Daily Current Affairs (MCQ's) | 10-01-2023

Q1. Consider the following statements about decadal census in India

1. It was first started under British Viceroy Lord Mayo in 1872.

2. The first synchronous census in India was held in 1881. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

a. 1 only

b. 2 only

c. Both 1 and 2

d. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer (c)

Explanation:

The Census is the enumeration of the population of the country and it is being conducted at an interval of 10 years. It was first started under British Viceroy Lord Mayo in 1872. It helped in framing new policies, government programs to uplift areas of improvement in the community. The first synchronous census in India was held in 1881. The responsibility of conducting the decennial Census rests with the Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India under the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. In the Census, data is collected on demographic and various socio-economic parameters like education, SC/ST, religion, language, marriage, fertility, disability, occupation and migration of the individuals.

Q2. Megasthenes was an ambassador sent by the Greek ruler

a. Alexander

b. Seleucus Nicator

c. Constantine II

d. Cassander

Answer (b)

Explanation:

Megasthenes was an ambassador who was sent to the court of Chandragupta by the Greek ruler of West Asia named Seleucus Nicator.

Megasthenes wrote an account about what he saw. Here is a part of his description: “The occasions on which the emperor appears in public are celebrated with grand royal processions. He is carried in a golden palanquin. His guards ride elephants decorated with gold and silver. Some of the guards carry trees on which live birds, including a flock of trained parrots, circle about the head of the emperor. The king is normally surrounded by armed women. He is afraid that someone may try to kill him. He has special servants to taste the food before he eats. He never sleeps in the same bedroom for two nights.”

Q3. Kalinga is the ancient name of

a. Coastal Andhra

b. Plains of ganges

c. Mountains of Odisha

d. Coastal Orissa

Answer (d)

Explanation:

Ashoka’s war in Kalinga :

Kalinga is the ancient name of coastal Orissa. Ashoka fought a war to conquer Kalinga. However, he was so horrified when he saw the violence and bloodshed that he decided not to fight any more wars. He is the only king in the history of the world who gave up conquest after winning a war.

Q4. Consider the following statements

1. Ashoka’s dhamma involved intense worship of Buddha

2. Ashoka also sent messengers to spread ideas about dhamma to other lands, such as Syria, Egypt, Greece and Sri Lanka

3. He was inspired by the teachings of the Buddha Which of the above statements is/are correct?

a. 1 and 3 only

b. 1 only

c. 2 and 3 only

d. 1, 2 and 3

Answer (c)

Explanation:

Ashoka’s dhamma did not involve the worship of a god, or performance of a sacrifice. He felt that just as a father tries to teach his children, he had a duty to instruct his subjects. He was also inspired by the teachings of the Buddha. There were a number of problems that troubled him. People in the empire followed different religions, and this sometimes led to conflict. Animals were sacrificed. Slaves and servants were ill treated. Besides, there were quarrels in families and amongst neighbours. Ashoka felt it was his duty to solve these problems. So, he appointed officials, known as the dhamma mahamatta who went from place to place teaching people about dhamma. Besides, Ashoka got his messages inscribed on rocks and pillars, instructing his officials to read his message to those who could not read it themselves. Ashoka also sent messengers to spread ideas about dhamma to other lands, such as Syria, Egypt, Greece and Sri Lanka. He built roads, dug wells, and built rest houses. Besides, he arranged for medical treatment for both human beings and animals.

Q5. Famous Rampurwa bull stone sculpture is part of

a. Mauryan pillar

b. Gupta architecture

c. Satavahana sculpture

d. Amaravati sculpture

Answer (a)

Explanation:

The Rampurwa bull. Look at this finely polished stone sculpture. This was part of a Mauryan pillar found in Rampurwa, Bihar, and has now been placed in Rashtrapati Bhavan. It is an example of the skill of the sculptors of the time.

Q6. Consider the following statements

1. Most of Ashoka’s inscriptions were in Sanskrit and were written in the Brahmi script

2. He was the first ruler who tried to take his message to the people through inscriptions

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

a. 1 only

b. 2 only

c. Both 1 and 2

d. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer (b)

Explanation:

Ashoka, a unique ruler :

The most famous Mauryan ruler was Ashoka. He was the first ruler who tried to take his message to the people through inscriptions. Most of Ashoka’s inscriptions were in Prakrit and were written in the Brahmi script.

Q7. The Kanaganahalli Ashokan inscription is located in the state of

a. Karnataka

b. Kerala

c. Tamil Nadu

d. Telangana

Answer (a)

Explanation:

Left almost unattended to for 20 years after it came to light through the excavation by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) between 1994 and 2001, the ancient Buddhist site on the bank of Bhima river near Kanaganahalli (forming part of Sannati site) in Kalaburagi district Karnataka, has finally got some attention.

Sannati and Kanaganahalli were small and ordinary villages on the bank of Bhima till 1986 when the Kali temple at the Chandralamba temple complex in Sannati collapsed. In the process of clearing the debris, they discovered an Ashokan edict which put the villages on the world map and opened new avenues of historical research on Mauryan Emperor Ashoka and Buddhism in its early years. It prompted the ASI excavations at Sannati and nearby Kanaganahalli and attracted historians across India and beyond.

The Kanaganahalli excavation opened up many marvels. For example, an ‘abandoned well’ in the eyes of local villagers turned out to be the magnificent Maha Stupa, which was referred to as Adholoka Maha Chaitya (the Great Stupa of the netherworlds) in the inscriptions and, more significantly, the stone-portrait of Emperor Ashoka, surrounded by his queens and female attendants. While the Stupa is believed to be one of the largest of its time, the stone-portrait is considered to be the only surviving image of the Mauryan Emperor which had the inscription ‘Raya Asoko’ in Brahmi on it. This image of Ashoka is currently in one of the tin sheds. It was only six months ago that this historically significant find got a glass cover.

The Maha Stupa is believed to have been developed in three constructional phases – Maurya, Early Satavahana and Later Satavahana periods stretching from 3rd Century B.C. to 3rd Century A.D. The Stupa is believed to have been destroyed in an earthquake.

The recoveries included around 60 dome slabs with the sculptural rendering of Jataka stories, Portrait of Ashoka, Satavahana monarchs and certain unique depictions of Buddhist missionaries sent by Ashoka to different parts; 72 drum-slabs decorated with a variety of Dharma- Chakras, Stupas, the first sermon, Bodhi-tree, Naga Muchalinda, Viihara

complexes; over 10 inscribed sculptures of the Buddha, over a dozen Buddha-Padas; fragments of Ayaka pillars, umbrella stones and shafts, parts of sculptures of Yakshas and lion and 250 Brahmi inscriptions with varied paleographical features.