Consider the following statements about the emergence of urban centres in India from circa 6th Century BCE : 1. All of them developed away from the capitals of mahajanapadas. 2. Major towns were located along routes of communication. 3. Many were bustling centres of commercial, cultural and political activity. How many of the above statements is/are correct ?
- (a)1
- (b)2
- (c)3
- (d)None
Correct — B, two statements. Statement 1 is wrong: many of the new towns of the sixth century BCE were themselves the capitals of mahajanapadas — Rajagriha (Magadha), Shravasti (Kosala), Champa (Anga) and Kaushambi (Vatsa) among them — so they did not develop 'away' from those capitals. Statement 2 is correct: major towns grew up along land and river routes of communication. Statement 3 is correct: these urban centres were busy hubs of commercial, cultural and political life. Statements 2 and 3 are correct, so the count is two.
- (a)1 — Undercounts — both statement 2 (towns along communication routes) and statement 3 (bustling commercial and political hubs) are correct, so at least two are right.
- (c)3 — Overcounts — statement 1 is false because several of these towns were the mahajanapada capitals themselves, not places away from them.
- (d)None — Wrong — statements 2 and 3 are clearly correct descriptions of the early urban centres.
From about the sixth century BCE India saw its 'second urbanisation' (the first being the Harappan cities), with towns emerging across the Ganga valley. Many coincided with the capitals of the mahajanapadas and with nodes on trade and communication routes.
The false statement plays on the word 'all' — an absolute claim is easy to disprove with a single counter-example, and here several famous towns were mahajanapada capitals rather than settlements away from them.
- The period from around the sixth century BCE is called India's second urbanisation, centred on the Ganga valley.
- Several major towns were the capitals of mahajanapadas — for example Rajagriha (Magadha), Shravasti (Kosala), Champa (Anga) and Kaushambi (Vatsa).
- Towns typically arose along river and land routes of trade and communication.
- The spread of iron tools and punch-marked coins accompanied the growth of these commercial urban centres.
- Falling for absolute words like 'all' — a single counter-example (a town that was a mahajanapada capital) makes such a statement false.
- Assuming towns were separate from political capitals — many capitals were themselves the leading towns.
A 'how many statements are correct' item — the sweeping statement using 'all' is usually the false one; verify each against known mahajanapada capitals.
Which one of the following was initially the most powerful city state of India in the 6th century B.C.?
- (a) Gandhar
- (b) Kamboj
- (c) Kashi
- (d) Magadh
Answer(c) Kashi — early in the sixth century BCE Kashi was the most dominant mahajanapada, before Kosala and then Magadha rose.
Set in the same sixth-century-BCE world of city-states and mahajanapadas whose capitals were among the urban centres this NDA question describes.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which of the following pairs of a mahajanapada and its capital is correctly matched?
- (a)Magadha and Shravasti
- (b)Kosala and Rajagriha
- (c)Vatsa and Kaushambi
- (d)Anga and Ujjayini
Answer(c) Vatsa and Kaushambi — Kaushambi was the capital of the Vatsa mahajanapada.
- practice — not a real PYQ
India's 'second urbanisation', marked by the rise of towns in the Ganga valley, is generally dated from about:
- (a)2500 BCE
- (b)1500 BCE
- (c)the 6th century BCE
- (d)the 3rd century CE
Answer(c) the 6th century BCE — the era of the mahajanapadas and the growth of Ganga-valley towns.