Sultan Alauddin Khalji established the new ministry, the Diwan-i-Riyasat, to centrally control the economy and enforce his stringent price control policy. This department supervised all commerce and trade, working with officers like the Shahna-i-Mandi to regulate supplies and enforce fixed prices (Zabitas) for all commodities, including grain and cloth. The ultimate goal of this highly effective, centralized administrative body was to drastically lower the cost of living, thereby enabling Alauddin to maintain a massive permanent standing army on lower wages.