Previous Year Question

Option (a) is correct. The Ajanta Caves were excavated into a vertical cliff above the left bank of the Waghora River in Maharashtra. There are 30 caves, including the unfinished ones. Five—Caves 9, 10, 19, 26 and 29—are chaityagrihas, while the remainder are principally viharas.

Construction at Ajanta occurred in two major phases. The first phase, approximately from the second century BCE to the first century BCE, is associated with the Satavahana period. The second phase developed during the fifth and sixth centuries CE under the Vatsagulma branch of the Vakatakas. The site presents an exceptional combination of Buddhist architecture, sculpture and mural painting.

Option (b) is incorrect. The Buddhist monuments at Sanchi in Madhya Pradesh stand on a hill overlooking the plain; they are not situated in the gorge of the Chambal River. Besides stupas, the Sanchi complex contains temples, monasteries and an Ashokan pillar.

Option (c) is incorrect. Pandu-lena or Pandavleni is also known as the Trirashmi Caves. These are 24 Buddhist rock-cut caves in the Trirashmi Hills near Nashik in Maharashtra; they do not lie in the gorge of the Narmada River. The complex contains viharas, chaityagrihas, stupas, inscriptions and water cisterns.

Option (d) is incorrect. Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh is situated on the right bank of the Krishna River, not in the gorge of the Godavari River. Its Mahachaitya and the Amaravati school of sculpture occupy an important place in the history of Indian Buddhist art.