Lucknow: Memories of a City - pg. 21

Another feature characteristic of the later Mughal empire, and tending toward the decentralization of power was the institution of conntract tenure (ijaradri). By the early eighteenth century, this institution extended though much of the Mughal empire, including Awadh. An independent party would be 'contracted' to carry out the duties of an office, typically to collect land revenue. The contractor assumed the responsibilities and authorities to extract the revenue, and often kept any excess over the agreed upon amount.