Question

Write short note on:

Paiks

Answer 1

1. Since mediaeval period there was a system of employing soldiers known as Paiks (soldiers on call, who own their weapons), who served the kings of petty states in Odisha.
2. The Paiks, who were given free farmlands by local kings, cultivated these lands during peacetime. 
3. However, when the British took over Odisha in 1803, seizing Paiks' cultivated lands and imposing a salt tax, it led to an armed revolt by the Paiks who were enraged by these actions.
4. Bakshi Jagbandhu Bidyadhar was the leader of this revolt.