Art & Culture MCQs for UPSC Prelims — August 2026

Q1. With reference to the serial World Heritage property 'Great Living Chola Temples', consider the following: 1. Brihadisvara Temple, Thanjavur — built under the patronage of Rajaraja I in the early eleventh century 2. Airavatesvara Temple, Darasuram — built by Rajaraja II in the twelfth century 3. Shore Temple, Mamallapuram — added to the property at the time of its extension 4. Brihadisvara Temple, Gangaikondacholapuram — built by Rajaraja I in 1035 Which of the above is/are NOT correct?

  1. Brihadisvara Temple, Thanjavur — built under the patronage of Rajaraja I in the early eleventh century
  2. Airavatesvara Temple, Darasuram — built by Rajaraja II in the twelfth century
  3. Shore Temple, Mamallapuram — added to the property at the time of its extension
  4. Brihadisvara Temple, Gangaikondacholapuram — built by Rajaraja I in 1035
  • A. 1 and 2
  • B. 3 and 4
  • C. 2 and 3
  • D. 3 only

Q2. The Brihadisvara Temple at Thanjavur was placed on the World Heritage List in 1987 and the property was extended in 2004. Such inscription and extension decisions are taken by which one of the following?

  • A. The General Conference of UNESCO, meeting once in two years at its headquarters in Paris
  • B. The International Council on Monuments and Sites, which evaluates every cultural property nominated
  • C. The World Heritage Committee, the intergovernmental body established under the World Heritage Convention
  • D. The Executive Board of UNESCO, acting on the recommendation of the State Party concerned

Q3. The five-yearly nationwide enumeration that records holdings of India's indigenous goat and other livestock breeds is carried out by which one of the following?

  • A. The Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare
  • B. The Department of Agricultural Research and Education, which administers the Indian Council of Agricultural Research
  • C. The Department of Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying
  • D. The National Statistical Office, Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation

Q4. The Mukteswar research centre, which hosts field units for Himalayan local goats, is best described as which one of the following?

  • A. A hill campus of the Indian Veterinary Research Institute
  • B. A hill campus of the Central Institute for Research on Goats, Makhdoom
  • C. A regional station of the Central Sheep and Wool Research Institute, Avikanagar
  • D. A regional station of the National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources, Karnal

Q5. In the reported ICAR strategy for raising pashmina and mohair output, how many dedicated research centres were set up, and where?

  • A. Three — at Leh, Mukteswar and Avikanagar
  • B. Two — one at Leh in Ladakh and one at Mukteswar
  • C. Two — one at Leh in Ladakh and one at Makhdoom
  • D. Four — at Leh, Mukteswar, Makhdoom and Karnal

Q6. Under ICAR's coordinated breeding programmes, which one of the following exotic breeds was the principal sire breed used for upgrading indigenous goats for fibre?

  • A. Soviet Merino
  • B. Rambouillet
  • C. Saanen
  • D. Angora

Q7. In India's coordinated fibre-goat research, the result reported for '7/8 Angora inheritance' means which one of the following?

  • A. Crossbreds with seven-eighths Angora inheritance yielded mohair of similar quality but in far greater quantity than the Angora controls
  • B. Crossbreds with seven-eighths indigenous inheritance yielded mohair finer than that of the Angora controls
  • C. Crossbreds with seven-eighths Angora inheritance yielded a similar quantity of relatively finer mohair than the Angora controls
  • D. Crossbreds with seven-eighths Angora inheritance yielded pashmina finer than that of the Changthangi controls

Q8. With reference to specialty animal hair fibres, consider the following: 1. Mohair — the fibre obtained from the Angora goat. 2. Pashmina — the fine fibre produced by the secondary hair follicles of the Changthangi goat. 3. Cashmere — the coarse outer coat of the Kashmir goat, 4 to 20 cm in length. 4. Angora — the fibre obtained from the undercoat of the Angora goat. Which of the above are correctly identified?

  1. Mohair — the fibre obtained from the Angora goat.
  2. Pashmina — the fine fibre produced by the secondary hair follicles of the Changthangi goat.
  3. Cashmere — the coarse outer coat of the Kashmir goat, 4 to 20 cm in length.
  4. Angora — the fibre obtained from the undercoat of the Angora goat.
  • A. 1 and 2
  • B. 2 and 3
  • C. 1, 2 and 4
  • D. 3 and 4

Q9. Which one of the following correctly describes mohair?

  • A. The fine downy undercoat of the Angora goat, combed out once a year during the spring moult
  • B. The lustrous fibre shorn from the Angora goat, whose fleece grows in uniform locks and is clipped twice a year
  • C. The lustrous fibre shorn from the Kashmir goat, whose fleece grows in uniform locks and is clipped twice a year
  • D. The coarse outer guard hair of the Angora rabbit, separated from the down before it is spun

Q10. Recognition of Changthangi as one of the 219 registered indigenous breeds of 16 species enumerated in the 21st Livestock Census is accorded by which one of the following bodies?

  • A. ICAR-Central Institute for Research on Goats, Makhdoom
  • B. ICAR-Central Sheep and Wool Research Institute, Avikanagar
  • C. ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izzatnagar
  • D. ICAR-National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources, Karnal

Q11. Which one of the following statements about the largest source of India's pashmina fibre is correct?

  • A. Ladakh yields about 80 per cent of India's pashmina, from Changthangi goats of the Changthang plateau
  • B. Ladakh yields about 80 per cent of India's pashmina, from Angora goats introduced into the Changthang plateau
  • C. Himachal Pradesh yields about 80 per cent of India's pashmina, from Changthangi goats of the Changthang plateau
  • D. Ladakh yields about 80 per cent of India's pashmina, obtained by shearing the coarse outer guard hair of Changthangi goats

Q12. In ICAR's research administration, an All-India Co-ordinated Research Project (AICRP) is best described as which one of the following?

  • A. A centrally sponsored subsidy scheme under which entrepreneurs receive capital assistance to set up livestock breeding farms
  • B. A multi-location research programme executed jointly by ICAR institutes, State agricultural universities and State departments
  • C. A statutory registration exercise through which indigenous livestock germplasm is recognised as a distinct breed
  • D. A five-yearly door-to-door enumeration of livestock holdings carried out through State animal husbandry departments

Q13. Which one of the following is the principal ICAR institute devoted specifically to goat research in India?

  • A. The National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources, Karnal, which alone conducts all goat breeding research in the country
  • B. The Central Sheep and Wool Research Institute, Avikanagar, the sole coordinating centre for every livestock research project
  • C. The Central Institute for Research on Goats, Makhdoom, which maintains a research and development herd of Jamunapari goats
  • D. The Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Mukteswar, which exclusively handles all fibre-goat improvement in the country

Q14. With reference to the regulation of centrally protected monuments in India, consider the following statements: Which of the statements given above is/are NOT correct?

  1. The Archaeological Survey of India was established in 1904 and is the principal organisation for archaeological research and the protection of monuments of national importance.
  2. In a prohibited area, repair and renovation of an existing building may be permitted by the Competent Authority on the recommendation of the National Monuments Authority.
  3. The Act permits fresh construction within the prohibited area of a centrally protected monument as a matter of right.
  4. Monuments declared to be of national importance are protected under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958.
  • A. 3 only
  • B. 1 and 3
  • C. 1, 2 and 4
  • D. 2 and 3

Q15. With reference to the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 and its administration, consider the following: Which of the above is/are correctly identified?

  1. The prohibited area extends to a distance of one hundred metres in all directions from the protected limit of a centrally protected monument.
  2. The regulated area begins at the limit of the prohibited area and extends a further two hundred metres in all directions.
  3. The Archaeological Survey of India functions under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
  4. Clearance for construction falling within the regulated limits of a centrally protected monument is obtained from the National Monuments Authority through an online NOC application and processing system.
  • A. 1 and 2 only
  • B. 1, 2 and 4
  • C. 2, 3 and 4
  • D. 1 and 4 only

Q16. Which one of the following observatories of the Jantar Mantar group is described by UNESCO as the most significant and best preserved set of fixed monumental instruments built in India in the first half of the 18th century, and stands inscribed on the World Heritage List?

  • A. The observatory at Delhi, adjoining the colonial-era Parliament Street in the capital
  • B. The observatory at Jaipur, in the city founded by Sawai Jai Singh in 1727
  • C. The observatory at Ujjain, on the traditional prime meridian of Indian astronomy
  • D. The observatory at Varanasi, situated on the terrace above the Ganga ghats

Q17. In the Jantar Mantar observatories built under Sawai Jai Singh II, the 'Brihat Samrat Yantra' denotes which one of the following?

  • A. A hemispherical bowl sunk into the ground, with crosswires stretched across it to fix the position of a celestial body
  • B. A pair of open cylindrical structures with graduated floors and walls, used to read the altitude and azimuth of a body
  • C. A masonry equinoctial sundial about 27 metres high, whose gnomon and quadrants are read to obtain time and celestial position
  • D. A composite instrument assembling several devices on one platform, used to obtain meridian time at distant places