When the British started tinkering with the revenue system in 1803, the farming community of Odisha rose in rebellion.
At that critical juncture, Bakshi Jagabandhu Bidyadhar – the military chief of the King of Khurda – led his motley army of Paikas forcing the British East India Company forces to retreat.
The rebellion came to be known as Paika Bidroh (Paika rebellion).
The rebellion, by the landed militia of Khurda called Paiks, predates the first war of independence in 1857 but did not get similar recognition.
It took place when the British East India company wrested the rent-free land that had been given to the Paiks for their military service to the Kingdom of Khurda.
