According to NCERT, the practice of erecting megaliths (burials marked by big stones) began in India about:

According to the NCERT history textbook, the practice of erecting megaliths began about 3,000 years ago.

What are megaliths?

"Megalith" means "big stone" (from the Greek "mega", big, and "lithos", stone).

Megaliths are stone structures, usually placed by people to mark burial sites.

They were often arranged carefully, and required a lot of effort to put in place.

Where they are found:

• Megaliths are widespread in the Deccan, south India, the north-east and Kashmir.
• Some important megalithic sites include Brahmagiri (Karnataka), Hire Benakal (Karnataka), Junapani (Maharashtra), and many sites in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.

Types of megalithic burials:

• "Cist burials": stone boxes placed in the ground.
• "Dolmens": large stone slabs placed on upright stones, like a table.
• "Menhirs": single standing stones.
• "Stone circles": circles of stones around a burial.
• "Urn burials": the dead placed in large clay pots.

What the burials tell us:

• The dead were usually buried with distinctive pots, called "Black and Red Ware".
• Other items found in megaliths include iron tools and weapons, skeletons of horses, horse equipment, and ornaments of stone and gold.
• Some burials have more objects than others, which suggests differences in social status.
• Some megaliths contain more than one skeleton, which suggests that people of the same family were buried in the same place, at different times.
• Megaliths are often associated with the beginning of the Iron Age in south India.

Living traditions:

In parts of north-east India, such as among the Khasi people of Meghalaya, the tradition of setting up stones in memory of the dead continued into recent times.

Why not the other options?

• ✗1,500, 5,000 and 8,000 years ago are not the dates given for the start of megaliths in India.