Question Discussion & Solution

Option 3 is the correct answer: The ancient Harappan town of Lothal is situated in the state of Gujarat.

• Lothal is a coastal site in the state of Gujarat and was as an important trading centre during the Harappan period.
• The artificial dockyard (the most striking feature) in Lothal signifies its importance as a trading centre.
• The site was discovered by SR Rao in 1964.
• It is situated on the banks of Bhogava river, a tributary of Sabarmati River.
• It is the only site belonging to Harappan culture where the evidence of rice has been found.
• From here a doubtful terracotta figurine representing horse has been found.
• Other striking excavations made from here are:
  • Terracotta ship
  • Ship on a seal
  • double burial (male and female)
  • chess-like game
  • instruments for measuring angles

The correct answer is Mehrgarh

• Mehrgarh is a neolithic site located near the Bolan pass on the Kacchi Plain of Balochistan, Pakistan, to the west of the Indus River Valley.
• It is the earliest known neolithic site in the Northwest Indian sub-continent, with early evidence of farming (wheat and barley), herding (cattle, sheep, and goats), and metallurgy.
• The oldest known example of the wax-lost techniques comes from a 6000-year-old wheel-shaped copper amulet found at Mehrgarh.

Additional Information 

The correct answer is Bombay.

Key Points

• The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded by Allan Octavian Hume on 28th December 1885.
• The first session of INC was held in Bombay at Gokuldas Tejpal Sanskrit Collegeram.
• The first President of the INC session held in Bombay was Womesh Chandra Banerjee.
• 72 delegates attended the session.
• The important leaders during the foundation of INC were Dadabhai Naoroji, Badruddin Tyyabji, Anand Mohan Bose, R.C Dutt, Pherozshah Mehta, G.K Gokhale, G. Subramaniyam Aiyyar, Dinshaw Vacha, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Mahadev Govind Ranade, Madan Mohan Malviya, etc.
• Formerly Indian National Congress was known as Indian National Union.
• The INC was formed during the tenure of Lord Dufferin (Viceroy of India from 1884-1888).

The Correct Answer is Option (3) i.e C -

• The most significant feature of Indus Valley civilization was the buildings made of the bricks.
• Indus Valley Civilization is also known as Harappan Civilization, which flourished around 2500 BC in Pakistan and Western India.
• Some of the important Harappan sites are - Harappa (Pakistan), Mohenjodaro (Pakistan), Sutkagendor (Pakistan), Chanhudaro (Pakistan), Kalibangan (Rajasthan), Lothal and Surkotada (Gujarat), Banawali (Haryana), Dholavira (Gujarat), etc
• In 1924, John Marshall, Director-General of Archaeological Society of India (ASI), announced the discovery of a new civilization in the Indus Valley to the World.
• Indus Valley Civilization was the largest of the ancient urban civilization of Egypt, Mesopotamia, India, and China.
• ASI was founded by Alexander Cunningham in the year 1861.

Additional Information 

• The Indus Valley Civilization was spread from present-day North-East Afghanistan to Pakistan and North-West India. This civilization flourished in the river basins of the Ghaggar-Hakra river and the Indus. Indus valley civilization is one of the four oldest civilizations in the world. It is also known as Harappan Civilization and is well-known for its organized planning based on the grid system. Important facts to be remembered 
• John Marshall was the first researcher to use the term, ‘Indus Valley Civilization’.
• Indus Valley Civilization spread from the year 2500 – 1750 BC according to radio-carbon dating.
• The most distinctive feature of the Harappan Civilization was its urbanization.
• Moreover, sheep and goats, dogs, humped cattle buffalo, and elephants were domesticated in the Indus Valley Civilization.
• The capital cities are Mohenjodaro and Harappa.
• The port cities are Sutkagendor, Balakot, Lothal, Allahdino, and Kuntasi.
• The Indus valley people were well-acquainted with the use of both cotton and wool.
• Name of the major cities are given below:
  • Mohenjodaro (Sind)-It is located on the right bank of the Indus.
  • Kalibangan (Rajasthan)-It was on the banks of the river Ghaggar river
  • Chanhudaro-It lies on the left bank of the Indus in the south of Mohenjodaro.
  • Lothal- It is located at the head of the Gulf of Cambay.
  • Surkotada (Gujarat)-It is at the head of the Rann of Kutch.
  • Banawali (Haryana)-It was situated on the banks of the now-extinct Sarasvati
  • Dholavira (Gujarat)-It excavated is in the Kutch district