UPSC CSE History of India Syllabus

History of India syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for History of India in UPSC CSE, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Ancient India

   3 topics

   • Indus Valley Civilization
   • Vedic Period
   • Mauryan and Gupta Empires
2. 2

   Medieval India

   3 topics

   • Delhi Sultanate
   • Mughal Empire
   • Bhakti and Sufi Movements
3. 3

   Modern India

   3 topics

   • British Expansion in India
   • Freedom Struggle
   • Post-Independence Consolidation

History of India flashcards for UPSC CSE

19 of 50 cards from the History of India deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. On which river system was the Indus Valley Civilization (Harappan Civilization) primarily centered?

   The Indus River and its tributaries (along with the now-dry Saraswati/Ghaggar-Hakra system).

2. What is the approximate mature (urban) period of the Indus Valley Civilization?

   Roughly 2600 BCE to 1900 BCE.

3. Name the two largest excavated cities of the Indus Valley Civilization and where they lie today.

   Harappa (on the Ravi) and Mohenjo-daro (on the Indus), both in present-day Pakistan.

4. What were the standout urban features of Indus Valley cities?

   Grid-pattern town planning, baked-brick houses, advanced drainage/sewerage, the Great Bath, and granaries.

5. Why does the Indus Valley script remain a major unsolved problem for historians?

   It is undeciphered, so the language and most written records of the civilization cannot be read.

6. Which Indus Valley site is famous for its dockyard, indicating maritime trade?

   Lothal (in Gujarat).

7. What are the four Vedas of the Vedic period?

   Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda, and Atharvaveda.

8. Which is the oldest Veda and the earliest text of the Vedic period?

   The Rigveda.

9. What is the difference between the Early (Rigvedic) and Later Vedic periods?

   Early Vedic (c. 1500-1000 BCE) was pastoral, tribal, and Saptasindhu-centered; Later Vedic (c. 1000-600 BCE) shifted east to the Ganga plains with settled agriculture, kingdoms, and a rigid varna system.

10. What is the varna system that took shape in the Vedic period?

    A fourfold social order: Brahmins (priests), Kshatriyas (warriors/rulers), Vaishyas (traders/farmers), and Shudras (laborers/servants).

11. Who founded the Mauryan Empire and in approximately what year?

    Chandragupta Maurya, around 322-321 BCE, with the help of his advisor Chanakya (Kautilya).

12. Which treatise on statecraft and economics is attributed to Kautilya (Chanakya)?

    The Arthashastra.

13. Which battle led Emperor Ashoka to embrace Buddhism and a policy of non-violence?

    The Kalinga War (c. 261 BCE).

14. How did Ashoka communicate his policy of Dhamma to his people?

    Through rock and pillar edicts inscribed across the empire, mostly in Prakrit using the Brahmi script.

15. Why is the Gupta period (c. 320-550 CE) called the 'Golden Age' of India?

    It saw major achievements in science, mathematics (concept of zero, decimal system), astronomy, literature, and art under stable, prosperous rule.

16. Name two leading scholars of the Gupta age and their fields.

    Aryabhata (mathematics and astronomy) and Kalidasa (Sanskrit poetry and drama).

17. Who founded the Gupta Empire?

    Chandragupta I (early 4th century CE).

18. Which Gupta ruler is known as the 'Napoleon of India' for his extensive conquests?

    Samudragupta.

19. When was the Delhi Sultanate established and by whom?

    In 1206 CE by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, founder of the Slave (Mamluk) Dynasty.

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