Consider the following statement: “So much is wrung from the peasants,

Consider the following statement:
“So much is wrung from the peasants, that even dry bread is scarcely left to fill their stomachs.”
Who among the following European travellers had made the above statement about the condition of peasantry in the Mughal Empire?

Francisco Pelsaert
Francois Bernier
Jean-Baptiste Tavernier
Niccolao Manucci
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CDS-1 – 2018
The correct answer is (A) Francisco Pelsaert.
The statement, “So much is wrung from the peasants, that even dry bread is scarcely left to fill their stomachs,” is a well-known quote describing the harsh condition of the peasantry in the Mughal Empire, attributed to the Dutch traveller Francisco Pelsaert. Pelsaert was associated with the Dutch East India Company and resided in Agra between 1620 and 1627.
Pelsaert’s work, ‘Remonstrantie’ (Memoirs), provides a detailed, albeit critical, account of economic and social conditions in the Mughal Empire during the reign of Jahangir. Francois Bernier also provided significant accounts of the Mughal Empire but this specific quote is from Pelsaert.