Which of the following statements are true about the amara-nayakas:
(A) The amara-nayakas were civil servants who were given territories to govern by the raya.
(B) The amara-nayakas collected taxes and other dues from peasants, craftspersons and traders in the area.
(C) The amara-nayakas sent tribute to the king annually and personally appeared in the royal court with gifts to express their loyalty.
(D) Kings occasionally asserted their control over the amara-nayakas by transferring them from one place to another.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → (B), (C) and (D) only
(A) The amara-nayakas were civil servants who were given territories to govern by the raya. Incorrect. The amara-nayakas were military commanders, not civil servants. Out of the revenue of their territories they maintained a stipulated contingent of horses and elephants, which gave the Vijayanagara kings an effective fighting force.
(B) The amara-nayakas collected taxes and other dues from peasants, craftspersons and traders in the area. Correct. They kept part of this revenue for personal use and for their troops, and used some for temples and irrigation works.
(C) The amara-nayakas sent tribute to the king annually and personally appeared in the royal court with gifts to express their loyalty. Correct. They came to court with gifts to express their loyalty to the king.
(D) Kings occasionally asserted their control over the amara-nayakas by transferring them from one place to another. Correct. Such transfers were one way in which the kings asserted their control over them.
NCERT (2026-27): “2.3 The rayas and the nayakas … The amara-nayaka system was a major political innovation of the Vijayanagara Empire. It is likely that many features of this system were derived from the iqta system of the Delhi Sultanate. The amara-nayakas were military commanders who were given territories to govern by the raya. They collected taxes and other dues from peasants, craftspersons and traders in the area. They retained part of the revenue for personal use and for maintaining a stipulated contingent of horses and elephants. These contingents provided the Vijayanagara kings with an effective fighting force with which they brought the entire southern peninsula under their control. Some of the revenue was also used for the maintenance of temples and irrigation works. The amara-nayakas sent tribute to the king annually and personally appeared in the royal court with gifts to express their loyalty. Kings occasionally asserted their control over them by transferring them from one place to another.…” |