What was the primary responsibility of the amara-nayakas in the Vijayanagara Empire?

Governance of specific territories

The amara-nayakas were military leaders appointed by the raya to oversee specific territories. Their responsibilities included collecting taxes and various dues from the local population, encompassing peasants, artisans, and traders within their jurisdiction. They retained a portion of the collected revenue for personal use and to maintain a stipulated number of horses and elephants. These well-maintained contingents served as a formidable fighting force for the Vijayanagara kings, aiding in their conquest of the entire southern peninsula. Additionally, a portion of the revenue was allocated for temple maintenance and irrigation projects.

Annually, the amara-nayakas sent tribute to the king and personally demonstrated their loyalty by presenting gifts in the royal court. Periodically, kings asserted their authority over them by relocating them to different regions. However, during the seventeenth century, many of these nayakas established independent kingdoms, hastening the eventual collapse of the central imperial structure.