The government and Indian merchants of which city declared "Urbs Prima in Indis", a Latin phrase meaning, 'the most important city of India'?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Bombay
As its links with the world economy grew in the 1860s, the Bombay government and Indian merchants declared Bombay ‘Urbs Prima in Indis’, the most important city of India.
Note: This question is taken from the chapter ‘Colonial Cities’ which was there in the pre-rationalised NCERT and has been deleted from subsequent editions of NCERT, including the NCERT book (2026-27).
NCERT (Pre-rationalised): “4.3 Architecture in Bombay … In 1869 the Suez Canal was opened and this further strengthened Bombay’s links with the world economy. The Bombay government and Indian merchants used this opportunity to declare Bombay Urbs Prima in Indis, a Latin phrase meaning the most important city of India. By the late nineteenth century Indian merchants in Bombay were investing their wealth in new ventures such as cotton mills.…” |