Daily Quiz: UPSC Prelims Marathon (History, Art & Culture) – September 14, 2020

Important Posts (Assemblies and Individuals) in Ancient period: Maha-danda-nayaka – chief judicial officer.

• kumar-amatya, meaning an important minister,
• sandhi-vigrahika, meaning a minister of war and peace.
• Nagarashreshthi or chief banker or merchant of the city.
• The sarthavaha or leader of the merchant caravans.
• prathama-kulika or the chief craftsman.
• And the head of the kayasthas or scribes.

Chola inscriptions mention several categories of land:

• Vellanvagai – land of non-Brahmana peasant proprietors
• Brahmadeya – land gifted to Brahmanas
• Shalabhoga – land for the maintenance of a school
• devadana, tirunamattukkani – land gifted to temples
• pallichchhandam – land donated to Jaina institutions

In 1318 the poet Amir Khusrau noted that there was a different language in every region of this land: Sindhi, Lahori, Kashmiri, Dvarsamudri (in southern Karnataka), Telangani (in Andhra Pradesh), Gujari (in Gujarat), Ma‘bari (in Tamil Nadu), Gauri, (in Bengal) … Awadhi (in eastern Uttar Pradesh) and Hindawi (in the area around Delhi).

For centuries, rulers belonging to the Gurjara-Pratihara, Rashtrakuta and Pala dynasties fought for control over Kanauj.

Because there were three “parties” in this longdrawn conflict, historians often describe it as the “tripartite struggle”.

The big temples of Thanjavur and Gangaikondacholapuram, built by Rajaraja and Rajendra, are architectural and sculptural marvels.

• Chola temples often became the nuclei of settlements which grew around them.
• These were centres of craft production. Temples were also endowed with land by rulers as well as by others.
• The produce of this land went into maintaining all the specialists who worked at the temple and very often lived near it – priests, garland makers, cooks, sweepers, musicians, dancers, etc.
• In other words, temples were not only places of worship; they were the hub of economic, social and cultural life as well.

Although inscriptions, coins and architecture provide a lot of information, especially valuable are “histories”, tarikh (singular)/tawarikh (plural), written in Persian, the language of administration under the Delhi Sultans.

The authors of tawarikh were learned men: secretaries, administrators, poets and courtiers, who both recounted events and advised rulers on governance, emphasising the importance of just rule.

Keep the following additional details in mind:

• The authors of tawarikh lived in cities (mainly Delhi) and hardly ever in villages.
• They often wrote their histories for Sultans in the hope of rich rewards.
• These authors advised rulers on the need to preserve an “ideal” social order based on birthright and gender distinctions.
• Their ideas were not shared by everybody.

Mohiniattam or Mohiniyattam is an Indian classical dance form that evolved in the state of Kerala, India, and is counted among the two popular dance arts of the state, the other being Kathakali.

• Although its roots date back to the age-old Sanskrit Hindu text on performing arts called ‘Natya Shastra’, similar to other Indian classical dance forms, Mohiniattam adheres to the Lasya type that showcases a more graceful, gentle and feminine form of dancing.
• Mohiniattam derives its name from the word ‘Mohini’, a female avatar of Lord Vishnu. Conventionally a solo dance performed by female artists, it emotes a play through dancing and singing where the song is customarily in Manipravala which is a mix of Sanskrit and Malayalam language and the recitation may be either performed by the dancer herself or by a vocalist with the music style being Carnatic.

The Indian Association of Calcutta (also known as the Indian National Association) superseded the Indian League and was founded in 1876 by younger nationalists of Bengal led by Surendranath Banerjea and Ananda Mohan Bose, who were getting discontented with the conservative and pro-landlord policies of the British Indian Association.

The Indian Association was the most important of pre- Congress associations and aimed to “promote by every legitimate means the political, intellectual and material advancement of the people.” It set out to—

• Create a strong public opinion on political questions, and
• Unify Indian people in a common political programme.

It protested against the reduction of age limit in 1877 for candidates of the Indian Civil Service examination.

• The association demanded simultaneous holding of civil service examination in England and India and Indianisation of higher administrative posts.
• It led a campaign against the repressive arms act and the vernacular press act.

The French position in India was badly affected with the outbreak of war between the Dutch and the French.

• Bolstered by their alliance with the English since the Revolution of 1688, the Dutch captured Pondicherry in 1693.
• Although the Treaty of Ryswick concluded in September 1697 restored Pondicherry to the French, the Dutch garrison held on to it for two more years.

The Pitt’s India Act gave the British government a large measure of control over the Company’s affairs.

• In fact, the Company became a subordinate department of the State. The Company’s territories in India were termed ‘British possessions’.
• The government’s control over the Company’s affairs was greatly extended. A Board of Control consisting of the chancellor of exchequer, a secretary of state and four members of the Privy Council (to be appointed by the Crown) were to exercise control over the Company’s civil, military and revenue affairs. All dispatches were to be approved by the board. Thus a dual system of control was set up.
• In India, the governor-general was to have a council of three (including the commander-in-chief), and the presidencies of Bombay and Madras were made subordinate to the governor-general.
• A general prohibition was placed on aggressive wars and treaties (breached often).