The Bali Jatra fair, which recalls the ancient sea voyages of Indian merchants to Southeast Asia, is held in which state?
- A.Odisha
- B.West Bengal
- C.Gujarat
- D.Tamil Nadu
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is A, Odisha. Bali Jatra, meaning the voyage to Bali, is held at Cuttack on the bank of the Mahanadi on Kartik Purnima, when people float small paper and banana bark boats in memory of the merchants of Kalinga who sailed to Bali, Java, Sumatra and Borneo; the same day is marked as Boita Bandana. Option B is wrong because Bengal remembers its sea trade through Tamralipti and the Ganga delta, but holds no such fair. Option C is wrong because Gujarat, with Lothal and Bharuch behind it, celebrates no festival of this kind. Option D is wrong because Tamil Nadu recalls its maritime past through the Chola temples and the Masi Magam bathing festival rather than Bali Jatra. The pairing of Bali Jatra with Cuttack, the Mahanadi and Kartik Purnima is asked in both history and static general knowledge sections.
Read the full article: Ancient Ports of India and Maritime Trade: Exam Notes
Practice Questions
View allThe Harappan site of Lothal, known for the earliest dockyard in the subcontinent, is located in which present day state?
- A.Rajasthan
- B.Gujarat
- C.Maharashtra
- D.Haryana
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Lothal lies in the Bhal region of Gujarat, near the head of the Gulf of Khambhat, and was excavated by S. R. Rao.
Read the full explanation →Barygaza, the busiest western port in Greek and Roman accounts of India, is identified with which modern town?
- A.Bharuch
- B.Surat
- C.Mumbai
- D.Kochi
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It drained the trade of the Satavahana and Kshatrapa lands through the Narmada and Tapti valleys and sent out cotton cloth, long pepper, spikenard and gems.
Read the full explanation →The ancient port of Muziris, the chief pepper market of the Indo-Roman trade, lay on the coast of which present day state?
- A.Tamil Nadu
- B.Karnataka
- C.Kerala
- D.Andhra Pradesh
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Muziris, called Muchiri in Tamil sources, stood near Kodungallur on the Periyar, and the excavations at Pattanam in Ernakulam district have yielded Roman amphora sherds, glass beads and brick structures that fit its description in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea.
Read the full explanation →The site of Arikamedu, where Roman amphorae and rouletted ware were excavated, appears in the Periplus under which name?
- A.Poduke
- B.Nelcynda
- C.Tyndis
- D.Maisolia
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Arikamedu, on the Ariyankuppam river near Puducherry, is identified with the Poduke of the Periplus and the Poduke emporion of Ptolemy.
Read the full explanation →The ancient port of Tamralipti, from which Fa-Hien sailed for Sri Lanka, is in which present day state?
- A.Odisha
- B.West Bengal
- C.Bihar
- D.Andhra Pradesh
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Tamralipti is modern Tamluk in Purba Medinipur district, on the Rupnarayan river near its meeting with the Hooghly.
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