Medieval India: Sultanate, Vijayanagara, Mughals, Marathas; Bhakti and Sufi: previous-year questions
31 real UPSC Prelims questions (2011–2026) with the official answer and a clear explanation. 15 of them came in the last five papers.
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With reference to the economic history of medieval India, the term ‘Araghatta’ refers to
Answer (c) & explanation
Araghatta was a water-wheel for irrigation (c). It carried a chain of pots and was turned by bullocks, lifting water from wells to the fields. Early medieval texts and inscriptions mention it, and it later developed into the gear-driven Persian wheel (saqiya/rahat), which spread widely under the Delhi Sultanate. It does not mean bonded labour (a). Land grants to military officers (b) were iqtas under the Sultanate and jagirs under the Mughals. Wasteland brought under the plough (d) does not match the word either.
Notice the story of farm technology: wells, tanks (eri) and the araghatta made it possible to grow two crops a year. Babur's memoirs describe the water-wheels he saw in north India.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Regarding the taxation system of Krishna Deva, the ruler of Vijayanagar, consider the following statements :
- 1. The tax rate on land was fixed depending on the quality of the land.
- 2. Private owners of workshops paid an industries tax.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer (c) & explanation
Both are correct (c). Under Krishnadevaraya (1509–29), land was surveyed and taxed by its quality: wet, dry, orchard and forest land paid different rates (1). Besides land revenue, the state taxed property, sales and professions, and charged an industries tax on owners of workshops (2), along with tolls and even marriage taxes.
Accounts of foreign travellers such as Domingo Paes and Fernão Nunes describe the empire's wealth. Krishnadevaraya also wrote the Telugu work Amuktamalyada and patronised the Ashtadiggajas. Notice how a strong revenue system funded Vijayanagara's temples, armies and markets.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
With reference to the cultural history of medieval India, consider the following statements :
- 1. Siddhas (Sittars) of Tamil region were monotheistic and condemned idolatry.
- 2. Lingayats of Kannada region questioned the theory of rebirth and rejected the caste hierarchy.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer (c) & explanation
Both are correct (c). The Siddhas (Sittars) were Tamil mystics who believed in one god and mocked idol worship, rituals and caste (1). The Lingayats or Virashaivas, founded by Basavanna in the 12th century, worshipped Shiva alone through the personal ishtalinga, rejected caste hierarchy and questioned the theory of rebirth (2). They also allowed widow remarriage.
Basavanna's vachanas, short poems in Kannada, spread these ideas, and the Anubhava Mantapa was a hall for spiritual debate. Notice how these movements challenged hierarchy long before modern social reform.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Banjaras during the medieval period of Indian history were generally
Answer (d) & explanation
Banjaras were mainly traders and carriers (d). They moved in large bullock caravans called tanda, carrying grain, salt and other goods over long distances. They were not chiefly agriculturists (a), warriors (b) or weavers (c), though they served armies as suppliers.
Alauddin Khalji used Banjaras to bring grain to Delhi's markets as part of his price controls. Jahangir described their caravans in his memoirs, and Mughal armies relied on them for supplies on campaign. Notice how such mobile traders knit together a vast internal market long before railways, a point that often appears in questions on medieval trade.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following pairs :
| Medieval Indian State | Present Region
| 1. Champaka | Central India
| 2. Durgara | Jammu
| 3. Kuluta | Malabar
Which of the above pairs is/are correctly matched?
Answer (b) & explanation
Only pair 2 is correct (b). Early medieval hill states are named in Kalhana's Rajatarangini and in inscriptions. Durgara is the Jammu (Dogra) region. Champaka is Chamba, in Himachal Pradesh, not central India. Kuluta is Kullu, also in Himachal, not Malabar.
Chamba is known for its temples, Chamba rumal embroidery and Pahari miniature painting, while Kullu is famous for its Dussehra fair and woollen shawls. Notice how many old names survive in modern ones: Champaka–Chamba, Kuluta–Kullu and Durgara–Dogra. Spotting such links makes medieval geography questions easier.
Pair 3 is a sound trap: Kuluta sounds southern but is Kullu.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following :
The arrival of Babur into India led to the
- 1. introduction of gunpowder in the subcontinent
- 2. introduction of the arch and dome in the region’s architecture
- 3. establishment of Timurid dynasty in the region
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Answer (b) & explanation
Only statement 3 is correct (b). Babur, descended from Timur on his father's side, founded the Timurid (Mughal) dynasty in India after the First Battle of Panipat in 1526. Statement 1 is wrong: gunpowder was known in India before him, though Babur used field artillery to great effect. Statement 2 is wrong: the true arch and dome came with the Delhi Sultanate in the 13th century, as in Balban's tomb and the Alai Darwaza.
Babur wrote his memoirs, the Baburnama, in Turkish. Notice how architecture and military technology questions often test the exact period of arrival.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Who of the following founded a new city on the south bank of a tributary to river Krishna and undertook to rule his new kingdom as the agent of a deity to whom all the land south of the river Krishna was supposed to belong?
Answer (c) & explanation
Harihara I, with his brother Bukka, founded Vijayanagara in 1336 on the south bank of the Tungabhadra, a tributary of the Krishna (c). The kings ruled as agents of Virupaksha, the deity of Hampi, and signed grants as "Sri Virupaksha". Amoghavarsha I (a) was a Rashtrakuta king, Ballala II (b) a Hoysala ruler, and Prataparudra II (d) the last Kakatiya king of Warangal.
The sage Vidyaranya is linked with the founding. Notice how Hampi, now a World Heritage Site, shows the empire's wealth in its temples and bazaars.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following statements :
- 1. ‘Bijak’ is a composition of the teachings of Saint Dadu Dayal.
- 2. The Philosophy of Pushti Marg was propounded by Madhvacharya.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer (d) & explanation
Neither statement is correct (d). The Bijak is a collection of the sayings of Kabir and the holy book of the Kabirpanth; Dadu Dayal's verses are gathered in the Dadu Vani. Pushti Marg, the path of grace through loving devotion to Krishna, was taught by Vallabhacharya, not Madhvacharya. Madhvacharya taught Dvaita (dualism).
Vallabhacharya's school is centred on Shrinathji at Nathdwara in Rajasthan, and his philosophy is called Shuddhadvaita. Notice how the Bhakti saints are best learnt with three tags each: philosophy, text and region.
Both statements pair a real text or idea with the wrong saint. Check each name.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Ibadat Khana at Fatehpur Sikri was
Answer (c) & explanation
Akbar built the Ibadat Khana (house of worship) at Fatehpur Sikri in 1575 as a hall for discussions with scholars of various religions (c). At first only Sunni scholars debated there. From 1578 Shias, Hindus, Jains, Zoroastrians and Jesuit priests joined. It was not a royal mosque (a), a private prayer room (b) or a meeting room for nobles (d).
The debates led to the mahzar of 1579 and Akbar's ideal of sulh-i-kul (peace with all). Notice how this spirit of dialogue echoes Ashoka's dhamma and later Indian secular thought.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Consider the following Bhakti Saints :
- 1. Dadu Dayal
- 2. Guru Nanak
- 3. Tyagaraja
Who among the above was/were preaching when the Lodi dynasty fell and Babur took over?
Answer (b) & explanation
Guru Nanak only is correct (b). Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi at the First Battle of Panipat in 1526. Guru Nanak (1469–1539) was preaching then, and his verses in the Babarvani describe the suffering caused by Babur's invasion (2). Item 1 is wrong: Dadu Dayal was born in 1544, in the Sur–Mughal period, and preached in Akbar's time. Item 3 is wrong: Tyagaraja (1767–1847), the great Carnatic composer, lived three centuries later. So (a), (c) and (d) fail.
Notice the other saints of that time: Kabir (d. around 1518) and Chaitanya (1486–1534) overlapped with the late Lodis; Vallabhacharya and Mirabai were active too. Dadu founded the Dadu Panth in Rajasthan. Trap: placing saints on a timeline is the whole test.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
With reference to the religious history of medieval India, the Sufi mystics were known to pursue which of the following practices?
- 1. Meditation and control of breath
- 2. Severe ascetic exercises in a lonely place
- 3. Recitation of holy songs to arouse a state of ecstasy in their audience
Select the correct answer using the codes given below :
Answer (d) & explanation
All three are correct (d). Sufi mystics practised zikr, repeating God's name, often with breath control and meditation (1). They undertook chilla, forty days of severe ascetic exercises in seclusion (2). They held sama, gatherings of devotional music such as qawwali, to arouse a state of spiritual ecstasy (3). So options (a), (b) and (c) leave out real practices.
Notice the orders: the Chishti order (Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti at Ajmer, Nizamuddin Auliya in Delhi) embraced sama, while the Naqshbandi order frowned on music. The Suhrawardi order was strong in Multan and Sindh. Amir Khusrau, Nizamuddin's disciple, is linked with qawwali. Trap: different orders differed, but all three practices existed.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.