After the fall of the Guptas, different kingdoms emerged in various parts of India. Among them, the Maukharis emerged in which of the following areas?

Correct — D. The Maukharis ruled from Kannauj (Kanyakubja) in western Uttar Pradesh, the city that displaced Pataliputra as the political centre of north India after the Guptas fell.

Their line ended with Grahavarman, whose marriage to Rajyashri tied them to the Pushyabhutis of Thanesar. Harshavardhana afterwards shifted his own capital to Kannauj.

Option (d) names the Maukhari seat.

Why the others are wrong

• (a)
  Thanesar — Thanesar in Haryana was the seat of the Pushyabhutis, Harshavardhana's own house, not of the Maukharis.
• (b)
  Valabhi — Valabhi in Saurashtra was the capital of the Maitrakas, former Gupta feudatories in western India and patrons of a famous Buddhist centre of learning.
• (c)
  Kunnur — Kunnur is not a post-Gupta capital at all. It is in the list because it looks and sounds like Kannauj.

The Gupta collapse in the sixth century left north India split among successor houses, most of them former Gupta feudatories or neighbours.

The Maukharis held Kannauj and the Ganga doab. The Pushyabhutis held Thanesar in Haryana. The Maitrakas held Valabhi in Saurashtra, and the later Guptas held Magadha.

Kannauj's rise matters well beyond this question. Its command of the doab made it the prize of the Tripartite Struggle fought by the Palas, Pratiharas and Rashtrakutas two centuries later.

Key facts

• The Maukharis ruled from Kannauj, also called Kanyakubja, in western Uttar Pradesh.
• The Pushyabhutis of Thanesar were Maukhari contemporaries and took over Kannauj under Harshavardhana.
• The Maitrakas ruled from Valabhi in Saurashtra.

Common traps

• Pairing Thanesar with the Maukharis when it belongs to the Pushyabhutis.
• Assuming Kannauj was Harsha's inherited capital rather than one he moved to.

No directly related past PYQ was found.