UPPCS Prelims 2019 · GS Paper I: Jaipur was listed as 'World Heritage Site' by the UNESCO 'World Heritage Committee' in…
Jaipur was listed as 'World Heritage Site' by the UNESCO 'World Heritage Committee' in its 43rd Session held in the city
Answer (a) & explanation
Option (a) is right: the 43rd session of UNESCO's World Heritage Committee met in Baku, Azerbaijan, in July 2019 and inscribed the walled city of Jaipur on the World Heritage List. Option (b), Bishkek, option (c), Istanbul, and option (d), Marrakesh, did not host that session; Istanbul hosted the 40th session in 2016. Concept: Jaipur was founded in 1727 by Sawai Jai Singh II and planned on a grid in line with Vastu ideas; it is called the Pink City. India now has 45 World Heritage sites, the latest being the Ancient Buddhist Site of Sarnath in 2026. India hosted the 46th session in New Delhi in July 2024. Ahmedabad, in 2017, was India's first World Heritage City.
Jaipur was inscribed at the 43rd session held in Baku, Azerbaijan.
Question as printed in UPPSC's official question booklet. Source: uppsc.up.nic.in
Same theme in UPPCS Mains
- MAINS UPPCS Mains 2022 · GS Paper I · Section A · Q7What is ‘Heritage Arch’ ? Underline its importance in Uttar Pradesh in terms of tourism potential.
- MAINS UPPCS Mains 2021 · GS Paper I · Q4Discuss the scientific aspects of Indian cultural heritage.
- MAINS UPPCS Mains 2019 · GS Paper I · Section A · Q7What is 'Heritage Arch'? Underline its importance in Uttar Pradesh in terms of tourism potential.
In the news: current affairs on this topic
Sirpur in Chhattisgarh enters UNESCO’s Tentative List of World Heritage sites
Sirpur, an archaeological site in Chhattisgarh’s Mahasamund district with Hindu, Buddhist and Jain remains from the 5th to the 12th century CE, has been added to UNESCO’s Tentative List. The ASI now has about a year to prepare a nomination dossier proving its Outstanding Universal Value. Sirpur was once the capital of Dakshina Kosala.
20 Oct 2026
Sarnath inscribed as India’s 45th UNESCO World Heritage Site
On 25 July 2026 the 48th World Heritage Committee in Busan inscribed the "Ancient Buddhist Site of Sarnath" on the UNESCO World Heritage List. It is India's 45th property. The serial site in Varanasi covers Chaukhandi Stupa and the Archaeological Remains of Sarnath, where the Buddha gave his first sermon.
25 Jul 2026
India hosts UNESCO’s intangible heritage committee for the first time
Intangible heritage means living practices: festivals, crafts, music. Listing brings attention but the real work is keeping the practice alive in communities.
7 Dec 2025Related questions from other years
Which one of the following statements with regard to the Moidams, built by the Tai-Ahom kingdom and inscribed as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, is/are correct ?
- 1. They acted as army fortresses.
- 2. They were recreation centres of the Royals and Nobles.
- 3. They were burial grounds of the Royals and Nobles.
- 4. They were battle drill centres of the Royals and Nobles.
Select the answer using the code given below :
Answer (c) & explanation
Only statement 3 is correct (c). The Moidams of Charaideo in Assam are earthen burial mounds of Ahom kings, queens and nobles, raised over vaulted chambers from the 13th to the 19th century. Statement 3 is right. Statements 1, 2 and 4 are wrong: they were never army forts, recreation centres or battle drill grounds. So options (a), (b) and (d) fail.
Notice their status: in 2024 they became the North-East's first cultural World Heritage Site, and India's 43rd. They are often called the "pyramids of Assam". The Ahoms ruled Assam for about 600 years, and their general Lachit Borphukan defeated the Mughals at Saraighat (1671). Charaideo was their first capital.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
The Hallisalasya painting in the Bagh Caves represents :
Answer (a) & explanation
The Hallisalasya painting shows a joyous folk dance (a). The Bagh caves in Madhya Pradesh have murals close in style to Ajanta. The best-known panel shows hallisaka: women dancing in a ring around a male dancer while others play music. Hallisaka is an old folk dance named in Sanskrit texts, and lasya means graceful dance. Option (b) is wrong: it is not the Buddha meditating. Option (c) is wrong: Shiva and Parvati on Kailasha is a theme at Ellora. Option (d) is wrong: it is not Samudramanthan.
Notice Bagh's features: Buddhist caves of the 5th–6th centuries, cut in soft sandstone, near the Bagh river. Many paintings were damaged; some are now kept in the Gwalior museum. The town is also known for Bagh print textiles.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which one of the following Carnatic music ragas is similar to Raga Bilawal in Hindustani music ?
Answer (d) & explanation
Dheera Shankarabharanam matches Raga Bilawal (d). Bilawal is the Hindustani thaat with all seven notes natural (shuddha), the same scale as the Western major scale. Its Carnatic twin is Dheera Shankarabharanam, the 29th melakarta. Option (a) is wrong: Nat Bhairavi matches Asavari. Option (b) is wrong: Kamavardhini (Pantuvarali) matches Purvi. Option (c) is wrong: Hanumatodi matches the Hindustani Bhairavi.
Notice the two systems: Hindustani music has ten thaats, classified by V.N. Bhatkhande, while Carnatic music has 72 melakartas, organised by Venkatamakhin. Another easy pair: Kalyan (Yaman) matches Mechakalyani (Kalyani). Trick: match the notes, not the names, since some names, like Bhairavi, mean different scales in the two systems.
Hanumatodi sounds like Todi, but the Carnatic Todi scale is the Hindustani Bhairavi thaat, not Bilawal.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.
Which of the following temples has/have a Nagara-style shikhara ?
- 1. Malegitti Shivalaya, Badami
- 2. Huchimalligudi Temple, Aihole
- 3. Dashavatara Temple, Deogarh
- 4. Virupaksha Temple, Pattadakal
Select the answer using the code given below :
Answer (b) & explanation
Huchimalligudi and Deogarh have Nagara-style shikharas (b). Item 3 is right: the Dashavatara temple at Deogarh (Gupta period) had an early northern-style shikhara. Item 2 is right: at Aihole, the Huchimalligudi temple carries a curved Nagara (rekha) tower over its sanctum. Items 1 and 4 are wrong: Malegitti Shivalaya at Badami and the Virupaksha temple at Pattadakal are Dravida temples with stepped vimanas. So options (a), (c) and (d) fail.
Notice why the Chalukya sites matter: Aihole, Badami and Pattadakal were a laboratory where both styles stood side by side. Pattadakal, a UNESCO site, has Nagara temples like Papanatha next to Dravida ones. Vesara later blended the two.
The Chalukyan sites have both styles side by side. Do not mark a temple Dravida only because it stands in Karnataka.
Answer as per the official UPSC answer key.