Question

What was the assumption about the origin of urban life in India before the Keeladi dig?

• A. The origins lay in the northern Gangetic plains, which urbanised earlier than the south.
• B. The Indus Valley Civilization was the first urban civilization of India.
• C. The second urbanization was known to be in the Magadha empire.
• D. Both (A) and (B)
• A. Dominant theories of how urban and modern life came about in ancient India were proved wrong by the Keeladi archaeological dig.
• B. Neither the IVC, nor the urban civilisation of Magadha clearly explains how urban life emerged in Keeladi in the third century BCE.
• C. The Keeladi dig indicates that Indian urban/modern life may have had multiple origins across periods and regions; no single theory suffices.
• D. None of the above.
• A. Keeladi was far superior in culture/learning to all others in ancient India.
• B. People of Keeladi were illiterate and could not inscribe on pots.
• C. Early urban history of India could be significantly altered by the advances evidenced at Keeladi.
• D. All the above.
• A. Before the Common Era
• B. Before Colloquial Era
• C. Before Central Era
• D. Behind Central Era
• A. Keeladi civilization was inegalitarian.
• B. Literacy/education access was not restricted to the elite in Keeladi.
• C. Farmers of Keeladi were also potters.
• D. All the above.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Step 1 (Lift the \textbf{prior-belief} claims from the passage).
The passage explicitly says that, until Keeladi, archaeologists largely believed: (i) The Gangetic plains in the north urbanised significantly earlier than Tamil Nadu (south).
(ii) ``First urbanisation'' refers to the Indus/Harappan (IVC) civilisation. (iii) Large-scale town life in India first developed in the Greater Magadha region during the ``second urbanisation'' (later period).
Step 2 (Match options to the prior-belief claims).
(A) corresponds to (i) — correct.
(B) corresponds to (ii) — correct.
(C) corresponds to (iii) — historically accurate context, but the question asks for the assumption about the origin of urban life; (C) states where the second phase was known, which is supportive context but not essential to identify the origin claim.
Step 3 (Choose the best option).
Because the ``origin'' idea is captured jointly by (A) (early North) and (B) (first urbanisation = IVC), option (D) best summarises the prior assumption.
\[ \boxed{\text{Option D}} \]

Answer 2

Step 1 (Decode “single fountainhead”).
A ``single fountainhead'' means a single source/origin. Keeladi is said to challenge this idea.
Step 2 (Paraphrase the author’s claim).
The text proposes that recognisably ``Indian'' identity and urban life might not have originated only in North India; the new finds broaden the origin-story.
Step 3 (Evaluate options).
(A) Overstates with ``proved wrong'' (the passage says it is ``too soon to make definitive links'').
(B) Fixates on one region/time and adds a date not central to the claim.
(C) Captures the intended implication: plural origins across geographies and periods.
(D) Rejected because (C) fits.
\[ \boxed{\text{Option C}} \]

Answer 3

Step 1 (Extract the finding).
Keeladi inscriptions (Tamili, akin to Brahmi) can be dated to the 6th century BCE — a century earlier than previously thought.
Step 2 (Infer the impact level).
Dating literacy and inscriptions earlier in the Tamil region shifts timelines and the geography of early urban culture, affecting received history.
Step 3 (Option-by-option check).
(A) Over-claims superiority; the passage makes no comparative ranking.
(B) Contradicts the evidence (we have inscriptions!).
(C) Accurately states that the history narrative could change substantially.
(D) Impossible because (B) is false and (A) is unsupported.
\[ \boxed{\text{Option C}} \]

Answer 4

Step 1 (Recall standard historical notation).
BCE/CE are secular counterparts to BC/AD. ``BCE'' expands to ``Before the Common Era''.
Step 2 (Eliminate distractors).
(B), (C), (D) are not used in historical chronology.
\[ \boxed{\text{Option A}} \]

Answer 5

Step 1 (Interpret the evidence).
If a farmer could inscribe his own name, literacy was present among non-elite classes — a sign of wider educational access.
Step 2 (Option test).
(A) says ``inegalitarian'' (unequal), which conflicts with the implication of broader literacy.
(C) is an overreach — owning/inscribing on a pot does not prove he made the pot.
(D) cannot be true because (A) and (C) fail.
(B) precisely captures the social implication: literacy not conserved for the elite only.
\[ \boxed{\text{Option B}} \]