Which one of the following books of ancient India has the love story of the son of the founder of Sunga dynasty?
- A.Swapnavasavadatta
- B.Malavikagnimitra
- C.Meghadoota
- D.Ratnavali
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, Malavikagnimitra. This play by Kalidasa tells the love story of Agnimitra, son of Pushyamitra Sunga, and Malavika, a maid in the queen's household.
Pushyamitra Sunga founded the Sunga dynasty around 185 BCE after killing Brihadratha, the last Mauryan ruler. His son Agnimitra governed from Vidisha, and Kalidasa's Malavikagnimitra, his first play, shows Agnimitra falling in love with Malavika, a skilled dancer who turns out to be a princess. The play also refers to a war with the kingdom of Vidarbha and to a clash between Pushyamitra's grandson Vasumitra and the Yavanas (Greeks) on the Sindhu river, which makes it a useful historical source for the Sunga period.
A is wrong: Swapnavasavadatta is a play by Bhasa about King Udayana of Vatsa and Queen Vasavadatta.
C is wrong: Meghadoota is Kalidasa's lyric poem in which an exiled yaksha sends a message to his wife through a cloud.
D is wrong: Ratnavali is a play by King Harshavardhana about Udayana and Ratnavali.
Exam tip: Kalidasa's three plays = Malavikagnimitra (Sunga king Agnimitra), Vikramorvashiyam, Abhijnana Shakuntalam.
Practice Questions
View allConsider the following subjects with regard to Non-Cooperation Programme :
I. Boycott of law-courts and foreign cloth
II. Observance of strict non-violence
III. Retention of titles and honours without using them in public
IV. Establishment of Panchayats for settling disputes
How many of the above were parts of Non-Cooperation Programme?
- A.Only one
- B.Only two
- C.Only three
- D.All the four
Show answer
Explanation
The correct answer is C, Only three. Items I, II and IV were part of the Non-Cooperation programme, but item III was not: Indians were asked to give up their titles, not keep them quietly.
The programme was approved at the special Congress session in Calcutta in September 1920 and confirmed at the Nagpur session in December 1920. Its negative side included surrender of titles and honorary posts, boycott of government schools and colleges, law-courts, legislatures under the 1919 reforms and foreign cloth. Its constructive side included national schools and colleges, panchayats to settle disputes in place of British courts, spread of khadi and spinning, Hindu-Muslim unity and removal of untouchability. Strict non-violence was the basic condition, which is why Gandhi withdrew the movement in February 1922 after the violence at Chauri Chaura.
A is wrong: three items, not one, were part of the programme.
B is wrong: three items, not two, were part of the programme.
D is wrong: item III contradicts the actual call to surrender titles; Gandhi himself returned the Kaisar-i-Hind medal.
Exam tip: Non-Cooperation 1920-22 = surrender titles, boycott courts, schools, councils and foreign cloth; panchayats and khadi; ended after Chauri Chaura.
Which one of the following is not a Harappan site?
- A.Chanhudaro
- B.Kot Diji
- C.Sohgaura
- D.Desalpur
Show answer
Explanation
The correct answer is C, Sohgaura. Sohgaura, in Gorakhpur district of Uttar Pradesh, is known for a Mauryan-period copper plate inscription, not for Harappan remains.
The Sohgaura copper plate, written in Prakrit in the Brahmi script, is one of the earliest copper plate records of India and is usually dated to the Mauryan age. It records an order about storehouses (koshthagaras) to be used for relief in times of famine, which shows early state concern for famine relief. The Harappan sites in the list are spread over Sindh and Gujarat: Chanhudaro and Kot Diji in Sindh, and Desalpur in Kutch.
A is wrong: Chanhudaro in Sindh is a Harappan town known for bead-making workshops; it had no citadel.
B is wrong: Kot Diji in Sindh shows a pre-Harappan phase followed by a mature Harappan settlement.
D is wrong: Desalpur in Kutch, Gujarat, is a fortified Harappan site.
Exam tip: Sohgaura (Gorakhpur) and Mahasthan (Bangladesh) = Mauryan inscriptions on famine relief; Chanhudaro = bead factory without citadel.
Consider the following statements about Raja Ram Mohan Roy :
I. He possessed great love and respect for the traditional philosophical systems of the East.
II. He desired his countrymen to accept the rational and scientific approach and the principle of human dignity and social equality of all men and women.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- A.I only
- B.II only
- C.Both I and II
- D.Neither I nor II
Show answer
Explanation
The correct answer is C, Both I and II. Ram Mohan Roy respected the philosophical heritage of the East while urging Indians to adopt reason, science and social equality.
Ram Mohan Roy (1772-1833), often called the father of the Indian Renaissance, studied the Upanishads and translated parts of them into Bengali and English to show that they taught the worship of one God; he also knew Persian, Arabic and Sanskrit thought deeply. At the same time he wanted a modern, rational outlook: he supported English and scientific education, campaigned against sati, which was banned in 1829, and argued for women's property rights. He founded the Atmiya Sabha in 1815 and the Brahmo Sabha in 1828, and opposed idol worship and caste rigidity.
A is wrong: it leaves out statement II, his call for reason and equality.
B is wrong: it leaves out statement I, his deep regard for Eastern philosophy.
D is wrong: both statements describe his outlook correctly.
Exam tip: Ram Mohan Roy = Atmiya Sabha 1815, Brahmo Sabha 1828, sati abolished 1829; Upanishads plus modern reason.
Consider the following statements relating to the use of the place-value system in India :
1. The earliest epigraphic use of the place-value system in India is found in the Mankani plates from Gujarat (AD 595 - 596).
2. In the ninth century, place-values become general in inscriptions all over India.
3. The place-values have been found in Sanskrit inscriptions in South-east Asia as early as the seventh century.
Which of the statements given above are correct ?
- A.1 and 2 only
- B.1 and 3 only
- C.2 and 3 only
- D.1, 2 and 3
Show answer
Explanation
The correct answer is D, 1, 2 and 3. All three statements match what inscriptions tell us about how the decimal place-value system spread.
In the place-value system, the value of a digit depends on its position, so nine digits and a zero can write any number. Mathematicians such as Aryabhata already used place-value ideas around AD 499, but the oldest dated use on an Indian inscription is in the Mankani (Sankheda) copper plates of Gujarat, dated to AD 595-596. Older numerical notation, which had separate signs for tens and hundreds, gradually gave way, and by the ninth century place-value numerals were common in inscriptions across India; the Gwalior inscription of 876 shows a written zero. Inscriptions from Cambodia and Sumatra show place-value numerals in Sanskrit records by the late seventh century.
A is wrong: it leaves out statement 3, which is also correct.
B is wrong: it leaves out statement 2, which is also correct.
C is wrong: it leaves out statement 1, which is also correct.
Exam tip: place value in inscriptions = Mankani plates 595-596 (first), Southeast Asia 7th century, general in India by the 9th century, zero at Gwalior 876.
Consider the following pairs :
Movement/Organization : Leader
1. All India Anti-Untouchability League : Mahatma Gandhi
2. All India Kisan Sabha : Swami Sahajanand Saraswati
3. Self-Respect Movement : E. V. Ramaswami Naicker
Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?
- A.1 only
- B.1 and 2 only
- C.2 and 3 only
- D.1, 2 and 3
Show answer
Explanation
The correct answer is D, 1, 2 and 3. All three organisations are correctly paired with the leaders who founded or led them.
Mahatma Gandhi founded the All India Anti-Untouchability League in September 1932, soon after the Poona Pact; it was renamed the Harijan Sevak Sangh in 1933. The All India Kisan Sabha was formed at the Lucknow session in April 1936 with Swami Sahajanand Saraswati as its first president and N.G. Ranga as general secretary. The Self-Respect Movement was started in 1925 in Tamil Nadu by E.V. Ramaswami Naicker, known as Periyar, to fight caste discrimination and Brahmin dominance and to promote rational thought.
A is wrong: it leaves out pairs 2 and 3, which are also correct.
B is wrong: it leaves out pair 3, Periyar and the Self-Respect Movement.
C is wrong: it leaves out pair 1, Gandhi and the Anti-Untouchability League.
Exam tip: 1925 Self-Respect (Periyar); 1932 Anti-Untouchability League, later Harijan Sevak Sangh (Gandhi); 1936 AIKS, Lucknow (Sahajanand).