Two statements are given below. They are Assertion (A) and Reason (R). Read both the statements and choose the correct option :
Assertion (A) : The Indian subcontinent was a crucial point in 'Indian Ocean trade flows' during sixteenth century.
Reason (R) : Its geographical location connected East-West Asia and Europe.
Two statements are given below. They are Assertion (A) and Reason (R). Read both the statements and choose the correct option :
Assertion (A) : The Indian subcontinent was a crucial point in 'Indian Ocean trade flows' during sixteenth century.
Reason (R) : Its geographical location connected East-West Asia and Europe.
Options
Official answer
Option (A): Both (A) and (R) are true, and (R) correctly explains (A) — India's location connecting East and West Asia with Europe is precisely why it was central to Indian Ocean trade.
Marking scheme
- 1.1 mark: selecting option (A) — both (A) and (R) true, with (R) correctly explaining (A). No partial marks for MCQs.
Hint
Think about India's map position between the Arabian Sea/Africa and Southeast Asia/China — geography directly explains India's centrality in Indian Ocean trade.
Quick oral answer
Both statements are true and the Reason correctly explains the Assertion — India's central geographic location between East and West Asia made it a key hub of Indian Ocean trade in the sixteenth century.
Common mistakes
- 1.Marking option (B) by mistakenly assuming the Reason is a coincidental fact rather than a causal explanation.
- 2.Confusing pre-modern Indian Ocean trade with the post-Columbus Atlantic trade network discussed later in the same chapter.
- 3.Not recognising that India's coastline and monsoon winds were what physically enabled this trade, hence the Reason is indeed the correct explanation.
Analysis and explanation
Tests understanding of India's central role in pre-modern Indian Ocean trade from 'The Making of a Global World'.
Concept
- India's geographical location — bridging the Arabian Sea/East Africa in the west and Southeast Asia/China in the east — made it a pivotal node in Indian Ocean trade networks.
- Goods, people, customs, and crops moved along this route long before colonial-era globalization.
Key point
- Assertion (A) is true: India was central to sixteenth-century Indian Ocean trade flows.
- Reason (R) is true and correctly explains (A): its location connecting East–West Asia and Europe is exactly why it held this centrality.
Common mistakes
- Assuming (R) merely coexists with (A) rather than causally explaining it (wrongly picking option B).
- Doubting the truth of either statement, when NCERT evidence (e.g., cowrie currency, overlapping silk and maritime routes) confirms both.
Interesting facts
Cowries (sea shells used as currency), found in the Maldives, were transported via Indian Ocean trade routes as far as parts of Africa well before the sixteenth century.
Monsoon winds, understood and used by Arab and Indian sailors for centuries, made regular, predictable Indian Ocean voyages possible long before European ships arrived.
The NCERT chapter notes that by the sixteenth century, Indian textiles like cotton and silk were already traded in exchange for gold and spices to and from Europe via these established Asian trade networks.
Question details
Q2 of 57 questions
- Board
- CBSE
- Class
- Class 10
- Subject
- Social Science
- Year
- 2026
- Section
- Section A
- Marks
- 1
- Type
- MCQ
- Chapter
- The Making of a Global World
- Topic
- Pre-modern globalization and Indian Ocean trade
- Bloom's level
- understand
- Syllabus topic
- Unit 1: India and the Contemporary World – II — The Making of a Global World: Indian Ocean trade and India's geographical position
- Author
- CBSE
- Reviewed by
- Padhantu Academic Team
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Frequently asked questions
What made India central to Indian Ocean trade before the sixteenth century?
India's geographical position between the Arabian Sea/East African coast and Southeast Asia/China, combined with predictable monsoon winds, made it a natural hub connecting eastern and western trade routes.
Is this Assertion-Reason question testing the same idea as pre-Columbus globalization?
Yes, it links to the broader NCERT theme that trade, migration and cultural exchange existed long before the sixteenth-century European voyages, which the chapter calls a form of pre-modern globalization.