Indus Valley Civilisation — GK Questions with Answers

1. About the Indus civilisation (IAS 2011): 1. It was mainly secular; religion was present but did not dominate. 2. Cotton was used to make textiles.
   1. 1 only
   2. 2 only
   3. Both 1 and 2
   4. Neither
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   Answer: (C) Both 1 and 2

   Both are accepted features.

2. Which are correct? 1. Cities were planned. 2. Weights were not standardised. 3. Drainage was elaborate.
   1. 1 only
   2. 2 only
   3. 1 and 3
   4. All three
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   Answer: (C) 1 and 3

   Weights were highly standardised (binary steps up to 16 and beyond).

3. The granary at Harappa stood
   1. in the lower town
   2. near the river Ravi
   3. inside the citadel of Mohenjodaro
   4. beside the western ghat of the city
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   Answer: (B) near the river Ravi

   North of the citadel, on the old bank of the Ravi.

4. Which Harappan figure did NOT pass into later Hindu religion?
   1. Pashupati (proto-Shiva)
   2. Seven mothers
   3. Compound creatures
   4. Unicorn
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   Answer: (D) Unicorn

   The unicorn is purely Harappan.

5. Match: A. Kalibangan B. Lothal C. Chanhudaro D. Mohenjodaro — 1. pottery 2. terracotta toys 3. Pashupati seal 4. brick platform
   1. A1 B2 C3 D4
   2. A2 B3 C4 D1
   3. A3 B4 C1 D2
   4. A4 B1 C2 D3
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   Answer: (D) A4 B1 C2 D3

   Kalibangan — brick (fire-altar) platforms; Mohenjodaro — Pashupati seal.

6. Why did almost every Harappan town keep big granaries?
   1. taxes were paid in kind
   2. rural surplus was stored in towns
   3. grain was stored for trade
   4. All of these
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   Answer: (D) All of these

   Granaries served as treasury, store and trade stock.

7. The Great Bath was probably NOT meant for
   1. Community bathing
   2. Swimming and water sports
   3. A vital ritual of corporate life
   4. Storing water for droughts
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   Answer: (D) Storing water for droughts

   It was a ritual bath, not a drought reservoir.

8. Which statement about the Harappans is wrong?
   1. They worshipped the phallus
   2. They kept their gods in temples
   3. They worshipped gods in human form
   4. They saw the Earth as a fertility goddess
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   Answer: (B) They kept their gods in temples

   No temple has been found at any site.

9. Which is NOT a feature of Harappan pottery?
   1. Well-fired red ware
   2. Black painted designs
   3. Plant and geometric motifs
   4. Polished black-and-red ware
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   Answer: (D) Polished black-and-red ware

   Black-and-red ware belongs to Chalcolithic cultures like Ahar.

10. The Indus people (IAS 2013): 1. had great palaces and temples 2. worshipped male and female deities 3. used horse-drawn chariots in war
    1. 1 and 2
    2. 2 only
    3. All three
    4. None
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    Answer: (B) 2 only

    No palaces/temples, no horse chariots.

11. Which town is known for a series of dams and linked reservoirs? (IAS 2021)
    1. Dholavira
    2. Kalibangan
    3. Rakhigarhi
    4. Ropar
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    Answer: (A) Dholavira

    Dholavira had 16 or more stone reservoirs.

12. Which one is NOT a Harappan site? (IAS 2019)
    1. Chanhudaro
    2. Kot Diji
    3. Sohgaura
    4. Desalpur
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    Answer: (C) Sohgaura

    Sohgaura (Gorakhpur) gave a Mauryan copper-plate on famine relief.

13. The Harappan site with an ancient brick dockyard is
    1. Kalibangan
    2. Lothal
    3. Rangpur
    4. Kaveripattinam
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    Answer: (B) Lothal

    Lothal, on the Sabarmati–Bhogava confluence.

14. Who linked the end of Harappan cities to an epidemic?
    1. M.R. Sahni
    2. Kenneth Kennedy
    3. Walter Fairservis
    4. Aurel Stein
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    Answer: (B) Kenneth Kennedy

    Sahni — floods; Fairservis — ecology; Stein — climate.

More chapters in this subject

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