Which of the following rivers had the ancient name Askini?

Question

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Correct — B, Chenab. In the Rigveda the Chenab is called Asikni (Askini), literally 'the dark one', and the Greeks who came with Alexander rendered the same name as Acesines. The river is born in Himachal Pradesh's Lahaul as two streams, the Chandra and the Bhaga, which meet at Tandi to form the Chandrabhaga — the Chenab — before flowing through the Jammu region into Pakistan. It is the largest of the five Punjab rivers by volume, and the Jhelum, Ravi and Satluj all deliver their water to the Indus through it.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) The Beas is the Vedic Vipasa (Greek Hyphasis) — the river at which Alexander's army refused to march further east. Not Asikni.  (c) The Jhelum is the Vedic Vitasta (Greek Hydaspes). This is the standard trap in this question — 'Asikni' is paired with the Jhelum far more often than with the Chenab in students' notes, but Vitasta is the Jhelum and Asikni is the Chenab.  (d) The Ravi is the Vedic Parushni, later Iravati (Greek Hydraotes) — the river on whose banks the Dasarajna, the Battle of Ten Kings, was fought.

Concept: Rigvedic geography is built around rivers, and the Nadistuti Sukta (Rigveda 10.75) actually lists them in order from east to west. Each of the five Punjab rivers therefore carries three names a student must be able to switch between: the Vedic name, the Greek name from Alexander's campaign, and the modern name. Askini/Asikni ('dark') is the Chenab, and the Greek Acesines is simply that word passed through Greek ears.

State PCS 2026 Q2 — Geography PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2026 Q2 — Geography PYQ with Answer