Indus Valley Civilization MCQ Quiz - Objective Question with Answer for Indus Valley Civilization - Download Free PDF

The correct answer is Alamgirpur.
​Key Points

• Alamgirpur is another prominent archaeological site of the Indus Valley Civilization in Uttar Pradesh’s Meerut district.
  • Also known as Parasaram-ka-Khera, this settlement along the Yamuna River existed from 3300 BC to 1300 BC from the Harappan-Bara period.
• Among major discoveries made here during the excavation were several ceramic items like roof tiles, cups, vases, beads, and carts, among others.
  • Also, a humped bull and a broken copper blade were unearthed at this site.

​Additional Information

The correct answer is Pashupati.

Key Points

• The seals of the Harappan Civilization were mainly square-shaped and made from a stone called steatite from these seals we get an idea of the religious life of the Indus Valley Civilisation.
• The chief male deity was Pashupati, (proto-Siva) represented in seals as sitting in a yogic posture with three faces and two horns.
• He is surrounded by four animals (elephant, tiger, rhino, and buffalo) and two deer appear on his feet.
• The Indus Valley Civilization was spread from present-day North-East Afghanistan to Pakistan and North-West India.

Additional Information

Important facts to be remembered.

• Social features:-
  • Indus valley civilization is the first urbanization in India.
  • It has a well-planned drainage system, grid pattern, and town planning.
  • They have possessed equality in society.
• Religious Facts:-
  • Matridevi or Shakti is the Mother goddess.
  • Yoni worship and Nature worship existed.
  • They worshipped trees like Peepal.
  • They also worshipped Fire worship called Havan Kund.
  • Pashupati Mahadeva is known as the lord of Animals.
  • The people of the Indus Valley Civilization worshipped Animal worship like unicorns and ox.
• Economic facts:-
  • Indus valley civilization is based on agriculture.
  • Trade and commerce flourished in this period.
  • A dockyard has been found at Lothal.
  • There were export and import.
  • Production of cotton was there.
  •  At Lothal, weights and measures of truth existed in Harappan culture was seen.
  • The weights and were usually cubical in shape. and were made of limestone, steatite, etc

The correct answer is Underground drainage at Mohenjodaro is the most unique.

Key Points

The drainage system in Harappan cities:-

• The drainage system in Harappan cities indicates the town planning. Hence, statement 1 is correct.
• The drainage system needed planning for its execution.
• It seems that first drainages were laid out and then houses were built along with the drains.
• Every house was supposed to have at least one wall along a street to allow the domestic wastewater to flow out in the street drains. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• The plans of the lower town show that roads and streets were laid out along an approximate grid pattern, intersecting at right angles.
• It appears that human settlement was made by planning from the beginning.
• The city was restricted to a fixed area on the platforms.
• Bricks, sundried or baked, were of standard ratio.
• The length and breadth of bricks were of four times and twice the height respectively These bricks were used at all the settlements of the Harappan Civilisation. 

Important Points

• Features of the highly efficient drainage system of Harappan cities:- 
  • ​Almost every house had a bathroom.
  • The bath and kitchen waters, as well as drainage from the latrines, and the roof drainage entered the street drains through tightly brick-lined puts, which was connected to the main sewer which in turn was connected to the bigger sewerage outlets, which ensured the channel of dirt out of the city.
  • The main drain was covered by brick slabs or corbelled brick arches. Hence, statement 3 is correct.
  • In order to check the maintenance, inspection holes were provided.
  • They had an elaborate brick-linked drainage system for the removal of rainwater
  • For water, the big houses had their own wells, other wells would serve groups of smaller houses.
  • In some houses the drainage water discharged into large pottery jars places in the street at the foot of the vertical drains in the street walls and in few houses there were pits that may have been the ancient precursors of our present-day septic tanks and grit chambers.
  • Underground drainage at Lothal is the most unique. Hence, statement 4 is incorrect.
  • It shows an expert masonry with sewer watertight; drops at regular intervals acted like an automatic cleaning device. A wooden screen at the end of the drains held back solid wastes. 

• The Bronze Age is characterized by the use of tools made from bronze, an alloy of copper and tin.
• The Indus Valley Civilisation was a Bronze Age civilization that existed in the northwestern part of South Asia from 2500–1700 BCE.
• The civilization is known for its development of techniques in metallurgy and the use of bronze, copper, lead and tin for utensils, sculptures, vessels, and jewellery.

Additional Information 

• The Indus Valley Civilization was spread from present-day North-East Afghanistan to Pakistan and North-West India. This civilization flourished in the river basins of the Ghaggar-Hakra river and the Indus. Indus valley civilization is one of the four oldest civilizations in the world. It is also known as Harappan Civilization and is well-known for its organized planning based on the grid system. Important facts to be remembered 
• John Marshall was the first researcher to use the term, ‘Indus Valley Civilization’.
• Indus Valley Civilization spread from the year 2500 – 1750 BC according to radio-carbon dating.
• The most distinctive feature of the Harappan Civilization was its urbanization.
• Moreover, sheep and goats, dogs, humped cattle buffalo, and elephants were domesticated in the Indus Valley Civilization.
• The capital cities are Mohenjodaro and Harappa.
• The port cities are Sutkagendor, Balakot, Lothal, Allahdino, and Kuntasi.
• The Indus valley people were well-acquainted with the use of both cotton and wool.
• Name of the major cities are given below:
  • Mohenjodaro (Sind)-It is located on the right bank of the Indus.
  • Kalibangan (Rajasthan)-It was on the banks of the river Ghaggar river
  • Chanhudaro-It lies on the left bank of the Indus in the south of Mohenjodaro.
  • Lothal- It is located at the head of the Gulf of Cambay.
  • Surkotada (Gujarat)-It is at the head of the Rann of Kutch.
  • Banawali (Haryana)-It was situated on the banks of the now-extinct Sarasvati
  • Dholavira (Gujarat)-It excavated is in the Kutch district

The correct answer is Copper.

Key Points

• Copper:
  • ​A number of copper tools and weapons have also been discovered.
  • The common tools included an axe, saws, chisels, knives, spearheads and arrowheads. 
  • Copper was brought mainly from Khetri in Rajasthan.

Additional Information

• The Indus Valley Civilization flourished between 2500 BC and 1750 BC.
• Harappa is a site in eastern Punjab province.
• Harappa was located on the banks of the river Ravi.
• Most Harappan sites are located in semi-arid lands, where irrigation was probably required for agriculture.
• Harappa was discovered by archaeologist Daya Ram Sahni.
• He supervised the excavation of the Indus valley site at Harappa in 1921 and 1922.
• Harappa site was again excavated by Madho Swaroop Vatsa in 1926 and Wheeler in 1946.
• The major findings of Daya Ram Sahni from the Harappan site are:
  • Sandstone statues of Human anatomy
  • Granaries
  • Bullock carts.
  • Clay figures of Mother Goddess.
  • Copper made mirror.
• Harappa was excavated by Mohammed Rafique Mughal of the Archaeological Survey of Pakistan in 1966 after independence.
• The Harappan city was heavily damaged under British rule when bricks from the ruins were used as track ballast in the construction of the Lahore–Multan Railway.

The correct answer is Rakhigarhi.

Key Points

• Rakhigarhi site of Indus valley civilisation situated at Rakhigarhi village in Hisar district.
• The site is located in the Sarasvati river plain, some 27 km from the seasonal Ghaggar river.
• The Global Heritage Fund declared Rakhigarhi one of the 10 most endangered heritage sites in Asia.
•  A team of Indian and South Korean researchers carried out excavations in Rakhigarhi.
• The team unearthed a fire altar, parts of a city wall, drainage structures as well as a hoard of semi-precious beads.

Additional Information

Important Sites of Harappan Civilization:

The correct answer is Lothal.

Key Points

• In Lothal Dockyard was found.
• List of Important sites with their features:

Additional Information

• The Indus Valley Civilization was spread from present-day North-East Afghanistan to Pakistan and North-West India.
• The civilization flourished in the river basins of the Ghaggar-Hakra river and the Indus.
• Indus valley civilization is one of the four oldest civilizations in the world.
• It is also known as Harappan Civilization and is well-known for its organized planning based on the grid system.

Important facts to be remembered.

• Social features:-
  • Indus valley civilization is the first urbanization in India.
  • It has a well-planned drainage system, grid pattern, and town planning.
  • They have possessed equality in society.

• Religious Facts:-
  • Matridevi or Shakti is the Mother goddess.
  • Yoni worship and Nature worship existed.
  • They worshipped trees like Peepal.
  • They also worshipped Fire worship called Havan Kund.
  • Pashupati Mahadeva is known as the lord of Animals.
  • The people of the Indus Valley Civilization worshipped Animal worship like unicorns and ox.
• Economic facts:-
  • Indus valley civilization is based on agriculture.
  • Trade and commerce flourished in this period.
  • A dockyard has been found at Lothal.
  • There were export and import.
  • Production of cotton was there.
  • At Lothal, weights and measures of truth existed in Harappan culture was seen.
  • The weights and were usually cubical in shape and were made of limestone, steatite, etc

The correct answer is Mehrgarh

Key Points:

• Mehrgarh is a neolithic site located near the Bolan pass on the Kacchi Plain of Balochistan, Pakistan, to the west of the Indus River Valley.
• It is the earliest known neolithic site in the Northwest Indian sub-continent, with early evidence of farming (wheat and barley), herding (cattle, sheep, and goats), and metallurgy.
• The oldest known example of the wax-lost techniques comes from a 6000-year-old wheel-shaped copper amulet found at Mehrgarh.

Additional Information

The Correct Answer is 1921.
Key Points

• Harappa was an Indus civilization urban centre.
• It lies in Punjab Province, Pakistan, on an old bank/bed of the River Ravi.
• Harappa was the first site of the civilization to be excavated in 1921.
• The excavation team was led by Daya Ram Sahni.

 Important Points

• Mohenjo-Daro was discovered in 1922 by R. D. Banerji.

The correct answer is Ropar.

Key Points

Given below is the list of Important Indus Valley civilization sites, year of excavation and River associated-

The correct answer is Lothal.

Key Points

• Couple burial was found from Lothal at the Harappan sites.
• Lothal was one of the southernmost city of the ancient Indus valley civilisation located in the Bhal region of Gujarat.
• Burial or interment is the ritual act of placing a dead person or animals, sometimes with objects, into the ground.

The correct answer is Chanhudaro.

Key Points

• The Harappan site of Chanhudaro was excavated by N.G. Mazumdar in 1931.
• Chanhudaro is located near the banks of the river Indus.
• Chanhudaro is located near Mohenjodaro in present-day Sindh, Pakistan.
• Chanhudaro was the only Harappan city without a citadel.
• Beads factory was found.
• Evidence of human sacrifice was found here.
• Chanhudaro didn't have any fortified structure.

Additional Information

• John Marshall was the first scholar who used the term 'Indus Civilization' for the Harappa Civilization. 
• The time period of this civilization was 2500 BC - 1750 BC. 
• This civilization was mainly known for its great urban planning and sewage system. 
• Rakhaldas Bandopadhyay was known for discovering the site of Mohenjodaro whereas Dayaram Sahni was known for his discovery of Harappa. 
• RS Bisht discovered the Indus Valley Civilization site Banawali in 1973. 

The correct answer is 1-C, 2-B, 3-D, 4-A.

Key Points

• Kalibangan:
  • Kalibangan is an archaeological site at Hanumangarh in Rajasthan near the Ghaggar river. 
  • Plough field, fire altars, bones of camel, burial in the circular and rectangular grave is found here. 
• Chahundaro:
  • Chahundaro is an archaeological site at Sindh in Pakistan near the Indus river.
  • we can find a bead factory and ornaments here which points towards good craftsmen in this area. 
  • No fortified structure in this place. 
  • It is the only Harappan city without a Citadel and evidence of human sacrifice is available here.
• Surkotda:
  • Surkotada is an Indus Valley Civilisation archaeological site located in Rapar Taluka of Kutch district, Gujarat. 
  • It is a smaller fortified Indus Valley Civilisation site with 1.4 hectares (3.5 acres) in area.
  • Bones of horse and graveyard are found at Surkotda in Gujarat. 
• Mohenjodaro:
  • It is a planned settlement that is divided into two sections, one smaller but higher (Citadel) and the other much larger but lower (Lower Town).
  • The Citadel owes its height to the fact that buildings were constructed on mud-brick platforms.
    • It was walled, which meant that it was physically separated from the Lower Town.
    • It had structures that were probably used for special public purposes.
  • The Lower Town was also walled. Several buildings were built on platforms, which served as foundations

The correct answer is Ravi.

Key Points

Ravi river's Banks were situated on Harappa.

• The Indus Valley civilization was discovered first in 1921 at the modern site of Harappa situated in the province of West Punjab in Pakistan.
• The city lies on the banks of the river Ravi, a left-bank tributary of the river Indus.
• Harappan civilization is also known as Indus Valley Civilization for being situated on and around the banks of the Indus river.
• It flourished around 2,500 BCE in the western part of South Asia, in contemporary Pakistan, western India, and parts of Afghanistan.
• Hence, option 4 is correct.

Additional InformationIndus River :

• The Indus River is one of the main rivers of the Indo-Gangetic Plain in the Indian subcontinent.
• It flows through the Indian state of Jammu & Kashmir and along the length of Pakistan to the Arabian Sea.
• Originating in the Tibetan Plateau in the vicinity of Lake Manasarovar, the river runs a course through the Ladakh region of India towards Gilgit-Baltistan.
• Then flows in a southerly direction along the entire length of Pakistan to merge into the Arabian Sea near the port city of Karachi in Sindh.

Luni River :

• Luni is the largest river in the Thar desert in northwest India.
  • It originates in the Pushkar valley of the Aravalli Range, near Ajmer.
  • It passes through the southeastern portion of the Thar Desert.
  • It ends in the marshy lands of Rann of Kutch in Gujarat, after traveling a distance of 495 km.
  • It serves as an essential source of irrigation water.
• Luni is a major west-flowing river that originates from the western slopes of Naga hills, at an elevation of 772 m in the Ajmer district of Rajasthan.

Bhogwa River :

• Bhogwa River is a river in Gujarat, India.
  • It is a major right tributary of the Sabarmati River.
• The city of Surendranagar is on the banks of the Bhogavo.
• Dholidhaja Dam is located on the river.