In the administrative system of the Mauryan period, Pradeshtha was related to which department?
- (a)Revenue Department
- (b)Justice Department
- (c)Military Department
- (d)Economic Department
Correct — B, Justice Department. The Pradeshtri (Pradeshta), described in Kautilya's Arthashastra, was a Mauryan-era officer who presided over the Kantakasodhana courts — the tribunals that handled criminal cases and public-order offences — and who also toured the districts regularly to inspect local administration. This combination of criminal-judicial authority and administrative inspection places the Pradeshtri squarely in the justice/criminal-administration function, distinct from revenue, military or treasury officers.
- (a)Revenue Department — Mauryan revenue assessment and collection was the domain of the Samaharta (the Collector-General of Revenue), not the Pradeshtri.
- (c)Military Department — Military command in Mauryan administration was headed by the Senapati (commander-in-chief); the Pradeshtri's role was judicial and administrative touring, not military.
- (d)Economic Department — There was no distinct 'Economic Department' as such in Mauryan administration in this sense, and the Pradeshtri's documented function was judicial oversight, not economic management.
Kautilya's Arthashastra describes a structured Mauryan bureaucracy with officers assigned to distinct functions. The Pradeshtri combined two roles: presiding over the Kantakasodhana courts (which tried criminal offences and threats to public order) and periodically touring his jurisdiction to inspect the conduct of district officials — making 'justice/criminal administration' the correct classification for this office.
MPPSC/UPSC test Mauryan administrative officers by matching each specific title (Pradeshtri, Samaharta, Senapati, Sannidhata) to its correct function — the trap is guessing based on how the name 'sounds' rather than the officer's documented role in the Arthashastra.
- Pradeshtri (Pradeshta) — presided over the Kantakasodhana courts, which tried criminal cases and offences against public order.
- The Pradeshtri also toured his jurisdiction to inspect the administration of district officials.
- Samaharta was the Mauryan-era Collector-General of Revenue — a separate office from the Pradeshtri.
- Senapati was the commander-in-chief overseeing military administration — also separate from the Pradeshtri.
Mauryan administration assigned distinct officers to distinct functions — the Pradeshtri's domain was justice and criminal oversight, not revenue, military or treasury.
- Guessing an officer's department from how the title sounds rather than its documented Arthashastra function
- Confusing the Pradeshtri (judicial/touring officer) with the Samaharta (revenue) or Senapati (military)
MPPSC/UPSC frequently test 'officer X is related to which department' for Mauryan administration — build a fixed officer-to-function table rather than memorising titles in isolation.
No directly related past PYQ (on the Pradeshtri or this specific Mauryan officer-to-department mapping) was found in the UPSC store; the one Arthashastra-linked UPSC question found (2022, on slavery) tests an unrelated topic.
- practice — not a real PYQ
In Mauryan administration, the officer responsible for the collection and assessment of state revenue was known as the:
- (a)Pradeshtri
- (b)Samaharta
- (c)Senapati
- (d)Sannidhata
Answer(b) Samaharta — the Collector-General of Revenue.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Kantakasodhana courts, described in Kautilya's Arthashastra, primarily dealt with:
- (a)Civil property disputes
- (b)Criminal cases and threats to public order
- (c)Trade and taxation disputes
- (d)Disputes between district officials
Answer(b) Criminal cases and threats to public order — presided over by officers including the Pradeshtri.