Q. Which of the following was not one of the reasons for gradual weakening of the Mauryan finances?
(a) Need for vast revenues to maintain a huge but inactive army
(b) Need for finances to maintain a very large bureaucracy
(c) Unfavourable balance of trade with foreign countries
(d) The strain on the exchequer of Ashoka’s charitable public works
Ans: (c) Unfavourable balance of trade with foreign countries
