Old NCERT (RS Sharma): Indus Valley CIvilization - UPSC History Free MCQ

The correct answer is Option D - Dholavira and Lothal

Dholavira yielded a rare large-scale inscription: a panel of ten symbols of the Harappan script carved on white stone, likely used as a signboard, and the site was laid out in three divisions protected by massive stone walls.

The Harappan script recovered at Dholavira is still undeciphered, so the precise content of the signboard remains unknown, but its size and material make it a distinctive find among Harappan sites.

Lothal is well known for its engineered tidal dockyard: a carefully constructed basin with a designed inlet and outlet to regulate water level and permit maritime access near the Gulf of Khambhat, alongside adjoining workshops and a warehouse area indicating its role in trade and craft production.

The correct answer is Option C - Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect.

Statement I is correct because archaeobotanical evidence from Indus sites shows cultivation of wheat and barley along with pulses, oilseeds and millets; wheat and barley were grown as rabi (winter) crops that fit the region's seasonal rainfall pattern.

The phrase "drought-resistant" is imprecise for these cereals; their success in the region reflected sowing in the cooler, moister season and selection of varieties suited to local conditions rather than innate resistance to prolonged drought.

Statement II is incorrect because multiple archaeological features indicate planned water management and irrigation rather than sole dependence on rainfall.

Evidence includes stone-lined wells and water-storage structures at several sites, large reservoirs and channels at Dholavira, engineered waterworks and a dock-channel complex at Lothal, and field-management features and drains observed at major settlements.

Additional indicators such as toy and depictions of the plough and large storage granaries at sites like Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa show organized cultivation, water control and grain storage-practices inconsistent with an economy wholly dependent on unassisted rain-fed agriculture.

Thus, on independent factual evaluation, Statement I is correct and Statement II is incorrect, which makes Option C the correct choice.

Correct Option - The correct option label i.e. B

The correct answer is Option B - 2 only

Statement 1 is incorrect. Archaeological evidence shows that metals and precious stones used in Harappan craft production were generally sourced from distant regions rather than being available locally in abundance. For example, copper came from areas corresponding to present-day Rajasthan and from regions like Oman; gold is believed to have been obtained from parts of present-day Karnataka; and semi-precious stones were acquired from areas including present-day Gujarat, Iran and Afghanistan.

Statement 2 is correct. Tin was not available in the Indus valley itself and was imported from western and northwestern source regions (for example, parts of Afghanistan and Iran); this tin was then alloyed with copper to produce bronze, which was used for tools and artefacts.

These conclusions are consistent with the broader archaeological picture of specialised urban craft production supported by extensive overland and maritime trade, which brought essential raw materials to Harappan cities.

The correct answer is Option - 2 and 3 only

Statement 1 is incorrect because the inscriptions found are generally very short and confined to small objects; archaeologists have not recovered long continuous inscriptions from the Harappan corpus.

Statement 2 is correct; the bulk of the corpus appears on seals and other small artefacts, and individual inscriptions are brief-commonly around 4-6 signs-among a total of roughly about 4,000 inscribed objects.

Statement 3 is correct; the writing system is largely pictographic or logographic with approximately about 400 distinct signs identified, and it is not an alphabetical script; moreover, the script remains undeciphered, so an alphabetic nature has not been established.

Thus, only the second and third statements are correct.

The correct answer is Option B - Only two

Statement 1 is correct: the Great Bath at Mohenjo-daro was constructed with brickwork, coated with plaster and rendered watertight by a layer of bitumen (natural tar); it had steps and surrounding rooms and was used for ritual or communal bathing.

Statement 2 is incorrect: evidence of brick platforms interpreted as fire altars has been found at Kalibangan and at Lothal, so Kalibangan is not the only site with such remains.

Statement 3 is incorrect: archaeological finds show that Harappan people knew and used both gold and silver (along with copper and bronze) for ornaments and vessels.

Statement 4 is correct: Dholavira is distinct for its three-part urban layout-commonly described as citadel, middle town and lower town-each protected by massive stone walls and gateways.

Since statements 2 and 3 are incorrect and statements 1 and 4 are correct, the number of incorrect statements is 2.

The correct answer is Option B - Only two

The first statement is correct because excavations recovered precisely shaped chert objects used as standardized stone weights, indicating their use in measurement and trade.

The second statement is correct because large numbers of worked carnelianbeads and evidence of bead-making workshops have been found at Harappan sites, showing carnelian was widely used for beads.

The third statement is incorrect because archaeological finds include gold ornaments (for example, necklaces and earrings) from sites such as Mohenjo-daro and Lothal, so gold was used by the civilisation.

Thus, two statements are correct, so Option B is the correct choice.

The correct answer is Option C - Statement-I is correct but Statement-II is incorrect.

Statement-I is correct because archaeological remains show cultivation of crops such as wheat and barley, which were sown in the cooler season (rabi) along with pulses and oilseeds; summer/sown crops like millet and rice were also grown, indicating knowledge of suitable crops for different seasons and moisture conditions.

Statement-II is incorrect because evidence from Harappan sites shows planned water management and not sole dependence on rainfall; features such as wells, evidence of reservoirs and channels, and city drainage systems indicate deliberate irrigation and water-storage practices to support agriculture.

Additional archaeological evidence supporting this interpretation includes the use of the plough for tillage, remains of stored grains in granaries, and signs of mixed farming with animal husbandry, all of which point to organized agrarian production combining both rain-fed and irrigated methods rather than exclusive reliance on rainfall.

The correct answer is Option B - Only two

Dancing Girl is a bronze figurine from Mohenjo-daro; it was made of bronze using the lost-wax (cire-perdue) casting technique, so this identification is correct.

Archaeological evidence for early cotton cultivation in the subcontinent comes from Mehrgarh (around 7000 years ago), and Indus sites yield fragments of cotton and tools related to textile production such as spindle whorls; Lothal is located beside a tributary of the Sabarmati River, close to the Gulf of Khambat, and was associated with craft production and trade in semi-precious stones, so this identification is correct.

The third item refers to a site best understood as a specialised craft and manufacturing centre for beads, shell and metal objects (for example Chanhudaro); it did not possess a prominent central storehouse containing numerous seals and sealings as described. While seals and sealings occur widely at Indus urban sites, the specific claim about a storehouse with many seal impressions at this craft centre is not supported by the archaeological record, so this identification is incorrect.

Since two statements are factually correct and one is incorrect, the number of correct matches is two.

The correct answer is Option C - 1 and 3 only

Harappan seals do provide important clues for reconstructing aspects of belief and ritual because they depict recurring motifs - for example, animal figures, plant motifs and scenes with human figures - that suggest symbolic or ritual meanings; such evidence is used cautiously to infer religious practices.

The identification of the seated figure on some seals as "Proto-Shiva" is a hypothesis based on certain iconographic similarities, but it is not identical to the Rudra of the Rigveda; the Rigvedic Rudra is described differently and is not depicted in later Shaiva roles such as Pashupati or explicitly as a yogic figure, so the claim of complete similarity is not supported.

Monumental features such as the Great Bath at Mohenjo-daro and the fire altars reported at sites like Kalibangan and Lothal have been interpreted by archaeologists as having probable ritual significance; these interpretations are widely cited though they remain inferential rather than certain.

Because statement 1 is supportable from seal evidence and statement 3 is supported by the architectural features assigned ritual roles, while statement 2 is not correct in asserting complete similarity, the correct combination is 1 and 3 only.

The correct answer is Option A - 1 and 2 only

Dholavira is well known for its sophisticated water harvesting and management system, including a series of reservoirs, carefully laid out channels and drains, and stepped/stored water arrangements; excavations have revealed as many as 16 reservoirs and carved storage tanks in the citadel area.

Archaeologists also discovered a large wooden signboard near the citadel entrance at Dholavira bearing an inscription in the Indus script; the panel shows about 10 symbols, each nearly 37 cm high, on a board estimated to be about 3 m long.

There is no clear archaeological evidence for fire altars at Dholavira; fire altars are documented at other Harappan sites such as Kalibangan, not at Dholavira.

Dholavira does not have a known dockyard; the well-known Harappan dockyard is at Lothal. Therefore the only correct statements for Dholavira are 1 and 2.

Correct Option - D

The correct answer is Option D - Nageswar

Nageswar is identified as a Mature Harappan coastal settlement in present-day Gujarat that functioned as a specialised shell-working centre; excavations have yielded large quantities of shell bangles, beads and manufacturing debris indicative of local production.

Balakot on the western coast is another contemporary site noted for shell-working, which supports the reading of coastal Harappan sites as centres for shell craft and trade.

Kupgal is a prehistoric (Neolithic) site in Karnataka and is not associated with Mature Harappan shell industries.

Mehrgarh in Balochistan is an early Neolithic settlement that predates the Harappan urban phase and is known for early farming and craft activities, not for Mature Harappan shell manufacture.

Maski (Karnataka) is notable in early historic contexts, including an Ashokan inscription; it is not a Mature Harappan shell-working site.

For these reasons, the archaeological evidence aligns with Nageswar being the specialised shell-working centre among the options, so Option D is the correct choice.

The correct answer is Option C - Statement I is true, but Statement II is false

Statement I is true. Variation in house sizes, specialised craft areas, and differences in material remains found in excavations indicate a social hierarchy and a multiclass urban society.

Statement II is false. The assertion that elites lived in stone buildings on an upraised citadel is incorrect: urban structures and residences were built primarily of baked and unbaked mud-bricks, while stone was used only selectively for certain features. The citadel housed public and possibly elite functions (for example, granaries and large platforms), but there is no conclusive evidence of aristocratic stone palaces distinct from lower-town dwellings.

Hence, the evidence supports social differentiation (confirming Statement I) while refuting the specific material claim and overgeneralisation in Statement II, so Option C is correct.

The correct answer is Option A - 1 only

Statement 1 is correct. Excavated utilitarian objects from the civilisation were commonly made of ordinary materials such as stone, clay (terracotta), bone and common metals like copper; these everyday items (for example, querns, pottery, needles and simple tools) are found distributed across settlements of different sizes.

Statement 2 is incorrect. Artefacts made of valuable or non-local materials and produced with specialised techniques-for example faience objects, carnelian beads and gold jewellery-are not equally distributed; archaeological evidence shows they are generally concentrated in major urban centres such as Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa and are rare or absent at many smaller sites (for example Kalibangan).

Thus, only the first statement is correct, which makes Option A - 1 only the correct choice.

The correct answer is Option B - Only two

Statement 1 is incorrect. The Khatiya cemetery is a pre-urban Harappan burial site in Kutch and is not associated with Mauryan pillar inscriptions or their Prakrit edicts; the Khatiya finds comprise graves with pottery, beads and other burial goods characteristic of pre-urban Harappan contexts.

Statement 2 is correct. The site of Amri shows a cultural sequence where handmade monochrome pottery is succeeded by painted wheel-made pottery, with painted motifs such as the humped bull, and later phases show increased use of metals.

Statement 3 is incorrect. The earliest well-documented evidence of farming and herding in the subcontinent comes from Mehrgarh (Neolithic levels from about 7000 BCE onward); Kot Diji is an important early Harappan fortified site but is not the earliest agricultural village.

Two statements (Statements 1 and 3) are therefore incorrect, which makes Option B the correct choice.

The correct answer is Option B - Kalibangan

Kalibangan is an archaeological site situated on the dry bed of the Ghaggar river in the Hanumangarh district of Rajasthan.

The excavated citadel at the site is divided into northern and southern units, and the southern unit is particularly known for a series of raised mud-brick platforms.

These platforms were reached by ramps or steps and are associated with a row of 7 clay-plastered pits; nearby features include a well and bathing pavements.

Archaeologists interpret the pits as fire altars, and at this site they are believed to reflect sacrificial or congregational ritual activity rather than ordinary domestic use.

Because of the combination of the raised mud-brick platforms, access ramps, the row of 7 clay-plastered pits interpreted as fire altars, and its location on the Ghaggar, the site described is correctly identified as Kalibangan.