UPSC Essentials | Daily subject-wise quiz : History, Culture and Social Issues MCQs on Kutch Ajrakh, Pietermaritzburg incident of 1893 and more (Week 64)

	Temple	Dedicated to	Location
1	Chennakeshava temple	Lord Shiva	Karnataka
2	Kesava temple	Lord Vishnu	Telangana
3	Hoysaleswara temple	Lord Shiva	Karnataka

How many of the pairs given above are correctly matched?

(a) Only one pair

(b) Only two pairs

(c) All three pairs

(d) None of the pairs

QUESTION 2

Consider the following statements:

1. The newspaper was India’s first printed newspaper.

2. It was a weekly English-language newspaper produced in Kolkata.

3. It was described as “a weekly political and commercial paper, open to all parties but influenced by none”.

4. It was published by James Augustus Hicky.

The above-mentioned statements refer to:

(a) The Bengal Gazette

(b) Sambad Kaumudi

(c) The Bengal Journal

(d) Indian Gazette

QUESTION 3

The Pietermaritzburg incident of 1893 is associated with:

(a) Bal Gangadhar Tilak

(b) Dadabhai Narorji

(c) Rabindranath Tagore

(d) Mahatma Gandhi

QUESTION 4

With reference to the Kutch Ajrakh, consider the following statements:

1. It is a double sided printed textile.

2. The process of Ajrakh block printing does not involve hand carving.

3. Natural dyes like indigo and madder are used for colouring textiles.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) All three

(d) None

QUESTION 5

Uttaramerur inscriptions from the reign of Parantaka I provide a detailed description of:

(a) Establishment of two grain depots

(b) Village’s self-governance

(c) Water management and irrigation

(d) Records of grants of villages

ANSWERS TO THE MCQs

1. (a)

FYI:

— Hoysala temples are noted for the unique beauty and finesse of their wall sculptures, which have been described as “art which applies to stone the technique of the ivory worker or the goldsmith”.

— The three temples chosen on the UNESCO list were built in the 12th and 13th centuries and are significant not only because they reflect the superior skill of their builders, but also because they tell the story of the political events that moulded them.

— The three temples include the Chennakeshava temple in Belur, the Hoysaleswara Temple in Halebidu, and the Keshava Temple in Somanathapura.

	Temple	Dedicated to	Location
1	Chennakeshava temple	Lord Vishnu	Karnataka
2	Kesava temple	Lord Vishnu	Karnataka
3	Hoysaleswara temple	Lord Shiva	Karnataka

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

2. (a)

FYI:

— World Press Freedom Day is observed yearly on May 3 to celebrate the value of media in society.

— The first newspaper published in India was Hicky’s Bengal Gazette, which appeared on January 29, 1780.

— The journal was also known as the Bengal Gazette or Calcutta General Advertiser.

— The Bengal Gazette was humorously referred to as “a weekly political and commercial paper, open to all parties but influenced by none.”

— The journal not only published articles on politics, worldwide news, and opinion letters, but it was also an advertiser, and its advertisements could travel farther than a city hoarding.

Therefore, option (a) is the correct answer.

(Other Source: cmsadmin.amritmahotsav.nic.in)

3. (d)

FYI:

— On June 7, 1893, a young lawyer named Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was rudely booted from a train’s first class cabin allocated for ‘whites exclusively’ at South Africa’s Pietermaritzburg railway station.

— Gandhi was on his way from Durban to Pretoria when, on the night of June 7, 1893, a railway official ordered him to give up his first-class seat and shift to the third-class compartment. Gandhi refused, insisting that he had a legitimate first-class ticket.

— This resulted in a police constable being summoned and Gandhi being expelled from the train at Pietermaritzburg station. He spent the night shivering in the station’s waiting area, determined to fight racial injustice.

— Gandhians see the Pietermaritzburg incident as one of the most crucial moments in his life.

Therefore, option (d) is the correct answer.

4. (b)

FYI:

— The Controller General of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks (CGPDTM) has granted a Geographical Indication (GI) certificate to the artisans of “Kutch Ajrakh.”

— Ajrakh is a double-sided printed textile that is among the world’s oldest living textiles. Hence, statement 1 is correct.

— This distinguished marking recognises the significance of the distinctive Ajrakh block printing method, which originated in Gujarat’s Kutch region. The GI designation protects this cultural legacy and supports the skilled artisans who keep it alive.

— Ajrakh block printing includes 12-14 steps, beginning with hand carving the desired motif onto a block, then preparing the cloth and applying natural dyes such as indigo and madder. Hence, statement 2 is not correct and statement 3 is correct.

— The word “Ajrakh” comes from the Arabic word “Azrak,” which means “azure” or “blue,” and refers to the primary shade created by indigo dyes.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

5. (b)

FYI:

— Uttaramerur is located in the Kanchipuram district, about 90 kilometres southeast of Chennai. It is a small town with a population of around 25,000 according to the 2011 census. It is well-known for its historic temples constructed during the Pallava and Chola periods.

— The famous inscription from Parantaka I’s reign is found on the walls of the Vaikunda Perumal Temple.

— The Uttaramerur inscription gives details of local self-governance. The inscription gives details of the functioning of the local sabha, i.e. the village assembly.

— The inscription describes a number of important sabha committees, each with its own distinct function. The garden committee, tank committee, annual committee (an executive committee that required prior experience and knowledge to be a part of), committee for supervision of justice (for supervising appointments and wrongdoing), gold committee (in charge of all the gold in the village temple), and five-fold committee (its role is unclear in the inscription) are among them.

— The Uttaramerur inscription details how members were selected, the required qualifications, their roles and responsibilities, and even the circumstances in which they could be removed.

Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

Previous Daily Subject-Wise-Quiz

Daily subject-wise quiz — Polity and Governance (Week 64)

Daily Subject-wise quiz — History, Culture, and Social Issues (Week 63)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Environment, Geography, Science and Technology (Week 63)

Daily subject-wise quiz — Economy (Week 63)

Daily subject-wise quiz – International Relations (Week 63)

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