Prelims 2026 · Q7
Consider the following statements relating to the use of the place-value system in India:
- 1.The earliest epigraphic use of the place-value system in India is found in the Mankani plates from Gujarat (AD 595–596).
- 2.In the ninth century, place-values become general in inscriptions all over India.
- 3.The place-values have been found in Sanskrit inscriptions in South-east Asia as early as the seventh century.
Which of the statements given above are correct?
- (a)1 and 2 only
- (b)1 and 3 only
- (c)2 and 3 only
- (d)1, 2 and 3
Show answer
UPSC's provisional answer: (d)
NCERT covers the topic; the answer comes from UPSC's key: Class 11 Knowledge Traditions and Practices of India, ch 6, says the decimal place-value system was invented and first used in India — but not where it first appears in inscriptions. UPSC's answer is (d), so all three statements are correct. The Mankani plates of Gujarat (AD 595–596) are the earliest inscription in India to use it. Place-values were common in Indian inscriptions by the ninth century, and South-east Asian Sanskrit inscriptions used them from the seventh. Answer (d).
NCERT covers the topic (not the answer): Class 11 Knowledge Traditions and Practices of India, Part I, Ch 6 (Mathematics in India).
Hindi version: UPSC's official question paper (2026), question 7 ↗