DAY – 59 : Insta 75 Days Revision Plan-2026 : ANCIENT & MEDIEVAL INDIA

Answer:   (c)

Explanation:

• Pair 1 is correctly matched: The Akshapataladhyaksha was indeed the Superintendent of Accounts and was responsible for maintaining the state’s records and accounts.
• Pair 2 is correctly matched: The Sitadhyaksha was the Superintendent of Agriculture, specifically in charge of the crown lands (Sita).
• Pair 3 is correctly matched: The Pautavadhyaksha was the Superintendent of Weights and Measures, ensuring standardization in trade and commerce.
• Pair 4 is incorrectly matched: The Sansthadhyaksha was actually the Superintendent of Markets or trade routes, responsible for regulating commerce. The oversight of religious institutions or charities was typically the domain of the Devatadhyaksha.

Answer:    (d)

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: Makkhali Gosala was the most prominent leader of the Ajivikas and was a contemporary of both Gautama Buddha and Mahavira.
• Statement 2 is correct: The central tenet of the Ajivika philosophy was Niyati (Absolute Determinism or Fatalism). They believed that the entire universe was governed by a pre-ordained destiny and that human action (Karma) or effort (Purushartha) could not change one’s fate.
• Statement 3 is correct: While Emperor Ashoka also dedicated caves to the Ajivikas (such as the Lomas Rishi cave), his grandson, Emperor Dasharatha, specifically dedicated several caves in the Barabar and Nagarjuni hills (like the Gopika Cave) to the Ajivika sect.

Answer:    (b)

Explanation:

• Statement (a) is incorrect: The Sulba Sutras are actually part of the Kalpa Sutras and deal with the complex geometry required for the construction of Vedic sacrificial altars (Vedi). They contain early mathematical principles, including a version of what is now known as the Pythagorean theorem.
• Statement (b) is correct: Varahamihira was a 6th-century polymath. His Brihat Samhita is an expansive Sanskrit encyclopedia that covers a vast range of topics including planetary movements, eclipses, rainfall, clouds, architecture, and even the quality of gemstones.
• Statement (c) is incorrect: While Aryabhata’s Aryabhatiya (5th century AD) used a decimal place-value system and recognized the concept of zero, it was not the first time Shunya appeared as a numeral in world history. Earlier evidence exists in the Bakhshali Manuscript, and the formal mathematical rules for zero were later detailed extensively by Brahmagupta.
• Statement (d) is incorrect: The Sushruta Samhita is fundamentally a foundational text on medicine and surgery. It is world-renowned for its detailed descriptions of surgical procedures, including rhinoplasty (plastic surgery) and the removal of cataracts, rather than being a purely philosophical work.

Answer:    (d)

Explanation:

• Pair 1 is correctly matched: Barbaricum was a major port located at the mouth of the Indus Delta; it is frequently mentioned in the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea as a hub for the import of clothing, figured linens, and topazes, and the export of costus, bdellium, and turquoise.
• Pair 2 is correctly matched: Poduke is the name used by Greco-Roman writers to refer to Arikamedu, located on the Coromandel Coast near modern-day Puducherry. It was a significant center for Roman trade in India.
• Pair 3 is correctly matched: Muziris (modern-day Pattanam/Cranganore) was the most important seaport in the Chera Kingdom on the Malabar Coast (modern Kerala). It was the primary gateway for the global spice trade, particularly black pepper.
• Pair 4 is correctly matched: Tamralipti was the pre-eminent port on the Eastern Coast in the Bengal region (modern-day Tamluk, West Bengal). It served as the main exit point for maritime voyages to Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka during the Mauryan and Gupta periods.

Answer:     (a)

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: The Panchayatana style is a specific arrangement in temple architecture where the main shrine is built on a central rectangular plinth and is surrounded by four smaller subsidiary shrines at the corners, making a total of five shrines. A famous example is the Dashavatara Temple at Deogarh.
• Statement 2 is incorrect: While the Kushana period saw significant developments in iconography, the Shikhara (mountain-like spire or tower) did not become a standard feature until the Gupta period. Early temples, such as Temple No. 17 at Sanchi, were typically flat-roofed; the evolution toward Shikharas is best seen in the later Gupta structures like the Bhitargaon temple.
• Statement 3 is correct: The Shore Temple at Mahabalipuram, built during the reign of the Pallava King Narasimhavarman II (Rajasimha), represents a significant shift from the rock-cut Ratha tradition to structural architecture. It is one of the oldest free-standing stone temples in South India, constructed using blocks of granite rather than being carved out of a single living rock.

Answer:     (c)

Explanation:

• Row 1 is correctly matched: Bagor, located on the Kothari river in Rajasthan, is recognized as the largest Mesolithic site in India. It has provided significant evidence regarding the transition from hunting-gathering to the domestication of animals.
• Row 2 is correctly matched: Mehrgarh, situated in the Bolan Pass of Balochistan, is widely regarded as one of the most important Neolithic sites. It provides the earliest evidence in the Indian subcontinent of farming (specifically wheat and barley) and settled village life, dating back to approximately 7000 BC.
• Row 3 is correctly matched: Chirand, located in the Saran district of Bihar, is a unique Neolithic site. While most Neolithic sites in India are characterized by stone tools, Chirand is famous for a remarkably large collection of sophisticated tools made of bone and antler, particularly those belonging to deer.

Answer:    (a)

Explanation:

• Definition and Function: In the context of South Indian history, particularly during the Pallava and Kadamba periods, a Ghatika was a center of higher learning or a Brahmanical college.
• Association with Temples: These institutions were frequently attached to temples and served as significant hubs for religious and secular education.
• Historical Examples:
  • The most famous Ghatika was located at Kanchi (the Pallava capital), which attracted scholars from far and wide.
  • Historical inscriptions mention that Mayurasharman, the founder of the Kadamba dynasty, went to the Ghatika at Kanchi to study the Vedas.
• Other Options:
  • A water clock (clepsydra) used in ancient India was sometimes called a Ghatika-yantra, but in the specific administrative and social context of South Indian history, the term Ghatika almost exclusively refers to the educational assemblies.
  • Units of land measurement (like Veli or Ma) and merchant guilds (like Nanadesi or Ayyavole) had distinct names and do not correspond to the term Ghatika.

Answer:    (a)

Explanation:

• Core Philosophy: The Yogachara school (also known as Vijnanavada) is a major philosophical tradition of Mahayana Buddhism. Its name, Vijnanavada, literally means the Doctrine of Consciousness, reflecting its central belief that only Vijnana (consciousness or mind) has ultimate reality.
• The Mind-Only View: The school posits that what we perceive as the external world is actually a projection of our own consciousness. Therefore, the subject-object duality is considered an illusion.
• Key Figures: This school was founded by the brothers Asanga and Vasubandhu in the 4th or 5th century AD.
• Relationship with Other Schools:
• It does not reject the concept of Sunyata (Emptiness) proposed by Nagarjuna (Madhyamaka school); rather, it provides a different psychological and idealistic framework to explain how emptiness functions within the mind.
• It is a Mahayana school, so it significantly deviates from the strict adherence to the Pali Canon associated with the Theravada (Hinayana) tradition.
• While Mahayana Buddhism eventually incorporated various deities, the defining characteristic of the Yogachara specifically is its sophisticated epistemology and idealism, not the worship of local deities.

Answer:     (b)

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is incorrect: The Mitakshara school, written by Vijnanesvara, was prevalent throughout most of India except for the Bengal and Assam regions. Under this system, a son acquires a right to ancestral property by the mere fact of his birth.
• Statement 2 is correct: The Dayabhaga school, authored by Jimutavahana, was the system prevalent in Bengal and Assam. It held that the sons do not have a birthright to the property; instead, the father has absolute disposal over the property during his lifetime, and the sons’ rights only arise upon the father’s death.
• Statement 3 is correct: Kautilya’s Arthashastra outlines that in the absence of a natural heir, the property of a deceased person should be taken over by the State (escheat). However, it specifically provides an exception for the property of Brahmins, which was to be distributed among other learned Brahmins or Vedic students rather than being seized by the King.

Answer:     (c)

Explanation:

• Statement 1 is correct: In addition to complete burials, the practice of Fractional Burial (where bones were collected and buried after the body had been exposed to the elements or wild animals) has been identified at Mohenjo-daro.
• Statement 2 is correct: Lothal is famous for the discovery of Coupled Burials (joint burials), where a male and a female were buried together in the same grave. Some historians have debated if this suggests an early form of Sati, though there is no definitive consensus.
• Statement 3 is incorrect: The use of wooden coffins was not a common feature across all centers. It was an exceptional practice, with the most notable evidence found at Harappa (Cemetery R-31), where a body was found in a coffin made of rosewood.
• Statement 4 is correct: At Ropar (Punjab), a unique burial was discovered where a dog was buried with a human. This practice is strikingly similar to the Neolithic burials found at Burzahom in Kashmir, suggesting a possible cultural link or shared tradition.

Correct Answer: (c)

Detailed Solution:

To identify the youngest, we need a clear age comparison between A, B, and C.

From Statement 1: A + B = 45 and A – B = 5 (or vice versa). Adding the equations: 2A = 50, so A = 25 and B = 20. Alternatively, B = 25 and A = 20. In either case, we have the ages {20, 25} for A and B, but no information on C. Insufficient.

From Statement 2: B * C = 600 and C < B. Multiple integer pairs satisfy this: (30, 20), (40, 15), (60, 10), etc. Without knowing A’s age, we cannot determine who is the youngest. Insufficient.

Combining Statement 1 and 2: From Statement 1, B must be either 20 or 25. Case I: If B = 20, then from Statement 2 (B * C = 600), C must be 30. However, Statement 2 says C < B. Since 30 is not less than 20, this case is mathematically impossible. Case II: If B = 25, then from Statement 1, A must be 20. From Statement 2, 25 * C = 600, so C = 24. Check condition: C < B (24 < 25) is True. Final Ages: A = 20, B = 25, C = 24.

Conclusion: A is the youngest. Both statements were required to eliminate the invalid case.

Correct Answer: (d)

Detailed Solution:

A number is divisible by 12 if it is divisible by its co-prime factors, 3 and 4.

From Statement 1: n is divisible by 3 and 4. Since 3 and 4 have no common factors other than 1 (co-prime), any number divisible by both must be divisible by their product (3 * 4 = 12). This gives a definitive Yes. Sufficient.

From Statement 2: n is a multiple of 6 and 8. A number that is a multiple of two different numbers must be a multiple of their Least Common Multiple (LCM). The LCM of 6 and 8 is 24. If n is a multiple of 24 (n = 24, 48, 72…), and since 24 is itself divisible by 12, then n must also be divisible by 12. This gives a definitive Yes. Sufficient.

Correct Answer: (b)

Detailed Solution:

Step 1: The person starts facing North.

Step 2: A right turn is a standard 90-degree clockwise turn. The person is now facing East. Step 3: From facing East, he turns 135 degrees clockwise. Breakdown of the 135-degree turn:

• The first 90 degrees of the turn takes him from East to South.
• The remaining 45 degrees (135 – 90 = 45) takes him from South toward the West. Direction halfway between South and West is South-West. Therefore, the final direction of movement is South-West.

Correct Answer: (b)

Detailed Solution:

Using a coordinate system where Point B is (0, 0):

• Point A (6m West of B) = (-6, 0)
• Point C (8m North of B) = (0, 8)
• Point D (12m East of C) = (12, 8)
• Point E (8m South of D) = (12, 8 – 8) = (12, 0)

Shortest distance between A (-6, 0) and E (12, 0): Since both points have a y-coordinate of 0, they are on the same horizontal line (the x-axis). Distance = 12 – (-6) = 12 + 6 = 18 meters.

Correct Answer: (c)

Detailed Solution:

The core of the passage highlights that automation threatens to leapfrog the traditional path of development (which usually relies on low-skill manufacturing). This suggests that the standard historical model of economic growth is no longer a reliable roadmap for developing nations in the digital age.

• (a) is incorrect as the text suggests changing policy/skills, not stopping technology.
• (b) is incorrect because the text lists both literacy and infrastructure as issues; it does not rank one as more significant.
• (c) is the correct inference. If the traditional model is being leapfrogged and failing to provide a viable path, it is effectively becoming obsolete.
• (d) is contradicted by the final sentence, which argues against merely providing hardware in favor of fostering adaptability.