The Muster Roll
Chapter Twenty-Four
Syllabus topic 5, "Types of Farm Records- Specimen. (Muster roll, Overseer’s diary, Cultivation register, Cashbook, Stock book, Issue register, Receipt register, Labour requisition book, Attendance register, Deadstock, Ration book, Peon book, General register)."
Pages 56 to 57 of 110
In one line
The muster roll is the daily attendance and wage sheet of the labour employed on the farm, showing who worked, on what, for how many days, at what rate, and what was paid.
It is the first record every farm keeps and the one MU names first, because labour is the largest single cost on most Indian farms and it is paid in cash, daily, to people who leave at the end of the day.
Why it is kept
- To record attendance of casual and regular labour, day by day.
- To compute the wage due to each person.
- To be the voucher for the cash paid out, signed by the person who received it.
- To charge labour cost to the field and the operation that used it, which is what makes a per-hectare cost possible.
- To fix responsibility on the overseer who mustered the gang.
- To evidence compliance with the wage laws.
The specimen
Shivneri Farm, Baramati. Muster roll for the week ended Saturday 14 November 2026.
| Sr | Name | Operation | Field | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Days | Rate Rs. | Amount Rs. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ramesh Jadhav | Weeding | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 350 | 2,100 |
| 2 | Sunita Mane | Weeding | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 350 | 1,750 |
| 3 | Kisan Shinde | Irrigation | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 380 | 1,900 |
| 4 | Laxmi Pawar | Cotton picking | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 350 | 1,750 |
| 5 | Anil More | Cane cutting | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 420 | 2,520 |
| Total | 4 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 27 | 10,020 |
Mustered by: S. R. Pawar, Overseer. Paid by: D. B. Kadam, Proprietor. Date of payment: 14 November 2026.
Signature or thumb impression of each person against the amount received.
How it is written up
In the morning, the overseer calls the roll at the field and marks 1 against each person present, or a half for a half day. He does not fill it in at night.
Through the week, the operation and the field are entered against each name, because the same person may weed on Monday and irrigate on Thursday, and the two costs belong to two different fields.
At the end of the week, the days are totalled, the rate applied, and the amount computed. The proprietor pays, and each person signs or gives a thumb impression against the amount received.
The columns and why each exists
| Column | Why it is there |
|---|---|
| Name | Identifies the person; a roll with no names cannot be checked |
| Operation | Weeding, sowing, irrigation, harvesting. The cost follows the operation |
| Field | The cost centre. Without it the wage cannot be charged to a crop |
| Daily columns | The evidence. One mark per day, made on the day |
| Days | The total of the daily marks, and a check on them |
| Rate | May differ by person, by operation and by skill |
| Amount | Days times rate |
| Signature | The receipt for the cash |
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