CAPF AC 2025 Q43: Medieval History – Medieval Administration & Socio - Economic Institutions
- (a) Duarte Barbosa
- (b) Abdur Razzaq
- (c) Afanasy Nikitin
- (d) Niccolo Conti
Answer: (a) Duarte Barbosa
Explanation
Earliest reference to the seed drill in India
How to think: the traveller must have visited the Karnataka (Kanara) coast.
The Portuguese Duarte Barbosa, who wrote about the Indian coast around 1514-18, is credited with the earliest reference to the seed drill there.
| Traveller | Visit to India | Region |
|---|---|---|
| Duarte Barbosa | Portuguese, early 16th century | Malabar and Kanara coast |
| Abdur Razzaq | Persian envoy, 1443 | Calicut and Vijayanagara |
| Afanasy Nikitin | Russian merchant, 1469-74 | Deccan (Junnar, Bidar), not the Karnataka coast |
| Niccolo Conti | Italian, 1420s | Vijayanagara and Malabar |
Nikitin's account of ploughing and sowing is about the Deccan interior, not the Karnataka coast.
Bank key corrected: the stored key was (c) Afanasy Nikitin; the right answer is (a) Duarte Barbosa.
Answer: (a) Duarte Barbosa.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) CORRECT. Barbosa reported the seed drill on the Karnataka coast.
- (b) Incorrect. Abdur Razzaq wrote about Calicut and Vijayanagara and is not tied to the seed drill.
- (c) Incorrect. Nikitin travelled in the Deccan interior, not along the Karnataka coast.
- (d) Incorrect. Conti is known for his account of Vijayanagara, not for the seed drill.
Key point
Duarte Barbosa, The Book of Duarte Barbosa (c. 1518): earliest reference to the seed drill in India (Kanara coast). Seed drill: gorru in Telugu, a tool for sowing in lines. Medieval travellers: Conti, Abdur Razzaq, Nikitin, Barbosa, Paes, Nuniz.
Remember
Seed drill, Karnataka coast: Barbosa.
Common mistakes
- Choosing Nikitin, who left a detailed account of sowing in the Deccan but did not visit the Karnataka coast.
- Mixing up the order of the travellers: Conti (1420s), Razzaq (1443), Nikitin (1470s), Barbosa (1510s).
- Assuming the seed drill came to India from Europe.
Exam tip
Educated guess: a traveller who wrote about 'the Karnataka coast' must have sailed along it, as Portuguese sailors like Barbosa did. Nikitin, Razzaq and Conti are better known for inland cities.
Sources
- Duarte Barbosa, The Book of Duarte Barbosa (translated by M. L. Dames, Hakluyt Society, 1918-21)
- Irfan Habib, Technology in Medieval India (c. 650-1750) (Tulika Books, 2008), on the seed drill