In medieval and early colonial India, extra cesses collected by zamindars and officials over and above the regular land revenue were called:

"Abwab" were extra cesses (additional taxes or charges) collected by zamindars and officials from the peasants, over and above the regular land revenue.

About abwab:

• The word "abwab" is the plural of "bab", meaning an item or a head (of account).
• They were collected in addition to the main land revenue (rent).
• They included charges for festivals, marriages, the building of roads and embankments, the expenses of officials, gifts to zamindars, and many other purposes.
• They were often arbitrary and varied from place to place.
• They added greatly to the burden on the peasants.

Abwab in Mughal and post-Mughal times:

• Mughal emperors such as Akbar and Aurangzeb tried to stop the collection of illegal cesses, but with limited success.
• In 18th-century Bengal, the Nawabs, especially Murshid Quli Khan and Alivardi Khan, imposed many abwab on the zamindars, who in turn collected them from the peasants.

Under the East India Company:

• After the Company took over the Diwani of Bengal, the zamindars continued to collect abwab, despite official efforts to stop them.
• Under the Permanent Settlement, the collection of abwab was prohibited, but the practice continued in many places.
• Peasant movements, such as the Bengal tenants' agitations, opposed abwab.

Related terms:

• "Mal": the main land revenue.
• "Sair": miscellaneous taxes, such as duties on trade, markets and transit.
• "Nazrana": a gift or tribute paid to a superior.
• "Begar": forced labour.

Islamic taxes (for comparison):

• "Khams": one-fifth of war booty.
• "Jizya": a tax on non-Muslims.
• "Ushr": a land tax (one-tenth) on land owned by Muslims.
• "Zakat": a religious tax on the wealth of Muslims.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Khams, jizya and ushr were taxes under Islamic law, not extra cesses over the rent.