Ancient & Medieval India
60 questions · NCERT foundation · BPSC pattern
BPSC marking pattern
Click the option you think is right. It turns green if correct and red if wrong, and the explanation opens underneath. BPSC now uses five options, so use (E) Not attempted when you would only be guessing.
+1 mark — Correct answer
−1/3 mark — Wrong answer (A–D)
0 — no penalty — Option E marked
−1/3 mark — Row left completely blank
Since 2026 a blank row is penalised exactly like a wrong answer, so skipping costs the same as guessing unless you shade E. That makes a calculated attempt worthwhile whenever you can rule even one option out.
1. When did Ziauddin Barani write his first account of fourteenth-century history?
(A) 1326 AD
(B) 1356 AD
(C) 1398 AD
(D) 1302 AD
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) 1356 AD
Barani, a courtier under Muhammad bin Tughlaq and Firoz Shah Tughlaq, wrote his first account in 1356 and produced a second version about two years later.
2. For what purpose was the “Rahat” used in the medieval period?
(A) Spinning of yarn
(B) Irrigation
(C) A type of tax
(D) The charity department
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Irrigation
The rahat is the Persian wheel, a water-lifting device that spread through north India in this period and made double cropping possible in several regions.
3. The Jataka tales were compiled by whom?
(A) Buddhist followers
(B) Jain followers
(C) Foreign travellers
(D) None of the above
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) Buddhist followers
Jatakas are stories of the Buddha’s previous births, compiled by Buddhists and also carved onto the railings and gateways at sites such as Sanchi and Bharhut.
4. What were the big landowners called in the Tamil region of South India?
(A) Gramabhojaka
(B) Adimai
(C) Uzhavar
(D) Vellala
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) Vellala
Vellalar were the large landowners. Uzhavar were ordinary ploughmen, and adimai or kadaisiyar were landless labourers.
5. Which of the following was not a part of the Tripartite Struggle?
(A) Pratihara
(B) Chola
(C) Rashtrakuta
(D) Pala
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Chola
The three-way contest for Kannauj was fought between the Gurjara-Pratiharas, the Palas and the Rashtrakutas. The Cholas were based far to the south.
6. The Rashtrakutas of the Deccan were feudatories of whom?
(A) Cholas
(B) Pallavas
(C) Chalukyas of Karnataka
(D) Satavahanas
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Chalukyas of Karnataka
They were subordinates of the Chalukyas of Karnataka until Dantidurga overthrew his overlord in the mid-eighth century and performed the hiranya-garbha ritual.
7. Gangaikonda Cholapuram was established by which Chola ruler?
(A) Rajaraja I
(B) Dantidurga
(C) Rajendra I
(D) Upendra Raja
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Rajendra I
Rajendra I built it after his northern campaign to the Ganga, and the name itself means the Chola city of the conqueror of the Ganga.
8. Consider the following statements regarding the Chola period:
1. During the Chola period, settlements of peasants were called “ur”, which had grown prosperous through irrigated farming.
2. Groups of villages were called “nadu”. Village councils and the nadu carried out administrative functions such as dispensing justice and collecting taxes.
Which of the above statements is/are true?
(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Both 1 and 2
Both are accurate. The ur was the peasant settlement, several of which formed a nadu, and the village assemblies handled justice and revenue collection locally.
9. What was called “nagaram” during the period of the Pallavas?
(A) Big cities
(B) Commercial cities
(C) Organisation of traders
(D) Small towns
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Organisation of traders
Nagaram was an association or guild of merchants, not a settlement type. Such guilds operated across Pallava and Chola territory.
10. In relation to archaeological sources, which of the following are included?
(i) Archives
(ii) Earthen pots
(iii) Animal bones
(iv) Metal
(v) Tools
(vi) Jewellery
Select the correct code.
(A) Only (i), (ii), (iv), (v) and (vi)
(B) Only (i), (ii) and (iv)
(C) (i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v) and (vi)
(D) Only (i) and (ii)
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) (i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v) and (vi)
The given key treats all six as archaeological material, on the reasoning that anything recovered and studied by archaeologists counts.
Check this one. Archives are usually classified as written or documentary sources rather than archaeological ones, since they consist of records kept by governments and institutions. Several textbooks draw exactly that line. Treat this key as the exam-board answer, not a settled distinction.
11. The Mughal jagir was equivalent to which institution of the Delhi Sultans?
(A) Khalisa
(B) Inam
(C) Iqta
(D) Waqf
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Iqta
Both the iqta and the jagir were revenue assignments given to officers in place of a cash salary. Khalisa was land held directly by the state.
12. Queen Didda was the ruler of which region during the medieval period?
(A) Ajmer
(B) Kashmir
(C) Delhi
(D) Malwa
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Kashmir
Didda ruled Kashmir in the late tenth and early eleventh centuries, first as regent and then in her own right.
13. What was the tax on agriculture called in the Delhi Sultanate?
(A) Jizya
(B) Kharaj
(C) Khums
(D) House tax
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Kharaj
Kharaj was the land tax, raised to about half the produce under Alauddin Khilji. Jizya was levied on non-Muslims and khums was the state’s share of war booty.
14. During whose reigns did most of the Mongol attacks on the Delhi Sultanate take place?
(A) Alauddin Khilji and Muhammad bin Tughlaq
(B) Qutbuddin Aibak and Iltutmish
(C) Khizr Khan and Bahlol Lodi
(D) Balban and Razia Sultan
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) Alauddin Khilji and Muhammad bin Tughlaq
Mongol pressure peaked under these two rulers, which is why both invested heavily in garrison towns and standing armies, though they paid for them very differently.
15. For how many years did the Sur dynasty rule Delhi?
(A) 10 years
(B) 15 years
(C) 18 years
(D) 25 years
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) 15 years
Sher Shah captured Delhi in 1540 and Sur rule ended in 1555 when Humayun recovered the throne.
16. Match the later Mughal emperors with their reigns: (a) Farrukhsiyar, (b) Alamgir II, (c) Shah Alam II, (d) Ahmad Shah — (1) 1748–1754, (2) 1713–1719, (3) 1754–1759, (4) 1759–1806
Select the correct code (a, b, c, d).
(A) 2 1 3 4
(B) 2 3 4 1
(C) 2 4 3 1
(D) 1 3 4 2
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) 2 3 4 1
Farrukhsiyar 1713–19, Ahmad Shah 1748–54, Alamgir II 1754–59, Shah Alam II 1759–1806.
Check this one. In the source paper, options (A) and (D) were printed identically as “2 1 3 4”, which makes the item unanswerable as set. Option (D) has been replaced here with a distinct distractor.
17. Sawai Raja Jai Singh was given the governorship of which region during the Mughal period?
(A) Gujarat
(B) Malwa
(C) Jaipur
(D) Bihar
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Malwa
He was appointed governor of Malwa. Jaipur was his own capital, founded in 1727, not a Mughal charge.
18. What was the combined army of the Sikh jathas and misls called?
(A) Khalsa
(B) Nihang
(C) Dal Khalsa
(D) Gurmukhi
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Dal Khalsa
The Dal Khalsa was the joint force of the misls, which assembled at Amritsar and took collective decisions known as gurmatas.
19. Under the Rakhi system of the Sikhs, what share of the produce was taken in return for protection?
(A) 15%
(B) 25%
(C) 20%
(D) 30%
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) 20%
One-fifth of the produce, that is twenty per cent, was collected as rakhi in exchange for protection.
20. Consider the following statements about the Mughals:
1. From their mother’s side they were descendants of the Turkish ruler Timur.
2. From their father’s side they were descendants of Genghis Khan.
Select the true statement.
(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) Neither 1 nor 2
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) Neither 1 nor 2
The descent runs the other way round. The Mughals were Timurids through the father’s line and descendants of Genghis Khan through the mother’s line, so both statements as worded are wrong.
21. In which battle was the cannon used for the first time in India?
(A) Battle of Farghana
(B) First Battle of Panipat
(C) Battle of Khanwa
(D) Second Battle of Panipat
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) First Battle of Panipat
Babur deployed cannon and matchlocks at the First Battle of Panipat in 1526, combining them with the tulughma flanking manoeuvre.
22. Consider the following statements about the mansabdari system:
1. The bureaucrats of the Mughals were called mansabdars.
2. Their rank and salary were determined by the institution of zat.
Select the true statement.
(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) Both 1 and 2 are wrong
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Both 1 and 2
Both hold. Zat fixed the rank and pay of the mansabdar, while sawar indicated how many horsemen he was required to maintain.
23. Which of the following statements are true regarding the mansabdari system?
1. Akbar had the jagirs carefully assessed before distributing them among the mansabdars.
2. The number of mansabdars increased significantly during the reign of Aurangzeb.
Select the true statement.
(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Both 1 and 2
(D) Both 1 and 2 are wrong
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Both 1 and 2
Both are true, and together they explain the jagirdari crisis. Akbar matched assessed revenue to salary, but by Aurangzeb’s reign there were far more claimants than productive jagirs.
24. What was the Mughal system of revenue assessment called?
(A) Jagir
(B) Zabti
(C) Iqta
(D) Zat
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Zabti
Zabti, associated with Todar Mal, fixed cash revenue on measured land using a ten-year average of prices and yields.
25. Who wrote the Akbarnama?
(A) Akbar
(B) Jahangir
(C) Todar Mal
(D) Abul Fazl
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) Abul Fazl
Abul Fazl wrote the Akbarnama, whose third volume is the Ain-i-Akbari, a statistical and administrative account of the empire.
26. In which year did Akbar conquer Bengal?
(A) 1581 AD
(B) 1586 AD
(C) 1578 AD
(D) 1585 AD
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) 1586 AD
The given key is 1586.
Check this one. The standard NCERT chronology places the annexation of Bengal at 1576, after the defeat of Daud Khan Karrani at Rajmahal, and gives 1586 for Kashmir. Check the year against your own textbook before committing it to memory.
27. To which region did the Khokhar tribe belong during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries?
(A) Punjab
(B) Uttar Pradesh
(C) Madhya Pradesh
(D) Jharkhand
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) Punjab
The Khokhars were a Punjab tribe, influential enough that their chief Gakkhar Khan became a noble under Akbar.
28. Akbar’s commander Raja Man Singh attacked which tribe in 1591?
(A) Santhal
(B) Munda
(C) Chero
(D) Bhil
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Chero
Man Singh attacked the Cheros in 1591 and seized a great deal of booty. They were subdued again under Aurangzeb.
29. What were the reasons for the increase in the number of castes in the medieval period?
1. Tribes and other social groups were absorbed into the caste system.
2. Specialised craftsmen such as goldsmiths, blacksmiths, carpenters and masons came to be recognised as castes.
3. The emergence of new castes was opposed by the Brahmanas.
Select the true statement.
(A) Only 1
(B) Only 2
(C) Only 1 and 2
(D) 1, 2 and 3
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Only 1 and 2
The third statement inverts what happened. The Brahmanas recognised and accommodated the new jatis within the varna framework rather than resisting them.
30. Who faced the attack on Garha Katanga by Asaf Khan in 1565?
(A) Gond king Aman Das
(B) Chandela king Salbahan
(C) Bir Narayan
(D) Rani Durgavati
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) Rani Durgavati
Rani Durgavati defended Garha Katanga against Asaf Khan and died rather than surrender. Her son Bir Narayan fell shortly afterwards.
31. Consider the following statements about the bhakti saints of South India:
1. The Nayanars were Shaiva saints.
2. The Alvars were Vaishnava saints.
3. These saints came only from the Pulaiyar and Panar castes, who were regarded as untouchable.
Select the correct statement.
(A) 1 and 2 only
(B) 3 only
(C) 1, 2 and 3
(D) All statements are false
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) 1 and 2 only
The word “only” breaks the third statement. Some of the best-known bhaktas did come from the Pulaiyar and Panar communities, but the movement drew people from across the caste order.
32. Consider the following statements:
(i) Puhar was the port of the Pandyas.
(ii) Madurai was the port of the Cholas.
Choose the correct option.
(A) Only (i)
(B) Only (ii)
(C) Both (i) and (ii)
(D) None of the above
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) None of the above
Both are swapped. Puhar or Kaveripattinam was the Chola port, and Madurai was the Pandya capital, an inland city rather than a port.
33. Consider the following statements about the philosopher Shankara:
(i) He was born in Tamil Nadu in the eighth century.
(ii) He was a supporter of monism.
(iii) He described the world as an illusion.
(iv) He preached the path of knowledge as the means to salvation.
Select the true statement.
(A) Only (i), (ii) and (iii)
(B) Only (ii), (iii) and (iv)
(C) Only (i), (iii) and (iv)
(D) (i), (ii), (iii) and (iv)
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Only (ii), (iii) and (iv)
Shankara was born in Kerala, not Tamil Nadu, which rules out the first statement. The rest describe Advaita accurately.
34. In which region did the Virashaiva movement begin?
(A) Tamil Nadu
(B) Karnataka
(C) Kerala
(D) Andhra Pradesh
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Karnataka
The Virashaiva or Lingayat movement began in Karnataka in the twelfth century under Basavanna, who rejected caste and image worship.
35. Who composed Mahatma Gandhi’s favourite hymn “Vaishnav Jan To Tene Kahiye”?
(A) Namdev
(B) Mirabai
(C) Tukaram
(D) Narsinh Mehta
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) Narsinh Mehta
Narsinh Mehta, the fifteenth-century Gujarati saint-poet, composed it.
36. In which region of India did the Nathpanth initially become popular?
(A) Eastern region
(B) Northern region
(C) Southern region
(D) Western region
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Northern region
The Nathpanthis, Siddhacharas and Yogis were prominent in northern India, criticising ritual and advocating yogic discipline instead.
37. Whose follower did Mirabai become?
(A) Surdas
(B) Dadu Dayal
(C) Shankaradeva
(D) Ravidas
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) Ravidas
Mirabai is described as a disciple of Ravidas, a saint from a community regarded as untouchable, which itself signalled her rejection of caste norms.
38. Consider the following statements regarding taxes during the Chola period:
(i) Vetti was a tax collected in cash.
(ii) Kadamai was a land revenue.
Choose the correct option.
(A) Only (i)
(B) Only (ii)
(C) Both (i) and (ii)
(D) None of the above
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Only (ii)
Vetti was forced, unpaid labour rather than a cash levy. Kadamai was indeed the land revenue.
39. In which family was Kabir born?
(A) Barber
(B) Weaver
(C) Cobbler
(D) Farmer
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Weaver
Kabir was brought up in a family of Muslim julahas, that is weavers, near Benaras.
40. Who started the langar system?
(A) Guru Nanak
(B) Guru Angad
(C) Guru Gobind Singh
(D) Guru Ram Das
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) Guru Nanak
Guru Nanak began the community kitchen at Kartarpur, where followers ate together regardless of caste.
41. Choose the correct chronological order of these Chinese Buddhist pilgrims who visited India:
(A) Itsing, Xuanzang, Faxian
(B) Faxian, Xuanzang, Itsing
(C) Itsing, Faxian, Xuanzang
(D) Faxian, Itsing, Xuanzang
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Faxian, Xuanzang, Itsing
Faxian came in the early fifth century during the Gupta period, Xuanzang in the 630s under Harsha, and Itsing in the 670s.
42. Which of the following statements is not correct regarding trade during the Sangam period?
(A) Traders used only sea routes to transport goods.
(B) South India was famous for gold, spices, especially black pepper, and precious stones.
(C) Many Roman gold coins have been found in South India as evidence of trade with Rome.
(D) None of these
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) Traders used only sea routes to transport goods.
Overland routes were used as well as maritime ones, so the word “only” makes the first statement false. The other two are accurate.
43. On what basis did early humans select plants and animals for domestication?
(i) Those less likely to fall ill
(ii) Plants with large grains and sturdy stalks
(iii) Animals that were less aggressive
Select the correct code.
(A) Only (i)
(B) (i) and (iii)
(C) (i), (ii) and (iii)
(D) Only (iii)
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) (i), (ii) and (iii)
All three criteria applied. People kept the seeds of the best plants and reared the calmer, healthier animals, and repeating this over generations changed the species themselves.
44. Consider the following statements regarding bhakti:
1. Devotion to any god or goddess is called bhakti.
2. The path of bhakti is accepted in the Bhagavad Gita.
3. The idea of bhakti was rejected in the Buddhist and Jaina traditions.
Select the false statement.
(A) 1 and 2 only
(B) Only 2
(C) 1, 2 and 3
(D) Only 3
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) Only 3
Only the third is false. Devotional worship also entered Buddhist and Jaina practice, which is why images of the Buddha and the Tirthankaras came to be venerated.
45. How many Nayanar saints were there?
(A) 62
(B) 12
(C) 63
(D) 108
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) 63
There were 63 Nayanars, devotees of Shiva, alongside 12 Alvars devoted to Vishnu.
46. Consider the following statements about Ramanuja:
1. He was born in Tamil Nadu in the eleventh century.
2. He was influenced by the Nayanar saints.
3. He propounded the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta.
Select the true statement.
(A) Only 3
(B) Only 2 and 3
(C) 1, 2 and 3
(D) Only 1
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) Only 1
He was influenced by the Alvars rather than the Nayanars, and his doctrine was Vishishtadvaita, qualified non-dualism, not Advaita. Only the first statement survives.
47. Consider the following statements about the Sufis:
1. Sufis were Muslim mystics.
2. While accepting the Islamic code of conduct, they emphasised devotion towards God and compassion towards all human beings.
3. They emphasised personal devotion to God.
Select the true statement.
(A) 1 and 3 only
(B) Only 1
(C) 1 and 2 only
(D) 1, 2 and 3
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) 1 and 3 only
The given key treats the second statement as false, on the reading that the Sufis rejected outward religiosity and elaborate ritual rather than working within the formal code.
Check this one. This one turns entirely on how the second statement is worded. Sufis did emphasise love and compassion, and many observed the sharia while criticising its formalism, so the statement is arguably true. The key follows the textbook line that they rejected outward religiosity. Read the wording carefully rather than relying on the substance alone.
48. Consider the following statements about the fourteenth-century text Lilatilakam:
(i) It is the first literary work produced in Kerala, written in Malayalam, dealing with grammar and poetics.
(ii) The book was written entirely in Sanskrit.
Select the true statement.
(A) Only (i)
(B) Only (ii)
(C) Both (i) and (ii)
(D) None of the above
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) None of the above
Lilatilakam was composed in Manipravalam, a blend of Sanskrit and Malayalam, so neither the pure-Malayalam nor the pure-Sanskrit description fits.
49. Kathak dance is associated with which part of India?
(A) North India
(B) South India
(C) West India
(D) East India
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) North India
Kathak grew from the kathaks, storytellers in north Indian temples, and later developed under Mughal and Awadh court patronage.
50. The Basohli style of painting is associated with which state?
(A) Himachal Pradesh
(B) Uttarakhand
(C) Rajasthan
(D) Gujarat
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) Himachal Pradesh
Basohli is the boldest of the Pahari styles of the western Himalayan foothills, known for hot colour and beetle-wing inlay.
Check this one. The town of Basohli itself lies in the Jammu region, in Kathua district. Exam keys nonetheless group it with Himachal Pradesh because the Pahari schools are treated as a single hill tradition. Answer as the key expects, but know the geography.
51. Who composed the Rasamanjari?
(A) Shankar Dayal Sharma
(B) Vishnu Sharma
(C) Bhanudatta
(D) Tulsidas
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Bhanudatta
Bhanudatta wrote the Rasamanjari in Sanskrit. It was famously illustrated in the Basohli style in the seventeenth century.
52. Consider the following statements about the Brihaddharma Purana:
(i) It was composed in Bengal.
(ii) It permitted Brahmanas to eat certain specified kinds of fish.
Select the true statement.
(A) Only (i)
(B) Only (ii)
(C) Both (i) and (ii)
(D) Neither (i) nor (ii)
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Both (i) and (ii)
Both are true. The text is a thirteenth-century Bengali compilation, and its concession on fish shows local custom being written into religious law.
53. The ruler of which dynasty built the Jagannath temple at Puri?
(A) Maurya dynasty
(B) Pala dynasty
(C) Kharavela dynasty
(D) Ganga dynasty
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) Ganga dynasty
Anantavarman Chodaganga of the Eastern Ganga dynasty began it in the twelfth century, and Anangabhima III later dedicated his kingdom to the deity.
54. What is the literal meaning of “Manipravalam”?
(A) Sanskrit and regional languages
(B) Diamond and coral
(C) Diamond and emerald
(D) Diamond and ruby
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Diamond and coral
It literally means diamond and coral, a metaphor for the mixing of two languages, here Sanskrit and Malayalam.
55. Who were called “trained minstrels”?
(A) Rajput generals
(B) Special servants of the Rajputs
(C) Singers of the heroic tales of the Rajputs
(D) The Brahmana priests of the Rajputs
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Singers of the heroic tales of the Rajputs
Trained minstrels recited poems and songs about Rajput heroes, and these stories were used to attract followers and legitimise rule.
56. The “dochala” and “chauchala” styles of architecture are characteristic of which region?
(A) Karnataka
(B) Andhra Pradesh
(C) Bengal
(D) Maharashtra
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (C) Bengal
These are Bengal temple forms, the dochala with a two-roofed structure and the chauchala with four, both derived from thatched hut construction.
57. Assertion (A): During the time of the later Mughals, the periodic remission of revenue to the capital declined.
Reason (R): Subadars consolidated their control over the provinces.
Reason (R): Subadars consolidated their control over the provinces.
Choose the correct option.
(A) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
(B) Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A
(C) A is true but R is false
(D) A is false, but R is true
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) Both A and R are true, and R is the correct explanation of A
Both are true and causally linked. As governors gathered financial and military authority in their provinces, they retained revenue locally instead of sending it to Delhi.
58. The Jat state emerged as a powerful force under which ruler?
(A) Bharatmal
(B) Surajmal
(C) Ajit Singh
(D) Jai Singh
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (B) Surajmal
Surajmal, who ruled from 1756 to 1763, consolidated Jat power around Bharatpur and made it a formidable state.
59. How many times did Ahmad Shah Abdali attack northern India between 1748 and 1761?
(A) 11 times
(B) 17 times
(C) 12 times
(D) 5 times
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (D) 5 times
The given key counts five invasions in the window from 1748 to 1761, ending with the third Battle of Panipat.
Check this one. General accounts usually count eight invasions of India in total, running to 1767. The figure of five holds only for the specific 1748–1761 window. If the question drops the date range, the expected answer often changes.
60. In which year did Guru Gobind Singh establish the Khalsa Panth?
(A) 1699 AD
(B) 1707 AD
(C) 1695 AD
(D) 1710 AD
(E) Not attempted
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Answer: (A) 1699 AD
The Khalsa was instituted at Anandpur on Baisakhi in 1699, with its code of conduct and the five signs of identity.
Answer key
1 B · 2 B · 3 A · 4 D · 5 B · 6 C · 7 C · 8 C · 9 C · 10 C · 11 C · 12 B · 13 B · 14 A · 15 B · 16 B · 17 B · 18 C · 19 C · 20 D · 21 B · 22 C · 23 C · 24 B · 25 D · 26 B · 27 A · 28 C · 29 C · 30 D · 31 A · 32 D · 33 B · 34 B · 35 D · 36 B · 37 D · 38 B · 39 B · 40 A · 41 B · 42 A · 43 C · 44 D · 45 C · 46 D · 47 A · 48 D · 49 A · 50 A · 51 C · 52 C · 53 D · 54 B · 55 C · 56 C · 57 A · 58 B · 59 D · 60 A
Scoring: +1 correct, −1/3 wrong, 0 for option E, −1/3 for a blank row. Questions 10, 16, 26, 47, 50 and 59 carry a note where the key is contested; open Show answer on those before you memorise them.
