With reference to the history of Indian rock-cut architecture, consider the following statements: 1). The canvas at Badami are the oldest surviving rock-cut caves in India. 2). The Barabar rock-cut caves were originally made for Ajivikas by Emperor Chandragupta Maurya. 3). At Ellora, caves were made for different faiths. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

Only statement 3 is correct, so C is right. Ellora (Maharashtra, mainly Rashtrakuta period, 6th to 10th century CE) has 34 caves carved for Buddhist, Hindu and Jain traditions side by side, which is why it is cited as a model of religious pluralism in rock-cut architecture.

• Statement 1 is wrong. Badami's caves (Karnataka, Chalukya dynasty, 6th century CE) are cut into a sandstone cliff and are Hindu and Jain, but they are not the oldest. The earliest surviving rock-cut caves are the Mauryan Barabar caves in Bihar.
• Statement 2 is wrong. The Barabar caves were commissioned by Emperor Ashoka, with Dasharatha, his grandson, adding some, for the Ajivika sect around the 3rd century BCE. Chandragupta Maurya is not associated with them.

Core concept: the transition from structural to rock-cut architecture and the patronage pattern of the Mauryan, Satavahana, Chalukya and Rashtrakuta periods. For Mains, link this to how royal patronage and religious pluralism shaped art forms, a recurring GS-I theme.

Trap: Candidates assume Badami is the earliest because it is the famous Chalukyan cave group. Mauryan Barabar comes first chronologically.