Post Mauryan Period

Sungas

The last king according to most of historians was Brihadratha who was assasinated by scnapati Pushyamitra and the founded a new dynasty known as Sunga Dynasty.

Kanwas

Founded by Vasudeva, the Kanva Dynasty survived till 28 BC. after succeeding the sungas, four mail rulers - Vasideva, Bhimimitra, Narayana and susuman.

Satavajanas

The satavahana dynasty was founded by Simukha

The most important ruler of the Satavahan Dynasty was Gautamiputra Satakarni

The two common structures of Satavahana were the temple called Chaitya and the monastery called Vihara

Satavahans mostly issued lead coins

The official language of the satavahanas was Prakrit

Kushanas

Peshwar (Purushapura) was the capital of Kanishka of Kushana Dynasty

Who were the firest Indian rulers to issue gold coins?

Kushana

The most famous ruler of Kushana Dynasty was

Kanishka

The Kushan clan hailed from the tribe called?

Yue-chi.

Kanishka began Saka eara in 78 AD. The first month of the Saka era is Chaithra and the last month is Phalgula

The famous Indian Physician, Charaka, Buddist lawyer, Nagarjuna and Buddhist mont Ashwaghosha w, live in the court of Kanishka

Ashwaghosa wrote Buddhacharita and Sariputra Prakarana

Kanishka patronised Gandhara School of art and Mahayana from the Buddhism. He also held the fourth Buddist Coucil in Kashmir.

Kanishka is rightly called the second Ashoka

Kanishka was the first king who inscribed the image of Lord Buddha on his coins.

Mouryan Dynasty

Who was the founder of Mourya Dynasty?

Chandraguptha Mourya

Asoka, the son of Bindusara, was the greatest ruler of Mourya Dynasty. Bindusara is also known as Amitraghata

Ashoka adopted the title 'Devanapriya Priyadarsi' which means 'Beloved of Gods'

The term Asoka Means I am without sorrow.

Ashoka fought the war against Kalinga in 261 BC and conquered it after the battle of Kalinga, Asoka gave up war entirely. He died in 232 BC.

Ashoka adopted Hinayana Buddhism under the inspiration of a boy monk named Nigrodha or Upagupta.

Ashoka held the Third Buddhist Council at this Capital in Pataliputra.

Ashoka spread Buddhism in Sri Lanka and Nepal

Asoka is also called as the Constantine of Buddhism.

The IV major rock Edict of Asoka deals with the conquest of Kalinga.

Chandraguptha Mourya founded the Mourya Dynasty, and under him the whole of northern India was united.

Magasthenes, who wrote Indica was the Greek Ambassador to Chandragupta Mourya's Court.

Division of society into 7 classes during Mauryan period has been mentioned by Megasthanes.

Chandraguptha Maurya was the first Indian Ruler who introduced large number of silver coins in India

Kautily, also known as Chanakya, was the Prime Minister of Chandragupta Maurya. he wrote the Arthasasthra, a treatise on statecraft. His real name was Vishnu Gupta.

The capital of Maurya Dynasty was

Pataliputra

Asoka's personal religion was Buddhism. Kind Devanampriya Tissa of Ceylon was his First convert.

The royal highway between Taxila and Pataliputra was the ancestor of the Grand Trunk Road today.

Asokan inscriptions were composed mainly in Prakrit language and in Brahmi script.

The first foreign traveler in India was Magasthenes.

Magasthenes was a Greek ambassodor to the court of Chadraguptha Maurya.

The play Mudrasakshasa was written by Visakhadhatta. Rock Cut architecture in India made a beginning in Asoka's reign.

Stanika in Mauryan administration refers to the tax collector

The emblem of the Indian Republic has been adopted from the four lion capital of one of the Ashoka's pillars which is located at Saranath.

Alexander's Invasion

Which among the following king was defeted by Alexander?

Porus

Ambi, the ruler of Taxila, invited Alexander to India.

Darius III, the Persian ruler was defeated by Alexander

Seleucus was the General of Alexander who was defeated by Chandragupta Mourya

Porus was defeated by Alexander at the Battle of Hydaspes in 326 BC.

Alexander died in Babylon in 323 BC.

Aristotle, the father of Biology and the Father of Politics, was the teacher of Alexander

The last General of Alexander in India was Eudamus

Magadha Empire

Magadha Empire was founded by Bimbisara. He ruled Magadha towards the middle of the 6th Century B.C. He was a contemporary of Buddha.

From a small kingdom it become a major power in north India embracing the districts Patna and Gaya in Bihar. Its capital was Pataliputra.

Mahapadma Nanda was the founder of Nanda Dynasty.

Dhana Nanda was the last ruler of Nanda dynasty in whose time Alexander invaded India.

Sangam Age

We have reference to the Cholas, Cheras and Pandya in the inscriptions of Asoka and Kharavela, and the Indica of Megasthanese. The Sangam was a college or assembly of Tamil Poets held uncer royal patronage.

In the Sangam Age, the most common form of government was hereditary monarchy. The village was the fundamental unit of administration.

Tradition refers to three number of Sangam lasting for 9,900 years.

The language or Sangam Literature was Tamil.

The people of Sangam Age mainly worshipted Murugan.

Tholkappiyam is a book on Tamil Grammar

The third Tamil epic is Jivakachintamani written by Tiruttakkathevar

The capital of the Pandyas was Madhurai

Uraiyur was the capital of Cholas, knosan for cotton trade.

Vanji was the capotal of Cheras

The word Sangam means a College of Assembly.

The three sangams were held at Teen- Madhurai, Kapatpuram and Madurai.

Korkai was the main seaport of the Pandyas

Carp was the royal emblem of Pandyas.

Megasthenes described Pandya Kingdom as Pearl as it was ruled by women.

Kaveripatnam was the main Port of Cholas.

Tolkappiyam, the early Tamil grammar text, written by Tolkappiyar, the disciple of Agastya, deals with Tamil grammar of Aham (love) and Puram (war).

Tirukkural, the Bible of Tamil was compiled by

Thiruvalluvar

Rudrasarman compiled Agananuru, which cosists of 400 love poems.

Ilango Adigal wrote Silappadigaram, which is an epic of the period. In this book the lover story of Kovalan and Madhavi, a dancer has been depicted.

Sattanar wrote Manimekhalai, which is also an epic and tells about the story of the daughter of Kovalan and Madhavi.

The greatest rurer of Chera Kingdom was Senguttuvan Cheran, also known as Red Chera

The famous Chera Port, Muziris was a great centre of Indo Roman trade.

The most reputed Pandiyan King was Nedunjhezhian.

the largest single tax collected during the Sangam period was the land tax called Karai.

The founder of later Chola Kingdom was Rajaraja

The most important ruler of this dynasty was Rajendra Chola.

Tiger was the royal emblem of Cholas.

Rajendra Cholas also known as Gangaikonda Chola. He later named his capital Gangaikonda Cholapuram

Raja Raja I built Brihadewara Templs at Tanjore.

Cholas were well known for their naval supermacy and efficient village administration.

Assistant Grade -II PSC Exam - Forest Development Corporation held on 15.10.2009

1. Who captained the Pakistan side which won the ICC World Twenty 20 Championship 2009

Younis Khan

2. Who won the Kendra Sahitya Acadamy Awad in 2008 for the Collection of Essays - Madhuram Ninte Jeevitham in Malayalam

K. P. Appan

3. Human Rights Day is celebrated on

December 10

4. Who won India's first ever individual Olympic gold medal winner

Abhinav Bindra

5. What is the name of the Instrument used to measured relative humidity?

Hygrometer

6. The Oscar winning film Slumdog Millionaire was written by

Simon Beaufoy

7. Who is the author who created the character Sherlock Holmes?

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

8. The first Non Congress Prime Minister of India was

Lal Bahadur Shasthri

9. When there is a market dominated by a small number of sellers - what is the situation called



10. High Performance. Delivered is the tag line of which company

Accenture

11. Who was the first Indian Governor General of India

C. Rajagopalachari

12. What does a Numismatist collect

Coins

13. Which chemical compound is commonly known as Quicklime?

Calcium Oxide

14. Who become the first Indian to present a Golden Globe Award

Shahrukh Khan

15. The age of a tree can be determined by

Counting the annual growth rings of its stem

16. Which one of the following is essentially a solo dance

Kuchupudi

17. Who is the author of the novel Alchemist?

Paulo Coelho

18. Which European Country is know as the land of the Midnight Sun

Norway

19. Where did Budha died?

Kusinagara

20. The video game console 'Wii' is a product of :

Nintendo

21. J. D Power is a name associated with

Buddhism

Gautama Buddha, the founder of Budhism was born at

Lumbini

Buddh's mother Mahamaya died 7 days after his birth. He was brought up by his aunt named Mahaprajapathi Goutami

The first Buddhist nun was

Gautami

Buddha attained Enlightenment at Bodh Gaya in Bihar

Buddha delieved his first sermon at Deer Park in Saranath (UP)

Buddha attained Parinirvana (death) at Kusinagar in UP

Buddha was born in 563 BC and belings to Sakya Kshartiya Clan hence known as Sakya Muni

Edwin Arnold called Buddhya as Light of Asia

The central theme of Buddhism is Ashtaga Marga of Eight-fold path

Buddhism done not recognize the existence of God and Soul (Atma)

Buddhism used Pali language which was the language of common people.

The third Buddhist Council was held at

Pataliputra

The first Buddhist Council was held at Rajagraha during the period of king Ajathasatru. At this council Vinaya Pitaka ans suttina pitaka were recited by the then hight pries, Upali.

The second budhist coucil was held at Vaisali during the time of king Kalasoka

The third Buddhist Council was held at pataliputhra at the time of Asoka and was presided over by Mogaliputta Tissa.

At the third Buddhist council, Abhi-dhamma Pitaka was accepted as the sacred and authentic tex of Book of Buddhists.

The fourth Buddhist Council was held at Kashmir during the time of King Kanishka. The council was presided over by Vasumittra.

At the Fourth Buddhist council, Buddhism split into two - Mahayana & Hinayana Buddhism.

Mahayana Buddhism or Greaer Vehicle flourished in India and Hinayana Buddhism or Lesser Vehicle flourished in Ceylon (Srilanka)

The term Mahabhinishkarmana means Great renunciation or Great going forth of Buddha to the forest.

Bothi tree at Bodh Gaya was cut down by Shashanka of Gouda.

The Three Jewels of Buddhism : Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha.

500 stories are included in the Jatakas.

The place of worship of Buddhists is Pagoda.

The Holy book of Buddists is Tripitiak.

The Buddhist order of monks is called Sangha

The Buddhist monastries are called Viharas.

The old name of Orissa was Kalinga, Bhubaneswar, the capital of Orissa, is known as the Temple City of India or account of its numerous templs.

Puri, Famous for the Jaganath Temple is in Orissa.

Kanark, famous for the Sun God Temple is also in Orissa.

Jainism

The First Tirthankara was Rishabhadeve

The Last Tirthankara was Mahavira

The 23rd Tirthankara was Parsvanatha

24th Thirthankara was Vardhamana Mahavira

Mahavira, the founder of Janism was born in 540 BC, at Kundalagramam, Vaishali (Bihar0

He attained full Enlightment (Kaivalya) at Jrimbhigrama

Mahavira taught the Three jewels of Jainism (Triratna) - Right faith, Right Knoledge and Right Conduct.

The term Jaina means the conqured

Mahavira attained Nirvana at Pavapuri in 468 BC at the age of 72

The Jains repudiate the authority or infallibility of the Vedas. The Jains reject the concept of a Universal Soul or a Supreme Power as the creator and sustainer of the Universe.

Kind Kharavale patronised Jainism. Jainist does not condemn the Varna System. Mahavira believed that all individuals irresponsible of caste can strive for liberation through good deeds and living.

Jumali was a discription of Mahavira

The First Jain council was held at

Padaliputhra

Sources of Constitution

The Most vital problem agitated the minds of the makers of the constitution was how to ensure the unity of India

Accordingly a Constitution came into being by borrowing from various relevant to the Indian situation. Thus the Constitution of India can be called a Borrowed Constitution.

The Government of India Act 1935 and the Constitution of various other countries have played their part in framing the Constitution.

Indian Constitution was also influenced by the ideas of equality, liberty and fraternity, the three slogans released by the French Revolution (1789), the American Declaration of Independence and Gandhian Thoughts.

Vedic Age

The Period of Aryans is called Vedic Age which is dated between 1500 BC and 600 BC

The word Aryan literally means high born but it generally refers to language

Vedas are the oldest literary works. Vedas are 4 in number
Rig Veda, Sama Veda, Yajur Veda & Adharva Veda

Name of Vedas which contain famous Gayathri Manthra is

Reg Veda

Yajur Veda deals with sacrifices and rituals

Sama Veda tells about music

Atharva Veda is a collection of spells and incantations.

Ayurveda is a part of Atharva Veda which deals with medicine


The Saying "War begins in the minds of men" is from Adharva Veda.

Rig Veda is the oldest literary work in the world. It contains hymns in the form of prayers to God.

It was compiled between 1500 and 1000 BC

Rig Veda contains 1028 hymns and 10 mandals.

Puranas are 18 in number. Puranas are books of history and historical tales.

Kerala - Facts

1. St. Thomas First Came to Kerala in

AD 52

2. The first Christian church is established at

Kodungalloor

3. The Malayalam eara (Kollavarsham ) begin in?

AD 825

4. Mamankam was held at

Thirunavaya

5. Who was the head of the military forces of samoothiri

Kunjali Marakkar

6. Hortus Malabaricus was an ancient plant encyclopedia written in

Latin

7. Battle of Kulachal was fought between

Marthanda Varma & Dutch

8. Battle of Kulachal was fought in?

1741

9. Kundara Ploclamation was issued by

Velu Thambi Dalava

10. Kundara Proclamation was issued in

1809

Solved Paper - SC Development Officer

1. The Hormone insulin is a:

Peptide

2. Nanda Devi Peak forms a part of

Kumaon Himalayas

3. ................................. city is near to Tropic of Cancer

Kolkatha

4. Gurusagaram is written by

O. V. Vijayan

5. How many Sargas in Ramayana

500

6. The Mythical river originating from Manasarovar

Brahma Puthra

7. The Author of the Malyalam Novel, Nalukettu

M. T. Vasudevan Nair

8. ............... become the first Women Minister in Kerala

K. R. Gouri

9. The first women Government in India

Sarojini Naidu

10. The spices Board is situated at

Kochi

11. Numismatics is the study of

Coins

12. Silver Jubilee is the celebration of

25th Anniversary

13. Knot is the measur to know

The speed of ship

14. Rananathitoo Bird Sanctuary is situated in

Karnataka

15. ................ is called city of Golden Gate

San Fransisco

16. Raghu Rai is well known:

Photographer

17. Participatory Notes are associated with

Foreign Institutional Investment

18. Akbar Nama was written by

Abul Fazal

19............. is called Frontier Gandhi

Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan

20. Rogers Club is associated with

Tennis

21. International Literacy Day is observed on

September 8

22. Cathy Pacific is the Air Ways of

Hon Kong

23. The Headquarters of International Labour Organisaiton is in

Geneva

24. Kohoutek is the name of :

Comet

25. Lines drawn parellel to the equator are called

Latitudes

26. Rinkit is the current of

Malaysia

27. Manikaran is the Power Plant in

Himachal Pradesh

28. How many zones are there for Indian Railways

16

29. .................... is the longest railway platform in the world

Kharagpur

30. The Food corporation of India was set up in the year

1965

31. Lal Bahadur Shasthri National Academy of Administration is in

Mussorie

32. ................ was set up to review the concept of poverty line was

Lakdawala Committee

33. The First Chairman of Indian Planning Commission was

Jawaharlal Nehru

34. The celebrated work on Indian Economic history " The industrial Evolution of India in Recent Times" was written by

D. R. Gadgil

35. Arya Samaj was founded by

Swami Dayananda Saraswathi

36. Who ordered firing for the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre?

O' Dwyer

37. The export of slaves from India was banned by

Firoz Thuglaq

38. Glass is best described as

Super cooled liquid

39. A radar that detects, the presence of an enemy aircraft uses

Radio Waves

40. There are ............. Union Territories in India

6

41. .............. languages are recognized as regional languages in the constitution?

22

42. Fundamental Duties were incorporated in the Constitution of India by

42nd Amendment Act

43. By Which constitutional Amendment Bill was the voting age reduced from 21 years to 18 years

61st in 1989

44. Gandhian Principles have been enunciated in the

Directive Principles

45. A bat is a :

Mammal

46. A Cockrach has

Three pairs of walking legs

47. Deficiency of iron in human diet causes

Anaemia

48. Allowys in which mercury is one of the metals are called

Amalgamus

49. Asoka's contemporary Greek Kind of Syria mentioned in his edict was

Antiochus II Theos

50. Which of the following are correctly matched

Non - Cooperation Movement - 1920

Industries of Kerala

1. Travancore Cochin Chemicals

Udyogamandal, Cochin

2. Travancore Cements

Nattakom, Kottayam

3. Malabar Cements

Valayar, Palakkad

4. Aluminum Industries

Aliend - Kundara - (Closed)

5. Kerala Ceramic Limited

Kundara, Kollam

6. Travancore Rayons

Perumbavoor, Ernakulam

7. Gwaliyar Rayons or Mavoor Rayons

Marayoor, Kozhikode

8. Appolo Tyres

Kalamassery, Eranakulam

9. Mannam Sugar Mills

Panthalam

10. Pampa Sugar Mills

Niranam, Pathanamthitta

11. Hindusthan Latex

Trivandrum

12. Hindusthan Machine Tools

Kalamassri, Eranakulam

13. Intrumentation Limited

Palakkad

14. Indian Telephone Industries

Kanjikode, Palakkad

15. Modern Bakeries

Edappally, Eranakulam

16. Kerala Newsprint Factory (old name Hindustan Paper corporation )

Vellur, Kottayam

17. Travancore Plywoods (closed)
Punalur

18. Western Indian Plywoods

Kannur

19. Coshin Refiniries

Ambalamugal, Eranakulam

20. Fertilizers & Chemicals, Travancore (FACT)
Alyva

21. Kerala Fisheries Corporation

Trvandrum

22. Kerala SC & ST Development Corporation



23. Kerala Civil Supply Corporation

Eranakulam

24. Kerala State Warehousing corporation

Erankulam

25. Kerala State handloom Development Corporation

Kannur

26. Rubco Industies

Kannur

27. Kerala State Wood Industies

Kallai

28. Kerala Spinners

Komalapuram, Alappuzha

29. Kerala Drug & Pharmcuticals

Kalavoor, Alappuzha

30. United Electical Industies

Kollam

31. Kerala Minerals & Metals

Chavara

32. Travancore Titanium Products

Kochuveli, Trivandrum

33. Kerala Forest Research Insititute

Peechi, Thrissur

34. Kerala Forest Dvelopment Corporation

Kottayam

35. Kerala Plantation Corporation

Kottayam

36. Rubber Research Insitute

Kottayam

37. Kerala Engineering Reseach Intitute

Peechi

38. Kerala Khadi & Village Industires development Board

Trivandurm

39. Kerala State Electronics (KELTRON)

Trivandrum

40. Kerala State Coir Corporation

Alappuzha

41. Kerala State Cashew Development Corporation

Kollam

42. Kerala Coconut Development Corporation

Trivandurm

43. Coconut Research Institute

Balaramapuram

44. CPCR I - Central Plantation Crops Research Institute

Kasargod

45. Central Tuber Crpos Research Institute

Sreekaryam, Trivandrum

46. Cardumum Research Centre

Pampadumpara, Idukki

47. Cadhew Research Centre

Anakkayam, Malappuram Dist

48. Indo Swiss Project

Mattupatti

49. Indo Norwegion Project

Neendakara

50. Kerala Pepper Research Centre

Panniyoor

51. Pinaple Reaserch Centre

Vellanikkara

52. Sugarcane Research Centres

1. Thiruvalla, 2) Chittur

53. Aralam Farm

Kannur

54. Kerala Soaps & Oils

Kozhikode

55. Malabar Spinning & Weaving Mills

Kozhikode

56. Head Quarters of Cardomum Board

Eranakulam

57. Tropical Botanical Garden & Reseach Institute

Palode, Trivandrum

Indus Valley Civilization

Harappa the first Indus site was discovered by Shri. Dayaram Sahini

R.D. Banerjee discovered Mohenjedaro, which is located in the Larkhana District of Sindh, now in Pakistan.

John Marshal, who is closely associated with Indus Valley Civilization, discovered some seats at Mohenjedarao


Alexander Cunningham is known as the Father of Indian Archeology

Indus Valley Civilization belongs to the Chalcolithic period dated between 3000 BC and 1500 BC

The most important feature of this civilization was its town planning and urbanization

Mohenjedaro is also know as the "Mount of the Dead" which has the largest buildings, the Great Grannery and also the Great Bath

Harappan knew the art of growing creates, wheat and barley.

Kalibangan is located on the banks of river Ghaggar in Rajasthan

Banawali is situated in Haryana

Lothal, a port city which contained a dockyard is located on the banks of river Bhagavo in Gujarat.

The Indus people obtained modern amenities like underground drainage, well laid out roads, multistory house built with burnt bricks

They used a gold-silver mixture called electrum

They used bronze and copper, but iron was unknown to them.

Chess-like game of Harapans was called Sent

Harapan Seals were made of Terra-cotta

Dog was the first animal to be domesticated beside oxen, baffaloes, goats, sheep and pigs.

Horses were unknown to them

People cultivated rice at Lothal and Rangur and Barley at Banawali

The Indus people were the earliest people to produce cotton.

The ancient name given to the Indus region was Meluha

Indus People worshiped Mother Goddess and also a seated figure of a male god as the image of Pasupati Mahadeva.

The largest number of Harappan sites in post independence India have been discovered in Gujarat

Harappan Civilization extended from Jammy in the North Narmada in the south and from Makran coast of Baluchisthan in the west of Meerut in the east

Northernmost point of Indus Valle was Gumla in Jammu and southernmost was Halvana in Surat


The invation of Aryan and natural calamities like earthquakes, flood etc led to the destruction of Indus Valley Civilisation by 1500 BC.

It is belived that Mohanjodaro might have been distroyed by flood.

Pre Historic Period

The word India was derived from the river Sindhu which was also known as Indus.

India was originally considered to be a part of the land called Jambu - Dvipa (the continent of Jambu tree)

Krita, Treta, Dwapara and Kali are the four ages of traditional Hindu thought.

Domestication of animals began in Mesolithic Period

Agriculture began in Neolithic period

Paleolithic period is old stone age and Neolithic Period is new stone age

The metal age is also know as "Bronze Age"

The sapta sindhu refers to Indus. Its tributaries and rever saraswathi.

The first metal used by man was copper