History Optional Paper II (2016) SECTION A Q.1) Answer the following in about 150 words each: a) Comment on the French ambition of building a territorial empire in India. 10 b) After the Battle of Plassey, how did India transit from the medieval to the modern age? 10 c) Do you agree with the view…

WHAT PART WAS PLAYED BY ALLIED NAVAL FORCES? We saw how the combination of sea and air power was the key to success in the Pacific war and how, after the initial shock at Pearl Harbor, the Americans were able to build up that superiority in both departments, which was to lead to the eventual…

Unlike the 1914-18 war, the Second World War was a war of rapid movement; it was a much more complex affair, with major campaigns taking place in the Pacific and the Far East, in North Africa and deep in the heart of Russia, as well as in central and western Europe and the Atlantic. The…

Interview of Shweta Chauhan Name: Shweta Chauhan Rank in CSE-2016 8 Roll No. 0559310 Age 25 Total attempts in CSE  3 Optional Subject Geography Medium chosen for Mains answers English Schooling medium English College medium English Home town Ghaziabad Work-ex IRTS, CSE-2013 IRS (C&CE), CSE-2015 Marksheet of CSE-2016 This short article is in response to…

UPSC Civil Services की तैयारी के दौरान एक अभ्यर्थी को कई चरणों से गुज़रना पड़ता है | इस दौरान उसे कई समस्याओं कासामना करना पड़ता है | एक तरफ मुख़र्जी नगर और राजेंद्र नगर की गलियों में लगे पुस्तकों के ढेर में एक अभ्यर्थी को अपने सपनों केखो जाने का डर बना रहता है वहीँ दूसरी तरफ…

Q. Assess Ellora as a unique art centre of the different cultural streams. [2011, 20m] Ans : Ellora Caves are 34 monasteries and temples, dug side by side in the wall of a high basalt cliff, with its uninterrupted sequence of monuments dating from A.D. 600 to 1000, brings the civilization of ancient India to…

Q.4 (c) Explain as to  how  the  early  Buddhist  Stupa  art,  while  using  folk  motifs  and narratives  and  common  cultural  symbols,  succeeded  in  transforming  these  themes  for expounding the Buddhist ideals. [2013, 20m] Ans: From pre-historical times, burial mounds containing the remains of the dead were a common funerary practice in some Indian societies: in…

Q.1 Identify the following places marked on the map supplied to you and write a short note of about 30 words on each of them. Locational hints for each of the places marked on the map are given below: Answer: (i) A Mesolithic site – Sarai Nahar Rai  (Other possibilities- Mahadaha,Chopani Mando) (ii) A neolithic site…

Q.1 (a) Write a short essay on: “Vedic rituals” [1997, 20m]  Ans: Rig Veda reflects the beliefs and practices of a religious aristocracy and its patrons. The Rig Veda indicates a diversity of religious practices. The Vedic hymns divide the universe into the sky (dyu), earth (prthivi) and the middle realm (antariksha). Deities were worshipped…

Q. Mark any fifteen of the following on the map supplied to you and give descriptive notes on them: (1) Amber (2) Ahmadnagar (3) Anegondi (4) Badami (5) Bassein (6) Bidar (7) Chanderi  (8) Chittor (9) Arikamedu (10) Devagiri (11) Gaur (12) Halebid (13) Ikkeri (14) Kalibangan (15) Jinji (16) Burzahom (17) Dvarasamudra (18) Nalanda…

Q.5 (b) Discuss the social dynamics in the Vijayanagara Empire. Ans: The social life under the Vijayanagar Empire was well developed. Foreign travelers like Nuniz, Paes, Nicolo Conti and Barbosa left vivid accounts on the splendour of buildings and luxurious social life in the city of Vijayanagar. 1. Royal Court: The king and his courtiers…

Q.7 (c) “The Battle of Plassey that decided the fate of Bengal was won by Clive through intrigues.” Explain. Ans: The Battle of Plassey was a decisive victory of the British East India Company over the Nawab of Bengal, Sirajudaullah on 23 June 1757. The Battle of Plassey decided fate of Bengal. The battle made the position of the company de jure…