduction of the most improved rifle, the Snider, and of rifled guns for the artillery.
• Improvement in the sanitary conditions for the troops.
• Infrastructure development in the country by which an immense extension of roads, railroads, and canals was carried out.

ECONOMIC REFORMS

Lord Mayo’s significant contribution, however, pertains to his fiscal reforms. These reforms were extremely necessary to stabilise the crumbling financial administration preceding his governorship.

Lord Mayo was instrumental in ensuring the extension of the railways with the aid of government funds instead of privatization, a move suggested by his predecessor Lord John Lawrence.

The Resolution of 1870 or the policy of financial decentralization promulgated by Lord Mayo is a glorious example of his proficiency in the execution of economic reforms.

The purpose of this Resolution was to delineate certain administrative duties to the provincial governments by the supreme imperial authority.

By means of this resolution, he bestowed the responsibility of allocation of funds in the sphere of public works, medical facilities and education to the local or provincial governments who in their turn were expected to rely on local taxation.

Such localisation of funds, he believed, would aid in the growth of self-government and at the same time facilitate a pleasant association between the citizens of the Indian provinces and the British.

Various regions like those on the North-west Frontier, Punjab, West Bengal and Madras introduced municipal taxes to implement this policy.

Lord Mayo greatly reduced military expenditure and other expenses pertaining to civil administration, implemented salt duty and increased income tax.

These policies ensured a more systematic execution of financial administration.

He himself supervised the efficient functioning of the Public Works Department pertaining to irrigation, forestry and other services. Agricultural reforms also comprised an important aspect of his financial reforms.

LAND REFORMS

The Department of Revenue, Agriculture and Commerce was established by Lord Mayo on June 9th, 1871 and he also initiated the Land-improvement Act.

Lord Mayo called for certain alterations in the Permanent Settlement introduced by Lord Cornwallis as well.

He advocated that land revenues should be based upon an assessment of the amount of produce and the fertility of the land rather than the payment of uniform revenue across different provinces.

While the finances had suffered arrears under the supervision of his antecedents, Lord Mayo’s fiscal policies recorded a surplus of over five millions during his tenure.

DEATH

It was for the purpose of reviewing the implementation of these reforms that Lord Mayo undertook a visit to the Andaman Islands in 1872, a journey that cost him his life.

On 8th February, 1872, Lord Mayo was assassinated by Sher Ali. He was buried at the County Kildare in his native soil, Ireland.

His death marked the end of an era of administrative excellence in British India.

One effect of his assassination was there were greater calls for the creation of an intelligence bureau in India which would help in better tracking down fugitives or anyone else considered as subversive elements by the British colonial administration.

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