SSC CGL Previous Year Questions: History (2023-20) - 1 with solutions -

Only Statement II is true.Drainage System of Harappan cities: There were covered drains on both sides of the streets. Streets with drains were laid out rst and then houses built along them. If domestic wastewater had to
flow into the street drains, every house needed to have at least one wall along a street.

Kalibangan and Lothal. Findings of different Indus valley civilization sites: Kalibangan - Lower fortied town, Boustrophedon style, Wooden drainage, Copper Ox, Evidence of earthquake, Wooden plough, Camel’s bone. Lothal - Port Town, Evidence of Rice, Graveyard, Ivory scale, Copper dog. Mohenjo-Daro - Prepared Garments, Temple-like Palace, Pashupati seal, Statue of a dancing girl, The Great Bath, The Great Granary etc

Mohenjo Daro is an archaeological site in the Sindh province of Pakistan. The meaning of Mohenjo Daro is The mound of the dead. It was discovered in 1922 by RD Banerjee. It was developed around 3000 BCE and it was the largest city of the ancient Indus Valley Civilization.

Indus river. List of Harappan civilisation and its location on River: Harappa (Ravi river), Lothal (Bhogava river), Kalibangan (Ghaggar River), Amri (Indus river), Chanhudaro (Indus river), Suktagendor (Dast river).

"Great bath" is a public water tank located in Mohenjo Daro (Pakistan). It was a large rectangular tank in a courtyard surrounded by a corridor on all four sides. There were two ights of steps on the north and south leading into the tank, which was made watertight by setting bricks on edge and using a mortar of gypsum. There were rooms on three sides, in one of which was a large well.

Burnt. Lothal is located near the Gulf of Cambay/ Gulf of Khambhat in Gujarat, on the bank of river Bhogavo, tributary of Sabarmati.

Neolithic. Pottery has been discovered in the early villages of Mehrgarh. The Palaeolithic (the rst and longest part of the Stone Age) was a period of prehistory when humans made stone tools. Mesolithic (microliths) was the period between the Paleolithic and Neolithic periods of the Stone Age.

Old stone age. Old stone age also known as the Paleolithic Period. Tools - handaxes, choppers and cleavers. The earliest lower Palaeolithic site - Bori (Maharashtra). Mesolithic age - Sites - Gujarat (Langhnaj), Rajasthan (Bhilwara, Bagor), Uttar Pradesh (Damdama, Chopani Mando), Madhya Pradesh (Pachmarhi, Bhimbetka), Karnataka (Sanganakallu). New stone age also known as Neolithic age. Tools - Weapons made of bones - needles, arrowheads, etc. Sites - Burzahom (Kashmir), Chirand (Bihar), Mehrgarh (Balochistan).

Gujarat. Dholavira : It was discovered in 1968 by J.P. Joshi in Rann of Kachchh in Gujarat. It is situated on the banks of river Luni. It has a fortied citadel, and a lower town with walls made of sandstone or limestone. The rst astronomical observatory of the Harappan Civilization is located in Dholavira.

Dholavira. Discovered in 1968 by archaeologist Jagat Pati Joshi. Fifth largest metropolis of Indus Valley Civilization, 40th Indian site on UNESCO’s World Heritage list. Surkotada: Discovered in 1964-68 by Jagat Pati Joshi, located in northeast Bhuj in Gujarat. Chanhudaro: Discovered in 1931 by N. G. Majumdar, located in Sindh, Pakistan. Sotka koh - Discovered by George F. Dales, located on the Makran coast, near the city of Pasni, Balochistan (Pakistan).

Madhya Pradesh. Bhimbetka Rock Paintings (UNESCO World Heritage Site, 2003) is located in the Vindhya ranges of Madhya Pradesh. It was discovered by V. S. Wakankar in 1957. The paintings at Bhimbetka belong to the Upper Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Chalcolithic, early historic, and medieval periods. The complex is surrounded by the Ratapani Wildlife Sanctuary.

Palaeolithic age. Large quantities of ostrich egg shells found at Patne, Maharashtra.

Daojali Hading - A neolithic site in Dima Hasao District of Assam. Situated near Brahmaputra valley close to routes leading into China and Myanmar. Artifacts found - Jadeite stone (must have been transported from China). 4 types of ceramic - cord-marked, incised, stamped, and plain ne red ware.

Neolithic. Catal Huyuk site located near the modern city of Konya in south central Turkey. Features - substantial size and great longevity of the settlement, distinctive layout of back-to-back houses with roof access. Neolithic sites in India - Marakdola, Daojali Hading and Sarutaru in Assam.

Karnataka. Gold ornaments are found at both Mohenjo-daro and Harappa. Harappa - Bullock cart, Granaries, Con burials (Only founded in Harappa), Terracotta gurines. Chanhudaro (only city without a citadel) - Bangle factory, Inkpot.

12000, 10000. The Mesolithic Period (Middle Stone Age) is the earliest Holocene culture. Feature: Microliths, technological innovations (bow and arrow for hunting, querns, grinders, etc.), Excavated sites (Tilwara, Bagor, Tarsang, Morkhana, Lekhahia, Birbhanpur, etc.). Paleolithic age (old stone age): Period - (500,000 – 10,000 BCE), Neolithic age (new stone age): Period - (7000 - 1000 BCE).

Hunasagi is a palaeolithic site of archaeological importance in India. Some Old Stone Age stone-cutting equipment has been found and kept in the Hunasagi Gram Panchayat office.

Rigveda. There are 1028 mantras in the Rigveda which include the unpromising Valakhilia hymns. They were composed in an archaic language (evolved into classical Sanskrit). The Rig Veda is the earliest of the four Vedas and one of the most important texts of the Hindu tradition. It is a large collection of hymns in praise of the gods, which are chanted in various rituals. Other Vedas:- Samaveda (The earliest reference for singing), Yajurveda (It is also called the book of prayers), Atharvaveda (The book of magic and charms).

Indra is the Vedic god of thunder, lightning, rain, and war. Rig Veda contains about 250 hymns in praise of Indra, and was also considered as chief god in it. Varuna is the Vedic god of the ocean, cosmic order, and law

Vitasta. Sapta Sindhu rivers and their ancient/alternate names - Indus (Sindhu, Singi Khamban), Jhelum (Hydaspes), Chenab (Asikini, Chandrabhaga), Ravi (Parushni, Airavati), Beas (Vipasha, Hyphasis), Sutlej (Sutudri, Zarodros) and the Saraswati river. Punjab was known as 'Sapta Sindhu' in the Vedic literature.

Indo-European - It includes Sanskrit, Assamese, Gujarati, Hindi, Kashmiri, and Sindhi.

Ten mandals (books). Rig Veda is the oldest of the four Vedas. It is a collection of 10,600 verses and 1,028 hymns. The Famous Gayatri mantra is in Rig Veda Mandala 3. Each mandala consists of Suktas which are basically eulogies.

Gotra originally referred to the seven lineage segments of the Brahmans (priests), who trace their derivation from seven ancient seers: Atri, Bharadvaja, Bhrigu, Gotama, Kashyapa, Vasishtha, and Vishvamitra.

Rigveda. The most commonly used portion of the Sukta contains 24 mantras or stanzas. Purusha Suktam is dedicated to Lord Vishnu, who is described as the great Purusha in the hymn. Purusha Suktam is one of the Pancha Suktam (5 Suktams) – Purusha Suktam, Vishnu Suktam, Sri Suktam, Bhu Suktam, and Nila Suktam.

Sanchi Stupa was built by the Mauryan emperor Ashoka in the 3rd century BC in Madhya Pradesh. It was declared a world heritage site by UNESCO in 1989. Dhamek Stupa - A Buddhist stupa located at Sarnath in Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh). Mahabodhi Stupa/Temple - Built on the original site of the Buddha’s enlightenment (Bodh Gaya, Bihar).

Gopura (Gopuram) - The gateway of a temple in southern India often : the massive tower resembling a pyramid above the gateway. Harmika - The stone balustrade surrounding the upper portion of a stupa. Anda is the Hemispherical dome. The chhatra (umbrella) is an auspicious symbol in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.

Pali. Pali canon, also called Tipitaka (Pali: “Triple Basket”), is the complete canon, rst recorded in Pali, of the Theravada (“Way of the Elders”) branch of Buddhism.

Sarnath is one of the famous Buddhist sites located in Uttar Pradesh. Sarnath is located near the conuence of the Ganges and the Varuna rivers.

Uttar Pradesh. Modern day names of other Mahajanapadas: Munger and Bhagalpur (Anga), Gaya and Patna (Magadha), Banaras (Kashi), Prayagraj (Vatsa), Malwa and Madhya Pradesh (Avanti), Rawalpindi (Gandhara), North Bihar (Vajji), Jaipur (Matsya), Meerut and Haryana (Kuru), Western Uttar Pradesh (Shurasena and Panchala), Bundelkhand region (Chedi), Rajouri, Hajra and North -West Frontier Province (Kamboja), Banks of Godavari (Asmaka or Assaka), Deoria and Uttar Pradesh (Malla).

Magadha. The earliest reference to the Magadha people occurs in the Atharvaveda, where they are found listed along with the Angas, Gandharis and Mujavats. Magadha (Capitals - Rajgriha and Pataliputra), Kosala (Sravasti), Anga (Champa) and Matsya (Viratnagar) were among the 16 Mahajanapadas.