The irrigation device called 'Araghatta' was

(a) a water bag made of leather pulled over a pulley
(b) a large wheel with earthen pots tied to the outer ends of its spokes ✓ UPSC's answer
(c) a larger earthen pot driven by bullocks
(d) a large water bucket pulled up by rope directly by hand

Why the answer is (b)

• The araghatta, later known as the Persian wheel (rahat), was the chief irrigation device of early medieval India, mentioned in texts from the Gupta period onward.

• It consisted of a large wheel with earthen pots tied around its rim or spokes; as the wheel turned, the pots dipped into a well or channel and emptied into a trough at the top — option (b).

• Its later improvement, the geared saqiya driven by bullocks, spread widely in the Sultanate period and greatly expanded irrigated cultivation.

• Option (a) describes the charas or leather bucket lifted over a pulley; option (d) is simple hand-lifting; option (c) is not a recognised device.

• Hence option (b).

Why the other options are wrong

(a) a water bag made of leather pulled over a pulley: A leather bag over a pulley is the charas, not the araghatta.
(c) a larger earthen pot driven by bullocks: No such bullock-driven single pot device is described in the sources.
(d) a large water bucket pulled up by rope directly by hand: Hand-lifting a bucket is not the araghatta, which was a wheel of pots.

Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2025, held on 25 May 2025. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.