UPPCS Prelims 2022 · GS Paper I: In which of the following stupas, the features of a plateform with 'Aryak-Pillars' are…

Option (d), Amaravati, is the key. Ayaka platforms, projecting from the four sides of the stupa drum and each carrying five ayaka pillars, are the signature feature of the Krishna valley stupas of Andhra Pradesh, built under the Satavahanas and Ikshvakus. Amaravati, Nagarjunakonda (c) and Ghantasala (a) all have them, while Bodh Gaya (b) in Bihar does not. Since three options fit, the question is doubtful; Amaravati, the best-known and most elaborate example, is the best answer. Concept: the Amaravati school used white-green limestone and narrative reliefs; much of its sculpture is now in the British Museum and the Chennai Government Museum.

Question as printed in UPPSC's official question booklet. Source: uppsc.up.nic.in

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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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