paid in kind.
  Vata-          Different kinds of cess for maintenance of rites for the
  bhuta          winds (vata) and the spirits (bhuta).
  Halivakara It was a plough tax, paid by every cultivator owning a
                 plough.
  Sulka          It was a royal share of merchandise brought into a town or
                 harbour by merchants. Hence it can be equated with the
                 customs and tolls.
  Klipta and Purchase and sales tax.
  Upaklipta
Position of Peasantry
From the fifth century AD onwards, the recipients of land grants in central and
western India were given not only the right to punish thieves but also the
right to try civil cases. These, together with fiscal rights, obviously led to the
oppression of peasants and other inhabitants of the gifted villages, who were
asked to obey their new masters and carry out their orders. In Gujarat, central
India and even Orissa, inscriptions from the sixth century indicate that the
peasants were often required to remain on their land, even when it was
granted to others. Thus in certain parts of the country, the position of
independent peasants was undermined and they were reduced to serfs or
semi-serfs. Repression of peasants was also caused by the rights of sub
infeudation granted to recipients of land grants. This implied the recipients’
right to evict the tenants from their lands. This practice of subinfeudation,
therefore, reduced permanent tenants to the position of tenants-at-will. The
position of tenants was undermined also on account of the imposition of
forced labour and several new taxes.
Agriculture
State of Agriculture
There are plentiful references to agriculture and its every aspect in the
sources on the Gupta period. A generous Nature and establishment of