Prelims · Ancient India · 9 questions

Prehistory & the Harappan civilisation

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Prelims 2019 · Q7

Medium

Which one of the following is not a Harappan site?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (c) Sohgaura

Sohgaura, in Uttar Pradesh, is known for a copper-plate inscription of the 4th–3rd century BCE in Brahmi, a Mauryan-age record far later than the Harappan cities. Chanhudaro, Kot Diji and Desalpur (Kutch) are Harappan settlements.

✓ (c) Sohgaura's fame is its copper-plate inscription (4th–3rd century BCE, Prakrit in Brahmi) about storing grain against famine, an early administrative record, not a Harappan settlement.
✗ (a) Chanhudaro is marked among the important Mature Harappan sites; it was a small settlement almost wholly given to crafts such as bead-making and shell-cutting.
✗ (b) Kot Diji is shown among Mature Harappan sites, and NCERT's map of Early Harappan occupation also names a Kot Diji culture area.

Remember · Sohgaura (Uttar Pradesh) = Mauryan-age copper-plate inscription on famine relief granaries; not Harappan. Chanhudaro, Kot Diji, Desalpur = Harappan sites.

📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 7 Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part 1), Ch 5 (practise this chapter) · Class 12 Themes in Indian History, Part I, Ch 1 (practise this chapter) · Class 12 Themes in Indian History, Part I, Ch 1 (practise this chapter)

Sources

NCERT Class 7 · Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part 1), Chapter 5 “The Sohagaura copper plate inscription, dating back to the 4th–3rd century BCE, is one of India's earliest known administrative records. Discovered in Sohgaura, Uttar Pradesh, it is written in Prakrit using the Brahmi script”
NCERT Class 12 · Themes in Indian History, Part I, Chapter 1 “Locate Chanhudaro on Map 1. This is a tiny settlement (less than 7 hectares) as compared to Mohenjodaro (125 hectares), almost exclusively devoted to craft production, including bead-making, shell-cutting”
NCERT Class 12 · Themes in Indian History, Part I, Chapter 1 “Map 1 Some important Mature Harappan sites Sketch map not to scale Manda Harappa Banawali Rakhigarhi Mitathal Ganweriwala Kot Diji Chanhudaro”

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2019, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

Prelims 2019 · Q92

Easy

The word 'Denisovan' is sometimes mentioned in media in reference to

Answer & explanation

Answer: (b) an early human species

Denisovans are an early human group (an archaic hominin population of the Late Pleistocene) first identified from DNA taken from a finger bone found in Denisova Cave in southern Siberia. The name has nothing to do with dinosaurs, a cave system in North-East India or a geological period.

✓ (b) In 2010 researchers sequenced the genome of an archaic hominin from a finger bone found in Denisova Cave in southern Siberia, and named this hominin population 'Denisovans'. Their DNA shows they shared a common origin with Neanderthals.
✗ (a) Denisovans were hominins, that is, relatives of modern humans, not dinosaurs.
✗ (c) Denisova Cave lies in southern Siberia, not in North-East India.
✗ (d) 'Denisovan' names a human population, not a geological period.

Remember · Denisovans: an archaic early human group, first identified in 2010 from DNA of a finger bone in Denisova Cave, southern Siberia; related to Neanderthals.

Sources

Reich et al., Genetic history of an archaic hominin group from Denisova Cave in Siberia, Nature 468 (2010) (NIH PMC copy), abstract ↗ “Using DNA extracted from a finger bone found in Denisova Cave in southern Siberia, we have sequenced the genome of an archaic hominin to about 1.9-fold coverage. … We designate this hominin population ‘Denisovans’ and suggest that it may have been widespread in Asia during the Late Pleistocene epoch.”

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2019, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 1 Oct 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

The same topic in Mains

Indian art, literature & architectureGS 1 syllabus

Read it in NCERT

Class 12 Themes in Indian History, Part I, Chapter 1cited in 2 explanations
Class 7 Exploring Society: India and Beyond (Part 1), Chapter 5cited in 1 explanation