RAS question
The Chola system of local self-government is known from the inscriptions at:
Correct answer: (A) Uthiramerur.
The Chola system of local self-government is known from the Uthiramerur stone inscriptions in Kancheepuram district, Tamil Nadu.
Explanation
Uthiramerur is the correct site because its stone inscriptions preserve detailed evidence of local self-governance under the Cholas. These inscriptions describe village councils such as the Sabha and Ur, the qualifications expected of candidates, and the Kudavolai method of election, in which names were drawn by ballot from a pot. The official Tamil Nadu Rural Development and Panchayat Raj history page states that Tamil Nadu's long history of local self-governance is evident from the Uthiramerur stone inscriptions in Kancheepuram district. It also records that village councils reached their peak in the 10th and 11th centuries under the Cholas and that Kuda Olai Murai was used to elect council members.
Why the other options are wrong
- (B) Mahabalipuram is associated here with Pallava architecture, whereas the local self-government evidence is tied to the Uthiramerur stone inscriptions.
- (C) Kanchipuram was mainly a Pallava capital, while the question asks for the specific inscriptional site that records Chola village self-government.
- (D) Thanjavur inscriptions are linked here with temple administration, not with the village council election system described for Uthiramerur.
Concept
This tests inscriptional sources for medieval South Indian administration, especially Chola village institutions. It recurs in RAS because local self-government, election procedures and source-based history are standard links between ancient-medieval polity and Indian administrative traditions.