What is/are common to the two historical places known as Ajanta and Mahabalipuram?1.Both were built in the same period.2.Both belong to the same religious denomination.3.Both have rock-cut monuments.Select the correct answer using the code given below

1. A

   1 and 2 only

   Statement 1 (same period) and statement 2 (same religious denomination) are both false. Ajanta’s principal caves span Satavahana to Vakataka centuries (roughly 2nd century BCE to 5th–6th century CE) and are Buddhist; Mahabalipuram is largely Pallava, 7th–8th century CE, and Hindu (with some Jain). 1 and 2 only is not the key.

2. B

   3 only

   Statement 3 is correct: both places have rock-cut monuments — Ajanta’s chaitya and vihara caves cut into the Waghora scarp, and Mahabalipuram’s rathas, mandapas and the Descent of the Ganga relief. Statements 1 and 2 fail on date and faith. Hence 3 only is the official key.

3. C

   1 and 3 only

   Pairing same period with rock-cut work still fails because the two sites are centuries apart. 1 and 3 only is not the key.

4. D

   None of the statements given above is correct

   ‘None’ would deny the shared rock-cut character, which is true. This option is therefore wrong.

Summary. Official key is (b) 3 only. Ajanta and Mahabalipuram both display rock-cut architecture, which is the only common statement among the three. They do not belong to one period: Ajanta is earlier Buddhist cave work; Mahabalipuram is Pallava structural-and-cut stone on the Coromandel. They also do not share one religion. UNESCO lists both, but that does not make statements 1 or 2 true.