Consider the following statements :
- I.Pali texts contain the first definite references to coins, e.g., kahapana, nikkha, kamsa, and kakanika.
- II.The literary evidence from Pali texts is corroborated by archaeological evidence of punch-marked coins from many sites, most of them made of silver.
The above statements have been associated with which of the following ?
- 1.Emergence of urban life
- 2.Transition to money economy
Select the answer using the code given below :
Show answer
Answer: C. Both links hold. Coins and their use in Pali texts (kahapana, nikkha) show money changing hands, which marks the transition to a money economy. Coins and punch-marked silver finds at many sites also go with trade, towns and markets, i.e. the emergence of urban life (the second urbanisation). So both 1 and 2.
Watch for: Students treat coinage as only an economic fact and miss that it is a standard marker of the second urbanisation.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. Wrong because coins are also direct evidence of a money economy, not only of towns.
- B. Wrong because the spread of coinage is equally tied to the growth of towns and trade.
- D. Wrong because coins in texts and at excavated sites clearly relate to both processes.
Source to check: NCERT Class 12 'Themes in Indian History Part I', Chapter 2 'Kings, Farmers and Towns'; Upinder Singh, 'A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India', Chapter 6
Answer from the provisional UPSC key; it may change when the final key is out. Written and fact-checked by AI against the official key. Spotted a mistake? Report it.