British Raj
The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent;
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* it is also called Crown rule in India,
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or Direct rule in India,
* Quote: "Mill, who was himsel ...
, Batta or Bhatta or Bat-ta was a a) financial/banking and b) a military term, meaning a) an agio or disagio, b) a special allowance made to officers, soldiers, or other public servants in the field, c) any additional or extra charge elsewhere. The term is probably derived from
Kannada
Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
''bhatta'' (rice in the husk).
Batta was originally introduced as a payment to military officers of the
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
, in addition to their ordinary salary, to provide them with money for field-equipment and other expenses when on the march. By November 1842, a distinction was made according to which part of the country they were based. A lieutenant-colonel in barracks in southern India, for instance would receive half batta, 304 rupees (£30) a month. All cavalry and infantry officers stationed in northern India received full batta.
Discontent over changes to the allowance was the cause of the
Monghyr Mutiny
The Monghyr Mutiny (also known as the White Mutiny) occurred among European officers of the East India Company stationed in Bengal in 1766. The mutiny arose after the East India Company's governor of Bengal, Robert Clive, implemented an order to ...
.
In Hindi, the term ''bhatta'' (
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
भत्ता) is now used to refer to allowance made to military personnel or other public servants.
In Pakistan the term ''bhatta'' (
Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
extortion
Extortion is the practice of obtaining benefit through coercion. In most jurisdictions it is likely to constitute a criminal offence; the bulk of this article deals with such cases. Robbery is the simplest and most common form of extortion, ...