Prelims · Ancient India · 9 questions

Prehistory & the Harappan civilisation

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Prelims 2021 · Q32

Easy

Which one of the following ancient towns is well-known for its elaborate system of water harvesting and management by building a series of dams and channelizing water into connected reservoirs?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (a) Dholavira

Dholavira, a Harappan city on Khadir island in the Rann of Kachchh, Gujarat, lived in a dry region fed only by two seasonal streams. Its people dammed these streams and led the water through channels into a chain of interconnected stone and rock-cut reservoirs, the most elaborate water-harvesting system known from the Harappan world.

✓ (a) Water from two nearby streams was diverted by dams and canals into a series of deep, interconnected tanks within the city; UNESCO, which inscribed Dholavira as a World Heritage Site in 2021, highlights this water management system.
✗ (b) Kalibangan in Rajasthan is famous for an Early Harappan ploughed field with furrows at right angles, suggesting two crops grown together.
✗ (c) Rakhigarhi in Haryana is known as one of the largest Harappan settlements, not for a reservoir system.

Remember · Dholavira (Kachchh, Gujarat): dams, channels and interconnected reservoirs, stone architecture, signboard inscription; UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2021.

📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 9 Understanding Society: India and Beyond, Ch 4 (practise this chapter) · Class 12 Themes in Indian History, Part I, Ch 1 (practise this chapter)

Sources

NCERT Class 9 · Understanding Society: India and Beyond, Chapter 4 “Here, water from the two nearby streams was diverted by building dams and canals into a series of deep tanks to conserve it within the site boundary.”
UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Dholavira: a Harappan City ↗ “A sophisticated water management system demonstrates the ingenuity of the Dholavira people in their struggle to survive and thrive in a harsh environment.”
NCERT Class 12 · Themes in Indian History, Part I, Chapter 1 “Archaeologists have also found evidence of a ploughed field at Kalibangan (Rajasthan), associated with Early Harappan levels”

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). Permalink ·

Prelims 2021 · Q37

Medium

Consider the following pairs:

	Historical place	Well-known for
1.	Burzahom	Rock-cut shrines
2.	Chandraketugarh	Terracotta art
3.	Ganeshwar	Copper artefacts

Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?

Answer & explanation

Answer: (d) 2 and 3

Burzahom in the Kashmir valley is a Neolithic settlement known for subterranean pit dwellings, not rock-cut shrines. Chandraketugarh near Kolkata is famous for its early historic terracotta plaques and figurines, and Ganeshwar in Rajasthan's Khetri copper belt yielded a rich hoard of copper objects.

✗ 1. Burzahom is a Neolithic site (Srinagar) where people lived in subterranean pit dwellings cut into the natural soil with stone celts; it has no rock-cut shrines.
✓ 2. Chandraketugarh, an early historic town site (from about the 3rd century BCE) in North 24 Parganas, West Bengal, has yielded a rich repository of terracotta art, part of Bengal's long terracotta tradition.
✓ 3. The Ganeshwar-Jodhpura culture of the Khetri area in Rajasthan is marked by an unusual wealth of copper objects and probably supplied copper to the Harappans.

Remember · Burzahom (Kashmir): Neolithic pit dwellings. Chandraketugarh (West Bengal): terracotta plaques. Ganeshwar (Khetri, Rajasthan): copper artefacts.

📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 12 Themes in Indian History, Part I, Ch 1 (practise this chapter) · Class 11 An Introduction to Indian Art, Part I, Ch 6 (practise this chapter)

Sources

UNESCO World Heritage Centre, Tentative List: The Neolithic Settlement of Burzahom ↗ “The subterranean pit-dwelling of Neolithic men (Aceramic Neolithic/Period I) were cut into the natural soil usually dug out with long stone celts”
NCERT Class 12 · Themes in Indian History, Part I, Chapter 1 “There is evidence in the Khetri area for what archaeologists call the Ganeshwar-Jodhpura culture, with its distinctive non-Harappan pottery and an unusual wealth of copper objects.”
District North 24 Parganas (Government of West Bengal), Tourism ↗ “Chandraketugarh is located in the district of North 24 Parganas, only 38 km. north-east of Kolkata. The history of Chandraketugarh dates back to almost the 3rd Century B.C., during the pre-Mauryan era.”
IGNOU eGyanKosh (Govt of India central university), Patterns of Early Medieval Urbanisation, Unit 23: Port Town: Chandraketugarh ↗ · reference work “A rich repository of terracotta art has been recovered from Chandraketugarh. It is not only the most varied and large but extremely well made and beautifully executed.”
NCERT Class 11 · An Introduction to Indian Art, Part I, Chapter 6 “It appears that terracotta was the main medium of construction, and also for moulding plaques which depicted Buddhist and Hindu deities in Bengal until the seventh century.”

Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2021, 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 9 Understanding Society: India and Beyond, Chapter 4cited in 1 explanation
Class 11 An Introduction to Indian Art, Part I, Chapter 6cited in 1 explanation