Previous Year Question

First came the Greeks: Around the decline of the Mauryan Empire, Bactrian Greeks or Indo-Greeks entered north-western India. From the first half of the second century BCE, Indo-Greek rulers established control over substantial parts of north-western India. Demetrius was among the early important Indo-Greek rulers, while Menander or Milinda was their most celebrated king, whose reign is generally dated to about 155–130 BCE.

Next came the Sakas: The Sakas were related to the Scythian peoples of Central Asia. During the first century BCE, they began establishing their power in north-western India. Maues or Moga was an early major Saka ruler in India. Later rulers such as Azes displaced Indo-Greek authority and established control over substantial areas of north-western India.

Then came the Kushans: The Kushans were a branch of the Yuezhi group. Following successive migrations from Central Asia, they established their power in north-western India around the first century CE. Kujula Kadphises was among the early Kushan rulers, and under Kanishka the Kushan Empire became a major power in northern India.

An important point in understanding this chronology is that it represents the order of their initial entry and political rise in India. It does not mean that the authority of an earlier group disappeared everywhere as soon as the next group arrived. For example, Saka Kshatrapas continued to rule in western India even during the period of Kushan predominance. Thus, there was some chronological overlap between these powers in different regions.