Here are 50 Multiple-Choice Questions (MCQs) with Answers on Indian History for UPSC Exam Preparation:
Ancient India (1-15)
1. Which of the following is the oldest civilization in India?
A) Maurya Empire
B) Indus Valley Civilization
C) Gupta Empire
D) Mughal Empire
Answer: B) Indus Valley Civilization
2. Who is known as the founder of Jainism?
A) Mahavira
B) Gautama Buddha
C) Chandragupta Maurya
D) Ashoka
Answer: A) Mahavira
3. The Great Bath was discovered at which Indus Valley site?
A) Harappa
B) Mohenjo-Daro
C) Lothal
D) Dholavira
Answer: B) Mohenjo-Daro
4. What was the main occupation of the people of the Indus Valley Civilization?
A) Agriculture
B) Hunting
C) Trade
D) Animal Husbandry
Answer: A) Agriculture
5. The first Buddhist Council was held at?
A) Rajgir
B) Vaishali
C) Pataliputra
D) Kashmir
Answer: A) Rajgir
6. Who among the following was the first ruler of the Maurya dynasty?
A) Ashoka
B) Chandragupta Maurya
C) Bindusara
D) Harshavardhana
Answer: B) Chandragupta Maurya
7. Who was the Greek ambassador at the court of Chandragupta Maurya?
A) Megasthenes
B) Fa-Hien
C) Hiuen Tsang
D) I-tsing
Answer: A) Megasthenes
8. The famous treatise ‘Arthashastra’ was written by?
A) Kautilya
B) Kalidasa
C) Varahamihira
D) Aryabhatta
Answer: A) Kautilya
9. Ashoka embraced Buddhism after which battle?
A) Kalinga War
B) Battle of Panipat
C) Battle of Talikota
D) Battle of Haldighati
Answer: A) Kalinga War
10. Which ancient university was famous for Buddhist studies?
A) Nalanda
B) Taxila
C) Vikramshila
D) Both A & B
Answer: D) Both A & B
11. The famous Iron Pillar near Qutub Minar was built during which period?
A) Gupta Empire
B) Maurya Empire
C) Mughal Empire
D) Chola Empire
Answer: A) Gupta Empire
12. Who is known as the ‘Napoleon of India’?
A) Samudragupta
B) Ashoka
C) Chandragupta II
D) Harshavardhana
Answer: A) Samudragupta
13. Which Indian king defeated Alexander's general Seleucus Nicator?
A) Chandragupta Maurya
B) Bindusara
C) Ashoka
D) Harshavardhana
Answer: A) Chandragupta Maurya
14. The decimal system in India was introduced by which civilization?
A) Harappan
B) Vedic
C) Gupta
D) Mauryan
Answer: C) Gupta
15. The Rathas (chariots) of Mahabalipuram were built during the reign of which dynasty?
A) Pallavas
B) Cholas
C) Rashtrakutas
D) Satavahanas
Answer: A) Pallavas
Medieval India (16-30)
16. Who was the founder of the Delhi Sultanate?
A) Qutb-ud-din Aibak
B) Iltutmish
C) Balban
D) Alauddin Khilji
Answer: A) Qutb-ud-din Aibak
17. The famous “Ajanta Caves” are associated with which religion?
A) Hinduism
B) Jainism
C) Buddhism
D) Sikhism
Answer: C) Buddhism
18. Who was the first woman ruler of India?
A) Razia Sultana
B) Noor Jahan
C) Chand Bibi
D) Rani Durgavati
Answer: A) Razia Sultana
19. Who introduced the Persian festival “Navroz” in India?
A) Babur
B) Akbar
C) Balban
D) Alauddin Khilji
Answer: C) Balban
20. Who built the Qutub Minar?
A) Qutb-ud-din Aibak
B) Iltutmish
C) Alauddin Khilji
D) Babur
Answer: A) Qutb-ud-din Aibak
21. The “Tughlaq Dynasty” was founded by?
A) Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq
B) Muhammad bin Tughlaq
C) Firoz Shah Tughlaq
D) Balban
Answer: A) Ghiyas-ud-din Tughlaq
22. Who wrote the book “Ain-i-Akbari”?
A) Abul Fazl
B) Badauni
C) Firishta
D) Ibn Batuta
Answer: A) Abul Fazl
23. Who was the last ruler of the Mughal Empire?
A) Bahadur Shah Zafar
B) Aurangzeb
C) Shah Jahan
D) Jahangir
Answer: A) Bahadur Shah Zafar
24. The battle of Plassey (1757) was fought between?
A) British & French
B) British & Marathas
C) British & Nawab of Bengal
D) British & Portuguese
Answer: C) British & Nawab of Bengal
25. Who founded the Sikh Empire?
A) Guru Nanak
B) Guru Gobind Singh
C) Maharaja Ranjit Singh
D) Banda Singh Bahadur
Answer: C) Maharaja Ranjit Singh
Modern India (31-50)
26. The Revolt of 1857 started from which city?
A) Delhi
B) Jhansi
C) Meerut
D) Kanpur
Answer: C) Meerut
27. Who was the first Governor-General of independent India?
A) C. Rajagopalachari
B) Lord Mountbatten
C) Dr. Rajendra Prasad
D) Sardar Patel
Answer: B) Lord Mountbatten
28. Who gave the slogan “Do or Die” during the Quit India Movement?
A) Mahatma Gandhi
B) Subhas Chandra Bose
C) Bhagat Singh
D) Sardar Patel
Answer: A) Mahatma Gandhi
29. Which was the first newspaper published in India?
A) The Hindu
B) Bengal Gazette
C) The Times of India
D) Swarajya
Answer: B) Bengal Gazette
30. Who was the first Indian to win the Nobel Prize?
A) C.V. Raman
B) Rabindranath Tagore
C) Amartya Sen
D) Mother Teresa
Answer: B) Rabindranath Tagore
Here are more multiple-choice questions (MCQs) with answers on Indian History for UPSC Exam Preparation:
Modern India (Continued) (51-70)
51. Who among the following was the Viceroy of India at the time of the Partition of Bengal in 1905?
A) Lord Curzon
B) Lord Minto
C) Lord Hardinge
D) Lord Ripon
Answer: A) Lord Curzon
52. The Simon Commission was appointed in which year?
A) 1919
B) 1927
C) 1935
D) 1942
Answer: B) 1927
53. Who was the first President of the Indian National Congress (INC)?
A) Dadabhai Naoroji
B) A.O. Hume
C) W.C. Banerjee
D) Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Answer: C) W.C. Banerjee
54. The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre took place in which year?
A) 1919
B) 1920
C) 1921
D) 1930
Answer: A) 1919
55. Who gave the title ‘Mahatma’ to Gandhi?
A) Rabindranath Tagore
B) Subhas Chandra Bose
C) Jawaharlal Nehru
D) Sardar Patel
Answer: A) Rabindranath Tagore
56. Who established the 'Home Rule League' in India?
A) Bal Gangadhar Tilak
B) Annie Besant
C) Both A & B
D) Lala Lajpat Rai
Answer: C) Both A & B
57. Which of the following movements was started in response to the Rowlatt Act?
A) Civil Disobedience Movement
B) Non-Cooperation Movement
C) Quit India Movement
D) Swadeshi Movement
Answer: B) Non-Cooperation Movement
58. The Gandhi-Irwin Pact was signed in which year?
A) 1928
B) 1931
C) 1935
D) 1942
Answer: B) 1931
59. Who was the first Indian to become a member of the British Parliament?
A) Dadabhai Naoroji
B) Gopal Krishna Gokhale
C) Lala Lajpat Rai
D) Subhas Chandra Bose
Answer: A) Dadabhai Naoroji
60. Which revolutionary organization was founded by Chandrasekhar Azad and Bhagat Singh?
A) Anushilan Samiti
B) Ghadar Party
C) Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA)
D) Indian National Army
Answer: C) Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA)
61. Who was the founder of the Indian National Army (INA)?
A) Bal Gangadhar Tilak
B) Subhas Chandra Bose
C) Rash Behari Bose
D) Lala Hardayal
Answer: C) Rash Behari Bose
62. Who coined the term "Jai Hind"?
A) Subhas Chandra Bose
B) Bhagat Singh
C) Jawaharlal Nehru
D) Sardar Patel
Answer: A) Subhas Chandra Bose
63. Who was the last Governor-General of independent India?
A) C. Rajagopalachari
B) Lord Mountbatten
C) Dr. Rajendra Prasad
D) Jawaharlal Nehru
Answer: A) C. Rajagopalachari
64. The Mountbatten Plan was related to?
A) The formation of the Indian Constitution
B) The partition of India
C) The Civil Disobedience Movement
D) The Quit India Movement
Answer: B) The partition of India
65. Who was the first woman to become the President of the Indian National Congress?
A) Annie Besant
B) Sarojini Naidu
C) Indira Gandhi
D) Vijayalakshmi Pandit
Answer: A) Annie Besant
66. Who was the first Indian Governor-General of independent India?
A) Jawaharlal Nehru
B) C. Rajagopalachari
C) Dr. Rajendra Prasad
D) Sardar Patel
Answer: B) C. Rajagopalachari
67. The first war of Indian independence (Revolt of 1857) was led by which Mughal emperor?
A) Bahadur Shah I
B) Aurangzeb
C) Bahadur Shah II
D) Shah Alam II
Answer: C) Bahadur Shah II
68. Which movement is associated with the slogan “Do or Die”?
A) Civil Disobedience Movement
B) Quit India Movement
C) Non-Cooperation Movement
D) Swadeshi Movement
Answer: B) Quit India Movement
69. The Cabinet Mission Plan was sent by the British government in which year?
A) 1940
B) 1942
C) 1946
D) 1947
Answer: C) 1946
70. When was the Indian Independence Act passed by the British Parliament?
A) June 1947
B) July 1947
C) August 1947
D) September 1947
Answer: B) July 1947
These MCQs cover major events from Ancient, Medieval, and Modern Indian History, which are important for the UPSC Civil Services Examination.
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