Which of the following were among the five major political centers in the Mauryan empire?
(A) Pataliputra
(B) Kandahar
(C) Ujjayini
(D) Suvarnagiri
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → (A), (C) and (D) only
The Mauryan empire had five major political centres: the capital Pataliputra and the provincial centres Taxila, Ujjayini, Tosali and Suvarnagiri, all named in the inscriptions of Asoka.
(A) Pataliputra Correct. Near present-day Patna, it was the capital of the empire.
(B) Kandahar Incorrect. Asoka’s inscriptions (in Greek and Aramaic) were found there, in present-day Afghanistan, but it was not one of the five centres.
(C) Ujjayini Correct. Present-day Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh, a provincial centre on the route from north to south India.
(D) Suvarnagiri Correct. In present-day Karnataka, a provincial centre important for its gold mines.