Which one of the following statements about Ashoka's inscriptions is correct ? (a) The Major Rock Edict found in Kerala is in Sanskrit. (b) Minor Rock Edicts in Bihar are found only in Pataliputra. (c) The Dhauli Major Rock Edict makes a mention of the Kalinga War. (d) Kalsi in Uttarakhand is a site of Major Rock Edicts.

Ashoka's inscriptions were primarily written in Prakrit using the Brahmi script, with no Major Rock Edicts found in Kerala or written in Sanskrit [2]. While Major Rock Edicts exist in Odisha at Dhauli and Jaugada, these specific sites contain 'Separate Kalinga Edicts' which omit the description of the Kalinga War found in Major Rock Edict XIII to avoid reminding the local populace of the conquest's trauma [1]. Minor Rock Edicts in Bihar are found at sites like Sasaram (Chandan Shahid), not exclusively in Pataliputra. Statement (d) is correct as Kalsi, located in the Dehradun district of Uttarakhand, is a well-documented site of a set of the 14 Major Rock Edicts [2]. These edicts defined the northern extent of the Mauryan Empire and were strategically placed near population centers or trade routes [1].

Sources

1. [2] Exploring Society:India and Beyond ,Social Science-Class VII . NCERT(Revised ed 2025) > Chapter 5: The Rise of Empires > THINK ABOUT IT > p. 105
2. [1] History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 4: Emergence of State and Empire > Edicts of Ashoka > p. 52