Q70. Which statement best explains the long-term significance of Shivaji’s achievements in early modern India?
[UP PGT (History), 2026]
(A) He built a durable state through administration, naval power and mobile warfare
(B) His achievements were confined entirely to religious conversion
(C) His policies had no effect beyond his lifetime
(D) He immediately united the entire Indian subcontinent
Answer: (A) He built a durable state through administration, naval power and mobile warfare
Explanation: Shivaji combined territorial administration, a network of forts, naval measures and mobile military tactics. These institutions helped create a durable Maratha state. His successors and later Peshwas expanded Maratha influence, although the subcontinent never became one unified state under him.
Q69. Which statement explains the ideological and administrative significance of Shivaji’s coronation in 1674?
[UP PGT (History), 2026]
(A) It reduced Maratha autonomy under the Mughals
(B) It asserted sovereignty, ritual legitimacy and an independent political order
(C) It dissolved the royal administrative system
(D) It was a purely private ceremony with no political implication
Answer: (B) It asserted sovereignty, ritual legitimacy and an independent political order
Explanation: The coronation at Raigad in 1674 publicly affirmed Shivaji’s standing as an independent Chhatrapati. Its ritual dimension reinforced royal legitimacy, while the assertion of sovereignty strengthened his political position against rival Deccan powers and the Mughal Empire.
Q68. Which statement best describes Shivaji’s military and naval policies?
[UP PGT (History), 2026]
(A) He relied entirely on open-field battles
(B) He avoided coastal defence and trade routes
(C) He adopted the Mughal military system without modification
(D) He combined mobile warfare, forts and naval strength to protect territory and commerce
Answer: (D) He combined mobile warfare, forts and naval strength to protect territory and commerce
Explanation: Shivaji adapted warfare to the Western Ghats and Konkan coast. Forts secured vital routes, mobile troops disrupted stronger opponents, and naval development addressed coastal defence. This combined strategy protected communications, resources and commercial interests more effectively than a single method could.
Q67. Which administrative combination was introduced or consolidated by Shivaji?
[UP PGT (History), 2026]
(A) Foreign mercenary rule and abolition of revenue records
(B) A hereditary assembly that could overrule the king
(C) No formal officials and no fort administration
(D) Ashtapradhan offices, systematic revenue administration and direct supervision of forts
Answer: (D) Ashtapradhan offices, systematic revenue administration and direct supervision of forts
Explanation: Shivaji used an eight-officer advisory arrangement, organized revenue and military systems, and supervised strategically important forts. The officials exercised delegated responsibilities but did not constitute a modern cabinet. This structure assisted state-building and limited dependence on autonomous local magnates.
Q66. Which description best captures Shivaji’s state-building strategy in the seventeenth-century Deccan?
[UP PGT (History), 2026]
(A) Exclusive dependence on heavy artillery
(B) Rejection of local alliances and administrative organization
(C) Reliance on foreign governors alone
(D) Combining mobile warfare, strategic forts and administrative consolidation
Answer: (D) Combining mobile warfare, strategic forts and administrative consolidation
Explanation: Shivaji’s success was not simply a series of raids. His regime brought together local political alliances, fort-based defence, flexible campaigning and administrative supervision. These complementary elements created a resilient regional kingdom even when confronted by larger Mughal and Bijapur forces.
Q65. Assertion (A): Shivaji strengthened central authority at the expense of some hereditary local chiefs.
Reason (R): The Ashtapradhan was a hereditary council that enforced feudal decentralization.
Choose the correct answer.
[UP PGT (History), 2026]
(A) A is true but R is false
(B) A is false but R is true
(C) Both are true, but R does not explain A
(D) Both are true and R explains A
Answer: (A) A is true but R is false
Explanation: Shivaji’s state-building sought to check some entrenched hereditary intermediaries through appointments and direct supervision. However, his eight principal officers were advisers serving under royal authority; the council was not originally constituted as an independent hereditary feudal assembly.
Q64. Identify the correct chronological sequence: (a) Shivaji’s coronation; (b) Balaji Vishwanath becomes Peshwa; (c) Third Battle of Panipat; (d) Treaty of Purandar.
[UPHESC Assistant Professor (History), 2026]
(A) a, b, d, c
(B) a, d, b, c
(C) d, a, b, c
(D) d, b, a, c
Answer: (C) d, a, b, c
Explanation: The Treaty of Purandar with Jai Singh came in 1665, followed by Shivaji’s coronation in 1674. Balaji Vishwanath became Peshwa in 1713, and the Marathas fought the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761. Thus, d-a-b-c is chronological.
Q63. Match the Maratha terms:
(a) Chauth;
(b) Sardeshmukhi;
(c) Ashtapradhan;
(d) Mokasa,
with
(1) eight ministers;
(2) one-fourth levy;
(3) additional ten-percent claim;
(4) military revenue assignment.
[UPHESC Assistant Professor (History), 2026]
(A) a-2, b-3, c-1, d-4
(B) a-1, b-2, c-3, d-4
(C) a-3, b-2, c-1, d-4
(D) a-2, b-1, c-3, d-4
Answer: (A) a-2, b-3, c-1, d-4
Explanation: Chauth commonly denoted a claim of one-fourth of assessed revenue, and Sardeshmukhi an additional ten-percent claim. Ashtapradhan referred to Shivaji’s eight leading officials. Mokasa described a revenue assignment connected with maintenance or military obligations.
Q62. Which group correctly matches the institutions with their historical states: Nayankara, Tarafdari, Ashtapradhan and Mansabdari?
[UPHESC Assistant Professor (History), 2026]
(A) Marathas, Mughals, Vijayanagara, Bahmani
(B) Bahmani, Vijayanagara, Mughals, Marathas
(C) Vijayanagara, Marathas, Bahmani, Mughals
(D) Vijayanagara, Bahmani, Marathas, Mughals
Answer: (D) Vijayanagara, Bahmani, Marathas, Mughals
Explanation: Nayankara arrangements are associated with Vijayanagara, while Tarafdari belonged to the Bahmani administrative structure. Shivaji’s Maratha government used the Ashtapradhan, and the Mughal Empire developed the Mansabdari ranking and service system. Matching the institutions distinguishes contemporaneous political traditions.
Q61. In which language did Sant Tukaram compose the devotional verses known as abhangs?
[RRB NTPC (Graduate) CBT-I, 2026]
(A) Marathi
(B) Hindi
(C) Gujarati
(D) Kannada
Answer: (A) Marathi
Explanation: Tukaram, a major figure of the Varkari bhakti tradition in Maharashtra, composed abhang devotional poetry in Marathi. His verses centred on devotion to Vithoba of Pandharpur and helped shape the religious and literary environment preceding and surrounding Shivaji’s rise.