Question 80 from UPSC CSE 2020 - MEDIEVAL INDIA

Question

Which of the following phrases defines the nature of the Hundi generally referred to in the sources of the post-Harsha period?

IASCODEX · Accepted Answer

Correct Option: C. A bill of exchange

Strategy: Identify the economic and financial context within the question. The term 'Hundi' is distinct in Indian economic history, always associated with trade and finance, specifically as an instrument for money transfer. Frame the context around commercial transactions, not governance or administration. This approach directs towards options that align with Hundis facilitating bill-of-exchange functions in medieval India.

Key Info: A Hundi is a financial or negotiable instrument from the Indian subcontinent, developed long before modern banking. It functioned similarly to a bill of exchange, promissory note, or remittance order.

**Key Characteristics and Uses:**
*   **Historical Period**: Used extensively from early medieval to colonial periods.
*   **Purpose**: Served crucial roles in trade, money transfer, and credit provision, enabling merchants to securely remit funds across vast distances without physically transporting cash.
*   **Economic Impact**: Vital for facilitating long-distance trade networks and supporting bazaars and commercial hubs across India.
*   **Regulation**: Honored based on trust in the issuing party and operated outside direct state regulation, functioning on commercial custom.
*   **Nature**: Fundamentally commercial credit tools and precursors to some aspects of modern banking instruments, not records of daily accounts, royal orders, or administrative advisories.

**Variants of Hundis:**
*   **Darshani**: Payable on sight.
*   **Muddati**: Payable after a fixed period.
*   **Jokhami**: Linked to specific risks, such as goods in transit.

IASCODEX · Answer

Option A: An advisory issued by the king to his subordinates

IASCODEX · Answer

Option B: A diary to be maintained for daily accounts

IASCODEX · Answer

Option D: An order from the feudal lord to his subordinates