During the British Raj, Batta or Bhatta was a military term, meaning a special allowance made to officers, soldiers, or other public servants in the field. The term is probably derived from the Kanarese bhatta (rice in the husk).
In Hindi, the term bhatta (भत्ता) is now used to refer to allowance made to military personnel or other public servants.
References
Batta Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA