With reference to forced labour (Vishti) in India during the Gupta period, which one of the following statements is correct?

The correct answer is A. Vishti was an unpaid levy of labour or service imposed on the people, and the state treated it as a form of revenue, much like a tax in kind. Gupta-period records mention vishti alongside other state dues, which is why it is read as a state income source rather than a purely social duty.

• B is wrong: Vishti is not confined to one region. Gupta-period records from different parts of the empire refer to it, so the claim that it was totally absent in Madhya Pradesh and Kathiawar cannot be supported.
• C is wrong: Vishti was forced labour, meaning it was unpaid. Wages would make it a hired service, which is the opposite of what the term denotes.
• D is wrong: No source describes a rule that the eldest son was sent in place of the labourer. The obligation was tied to the household or community as a levy, not to a specific son.

The core concept is the Gupta agrarian economy, where the state drew revenue through land tax, tributes and labour obligations. This links to Mains questions on land revenue systems and the nature of the state in early medieval India.

Trap: candidates often confuse vishti with paid corvee or a fixed tax in cash. Remember that it was unpaid labour that the state treated as a revenue source.