UGC NET Paper 2 History Mock Test - 5 - UGC NET MCQ

The correct answer is option 1 i.e. Kidarites.

The Kidarites were a dynasty that ruled Bactria, Central and South Asia. The people were called Huna in India and Xionites in Europe.

• The Kidarites consolidated their power between 390 and 410 CE around the end of the rule of Gupta Emperor Chandragupta II or beginning of the rule of Kumaragupta I.
• Bactria, Peshawar and Taxila were its capital cities.
• Kidara I was the first major ruler of the kingdom. His reign was from 350–390 CE.
• He created Sasanian-style gold and silver coins and Kushan-style gold coins, before issuing coins in his own name.
• The Hephthalites brought an end to the kingdom by 467 CE.

The correct answer is option 4 i.e.​​ Maravarman Rajasimha II

• Rajasimha-II was the son of Parantaka Viranarayana.
• In the battle of Velur - Rajasimha II received help from the Sri Lankan king Kassapa V, against Cholas king Parantaka I.
• After defeated by the Cholas, Rajasimha fled the Pandya country and stayed in Sri Lanka.

The correct answer is option 3 i.e.​Kapadapuram

• There were three Sangams (Gathering of Tamil poets) held in the Sangam age.
• The second Sangam was held at Kapadapuram in Tamil Nadu.
• The literature composed by poets in these seminars is called "Sangam literature".

The correct answer is Ibrahim Khan.

Key Points

• Ibrahim Khan built the tomb of Makhdoom Shah Daulat in Maner near Patna, Bihar.
• Makhdoom Shah Daulat died in Maner Sharif in 1608.
• The construction of the tomb was completed in 1616.
• Maner Sharif used to be the principal site of learning and knowledge in the region.
• It also houses a mosque constructed by Ibrahim Khan in 1619.
• Maner Sharif is a small town located 25 kilometres west of Patna on NH 30, in Bihar state, India.
• Maner Sharif shelters two very popular Muslim tombs: One of the tombs is of Sufi saint Makhdoom Yahya Maneri, known as the Bari Dargah (the great shrine).
• The other one is of Makhdum Shah Daulat, popularly called Chhoti Dargah (the small shrine).
• Ibrahim Khan was a veteran of Akbar's time and held various important offices of trust and responsibility in the empire including those of Wakil-i-dar (Paymaster of the Royal household) and governor of Bihar, and had already evinced his administrative ability and military talents.

The correct answer is 1 and 2 only.

Key Points

• The last and 24th Tirthankara of the Jainas, Vardhamana Mahavira also spread his message around this time, i.e. 2500 years ago.
• He was a Kshatriya prince of the Lichchhavis, a group that was part of the Vajji sangha.
• At the age of thirty, he left home and went to live in a forest.
• For twelve years he led a hard and lonely life, at the end of which he attained enlightenment.
• He taught a simple doctrine: men and women who wished to know the truth must leave their homes.
• They must follow very strictly the rules of ahimsa, which means not hurting or killing living beings.
• “All beings,” said Mahavira “long to live. To all things life is dear.”
• Followers of Mahavira, who were known as Jainas, had to lead very simple lives, begging for food, had to be honest, and were especially asked not to steal. Also, they had to observe celibacy.
• The basic philosophy of the Jains was already existing in north India before the birth of Mahavira in the 6th century BC.
• There were 23 Tirthankaras before Mahavira.
• The use of Prakrit by the Jainas supported the growth of the language.
• They used Prakrit language because it was the language of common people which helped them in the propagation of their doctrines to the grass-root level of the society.
• Various regional languages developed out of Prakrit language like Sauraseni which became the base of the Marathi language.
• The Jainas religious text was written in Ardhamagadhi. These texts were compiled in the 6th century at Vallabhi.
• They composed their earliest texts in Apabhramsa.
• They also wrote texts in Kannada which helped it to flourish rapidly.

• Jains believe that the only way to save one's soul is to protect every other soul, and so the most central Jain teaching, and the heart of Jain ethics, is that of ahimsa (non-violence).

Baul

• It is a folk music tradition native to the state of West Bengal.
• It has elements of Tantra, Sufism, Vaishnavism, and Buddhism. It is not adapted from the Afro-Arab music of Yemen. Hence, pair 1 is incorrect.
• It is practiced by Bauls - a syncretic religious sect of Vaishnavs and Sufis.
• It is part of UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Marfa

• It is a folk music tradition native to the state of Hyderabad.
• It was adapted from the Afro-Arab music of Yemen.
• It does not have elements of Tantra, Sufism, Vaishnavism, and Buddhism. Hence, pair 2 is incorrect.
• It was introduced in the 18th century by the Siddi community.

Mando

• It is a folk music tradition native to the state of Goa.
• It has themes of love, tragedy, and political resistance during Portuguese presence.
• Hence, pair 3 is correctly matched.

Accordingly, option (d) is correct.

It has often been said that Congress in the first twenty years was “moderate” in its objectives and methods.

Key Points

• During this period it demanded a greater voice for Indians in the government and in administration.
• It wanted the Legislative Councils to be made more representative, given more power and introduced in provinces where none existed.
• It demanded that Indians be placed in high positions in the government.
• For this purpose, it called for civil service examinations to be held in India as well, not just in London.
• ​The early Congress also raised a number of economic issues.
• It declared that British rule had led to poverty and famines: an increase in the land revenue had impoverished peasants and zamindars, and exports of grains to Europe had created food shortages.
• Congress demanded a reduction of revenue, a cut in military expenditure, and more funds for irrigation.
• It passed many resolutions on the salt tax, treatment of Indian labourers abroad, and the sufferings of forest dwellers – caused by an interfering forest administration.
• All this shows that despite being a body of the educated elite, Congress did not talk only on behalf of professional groups, zamindars or industrialists. ​
• The Moderate leaders wanted to develop public awareness about the unjust nature of British rule.
• They published newspapers, wrote articles, and showed how British rule was leading to the economic ruin of the country.
• However, the Moderates were opposed to the use of boycotts. They felt that it involved the use of force.

Thus, we can conclude that 'Moderates advocated boycott of foreign goods.' is not correct regarding the moderate leaders of the Indian National Congress.

• The Raigarh Fort was built by Shivaji Maharaj and was made capital in the year 1674.
• After it was captured by the Mughals in 1689 Satara was made the next capital of the Maratha Government.

The correct answer is Both 1 and 2.

In news

• Officials of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has said the restoration of Sher Shah Gate is in its final stages and would take another four to five months.

Key Points

• A substantial portion of Sher Shah Gate had collapsed in August 2012 and a brick wall was raised to support the structure.
• Close to nine years after the 16th century Sher Shah Gate in Central Delhi was partially damaged in heavy rains, the restoration work on the monument is still not complete.
• The restoration of the monument has now taken longer than the work involved in restoring Humayun’s Tomb, which took six years between 2007 and 2013.
• The original deadline for completion of work was 2015-16, as per a submission made in the Lok Sabha in March 2015 by then Union Minister of State for Culture Mahesh Sharma.
• The gate served as the southern entrance to Shergarh, a city built by Sher Shah Suri of the Sur dynasty during his reign as emperor of North India from 1540 to 1545. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• Shergarh was built when Sher Shah took control of the Mughal Empire after defeating Emperor Humayun in 1540. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• The Delhi circle of the ASI began work at the monument in 2015. However, a year later the agency created a subdivision called the ‘mini circle’, which divided jurisdiction over monuments in the city.

Surkotada has not yielded evidence of fire - worship. Key Points

• The archaeological site of Surkotada in Gujarat has not yielded any evidence of fire worship.
• However, the sites of Kalibangan, Banawali, and Lothal in Rajasthan, Haryana, and Gujarat, respectively, have all provided substantial evidence of fire worship through the discovery of fire altars.
• These altars, constructed from brick or stone, are frequently located at the centre of houses or in communal spaces.
• They are believed to have served ritualistic purposes, possibly as a means of venerating fire deities or seeking divine favour.
• The identification of fire altars at these locations is of considerable importance as it furnishes insights into the religious practices of the Indus Valley Civilization.
• Fire held profound sacred significance in various ancient cultures, often symbolizing fertility, purification, and safeguarding.
• The existence of fire altars at these sites implies that the inhabitants of the Indus Valley Civilization also esteemed fire as a divine element.
• Alongside fire altars, the archaeological sites of Kalibangan, Banawali, and Lothal have unveiled other artefacts indicative of religious activities.
• These include depictions of deities in the form of figurines, seals engraved with religious motifs, and remnants of ceremonial baths.
• These findings propose that the people of the Indus Valley Civilization adhered to an intricate and refined system of religious beliefs.
• The absence of fire altars at Surkotada should not be hastily construed as an absence of fire worship among its inhabitants.
• It is plausible that they indeed engaged in fire worship, albeit without currently discernible evidence.
• The potential for future excavations at Surkotada to shed light on the religious practices of this significant site remains promising.

The Ryotwari Settlement concerns with annual agreements which was made among cultivators for sake of Pattas. Further it is noticed that Government was Landlord and peasants were Land Owners which possess patta by paying annual cash rents, making statements 1 and 2 correct. Statement 3 is also correct as and revenue was assessed as per fertility of land where average assessment in cash would be Re. 1/acre.

Despatch empathized both on higher and primary education. Further Universities in Calcutta, Madras, Bombay were proposed on the model of London university. It also proposed setting up of Vernacular primary schools in the villages followed by Anglo-vernacular high schools and affiliated colleges at district level.

Second statement of correct. In respond to controversy as to use of government fund, Macaulay in his famous minute supported education of and in English rather than Orinetal literature. Thus vernacular languages were to be developed as ancillary to the the teachings in English.

Taluqdar literally means “one who holds a taluq” or a connection. Taluq came to refer to a territorial unit. Benami, literally anonymous, is a term used in Hindi and several other Indian languages for transactions made in the name of a fictitious or relatively insignificant person, whereas the real beneficiary remains unnamed. Lathyal, literally means one who weilds the lathi or stick, functioned as a strongman of the zamindar.

In 1908 Prafulla Chaki and Khudiram Bose threw a bomb at the carriage that they thought was transporting the unpopular Judge Kingsford of Muzzafarpur. However, due to misinformation they attacked Mr Kennedy and in the blast his wife and daughter were killed. The duo were tried in Muzzafarpur Conspiracy Case.

The Alipore Bomb Case, also called Muraripukur conspiracy or the Manicktolla bomb conspiracy was the trial of a number of revolutionaries of the Anushilan Samiti in Calcutta.

Among the famous accused were Aurobindo Ghosh, his brother Barin Ghosh as well as 37 other Bengali nationalists of the Anushilan Samiti.

The Kakori Conspiracy was a train robbery that took place between Kakori and, near Lucknow, on 9 August 1925. The robbery was organised by the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA). The robbery was conceived by Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan who belonged to the HRA, which later became the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association. This organisation was established to carry out revolutionary activities against the British Empire in India with the objective of achieving independence. Since the organisation needed money for purchase of weaponry, Bismil and his party decided to plunder a train on one of the Northern Railway lines.

Samudragupta was a ruler of the Gupta Empire of Ancient India.

Key Points

Samudragupta’s policy towards the rulers of Dakshinapatha:

• So far the rulers of Dakshinapatha were concerned, Samudragupta maintained a submissive attitude towards them.
• There were twelve rulers who surrendered to Samudragupta after being defeated.
• He then allowed all of them to rule again.

Hence, the correct answer is They surrendered after being defeated and then were allowed to rule again.

Additional Information

• On accepting the subjugation of Samudragupta, all the South Indian kings were freed and also offered their daughters in marriage.
• They brought tribute, followed his orders, and attended his court.
• Samudragupta (335-376 BC) was the great ruler of the Gupta dynasty, he was the successor of Chandragupta I.
• The most important source of information about the conquests of Samudragupta is the 'Allahabad Pillar' or 'Prayag Prasasti'.

The role of arches in arcuate architecture was to carry the weight of the superstructure.

Important Points A stylistic development in the construction of 12th-century architecture was the use of Arches.

• The construction of buildings using arches is known as arcuate architecture.

• The weight of the superstructure above the doors and windows was carried by arches.

• The construction of buildings using beams and columns is known as trabeate architecture.

• This design was used in the construction of temples, mosques, tombs, and in buildings attached to large stepped-wells.

Additional Information

Between the eighth and the eighteenth centuries kings and their officers built two kinds of structures:

1. the first were forts, palaces, garden residences
2. structures meant for public activity including temples, mosques, tanks, wells, caravanserais, and bazaars

• Monuments provide an insight into the technologies used for construction.
• Between the seventh and tenth centuries, architects started adding more rooms, doors, and windows to buildings.
• Limestone cement was increasingly used in construction.

Both the given statements (A) and (R) are false.

Important Points

• In Akbar’s reign, the jagirs were carefully assessed so that their revenues were roughly equal to the salary of the mansabdar.
• During Aurangzeb’s reign, this was no longer the case and the actual revenue collected was often less than the granted sum.
• There was also a huge increase in the number of mansabdars, which meant a long wait before they received a jagir.
• These and other factors created a shortage in the number of jagirs.
• As a result, many jagirdars tried to extract as much revenue as possible while they had a jagir.

• Aurangzeb was unable to control these developments in the last years of his reign and the peasantry therefore suffered tremendously.

Thus, we can conclude that both the given statements (A) and (R) are false.

• Diplomacy: This was a key strategy in negotiating with the rulers of princely states, convincing them to accede to the Indian Union through agreements and discussions that often included provisions for their rights and privileges post-integration.
• Persuasion: Persuasion involved convincing the rulers of the benefits of becoming part of the Indian Union, focusing on economic, social, and security benefits, while also addressing concerns and hesitations they might have had about losing their sovereign status.
• Military intervention: In cases where diplomacy and persuasion did not result in the desired outcome, military intervention was used as a last resort. Notably, this approach was taken in Hyderabad through "Operation Polo" to integrate the state into the Indian Union when peaceful negotiations failed.

Additional Information

• A plebiscite refers to the direct vote of all the members of an electorate on an important public question such as a change in the constitution or in this context, deciding the fate of a territory (whether it should join one country or another).
• While plebiscites are an important democratic tool, they were not widely used as a strategy in the integration of princely states into the Indian Union.
• The integration process was primarily managed through negotiations and agreements between the leaders of the Indian government and the rulers of the princely states, with persuasion, diplomacy, and in a few cases, military intervention being the key strategies.

• "The Story of the Integration of the Indian States" is authored by V. P. Menon (Vapal Pangunni Menon).
• V. P. Menon was a key civil servant and right-hand man of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, and he played a significant role in the negotiation process that led to the integration of the princely states into the Indian Union after independence in 1947.
• His book provides a detailed account of the strategies and negotiations involved in this complex political and administrative task

Additional Information

• Vapal Pangunni Menon, commonly known as V. P. Menon, was a significant figure in Indian history, particularly during the period leading up to and immediately following India's independence from British rule in 1947.

• Born in 1893, Menon rose from humble beginnings to become one of the highest-ranking Indian officials in the British Indian administration.

• He is best known for his close association with Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the then Home Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of India. As Patel's right-hand man, Menon played a pivotal role in the process of integrating the princely states into the Indian Union, an operation that was crucial to the formation of the Republic of India as a cohesive and unified nation.

• Menon held the positions of Reforms Commissioner and Secretary in the Ministry of States. His excellent negotiation skills and deep understanding of both the Indian princely states and British administrative system were instrumental in persuading the rulers of the princely states to accede to India.

• V. P. Menon is the author of two seminal works on this period of Indian history: "The Transfer of Power in India" and "The Story of the Integration of the Indian States." These books provide invaluable insights into the political and administrative challenges faced by India during its transition from British rule to independence and the subsequent unification of its diverse regions.

• Menon's legacy is that of a key architect of India's unity, remembered for his dedication, strategic acumen, and the pivotal role he played in shaping the newly independent nation. He passed away in 1966, leaving behind a lasting impact on India's historical and political landscape.

The correct answer is Naqshbandi.

Key Points

• Naqshbandi sect was believed to be the most orthodox among Sufi sects.
• It is the Sunni order of Sufism. It was one of the four major Sufism sects in India including Chisti, Qadriyya, Suhrawardiyya.
• It got its name from Baha-Ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari and traces its spiritual lineage to the Islamic prophet Muhammad through Abu Bakr, who was father-in-law, companion, and successor of Muhammad.
• Abu Bakr was the first Caliph of Sunni Islam.

• Mughal architecture retained features from Sultanate architecture such as the arch, dome and vault. The bulbous dome and rectangular gardens were inspired later from Central Asia and Iran. Hence, statements 1 and 3 are incorrect.
• Features were adopted from provinvial styles of Gujarat, Malwa, Rajasthan, Bengal and Sharqi kingdom (Jaunpursultanate). Hence, statements 2 is correct.
  

Features of Mughal Architecture

• Bulbous domes
• Minarets (pillars) with Cupolas (chhatris)
• Use of red sandstone and white marble
• Vaulted gateways
• Arches
• Rectangular gardens (Persian Charbagh)

In the 19th century, India witness the emergence of several socio-religious reform movements. One such movement was the Prarthana Samaj which emerged in Bombay and went on to wield a good deal of influence in western India and to a lesser extent, in southern India.

Founded by Atmaram Panduranga, the movement gained momentum and popularity after scholar and reformer, Mahadev Govind Ranade, joined it.

Ramosi rebellion was done in 1825-26 under the leadership of Chittur Singh around the Satara Area of Maharashtra.

Seethalai Saathanaar was the author of the book ‘Manimekalai’. The book is a poem in 30 cantos. Its story is a sequel of an epic ‘Silappatikaram’ that tells the story of the conversion to Buddhism of the daughter of Kovalan and Madhavi.

The Pallava kings constructed a number of stone temples in the seventh and eighth centuries for housing Gods. The most famous of them are:

1) Seven Ratha Temple: It was founded at Mahabalipuram by Narasimhavarman in seventh century. He also founded the port city of Mahabalipuram or Mamallapuram.

2) Kailashnath Temple: It was founded at Kanchipuram by Rajasimha in eight century. It is dedicated to Lord Shiva.

Jama Masjid is also known as ‘Shan-i-Fatehpur’.

Many steps that were in the interest of the people were taken by the Mughal ruler, Akbar; one of them was the end of pilgrimage tax.

Bhagat Singh was convicted and executed at the young age of 23 for his involvement in the assassination of John Saunders (Lahore Conspiracy Case). Saunders was a British police officer. Bhagat Singh and his comrades sought revenge for the death of Lala Lajpat Rai which was caused by brutal police. They were convicted after a trial by s Special Tribunal which sentenced them to death by hanging. On 23 March, 1931, Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev were executed.

Treaty of Bassein was a pact signed in 1802 between the British East India Company and Baji Rao II, the Maratha Peshwa of Pune. In 1803, Raghoji II Bhonsle of Nagpur signed the Treaty of Deogaon with British. Treaty of Surji Anjangaon was signed on December 30, 1803 between the British and Daulat Rao Sindhia.

Trading was the primary objective of the British East India Company. Gradually they started realizing the benefit of building an empire in India. And eventually, they came into power by winning different battles.