The Guptas imposed a tax on ploughs, called:

In the Gupta period, a tax on ploughs was called "Halivakara" (also called "Halikakara").

About Halivakara:

• "Hala" means plough, and "kara" means tax.
• It was a tax levied on each plough owned by a cultivator.
• It may have been imposed in addition to the main land tax, or as a way of assessing the land under cultivation.
• It is mentioned in some inscriptions of the Gupta and post-Gupta periods.
• It indicates that the number of ploughs was used as a measure of a farmer's capacity and wealth.

Taxes in the Gupta period:

• "Bhaga": the king's share of the produce, generally one-sixth.
• "Bhoga": periodic supplies of fruit, firewood, flowers and other items to the king.
• "Kara": a general tax.
• "Udranga": a land tax or tax on permanent tenants, according to some scholars.
• "Uparikara": a tax on temporary tenants (or an extra tax).
• "Hiranya": a tax paid in cash (gold).
• "Vishti": forced labour.
• "Bali" and "shulka" (customs) also continued.

Land grants:

• In the Gupta period, kings increasingly granted land to Brahmanas, temples and monasteries.
• The grants were recorded on copper plates.
• The recipients were often given the right to collect taxes from the villages, and sometimes exemption from royal interference.
• Historians see this as the beginning of feudal tendencies in Indian society.

Agriculture in the Gupta period:

• More land was brought under cultivation.
• Irrigation was improved.
• Rice, wheat, barley, pulses, sugarcane, cotton and oilseeds were grown.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Bhaga was the share of produce.
• ✗Udranga was a type of land tax.
• ✗Vishti was forced labour.